The “Save Darfur” rally today was aired on C-Span. The rally was small — only several thousands according to Reuters (“Thousands March to Stop Darfur Killing,” 30 April 2006). And the crowd in attendance was overwhelmingly white. But, boy, it was a professionally-staged photo op, with celebs, politicos, and exiles from Sudan at the podium […]
Geography Archives: Americas
South America, Central America, United States & Canada
Neil Young Kicks Out the Jams!
On April 30, 1970, Richard Nixon told the world that US forces were invading the country of Cambodia. Within twenty-four hours of his announcement, the streets of many cities and towns around the United States and elsewhere were filled with angry protests against the US action. On May 4, National Guard troops opened fire on […]
Worker-to-Worker Solidarity Committee to AFL-CIO: Cut All Ties with NED
On March 6, over 50 union members from several unions and activist allies picketed the headquarters of the AFL-CIO in Washington, DC., to demand that the AFL-CIO’s Solidarity Center immediately break off all ties with the misnamed National Endowment for Democracy (NED). The NED is a leading component of the US Government’s efforts to maintain […]
“Save Darfur”: Evangelicals and Establishment Jews
Yoshie Furuhashi, “Who Wants Peace in Darfur?” (30 April 2006) It’s embarrassing that America — and the world — will be witnessing a PRO-WAR rally in Washington, D.C. on April 30 (a project of SaveDarfur.org) that is far more highly publicized than an anti-war one (that appears to be poorly organized) in New York City […]
Nativo López on May 1: “You Get What You’re Ready to Fight for”
NATIVO LÓPEZ is president of the Mexican American Political Association and a spokesperson for the Great American Boycott 2006 — a national day of action for immigrant rights on May 1. Nativo talked about the huge protests against anti-immigrant legislation and plans for May 1 with SARAH KNOPP, a teacher in Los Angeles and […]
Persian Atoms: Enriching Facts, Diverting Fiction
“I don’t think the issue of enrichment right now, emotional as it is, is urgent. . . . So, we have ample time to negotiate a settlement by which, as I said, Iran’s need for nuclear power is assured and the concern of the international community is also put to rest.” “We have done our […]
Harperism: The First Three Months
The opening of the 39th Parliament of Canada on 3 April 2006 quickly revealed what should now be plain to all. Under the Conservative Party leadership of Prime Minister Stephen Harper, Canadians are faced with a government with an unambiguous right-wing agenda. The outlines of the “Harperism” project can readily be discerned: there is a […]
West Point Graduates Organize against the War
We mince no words. Time is of the essence. Iraq is a human and political catastrophe, stark testament to the deceitful behavior of the Bush administration. The dangers are clear and present, and too many human beings are dying for an ignoble cause. The preemptive war launched against Iraq on March 20, 2003 stands illegal […]
Nepal and Venezuela:For Popular Democracy, against Ceremonial Democracy
Any serious and honest survey of the Maoist movement would convey the truth that its main agenda has been to establish essential democratic institutions that devolve political and economic power to the masses. In every negotiation with the King and the parliamentary forces, the Maoists have asked for an unconditional constituent assembly, during whose election […]
Resistance on the Mexican “Riviera”: The Zapatistas Visit Manzanillo, Colima
The view south-east across the bay from the hills of Las Hadas, the hotel zone in Manzanillo is especially beautiful in the evening as the sun sets and the white painted hotels and restaurants stretching for several miles sparkle in the sun, behind the curving beach. It’s a major Pacific port for Mexico and […]
To Delphi Corporation’s Robert Miller, “Bankruptcy Is A Growth Industry in America”!
An insider’s analysis of what Corporate Bankruptcy Czar Robert Miller is cooking up for workers and communities in America by Delphi worker/UAW activist Gregg Shotwell, with an introduction by former UAW Executive Board Member, Jerry Tucker Gregg Shotwell is a machine operator for Delphi (formerly GM) — the world’s largest auto parts supplier. He has […]
As Crisis Deepens: Is a Comeback for Labor in the Cards?
As labor activists from around the country and world converge on Dearborn, Michigan in early May for the Labor Notes Conference, it’s worth reflecting back on a year that has brought back hopes for a revitalization of the labor movement. Several months ago, the Wall Street Journal described an increase in strikes in the United […]
It’s Time to Call a Truce in America’s Longest War
I am Ron Ridenour, a 55-year-old Flathead County and Canyon resident of Montana. I stood before a federal judge on June 25th, 2004, the most critical reckoning day I had encountered in my lifetime. In order to reduce a 5 to 20 year prison term and a two million dollar fine to livable amounts, […]
Images of the Unemployed in New Deal Photography: “The Forgotten Man” versus the Militant Unemployed Workers Movement
The Great Depression represented a new moment for government involvement in many facets of American life including a national photography project. The government-sponsored photography project documenting the experiences of Americans during these years of economic crisis existed from 1935 through 1942. The project was housed in various government departments’ including the Resettlement Administration, the Farm […]
Filipino American Hip-Hop and Class Consciousness: Renewing the Spirit of Carlos Bulosan
“Filipino writers in the Philippines [and the United States] have a great task ahead of them, but also a great future. The field is wide open. They should rewrite everything written about the Philippines and the Filipino people from the materialist, dialectical point of view — this being, the only [way] to understand and interpret […]
NAFTA Corridor Update
Richard D. Vogel, “NAFTA Corridors: Dividing the Nation to Multiply Profits” (MRZine, 4 February 2006) As required by law, the State of Texas has finally posted the long anticipated 4,000-page draft environmental impact statement for the Texas leg of the I-35 NAFTA corridor on the Internet. Access to the document is limited by the digital […]
A Note on Immigration and the U.S. Workers [Una nota sobre la inmigración y los trabajadores estadounidenses]
Si el pueblo trabajador en Estados Unidos ha de alcanzar unidad, autoconfianza colectiva e independencia política en el futuro próximo (¡y cuanto nos hacen falta!), la demanda del movimiento de los trabajadores inmigrantes de derechos plenos debe ser el primer punto en su agenda. El pueblo trabajador en este país necesita darse cuenta de lo […]
Massachusetts Health Reform Bill: A False Promise of Universal Coverage
Listen to Steffie Woolhandler on Doug Henwood’s Behind the News radio show (6 April 2006). Read David U. Himmelstein and Steffie Woolhandler, “Mayhem in the Medical Marketplace” (Monthly Review 56.7, December 2004). It’s a stirring scene. The Governor, legislative leaders and leaders of Health Care for All standing in the State House Rotunda declaring […]
Washington, D.C., 10 April 2006: The Awakened Giant Goes to Washington!
10 April 2006 was the National Day of Action for immigrant rights. Millions marched nationwide on 9-10 April 2006 in opposition to HR 4437 (which would make undocumented immigrants — and those who help them stay in the United States — felons for the first time in the nation’s history) and in support of legalization […]
Minneapolis-St. Paul, 9 April 2006
Yiwen Cheng lives in Kansas City, and Stephen Philion lives in Minneapolis.
