Regrouping the Bolivian Left
Bolivia is still reeling from the coup that unseated Evo Morales last November. Amid repression and intimidation from a fortified Right now in power, the Left is preparing itself for new presidential elections.
19643 Articles by: Opal Lee
Opal Lee is a writer.
In South Africa and Around the World, We Have to Resist the Scapegoating of Immigrants
In South Africa, the political class is scapegoating immigrants to distract from their failure to root out the country’s massive inequality. But just like everywhere else, immigrants aren’t the problem — economic elites and their political handmaidens are.
Tech Companies Are Helping Bosses Monitor Everything You Do at Work
Microchips, mobile spyware, and perpetual monitoring are all part of capital’s fantasy of twenty-first-century scientific management — a future in which our movements, impulses, and rhythms are perfectly adapted to the needs of profit-making. We need to fight back and regain our autonomy at work.
A Battle for India’s Soul
India’s student movement is one of the main forces challenging the government of Narendra Modi. But the movement against Hindu nationalism needs to take root even deeper in civil society.
The Liberal-Conservative-Socialist Case for Bernie Sanders
Liberalism has become decadent, and conservatism has become particularly vile. The only option for anyone who cares about freedom and decency is to get behind the socialist.
Yes, the Candidate With the Most Delegates Should Be the Nominee
It’s really very simple: the presidential candidate with the most delegates heading into the Democratic National Convention should be the nominee. There’s no good counterargument.
Joe Biden Has a Long History of Giving Republicans Exactly What They Want
For Republicans, Joe Biden has long been the ideal negotiating partner — because he’s so willing to cave in on most anything Republicans want.
Judging Mubarak
The Egyptian legal system might have acquitted the late Hosni Mubarak of ordering a brutal clampdown on protesters. The verdict of history won’t be so kind.
When Coronavirus Made Italy Go Insane
Empty supermarket shelves and the spread of designer-brand face masks show that Italians are panicking about coronavirus. The spread of the virus demands a planned and coherent response — but the politics of fear are instead turning Italians against each other.
Today’s Social Democrats Should Be More Like Olof Palme
Swedish prime minister Olof Palme was assassinated on this day in 1986. He was an internationalist and the last social-democratic leader to really believe in a world beyond capitalism.
Joe Biden Jumped at the Chance to Help George W. Bush Sell the Invasion of Iraq
After September 11, George W. Bush decided to blaze a path of death and destruction in Iraq by invading. He was given crucial assistance by Joe Biden.
Canvassing for Bernie in Suburbia
Knocking on doors is a key part of a grassroots campaign, and can be extremely satisfying work for those involved. But as more gates and security systems transform the fabric of American cities, voters are increasingly out of reach.
Socialists Have Long Fought for Women’s Liberation
Socialist men can be important organizers in the struggle for both workers’ rights and women’s emancipation. Nowhere is that seen more clearly than in the life of German socialist August Bebel, who did more to win women’s rights than any other nineteenth-century politician.
Bernie Sanders Is Still Not George McGovern
Pundits continue to push the narrative that Bernie Sanders is just another George McGovern, too far to the left to win. He’s not, and by every measure he’s the most competitive candidate to run against Donald Trump.
A Brokered Convention Would Be a Disaster for the Democrats
All of Bernie Sanders’s rivals are open to giving the Democratic nomination to someone besides the candidate with the most delegates at the end of the primary. This is an absolutely horrible idea.
Olof Palme Was an Internationalist Hero
From South Africa’s ANC to Chilean socialists, in the 1970s, liberation movements around the world had few greater allies than Swedish prime minister Olof Palme. He used high office to speak out for the oppressed abroad — and to build an internationalist movement in his homeland.
Michael Bloomberg Got Rich With the Help of Some Criminal Bankers
Michael Bloomberg likes to present himself as a self-made tycoon. In reality, he’s a creature of Merrill Lynch, the now-defunct investment company that bet big on subprime lending and lost.
Joe Biden Is the Forrest Gump of the Democratic Party’s Rightward Turn
From crime to privatization to Wall Street, the story of Joe Biden’s career has been the story of the Democratic Party’s forty-year-long right turn. Every step of the way, he was there urging the party to push the rightward shift even further.
We Need Electoral Reform — and a Whole Lot More
The United States would be much better off with a multiparty, proportional representation system. But we shouldn’t delude ourselves that this “one quick fix” would root out the rot that pervades America’s political economy.
The Trump-Modi Lovefest Is Sickening
This week, Donald Trump went to India to sign a new arms deal with the far-right leader Narendra Modi. And if that wasn’t bad enough, the pair remained silent as Hindu nationalists unleashed a wave of violence against Muslims — targeting their homes, businesses, and places of worship.