Lisa Foster is a member of Serai's editorial board and the publishing manager.

I have dodged the bullet until now, but it has finally caught up with me. As the Publishing Manager, I have skirted around the responsibility of putting together an issue editorially, on most occasions. I have prepared reports and documents for our editorial board, but somehow when it came to the more artistic and the editorializing function, I remained on the sidelines. Having been a member of the editorial board of Serai since its inception, I have enjoyed a background role. However, my time has come.

I have studied our hit statistics every quarter and noticed that when the titles were more risqué we tended to have more hits. So to a certain extent the theme for this issue is 'state control undressed'. Sign of the times? Well! It should at least grab some attention from those who google for careless pleasures only, but at the same time bring into focus some burning issues that face us today. This issue touches upon a number of important topics which we feel need to be addressed, discussed, dissected and exposed. Intricate issues, delicate issues and obviously controversial issues.

In Yahia Lababidi’s article “That Bitch Sensuality”, we look at the impact of state and social sanctions upon sexuality and the “the incredible lengths imagination will go to conjure up what is forbidden”.

Orissa Arend’s article titled “The Good Lent” documents events that temporarily closed St. Augustine’s parish shortly after Katrina, the parallels to events in the 70’s and how the community came together to stand up against such imposed control.

Maria's Worton's interview of Robert Richardson makes very personal the impact of Katrina and the government's reaction to it.

Maya Khankhoje reviews Tariq Ali’s and David Barsamian’s book called Speaking of Empire and Resistance: Conversations with Tariq Ali. Maya concludes that one should “ read this book and you will get a very clear understanding of the history that the media and academia are so assiduously trying to obliterate.”

Beautiful paintings and a number of moving prose and poetry round up this issue.