USA/Canada

More Trump plots and mayhem

Want to gain easy access to Mar-a-Lago? Just drive through the gates in a brand new Mercedes and claim you are a Rothschild. Inna Yashchyshyn managed it with ease, ingratiating herself with various Trump associates by passing herself off as Anna de Rothschild. Her word that she was a super rich scion of a historically famous banking family was enough to gain acceptance and get her a golf course photo op with Trump and his Georgia lickspittle Lindsey Graham. Fake Anna was actually a Russian speaking Ukrainian immigrant whose dad earns a living as an Illinois truck driver. It is unclear who...

Roe v. Wade and the fight for democracy

On Friday 23 June the US Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade, the first time in history the Supreme Court has overturned one of its own rulings in order to roll back the rights of citizens. Roe v. Wade was a 1973 ruling that established federal protection for abortion rights on the grounds that abortion is ultimately a private decision between a patient and healthcare providers. The right to privacy is widely recognised as being implied by the liberty clause in the 14th amendment of the US constitution, so the right to abortion must also be protected at the federal level. The 1973 court ruled...

The case for space

In the last few days, NASA has twice had to abort launches of the Artemis mission to the Moon. By the time this article appears in print, there may be another attempt, a successful launch or a failure. Regardless of what will happen, I will watch the launch attempts with enthusiasm — and I say this as a socialist. Watching a weekend politics programme this morning on the BBC, I saw a journalist attempt to coax a Labour politician to say something positive or negative about the Artemis mission — with little success. There is a sense that many on the Left either take no interest in exploring...

Kino Eye: Native Americans onscreen

Sacheen Littlefeather at the 1973 Oscars The recent apology to Native American Sacheen Littlefeather for her treatment at the 1973 Academy Awards Ceremony when she declined an Oscar on behalf of Marlon Brando is about 50 years too late, but welcome all the same. While attempting to speak for the cause of Native American rights she was booed and, some allege, threatened by John Wayne. Officials told her to keep her speech to one minute or face arrest. It could well be the case that Native Americans have been subjected to more racist abuse, onscreen, than any other ethnic minority in the world...

The Trump Show season two

The various threats of legal jeopardy long promised to put Donald Trump in court, yet never seeming to arrive, are now unfolding fast. The search and seizure by the FBI of stolen classified documents Trump held in the basement of his Mar-a-Lago golf-club home even added new crimes to the mix — contraventions of the Espionage Act and additional examples of obstruction of justice. Reasons posited for why Trump held box-loads of official documents, many deemed highly confidential, include blackmail and financial gain. They could be seen as a bargaining chip to be released should the state ever...

Starmer, Biden and the picket line

The distinction often made by socialists between "liberal parties" and "labour parties" has been undermined somewhat by recent developments on both sides of the Atlantic. Here in the U.K., much has been of Labour leader Keir Starmer's decision to sack Sam Tarry, who had been serving as the party's shadow transport minister. Tarry was accused of joining an RMT picket line and showing his solidarity with striking workers. On the one hand, this is not surprising as Labour's links with unions have grown ever more tenuous going back to the emergence of New Labour in the 1990s -- and perhaps even...

Two conferences, two contrasting visions of the US labour movement

Republished from the US rank-and-file trade union network and publication Labor Notes . This year Labor Notes held its biggest ever conference, with over 4,000 people in attendance. The video from the opening rally is well worth a watch. The rare planetary alignment in mid-June was accompanied by the equally rare alignment of the AFL-CIO convention and the Labor Notes conference . It’s not often there is the opportunity for such direct comparison of the top leadership and activist base of the labor movement. The AFL-CIO met from June 12-15 in Philadelphia. The theme of the convention was...

Trial time for Donald Trump?

This was the thing that nearly had us mastered; Don’t yet rejoice in his defeat, you men! Although the world stood up and stopped the bastard, The beast that bore him is in heat again. - Bertold Brecht So the 45th President of the USA, the guy with the nuclear codes, had a hissy fit and threw his lunch against the wall when one of his minions said the claim the election was “stolen” from him was bullshit. Perhaps the greasy ketchup stain and gherkin fragments can be preserved under glass for White House tours as evidence of the Trump legacy to enlighten future generations? That Trump has...

Fightback for choice

The 24 June Supreme Court decision to overturn Roe v. Wade was the culmination of a long term reactionary campaign to strike down the constitutional right to an abortion in America. This anti-choice movement captured strategic parts of the judiciary, including the Supreme Court, but its roots run far deeper into US communities. Through churches, lobbying groups, and political organisations, backed by donations from reactionary millionaires, the US right has developed consistent day to day activism over decades. The left has had explosions of activity with big protests, but little ongoing work...

USA rolls back women’s rights

On Friday 23 June the US Supreme Court overturned Roe v Wade: the first time in history the Supreme Court has overturned one of its own rulings in order to roll back the rights of citizens. Roe v Wade was a 1973 ruling that established federal protection for abortion rights on the grounds that abortion is ultimately a private decision between a patient and healthcare providers. The right to privacy is widely recognised as being implied by the liberty clause in the 14th amendment of the US constitution, so the right to abortion must also be protected at the federal level. The 1973 court ruled...

This website uses cookies, you can find out more and set your preferences here.
By continuing to use this website, you agree to our Privacy Policy and Terms & Conditions.