Poverty

Old Chapel Lane, Skibbereen, County Cork in 1846.

What Caused the Irish Famine? What Caused the Irish Famine?

A new book offers a comprehensive and heartbreaking account of the most terrible catastrophe to befall Ireland in the modern era.

Apr 8, 2025 / Books & the Arts / John Banville

Crowd cheers and does the wave before Bernie Sanders and Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez speak at the Fighting Oligarchy: Where do we go from here tour to Arizona State University's Mullet Arena in Tempe, Arizona USA on March 20, 2025.

The Democrats Have Disappeared The Democrats Have Disappeared

As Trump and Musk bulldoze democracy, the Democratic Party is MIA. While Republicans use government to cripple the opposition’s ability to compete, Democrats whine about “no...

Mar 25, 2025 / Corbin Trent

Despite the massive mobilization of Bernie Sanders’s two presidential campaigns, his supporters remain a junior partner in the Democratic Party power structure.

Time for a Progressive Rethink Time for a Progressive Rethink

Anger at the Democratic Party’s inept leadership and subservience to Big Money has been rising since the election. But the left also must examine our own role in enabling Trump.

Mar 24, 2025 / Jeff Faux

Mario Savio, a leader of the University of California Free Speech Movement, center, with Jack Weinberg and Susan Goldberg and other arrested demonstrators during their trial, Berkeley, California, 1965.

America Needs a New Free Speech Movement America Needs a New Free Speech Movement

Donald Trump is showing us what an unaccountable class of corporate decision-makers looks like—and it looks like a lot of fear, and a terrible loss of freedom.

Mar 19, 2025 / Zephyr Teachout

Sherrod Brown: Three decades of talking about the dignity of work wasn’t enough to save him.

How the American Left Became Conservative How the American Left Became Conservative

Against the radical, if reactionary, experiment run from the White House, everyone from Democratic leaders in Congress to MSNBC hosts have turned to the defense of institutions.

Mar 18, 2025 / Michael Kazin

President-elect Donald Trump rings the opening bell on the trading floor of the New York Stock Exchange on December 12, 2024, in New York City.

Donald Trump Is Crashing the Economy, but Wall Street Is Afraid to Speak Out Donald Trump Is Crashing the Economy, but Wall Street Is Afraid to Speak Out

Everyone knows Trump is messing up, but fear and greed prevent resistance.

Mar 14, 2025 / Jeet Heer

South African farmer Tewie Wessels addresses a group of white South Africans supporting US President Donald Trump and tech billionaire Elon Musk during a demonstration in Pretoria, on February 15, 2025.

Why Trump Is Threatened by South Africa Why Trump Is Threatened by South Africa

The country’s Constitution gives its citizens more than a right to the pursuit of happiness. But attempts to redeem that commitment to justice have enraged American reactionaries....

Mar 14, 2025 / Susan Neiman

Person walking by a store. A sign readers

How Trump Plans to Manipulate US Economic Data to Gaslight the Public How Trump Plans to Manipulate US Economic Data to Gaslight the Public

The president and his GOP cronies want to tamper with government statistics and use deceptive budget gimmicks to lie about the impact of their massive tax and budget cuts.

Mar 10, 2025 / Sam Gustin

Supporters hold up “Save Medicaid” signs outside the Capitol during the Republicans’ attempt to cut Medicaid during Trump's first term in September 2017.

Donald Trump’s Next Diversity Target: People With Disabilities Donald Trump’s Next Diversity Target: People With Disabilities

The president’s disdain for disabled people—and obsession with genetic superiority—harks back to a grim past.

Feb 18, 2025 / Sam Gustin

After a North Carolina Election Loss, Amazon Union Organizers Must Think Bigger, Bolder

After a North Carolina Election Loss, Amazon Union Organizers Must Think Bigger, Bolder After a North Carolina Election Loss, Amazon Union Organizers Must Think Bigger, Bolder

Local organizers built a multiracial, multigenerational union with grassroots energy and tenacity. But Amazon is too big to beat through site-by-site organizing and striking.

Feb 17, 2025 / Jonathan Rosenblum

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