On an August day, activists with 15 NOW Tacoma huddled at a Safeway grocery store before hitting the neighborhoods of this blue-collar city. Rehearsing for doorbelling, one volunteer asked, “Do you support a $15 an hour minimum wage?” Between now and November, campaigners will knock on hundreds of doors, asking this question to find support… Read more »
U.S.
Can Bernie Sanders move the Democrats left? Unfortunately, the history of campaigns like his says no
It’s easy to see why voters sick of big-business politics as usual are flocking to Bernie Sanders. A self-described democratic socialist, Sanders rails against staggering inequality and denounces the rule of banksters and CEOs. He is drawing huge enthusiastic crowds at campaign rallies and is running neck and neck with Hillary Clinton in some polls…. Read more »
An inmate exposes a vicious system: Gay and trans prisoners plagued by bigotry
Within the caged world of prison, out of sight and out of mind of LGBTQ activists on the other side of the bars, are gay prisoners. Without representation, without a voice, they suffer unthinkable cruelties, not only at the hands of bigoted or ignorant inmates, but also from prison authorities who have taken it upon… Read more »
Prison neglect jeopardizes life of Mumia Abu-Jamal
Although political prisoner Mumia Abu-Jamal is free of his death sentence, he still suffers under life in prison without parole. And the legal system is still trying to kill his eloquent radical voice for justice and prisoners’ rights. In 2014, when Mumia gave a recorded commencement speech for Goddard College, his alma mater, Pennsylvania lawmakers… Read more »
Why ignoring the Ku Klux Klan sends the wrong message
The Freedom Socialist Party and Radical Women issued the following statement in response to a recent Ku Klux Klan rally in South Carolina. The Klan was protesting the removal of the Confederate flag from the capitol building. Every time the Klan or some other anti-Semitic, white supremacist group announces a rally, voices are raised advising… Read more »
State of emergency — Profit-thirsty capitalists deepen California drought
California is in the midst of its worst drought in recorded history. Nearly half of the state is classified by the U.S. Drought Monitor as being in “exceptional drought,” the most severe category. All three main water sources — snow pack, groundwater, and reservoirs — have suffered unprecedented declines. Entire lakes have dried up, and… Read more »
Unions must join forces to defeat anti-labor lawsuit before US Supreme Court
Public sector unions face a threat to their existence from a case to be heard by the U.S. Supreme Court sometime in early 2016. As the day of decision approaches, union leaders seem to be resigned to watching the wrecking ball headed their way. However, rank-and-filers don’t care for this defeatist approach, and they are… Read more »
Black Lives Matter: A “pop-up movement” or one with lasting impact?
Black Lives Matter. As a slogan, this simple statement captures a profound truth: for Blacks, fighting racism is a matter of survival. Not only because of murders by police, but also because of poverty, mass incarceration, and all of the other ills that Blacks continue to experience unequally in the U.S. Black Lives Matter. As… Read more »
Angry? You’re not alone, sister!
Longtime economic and social oppression are wearing thin, and women are getting ticked off.
Donald Trump’s appalling rise: Product of a bipartisan crisis long in the making
The electoral season seems especially wacky this time — but it is the logical result of a bipartisan crisis long in the making.