The International Criminal Court (ICC) is being threatened by US president Donald Trump, who sanctioned nine ICC staff members, including judges and prosecutors, and Russian president Vladimir Putin, who has issued warrants for ICC staff. This is one of the most glaring examples of conflict between the old, competing imperial powers and a contemporary voice of accountability, liberation and justice.

With the world outraged by US support of Israel as it commits a horrific genocide in Gaza, and the brutality of the Russian war on Ukraine, I cannot help but think of a quote by the late Antonio Gramsci: “The old world is dying, and the new world struggles to be born: now is the time of monsters.”

We are at the confluence of epochs. As late capitalism rips apart our world for every last coin, a new voice is crying out for an end to its tyranny and violence. In the meantime, we suffer with the malevolent machinations, avarice and mendacity of the monsters among us who still have control over the levers of power in this world.

Kenn Orfanos, December 2025