Holy America
Neil Meyer on growing up in Detroit and whether the Right’s losing ground in the “culture war.”
Search Result(s) for: “abortion”
To Understand the Upcoming Republican Primary, Follow the Dark Money
The operative leading Ron DeSantis’s super PAC is closely associated with conservative activist Leonard Leo, the beneficiary of the largest dark money donation in US history. But Leo’s not putting all his eggs in one basket for the 2024 presidential election.
Lucy Dacus on Her Approach to Life as a Musician, Bernie, and More
We spoke with indie singer-songwriter Lucy Dacus about being a musician during the pandemic, her supergroup boygenius, the state of the music industry, and her very public support of and admiration for Bernie Sanders.
Liz Truss’s Ascent Is Not a Victory for Women
Liz Truss, who has just become the next UK prime minister, calls herself a “Destiny’s Child feminist." She is the latest reactionary hoping that her gender will distract the public from what is an appallingly right-wing agenda.
Don’t Write the Obituary for Socialism in New York Anytime Soon
Centrist Democrats and mainstream media would love to write socialism off the map in New York. But socialists are advancing in the state, not retreating.
Who Will Stop the Fed’s Plans to Trigger a Recession?
Socialists, progressives, and the Democratic Party must all pressure the Fed to change course from its risky rate hikes — if not to prevent widespread suffering, then at least to save their own political skins.
Conservatives Need a Safe Space From the Imaginary Threat of “Woke Capitalism”
Conservatives today look like their own exaggerated caricatures of “social-justice warrior” liberals: shrill, censorious, and terrified of encountering any perspective they oppose.
Democrats Can’t Stop Dark Money Without Ending the Filibuster
Today, Senate Democrats vote on the DISCLOSE Act, legislation that would force nonprofits spending on elections and judicial nominations to publicly name their donors. Lawmakers should pass this bill — but without ending the filibuster, they probably can't.
A New Lula Presidency Would Be Up Against Steep Odds
Lula currently appears the front-runner in Brazil’s presidential election, a fact that should be celebrated by the Left. But even if Lula wins, the damage Jair Bolsonaro’s right-wing rule has inflicted on the country will be difficult to undo.
Remembering Rosalyn Baxandall
Rosalyn Fraad Baxandall, who died last Tuesday, was a pioneering figure of socialist feminism in the United States.
Democrats Are in Power, but Republicans Are Still Setting the Political Agenda
Despite Democrats controlling the White House and Congress since 2020, it has largely been the Right that has taken the political initiative and set the terms of the political conversation. Expect that to get worse after November.
Nobel Prize Winner Annie Ernaux Speaks on How Class Shapes Her Writing
This week, French writer Annie Ernaux was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature. In an interview, she explains how her class background and the reality of class divides shape her writing.
Black and White Workers and Communists Built a “Civil Rights Unionism” Under Jim Crow
Labor historian Nelson Lichtenstein on why today’s union activists should look to the example of North Carolina black and white tobacco workers, who organized a union and went on strike in the teeth of the Jim Crow South.
American Liberalism Is Exhausted
Joe Biden can probably beat Donald Trump for a second time. But the Democratic Party he is the titular head of has no new ideas, no sense of dynamism, and isn’t even pretending they’re serious about achieving a better world.
American Federalism Isn’t a Boon for Democracy — It’s a Disease
The promise of US federalism is that states will be “laboratories of democracy,” more responsive and more innovative than the federal government. The reality is that states are more often laboratories of authoritarianism, dominated by the rich and powerful.
The Promise of Socialist Feminism
Rebuilding the Left will require drawing on socialist-feminist traditions.
Big Tech Is Exploiting the Mental Health Crisis to Monetize Your Data
Tech giants like Apple, Google, and Amazon are increasingly developing apps and services offering mental health treatment. The value of these products for users is dubious — but they do promise the companies lucrative new sources of highly personal data.
Sleep Easy, Shane
With humor, warmth, and delicate beauty, Shane MacGowan’s lyricism profoundly shaped a generation — and was never afraid to denounce injustice, no matter how unpopular this made him with the powerful.
Before the Fed’s Monetary Policy Was Ultra-Tight, It Was Ultra-Loose
With the Fed’s recent turn to brutally tight money, it’s easy to forget that its post–Great Recession policy of “quantitative easing” was an unprecedented experiment with loose money — whose distorting effects still shape the economy today.
The Man Behind the Curtain
How hedge fund manager George Soros became enemy number one of the international right.