If Only Challengers Were as Hot as It’s Trying to Be
Luca Guadagnino’s tennis pro drama Challengers is a test of Zendaya’s star power. She passes. But the promised hot-and-heavy love triangle doesn’t deliver.
19092 Articles by: James Bloodworth
James Bloodworth is a writer and journalist from London.
Workers Say PEN America Is Slow-Walking Union Negotiations
Unionized employees, pro-Palestine activists demanding a cease-fire call, writers long-listed for a prestigious literary prize: no one seems particularly happy with PEN America right now.
Why the UAW Should Stand in Solidarity With Palestine
UAW Region 9A is standing in solidarity with Palestine — including publicly supporting pro-Palestine campus protests. We spoke with Region 9A director Brandon Mancilla about the UAW’s antiwar position and why “unions have no business investing in genocide.”
Humza Yousaf’s Fall Leaves Scottish Nationalism in Crisis
Scotland’s first minister, Humza Yousaf, broke a coalition deal with the Greens under pressure from his own party’s right wing. Yousaf’s move sabotaged his own leadership and has weakened the already flagging cause of Scottish independence.
Blame South Sudan’s Civil War on Elites, Not “Ethnic Tensions”
South Sudan’s post-independence instability is often blamed on ethnic tensions. But exploitation by international companies and zero-sum competition over resources between local elites are the real causes of ongoing violence in the country.
Abortion Advocates Should Turn to Direct Democracy
Citizen-driven ballot initiatives are a powerful tool in the fight against abortion bans like the one threatening Arizona. State governments can’t be trusted to execute the popular will. We’ll have to do it ourselves.
When US Labor Leaders Helped Repress the Global Left
During the Cold War, much of labor officialdom collaborated with the US government to repress labor movements and left-wing forces abroad. The conservatism that enabled this sordid alliance still impacts much of the US labor movement today.
They Can Always Find More Money for War
The gargantuan military aid bill that passed last week and the Democrats’ Build Back Better package relied on similar legislative strategies for passage. The party saw the strategy through to secure money for war while abandoning it to fund social programs.
Congress Is Trying to Stop Automatic Flight Refunds
Days after the Biden administration announced a rule mandating flight cancelation automatic refunds, four lawmakers overseeing aviation policy in Congress began pushing legislation to reverse it. All of them take substantial airline industry donations.
Sweden’s Unions Need to Wake Up to New Forms of Exploitation
In Sweden, thousands of migrant construction workers have to deal with employer blackmail and attempts to cheat them out of their pay. Unrepresented by the traditional trade unions, they are resorting to more direct forms of class struggle.
Narendra Modi’s Government Is Falsifying Indian History
Since coming to power, the Modi government has worked to promote a phony version of history in line with its Hindu chauvinist agenda. From school textbooks to academic research, every form of historical education has become a political battleground.
Washington Backed a Coup Against South Korean Democracy
A film that depicts South Korea’s 1979 US-backed coup has become a box-office sensation. 12.12: The Day is now available to international audiences as a gripping depiction of right-wing maneuvers against democracy that has strong contemporary resonances.
Israel Is Waging a War on All Palestinians, Not Just Gazans
Israel’s genocidal assault on Gaza is part of its war of annihilation against the Palestinian people carried out with increasing fervor across historic Palestine, including the West Bank, under the most right-wing government in Israeli history.
The TikTok Ban Is an Egregious Assault on Free Speech
Last week, Joe Biden signed a bill that will force Chinese-owned TikTok to be sold to a US company or be banned in the US. It’s an attack on free speech — aimed at, among other things, suppressing criticism of Israel’s genocide.
In Myanmar, Military Rule Is Faltering
Three years since a coup restored full military rule in Myanmar, armed rebels are on the offensive. The country’s civil war is often painted in terms of ethnic strife — yet the opposition forces alone uphold the hope of an inclusive democracy.
Left Unions Were Repressed Because They Threatened Capital
Across the 20th century’s two red scares in the US and Canada, the Wobblies and Communist-aligned unions faced fierce repression from employers and government. They were targeted because they were seen as posing a real threat to the capitalist social order.
The CIO’s Culture of Unity
Episode 4 of Organize the Unorganized examines three key factors behind the CIO’s success: a robust commitment to collective bargaining, a canny application of militant tactics, and the “culture of unity” that made successful political action possible.
A Tale of Two Labor Candidates in the East Bay
An East Bay, California, state senate race is between two candidates with past Bernie Sanders endorsements: one with Democratic Socialists of America support who refuses corporate cash, the other who accepts such money.
Activist Judges Want to Oust Spain’s Broad-Left Government
Spanish prime minister Pedro Sánchez may resign after a judge launched a bogus corruption probe targeting his wife, Begoña Gómez. The case is a farce pushed by far-right lobbyists that shows the need to rein in Spain’s politicized judiciary.
The Palestinian Resistance Isn’t a Monolith
As Palestinians reckon with the genocide being inflicted on them and their prospects for national liberation, it does them a disservice to flatten their political diversity and complex ongoing debates.