On an early Sunday evening in Manhattan’s Chinatown, a group of artists and journalists gathered at Imperial Ballroom, a longstanding family-run dance studio, to mark the launch of Equator, a new magazine focusing on politics, art, and culture. The event combined a celebration of the magazine’s first issue with performances and socializing in a space decorated with floor-to-ceiling mirrors and accompanied by a soundtrack of Caribbean, African, and Middle Eastern music.
Equator, a thrice-yearly publication, positions itself as a platform for global perspectives that rule out traditional Western-centric narratives. The magazine’s art director and editor, Negar Azimi, described Chinatown as an ideal neighborhood for the launch, considering its historical ties to the non-Western world—a key theme explored in the magazine’s content. The debut issue features a striking cover image of a boy wearing blue eye shadow and red lipstick at a transgender festival in Villupuram, Tamil Nadu.
The magazine includes a diverse range of stories, among them an oral history of China’s manufacturing shift presented through migrant workers’ experiences, a memoir by a Mongolian journalist recounting re-education under the Chinese Communist Party, and a personal account by a former minister chronicling the rise and fall of Spain’s left-wing party, Podemos. Despite covering serious global issues, co-founder and editor Krithika Varagur emphasized the magazine’s hopeful outlook, distancing it from “doom and gloom” reporting.
Varagur, 32, who also edits the literary magazine The Drift, became involved in the project after being approached by writer Pankaj Mishra. Mishra assembled a group of journalists and writers seeking an alternative to mainstream foreign affairs coverage, which Azimi critiqued as “boilerplate journalism” especially evident in reporting on the war in Gaza. The team aims to shift away from an American-dominated viewpoint, offering perspectives from editors based not only in New York and London but also in Nairobi and Lahore.
Jonathan Shainin, an editor who recently transitioned from The Guardian’s Long Read section, underscored the timing of the magazine’s creation. “The project was conceived in the Biden era,” he said, noting the weakening of American dominance and the growing global appetite for new narratives, particularly amid concerns about a possible return of former President Trump.
Publisher Gavin Jacobson highlighted the magazine’s commitment to featuring writers outside the usual circles of major publications, citing a favorite piece on Guangdong factory workers by Chinese poet Zheng Xiaoqiong as an example. During the launch party, contributors were invited to read excerpts from their work, including novelist Zain Khalid, who appreciated Equator’s willingness to forgo conventional relatability in favor of telling difficult truths.
The gathering reflected a broader effort to meet contemporary global challenges through community and creative exchange. Brooklyn filmmaker Anthony DiMieri, who contributed to the magazine’s social media, noted the importance of coming together in response to a world marked by profound difficulties. Among the attendees was Emily Greenhouse, editor of The New York Review of Books, who characterized Equator as both a “movement” and a magazine, praising its distinctive style.
As the celebration continued into the evening with drinks and conversation, the launch of Equator signaled the arrival of a new voice in international journalism, one determined to rethink how global stories are told.