West Virginia Teachers Look to Strike Again
Republican legislators are trying to crush the teachers’ insurgency where it began — West Virginia. But the state’s teachers are preparing to strike again to stop them.
19104 Articles by: William G. Martin
William G. Martin teaches at SUNY-Binghamton and is co-author of After Prisons? Freedom, Decarceration, and Justice Disinvestment (2016) and a founding member of Justice and Unity for the Southern Tier; he covers local justice matters at www.justtalk.blog
The US Should Stay out of Venezuela
Trump’s attempts to stoke regime change in Venezuela risk plunging the country into civil war. We should staunchly oppose US intervention.
A Real Utopian in Practice and Theory
The characteristics of the middle class, sociology as a discipline, the uses of “utopia,” strategies for ending capitalism, the lives of students and colleagues — Erik Olin Wright transformed all of them and more.
AOC’s 70% Tax Plan Is Just the Beginning
Tax-the-rich plans like Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez’s 70 percent proposal aren’t just politically popular — they’re morally necessary.
“This Wave Shows No Sign of Stopping”
The teachers’ strike wave is rolling on: today, Virginia educators are walking out. A rank-and-file teacher explains the movement’s emergence and what’s at stake.
The Democrats Are Climate Deniers
If the Democrats really believed the science on climate change, they’d be offering far more radical proposals. We have to make them.
An End to the Silence
After violence against a left-wing opposition leader, Serbians have taken to the streets. The demonstrations are breaking through the blanket of silence imposed by an increasingly authoritarian government.
Ukraine on the Brink
Ukraine’s politics are dominated by oligarchs. Its streets are more and more run by the far right.
An Authoritarian Bromance
Trump and Bolsonaro aren’t just united by their shared prejudices, but by a sense of common purpose.
The Ghosts of a Fascist Past
The removal of a statue of the communist leader Imre Nagy is the latest effort by Viktor Orbán to erase all memory of the country’s left and valorize the far right.
Sickouts and Strike Threats Stopped the Government Shutdown
Just last night, there was no end to the government shutdown in sight. But when airport workers started calling in sick and raising the threat of a strike, everything suddenly changed.
The Dead Remind Us
Italian researcher Giulio Regeni was murdered for his work in support of Egypt’s trade unions. The failure to bring his killers to justice shows the power of the interests he and his comrades sought to challenge.
Unions Still Haven’t Rebounded
Despite a string of encouraging strikes and labor victories, the latest numbers show that union density fell to a new low last year.
Never Trust a Billionaire’s Antiracism
The Los Angeles strike wasn’t just a teachers’ victory. It was also a tale of two competing antiracist visions — one upheld by privatizing billionaires and another pushed by working people.
Sorry, AOC Is Right
The Washington Post tried to fact check Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez yet again. And yet again, the paper instead made a fool of itself.
A Model for Us All
The eminent Marxist sociologist Erik Olin Wright was serious about understanding and changing the world — and was generous, curious, and kind while doing it.
Erik Olin Wright (1947–2019)
Erik Olin Wright was radicalized in the 1960s and remained a Marxist because his moral compass simply wouldn’t allow him to drift away. With his death, the Left has lost one of its most brilliant intellectuals.
A Strike by Flight Attendants, Pilots, or Air Traffic Controllers Could Stop the Shutdown
We don’t need a full-on general strike to stop the federal shutdown. A strike by small groups of workers — pilots, air traffic controllers, and flight attendants — would force the government to reopen.
Fight at the Museum
The white-collar art world isn’t a hotbed of labor radicalism. But at the New Museum in Manhattan, workers are unionizing. We spoke to a museum worker about it.
How to Make the TVA a Clean Energy Juggernaut
A Green New Deal is now on the agenda. Activists should embrace the public ownership option: mass decarbonization, using the Tennessee Valley Authority.