Leah Cowan
Writer - non-fiction
Books
Leah Cowan is a writer and editor on race, gender, migration, state violence and their intersections. She is the former Politics Editor at gal-dem, an online magazine and media platform run by women and non-binary people of colour. Leah also works at Project 17, an advice centre for migrant families who have No Recourse to Public Funds and are facing homelessness and destitution. Leah has written for publications including Vice UK, Huck, DOPE magazine, and the Guardian and in October 2018 delivered a TEDxTalk presenting an intersectional analysis of emotional labour. Leah speaks and lectures, including for UN Women, in the House of Commons, at the Trades Union Congress, and at Queen Mary University of London. Her first book, BORDER NATION, breaking down the borders of migration,(Pluto Press, Spring 2021) has just been followed by WHY WOULD FEMINISTS TRUST THE POLICE? with Verso Books (2024).
Praise for WHY WOULD FEMINISTS TRUST THE POLICE?
"Makes a critical intervention at a critical point in time for British feminism - challenging its tendency to erase, mask and overlook the tangled history of both resistance and complicity between feminists and the police … Why Would Feminists Trust the Police? offers a crucial examination of the complex relationship between British feminism and the state, and presents a roadmap for the understanding and dismantling the entanglements between feminism, patriarchy, and state violence" - Isabella Kajiwara for Red Pepper
"Cowan approaches her abolitionist arguments with a clear expertise and care, and her exploration of the ways in which carceral policies impact marginalised communities reflects her career in the sector. Her searing critiques of the state are calm and cutting, but her visions of an alternative are tender and hopeful" - The Skinny
Non-Fiction
| Publication Details | Notes |
|---|---|
BORDER NATION 2021 Pluto Press | Borders are not just meaningless geographical lines. They have an impact on all of our lives, whether it's the fallout from Brexit or the inhumanity of a detention center. In Border Nation, Leah Cowan shows how borders are violent, oppressive, and must be resisted. Looking back, we learn of the elitist, colonial and patriarchal origins of borders, explore the vital history of anti-racist, anti-border organizing and hear stories from people who have crossed partitions. Debunking myths around migration, Leah Cowan unpacks the 'hostile environment' and reveals how healthcare crises, terrorism, unemployment and housing shortages are often manipulated by politicians and the media to vilify migrants. As borders grow, migrants are policed and immigration controls are tightened, this book transforms our understanding of borders, migration and our fight for belonging. |
WHY WOULD FEMINISTS TRUST THE POLICE? 2024 Verso Books | A tangled history of feminism’s complicity and resistance Every week it seems there is a fresh scandal involving abhorrent, racist, misogynist behaviour by police officers. Yet these are the very people women are supposed to approach for help when faced with violence. And many feminists, hoping to use the criminal justice system to protect women, fight for stronger laws and longer sentences for those who harm them. Why Would Feminists Trust the Police? traces the history of British feminism’s alliances and struggles with the law and its enforcers. Drawing on the legacy of Black British feminism, Leah Cowan reminds us of the vibrant and creative alternatives envisioned by those who have long known the truth: the police aren’t feminist, and the law does not keep women safe. |