While attending the “Men and Masculinities in Transition” conference in Stockholm, The Conversation Canada contributor Reena Kukreja — a professor of global development studies at Queen’s University — found herself deep in discussion with scholars from around the world. They talked not just about her research, but about a gripping new Netflix series: Secrets We Keep (Reservatet).

The six-part Danish drama follows the disappearance of a Filipina au pair from an elite suburb of Copenhagen. What begins as a suspenseful mystery quickly becomes a sharp racial and class critique — exposing how white privilege, gendered expectations and migrant exploitation intersect in everyday life.

At the conference, Kukreja developed her article that’s today’s lead story in The Conversation Canada. It reveals powerful connections between the series and research on the commodification of the care labour provided by Global South women, the “ownership” mentality of wealthy host families and what’s known as the Nordic Paradox — the co-existence of gender equality and high rates of violence against women in Scandinavia.

In Secrets We Keep, the complicity of white women in upholding patriarchal and racial power structures is front and centre. As Kukreja writes of the show: “Even well-meaning women maintain their silence and participate in gendered violence to hold onto their own privilege — while keeping up a façade of compassion.”

Read the full piece. It’s about a lot more than TV — it’s a catalyst for deeper discussions.

Also today:

• How Israeli and U.S. strikes against Iran were facilitated by the Russia-Ukraine war
• Why brands are embracing fantasy: The psychology behind escapist marketing in anxious times
• Canada needs a national AI literacy strategy to help students navigate AI

All the best.