How Wall Street Gets Its Way
Bernie Sanders and Barbara Lee want to tax Wall Street transactions. Corporate America’s lobbyists are fighting them tooth and nail. A new report explains why the sector so rarely has to swallow its own political defeat.
20410 Article(s) by: Alex Press
When It Comes to Palestine, Free Speech Rights Are Under Attack
A frightening wave of firings, threats, and retaliation against pro-Palestinian writers and activists has chilled the political climate. Now, more than ever, the “Palestine exception” to free speech standards is being challenged.
Which Dianne Morales Will New York City Get?
Diane Morales has managed to secure the endorsements of groups like the Working Families Party behind progressive campaign promises. But she’s also a landlord, a supporter of “school choice,” and someone who “probably” supported Andrew Cuomo in 2018. How should we understand her contradictions?
India Walton: Corporate Democrats Gave Us Austerity, We Need Something Different
India Walton is a Democratic Socialists of America–endorsed candidate for mayor in Buffalo, New York. In an interview with Jacobin, she talks about the desperate need for change in the city, what progressive mayors can do, and why it’s time to stop supporting corporate Democrats.
We Need to Change How We Talk About Climate Action
The Left needs a message on climate action that’s about giving more opportunities for working-class people rather than restricting individual behavior.
Chileans Voted for an End to Neoliberalism
Last week, the people of Chile voted for sweeping structural reform and an end to neoliberalism. It’s one of the Left’s biggest victories since the end of Augusto Pinochet’s dictatorship.
Andrew Yang as Mayor Will Be a Disaster for New York
Andrew Yang presents himself as a pathbreaker with innovative solutions to social problems. But New York has already tried this kind of technocratic politics in the 1960s and ’70s, and it ended up leading to austerity and social disorder.
“Unions Are a Pain in the Ass. Yet We Have No Choice but to Build Good Unions”
Union organizer Jane McAlevey on labor’s loss at Amazon in Alabama, what the future of labor organizing success depends on, and how organizers can win.
Canada Is in the Business of Death and Destruction Too
Canada is deeply implicated in the blood-soaked global arms trade. It won’t stop until we make it stop.
Palestine Is No Longer the Third Rail for Democrats
Today’s cease-fire is a victory and a relief for Palestinians. But with Palestinians still under siege, the struggle against ethnic cleansing and occupation isn’t over. For Democrats, “progressive except Palestine” still won’t cut it.
François Mitterrand Gave French Socialists Power at the Price of Their Soul
Forty years ago today, François Mitterrand became the first socialist president of France’s Fifth Republic. But after his early attempt at left-wing reforms was defeated, Mitterrand’s tenure helped turn the Parti Socialiste into a pillar of the political establishment.
Charles Koch Funded the Push to Lift the Eviction Ban — While Expanding His Real Estate Holdings
Billionaire Charles Koch has bankrolled the campaign to end eviction bans during the pandemic. At the same time, his company has been buying up real estate, giving him a strong financial incentive to kick tenants out.
Chipotle Is a Nightmare Employer
Chipotle says it is raising its starting wage to $11 an hour. It’s not enough for many workers who say the company’s business model relies on understaffing and overwork, leaving them stressed and with little choice but to cut corners on food safety.
Karl Marx Saw Signs of the Socialist Future in the Paris Commune
Today marks 150 years since the start of the Bloody Week, when the French army drowned the Paris Commune in blood. For Karl Marx, the Paris revolution was the greatest working-class uprising in his lifetime — and a model for what socialism might look like.
Colombia Is in Revolt Against Neoliberalism
More than five million Colombians — 10 percent of the country’s total population — have taken to the streets over the past two weeks to protest neoliberal policies, government corruption, police brutality, and the systematic murder of activists.
After Almost a Decade, Fight for $15 Has Made Progress — But It’s Not Enough
A national “Fight for $15 and a Union” action yesterday saw thousands of McDonald’s workers walk out of their jobs against low pay and disrespect on the job. The decade-long campaign has seen acts of heroism by low-wage workers — but it hasn’t yet been enough to win.
Novelist Cory Doctorow on the Problem With Intellectual Property
Patents were once seen as a temporary reward for inventors. Now, as novelist Cory Doctorow tells Jacobin, they’ve become supposedly inviolable “intellectual property” rights that simply enrich people like Bill Gates.
Joe Biden’s Drilling Moratorium Is Not a Moratorium
During his first week in office, Joe Biden signed an executive order pausing oil and gas leases on federal land. But a few months later, it’s clear the modest action will do little to rein in US carbon emissions.
AMLO Has a Project to Transform Mexico
Mexico is set to hold crucial midterm elections early next month. Though far from perfect, the governing MORENA party remains the Left’s best bet to transform the unequal, corruption-addled country that AMLO’s administration inherited three years ago.
Tony Blair Wants to Drag the Left Into His Own Political Grave
Tony Blair has a message for the center-left parties of Europe and the US: let business do whatever it likes and pander to the Right at all costs. Blair’s latest intervention is a glorified infomercial on behalf of the billionaires who support his globe-trotting vanity projects.