The New Scramble for Ethiopia
Ethiopia’s prime minister is making headlines as a Trudeau-like liberal reformer. But behind his progressive sheen, his economic policies are set to accelerate inequality and poverty.
20412 Article(s) by: Ryan Switzer
Ryan Switzer is a PhD candidate in sociology at Stockholm University. He researches right-wing politics in welfare states.
“Neither Left nor Right” Helps the Far Right
From social democracy to Christian democracy, the old mass parties are dying. And it’s the far right that’s benefiting.
Newspapers Won’t Save Us
Newspapers are a key part of a healthy press that is vital to any democratic society. But we shouldn’t valorize the corporate media as our last line of defense against Trump or anything else.
The Ongoing Persecution of China’s Uyghurs
The Chinese government isn’t letting up on its repression of Uyghurs. It’s setting a dangerous example of how to use “anti-terrorism” to justify authoritarian practices.
Social Democracy at Death’s Door
The European elections delivered a crushing blow to the German Social Democrats. Only a miracle can save them now.
The Winnipeg General Strike Is Immortal
A century ago this month, immigrant workers and World War I veterans launched the most dramatic labor struggle in Canadian history. Winnipeg’s 1919 general strike is a reminder of our power as workers — and the brutality to which the bosses will resort to protect their profits.
Bernie Sanders Wants to Democratize Your Workplace
Bernie Sanders’s embrace of worker ownership and control aims to extend democracy from the political sphere to the economy.
Kirchnerism for Centrists?
Cristina Kirchner just announced a surprise presidential ticket that has the potential to defeat Macri’s neoliberal government. But the victory she offers won’t be for the Left.
A Marxist in the European Parliament
Last week’s elections produced grim results for the Left across most of the continent. But in Belgium, the Workers’ Party made a historic breakthrough.
Abortion Rights Are More Popular Than You Think
Don’t let the slate of new anti-abortion bills fool you — support for abortion rights has actually increased in the last decade. Defeating these draconian measures will mean defeating the elite minority that imposes them.
The Indian Catastrophe
India’s elections show that right-wing Hindu nationalism has achieved total hegemony over Indian society.
Trump Is Attacking the First Amendment. Not Enough Progressives Are Pushing Back.
Julian Assange’s prosecution is being used as a test case to unravel First Amendment protections that the press has long taken for granted. Yet some important left-wing elected officials aren’t fighting back.
Economic Democracy, If We Can Keep It
This week, Bernie Sanders proposed creating worker-owned funds that put more profits and control in the hands of workers rather than executives. Such funds could be transformational — if we can stop corporations from weakening or destroying them.
Four Reasons the European Left Lost
The setbacks for centrist parties in the European elections showed that the EU’s crisis is anything but over. Yet the Left’s lack of strategy and identity has hobbled its ability to provide an alternative.
A Green New Deal for the UK
The Labour Party’s John McDonnell on how a “Green Industrial Revolution” can advance a radical program against climate change, bring energy workers and the rest of the working class to our side, and win socialism in our time.
Mike Gravel Should Be on the 2020 Debate Stage
Mike Gravel’s hellraising efforts against US imperialism have had real, lasting effects. The public should get to hear his views in the 2020 Democratic primary debates.
Power Has Returned to Power
The defeats for Barcelona mayor Ada Colau and Manuela Carmena in Madrid compound recent woes for Podemos. As popular movements decline, the Spanish left’s onetime promise has given way to the stabilization of the center.
The New Mainstream
Steve Bannon’s organizing model relied on an army of street brawlers and online cranks. The success of Le Pen and Farage in the European election shows something different: the far right is going mainstream.
Jeremy Corbyn vs. Operation Chaos
Jeremy Corbyn’s Labour Party enemies have given up trying to depose him. Their strategy now is just to cause as much damage as possible.
Bernie Wants Power in Workers’ Hands
Bernie Sanders’s new plan isn’t just about making workers “stakeholders” in corporations: it’s about making them owners.