Eugene Debs Really Loved Bicycles
Here’s a summer story you never knew you needed: an 1895 article by Eugene Debs waxing poetic about bicycles, which he said would “liberate millions” and bring “the enrapturing panorama of nature” to all.
20401 Article(s) by: Alex Press
The Right Uses College Campuses as Its Training Grounds
Conservatives love to bemoan their supposed status as oppressed minorities in universities. But the college campus has long been a key site for the Right’s recruitment and training of future reactionary leaders and foot soldiers.
Remembering the Revolutionary Cinema of Pino Solanas
Argentine filmmaker Fernando “Pino” Solanas was the father of Third Cinema, the left-wing Latin American filmmaking movement of the 1960s and ’70s. In this 2016 interview with Pablo Iglesias, Solanas talks about his life, his work, and his politics.
When Peoria Banned Paul Robeson
In April 1947, Paul Robeson, the outspoken leftist artist and singer, was barred from performing in Peoria, Illinois. The repressive move, though fought by a radical labor union of black and white workers, prefigured the Red Scare that would soon envelop the country.
Landlords Are Pushing the Supreme Court to End Rent Control
Two landlord lobbying groups are petitioning the Supreme Court to overturn New York City’s rent stabilization law, which would allow further countrywide challenges to rent control. Real estate billionaires friendly with court justices are backing the move.
UPS Teamsters Have Won Big. But for Some Workers, Raised Expectations Have Outpaced Gains.
At UPS, Teamsters just won a historic tentative agreement. Some workers are looking at what the union won without a strike and concluding it should have demanded even more — and creating demands for the next contract fight.
AOC and the Squad’s List of Left-Wing Accomplishments Is Quite Long
As with any elected official, Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and the Squad should be criticized when needed. But left-wing vitriol is unwarranted: it ignores the Squad’s many progressive accomplishments and their legislation’s aid to activist campaigns.
Star Trek Gave Us a Utopian Vision of an Egalitarian, Postcapitalist Future
Unlike many classic works of sci-fi, Star Trek offered an optimistic vision of humanity’s future — one where democracy triumphs, exploitation is ended, and everyone’s material needs are met.
European Authorities Refuse to Save Migrants From Drowning — So Ordinary Citizens Are Doing It Instead
In June, Italy’s government impounded the Sea-Eye 4 rescue ship for 20 days as part of a crackdown on NGOs that save migrants’ lives at sea. Crew members told Jacobin why they won’t be intimidated by authorities who routinely leave migrants to drown.
Australian Women’s Soccer Team the Matildas Are on the Brink of Making History
For as long as the team has existed, the Matildas have stood up against sexist discrimination and exploitation. Now they’re within striking distance of the Women’s World Cup.
The United Federation of Teachers Isn’t Fighting Back Hard Enough
Teachers unions across the country are organizing alongside community members, striking, and advancing an agenda that benefits teachers, students, and the entire working class. Not so in my union, New York City’s United Federation of Teachers.
Anti-China Trade Laws Won’t Stop Global Supply Chain Abuses
Despite laws meant to root out forced labor from US solar companies’ supply chains in places like China, many companies continue to use it. Anti-China laws do little to stop such abuses — but they do add fuel to a new Cold War with China.
Moneyball Made Sports Worse
Twenty years ago, Michael Lewis’s book Moneyball became a huge hit, telling the story of how data-driven analytics produced a winning baseball team. But it also prefigured a broader trend in sports fandom, blemished by gambling and financial speculation.
The Economic Situation for Millions of Americans Is Still Incredibly Dire
President Biden keeps touting improved economic indicators that don’t necessarily reflect the conditions of working people. Rather, data reveals an ongoing humanitarian crisis — one that Democrats were complicit in making, but so far refuse to acknowledge.
Conservatives Think “Marxism” Is Anything That Scares Them
One of the leading lights of national conservatism, Yoram Hazony, devotes a chapter of his new book to the “Marxist challenge.” But like so many other conservatives, he seems to think Marxism means “anything conservatives find frightening.”
The Irish Diaspora Is Leading the Trade Union Revival in Britain
A cabinet minister recently spoke of “two Micks” leading the strike wave in Britain, in a seeming dig against their Irish heritage. But the Irish diaspora’s role in the labor movement is very real, in a country that long relied on its neighbor for cheap labor.
Gradual Measures Won’t Save Us From Climate Disaster
Rich countries are gradually cutting carbon emissions — but that won’t be nearly enough to stop climate disasters, like the heat wave now ravaging the planet. We need drastic, state-led action to rapidly decarbonize our economies.
Democratic Socialism Can Make Liberal Rights Real
Under capitalism, the formal equality guaranteed under the law is a farce. Democratic socialism can guarantee liberal rights like free speech while shattering the resource imbalances of capitalism.
New York Socialists Are Showing How to Stand Up to the Israel Lobby
In New York State, nonprofits complicit in Israel’s illegal settlements rake in tens of millions of dollars in tax-exempt donations per year. Socialist lawmakers are fighting to change that — and loosen the Israel lobby’s stranglehold on US politics.
Strange Planet’s Socially Awkward Blue Aliens Are Now on TV
Making the leap from four-paneled comic to animated series, Nathan W. Pyle’s Apple TV+ show Strange Planet drowns its unique and subtle charms with far too much plot, character, and story. It’s unfortunately boring as hell.