Trader Joe’s Workers Are Carrying Out an Experiment in Independent Unionism
Independent unions are a real rarity in the US labor movement. But at multiple stores across the country, Trader Joe’s workers are organizing outside of established unions.
19409 Articles by: Opal Lee
Opal Lee is a writer.
Australia’s Voice Referendum Is Losing Thanks to the “Radical Centrism” of Its Architects
Later this year, Australia will vote in a referendum on creating an Aboriginal Voice to advise parliament. The Yes campaign is flagging, hobbled by a technocratic strategy and language borrowed from corporate social responsibility values statements.
Imran Khan’s Ouster Is a Story of US Power and Propaganda
The ex-Pakistani prime minister had many failings. But a recent leaked cable regarding Imran Khan’s military-backed ouster lays bare how the US government uses its power to influence events around the world and how the mainstream press conceals this from the public.
The Hard Right Is Ascendant in Argentina
Argentina’s recent presidential primaries were a major win for the far right, with the anarcho-capitalist Javier Milei placing first. Between Milei and another hard-right candidate, the extreme right accounted for almost half of the electorate.
Amazon Is Investing in AI-Assisted Apartheid in Palestine
Since 2014, Amazon has been pouring billions into Israel, contributing to illegal settlement programs and the relentless surveillance of Palestinians. Israel’s dystopian end goal: to compile biometric profiles and security ratings for every resident of the West Bank.
The Rot of the Crypto Economy Goes Deeper Than Sam Bankman-Fried
Once-celebrated crypto mogul Sam Bankman-Fried is now sitting in a Brooklyn jail cell, awaiting trial for several counts of fraud and money laundering. But the scammy Silicon Valley capitalism he represents isn’t going anywhere.
Keir Starmer’s Labour Party Is Abandoning Workers’ Rights
After years of abandoned pledges under Keir Starmer’s Labour Party leadership, the party is now watering down its promises to strengthen employment rights. Labour is siding with employers over workers.
John Rawls Was Wrong to Think We Could Have a Just Capitalism
The ideas of John Rawls, perhaps the greatest political philosopher of the 20th century, have much to teach the Left. But Rawls’s theory of justice failed to grapple adequately with the fundamental obstacles capitalism imposes to realizing a just society.
The US Destroyed Iranian Democracy to Uphold British Imperialism
Seventy years ago this week, the US and the UK overthrew the Iranian leader Mohammad Mossadegh, who had fought back against British imperialism by nationalizing the oil company now known as BP. The UK has yet to acknowledge its role in this travesty.
Canada’s Housing Crisis Demands Action, Not Words
As Canadians struggle with impossible housing costs, political rhetoric must align with concrete actions. This entails moving beyond vague appeals for “affordable housing” and focusing on the fundamental goal: securing housing for everyone.
Alexis Tsipras Leaves the Greek Left at a Historic Low
Syriza is electing a new leader after Alexis Tsipras resigned from his longtime role at the head of the party. He leaves the Greek left at its lowest point in decades, with far-right forces now exploiting the mood of social despair.
Technocrats Won’t Solve the Climate Crisis
In January, the Biden administration launched an ambitious plan for a valuation of all the United States’ natural resources. But the initiative, which aims to encourage environmentally responsible investment, is naive and confused.
US Colleges and Universities Are Becoming Giant Exploitation Machines
Since the 1970s, many colleges and universities have become predatory financial giants, while mountains of student debt pile up and academic work becomes ever more precarious. An ascendant academic labor movement may be key to reversing these trends.
Museum Workers Are Tired of Being Paid in Cultural Cachet — So They’re Unionizing
A major unionization movement is underway at cultural institutions, with workers at over 30 museums across the US currently at various stages of organizing. Workers say prestige doesn’t make up for low pay, bad benefits, and toxic work conditions.
Shawn Fain Is Right: The Workweek Should Be Shorter
UAW president Shawn Fain has called for a 32-hour workweek. It’s the revival of an old vision in the US labor movement — and the sort of ambition overworked and underpaid employees need.
Pay Raises Can Help Save the UK’s Public Sector
In the UK, chronic underinvestment has led to threadbare public services being delivered by an underpaid, overstretched workforce. Meeting striking public sector workers’ demands for higher pay is crucial to stopping the decline of vital services like the NHS.
US Presidents Keep Bungling Disaster Responses
Joe Biden’s mishandling of the Maui wildfire destruction is the second bungled disaster response of his presidency, and follows other, even worse failures from previous presidents. The people of Maui will suffer, but so will public trust in government.
Donald Trump Has Remade the GOP in His Own Image. He’s Not Going Anywhere.
Recent polls show Republican voters now reject many of the old GOP shibboleths that Donald Trump trashed — and that they continue to rally around their new leader, indictments and all. Joe Biden can’t just base his campaign on being “not Trump.”
The Antiabortion Judge With a Financial Ethics Problem
For years, Allyson Ho has received payments from the Alliance Defending Freedom. When the right-wing advocacy group argued a case in her husband’s court, Judge James Ho cast a decisive vote to cut off remote access to the abortion pill mifepristone.
No, Pride Isn’t for Cops, Too
Stonewall was a riot — but in some cities, Pride officials have banned “political” groups and welcomed cops. Now activists are organizing radical Pride marches to show that Pride is a protest, not just a party.