In Avalon, Nell Zink’s Characters — and Her Readers — Have Nowhere to Hide
In novelist Nell Zink’s new book, Avalon, we might not recognize her characters’ circumstances, but we might recognize ourselves in their near-feral stupidity.
19466 Articles by: Frances Abele
Frances Abele CM is Distinguished Research Professor and Chancellor’s Professor of Public Policy Emerita at Carleton University. She is a research fellow at the Carleton Centre for Community Innovation and the Broadbent Institute. Much of her work focuses on indigenous-Canada relations.
Anti-Imperialists Today Must Push for Full-Scale Nuclear Disarmament
Russia’s invasion of Ukraine has revealed the new reality of great-power conflict, underwritten by nuclear weapons. Our task is to reject aligning with one of the great powers and to instead push for across-the-board nuclear disarmament.
Forty Years Ago, a Million People Descended on New York’s Central Park to Demand Peace
Forty years ago this week, Michael Myerson was one of the organizers for the largest rally in American history against nuclear weapons. The real highlight for him, though, was getting to tell Mayor Ed Koch to go f— himself.
Emmanuel Macron’s Presidency Has Nurtured Racism and the Far Right
France’s mainstream conservative party is in meltdown, while the far right is stronger than ever. Only a united and resurgent French left can prevent Marine Le Pen from capitalizing on Macron’s authoritarian, neoliberal presidency.
Gig Labor Is Impoverishing Workers
A new survey finds that US gig workers face much greater economic hardship and insecurity than conventional low-wage retail and food-service workers. Lacking most labor law protections, many make less than minimum wage and can’t afford to pay basic bills.
In France, Jean-Luc Mélenchon’s Left-Wing Coalition Has the Neoliberals Terrified
The first round of France’s parliamentary elections saw left-wing coalition NUPES come first nationally. President Emmanuel Macron’s allies reacted by tarring the Left as extremists — but Jean-Luc Mélenchon’s coalition looks closer than ever to power.
Benedictine Monks Tried to Reestablish Feudalism in Western Australia. It Was a Disaster.
In the mid-19th century, Benedictine monks seized Aboriginal land to establish a new mission in Western Australia. In New Norcia, they attempted to recreate a reactionary feudal society that had all but disappeared from Europe — with disastrous results.
The January 6 Hearings Are Failed Political Theater
The January 6 hearings fail to tackle the most important questions about the incident; they won’t hold anyone accountable; and most Americans have tuned them out. As political theater and a play for the midterms, they’re an opening night bomb.
The Working-Class Suffragettes Must Not Be Forgotten
The women’s suffrage movement is too often remembered as exclusively middle-class and focused solely on votes for women. But socialist and working-class suffragettes played essential roles in the fight for equality.
20 Years Later, The Wire Is Still a Cutting Critique of American Capitalism
The first season of The Wire began 20 years ago this month. It remains one of this century’s great television shows — both stylish and smart, with unforgettable characters woven into a striking portrait of the depredations of capitalism in one US city.
The Jaws of Private Equity Are Slavering for Canadian Health Service Businesses
International private equity has its eyes on Canadian medical services not covered by the country’s national health care program.
The Federal Reserve Wants Lower Wages for Workers, But Not Wall Street Execs
Federal Reserve chair and former private equity exec Jerome Powell has promised to tackle inflation by lowering workers’ wages. At the same time, he has declined to implement a law to reduce the skyrocketing paychecks of his former colleagues on Wall Street.
Mark Levin’s American Marxism Is an Insult to Your Intelligence
Conservative Mark Levin has climbed the best-seller list again with his right-wing tract American Marxism. It’s a plodding mess of a book, with page after page of recycled slogans and analysis so thin you have to squint to find any substance.
Danny Boyle’s Pistol Sells Punk — and the Sex Pistols — Short
How can someone take a band as exciting, wild, and innovative as the Sex Pistols and make such a conventional, paint-by-numbers miniseries? With Pistol, Danny Boyle found a way.
Hillary Clinton’s Terrible 2016 Campaign Has Made It Even Harder to Deal With Russia
Recent revelations prove that Hillary Clinton had a direct role in spreading now-discredited allegations that stoked the Russiagate frenzy — an episode that has made the already challenging task of pursuing a rational policy toward Russia even more difficult.
Against Afro-Pessimism
Afro-pessimism has become a highly influential school of thought. This is unfortunate: Afro-pessimism flattens blackness and insists overcoming racism is impossible. Socialists offer a stronger interpretation of where racism comes from — and how to defeat it.
To Fight Inflation, the Fed Is Declaring a War on Workers
Federal Reserve chairman Jerome Powell plans to address sky-high inflation by hiking interest rates — acknowledging that doing so will suppress wages and worker power. It’s a response that will force workers to bear the brunt of the inflation crisis.
No, Our Homes Aren’t a Plaything for Speculators
The New York City Housing Authority has been starved of investment for decades — and it’s being used to justify privatization by stealth. But tenants are fighting back, asserting the right to good-quality public housing for all.
The New Democratic Party’s Joel Harden Is Fighting for a World Beyond Capitalism
The fight against renewed Progressive Conservative rule in Ontario will be an uphill battle. New Democratic Party MPP Joel Harden, hot off his reelection, is ready to rumble.
A Mélenchon Government Would Shake the Foundations of Neoliberalism in Europe
Jean-Luc Mélenchon’s left-wing coalition is neck and neck with Emmanuel Macron’s party in polls for today’s French parliamentary elections. The coalition’s victory would shake the neoliberal order in France and across the European Union.