The 26-county state’s tradition of engaging in principled neutrality has its roots in our anti-colonial struggle, writes Kieran Allen. We have no choice but to defend it vigorously against the pressures of empire and oppression.

Ireland’s artistic reputation thrives abroad, yet at home the system supporting creative freedom is under strain. Sara and Joshua Muthi argue that art cannot survive on private patronage alone and ask if the republic will protect it as a space of freedom or let it fall to market forces.

In this interview, veteran republican activist Mitchel McLaughlin reflects on his involvement in running Number 1 West End Park, a semi-derelict Derry townhouse that was converted into a space for insurgent cultural and political organisations.

Under Macron, French workers face sweeping neoliberal reforms but have won key battles. Shane OCurry highlights the worker-owned Duralex glassware cooperative, showing how workers challenge neoliberal norms and hinting at a potential path forward for Europe.

Sinéad Mercier reflects on Ireland’s ecological, feminist, and republican legacies, from Celtic and Abrahamic kinship to the land wars and Rundale system, asking what kind of republic we live in and what kind we might still create.

A republic is more than identity or law, writes Claire Mitchell, author of The Ghost Limb. Seeking a republic giving real power to people, she finds hope in community initiatives in her hometown of Newtownards.