The Lost Caucus
The story of the Congressional Black Caucus reflects the class contradictions of black politics in the post–civil rights era.
67 Articles by: Paul Prescod
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Paul Prescod is a Jacobin contributing editor.
Voters Chose Economic Populism at the State Level
Even in states carried by Donald Trump, voters passed ballot measures supporting paid sick leave, higher minimum wages, and unionization rights while rejecting school privatization. Voters want progressive economic policies.
Ernest Calloway Fused Civil Rights and Class Struggle
Twentieth-century black labor leader Ernest Calloway never became a household name. But through his work in both the Teamsters and the NAACP, he embodied the transformative potential of a united labor and civil rights movement.
CEOs Inflated Their Paychecks — and Our Prices
Mainstream pundits continue to offer muddled explanations for the inflation crisis. The Kamala Harris campaign should focus voters’ anger on a cause that often flies under the radar: greedy CEOs and their record profits.
How Union Reformers Passed the PRO Act in Vermont
The pro-union PRO Act is stalled at the national level. But in Vermont, union reformers took over the AFL-CIO and used it to win their own version of the bill.
Consumer Financial Protection Bureau Workers Want a Raise
The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau is necessary to prevent predatory corporate behavior. Americans need it to be functional. Instead it’s embroiled in an internal labor conflict, with management stonewalling unionized workers demanding a raise.
Wall Street’s War on Workers Can Be Stopped
Democratic Party elites have accepted the loss of vital working-class jobs and written off white workers as bigots. But a new book by Les Leopold shows how we can build a broad working-class movement to fight for the right to a good job.
The Gary Convention Elided Black America’s Internal Disunity
In 1972, black political leaders and activists convened in Gary, Indiana, to develop a unified black political program. But the convention’s emphasis on racial cohesion overlooked the realities of black class stratification and internal ideological divisions.
Labor and Climate Must Unite. That’s Easier Said Than Done.
The idea that the labor and climate movements must unite for a Green New Deal is more popular than ever. To get it done, we’ll need to take the threat of job loss seriously, finding and uplifting commonalities between climate goals and worker self-interest.
Identity Politics Is a Poor Substitute for Socialism
In No Politics but Class Politics, Walter Benn Michaels and Adolph Reed show how an identity politics that obscures class politics and ignores economic inequality only makes the many miseries around us worse.
You Should Know About Minnesota Labor and Civil Rights Hero Nellie Stone Johnson
Minnesota civil rights and labor activist Nellie Stone Johnson was born on this day in 1905. Though little known nationally, she was a key figure in the US democratic socialist tradition who saw struggles for racial and economic justice as inseparable.
When You Want to Fight Unemployment, Shorten the Workday
In the mid-20th century, union leader Harry Van Arsdale Jr became obsessed with a simple idea: fewer working hours would mean a need for more workers, and therefore more jobs. He considered it the solution to unemployment, and his union fought to realize it.
US Labor Is Having a Movement Moment
The successful UAW strike was the latest sign that the union movement is having a moment. Amid so much gloom in the world, US labor has emerged as an unlikely bright spot with genuine dynamism.
How the UAW Broke Ford’s Stranglehold Over Black Detroit
In the early 1900s, Ford Motor Company commanded strong loyalty from Detroit’s black workers. But the United Auto Workers broke Ford’s stranglehold through patient organizing, cementing an alliance that would bear fruit for decades.
California’s New Senator, Laphonza Butler, Is No Friend of the Left
Laphonza Butler, who was just sworn in to fill Dianne Feinstein’s Senate seat, originally hailed from the labor movement. But her career has taken a sharp pro-corporate turn, including a stint acting on behalf of Uber against gig workers in California.
UAW President Shawn Fain Is Showing How to Build Working-Class Struggle
Shawn Fain, the firebrand president of the UAW, is modeling exactly the kind of labor leader we need right now: one who boldly names the billionaire class as the enemy — and galvanizes workers themselves to fight back.
Donald Trump Is Siding With Auto Bosses Against Workers
By attacking the United Auto Workers and mischaracterizing the stakes of the union’s contract campaign and strike, self-styled populist Donald Trump is standing with the corporate elite against workers.
The March on Washington Advanced a Radical Vision for Society That Remains Unfulfilled
Sixty years ago today, hundreds of thousands gathered at the Washington Mall, where they heard Martin Luther King Jr’s “I Have a Dream” speech. Since then, we’ve beaten a retreat from the march’s vision of racial and economic justice.
“Pro-Worker” Republicans Aren’t Serious
Ron DeSantis’s new economic plan promises to stand up to the ruling class and big corporations, echoing the “pro-worker” rhetoric bubbling up from some segments of the Right. But their mega-rich donors aren’t buying the act, and neither should you.
Barack Obama’s New Netflix Series Shows That He Has Critiques but No Answers
While it’s always refreshing to see the lives of working people centered in our media, the docuseries Working: What We Do All Day is hampered by the limitations of its host and narrator, former president Barack Obama.