February 20, 2024
Stephanie J. Urdang is in the UK now, publicizing her memoir Mapping My Way Home: Activism, Nostalgia, and the Downfall of Apartheid South Africa. On January 22, she talked with journalist Karina H. Maynard on Life: Arts and Culture, a morning feature of London-based Colourful radio, one of Britain’s first internet audio streams.
February 20, 2024
Eric Holt-Giménez is the Executive Director of Food First, a “people’s think tank” dedicated to ending the injustices that cause hunger. He’s also the author of the recently published A Foodie’s Guide to Capitalism: Understanding the Political Economy of What We Eat. Here, he talks to C.S. Soong, host of “Against the Grain,” a radio show emanating three times a week from Pacifica station KPFA 94.1 FM in the San Francisco Bay Area....
February 20, 2024
After Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officials terrorized undocumented workers by raiding 7-Elevens nationwide last month, and with 800,000 federal workers’ jobs on temporary shutdown over the status of the Dreamers, now’s a good time to take a look at how U.S. immigration policies affect the workplace….
February 20, 2024
Helena Sheehan’s 'Syria Wave' moves from artistic culture to the mass culture that created and then abandoned (or was abandoned by) Syriza. The author, an Irish journalist and political activist who visits Greece frequently, offers a unique view of the Syriza phenomenon. The first of her six essays was written in 2012 and the last in 2016. Since the essays have not been revised, they convey the euphoria and heartbreak of the movement as they were occurring….
February 20, 2024
‘I’m not against immigrants. I’m against illegal ones. … Our country is already too full. We must put a limit on how many can come in. We simply can’t afford it. They’ll put too much pressure on our already squeezed public finance. It’s a simple case of supply and demand. Wages will fall if you increase the supply of workers.’ ¶ Who hasn’t heard such statements in our workplace, pubs or family meals? You disagree with them, but you might not have the facts or arguments to back up your opinion, so you keep quiet to avoid a shouting match and to keep the peace….
February 20, 2024
Monthly Review Press is offering a 40% discount on ten selected books about African and African-American history—paperback and e-book (when available)—starting February 20, and ending midnight February 27, EST. Just enter the coupon code: BlackHistory0208 to receive 40% off at checkout.
February 20, 2024
Anyone interested in a comprehensive account of what happened in Greece between 2012 and 2016—the struggles of the Left; the social devastation as a result of austerity; the rise, election, and capitulation of Syriza—should pick up Helena Sheehan’s latest book. Those already familiar with the period’s political drama, in search of an opportunity to reengage with the debates of the time, should also read The Syriza Wave, for the book opens multiple windows on a story that is still unraveling...
February 20, 2024
At a time when capitalism is widely considered as the only and inevitable system, there are seldom critiques that go beyond understanding the inherent faults of the capitalist system to establishing the possibility of an alternative. This book is the latest contribution by Fred Magdoff and Chris Williams in their lifelong commitment not only to elucidate the ecological crises entailed in capitalism, but to provide the basis and the possibilities for an alternate system: eco-socialism....
February 20, 2024
For years, intellectuals have argued that, with the triumph of capitalist, liberal democracy, the Western World has reached “the end of history.” Recently, however, there has been a rise of authoritarian politics in many countries. Concepts of post-democracy, anti-politics, and the like are gaining currency in theoretical and political debate. Now that capitalist democracies are facing seismic and systemic challenges, it becomes increasingly important to investigate not only the inherent antagonism between liberalism and the democratic process, but also socialism. Is socialism an enemy of democracy? Could socialism develop, expand, even enhance democracy?
February 20, 2024
According to Stephen Bannon and Environmental Protection Agency head Scott Pruitt, poor little America got hoodwinked by devious Asians, signing a deal that would wreck the economy and throw millions of people out of work, especially (white) coal miners in Appalachia, whom the president loves dearly. Climate change is an insignificant issue compared to these hardships and injustices. Coal is a fantastic fuel that will return America to greatness. ¶ Contrast this with the closing of Ian Angus’s Facing the Anthropocene: Fossil Capitalism and the Crisis of the Earth System...
