A. Philip Randolph and Bayard Rustin Have a Model for Today
Bayard Rustin and A. Philip Randolph’s Jobs and Freedom Strategy offers a path forward for a Left that has become increasingly insular, minoritarian, and powerless.
58 Articles by: Benjamin Y. Fong
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Benjamin Y. Fong is associate director of the Center for Work and Democracy at Arizona State University. He has a Substack focusing on labor and logistics called On the Seams.
The CIO’s Heyday Was the High Tide of the American Labor Movement
In the 1930s and ’40s, the Congress of Industrial Organizations unionized American workers with an energy never seen before. But its peak years were short-lived, and the labor movement has struggled to reach such heights again.
The Largest Health Care Strike in US History Is Set to Begin Tomorrow
Tomorrow, 75,000 health care workers are set to strike at hundreds of Kaiser facilities across several states in the largest such strike in US history. Their primary grievance is low staffing levels, which unions say are hurting patients and workers alike.
Understanding Americans’ Gonzo Relationship to Drug Use
The US is remarkable for its extreme relationship to drugs, marked by a love affair with psychoactive substances of all kinds and also draconian efforts to curtail drug use. That relationship has roots in America’s particularly virulent strain of capitalism.
The Unfulfilled Promise of the Freedom Budget
Activist and organizer Norman Hill was present for every major development in the civil rights movement during the 1960s. He spoke to Jacobin about the arc of the movement, the legacy of its leadership, and the lessons for the modern left.
Moral Crusading Is No Substitute for Mass Working-Class Politics
In the absence of a powerful workers’ movement, 19th-century reformers blamed alcohol for poverty and despair. Their assumption that moral shortcomings rather than political and economic ones were the root cause unfortunately resonates with our politics today.
You Should Know About Labor Leader John Brophy
John Brophy earned the moniker “Mr. CIO” in the 1930s for his excellent organizing for the Congress of Industrial Organizations. He was steadfast and never flashy, which is perhaps why he’s been forgotten. It’s also what makes him a model for our times.
If Bernie Runs in 2024, His Campaign Should Build a Left Political Organization
The next Bernie Sanders campaign, if it happens at all, could be used to build an organization that helps transcend the Left’s current impasse. Bernie 2024 — but make it a new beginning instead of a last hurrah.
The Psychedelic Renaissance Is on the Verge of an Uneasy Enlightenment
Pharma companies and shrewd investors are poised to make massive profits off the medical legalization of psychedelics. For now, they’re united with the psychedelic movement’s true believers — an uneasy truce that must break in one party’s favor.
NGOism Serves the Status Quo
Tasked with carrying out what ought to be state functions, but dependent on private interests, NGOs will never challenge the basic structures of capitalism.
Voters Will Opt to Tax the Rich — If They Know How the Money Will Be Spent
Last year, both Arizona and California voted on ballot initiatives to tax the rich. So why did it fail in blue state California but pass in libertarian Arizona?
The Siren Song of “Pro-Worker” Conservatism
Some “anti-elitists” on the Right say they want the GOP to be the party of the working class. But what they’re really offering is a PR campaign that won’t fundamentally change the lives of workers.
We Can’t Have An Economic Recovery If We Don’t Improve Health Care Right Now
We must not choose between staving off economic catastrophe or a public health disaster. We can do both — if we immediately expand Medicare to cover everyone while safely and simultaneously rebuilding our healthcare infrastructure.”
Bernie Sanders Should Retool His Campaign to Lead the Charge Against Coronavirus
Bernie Sanders can’t continue campaigning as usual, and he certainly can’t drop out of the race. We desperately need Bernie to retool his entire operation to demand a robust government response to the coronavirus — a response the Democratic Party will never spearhead themselves.
Medicare for All Is a Strategy
Medicare for All is not just about fixing our broken health-care system. It’s about unlocking the power of a mass, working-class movement in the United States.
Bernie’s Old. So What?
They say, “Bernie is too old.” We say, “Better to be old and right than young and a shithead.”
Log Off
Social media will always be destructive for the Left. We should log the fuck off.
Inventing the Weekend
The advent of capitalism didn’t just regiment our working lives. It changed the very meaning of free time.