The Choice Between Politics and Art Is a False One
In Either/Or, Elif Batuman’s follow-up novel to The Idiot, she looks back to a time in her life when she felt compelled to choose between a political life and an artistic one. We can have both.
20401 Article(s) by: Alex Press
The Bob’s Burgers Movie Sides With Working-Class Eccentrics
The cult-favorite TV show Bob’s Burgers is now a movie — and it works, even if its low-key charms don’t always dazzle on the big screen.
The European Union Was Designed to Stifle Democracy
Perry Anderson’s critical analysis of the European Union is a devastating indictment of liberal complacency. The EU is undemocratic by design, and we will have to confront it in order to transform a Europe riddled with inequality and exploitation.
Rikers Island Has Made Us All Prisoners
New York City’s infamous jail on Rikers Island is one of the most brutal institutions of incarceration in America. Its conditions are the product not just of “tough-on-crime” policies but also of the best intentions of liberal criminal-justice reformers.
Corporate America’s Favorite Legal Trick Is Backfiring
For decades, companies have used arbitration agreements to shirk responsibilities to their customers and employees. Now the tables are starting to turn, as customers and employees use such agreements against corporations.
The Summit of the Americas Is an Instrument of US Hegemony in Latin America
The US has attempted to exclude several countries from next month’s Summit of the Americas in Los Angeles. The move has only backfired, prompting a boycott of the summit and renewed calls for an alternative union of Latin American and Caribbean countries.
Doug Ford Wants to Continue Assaulting Public Education in Ontario
Attacks on universal public education are rooted in a belief that working-class children don’t deserve quality schooling. That’s the mindset of Ontario premier Doug Ford, who will keep up those attacks if reelected next week.
The Rise of Zombie Firms Risks Another Disastrous Crisis
Zombie companies are those whose profits are so low they can’t even pay the interest on their debts. They’re becoming an increasingly large part of the economy — and they risk pitching us into another full-scale crisis.
Did Elites Really Take Over Identity Politics?
In his new book, Elite Capture, Olúfémi Táíwò argues that elites have hijacked identity politics — but what if it belonged to them all along?
The Ukraine Aid Bill Is a Massive Windfall for US Military Contractors
Joe Biden has signed a $40 billion aid bill to Ukraine. But the biggest beneficiary isn’t ordinary Ukrainians — it’s the US military contractors set to receive at least $17 billion in additional revenue.
Hollywood Never Fully Appreciated Ray Liotta’s Immense Talent
Ray Liotta has died suddenly at the age of 67. He should have been a major star — but after his greatest role in Martin Scorsese’s Goodfellas, we never really got a chance to see everything he could do.
In Ontario’s Election, None of the Promises to Labor Are Good Enough
Ontario’s political parties are all courting labor for the upcoming election. But nothing currently on offer will result in serious change for the Canadian labor movement.
We’re Organizing Unions at Amazon and Starbucks. We Won’t Back Down.
Amazon labor organizer Chris Smalls and Starbucks organizer Jaz Brisack talk to Jacobin about racist union busting, being invited to the White House, and how genuine human interaction is the key to workplace organizing when the boss treats workers like robots.
Biden Is Aiming to Destroy a Historic Climate Change Lawsuit
Juliana v. United States is a historic climate change lawsuit seeking to establish a constitutional right to a livable planet. But the Biden administration has indicated it will fight tooth and nail to prevent the lawsuit from ever getting a trial.
Aleida Guevara, Daughter of Che, on the Power of Cuban Internationalism
During the height of Ebola and the COVID-19 pandemic, Cuba sent doctors around the world to help poor nations. Aleida Guevara, daughter of Ernesto “Che” Guevara, explains why international solidarity is central to Cuban socialism.
AOC Is Endorsing the Full Slate of New York Democratic Socialist State Candidates
In a first, Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez has endorsed the entire 13-member “For the Many” New York City Democratic Socialists of America slate of candidates for New York state senate and assembly.
What Do Socialists Actually Believe?
No major US poll has asked if respondents identify as socialist, much less what they actually think. A new survey finds that socialists aren’t just more pro-redistribution and class-conscious than liberals — they’re also far less racist and xenophobic.
Canada’s Telecom Oligopoly Is a Hungry Beast That Will Never Be Sated
Two of Canada’s behemoth telecoms are planning a merger. Yet Canadians already pay some of the highest prices in the world for broadband and wireless service. A ready-made solution exists in one of the country’s provinces: a state-owned service provider.
A People’s History of Baseball
Communists fighting the color line. Baseball players resisting owners. America’s pastime has a fascinating, untold history of radical struggles against racial injustice and labor exploitation.
Happening Is an Abortion Story About Working-Class Women
Audrey Diwan’s film adaptation of Annie Ernaux’s abortion memoir, Happening, captures the violence and drama of its source material. It depicts a time when sex, for young women — without the resources of contraception and abortion — carried unfathomable consequences.