The Anti-Capitalist Origins of the Monopoly Man
The new PBS documentary Ruthless: Monopoly’s Secret History tells the story of how a board game intended to warn Americans about inequality ended up teaching them how to be good little capitalists.
19057 Articles by: Tanner Howard
Tanner Howard is a freelance journalist and In These Times editorial intern. They’re also a member of the Democratic Socialists of America.
The Great Slave Strike That Helped End Slavery
Today, on Presidents’ Day, we rightly celebrate Abraham Lincoln for helping end slavery. But we shouldn’t forget the unstoppable force that also brought down the Slave Power: the several million slaves who left the plantation, many of whom joined the Union Army.
Abraham Lincoln Is a Hero of the Left
From Karl Marx to Eugene Debs to 1930s American Communists, leftists have regarded Lincoln as a prolabor hero who played a crucial role in vanquishing chattel slavery. We should celebrate him today as part of the great radical democratic tradition.
A Starbucks Worker Fired for Organizing Got His Job Back Thanks to NYC “Just Cause” Laws
A Queens Starbucks worker was one of many across the country fired in retaliation for union organizing. Thanks to NYC laws that require due process for firing fast-food workers, he was reinstated.
Mexican Workers Are Rejecting Company Unions
Mexican autoworkers in the city of Emiliano Zapata’s burial just voted to join a new independent union, breaking from the company-friendly unions that dominate the country.
Lamar Johnson Spent 28 Years in Jail Because of a Racist Justice System
Lamar Johnson’s 1995 murder conviction was overturned on Tuesday — but only after he spent most of his life in jail. The circumstances of his wrongful conviction reflect an American justice system quick to condemn working-class men of color.
Personal Debt Makes Workers Afraid to Strike
Since the late 1970s, strike action and union membership have been declining steadily in most Western democracies. New research finds that one key reason is the working class’s increasing dependence on credit.
“Runaway Inflation” Won’t Be Getting Very Far on Foot
The “wage-price spiral” was the distinctively destructive form that inflation took in the 20th century. It’s unlikely to make a comeback anytime soon.
The European Union Is Stepping Up Its War on Refugees
A special EU summit in Brussels last week committed to increasing funds for border surveillance and the deportation of refugees. It’s the latest in Europe’s ongoing project of hardening its borders in flagrant disregard for human life.
Which Workers Are “Strategic” to Organize?
Two key questions confront labor: should unions focus on organizing workers with major strategic leverage in the economy? Or should they welcome any workers willing to fight, since that organizing can constitute a major catalyst for other workers?
Cyprus’s Polarized Elections Highlight a Crisis of Political Legitimacy
Sunday’s Cypriot election brought victory for nationalist hardliner Nikos Christodoulides. The Left’s vote held up, but the campaign also showed its weaknesses in combining class politics with answers to the country’s enduring division.
Alain Badiou Is the World’s Leading Philosopher of Communism
While many radicals of the 1968 generation shifted to the right, French philosopher Alain Badiou maintained fidelity to the revolutionary communist project.
The Start of Inflation as We Know It
In the 1930s, John Maynard Keynes built a new theory of inflation that sought to reckon with the proletariat’s recent and explosive entry onto the stage of history.
Fox News Knew Donald Trump’s Election Fraud Claims Were False. They Broadcast Them Anyway.
In 2020, Fox News anchors Tucker Carlson and Sean Hannity pushed Donald Trump’s election fraud claims for weeks. New documents suggest they never believed any of it.
Britain Is Experiencing Its Biggest Strike Wave in a Generation
The last year has witnessed the highest level of strike action by British workers for the last thirty years. Workers are getting a taste of their collective strength: now they need to convert that strength into tangible victories.
After the Ohio Train Disaster, Pete Buttigieg’s Transportation Department Could Get Sued
In response to the train derailment disaster in Ohio, six environmental groups have written a letter to Pete Buttigieg threatening to take legal action if the Department of Transportation fails to act on a key railroad safety rule.
Duke University Graduate Students May Soon Join the Higher Ed Unionization Wave
Graduate student workers at Duke University are in the middle of a union drive. If the effort succeeds, Duke will join a wave of private universities seeing their grad workers unionize. Jacobin spoke with some of the organizers.
Justin Trudeau’s Funding Pledge Doesn’t Mean the Battle for Canada’s Health Care Is Over
To stop creeping corporatization of Canada’s health care system, Justin Trudeau’s Liberals need to put robust restrictions on how provinces use the health care funding they receive from the federal government. The Liberals aren’t doing that.
The Biden Administration Is Helping Norfolk Southern Block Workers’ Lawsuits
The Department of Justice is backing railroad giant Norfolk Southern’s attempt to limit where workers and consumers can bring cases against corporations, making it easier for the firm to block future lawsuits.
Tom Nairn Explained Why Britain’s Constitution Stifles Democracy
Scottish historian Tom Nairn died at age 90 last month. He grasped how nationalism molds the class struggle — and how Britain’s monarchical order has suffocated the Left’s ideas of social transformation.