What the Teachers Won
West Virginia shows that we can fight back and win. We talk to two teachers to assess the tentative settlement and what comes next.
19127 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
You Get What You Pray For
The ultra-conservative pastor Robert Jeffress preaches white supremacy, misogyny, and homophobia. No wonder Donald Trump loves him.
We Don’t Need More Competition
Trying to fix Obamacare by increasing competition could easily do more harm than good.
“There Is No Illegal Strike, Just an Unsuccessful One”
The West Virginia teacher strike represents a return to public worker unionism’s radical roots.
Notes on Italy’s Election
After yesterday’s Italian election, the old is dying and something superficially different but not altogether new has been born.
The Strike Against Fear
On this day in 1943, a strike in Italy’s FIAT company marked the beginning of the end for Mussolini.
Working Hard, Hardly Working
A new report shows Americans are working longer hours — even as millions can’t find jobs at all.
The Top Labor Battles in West Virginia History
West Virginia has been the site of mass labor militancy many times before. Here are some of the highlights.
It Never Went Away
In Italy, where fascism was born, far-right violence is a growing feature of political life once again.
Italy Is the Future
Today’s Italian election has much to tell us about Europe’s future.
Fighting Hopelessness
Italy’s left is struggling to present an alternative in an election where abstention is expected to hit record levels.
The State of the Strike
An update from West Virginia, where it’s virtually certain the strike will continue on Monday.
When the Rank and File Leads
It’s unclear how the standoff between West Virginia workers and the state senate will end, but if nothing else, this week’s decision to keep striking is a reminder that the rank and file can lead.
Another Balkans Is Possible
While nationalists agitate over the Macedonia naming dispute, the Macedonian left is seeking alliances with progressive forces in the region.
The “Macedonia” Question
The naming dispute between Macedonia and Greece sounds trivial to outside observers, but it’s fueling right-wing nationalism in both countries.
West Virginia’s Militant Minority
Without the bold initiative of a core of deeply rooted, radical teachers, there would be no strike in West Virginia right now.
Social Democracy’s Last Dance
Whether in or outside a grand coalition, Germany’s Social Democratic Party lacks the political imagination and organization to revive itself.
“It Was About the Insurance Fix”
West Virginia teachers are engaged in an inspiring illegal strike. They’re also showing why we desperately need Medicare for All.
Do-It-Yourself Class Struggle
One lesson from the West Virginia teachers’ strike is clear: nobody is coming to save us. We’ll have to do it ourselves.
The Experiment
Italy’s Five Star Movement offers a hollow promise of democracy.