Tag: African Americans

‘Little has changed in the ghetto’

By BILL ONASCH The following commentary was posted in early May at kclabor.org/wordpress. “Baltimore: We Have Been Here Before”—that is the title of a perceptive piece by the Rev. Jesse Jackson. Of course, every such uprising like the one sparked by the death of Freddie Gray while in custody of the Baltimore police has some … Continue reading ‘Little has changed in the ghetto’ →

Madison cop kills Black youth

By CARL SACK MADISON, Wis.—On March 6, police officer Matthew Kenney shot and killed 19-year-old Tony Terrell Robinson. The case has galvanized the Black community here and shaken Madison’s self-image as a socially aware, progressive city. Robinson, a recent high school graduate with plans to attend business school, was identified by police as a Black … Continue reading Madison cop kills Black youth →

Malcolm X’s message to young people today

By JOE AUCIELLO   Malcolm X, born May 19, 1925, would have been 90 years old this year had he not been assassinated 50 years ago (on Feb. 21, 1965). Now, decades later, safely buried, Malcolm X has become respectable. This transformation has been some years in the making, but there can be little doubt of … Continue reading Malcolm X’s message to young people today →

Struggle to desegregate Boston’s schools

By JOE AUCIELLO — BOSTON — This current academic year marks the 40th anniversary of the struggle to desegregate the Boston Public Schools. No celebrations were held to mark the event; there was no commemoration and little public commentary. Local television stations made no use of the ample film footage they possessed and broadcast no … Continue reading Struggle to desegregate Boston’s schools →

MLK Day of Resistance

MLK-Day of Action, Resistance, and Empowerment (MLK-D.A.R.E.) is organizing a march in Philadelphia on Jan. 19. The broad-based coalition hopes to “reclaim” Martin Luther King Day with a focus on political action. The demands of the march are: a $15 minimum wage and the right to a union; an end to the police department’s “stop and … Continue reading MLK Day of Resistance →

Anger spreads as killer cops go free

By MARTY GOODMAN  In 1857, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled to deny freedom to Dred Scott, a slave living in Missouri. The decision stated that Black people have “no rights which the white man was bound to respect.” Today, as yesterday, the racist system of capitalism operates much the same in real life—if no longer … Continue reading Anger spreads as killer cops go free →

Youth on the move!

By JOE AUCIELLO Even a brief look at the racial landscape in America today would convince a reasonable person that, in essential ways through the years, too little has changed. Differences in wealth, income, education, employment, incarceration, etc.—differences that are growing to the disadvantage of Blacks—are still based on race. The election of a Black … Continue reading Youth on the move! →

Outrage at racist grand jury decisions

By MARTY GOODMAN — NEW YORK, Dec. 4 — The horror of Ferguson was repeated on Dec. 3 when a 23-person grand jury in Staten Island, N.Y., failed to indict Officer Daniel Pantaleo in the death of Eric Garner, a 43-year-old Black man. The cause of death was ruled a homicide by chokehold by the … Continue reading Outrage at racist grand jury decisions →

Michael Brown lives on in the movement!

By CLAY WADENA The United States is moving closer and closer to a period of reckoning in regard to centuries of racist exploitation, oppression, and murder. The young Michael Brown, whose life was taken on Aug. 9 by Ferguson police, haunts the dreams of those who wish to beautify, hide, and deny the brutal treatment … Continue reading Michael Brown lives on in the movement! →

Film: Baseball legend Jackie Robinson

By GAETANA CALDWELL-SMITH “42,” written and directed by Brian Helgeland, starring Chadwick Bosemen, Harrison Ford, and Nicole Beharie. “42” is a fictionalized film biography that covers the years 1945 to 1947 in the life of baseball legend Jackie Robinson, when he rose from the Kansas City Monarchs, a Negro League team, to play with the … Continue reading Film: Baseball legend Jackie Robinson →

The Legacy of Malcolm X

Part II of Socialist Action’s 1992 resolution, “Black Self-Determination and Socialist Revolution.” Malcolm X’s evolution was a precursor of the coming generalized working-class radicalization. He was clearly influenced by the revolutionary events on a world scale that involved genuine revolutionaries of all colors in a united working-class struggle for emancipation from wage slavery. Symptomatically, in … Continue reading The Legacy of Malcolm X →

Black self-determination & socialism

To commemorate Black History Month, we are reprinting the first part of the 1992 Socialist Action resolution, “Black Self-Determination and Socialist Revolution in the United States.”  African Americans are an integral part of the American working class. They are also an oppressed nationality, and we support their right to self-determination up to and including the … Continue reading Black self-determination & socialism →