Creative Commons/Jon Sullivan An inescapable fixture in our society, clocks wrench us from our homes by reminding us of our duty to work. Marx decried the “despotic bell” of the workplace and showed how human time is appropriated by the “boundless thirst” of capitalism. Creative Commons/Jon More

Sarah Rhee ( sarah-ji.com ) As neoliberalism has taken hold, our society has become increasingly structured around the state-sanctioned violence of mass incarceration. Here, a demonstrator in Chicago protests youth incarceration and the high rates of sexual violence against youth in prison More

Ypsilanti Historical Society The leaders of the black social gospel movement, including AME Bishop Reverdy C. Ransom, often faced opposition from their own congregations. Here, an AME congregation is assembled at Brown Chapel AME Church in Ypsilanti, Michigan. Ypsilanti Historical Society More

LB Goldberg’s photography class sought to counter society’s oversimplified vision of “the life of a sex worker” by inviting participants to tell their own narratives. “It’s not all about misery and despair,” Goldberg writes. “There are pictures of friends and loved ones, pictures of pets, pictures More

LB Goldberg’s photography class sought to counter society’s oversimplified vision of “the life of a sex worker” by inviting participants to tell their own narratives. “It’s not all about misery and despair,” Goldberg writes. “There are pictures of friends and loved ones, pictures of pets, pictures More

Adrienne Rich is a woman who could evoke the history of malaise in our society, along with the suppressions stored in our individual and collective subconscious Adrienne Rich is a woman who could evoke the history of malaise in our society, along with the suppressions stored in our individual More

Joel Orduna Rivera Our nearest primate relatives, the chimpanzees, live in hierarchal bands dominated by alpha males. What can explain the comparative egalitarianism of early hunter-gatherer societies? Joel Orduna Rivera. / Our nearest primate relatives, the chimpanzees, live in hierarchal bands More

Olivia Wise ( oliviawisestudio.com ) What if every baby had a state-mandated trust fund? Our society’s wealth could provide an umbrella of safety and a feeling of freedom for every child. Illustration by Olivia Wise. Olivia Wise (oliviawisestudio.com). / What if every baby had a state-mandated More

Building Bridges and Katherine Chilcote ( clevelandmurals.org ) To resist the atomization of capitalist society, we need to build a counterculture of generosity, compassion, truth-telling, and joy, the author writes. Detail from Envisioning Racial Fairness. Building Bridges and Katherine More

Creative Commons/Claude Vignon With the development of agriculture, the egalitarianism of early human societies gave way to increasing inequality. This painting by Claude Vignon depicts King Croesus, a fifth-century ruler whose wealth became legendary. Creative Commons/Claude Vignon More