Trauma of Forgotten War: Democratic Republic of Congo

man with military style weapon
A “military bourgeoisie” has used the country’s complex set of conflicts-within-conflicts for career advancement, financing their private wars through kidnapping, the taxation of commodities and movement of people, poaching, and protection rackets.

Tribal Sovereignty and Struggle for Democracy in 2020

audience of Native Americans listening to Candidate Sanders
In Indian Country, we’re in a political moment which is ripe for Native grassroots organizing, the best in my lifetime. Tribal sovereignty will only be realized for all Indian Nations with a broad and deep democratic system.

Builders of Israel’s Apartheid Walls Profit From US

intimidating border wall with barbed wire covering
A major Israeli weapons company has been named as one of the top profiteers of US border militarization.

The US Border Security Industry Worth $740 Billion

Although Trump’s unabashedly anti-immigrant agenda has amplified the brutality of the border regime, he is merely capitalizing on a massive, entrenched network of corporate power and political influence.

When Your Public Utility Is Owned By Private Investors

building with Pacific Gas & Electric carving
Widescale power shutdown reveals the depth of California’s infrastructure problems amid a growing climate crisis.

How Jurassic Plankton Stole Control of the Ocean

Only 170 million years ago, new plankton evolved. Their demand for carbon and calcium permanently transformed the seas as homes for life.

Housing Wealth Transferred From Families to Corporation

The Great Housing Reset has led to growing numbers of single-family homes shifting from owner-occupied housing to investment vehicles for large corporations.

Land Reform and the Green New Deal

Few Green New Deal proposals include explicit attention to rural people and places. That must change.

The Ghost of Jimmy Hoffa Won’t Go Away

Martin Scorsese’s new film The Irishman continues Hollywood’s obsession with the disappearance of Jimmy Hoffa. We’re more concerned with what happened to Teamster working conditions under his son, James P. Hoffa.

Not the First Time the US Has Abandoned the Kurds

While Trump’s policies certainly deserve to be challenged, they should not be seen as a major departure from decades of cynical and treacherous U.S. policy toward the Kurdish people.
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Culture

poetry

Noon in a three star restaurant

Marge Piercy Chiron Review
“He does not represent us,” writes poet Marge Piercy about the misogynist Senator, but knows the “clichés that light up brains.”

books

Top 10 Books About Black Radicalism

Kehinde Andrews The Guardian
In honoring Black History Month, the author lists 10 superlative books by radical voices instrumental in cohering modern black thought.

books

Building America

William P. Jones The Nation
This new book offers a history and analysis of the contributions of black workers to our society. It shows just how key a knowledge of black workers' history is to an understanding the working class's fortunes and history overall.

Labor

labor

The Radical Guidebook Embraced by Google Workers and Uber Drivers

Noam Scheiber The New York Times
Technology and ride-hailing workers embrace lessons from a book based on ideas associated with a labor group, the IWW, from the early 20th century. The book has provided a blueprint for organizing collective power without a formal union.

labor

Religious Freedom: Freedom to Discriminate?

Ken Estey Working Class Perspectives
The Trump Administration is arguing at the Supreme Court that employers should be able to fire LGBTQ workers. If religion can be used to deny workers rights as individuals, it can be used to upend the struggle for collective rights and dignity.

labor

The Return of the Strike

Sarah Jaffe The Progressive
The picketing GM workers and impending Chicago Teachers Union action suggest a dramatic revival of striking as a tactic.

Friday nite video

video

Jokerman | John Cruz

A new video from Playing for Change featuring John Cruz's soulful rendition of Bob Dylan's "Jokerman." Filmed on the beautiful island of Oahu, Hawai'i.