As the gears of federal government have ground to a halt, a new energy has been rocking the foundations of our urban centers. From Atlanta to Seattle and points in between, cities have begun seizing the initiative, transforming themselves into laboratories for progressive innovation. Income inequality, affordable housing, climate change, sustainable development, public health, participatory government—cities are tackling them all, bringing new urgency to some of the most vital questions of the day. Welcome to the age of big city progressivism! Cities Rising is The Nation’s contribution to the conversation.
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November 16, 2019
The Chicago Teachers Strike Was a Lesson in 21st-Century Organizing
Despite the Janus decision and years of labor losses, the Chicago Teachers Union has figured out how to organize—and win.
Sarah Jaffe
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November 4, 2019
The San Francisco Establishment Is Desperate to Stop Chesa Boudin
Boudin’s insurgent campaign has enough momentum to send him to victory in the DA’s race. The mayor and police are determined not to let that happen.
Jimmy Tobias
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October 3, 2019
This Son of the Left Could Become San Francisco’s Next District Attorney
Chesa Boudin is the child of political radicals who were imprisoned when he was young. Now he’s running to transform his city’s criminal justice system—from the inside.
Jimmy Tobias
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September 19, 2019
Hands Off Exarcheia: Athens’s Anarchist Community Fights Back
The police and Airbnb threaten to transform Athens’s radical enclave into a “tourist-friendly caricature.”
Ella Fassler
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July 12, 2019
Meet the Millennial Mayor Who Took On Big Oil—and Won
Jose Gurrola is just 25, with barely 20,000 constituents, but he’s managed to put California’s powerful oil industry on the defensive.
Gabriel Thompson
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The Nation is reader supported.
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May 30, 2019
In the Heart of Real-Estate Power, a Housing Movement Nears Victory
As tenants organize, New York could become one of the first states to pass “universal rent control.”
Jimmy Tobias
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May 16, 2019
Can Anything Good Come of de Blasio’s Quixotic Quest for President?
New York’s mayor has delivered some real, progressive change—which is why he should remain focused on improving the lives of people in his city.
Jarrett Murphy
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April 1, 2019
The Rising Black Left Movement Behind Chicago’s Historic Elections
No matter who becomes mayor on April 2, the landscape of Chicago politics has shifted radically.
Barbara Ransby
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March 27, 2019
Berlin’s Radical Housing Activists Aren’t Afraid of Expropriations
Germany’s hippest city is debating whether to seize 200,000 homes from landlords and turn them into social housing.
Lukas Hermsmeier
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February 25, 2019
The Amazon Deal Was Not Brought Down by a Handful of Politicians
It was felled by a robust grassroots coalition.
Jimmy Tobias