Union Leader: It’s Time for the Democrats to Wake Up
Painters’ union leader Jimmy Williams Jr says that the Democrats have a messaging problem with working-class voters — and it isn’t just going to cost them a single election.
32 Articles by: Peter Lucas
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Peter Lucas worked on the Zohran Mamdani campaign and is a member of Democratic Socialists of America in New York City.
Louisville Will Soon Have a Socialist City Councillor
Last month, socialist J. P. Lyninger won a landslide victory in the Democratic Party primary for Louisville’s city council; he is expected to advance to office after an uncontested general election. We spoke to him about his campaign.
In Philly, Cass Green Is Running Against Billionaire Cash
In Philadelphia today, Democratic Socialists of America–backed candidate Cass Green is standing for election for state house against scandal-ridden, billionaire-backed incumbent Rep. Amen Brown. Jacobin spoke with Green about her campaign.
Bed-Stuy Socialist Eon Huntley Is Running for State Assembly
Socialist and third-generation Brooklynite Eon Tyrell Huntley is running to represent Bed-Stuy in the New York State Assembly. Jacobin spoke to him about his working-class upbringing in Brooklyn and his campaign.
This Union Organizer Is Hoping to Expand Socialists’ Electoral Stronghold in Queens
Next year, New York’s democratic socialists hope to grow their bloc in the state legislature by electing union organizer Claire Valdez, who is running to represent Assembly District 37 in Queens. Jacobin spoke with Valdez about her campaign.
Starbucks Baristas Are Accusing the Company of Homophobic Worker Suppression
This Pride Month, amid a wave of protests targeting LGBTQ-friendly brands, Starbucks workers say they’ve been asked to take down Pride decorations. Workers say it’s part of a larger trend of undermining and demoralizing baristas, who are unionizing nationwide.
Seth Anderson-Oberman Wants to Bring Working-Class Politics to Philadelphia’s City Council
Philadelphia voters head to the polls today. All eyes are on progressive mayoral challenger Helen Gym. But longtime union organizer Seth Anderson-Oberman is also part of a suite of left-wing challengers on the city council.
Graduate Workers at the University of Michigan Have Been on Strike for Over a Month
On March 29, graduate student workers at the University of Michigan began a strike over what they describe as the university’s refusal to negotiate in good faith. We spoke to striking workers about the walkout, the longest in their union’s 49-year history.
Apple Store Workers Want to Unionize. Apple Is Union Busting.
Workers at an Apple Store in Kansas City say they were fired in retaliation for trying to form a union. It’s another episode in the wave of labor organizing hitting big corporations in the US — and those corporations responding with illegal union busting.
Google’s YouTube Music Workers Are on Strike
A week after YouTube Music workers filed for a union election, Google issued a return-to-office order for the remote workforce. Employees, who say the order is an illegal attempt to interfere with the election, are now on strike. We spoke with some of them.
Trader Joe’s Workers in Louisville Just Voted for a Union. We Spoke to One of the Workers.
A third Trader Joe’s store location has just voted to unionize, this one in the notoriously anti-union South. “If a Trader Joe’s in Louisville, Kentucky, can do this,” says an organizer, “any Trader Joe’s across the country can do this.”
Howard Brown Health Wants to Lay Off 60 New Union Members
Howard Brown Health Center is well known as an LGBTQ-focused health provider and a stalwart Chicago progressive institution. Workers say that on the heels of their recent unionization, management is laying off 60 workers.
New York City’s Public Transit Is Broken. It Doesn’t Have to Be.
America’s largest public transit system is unreliable and often decrepit. Socialist state legislator Zohran Mamdani says that can change. We spoke to Mamdani about his proposal to fully fund city transit, increase service, freeze fares, and make buses free.
Tomorrow, Students Across the Country Will Strike for Abortion
Students at over 50 schools across 30 states are walking out of class this week for abortion rights.
How an Incoming Michigan State Representative Went From the Picket Line to the Ballot Box
In 2018, Dylan Wegela was on the picket line in Arizona, fighting against austerity in public schools. Now he’s preparing to take up the same fight in Michigan’s State House after winning his primary this summer.
The Democratic Establishment Hates Socialist Gabriel Acevero. He Won Reelection Anyway.
Democratic socialist Gabriel Acevero has won reelection to the Maryland General Assembly. “I am an unbought and unbossed voice for the working class,” he says. “That invites a lot of fear in folks who are happy with the status quo, and I welcome that.”
Democratic Socialists Gave a Solid Performance in Yesterday’s Elections
The Democratic Socialists of America ran more than a dozen candidates across three states in electoral primaries yesterday. Ten have proceeded to the general — a strong showing for an electoral project that many fear has been placed on the defensive.
Anthony Quezada: “My Solidarity Is Not With Corporations. It’s With the Working Class”
Anthony Quezada is a socialist running for Cook County Board. Jacobin spoke with him about how watching luxury developers overrun his working-class Chicago neighborhood made him a socialist and the need to bring working people together around what unites them.
In Louisville, a Socialist Candidate Speaks to an Abandoned Working Class
Robert LeVertis Bell is a socialist, parent, public school teacher, and veteran of the Red for Ed movement. Now he’s seeking to become a state representative to build working-class political power in Kentucky.
Howard Schultz Can’t Stop Starbucks Workers’ Momentum
Billionaire Howard Schultz returned as CEO of Starbucks to stop worker organizing in his company. But baristas at the New York City Reserve Roastery aren’t budging.