In One Hand the Gun: Militancy in South Asia

In One Hand the Gun: Militancy in South Asia is the latest issue of Jamhoor Magazine, distributed by Common Notions. It explores armed resistance from the vantage point of South Asia, engaging debates around revolutionary violence within the subcontinent. Against the dominant narrative that frames South Asia as a testament to pacifism—often through the singular glorification of Gandhi—the issue foregrounds lesser-known national liberation and anti-imperialist struggles where militant resistance played a decisive historical role. From Balochistan to Bangladesh, the journal situates revolutionary violence within its political and historical contexts, offering critical perspectives on how such struggles have shaped the region.

Jamhoor is a Left media platform for South Asia and its diasporas. Its name—meaning “the people” in Urdu—reflects its commitments to internationalism and to challenging structures of imperialism, capitalism, patriarchy, casteism, racism, and queerphobia. Jamhoor seeks not only to analyze the world as it is, but to imagine and build radical alternatives for collective thriving.

This event is jointly organized by Making Worlds and Common Notions, together with the Jamhoor.

Hosted by Asian Arts Initiative and co-sponsored by Philadelphia Democratic Socialists of America, SALAM, and AISAA (Anti-imperialist South Asian Alliance)