Immigration and climate change might just matter more than getting that next grant

Abstract

Why has cultural studies had little impact on right-wing populism’s assault on immigration and climate science? I suggest that this failure lies in three tendencies: first, a continued if increasingly cliché sunny optimism about the popular; second, the priority accorded to getting grants, which depoliticizes so much work; and third, an embrace of creative-industries discourse. The first tendency supposedly gives a link to our origins; the second, to legitimacy; and the third, to relevance. All render us ill-equipped to deal with contemporary and future crises.