Peru’s Revolt Is About More Than Corruption
Peruvians vote today in crucial parliamentary elections. But the future of the country relies not just on fighting corruption, but taking on the powerful corporate interests that dominate the country.
Search Result(s) for: “working class”
Don’t Mistake Public Shows of On-the-Job Cleanliness for Real Workplace Safety
The importance of cleanliness in the workplace has become key in the COVID-19 era. But conspicuous scrubbing can also become a key form of boss propaganda — and a substitute for real worker protections.
The Problem With Keir Starmer
Keir Starmer is posing as the Labour Party's unity candidate, appearing prime ministerial while sticking by the party's left-wing policies. But if elected, he would be forced to choose between these priorities — and it's clear the left policies would lose out.
True to Life: An Interview with Martin Hägglund
Martin Hägglund speaks about This Life, his new book about love, grief, wealth, and Karl Marx.
The Baku Congress of 1920 Sounded the Call for the End of Empire
A century ago this month, the new Soviet government summoned anti-colonial revolutionaries from across Asia to a gathering in Baku. The Baku Congress proved to be a watershed in the fight against European colonial domination and the rise of the Global South.
Capitalism Is Not the Solution to Urban America’s Problems — Capitalism Itself Is the Problem
The COVID-19 crisis has triggered a fresh round of soul-searching in establishment media outlets about the problems of urban America. Unless we address the root cause of those problems in the structure of our economic system, we’ll never be able to solve them.
The Red Children’s Stories
In nineteenth-century Britain, a rich tradition of socialist fables and children’s stories denounced the capitalist system and its frightening inequities.
Australia’s Superannuation System Enshrines Inequality
Australia’s compulsory superannuation system has made us all shareholders in a vast financial investment industry worth almost $3 trillion. These collective funds are enormously powerful, yet when it comes to retirement, lower-income earners are left with all too little in their hands.
Roe v. Wade Was Bigger Than Jane Roe
The news broke this week that Jane Roe, the plaintiff in Roe v. Wade, was paid by the anti-abortion right to publicly switch sides later in life. But while the news is shocking, we shouldn’t lose sight of the fact that no single person was responsible for the partial victory of Roe — it takes collective action to win social change.
Anti-Communist Massacres Killed Indonesia’s Hopes for National Liberation and Socialism
The mass slaughter of leftists in Indonesia was more than just another Washington-backed atrocity. It was the prototype for smashing the hopes and dreams of the Left in the developing world — for good.
The Last Socialists
Denmark is famous worldwide for its public services and safety net. Yet as Social Democrats retreat from their traditional values, the radical left is the only remaining force defending welfare state protections.
Our American Zion
The racism and red-baiting of Bari Weiss’s latest book, How to Fight Anti-Semitism, isn’t an accident. It reflects her deep conflation of her own Judaism with American exceptionalism and the US global empire.
Keep the Pressure on ICE
ICE has not let up on its horrors and barbarities against immigrants and their families. Luckily the movement to abolish ICE has racked up victories that other activists can learn from.
Liberal Democracy Is in Trouble — And Liberals Won’t Save It
The term “post-democracy” refers to the recent process where democratic institutions have been hollowed out and citizens increasingly excluded from decision-making. But a serious response to this problem can’t just denounce its “populist” symptoms — rather, we need to examine the deeper social ills stemming from economic liberalism itself.
Americans Are Starting to Love Unions Again
Labor union approval is now higher than at nearly any point in the last 50 years. The reasons: shit pay, teacher strikes, and Bernie Sanders.
In the Middle of a Pandemic, the Australian State Is Pummeling Workers
Australian workers need an economic bailout to save them from a coronavirus-induced depression. Instead, Scott Morrison's right-wing government is using the state to attack unions and shovel money to corporations.
The Elitism of the “Anti-Populists”
Pundits analyzing the “populist threat” often assume an audience that wants to defend the status quo. Presenting all political “outsiders” as merely dangerous, anti-populist literature tells us more about the role of public intellectuals than the movements it is meant to describe.
The Socialist Agronomist Who Helped End Portuguese Colonialism
Before his assassination in 1973, Amílcar Cabral was one of Africa’s leading anti-colonialists — a brilliant agronomist and socialist whose leadership of the armed struggle against Portuguese rule brought the empire to its knees.
Automation: Roll Out!
At the heart of the US-Japanese franchise Transformers is a tension between visions of robotics as liberation and as enslavement.
Predistributive Measures Are Essential to Reducing Inequality
The welfare state is essential for keeping the nonworking population out of poverty. But we shouldn’t discount the role of predistributive measures like strong unions and minimum wage laws in reducing inequality.