World News
Video footage exposes police shooting of 13-year-old autistic boy in Salt Lake City
By Niles Niemuth, 23 September 2020
While Linden Cameron somehow survived being shot 11 times, police in the US are still on track to kill nearly 1,000 people, a grim toll they have exacted every year since 2015.
The CDC retracts its guidance that stipulated the airborne danger of the coronavirus
By Benjamin Mateus, 23 September 2020
Though the CDC said it had erroneously published the unvetted draft, the political fallout faced by the CDC suggests it was a political maneuver to save face.
Hundreds of Kenosha, Wisconsin teachers call in sick to force schools to close
By Renae Cassimeda and Evan Blake, 23 September 2020
Starting Monday, 276 Kenosha teachers engaged in a sickout strike in opposition to increasing COVID-19 outbreaks and deadly conditions in the school district.
Johnson’s bogus agenda for combating the escalating pandemic will cost tens of thousands of lives in UK
By Chris Marsden, 23 September 2020
After Johnson’s health advisers announced there would be 50,000 cases a day by mid-October and 200 deaths a day by November without government action, his measures read like a cruel joke.
Students occupy schools across Greece to protest unsafe return to classrooms
By Robert Stevens, 23 September 2020
Anger is erupting among youth in Greece at being forced back to school amid a raging pandemic of COVID-19.
Trump delivers anti-China tirade to United Nations
By Bill Van Auken, 23 September 2020
The annual opening of the UN General Assembly was held under the shadow of the global COVID-19 pandemic and the growing threat of imperialist war.
Facebook plans political censorship in anticipation of “chaos” and “violence” in the 2020 US elections
By Kevin Reed, 23 September 2020
Facebook is working with “world-class military scenario planners” to prepare for civil unrest in the US and “restrict the circulation of content” during the November elections.
Democrats capitulate as Republicans secure votes to install far-right justice on Supreme Court
By Barry Grey and Jacob Crosse, 23 September 2020
For all their bluster, the Democrats were focused on preventing a plunge in the stock market by reaching a government funding deal with the Republicans before the September 30 deadline.
UK Educators Rank-and-File Committee holds second meeting
By our reporters, 23 September 2020
The aim of meeting was to call on educators, students and parents to join and build rank-and-file committees “in your workplace, college or campus and communities.”
National Education Union letter to Boris Johnson: A total surrender to herd immunity
By Tania Kent, 23 September 2020
From the outset of the pandemic, the NEU has blocked all moves to combat the deadly consequences of the government’s handling of the virus.
Massachusetts education commissioner demands “low-risk” districts resume in-person learning
By Will McCallis, 23 September 2020
The letter warns that non-compliance with the “school reopening guidance" will be met with a potential loss of state funds.
Strike by 4,000 service workers at University of Illinois at Chicago enters its second week
By Andy Thompson and Fabian Salgado, 23 September 2020
To oppose the sellout being prepared, striking hospital workers must follow the examples of auto workers and educators by forming rank-and-file committees.
Two workers killed in fire at North Carolina paper mill
By Cordell Gascoigne, 23 September 2020
Two contract workers at the Evergreen Packaging paper mill in Canton, North Carolina tragically died Monday in a fire of still unexplained origin during maintenance operations.
After ordering Ford Canada workers to ignore strike deadline, Unifor announces job-cutting agreement
By Roger Jordan, 23 September 2020
The Unifor president refused to provide any details about the contract—signalling that the union has accepted further concessions and job cuts.
Brazil’s mayoral elections expose major parties’ rightward lurch
By Miguel Andrade, 23 September 2020
The Brazilian ruling class is attempting to use the elections to channel the massive opposition to Bolsonaro behind “national unity” and the military.
Trump on coronavirus pandemic: “Virtually nobody” affected
By Joseph Kishore—SEP candidate for US President, 23 September 2020
The indifference expressed by Trump to death on a mass scale expresses not only his personal outlook but the social policy of the ruling class.
Assange faces “very high risk of suicide,” medical expert tells court
By Thomas Scripps and Laura Tiernan, 23 September 2020
Kopelman’s evidence confirms the warnings made since November 2019 by Doctors for Assange that Assange is suffering “psychological torture” and “could die in prison.”
Global banking system a network of criminality
By Nick Beams, 23 September 2020
The notification of suspicious activity that banks are required to file with the US government is not a means of preventing crime, but of facilitating it.
Form independent rank-and-file safety committees to oppose the deadly reopening of schools!
By the Sosyalist Eşitlik, 23 September 2020
The Turkish government is overseeing the resumption of in-person teaching amid the COVID-19 pandemic, with the support of bourgeois opposition parties and trade unions.
Australian university staff and students confront job cuts avalanche
By Mike Head, 21 September 2020
The NTEU and other trade unions are doing everything they can to prevent a nationwide strike against the escalating assault on university jobs and basic conditions.
Jacobin magazine embraces Trump administration’s murderous “herd immunity” policy
By Andre Damon, 21 September 2020
On Saturday, Jacobin magazine published an extended interview with anti-lockdown activist Martin Kulldorff, who demanded that “schools and universities should reopen” because “young, healthy people contribute to…herd immunity.”
Casualties of “herd immunity”: Three new teacher deaths in one week as US schools reopen
By Genevieve Leigh, 19 September 2020
The deaths are a direct result of the criminal actions by Democratic and Republican governors, as well as the Trump administration.
Colorado police conduct militarized arrests of Party for Socialism and Liberation members
By Jacob Crosse, 19 September 2020
The manner of the arrests and the overwhelming charges against the six protesters are a clear act of intimidation against all those determined to put an end to police violence and racism.
Biden in Minnesota: A phony “pro-worker” spin on a right-wing campaign
By Barry Grey, 19 September 2020
On the basis of economic nationalism, Biden is doubling down on his ludicrous self-promotion as a “working stiff” from “hard-scrabble” Scranton, Pennsylvania.
Wall Street demands still more Fed money
By Nick Beams, 19 September 2020
The US Federal Reserve’s decision to keep interest rates at virtually zero, for as far as the eye can see, has been deemed insufficient.
As American Federation of Teachers shuts down UM graduate student strike
Campuses across Michigan see dramatic spike in cases
By Joseph Lorenz, 19 September 2020
The decision to open campuses is part of the drive by governments everywhere in line with so-called "herd immunity" policies.
Johnson government opposes national lockdown despite exponential rise in UK coronavirus cases
By Robert Stevens, 19 September 2020
It is just 77 days since the Johnson government recklessly reopened the economy on July 1, in the middle of a pandemic. By next Tuesday at least 13 million people will be in lockdown.
US, Colombia stage war games as Pompeo threatens Venezuela
By Bill Van Auken, 19 September 2020
Pompeo’s Latin American tour is aimed both at escalating aggression against Venezuela and countering China’s influence in the region.
Political crisis in the Philippines intensifies
By John Malvar, 19 September 2020
With the support of the Stalinists, sections of the military and business elite are coalescing around Vice-President Leni Robredo, as a possible replacement for President Rodrigo Duterte.
Wildfires threaten drinking water and further desertification of US West Coast
By Linda Rios, 19 September 2020
According to the National Interagency Fire Center, 21 major fires are still burning in California, 12 in Oregon and 8 in Washington state.
SUNY-Oswego forced into temporary shutdown of in-person instruction after spike in COVID-19 cases
By Alex Findijs, 19 September 2020
The campus in upstate New York is the second state university to be forced into a temporary shutdown this month due to the spread of COVID-19 cases.
Ford Kansas City Assembly workers launch Rank-and-File Safety Committee to save lives
By the Ford Kansas City Assembly Rank-and-File Safety Committee, 19 September 2020
Neither the UAW nor Ford has addressed any of the safety issues inside the Kansas City Assembly plant since production restarted in May.
“This district is not ready at all”
Teacher in Vancouver, Washington speaks out on school reopenings amid wildfires
By Evan Winters, 19 September 2020
Despite weeks of unhealthy wildfire-fueled air quality, the Evergreen School District is preparing to reopen elementary schools for partial in-person learning.
Union shuts down nurses strike at University of Illinois Hospital in Chicago
By George Gallanis and Fabian Salgado, 19 September 2020
The Illinois Nurses Association ended the strike without a new contract and isolating 4,000 staffers on the picket line.
New York yellow cab drivers block bridges to demand debt relief
By Shuvu Batta, 19 September 2020
Battered by crippling debt and collapsing demand for taxis, drivers staged a protest Thursday calling for relief from their enormous debt burden.
Germany: Right-wing extremist network in police pays homage to Hitler and the Nazis
By Jan Ritter, 19 September 2020
A photo montage shared online by police officers shows a grinning SS soldier pressing a button marked “Gas.” In the background, refugees are screaming in fear in a gas chamber.
Neo-Nazis in German police issue new threats
By Gregor Link, 19 September 2020
The extreme-right continues its work because it is being protected by senior authorities in the state apparatus.
Build an independent action committee to defend jobs and wages!
Union suppresses criticism of job cuts at German steel producer ThyssenKrupp
By Dietmar Gaisenkersting, 19 September 2020
Major corporations, banks and hedge funds are using the pandemic to launch attacks on wages and jobs worked out long before the crisis.
Dominion grocery workers in Newfoundland in fourth week of strike for higher pay
By Carl Bronski, 19 September 2020
The 1,400 low-paid workers remain on strike against the Newfoundland subsidiary of Loblaws, Canada’s largest supermarket chain.
Russia’s opposition parties fail to win broad support in regional elections
By Andrea Peters, 19 September 2020
Kremlin-backed candidates held onto governorships and control of local parliamentary bodies in the 83 regions of the country where voting occurred.
Peace negotiations stall as ceasefire begins to fall apart in Ukraine
By Jason Melanovski, 19 September 2020
Ukraine’s far-right continues to oppose any negotiated settlement that could lead to the end of the six-year long civil war that has needlessly killed over 13,000.
Australian jobs figures show acceleration of “gig economy”
By Mike Head, 19 September 2020
Governments and employers are exploiting the mass unemployment triggered by the COVID-19 pandemic to bludgeon workers onto reduced wages and conditions.
Australia: Ovato printing company demands more cuts to jobs and conditions
By Noel Holt, 19 September 2020
The Australian Manufacturing Workers Union has “bent over backwards” to assist Ovato restructure its operations.
White House bans TikTok and WeChat: A major intensification of internet censorship
By Kevin Reed, 19 September 2020
The move is an assault on freedom of expression and an effort to consolidate control of the internet by a handful of massive corporations working in partnership with the American government.
Witnesses recall Collateral Murder attack: “Look at those dead bastards,” shooters said
By Thomas Scripps and Laura Tiernan, 19 September 2020
“The publication of that video and those words was the equivalent of the death of George Floyd and his words ‘I can’t breathe’. They had a profound effect on public opinion in the world.”
Toots Hibbert, ska and reggae giant: “Right now, someone else has that number”
By Paul Bond, 19 September 2020
Hibbert was widely respected and liked as a person, as well as admired for his work. That he was one of the most important international ambassadors for reggae owed much to his personal integrity.
Trump administration continues assault on endangered species
By Adria French, 19 September 2020
Recent changes to the Endangered Species Act “to lower regulatory burdens” are driving several species toward extinction.
India: Chennai garbage workers strike; Sri Lankan bank workers protest over contracts; Australian waterfront workers walkout
Workers Struggles: Asia, Australia and the Pacific
19 September 2020
The World Socialist Web Site invites workers and other readers to contribute to this regular feature.
New York City Democratic mayor delays school opening a second time
By our reporters, 18 September 2020
Bill de Blasio, the “progressive” mayor of New York City, announced a new date for a ‘’phased reopening” of the city’s public schools.
Announcing the Relaunch of the World Socialist Web Site on October 2, 2020
A statement by David North, chairman of the International Editorial Board
David North, 18 September 2020
On Friday, October 2, 2020, the World Socialist Web Site will be relaunched with an entirely new design and with vastly enhanced functionality.
Trump repeats threats of post-election military repression as Barr calls for charging protesters with “sedition”
By Patrick Martin, 17 September 2020
While Trump and his political aides and advisers openly speak of civil war and martial law, the Democrats are largely ignoring and covering up the moves toward dictatorial forms of rule.
House report on Boeing 737 Max crashes: Corporate criminality, FAA complicity, but no accountability
By Barry Grey, 17 September 2020
Despite the incriminating evidence, the Democrats propose no actions to hold either Boeing or the FAA accountable for the deaths of 346 men, women and children.
No charges in Missouri police murder of 25-year-old Hannah Fizer
By Jacob Crosse, 17 September 2020
As another killer cop goes free, protesters against the police killing of Ricardo Munoz in Lancaster, Pennsylvania remain in jail, with bail set at $1 million.
Reject the AFT’s rush to vote on sellout contract at University of Michigan!
By the International Youth and Students for Social Equality at UM, 17 September 2020
Now is not the time to back down! The struggle must be broadened to include undergraduates, staff, faculty and workers in a common struggle.
American Federation of Teachers shuts down University of Michigan graduate student strike
By our reporters, 17 September 2020
The end of the strike occurred less than 24 hours after the American Federation of Teachers assumed control of negotiations and produced an agreement that was virtually identical to the one overwhelmingly rejected just a week ago.
Big Ten universities announce football will resume
By Andy Thompson, 17 September 2020
After an earlier decision to postpone the season, the Big Ten football conference has announced games will begin October 24.
“We’re going to keep fighting”
Opposition mounts as thousands of University of Illinois at Chicago nurses and workers continue strike
By Kylie Rose, 17 September 2020
The university administration and the Democratic Party are increasingly nervous over the support striking workers have elicited.
Slow-moving Hurricane Sally makes landfall along Alabama-Florida border
By J. L’Heureau, 17 September 2020
With close to 20 million people in its path, Sally brought coastal flooding, record rainfall, high winds and mass power outages to a large swath of the northern Gulf Coast, stretching from southeast Louisiana to the west central coast of Florida.
Fed toes the line on Wall Street’s demands
By Nick Beams, 17 September 2020
The most commonly used phrase by Fed chair Jerome Powell at his press conference was “very strong forward guidance” in a message to Wall Street that the central bank was giving the commitments it has demanded.
Trump’s China tariffs ruled illegal by World Trade Organisation
By Nick Beams, 17 September 2020
The WTO decision will not see any relaxation of the US trade war against China but rather its intensification.
Students return to UK universities: Build campus safety committees!
By Danny Knightley, 17 September 2020
Campus safety committees must ensure safety procedures are put in place to protect the health of students and staff alike, and fight for increased testing on campuses.
Manchester Go North West bus drivers vote overwhelmingly to strike
By Dennis Moore and Robert Stevens, 17 September 2020
Workers in Manchester should emulate the move by London bus drivers at a number of garages, who this week set up the London Bus Drivers Rank-and-File Safety Committee.
Strikes mount as COVID-19 breaks out in hundreds of Spanish schools
By Alice Summers, 17 September 2020
Spanish unions have refused to call out education workers in a unified struggle against the reopening of schools, limiting action to sporadic, short-term protests.
Faurecia Gladstone Rank-and-File Safety Committee calls for plantwide shutdown to guarantee safety during pandemic
By Faurecia Gladstone Rank-and-File Safety Committee, 17 September 2020
The Faurecia Gladstone Rank-and-File Safety Committee has issued a statement calling for equal treatment to protect against COVID-19.
Surge in COVID-19 infections as in-person classes resume at many Illinois college campuses
By Fabian Salgado, 17 September 2020
Illinois State University is experiencing a horrifying explosion in the rate of COVID-19 infection as in person classes resume at many of the state’s campuses.
University of Wisconsin-Madison and La Crosse quarantine students after infections
By Brian Green, 17 September 2020
The affected students were given the choice of returning to their families or remaining on campus in the crowded and COVID-infested residence halls.
COVID-19 outbreaks force switch to online learning at New Jersey schools
By Erik Schreiber and Robert Milkowski, 17 September 2020
At least eight districts have switched their entire district or individual schools to fully remote instruction after confirmed infections.
New York City ruling elite warns Mayor de Blasio of “widespread anxiety”
By Fred Mazelis, 17 September 2020
The corporate elite is demanding an intensified back-to-work drive, and is fearful that the “progressive” mayor may not be able to keep the lid on growing social discontent.
As US death toll hits 200,000, Trump calls for herd immunity
By Andre Damon, 17 September 2020
“Herd immunity” has been the guiding principle of Trump’s response to the pandemic, underlying his efforts to downplay the virus, handicap testing and get workers back on the job as quickly as possible.
Former Der Spiegel journalist exposes US government lies that Assange “failed to redact” and “put lives at risk”
By Laura Tiernan, 17 September 2020
Testimony from John Goetz established that the only “harm to life” came from US war crimes which Assange and WikiLeaks were trying to expose.
Assange exposed “a very serious pattern of actual war crimes,” Daniel Ellsberg tells extradition hearing
By Thomas Scripps, 17 September 2020
Ellsberg said that “with the Manning and Assange papers, I found my name being mentioned all the time as a very good person … to use me as a foil against these new revelations which were supposedly very different from mine.”
Journalist Andrew Fowler: If Assange is extradited, the same can happen to any of us
By Oscar Grenfell, 17 September 2020
“The attempt by the State to control information is at the heart of the charges against Assange. Its physical manifestation is there every day in the court.”
Australian ruling elite moves to junk coronavirus safety measures—the working class must intervene to answer the pandemic threat!
By the Socialist Equality Party (Australia), 17 September 2020
Sections of the ruling class have concluded that any further safety restrictions can no longer be tolerated, regardless of the danger to working class lives.
Book Review
Wilmington’s Lie: The 1898 white supremacist coup in North Carolina
David Zucchino, Atlantic Monthly Press, 336 pages
By Fred Mazelis, 17 September 2020
The racist massacre in Wilmington was a major turning point in the entrenchment of Jim Crow segregation throughout the South.
British actress Diana Rigg (1938-2020)
By Paul Bond, 17 September 2020
Rigg was a fine classical actress who ended up successfully negotiating the transition back and forth between stage and television.
“I thought this was like an experimental concentration camp”
Nurse alleges forced sterilizations, medical malpractice at Georgia immigrant detention center
By Niles Niemuth, 16 September 2020
The chilling report provides further evidence of the sadistic abuse meted out by the Trump administration in its fascistic war on immigrants.
Acting US Homeland Security secretary refuses to appear before congressional committee
By Jacob Crosse, 16 September 2020
In defiance of Congress and the Constitution, Chad Wolf said he would not testify before a House committee on September 17.
Wisconsin Supreme Court blocks Green Party presidential campaign from 2020 ballot
By Kevin Reed, 16 September 2020
The Wisconsin Supreme Court ruled 4-3 to reject a lawsuit by the Green Party candidates seeking an injunction against the distribution of ballots to voters without their names on them.
University of Michigan graduate student workers’ strike at critical turning point
By Matthew Brennan, 16 September 2020
With threats of a court injunction and the taking over negotiations by the American Federation of Teachers, the strike by more than 1,200 graduate students is in danger.
Defying injunction threats, striking University of Michigan grad students call for “larger mobilization of working people”
By our reporters, 16 September 2020
Striking graduate students at the University of Michigan are continuing their walkout in defiance of the strikebreaking threats by top administrators.
Who is on the University of Michigan Board of Regents?
By Matthew Brennan, 16 September 2020
The governing body of the University of Michigan is a nexus of powerful political, military and corporate interests
Strike by University of Illinois at Chicago nurses and workers continues, as Illinois Democratic governor threatens to decimate state budget
By James Martin and Kristina Betinis, 16 September 2020
A virtual blackout of the strikes at UIC and its hospital in the national press indicates the growing fear in ruling circles over the development of working class opposition.
West Coast fires and evacuations expected to fuel the spread of COVID-19
By Kevin Martinez, 16 September 2020
Tens of thousands of people fleeing fires have been forced to live in makeshift shelters, making effective social distancing measures nearly impossible.
Trump stages sham Mideast “peace” ceremony on White House lawn
By Bill Van Auken, 16 September 2020
The overriding significance of the Israel-UAE-Bahrain accords is the further consolidation of a US-led anti-Iran axis in the Middle East.
The Moria catastrophe and the European Union’s war on refugees
By Martin Kreickenbaum, 16 September 2020
The inhumane treatment of the desperate people on Lesbos is the product of deliberate policies being pursued by the European Union and its member states.
Schools at epicentre of UK’s coronavirus explosion
By Robert Stevens, 16 September 2020
The virus is resurgent in workplaces, schools, and communities, with the R (reproduction) value rising above 1 across the UK.
COVID-19 cases escalate with school re-openings: Build educators rank-and-file safety committees!
By Tom Pearce and Julie Hyland, 16 September 2020
With Labour Party support, the National Education Union is complicit in abandoning its 450,000 members and those they teach to the government’s policy of “herd immunity”.
France imposes return to school without protections against COVID-19
By Jacques Valentin, 16 September 2020
With over 1,200 schools and universities affected, France faces a resurgent pandemic provoked by the reopening drive by the highest state authorities.
The political significance of the London Bus Drivers Rank-and-File Safety Committee: “Change is coming in the working class”
By our reporters, 16 September 2020
The formation of the committee shows that bus workers are starting to draw a balance sheet from their experiences over the past six months and are ready to fight back.
London bus drivers launch rank-and-file safety committee to fight renewed threat from COVID-19
By the London Bus Drivers Rank-and-File Safety Committee, 16 September 2020
“We are not cattle and will not be sacrificed to protect the profits of the corporations and banks who have made a financial killing during the pandemic,” states the resolution passed by the London Bus Drivers Rank-and-File Safety Committee.
London bus drivers resolve to fight for Assange’s freedom
By the London Bus Drivers Rank-and-File Safety Committee, 16 September 2020
The first action of the newly formed London Bus Drivers Rank-and-File Safety Committee was to pass a resolution calling for the defence of imprisoned WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange.
“It’s immoral and irresponsible to bring students to campus and to conduct in-person classes”
NYU faculty and students denounce unsafe reopening of campus
By IYSSE at New York University, 16 September 2020
The reopening of NYU, the largest private university in the US, is utterly reckless and places the lives of students, workers and residents in the area in immense danger.
San Diego State University seeks to shift blame to students for coronavirus outbreaks following reopening
By Melody Isley and Norissa Santa Cruz, 16 September 2020
As the virus spreads on campus, students have watched in horror as peers are taken away to isolation dorms by staff dressed in hazmat gear.
“It is really up to the teachers to take their safety into their own hands.”
One-third of schools in Knox County, Tennessee have at least one positive COVID-19 case
By Isaac Finn, 16 September 2020
The growing spread of the deadly virus is the direct outcome of the “herd immunity” policies that have been pursued by every level of government in the US.
Reactionary Massachusetts ruling paves way for Andover public schools to open in-person
By Mike Ingram, 16 September 2020
The state Department of Labor Relations board ruled that Andover teachers had engaged in an illegal strike by refusing to enter school buildings
Yoshihide Suga replaces Abe as Japanese prime minister
By Ben McGrath, 16 September 2020
LDP support for Suga indicates that the Japanese ruling class views him as the most capable of carrying out its agenda, in the face of a growing economic and social crisis.
Indian police and BJP government extend witch-hunt against anti-CAA protesters to filmmaker Rahul Roy
By Wasantha Rupasinghe, 16 September 2020
Monday’s interrogation of Roy and his wife comes after the Delhi police spuriously implicated prominent cultural and political figures in the BJP-fomented communal violence.
US defence secretary phones Sri Lankan president about increased military cooperation
By Vijith Samarasinghe, 16 September 2020
Washington wants enhanced military relations with the strategically-located island in order to intensify its war drive against China.
Woodward revelations: Canada’s political elite implicated in Trump’s suppression of COVID-19 threat
By Omar Ali and Roger Jordan, 16 September 2020
Given Canada’s intimate military-strategic partnership with Washington, it is inconceivable that the Trudeau government was not privy to the intelligence Trump and the top Democrats received about the pandemic.
Australian CEO pay hits record high, boosted by JobKeeper subsidies
By Jason Quill, 16 September 2020
Large companies have exploited government COVID-19 bailout schemes to increase executive rewards.
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