Workers and Renters of the World, Unite!
Although unions seek higher wages from employers, much of that extra pay goes straight to the landlords. To build workers’ power, we need decommodified and democratically controlled land and housing.
19140 Articles by: Ryan Switzer
Ryan Switzer is a PhD candidate in sociology at Stockholm University. He researches right-wing politics in welfare states.
Yes, the United States Needs to Withdraw From Afghanistan
When President Trump scuttled talks for a peace deal in Afghanistan, liberal media heaved a sigh of relief. But despite the risks, an end to the US occupation is a precondition for peace in the country.
Elizabeth Warren’s Health Care Plan Still Leaves a Lot of Unanswered Questions
Everyone is clear on exactly where Bernie Sanders stands on Medicare for All. But despite the release of her health care plan this week and embrace of the phrase “Medicare for All,” Elizabeth Warren’s precise health care proposal remains murky.
Ending the “Independent Contractor” Misclassification Sham
Misclassifying workers as independent contractors hurts workers and enriches bosses, and is central to the business strategy of companies like Uber and Lyft. California state legislators passed AB 5 this week to stop this exploitative model. It’s a victory that must be defended from Uber and Lyft’s fightback.
No Hugs for Rahm
Former Chicago mayor and Obama staffer Rahm Emanuel was a featured commentator during Thursday’s Democratic debate. It was, unsurprisingly, completely terrible.
Norway’s Socialist Left Is Ascendant
Norway’s Labor Party took a hit in this week’s elections. But the radical left surged — showing that socialist politics are still alive in the Nordic country.
How Medicare for All Looks From Britain
The terrifying experience of getting sick on a visit to America reminded me why Brits cherish our National Health Service. The NHS doesn’t just make the United Kingdom healthier — it creates a spirit of equality that changes people’s entire mentality about health care.
Joe Biden Cleared a Very Low Bar in Last Night’s Debate
Pundits are declaring Joe Biden the winner of last night’s debate. They’re conveniently ignoring the lies he told about his civil rights and immigration record.
Medicare for All Would Cut Poverty by Over 20 Percent
Medicare for All doesn’t just provide everyone with the care they need, free of charge. It’s also a potent anti-poverty program, reducing poverty by over 20 percent and increasing poor people’s incomes by 29 percent.
Witzel’s Unholy War
Bolsonaro’s Brazil is ruled by a politics of death: who deserves it, who is spared, and who gets to dispense it. Meet the most skilled practitioner of this politics: Rio governor Wilson Witzel.
Elizabeth Warren Is Thirty Years Too Late
Both Bernie Sanders and Elizabeth Warren are political throwbacks. But whereas Warren wants to fix the policies that went astray in the Clinton era, Sanders wants to change the economic foundations of American life.
“Kashmir Turned Into an Open-Air Prison”
I was in Kashmir when India launched its brutal crackdown last month. Before I knew it, my beloved home had been turned into an open-air prison.
The Hell of Meritocracy
Today, meritocracy doesn’t actually challenge hierarchy but grounds it and allows for its reproduction. But liberals and leftists have different ideas about how to break the cycle.
Chicago Schools Are on the Verge of Two Strikes
In their 2012 strike, nearly 30,000 Chicago Teachers Union members planted a flag for labor militancy in public education. Today, they’re again on the verge of another strike — and they may be joined by 7,000 SEIU education workers.
The Walls Are Closing in on Boris Johnson
A historic election is looming in Britain and panicking Tories will be tempted to tack to the far right. It’s starting to dawn on Boris Johnson that no one will be coming to clean up the mess he’s made of Brexit.
Why Poor People Don’t Pay Attention to Politics
The poor and oppressed tend to pay less attention to politics. But it’s not because they’re dumb — it’s because they know the political system doesn’t work for them.
Donald Trump Is Worried About Socialism. He Should Be.
In private meetings, Donald Trump has worried that socialism won’t be so easy to beat in 2020. His political intuition was right in 2016, and it’s right now: socialism is popular, and it’s the biggest threat to Trump’s reelection.
What Salvador Allende Feared
On September 11, 1973, Chile’s socialist president Salvador Allende was overthrown in a CIA-backed military coup. In this 1971 interview, published in English for the first time, Allende expressed his fears of internal destabilization and US interference.
Allende in Chile Today
Nearly five decades after the coup that overthrew leftist president Salvador Allende, the Chilean left is starting to rebuild power. But it still wrestles with the legacy of the bloody defeat of Allende’s democratic revolution.
Immanuel Wallerstein’s Thousand Marxisms
Immanuel Wallerstein saw his scholarship as a “political task” in the fight against the capitalist system. In this interview — published for the first time in English — he reflected on the historical impulses behind his work, in the age of the Vietnam War and the decline of Soviet socialism.