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The American economy’s reopening has meant a surge in COVID-19 infections and deaths. But the ruling class did little by way of mandatory safety measures like mask-wearing in response — until workers and consumers began taking action and threatening corporate profits.
The fight over pandemic prevention isn’t just about surviving the coronavirus. It’s about our potential to build a more collective and compassionate society. Despite Donald Trump’s absurdities, most Americans are ready and willing to adopt solidaristic measures.
Empty supermarket shelves and the spread of designer-brand face masks show that Italians are panicking about coronavirus. The spread of the virus demands a planned and coherent response — but the politics of fear are instead turning Italians against each other.
The fast-fashion industry has long been known for its exploitative practices, which have continued during the pandemic, despite the health risk to garment workers. The production of “fashion masks,” which substitute actual protection for mere simulation, shouldn’t surprise us.
When we allow private organizations like Facebook, Google, and Twitter to police scientific discourse, we abdicate our commitment to free scientific inquiry.
Across France, workers are insisting that they be allowed to make masks and ventilators rather than continue with business as usual. Their initiatives show that when workers, not stock prices, decide what’s being made, production can serve the needs of society as a whole.
Conservatives have predictably tried to turn face masks into a pseudo-populist culture war issue. But the people aren't buying it: new polling shows a solid majority of Americans support enforcing tough mask mandates — once again exposing the Right’s waning popular appeal.
As COVID-19 cases skyrocket again, hospitals remain understaffed and PPE and ventilators are still in short supply. We can’t leave people’s basic needs up to the whims of profit-seeking actors — we need democratic planning.
Frantz Fanon was one of the most influential revolutionary thinkers of the last century. His work, produced in the heat of anti-colonial revolution, is full of insights for the struggle against racism and capitalism today.
Across the country and across industries, employers steal billions from workers each year. Minimum wage violation — the act of paying workers below the legal limit — is just one form of wage theft, but it results in at least $15 billion in lost wages annually. In 2015, minimum wage violations cost workers more than all robberies, burglaries, larcenies, and motor vehicle thefts combined.
Movie theaters are set to reopen soon, but neither the safety of viewers, nor support for the film industry itself, can be guaranteed.
Respiratory therapists operate ventilators and perform crucial services in treating the coronavirus. They say they still don’t have the protective equipment they need.
If an extra $300 a week in unemployment is enough to keep us out of kitchens, it should tell you something about our lives.
Donald Trump and his allies are claiming to restore “free speech” in America even as they yank federal funding from Columbia University to punish student protesters. They were never serious about defending free speech.
With millions of people ordering basic necessities direct to their homes, the pandemic has massively strengthened big distributors like FedEx and Amazon. But while official discourse celebrates delivery drivers as “heroes,” the logistics firms themselves have used the crisis to undermine workers’ most basic rights.
In normal times, college football players are seen by administrators as cash cows for universities. Under coronavirus, more than ever, other students are, too. And whether it’s student-athletes suffering severe injury or fans risking illness, both are considered expendable in the pursuit of profit.
In industries across the economy — from airlines to tech — the past two weeks have seen workers and their unions take the lead in combating Donald Trump’s far-right base.
Today’s polarized politics demand we treat Anthony Fauci like a hero or a villain. But he was something far more banal: a committed public servant who made serious errors of judgment, denting the country’s trust in public health in the process.
For all the warnings of populism’s threat to the liberal democratic order, it might be the experts that do us in.
Some prominent academics have taken to lecturing teachers and their unions for insisting that reopening schools is still too dangerous. Those academics are wrong: teachers are insisting on a safe, solidaristic approach to opening schools back up that protects parents, students, staff, teachers, and all of us.