September 28, 2023

Solidarity Across Borders and Time: The Jewish Labor Bund

Cover for the graphic novel The Bund: A History of Jewish Labor Resistance, by Sharon Rudahl with art by Michael Kluckner (Paul Buhle, ed.)

The Bund: A Graphic History of Jewish Labour Resistance Edited by Paul Buhle, written by Sharon Rudahl, illustrated by Michael Kluckner, with a foreword by David Rosenberg. Between the Lines Press, 2023. (The book can be ordered in Canada at Between the Lines Press and in the United States at AK Press.) A live online…


September 14, 2023

Are We Entering a Recession or Not? The Unemployment Report for August 2023

Civilian unemployment rate, seasonally adjusted. (Via Bureau of Labor Statistics, bls..gov)

Real full employment means many more jobs, and many more good jobs. The National Jobs for All Network’s Full Count shows that the real unemployment rate in August was 8.7%, not 3.8%. There are 15 million people who are unemployed or underemployed at part-time jobs because they cannot get full-time work. Whether or not the official unemployment rate goes up or down a little may suggest job market trends, but it does not tell us how far away we are from real full employment.


August 28, 2023

“Into the Bright Sunshine”- Why Hubert Humphrey Speaks to Our Times

Cover of Sam Freedman's INTO THE BRIGHT SUNSHINE, with an image of young Humphrey behind a podium, on a yellow background, Header image: a picket line urging Truman to desegregate the military.

Into the Bright Sunshine, by Samuel Freedman (Oxford University Press) is subtitled ” Young Hubert Humphrey and the Struggle for Civil Rights.” You might think the book was something for a history class, a chronicle of events long ago; even for that, you might turn away, if like many DL readers you mostly think of…


August 25, 2023

Strike Ready DSA: An Instrument of Solidarity

Local 705 rally in Chicago attended by Chicago DSA and organized by Chicago DSA Teamsters. (Photo: George Cadkin)

Strike Ready DSA: An Instrument of Solidarity By Sean Orr On August 22, Teamsters ratified their tentative agreement with UPS overwhelmingly– 86.3% yes with over 58% turnout. As their contract struggle recedes (but does not disappear), it is an ideal time to reflect on DSA’s solidarity campaign with these workers and what it has meant…


August 19, 2023

 Is There a Worker-Shortage? A Closer Look at the July Jobs Report

Chart from BLS dot gov, showing a SLIGHT uptick in jobs in July 2023

Does the United States have a general labor shortage? Clearly there are problems in specific locations and occupations. There are shortages at 911 call-centers across the country. The U.S. Postal Service is short of staff. In Los Angeles County where I live, the government legal infrastructure is a mess; there is a shortage of public…


July 19, 2023

Vermont Workers’ Circles: A Space For Worker Power

Vermont Workers' Circle, courtesy of Brandon Lawson.

A wave of rank-and-file reforms is sweeping through the United States; from the United Auto Workers (UAW) to the Teamsters (IBT) to National Nurses United (NNU), the rank-and-file are taking back their unions. But, with union density at only 10.3% nationally, many workers have had no union experience. Union bureaucracy and the internal politics can…


July 17, 2023

Never Enough Justice

Cover, via The New Press.

The Fear of Too Much JusticeRace, Poverty, and the Persistence of Inequality in the Criminal CourtsThe New Press, 2023 By Stephen B. Bright and James KwakWith a foreword by Bryan Stevenson In The Fear of Too Much Justice, public defender Stephen B. Bright and scholar James Kwak provide a readable, far-reaching, and expertly constructed overview…