Britain’s Left Is Back on the Offensive
Margaret Thatcher crushed the British labor movement and pushed the Left into a deep identity crisis. But today, socialism is back on the agenda — and Labour has the chance to impose a new political consensus.
19494 Articles by: Enver Motala
Enver Motala is an associate of the Centre for Education Rights and Transformation (CERT) at the University of Johannesburg and of the Centre for Integrated Post-School Education and Training at the Nelson Mandela University.
Don’t Believe the Critics — Labour’s Economic Plans Are Credible
Britain’s media outlets and think tanks have been on the offensive since Labour published its manifesto this week, claiming that its economic policies are not credible. But the attacks are purely ideological. Labour’s plans are capable of reviving the ailing UK economy and empowering ordinary workers.
The Real Barack Obama Has Finally Revealed Himself
Barack Obama is using his post-presidency to attack the Left and protect the status quo. The historical myth believed by so many liberals that Obama was a progressive leader who was hemmed in by the presidency’s political constraints is collapsing fast.
How to Organize Your Friends and Family on Thanksgiving
Nobody wants to share a Thanksgiving table with a sanctimonious leftist jerk. If you’re going to talk politics over turkey, do it the right way. Here’s how.
We Need a Socialist Trade Policy
Tariffs and other forms of protectionism often hurt workers — and trade can help produce good paying, sustainable jobs. But we need to build a trade policy that benefits both US workers and workers in developing countries.
Jeff Bezos’s Vision of the Future Is Basically Blade Runner
Jeff Bezos wants us to leave Earth and save ourselves by building space colonies. We want to stay on Earth, build a viable future, and make Jeff Bezos leave.
The Tory Lie Machine
Aided and abetted by an anti-Labour media, the Tories have been on an unprecedented lying streak. If they find they can get away with this kind of mendacity and still win an election, there will be no limit to their willingness to lie in government.
“To Win in Government, Podemos Needs to Win in the Streets”
Podemos’s deal with the PSOE promises Spain’s first left-wing coalition government since the 1930s. Yet with European and corporate elites already throwing up obstacles, Podemos’s hopes of forcing through change rely on it building its power outside the institutions.
Why Rent Control Works
Neoliberals are wrong: rent control protects tenants, is good for the housing market, promotes lively cities, and reduces one of the biggest sources of rising inequality today. We need to expand it dramatically.
What the Chicago Teachers Union Achieved
The Chicago Teachers Union approved the contract that they went on strike for last month. While it’s far from perfect, the contract includes huge victories on multiple fronts. Teachers around the country should study what the CTU achieved — and how they organized within the union itself to achieve it.
Democratic Party Elites Are Conspiring to Destroy Fusion Voting — and the Working Families Party Along With It
A New York State commission moved yesterday to make changes to ballot access laws, and through those changes to destroy the Working Families Party. Make no mistake, this is about protecting the rich from even modest challenges to wealth and privilege.
Northern Ireland’s Nurses Are Striking for Their Patients, Too
The UK’s Royal College of Nursing hasn’t organized a single strike in its 103-year history. Now that’s changing as nurses across Northern Ireland take industrial action in response to years of neglect of the National Health Service.
Yes, We Need to Strike For Each Other
In 1980s Britain, miners went on strike in support of nurses’ pay claims, throwing their industrial muscle behind under-pressure hospital staff. After decades of harsh anti-union laws, Labour’s manifesto promises a way to rebuild this culture of solidarity.
Adam McKay Is Mad as Hell
From Will Ferrell comedies to The Big Short, Vice, and Succession, Hollywood’s greatest populist is taking aim at oligarchy — from the hard left.
Organizing Australia’s Food Supply Chain
The farming industry has long been one of the most exploitative and abusive sectors in Australia. Our organizing drive in the sector could change that.
Kshama Sawant Passes the Amazon Stress Test in Seattle
Seattle socialist city council member Kshama Sawant prevailed over Amazon in her recent reelection. Sawant won by using the same strategies that make for successful workplace organizing — strategies that socialists around the country could take up against the corporate behemoths that want them to lose.
In Sri Lanka’s Ethnocracy, Tamils Will Always Lose
Gotabaya Rajapaksa was the architect of Sri Lanka’s genocide against Tamils in 2009. He was also just elected president of the country. It’s the culmination of a decade of impunity following the end of the Sri Lankan civil war that has enabled genocidaires to be feted as “war heroes.”
“Scorsese Versus Superheroes” Misses the Point
Martin Scorsese’s recent comments bashing superhero movies provoked a torrent of outrage. But the real issue isn’t Marvel movies — it’s a funding model that prioritizes easy blockbusters over riskier, daring films.
The WeWork Con
The $47 billion WeWork implosion is proof that the rich are the biggest suckers of all.
The Tories Are the Proud Party of Racism
In Britain, the choice is clear: the Tories are led by people who have done grave material harm to ethnic minorities. Labour is led by people with a record of determined opposition to racism.