By JEFF MACKLER The U.S. criminal injustice system continues to grind out one absurdity after another in the case of Mumia Abu-Jamal. As the hollow formalities of capitalist law are observed, the judicial machine presses on to drive Mumia, an innocent political prisoner and award-winning journalist, to the death chamber. On Aug. 17 Pennsylvania Court … Continue reading FREE MUMIA NOW! STOP THE EXECUTION!
Month: September 2001
Pacifica Radio Bureaucrats Suspend Amy Goodman
By FRANZ HATTAM The battle for free speech and critical journalism at Pacific Radio reached a fever pitch on Aug.14 when the national news show, "Democracy Now! "(DN), hosted by Amy Goodman, was nixed by Pacifica Executive Director Bessie Wash. Wash ordered that Pacifica's New York affiliate, WBAI, replace Goodman's daily live broadcasts with reruns. … Continue reading Pacifica Radio Bureaucrats Suspend Amy Goodman
Picket Lines and Barricades
By BLACKIE D. I heard somebody on TV say that the reason Federal Reserve Chairman Alan Greenspan feels free to keep dropping the discount rate (seven times so far this year and more on the way) is because there is virtually no inflation in the United States. Says who? The government? Who believes them? Are … Continue reading Picket Lines and Barricades
Youth in Action
Racists given the boot in St. Paul By ADAM RITSCHER ST. PAUL, Minn.-Recently several Midwestern white supremacist groups, namely the National Knights of the Ku Klux Klan and the Minneapolis-based National Socialist Movement, announced their intention to hold a joint "White Unity" rally. The date they chose for this rally was Aug. 25, and … Continue reading Youth in Action
A Valuable Study of Socialists’ Role in Early South African Freedom Struggle
By CHARLIE VAN GELDEREN "Discordant Comrades: Identities and Loyalties on the South African Left." by Allison Drew (Ashgate, London, £45). It is a pity that this book is only available as an expensive hardback, because it is a valuable contribution towards an understanding of the role played by socialists in the struggle against … Continue reading A Valuable Study of Socialists’ Role in Early South African Freedom Struggle
‘Forgotten Teamster’ Ron Carey Goes on Trial
By CHARLES WALKER Former Teamsters President Ron Carey is at long last getting his day in court. The nearly four-year delay ended on Aug. 29 in a New York federal courtroom where a jury of nine women and three men was selected to sit in judgment of a union leader who once seemed destined to … Continue reading ‘Forgotten Teamster’ Ron Carey Goes on Trial
Caribou, Jobs, and Union Bureaucrats
By CHARLES WALKER When a jobless worker takes a backbreaking, even demeaning job at less than a "living wage," it is not only understandable-it makes good economic, strategic sense, right? Who would tell a desperate worker to starve rather than labor for a pittance? But what makes good strategic sense for an isolated individual up … Continue reading Caribou, Jobs, and Union Bureaucrats
Theater Review: Red Diaper Baby
By GAETANA CALDWELL-SMITH Internationally known monologuist Josh Kornbluth-an admitted nerd, bald, with a fringe of long, frizzled hair-said he wrote "Red Diaper Baby" to show what it was like to grow up with Communist Party parents in the 1950s. Kornbluth's mother and father were among the hundreds of thousands of people who had passed through … Continue reading Theater Review: Red Diaper Baby
Sylvia Weinstein, 1926-2001
By MICHAEL SCHREIBER Sylvia Weinstein, a founder of Socialist Action and a former writer and business manager for this newspaper, died on Aug. 14 in San Francisco. She was 75. We will not forget Sylvia Weinstein. Who could? Sylvia-with her outspoken opinions, her biting wit, and her deep love for humanity-made an indelible impression on … Continue reading Sylvia Weinstein, 1926-2001
Fidel Castro Addresses UN Racism Conference
Below we reprint the Sept. 1 address by Cuban President Fidel Castro to the World Conference against Racism, Racial Discrimination, Xenophobia, and Related Intolerance in Durban, South Africa. Racism, racial discrimination, and xenophobia are not naturally instinctive reactions of the human beings but rather a social, cultural, and political phenomenon born directly of wars, military … Continue reading Fidel Castro Addresses UN Racism Conference
UN Conference on Racism – Empty Rhetoric, No Action
By JEFF MACKLER The UN-sponsored World Conference Against Racism, Racial Discrimination, Xenophobia and Related Intolerance (WCAM), as with the two similar United Nations conferences that preceded it in past decades, proved to be a fraud, a farce, and a failure. The week-long Durban, South Africa, meeting opened on Aug. 31 in the presence of 6000 … Continue reading UN Conference on Racism – Empty Rhetoric, No Action
Patients’ Bill of Rights: Good Bill or Bill of Goods?
By JOE AUCIELLO The Patients' Bill of Rights currently under debate in Congress is deliberately misnamed. It is really a "Corporate Protection Act," intended to minimize employer liability when patients are improperly diagnosed, improperly treated, or denied treatment. Most Americans with health insurance are part of a so-called Health Maintenance Organization (HMO), which offers corporations … Continue reading Patients’ Bill of Rights: Good Bill or Bill of Goods?
Another Death Row Prisoner Released
By PAUL M. Charles Fain was released from prison in Idaho on Aug. 23 after nearly 18 years on death row. DNA tests proved that he wasn't responsible for the rape and murder of a nine-year-old girl, for which he was convicted in 1982. The tests were performed on three hairs found on the clothing … Continue reading Another Death Row Prisoner Released
Hearing Scheduled for Kevin Cooper Case
By PAUL M. An evidentiary hearing will take place this month to examine the possibility that police tampered with crucial DNA evidence in the case of Kevin Cooper. Cooper is on death row at San Quentin State Prison in California. In 1985 he was convicted of murdering a Southern California family. There is strong evidence … Continue reading Hearing Scheduled for Kevin Cooper Case
Italy Poised for Renewed Political Struggle in Aftermath of Genoa
By GERRY FOLEY International editor Gerry Foley reports from Rome: Throughout the month of August, Italian politics remained polarized by the mass demonstration in Genoa against the summit of the G8, the club of the industrialized countries, and the issue of police attacks on the actions. On Aug. 20, a march through Genoa commemorated the … Continue reading Italy Poised for Renewed Political Struggle in Aftermath of Genoa
Is Israel Pushing for a Middle East War?
By GERRY FOLEY The recent escalation of Israeli attacks on Palestinian villages, leaders, and institutions has given a new boost to speculation that the Sharon government is preparing to reoccupy the territories ceded to the Palestinian authority and to launch a Middle Eastern war. War is certainly the logic of the conflict. What exists now … Continue reading Is Israel Pushing for a Middle East War?
Commentary by Mumia Abu-Jamal: The Real Meaning of Genoa
When one mentions the very name of Genoa these days, the historical significance of its Columbian roots mixes with its new-found renown as the site of the G-8 Meeting, and the state killing of a young, anti-globalist demonstrator, Carlo Guiliani. It is now an historical marker of another kind - one of the state's brutality. … Continue reading Commentary by Mumia Abu-Jamal: The Real Meaning of Genoa
Washington Demonstration to Protest Capitalist Globalization
By JEFF MACKLER Some 14,000 participants-including heads of state, finance ministers, and journalists-are expected to attend the Sept. 29-30 Washington, D.C., annual joint meeting of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and World Bank (WB). Estimates for the number of protesters range up to 100,000. The city of Washington has requested an additional $30 million in … Continue reading Washington Demonstration to Protest Capitalist Globalization