A bumper sticker displayed with increasing resonance these days reads: “2020, any responsible adult.” This is undoubtedly the mood of Democratic Party voters as was made abundantly clear by the abrupt collapse of the Sanders momentum.
Author: Dan La Botz
A Life in the Shadow of the Bomb
I am a child of the atomic age. The atomic bomb, that is, the threat of nuclear war and mass destruction, has been in my consciousness—sometimes in the background but frequently in the foreground—nearly all of my life.
Statement on My Being Shot by Federal Troops
Since June, I’ve been attending peaceful protests in Portland neighborhoods in support of Black Lives Matter. I have gone with family and friends. I am a 52-year-old mother. I am a history professor. I was protesting peacefully. So why did federal troops shoot me in the head Monday night?
Yesterday’s Man Is Today’s Candidate for President
“Throughout his entire political career, Biden had cultivated and depended upon financial and corporate donors, raising money from Wall Street, big tech, and fossil fuels.” Dan La Botz reviews Branko Marcetic, Yesterday’s Man: The Case Against Joe Biden.
The Debate in the Left on the Elections in the United States
The far left joined the progressives in supporting Senator Bernie Sanders, a liberal in the New Deal mold who ran as a “socialist” against the “billionaire class.” But since Sanders dropped out of the race and endorsed Biden, many on the far left have felt they have no candidate.
Puerto Rico Faces Crises: COVID, Hurricanes, Earthquakes, Drought
The United States has suffered 135,000 deaths from COVID-19 and has tens of millions of unemployed and both crises continue now into the fifth month, but nowhere has the economic crisis been greater than in the U.S. colony of Puerto Rico.
Poland Chooses between Two Right-Wing Politicians
On Sunday there will be a second round of a presidential election in Poland that may affect not only the politics in Poland but also other regions of Europe. Poles are choosing between two right-wing politicians. What is the cause of this situation and what role does the left play in all of it?
The Whitney Took Down My Mural
They never asked us to paint on the plywood barrier built to protect the building during the recent protests. But for a few nights we painted. Mine was a mural about police brutality toward protestors. Now the Whitney has taken them all down.
The Border’s COVID-19 Pandemic: Crisis Upon Crisis
Ciudad Juarez has a long history of crises—foreign invasions, revolutions, economic recessions tied to the United States, the 9-11 border constriction and transnational gangland wars. Now it grapples with the COVID-19 pandemic.
Mexican President AMLO to Visit Trump, both Hope for a Boost Amid Crises
Failing at home, Mexico’s president Andrés Manuel López Obrador (AMLO) will visit U.S. President Donald Trump this week to celebrate the new North American trade pact. Each hopes to get a political boost from the visit. That seems unlikely, especially for AMLO.
Rethinking Socialism From Below in the Age of COVID-19 and Black Lives Matter
Conventional assessments of what constitutes socialism and socialism from below in the U.S. in this historical moment need to begin with participatory observation of how in fact socialism is being conceived of, thought of, debated, and most importantly practiced by a new, radicalized generation.
Protests Against Racism; LBGTQ Pride; Continuing Crisis; Trump’s Decline
Throughout June hundreds of thousands of Americans in hundreds of cities and towns protested the killing of George Floyd who had been murdered by police in Minneapolis. But there were also LGBTQ Pride Marches in support of the protests against racism.
Trump Rallies for Reopening as Biden Strengthens His Position
Donald Trump held his first campaign rally in months on June 20 in an indoor arena in Tulsa, Oklahoma where speaking to a smaller than expected crowd of only 13,000 he minimized the seriousness of the coronavirus pandemic still spreading across the country and failed to address the police racism and violence that have led to protests by hundreds of thousands.
Protests over George Floyd’s Murder Open National Debates on Racism
Polls show that 80 percent of Americans support the protests that took place in 700 cities in all 50 states and which have fostered in virtually every institution, from public agencies to private businesses, a national discussion about racism.
Tail Can’t Wag the Dog: The DSA NPC Vote on Swing States and The Questions for Democracy
The DSA National Political Committee report posted on 5/4/20 showed an alarming question that had come to a vote: “Should DSA ask members in swing states to consider voting for Biden?”
“Dirty Break” for Independent Political Action or a Way to Stay Stuck in the Mud?
Does the history of Minnesota’s Farm-Labor Party in the 1920s and 1930s hold any lessons for socialists today? Kim Moody responds to an article by Eric Blanc.
History Marched Past my Door Last Night Carrying the Future on Her Shoulders
A march came by my house in Brooklyn a few nights ago, a river of thousands of young people of all races, wearing masks because of the pandemic, walking together, shouting out the name of George Floyd, demanding justice. I saw history making its way through the city.
The American Working Class on Unfamiliar and Dangerous Terrain: A Fightback Begins
The pandemic and the shutdown have taken a toll, but they now provide an opportunity to rebuild the American labor movement from the bottom up.
Racist Police Murder of George Floyd Leads to National Rebellion
This article was written for L’Anticapitaliste, the biweekly newspaper of the New Anticapitalist Party (NPA) of France.
The video recording of the murder of George Floyd in Minneapolis on May 25, a black man strangled to death by a white police . . .
Trump Forever? He May Try
In the midst of the worst pandemic in U.S. history and what may be a Second Great Depression worse than the first, President Donald J. Trump’s chief concern is reelection to the presidency in November.
Class Struggle and Social Protest in the Coronavirus Pandemic
The pandemic and the shutdown have taken a toll, but they now provide an opportunity to rebuild the American labor movement from the bottom up. While the challenges will be great, working class resistance is growing and socialists with a rank-and-file strategy and class struggle perspective are involved in the fight.
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