North America
“They are killing people to save money”
Fiat Chrysler, UAW conspire to keep workers on the job after exposure to coronavirus
By Shannon Jones, 22 August 2020
In order to cut costs and boost profits, management and the UAW are seeking to eliminate the limited and inadequate safety protocols put in place in May.
Coronavirus testing remains at reduced levels in the US
By Bryan Dyne, 22 August 2020
To fully map spread of the pandemic, and contain the disease, the US should be doing 6–10 million tests per day. It currently does about 700,000.
Facebook censors anti-fascist and anarchist groups, falsely linking them with extreme-right violence
By Kevin Reed, 22 August 2020
Facebook has adopted positions put forward by the Trump administration and US Justice Department targeting left-wing opposition in the latest expansion of its political censorship regime.
Cornell residential advisors hold one-day strike over coronavirus safety as school reopens
By James Mullan, 22 August 2020
The strike action was spontaneously organized in response to the university’s reckless reopening plans that left RAs with larger workloads than in pre-pandemic semesters.
Wayne State University administration announces pay freezes and layoffs
By Valery Tsekov, 22 August 2020
The Wayne State University administration is using the crisis to push through long sought after “cost-cutting” attacks on workers and students.
Justice Department accuses Yale of discriminating against Asian American and white students
By Trévon Austin, 22 August 2020
The lawsuit is a cynical provocation by an administration that seeks to stir the pot of racial antagonisms.
Special prosecutor appointed in the case of Hannah Fizer, unarmed Missouri woman slain by police
By Jacob Crosse, 22 August 2020
Fizer’s family has been stonewalled at every turn by investigators and police for more than two months.
The Biden campaign and the attempt to “rescue” American hegemony
By Andre Damon, 22 August 2020
The factions of the state backing the Biden campaign have set out to “reclaim America’s place in the world” by “getting tough” with Russia and China.
CUPE union shuts down 12-day strike at Port of Montreal
By Laurent Lafrance, 22 August 2020
Yesterday’s truce agreement marks the final stage in the union’s efforts to end the strike as quickly as possible and betray the legitimate demands of the rank and file.
Trump administration brands educators “critical infrastructure workers” to force schools to open
By Evan Blake, 21 August 2020
The move comes in response to the growing opposition of educators, parents and students to the catastrophic reopening of schools, which has already infected over 2,500 students and staff across the country.
Weekly jobless claims again top one million as mass evictions loom
By Shannon Jones, 21 August 2020
The number of new unemployment claims rose unexpectedly last week as workers facing mounting economic pressures due to the ending of federal supplemental jobless benefits and the end of eviction bans.
Flint’s $600 million water settlement—a pittance to whitewash a massive social crime
By Sheila Brehm, 21 August 2020
The ruling class is eager to finally put the Flint water poisoning behind them and hope the multi-million-dollar payout will appease workers, at least temporarily.
Steve Bannon arrested on fraud charges involving border wall fundraising scheme
By Kevin Reed, 21 August 2020
The former top adviser to President Trump was arrested on Thursday along with three others on fraud charges in connection with a scheme to defraud donors who gave money to a right-wing “We Build the Wall” fundraising campaign.
US Attorney General Barr boasts of nearly 1,500 arrests through Operation Legend
By Jacob Crosse, 21 August 2020
The operation has been used as a screen to further integrate local police departments with federal agencies, while funneling millions of dollars and deploying over 1,000 federal agents into US cities.
Federal judge orders second investigation into Virginia immigrant detention center hit by mass outbreak of COVID-19
By Joe Williams, 21 August 2020
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention found prison staff were refusing to use safety equipment or provide inmates with protection from COVID-19.
Democrats nominate Biden in inane display of political reaction
By Patrick Martin, 21 August 2020
The sheer contempt for the intelligence of the population and the viewing audience was summed up in Biden’s acceptance speech, which sought to cram every possible trite phrase into a single 20-minute address.
Trotsky’s Last Year
Part Two
By David North, 21 August 2020
An appraisal, on the occasion of the eightieth anniversary of Trotsky’s assassination, of the work of the great theoretician and strategist of World Socialist Revolution during the final year of his life.
The CIA Democrats in the 2020 elections
Part Two
By Patrick Martin, 21 August 2020
Following the example of the 2018 elections, the Democratic Party is putting forward a large new group of military-intelligence candidates for Congress in 2020.
Desert One: Barbara Kopple returns to the fold with her Iran hostage crisis film
By David Walsh, 21 August 2020
Released in theaters or available to stream today, Desert One is a documentary film about the US military’s effort in April 1980 to free American embassy staff captured during the 1979 Iranian revolution.
COVID-19 cases surge on college campuses as Yale administrator warns students to prepare for deaths
By Matthew MacEgan and Genevieve Leigh, 20 August 2020
Despite overwhelming scientific evidence and the most recent experiences of school like UNC-Chapel Hill and Notre Dame, many schools are still pushing forward with reopening plans.
New Senate Intelligence Committee volume on “Russian interference” smears WikiLeaks and Julian Assange
By Kevin Reed, 20 August 2020
The one-thousand-page fifth volume of the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence investigation is largely devoted to building an elaborate and false narrative against WikiLeaks.
Detroit teachers vote overwhelmingly to strike against unsafe school openings
By Phyllis Steele, 20 August 2020
The 91 percent vote to strike is part of the widespread opposition to the opening of schools in the midst of a pandemic.
Maryland’s Republican governor overrules county order for private schools to remain closed
By Ray Coleman, 20 August 2020
The effort to force schools to open in Montgomery County will have the effect of spreading COVID-19 among the school-aged population
California wildfires: A climate crisis embedded in the COVID-19 pandemic
By Rafael Azul, 20 August 2020
The heat wave and numerous wildfires were all predictable, so why wasn’t California prepared?
Amazon workers describe spread of COVID-19 at warehouse in Romulus, Michigan
By George Kirby, 20 August 2020
Wayne County, Michigan, where the warehouse is located, is the state’s epicenter for the virus, with 29,242 confirmed infections and 2,841 deaths as of this writing.
Toronto police culpable in class action lawsuit over their brutal suppression of 2010 G20 protests
By Carl Bronski, 20 August 2020
The June 2010 police state blitz in Toronto was the largest mass arrest in Canadian history.
The nomination of Kamala Harris and the right-wing logic of identity politics
By Niles Niemuth, 20 August 2020
The Democrats hope that the endless celebration of the trite, empty symbolism of Harris’ candidacy will serve as a repeat of Barack Obama’s run for president in 2008.
Trotsky’s Last Year
Part One
By David North, 20 August 2020
An appraisal, on the occasion of the eightieth anniversary of Trotsky’s assassination, of the work of the great theoretician and strategist of World Socialist Revolution during the final year of his life.
The CIA Democrats in the 2020 elections
By Patrick Martin, 20 August 2020
Following the example of the 2018 elections, the Democratic Party is putting forward a large new group of military-intelligence candidates for Congress in 2020.
The UAW at the Democratic National Convention: Gangsters and warmongers lock arms
By Tom Hall, 20 August 2020
The prominent role of the United Auto Workers at the convention underscores the reliance of the Democratic Party on the gangster-ridden unions to suppress the resistance of the working class to wage and job cutting and the homicidal back-to-work campaign.
Disastrous US school openings lead to 2,500 infections across 44 states
By Evan Blake, 19 August 2020
Barring the independent mobilization of educators, parents and the broader working class to halt the reopening of schools, the spread of the COVID-19 pandemic will accelerate.
COVID-19 overtakes accidents as third leading cause of death in the US as testing continues to decline
By Benjamin Mateus, 19 August 2020
Despite the deadly nature of the virus, which has already killed more than 175,000 in the US, testing capacity is declining as states move to resume in-school learning.
Trump’s suggestion of a pardon for Edward Snowden meets US intelligence community backlash
By Kevin Reed, 19 August 2020
Democrats and Republicans with close ties to the intelligence agencies have launched a campaign of opposition after the president said he would look into the case of the former NSA contractor who exposed illegal mass surveillance.
UNC Chapel Hill, Notre Dame and Michigan State University forced to revert to online learning after COVID-19 outbreaks
By Matthew MacEgan, 19 August 2020
UNC Chapel Hill reported 130 new student cases of COVID-19 during its first week, far more than the ten it reported on campus during the week prior to reopening.
Family suing Verizon over death of worker sent into high-risk locations without protective equipment
By Samuel Davidson, 19 August 2020
The family of a Philadelphia-area Verizon employee is suing the company for negligence, saying he was forced to work without proper protective gear in locations such as nursing homes.
Rank-and-file safety committees at Fiat Chrysler and Ford support campaign to defend victimized parts worker
By the Autoworker Rank-and-File Safety Committee Network, 19 August 2020
Newly-formed committees at Fiat Chrysler, Ford and Faurecia plants issued statements supporting James Grady, who was set up by the IBEW union and management and fired in mid-May from the Faurecia Gladstone plant in Columbus, Indiana.
SAG-AFTRA’s Health Plan restructuring faces massive opposition
By Marc Wells, 19 August 2020
The restructuring of the US union’s health plan will reduce coverage for thousands of current and retired performers and media professionals, along with their families.
Colin Powell at the Democratic National Convention: Democrats prepare administration of militarism and war
By Joseph Kishore—SEP candidate for US president, 19 August 2020
The second day of the convention featured remarks by Powell, a leading architect of the 2003 invasion of Iraq, and a video highlighting Biden’s “unlikely friendship” with arch warmonger John McCain.
Democratic convention opens with appeal to right-wing Republican support
By Patrick Martin, 18 August 2020
Bernie Sanders led the way in preaching political unity from “left” to right against Trump and for Biden.
Teacher sickout closes Arizona school district as support grows for national strike
By Jerry White, 17 August 2020
Phoenix area teachers forced the closure of the first day of school today as protests against the unsafe opening of schools spread across the country.
South Dakota governor first to reject unemployment aid from Trump executive order
By Jacob Crosse, 17 August 2020
While four states have already been approved by FEMA to begin authorizing payments, Kristie Noem cited cherry-picked statistics to justify her rejection of federal benefits.
With pandemic raging, Florida governor deepens drive to reopen schools
By Alex Johnson, 17 August 2020
School districts and teachers in Florida have been forced to resume in-person learning while COVID-19 cases and deaths continue to surge throughout the state.
Texas A&M faculty decry plans to reopen campuses in midst of pandemic
By Chase Lawrence, 17 August 2020
Faculty, professors and students at multiple Texas A&M University campuses recently penned an open letter that has garnered roughly 900 signatures.
Judge blocks GM’s bid to reopen racketeering case against Fiat Chrysler
By Marcus Day, 17 August 2020
The judge made the ruling despite credible and explosive new allegations about the scale and scope of FCA's bribery of the United Auto Workers union.
Indiana Rank-and-File Safety Committee demands reinstatement of whistleblower at Faurecia Gladstone plant
By Tim Rivers, 17 August 2020
The newly-formed Faurecia Gladstone Rank and File Safety Committee is also demanding an immediate halt on the part of the company and the local union to all forms of intimidation and harassment.
Heat wave, rolling blackouts affect thousands across California
By Peter Ross, 17 August 2020
A major heat wave affecting much of the southwestern US caused rolling blackouts Friday and Saturday throughout California.
Canadian provinces and cities confront huge deficits as economic crisis deepens
By Omar Ali, 17 August 2020
Huge debts, which have been accumulated chiefly through measures to bail out the banks and financial oligarchy, are being seized upon to demand intensified austerity for the working class.
The Biden/Harris campaign and the dead-end of “lesser evil” politics
By Joseph Kishore—SEP candidate for US president, 17 August 2020
As the US election enters its final stage, enormous pressure is being brought to bear to convince workers and youth that the only way to oppose Trump is to support Biden and Harris.
Prominent lawyers and legal associations demand Assange’s freedom
By Oscar Grenfell, 17 August 2020
The 152 legal experts are unambiguous: the campaign against Assange has been based on gross violations of law and he must be immediately released from prison.
US child care in existential crisis as schools and businesses reopen
By Nick Barrickman, 17 August 2020
As plummeting enrollment at day cares during the spring forced many to close, the beginning of grade school classes in the fall will compound the crisis.
Fauci warns against herd immunity: “the death toll would be enormous”
By Bryan Dyne, 15 August 2020
Dr. Anthony Fauci, one of world’s leading experts on infectious disease, warned against the relaxation of efforts to combat COVID-19, declaring, “The death toll would be enormous and totally unacceptable.”
Hawaii schools to reopen August 17 as opposition grows
By Renae Cassimeda, 15 August 2020
In a fight for their lives and those of thousands of students, educators and parents oppose the new reopening plan that has students and teachers reporting to school sites for in-person instruction for one week prior to full distance learning.
Government watchdog concludes acting heads of Homeland Security were illegally appointed by Trump
By Jacob Crosse, 15 August 2020
The Government Accountability Office report is a soft rebuke to Donald Trump, who has frequently circumvented congressional approval in order to install acting department heads loyal to him.
Workers denounce cover-up and intimidation around COVID-19 infections at Fiat Chrysler Belvidere plant
By Kristina Betinis, 15 August 2020
Belvidere workers continue to speak out against management and UAW concealing information and shaming workers for stating concerns as Boone and Winnebago counties launch investigation into the spread of disease at the plant.
UAW announces COVID outbreak at the Ford Kentucky Truck Plant in Louisville with 32 new cases
By Steve Filips, 15 August 2020
There were 32 new COVID-19 cases reported last week at Ford’s Kentucky Truck Plant in Louisville.
Powerful windstorm leaves 4 dead, 1.5 million without power across US Midwest
By Jessica Goldstein, 15 August 2020
Workers, who have lost everything in the storm, will be crowded into shelters and aid centers where social distancing will prove to be very difficult, putting thousands more at needless risk of contracting COVID-19.
The Democrats and Republicans: Two wolves hunting the United States Postal Service
By Shuvu Batta, 15 August 2020
While they posture as defenders of postal workers, the Democrats have played a critical role in the privatization of the USPS and the decay of American democracy.
Chicago Mayor Lightfoot announces police crackdown
By Michael Walters, 15 August 2020
One thousand police officers are being deployed into downtown Friday evening after a press conference in which the Democratic mayor announced a plan to tighten police control of the city, involve more police agencies, increase social media surveillance and further limit access to the wealthy downtown.
Infiltration of US protests against police brutality used to delegitimize demonstrations, undermine democratic rights
By Adam Mclean, 15 August 2020
Police infiltration of protests has a renewed significance at a time when democratic rights have been stretched to the point of breaking.
The show trial of Julian Assange: A cruel and pseudolegal farce
By Thomas Scripps and Kevin Reed, 15 August 2020
Yesterday’s hearing in London made clear, if any further proof was needed, that the prosecution of Assange is a shameful and degrading show trial, intended to railroad an innocent man to prison or death.
Prepare a nationwide general strike to stop the deadly reopening of schools!
Form independent rank-and-file safety committees of educators, parents and students!
By the Educators Rank-and-File Safety Committee, 15 August 2020
We are launching the Educators Rank-and-File Safety Committee to unite all those opposed to the unsafe reopening of schools and provide the necessary leadership to prepare for a nationwide general strike to halt the reopening of schools.
Jacobin Magazine on the selection of Kamala Harris: Stick with the Democrats!
By Genevieve Leigh, 15 August 2020
There is truly nothing too foul the Democratic Party could do that would lead Jacobin and the DSA to conclude that the party cannot be reformed.
First two weeks of US school reopenings lead to massive spread of COVID-19
By Zac Corrigan, 14 August 2020
Schools across the US continued to reopen for in-person classes this week, leading to the exposure of thousands of teachers and students to the deadly virus.
Mounting opposition against school openings in Germany
By Carola Kleinert and Gregor Link, 14 August 2020
While many teachers, parents and students are opposed to opening schools under unsafe conditions, administrators and politicians are arrogantly ignoring their concerns.
Congress adjourns for month-long vacation without action on US unemployment crisis
By Patrick Martin, 14 August 2020
The capitalist politicians will be holding their presidential nominating conventions while millions of workers have been cut off from federal benefits.
Oregon residents block unmarked ICE buses carrying detained immigrants
By Julio Patron, 14 August 2020
The standoff lasted around 12 hours in Bend, Oregon, until dozens of federal agents were deployed to disperse the protesters using pepper spray.
Big tech firms meet with US national security agencies in advance of November elections
By Kevin Reed, 14 August 2020
Nine of the largest tech firms in the US met with multiple government police and intelligence agencies on Wednesday to discuss “election security” in the campaign prior to and on election day in November.
Fascistic candidate wins Republican congressional nomination in Georgia
By Trévon Austin, 14 August 2020
Marjorie Taylor Greene, a multi-millionaire businesswoman and supporter of the QAnon conspiracy, will likely enter Congress from the heavily Republican 14th District of Georgia.
US health insurance companies reap billions as COVID-19 pandemic inflicts death and destitution
By Alex Johnson, 14 August 2020
The largest healthcare chains, including Anthem, Humana, and UnitedHealth Group, have reported second-quarter earnings at double the rate from the same period last year.
Wisconsin immigrant meat packing workers fired in retaliation for protesting over unsafe working conditions
By Rafael Azul, 14 August 2020
After employing the workers for years, management suddenly informed the targeted workers that they were not authorized to work in the US.
Two Utah protesters face life in prison
By Chase Lawrence, 14 August 2020
Madalena McNeil and Marvin Oliveros are charged with daubing the Salt Lake City district attorney’s office with red paint.
“Our lives don't matter to Ford”: Tragic COVID-19 death of young contract worker covered up by management and the UAW
By Shannon Jones, 14 August 2020
The death of a young worker at the Ford Van Dyke transmission plant from COVID-19 is the inevitable outcome of the brutal profit drive of the car companies, aided by the United Auto Workers.
Indiana Faurecia auto parts workers launch Rank-and-File Safety Committee
By the Faurecia Gladstone Plant Rank-and-File Safety Committee, 14 August 2020
Workers at the Faurecia Gladstone Plant in Columbus, Indiana, roughly 40 miles south of the state capital Indianapolis, have formed a rank-and-file committee in order to fight for safe and humane working conditions.
Unifor and Detroit Three open Canadian contract negotiations as more layoffs and plant closures loom
By Carl Bronski, 14 August 2020
The current concessions contracts, which were grudgingly ratified by workers in 2016, expire on September 21.
Sri Lankan prime minister admits US is behind Colombo Port deal with India
By Vijith Samarasinghe, 14 August 2020
The Colombo Port workers’ struggle has demonstrated that the US and India want Sri Lanka tied to their strategic and military moves against nuclear-armed China.
How the American oligarchy profited on death
By Andre Damon, 14 August 2020
The United States set two milestones on Wednesday: 1,503 people died from COVID-19 and the S&P; 500 stock index reached a new high.
Growing wave of protests across the US against school openings
By Evan Blake, 13 August 2020
Across the US, thousands of teachers, education workers, parents and students are mobilizing to oppose the unsafe reopening of schools amid the COVID-19 pandemic.
Wall Street continues to feed on death and economic devastation
By Nick Beams, 13 August 2020
Since the crisis of mid-March when the market plunged and the financial system froze, Wall Street’s S&P 500 index has risen by 50 percent on the back of government corporate bailouts and the pumping out of trillions of dollars by the Fed.
Diversions, posturing as school board votes to reopen school in small-town Massachusetts
By Joseph Mario, 13 August 2020
Scituate, a small coastal town south of Boston, is one example of broader situation in the state, where Governor Baker has pushed for schools to fully reopen in the fall.
US Supreme Court rules ballot access petitioning must proceed during coronavirus pandemic
By Kevin Reed, 13 August 2020
In a one paragraph order with no legal explanation provided, the US Supreme Court overturned a decision by a trial judge in Oregon relaxing ballot access requirements in consideration of the restrictions imposed on public interaction during the pandemic.
Report charges US-Saudi arms sale ignored civilian casualties
By Bill Van Auken, 13 August 2020
The report on the $8.1 billion arms deal came amid fresh reports from Yemen of atrocities caused by US-supplied Saudi warplanes and munitions.
“This is a modern-day sweatshop”
Amazon workers speak out against inadequate safety measures
By our reporters, 13 August 2020
As the company makes money hand over fist from the pandemic's boost to online retail sales, hundreds of thousands of low-wage workers labor for long hours in unsafe conditions at Amazon's fulfillment centers.
Washington, DC transit system faces massive budget shortfall as it resumes near pre-pandemic service levels
By Harvey Simpkins, 13 August 2020
The Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority (WMATA) is currently losing $2.5 million in revenue each weekday because of a 90 percent drop in ridership on its bus and rail lines.
Canada and the United States resume aluminum tariff war
By Carl Bronski, 13 August 2020
An unholy alliance of Ontario Premier Doug Ford, the federal Liberal government, and the United Steelworkers and Unifor trade unions is whipping up Canadian nationalism to justify retaliatory tariffs in answer to Trump’s “America First” protectionism.
The selection of Kamala Harris and the degradation of American politics
By Joseph Kishore—SEP candidate for US president, 13 August 2020
There is something incredibly degrading and shameful about the whole process, testifying to the intellectual and cultural collapse of American politics.
Bernard Bailyn, historian of American colonial and revolutionary periods, 1922–2020
By Tom Mackaman, 13 August 2020
Bailyn leaves behind a significant body of work that broadened the understanding of the intellectual conceptions that found expression in the American Revolution.
The debut of Coriky, a new band featuring members of Fugazi and The Evens
By Matthew Brennan, 13 August 2020
The new self-titled album distributes a considerable amount of opposition and anger across 11 songs. The results are uneven.
Biden picks former law-and-order prosecutor Kamala Harris to be his Democratic running mate
By Patrick Martin, 12 August 2020
Harris satisfies the advocates of identity politics while reassuring big business with her law-and-order record and close ties to the moneyed elite.
After White House, Congress cut aid to unemployed, evictions and food lines spread across the US
By Jacob Crosse, 12 August 2020
As eviction filings increase to pre-pandemic levels, workers and their families are left to fend for themselves.
Analysis shows 54,000 “excess deaths” in US, pointing to coronavirus death toll of 200,700
By Kate Randall, 12 August 2020
A new analysis shows that the number of deaths from the coronavirus has likely been undercounted by 37 percent.
“We need to be the ones making the decision about when and how to reopen”
Oklahoma schools reopen amid growing opposition from teachers
By Mitch Marcus and Phyllis Steele, 12 August 2020
Teachers across the state have reacted with disgust and anger at this week’s re-opening, which threatens to produce an explosion of new infections and deaths.
Schools make students sign liability waivers acknowledging risk of death
By Sam Wayne and Usman Khan, 12 August 2020
Colleges and K-12 schools across the US have sent letters to parents and students, requiring liability waivers be signed before students can return for in-person classes.
Ford Chicago Assembly workers launch Rank-and-File Safety Committee to save lives
By the Ford Chicago Assembly Rank-and-File Safety Committee, 12 August 2020
Our coworkers are falling ill and even dying, but management and the union refuse to tell us the truth about how many have been exposed to or become infected with COVID-19.
Bringing Afghanistan home:
Canada’s military launched operation to “shape” opinion amid pandemic
By Roger Jordan, 12 August 2020
Sparked by fears of “civil unrest,” the operation included plans for military personnel to broadcast government-approved propaganda over loudspeakers and temporary radio stations.
College football season in doubt after Big Ten and Pac-12 postpone fall sports
By Andy Thompson, 12 August 2020
The sudden reversal by the two conferences came after growing opposition by players, which may have been a decisive factor in their decision to postpone the season.
The ruling-class conspiracy to reopen schools: Profit versus science
By Genevieve Leigh, 12 August 2020
The science is clear: the reopening of schools under the current conditions will lead to countless deaths among students, parents, teachers, and more broadly in the working class.
Who is Democratic Senator Kamala Harris?
By Dan Conway, 12 August 2020
In this political profile of Harris, published in July 2019, the World Socialist Web Site summed up her career as a representative of the US criminal justice system and a reliable defender of corporate and intelligence state interests.
“They spout in the news ‘thank you to health care heroes’ but what thanks do we get?”
US nurses’ poll shows appalling working conditions in the pandemic
By Julian James, 11 August 2020
The NNU study shows that only 24 percent of nurses think their employer is providing a safe workplace.
US hits five million COVID-19 cases as testing declines and schools reopen
By Benjamin Mateus, 10 August 2020
The number of daily COVID-19 tests in the US has dropped significantly in recent weeks in line with the increasingly feverish drive to reopen the schools.
Georgia teachers and students force temporary closure of North Paulding High School over COVID-19 outbreak
By Genevieve Leigh, 10 August 2020
The cluster of COVID-19 cases at the school emerged as a direct consequence of the decision to reopen schools for in-person instruction amid a surge in infections.
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