On Dec. 4, the Ukraine Socialist Solidarity Campaign held a forum on the revolution in Iran, with socialist feminist Frieda Afary presenting. Here is a video of the entire forum plus, below […]
John Reimann On the afternoon after the US Senate, under the leadership of Democratic Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer passed the bill to force the railroad workers to keep on working, prohibiting […]
Biden is pushing for the government to prohibit a railroad strike. The excuse is that such a strike would hurt the economy. This whole situation brings to mind the great SF Bay […]
by Charles Pierson On November 19, the People’s Forum in New York City hosted a panel discussion: “The Real Path to Peace in Ukraine.” The speakers were a rogues’ gallery of tankie […]
The uprising in Iran is inspiring millions around the world. On Sunday, Dec. 4, the Ukraine Socialist Solidarity Campaign will host Iranian American socialist feminist, writer and translator, Frieda Afary to […]
I was (unofficially) expelled from a small socialist group I helped found over 15 years ago and was very active in for many years. How that happened is a cautionary tale. The […]
by Yorgos Mitralias Introduction by Oaklandsocialist: On November 19, a variety of US “peace groups”, plus speakers like former British Labour Party leader Jeremy Corbyn and former Green Party candidate for president […]
by Kavita Krishnan You may have come across mention of a “Peoples Forum” in New York, calling for “No to War-Yes to Negotiations” in Ukraine. I’ve signed a petition drafted by the […]
Something I learned from my years of activity inside the union: Pay close attention to exactly what the union leadership is saying… and also what they’re not saying. That’s because they are […]
The partial setback for the MAGA Republicans follows a similar event in Brazil, where the Brazil style Donald Trump – Jair Bolsonaro – was narrowly defeated. But just as in Brazil, this […]
Here’s what I posted on my Facebook page for my mayorial campaign: Election results and the potential: Friends, as of now I got 521 votes in the first round, meaning that so […]
I ran for mayor of Oakland as the “working class socialist candidate” in this election cycle. Along the way, I learned a lot and, I believe, set some examples for future similar […]
Peter Liu is a candidate for Oakland mayor. He sends around emails about “crooked Jews” and “dirty Jews” and says an admirer of Hitler (rapper “Ye”) is a role model for him. […]
The assault on Paul Pelosi, husband of Congressional House leader Nancy Pelosi, says a lot about the direction of US politics. The alleged attacker is a man named David DePape. (From all […]
As of this writing, Trump surrogate in Brazil, Jair Bolsonaro, has not accepted his election defeat by Lula da Silva. Immediately following his loss, he was reported as meeting for hours with […]
By Charles Pierson Note: The following article was submitted to Counterpunch as a reply to the article mentioned in the paragraph below. Counterpunch has refused to publish it. “Victory against Russia,” is […]
By Michael Karadjis reposted from his blog. (Michael Karadjis makes a vital point: That not all capitalist rivalries can be boiled down to simple economic rivalries. That is because every capitalist regime […]
By Socialist Workers’ Movement of the Dominican Republic In a press release dated July 19, 2022, the head of the Ways and Means Committee of the US Congress, Earl Blumenauer, and Dan […]
At last I was able to break through the nice, friendly, collegial atmosphere that the liberals try to impose on these events. It was a combination of several factors, first and foremost […]
A reporter from the S.F. Chronicle interviewed me this morning. It was part of their decision-making process to decide whom they will endorse. (Newsflash: Don’t be shocked if they don’t endorse this, […]
On Oct. 23, the Ukraine Socialist Solidarity Campaign met with Indian Marxist, Kavita Krishnan. (See the announcement of this meeting for a short biography of Kavita.) This was a small but hugely important […]
Today’s Washington Post reports that Trump had stolen classified documents containing state secrets about Iran and China. This is a major reason why I’m running for Mayor. Every other candidate wants you […]
Oaklandsocialist had an online conversation with Aditya Sarkar about the situation in Britain. Aditya is a labor historian from India, working in Britain. We met through the Ukraine Socialist Solidarity Campaign, but […]
This will be a very important meeting. I urge all workers to attend and to publicize widely: The Ukraine Socialist Solidarity Campaign is extremely proud to announce that well known Indian socialist […]
NOTE: If you like this letter and want to add your name as a current or former union member, contact this blog site at: oaklandsocialist@gmail.com and or send a note to: StandFirmForUkraine@gmail.com […]
Ukraine’s bombing of the Kerch Bridge and Putin’s reaction should be seen in light of a recent articlein the Washington Post. That article cites growing divisions within the Putin government, including from […]
I was interviewed the other day on why I am running for Oakland mayor. Unlike the candidate forums – which are largely like beauty pageants – in this one I was given […]
Yesterday the “nonpartisan” League of Women Voters held a “forum” for candidates for Oakland mayor. This whole campaign has been a tremendous learning experience for me and I’m starting to get a […]
by Michael Karadjis republished from his blog MKaradjis.com. Interesting that in a 37-minute speech to justify Russia’s brazen annexation of four regions of Ukraine, Putin didn’t mention “Nazis” or “de-Nazification” once, these silly tropes […]
On Oct. 2, the Ukraine Socialist Solidarity Campaign held a Zoom meeting with exiled Russian dissident Ilya Budraitskis. What follows is a video of the full meeting plus a transcript of Ilya’s […]
With the crisis of the Putin regime, a new and even more unstable period in world history may be opening up. The “Cold War” was marked by tensions and constant struggles. Then […]
Here is a video plus the text of an interview I did with the SF Chronicle yesterday: SF Chronicle Well, John, can you tell me a little bit about yourself? John Reimann […]
The old demons of the interwar period are back in Europe! By Yorgos Mitralias “Days of 1922? Not yet, but Italy is on track to “celebrate” in four years the centenary of […]
It is important to learn how to answer capitalist politicians, and running for office is one way of doing so. I’m learning a lot by running for mayor of Oakland, mainly through […]
“And RL cracked a smile that woulda made a sweet girl’s photograph cry.” There are such beautifully descriptive sentences scattered throughout Walter Mosley’s 1995 novel “RL’s Dream”. The novel is formally about […]
When viewed more closely, the crises in which Trump and Putin find themselves go a long way towards defining what they have in common and where they differ. The fact that Putin […]
Ukraine Socialist Solidarity Campaign will be holding two meetings/discussions on events inside Ukraine and inside Russia. We urge people to attend and participate. Sunday, September 25: What is happening inside Ukraine? The […]
We must start to draw a link between the confusions – in fact the abandonment of principle – of many socialists regarding Ukraine and their equally great confusions about the crisis swirling […]
The latest in the Mar-a-Lago search drama is the ruling by the MAGAist federal judge Aileen Cannon that the Department of Justice (DOJ) must stop its investigation until a “special master” can […]
Oaklandsocialist interviewed Micah Reddy of South Africa. Much of our discussion focused on the role of a murky figure named Roy Singham. Singham is a multi-millionaire who financed a left journal in […]
By Yorgos Mitralias Not since the end of the last world war has the threat of a reinvigorated, aggressive and almost universally rising far right been felt as much as today. Why is […]
On August 28, the Ukraine Socialist Solidarity Campaign held a very informative discussion on Latin America’s Sao Paolo Forum. The speaker was Simón Rodríguez from Venezuela. Here is a video of that meeting […]
The usually staid editorial board of the NY Times calls this newest Donald Trump scandal “the greatest crisis in American Democracy since the Civil War…. Mr. Trump’s actions as a public official, like […]
The fact that tens of millions of US workers still support Trump shows the massive confusion that exists. Part of the reason for that confusion is the absence of any significant working […]
No tears for Dugina Republished from AWL on 23 August, 2022 – 2:50 Author: Dale Street Darya Dugina on a day-trip to the Azovstal plant in “liberated” Mariupol Darya Dugina was killed in […]
Darya Dugina, fascist daughter of fascist father Aleksandr Dugin, was killed by a car bomb the other day. The probable target was Dugin himself but his fascist daughter will not be missed […]
Here is an excellent documentary in which Ukrainian lefts of all sorts speak. They explain how they see the Russian invasion, the issue of corruption, the issue of the far right, and […]
Mental Health workers are on strike at Kaiser Permanente. On Aug. 19 they held a strike rally in Oakland. I was there as the working class socialist candidate for Oakland Mayor and […]
by Anthony Boynton in Bogotá, Colombia Imagine that you wake up tomorrow and Bernie Sanders has been elected President of the United States, AND his supporters have won a majority in the […]
“The Justice Department is unleashing political furies it can’t control.” So wrote the editors of the Wall St. Journal on the day after the FBI search of Mar-a-Lago. They are wrong. Those […]
Those militant uncompromising fighters for their class – the capitalist class – are not happy. Yes, I’m talking about the editorial board of the Wall St. Journal. They have several complaints, criticisms […]
The supposedly left journal Counterpunch has published an article called Diplomacy not Weapons Will End the War”by L. Michael Hager. Hager, starts off by in effect appealing to the concerns of Western […]
Millions are celebrating that Alex Jones will have to pay millions of dollars to those he caused mental anguish and slandered. The question is: How is Jones any different from those on […]
Introduction from Oaklandsocialist: For the next three days, there will be celebrations in Italy for the centenary of the “Barricades of Parma”. These were barricades erected by the workers movement against attacks […]
On July 31, the Ukraine Socialist Solidarity Campaign held an important meeting on the issue of “Fascist Ideas on the Left: Past, Present and What to do About It”. This was the […]
Donald Trump is preparing to clean house if he gets a second term in office. A major obstacle standing in the way of Trump establishing a Victor Orban-like dictatorship in his first […]
“Something old and something new” could be the summary of the eighth day of public hearings from the January 6 committee. The committee seems to be doing a couple of things: First […]
The media is playing off the complete failure of the police in Uvalde as being due to the failure of whoever was in charge. Yes, whoever was in charge failed and […]
Day 7 of the hearings of the House January 6 committee helped clarify what role Trump and his “team crazy” played in the build up to that day. The question is what […]
Introduction: On July 10, the Ukraine Socialist Solidarity Campaign hosted a meeting at which Simon Pirani spoke on the issue of the situation in Donbass and Crimea and Russia’s intervention there in […]
Note: This interview will also be able to be heard on Oaklandsocialist’s podcast. John Reimann So we’re talking with Meghan Keane, who is an artist and a political activist, including […]
by Yorgos Mitralias A first conclusion of the reading of Trotsky’s texts “Learn to think” and “On the Sino-Japanese war” is that they explain in a very convincing and detailed way, the […]
Introduction: Oaklandsocialist received the following letter, which is being circulated by concerned members, shop stewards and staff of the National Union of Metalworkers of South Africa (NUMSA). At the time of the […]
A coalition of different liberal groups held a press conference to demand a ballot referendum on the real estate development/A’s stadium project. Here is my speech on the project:
Trump’s loyalists may be flipping. On the sixth, and previously unscheduled day of the January 6 hearings, Cassidy Hutchinson, former top aide to Trump’s chief of staff Mark Meadows, testified. Apparently she […]
By Art Francisco, co-Chair P.J. McGuire Caucus (Carpenters Union) Last weekend I had the privilege of being able to attend the Labor Notes conference, a national union conference that had 4000 attendees […]
The large turnout on only a few hours notice shows the huge potential for a new movement of youth and workers. In future articles, Oaklandsocialist will examine what immediate demands can be […]
As this is being posted, it was just announced that the US Supreme Court has officially overturned Roe v Wade. The dictatorial role of these political hacks simply confirms everything in this […]
“We have lots of theories. We just don’t have any evidence.” So spoke Rudy Giuliani according to Mike Shirky, Republican State Senate in Michigan. If for no other reason, the fourth day […]
On the day after the third day of hearings of the January 6 House committee, the Wall St. Journal ran an editorial in which they essentially said that all decisions as far as […]
by Yorgos Mitralias The strangeness of this war of Mr. Putin in Ukraine is probably without historical precedent. Why? For a whole series of reasons, the first of which is that, for […]
The Republicans’ “team normal” reveal Trump’s crimes. U.S. capitalist rule based on “rule of law” and recognition of science, within limits. The “team normal and Democratic alliance to remove “the cause of […]
“I can just remember my breath catching in my throat because what I saw was just a war scene. It was something like I had seen out of the movies. “I couldn’t […]
Oaklandsocialist talked with Eugene in Kyiv. He talked about the situation there and the mood in general. A lot refers back to what actually happened in the Maidan revolt of 2014, which […]
I went to a meeting of the East Bay DSA “Night School” last night. This was a presentation supposedly on Ukraine. As I expected, the meeting was a not-so-subtle cover for Putin […]
Parker Elementary School in East Oakland has been under occupation for several weeks now. Here the parents and community members doing the occupation hold a press conference to explain why. Also see […]
On June 5, the Ukraine Socialist Solidarity Campaign hosted a very successful meeting (with 40 attending) on Syria, Ukraine, Geopolitics and the working class. Michael Karadjis made an initial presentation, whose text […]
“‘Russian artillery is shooting from morning until evening,’ said Volodymyr Pohorilyy, 43, intelligence commander of the Dnipro-1 battalion, which holds several key positions in the region. ‘If our side shoots one their […]
From Anthony Boynton in Bogotá Colombia just had the first round of this year’s presidential elections, and some of the results were surprising. The fact that Gustavo Petro, the candidate of the […]
The reluctant half measures of Biden both domestically and in regards to Ukraine What the call for “negotiations” in Ukraine really means The similarity of the position of much of the US […]
The cowardice of the different police in the Uvalde disaster clarifies what really happens in many if not the great majority of police shootings of civilians. Take the example of the police […]
Ukraine Socialist Solidarity Campaign will be sponsoring a meeting featuring Michael Karadjis. Michael is a lecturer at the University of Western Sidney in Australia. His blog site, Mkaradjis.com, contains some of the most […]
With 31 people murdered at two mass shootings in less that one week’s time, US society seems spiraling into pathologically violent insanity. How did we get this way and what is the […]
On May 22, the Ukraine Socialist Solidarity Campaign (USSC) held a zoom meeting on the crisis in the left and in the working class. Fifteen people in all participated. Cheryl Zuur, long […]
The following article from a Russian Telegram Channel called “Volya”, which is roughly translated as “Free Will” says that there are serious discussions in Putin’s inner circle about the use of “tactical” […]
Oaklandsocialist publishes this article by Pete Glosser. Its perspective is not very optimistic as far as the war in Ukraine. However, while we support the defeat of the Russian invasion, we have […]
By Yorgos Mitralias May 9 has come and gone, and as has been the constant for the past two decades, both Mr. Putin’s enemies and friends have repeated in unison that on […]
Russian oligarchs’s $300 million yacht seized by Fiji on behalf of U.S.” blared the headline in the Washington Post. “Germany seizes world’s largest yacht because of its ties to Russian oligarch” blared […]
“This was pure evil,” said Erie County Sheriff, John Garcia about the racist murders at the Tops supermarket in Buffalo, NY. His widely quoted statement is a cover up for the real […]
Here are photos of the abortion rights protest in Oakland. It was very poorly publicized. (I didn’t even know about it until I happened to pass by on my way to the […]
Ukrainian union organizer Artem Tidva talks about The unions from the old Soviet Union days Employers’ tactics to weaken unions since independence Relations between Ukrainian and Russian unions before the invasion and […]
From John Reimann for Oakland mayor. Feel free to reprint and distribute wherever you are, but especially in the East Bay and give to Amazon drivers. Or write up your own leaflet. […]
by Yorgos Mitralias For a long time now, almost everyone has been tormented by the same question: why are people turning their backs on the Left? Why does the Left seem so […]
The well known left intellectual Ron Jacobs has written an article in the equally well known left magazine Counterpunch, on the war in Ukraine. The article is called called “We need an […]
A Campaign Statement of John Reimann for Oakland Mayor It’s now out in the open: The fanatical Christian bigots have seized control not only over the Republican Party but also over the […]
Campaign statement by John Reimann for Oakland mayor. For more information, see: Why I will be running for Oakland Mayor “In February of this year I posted this article What an Oaklandsocialist […]
By Michael Karadjis Introduction by Oaklandsocialist: The following article is by Australian Marxist Michael Karadjis. He uses a couple of terms that may be unfamiliar to some. “Tankies” refers to those on […]
John Reimann And we’re talking with Olivier Delbeke in France about the elections there. Olivier is with Aplutsoc, which is the abbreviations of Argument (or Struggle) for the Social Struggle. Olivier For […]
The connection between Russian oppression and Stalinism The connection between Ukrainian nationalism and anti-communism The present basis of support for Ukrainian fascist groups How that could all change Since I was recently […]
Communication Workers of America (CWA) Local 7250 executive committee has passed an excellent resolution on the war in Ukraine. We urge other union activists to raise this or similar resolutions. It starts: […]
Here are some photos of my visit to Lviv, Ukraine. I stress “Lviv” because I think it is not like other parts of Ukraine in that while the war has touched Lviv […]
Today the majority of socialists in the West argue that it is our duty to oppose “our” government’s sending arms to Ukraine. They equate the situation today with that at the start […]
I had a discussion with an unemployed construction worker today. He was in the army but was expelled after a month after they discovered that he’d been arrested some time ago for […]
Most of the time walking around Lviv you would just think this is a nice old city with interesting architecture. Some are apartent buildings built in the days of the old […]
To all those who denied the fact of Putin/Assad atrocities in Syria or ignored it; to all those who amplified the claim that the gas attacks there were a false flag; to […]
Russian war atrocities not limited to Bucha Atrocities reveal Putin’s real goal Putin’s trajectory towards complete domination at home and regionally Reasons for Biden’s completely inadequate response For a real workers program […]
The smashing victory of the Amazon Labour Union in Staten Island, NY, is the real sign of the times. Chris Smalls and Derrick Palmer and a small crowd of fellow workers overcame […]
Few paid attention when Matt Gaetz promised to nominate Trump for Speaker of the House if the Republicans won control in November. (See video above.) Those who did scoffed. They shouldn’t have, […]
We had a little literature table and talked with visitors to the Hayward Farmers Market this morning. Here are a few photos.
Implications of Russian military setbacks More limited political goals? US/NATO goals Possible use of chemical or “tactical” nuclear weapons and US response Can Russia become a “failed state”? Role of the Ukrainian […]
Australian Marxist Michael Karadjis commented on the issue of NATO’s expansion. He wrote: Quite frankly, while a former colony is being smashed to bits by hundreds of rockets and missiles artillery and […]
“You need to fight for workers rights, and you need to fight for your country.” We talked with Ukrainian socialist Vladyslav Starodubtsev. We discussed: The fight for workers rights in a neoliberal […]
The Maidan revolt The role of western imperialism including NATO Putin: Make Russia Great Again Support Ukraine’s right to get arms from any source possible Zelensky & Ukrainian capitalism The seizure […]
Oaklandsocialist interviewed Vitaly Dudin, labor activist in Ukraine. We discussed: The need to fight against Russia’s invasion Labor rights in Ukraine and neoliberalism The Ukrainian oligarchs’s role The seizure of both the […]
audio of interview with labor activist Vitaly Dudin in Ukraine. Full interview including text coming soon. Here this post on our podcast.
The Biden administration has announced the seizure of assets of Russian oligarchs. “These individuals and their family members will be cut off from the U.S. financial system, their assets in the United […]
Saturday was Burma Human Rights day. The Burmese American community held an event commemorating and linking it with the issue of human rights in Ukraine. Cheryl Zuur, retired union leader and long […]
Here is a video of an interview with Yaroslav Kovalchuk, who lives in Ukraine. Below is a transcript of the interview. Yaroslav explained the issue of nationalism – its limited impact and […]
by Junius Introduction by Oaklandsocialist: Although it is tiny and with hardly any influence, it is a mistake to ignore those on the left who call themselves “anti-imperialists”. It’s an even bigger […]
Putin’s situation becoming desperate. Is a coup possible? Is a fascist-type dictatorship possible? Is there a social base and an armed force for such a dictatorship? What is the working class alternative? […]
How should we see the efforts of France’s Emmanuel Macron, Turkey’s Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, and Israel’s Naftali Bennet to negotiate a truce in Ukraine with Putin? Or any peace treaty among capitalists, […]
Oakland is planning on closing ten schools. Here’s a statement on this issue from John Reimann for Oakland Mayor. For more on our campaign, see: This interview with Zennie Abraham And […]
When I first heard about Zelensky agreeing to negotiate with Putin’s representatives I wondered, to say the least. What is there to negotiate over? Maybe this is just paranoia, but […]
Self described Ukrainian leftist discusses the situation within his country. He explains the powerful opposition to the Russian invasion, disputes the claim that there is a strong division between Russian and Ukrainian […]
Apparent Splits in Russian Military Tops: Possible Coup? NATO Spread the Cause of Invasion? Anti-War Protests Spread in Russia Military Assessment, Thermobaric bomb & Putin a “Cornered rat” Political Fallout in US […]
The Russian invasion of Ukraine is now in full swing. Explosions have been heard near and around cities throughout the country. These appear to have been missile attacks on airports and possibly […]
We spoke briefly with Ukrainian writer Andrey Kurkov, who is located in Kyiv. Here is his report on the situation there at this moment:
A new stage has been reached in the Ukraine crisis. Putin has formally recognized the two breakaway “republics” – The Donetsk Peoples Republic and the Lunetsk Peoples Republic, known alternatively as the […]
Here is an interview with Ukrainian writer Andrey Kurkov. He reports on the situation in Ukraine today. Those who find the interview interesting might also be interested in our review of his […]
Canada’s so-called “Freedom” Convoy is blocking several major bridges between the US and Canada. Ford and General Motors are having to cut back production, meaning lay off workers, as a result. Meanwhile, […]
“Why has the fascist Canadian Truck Convoy had such an easy ride?” asks John Clarke in Canada. He answers his own question: The ability of a group of blatant fascists to […]
In 2014, prominent Ukrainian writer and intellectual Andrey Kurkov published a book called Ukraine Diaries. These are excerpts from diary entries Kurkov wrote during the Maidan protests. They cover not only what […]
Will Putin’s troops invade Ukraine? Putin says he is not planning to do so. However, he has every reason to deny it at this time. Most analysts predict that if he does […]
The crisis in Ukraine and the resulting extremely increased tensions between the US and Russian governments show that workers in the US cannot escape world events. That being so, it’s vital that […]
John Clarke reports from Canada It can’t be denied that the far right in Canada has achieved a major organizational and political advance with its truck convoy that challenged public health measures […]
“The world is on the brink of the largest military offensive in Europe since World War II.” So wrote Foreign Affairs magazine in an article entitled “The Day After Russia Attacks [Ukraine]”. […]
My long time friends, Marie McKenzie and Gregory Dunston, talk about homelessness in Oakland, including how churches are making money off the situation.
By Anthony Boynton And the winner is… China! Will Russia invade Ukraine? Probability is high, and not just because the Biden administration and the Ukrainians are afraid of it. Putin Putin faces […]
In Oaklandsocialist’s recent article “Will There Be A Coup?” we explored the various factors that would tend towards a “yes” and a “no” answer. This article homes in a little more about […]
Here is an edited/shortened version of an interview I did with Zennie Abraham of Zennie62Media on my campaign for Oakland Mayor: To see the full hour and twenty minute video, go here: […]
We usually think of a coup in terms of a military dictatorship, bloodshed, and tanks rolling down the streets. The main point, though, is the ending of “normal” democratic rights. That can […]
On January 6, 2022, liberal Democratic Party activist groups Moveon and Indivisible held memorial events to protest last year’s attempted Trump “auto coup”/riot in Washington DC. As elsewhere in the country, the […]
The process of scientists learning about Omicron should be a learning experience for workers as well. It is a living example of how a relationship between two events doesn’t necessarily prove cause-and-effect. […]
Once again, Oaklandsocialist’s Clairvoyant Correspondent scoops all other media by reporting a “transcript” of today’s Biden-Putin phone conversation. (NOTE: This story is filed under the category “Fiction More Real than Fact”) Scene: […]
I was sitting here watching the news with my heart pounding. It was partly out of pure anger, partly frustration – anger at what is being prepared for us and frustration that […]
In February of this year I posted this article What an Oaklandsocialist for Mayor in 2022 Campaign Could Accomplish. As I pointed out there, Oakland is not an isolated island; there is not […]
I have had multiple discussions with Trump-supporting workers. One of them I know personally. He’s a very nice guy to meet in person, and we had several long political discussions. Others I’ve […]
(Oaklandsocialist carries below an appeal for support for an imprisoned artist in Cuba. We fully support the demands for political freedom in Cuba. In doing so, we completely oppose any intervention by […]
Oxford, Michigan, Everytown, USA, where 95% of the population is white and over half the households are married couples. Median family income is $72,875, a very comfortable income considering that a new […]
US workers probably pay more attention to the politics in Britain than any other country outside the US. Therefore, the widening split in Britain’s Labour Party, and what may come out of […]
Oaklandsocialist recently posted an article on the Teamsters election and the role of Teamsters for a Democratic Union (TDU). Here is a more in-depth analysis of that group and the whole union […]
Oaklandsocialist Introduction: The election of supposed reformer Sean O’Brien as president of the Teamsters Union, along with his entire slate, has been greeted with near universal and uncritical enthusiasm on the left. […]
That then 17 year old killer Kyle Rittenhouse would walk free is ominous and has implications far greater than those for just this one individual. The NY Times’s Farhad Manjoo explained the […]
Antisemitism (which is not the same as anti-Zionism) is reviving as the far right, including outright fascism, develops. There were over 2,000 antisemitic attacks in 2020 compared with 751 in 2013. These […]
The Rittenhouse trial and the trial of the murderers of Ahmad Arbery have great importance. Coming as they do after the Texas abortion law, these trials will determine whether vigilantism will be […]
Striking John Deere workers rejected a second tentative agreement (TA) by a vote of 45% “yes” to 55% “no” on Tuesday. The new TA was a significant improvement from the first one, […]
The Day Before the Day After By John Reimann CHARACTERS (in order of appearance) NANCY PELOSI Speaker of the house JOE BIDEN President KAMALA HARRIS Vice President KAITLEN COLLINS a newscaster MAN […]
Note: Oaklandsocialist has carried numerous articles and videos of the struggle of carpenters in Western Washington to win a good contract. That struggle was basically a war on two fronts: Against both […]
Anti-Trump Old Guard Republican conservative Bret Stephens has an interesting column in today’s NY Times. It’s entitled “America’s Crumbling Global Position”. In it he details the foreign policy “failings” of President Biden. According […]
The accidental shooting death of cinematographer Halyna Hutchins at the hands of Alec Baldwin on the set of Rust has to be understood in the light of the struggle of the stagehands’ […]
The powerful position that the striking John Deere workers find themselves in means that they can win absolutely everything they want. There is no need to compromise one iota. Wall St. Journal […]
Anand Gopal is a former reporter for the Wall St. Journal and author of the book “No Good Men Among the Living”. Gopal spent years traveling around in the hinterlands of Afghanistan, […]
Justin Mayhugh is an alternate delegate in UAW Local 31 and a member of a UAW caucus called Unite All Workers for Democracy (UAWD). He works on the assembly line for GM. […]
It’s no exaggeration: Western Washington carpenters can make history. That’s because the situation they face is not that very different from that faced by all union members in the US; if rank […]
by Cheryl Zuur I went to the SF Women’s March today, one of the many across the country. I really did not want to go but knew that I MUST go. Many […]
Last year the Vermont State AFL-CIO made some headlines when it called for a general strike in the event of an attempted coup by outgoing president Trump. Here, Oaklandsocialist talks with the […]
Here is a glimpse of what the rank and file carpenters in Western Washington have been doing, how they have been shutting down jobs. Along the way, they confront the union bureaucracy […]
Excerpts from speeches given by carpenters as well as others (including Kshama Sawant) at a rally she and her group – Socialist Alternative – organized.
Here is Art Francisco, the chair of the Peter J. McGuire Group, speaking at a rally organized by Seattle City Council member Kshama Sawant.
Here is the speech I gave at a rally for the Western Washington carpenters on strike against the contractors and their own union leadership. The rally was organized by Seattle city council […]
The struggle of the rank and file carpenters took a new twist on Thursday (Sept. 23) when some union bureaucrats came out to try to red-bait Kshama Sawant. It didn’t turn out […]
Fed up with cut rate contract proposals/“tentative agreements” that were voted down four times, and fed up with a designed to fail “strike” policy, carpenters have started taking matters into their own […]
First the Carpenters Union leadership said it didn’t want a higher raise (for the members). That would hinder “recapturing market share”, you see. That business term means that the leadership sees the […]
I was expelled from the carpenters union in 2000. My experience might be helpful to those striking carpenters in Western Washington who are worried that if they violate the Council’s pro-contractor strategy […]
Kieran Knutson, President of CWA Local 7250, sent the following solidarity message to the carpenters Peter J. McGuire Group and to all the carpenters in struggle in Western Washington: Fellow workers – […]
The strike of Western Washington carpenters is the most important strike in America today. There are quite a few other trikes, including the Nabisco strike, that involve a lot more workers (for […]
By Jason Bartos, a striking carpenter The Fight Continues It has been an extremely exhausting week for me, the PJMG, and all of the brothers and sisters on the picket lines. I’m […]
Here is another striking carpenter, Nina Wurz, speaking. This is at a rally for rent control put on by Socialist Alternative. Introducing her is City Council member Kshama Sawant, the only city […]
Carpenters in Western Washington have forced their leadership to call a strike (of sorts). Here is Art Francisco, one of the leaders of the opposition caucus The Peter J. McGuire Group, speaking […]
My name is Cheryl Zuur. I am a retired industrial electrician and former president of AFSCME Local 444 in Oakland, California. I stand in solidarity with your struggle. Your courage to demand […]
Union carpenters in Western Washington are leading the American working class at this moment. They are not waiting for the official leadership to tell them what to do anymore. Instead, they are […]
Introduction: After having had four contract proposals/tentative agreements (TA’s) rejected by the membership, the leadership of the Western Washington Regional Council of Carpenters has been forced to call a strike. This is […]
Introduction This is a transcribed version of an introduction to a discussion on Afghanistan and the theory of permanent, or uninterrupted, revolution. The main purpose of the discussion was to try to […]
A writer in Germany describes the situation there and is uncertain how to vote: In Germany, elections for the Bundestag are coming up (a government and a chancellor are elected), and as […]
Rank and file carpenters in Washington State are organizing a Labor Day rally as part of their campaign to stop a cut-rate contract that the union leadership, together with the contractors, are […]
Now that US troops have pulled out of Afghanistan, the US media will be putting that country in the rearview mirror at best. It will be moving on to the next sensationalist […]
The new law in Texas banning abortion is trying to give the US Supreme Court a sneaky way to allow that ban while pretending to avoid the issue. They are doing that […]
Here is the third protest of the last week by Afghani Americans in the SF Bay Area. As with the other two, this protest was demanding the US allow Afghan refugees come […]
Dreams are like a good plum cobbler, mixing up all sorts of flavors – or emotions and thoughts – combining them in an unrecognizable way but with each ingredient also retaining its […]
by Cheryl Zuur I watched some bits of news/documentaries about Afghanistan on Youtube. Both of them followed a woman reporter (one from France News 24) into different parts of Afghanistan, including rural […]
Introduction, by Oaklandsocialist: It may seem to some, especially those of younger generations, that what happened in the Soviet Union is “yesterday’s news”. That is far from the truth. With “socialism” becoming […]
First it was very simple: I dreamed I had a brand new (bright yellow) power cord that had developed numerous cracks in the insulation. I had no idea what had caused the […]
Consider what this young woman – the MC – is saying: “Even though we are immigrants, we are kind of settlers, we are not invited here by the indigenous people…. There’s a […]
In order to understand the situation in Afghanistan, including who the Taliban is, we have to listen to the voices of Afghani people. Here is a video of a protest organized by […]
A theme is going around on the “left” that the fact that the Taliban “won” proves that they have popular support. One of the main “left” anti-war groups in the US – […]
by Rohini Hensman* in India We [in India] too protested against the US war on Afghanistan in writing and in demonstrations. The difference is that we had already been protesting and critiquing […]
With Afghani soldiers and police now reportedly stripping off their uniforms and abandoning their posts, and with (now former) President Ghani now reported as having fled the country, the former government […]
With Trump now out of office for six months, it’s time to look back over what the Trump years meant, and especially his last year in office. A series of new “Trump” […]
Yesterday, AFL-CIO president Rich Trumka died. Nobody who really cares about workers will mourn his death. But the greatest condemnation of Trumka came from Mark Milley, former Chairman of Joint Chiefs of […]
It is vital for workers – and for socialists within the working class – to know and understand the actual facts on any important issue in order to combat the hysteria, myths, […]
Roger Silverman reports from London The British Labour Party is currently convulsed in a historic crisis. Founded 120 years ago as the political voice of the trade unions at a time […]
Traducida por mst-rd Compañeros trabajadores: Según los reportes que recibimos, Irán está experimentando un estallido de huelgas y protestas: más de 2.000 en los últimos 12 meses. Esto incluye una huelga nacional […]
“If a hit man is hired and he kills somebody, the hit man goes to jail. But not only does the hit man go to jail, but the person who hired them […]
Fellow workers: According to reports, Iran is experiencing an absolute outburst of strikes and protests – over 2,000 in the last 12 months. This includes a national strike of over 100,000 oil […]
To all those Trump supporters, science denying anti-vaxxers, Second Amendment fanatics and conspiracy theorists who claim to love freedom: When have you ever walked on a picket line? When have you ever […]
Here is a video of some recent protests throughout Iran. As Oaklandsocialist has pointed out, if a workers movement succeeds in bringing down the Mullahs in Iran, it will transform the entire […]
From Anthony Boynton in Bogotá Tomorrow is Veinte de Julio (July 20th), one of the three independence days celebrated here in Colombia. It is a legal holiday, and a day upon which […]
Reprinted from Hekmatist.com Workers at gas, petrochemical and oil refineries have gone on strike across Iran over pay and conditions, health and safety, and social welfare. This is a national strike in […]
US Fascism Rests on Two Pillars by Junius Review of Craig Unger: American Kompromat This latest book by Craig Unger is a follow up of his House of Trump House of Putin’ […]
Oaklandsocialist has received the following report from Myanmar about the deadly increase in Covid there: “Everyday I saw loads of posts about asking for help Oxygen tanks (needed) everywhere in Myanmar…. One […]
Here is an interview Oaklandsocialist did with Simón Rodríguez, a Venezuelan socialist. The first part of the interview covers the general situation in Venezuela. The second part, starting at 13:49 minutes, covers […]
Below is issue Number 2 of the Myanmar Solidarity Bulletin. Oaklandsocialist presents it with these thoughts in mind: With a young fresh industrial working class growing by leaps and bounds, Southeast Asia […]
This is an interesting video for several reasons: First, it gives the clear impression that a few organized groups (Proud Boys and Oath Keepers mainly) had specific plans to invade the Capitol […]
John Reimann: The Republican attack on so called critical race theory has to be seen in its context. Just in the last few days, the republican controlled US Supreme Court made two […]
Pod cast. Video and transcript coming.
It is still way to early to know for sure, but some things are starting to emerge as far as the possible reasons for the collapse of the condo tower (Champlain Tower […]
On a 50-50 vote along strict party lines, the US Senate has failed to override a Republican filibuster of the voting rights act. Every single Republican voted to keep the bill off […]
The first edition of the Myanmar Solidarity Bulletin has just been published. Oaklandsocialist is proud to have been one of the participants. We urge readers to download the pdf and help distribute […]
The Council on Foreign Relations (CFR) has published an important article on “Myanmar’s Coming Revolution”. This article is important if for no other reason than that the CFR is the most important […]
The German revolution of 1919 and the years that followed hold many fundamental lessons for today. That includes lessons for the general uprising of the Asian working class that may be developing […]
Anthony Boynton reports from Bogotá, Colombia: Tomorrow (Wednesday June 9, 2021) could be a turning point for the mass movement that erupted here at the end of April and which has thrown […]
The Republican Party has been transformed into a real and serious threat, one that is much greater than anything we have seen in over 100 years. Because of the undemocratic nature of […]
On May 29, the Burmese community held a solidarity rally to unite all the different ethnic nationalities in Burma against the military junta. Here is a short video of that rally, featuring […]
The Black Lives Matter movement can take credit for having forced Israel to back off, even if only partially and temporarily. It is an example of international solidarity in action which goes […]
Back in 2014, when the corporate-controlled Oakland Zoo was moving to destroy a large part of the beautiful open space Knowland Park, zoo spokesman Nick Dehajia explained that the project would “change […]
Anthony Boynton reports from Bogotá, Colombia, on the background to the mass protest movement that has broken out there. Also, at the end, we have received an update, dated May 15. As […]
If Trump Mark I whipped up bigotry and denialism beyond anything seen in recent decades, if he did all he could to suppress democratic rights and to open up the environment to […]
India today: where the unimaginable actually exists through a human society near total collapse. As Indian commentator and activist Arundhati Roy put it: “The system hasn’t collapsed…. What we are witnessing is […]
The US Civil War and Reconstruction Presented by Irene Kellogg Irene writes: The Civil War and the Reconstruction Period were the most powerful periods of American history. Four million slaves liberated themselves […]
Are we in an interregnum, a pause before we plunge into the abyss? Is the Joe Biden presidency just a temporary respite, the lull before the storm? In the pre-Trump era such […]
The ending of the Derek Chauvin trial means that this will be the last week where that holds “first place” as a separate category in this week’s news summary. Police, Derek Chauvin […]
Video of April 24 Milk Tea Alliance protest in San Francisco. Also see Oaklandsocialist articles: Myanmar in Struggle: Workers of the World Unite! and: General Strike in Myanmar: Don’t Forget the Rohingya! […]
The conviction of Derek Chauvin is worthy of celebration. It also shows the capitalist class’s desire to rein in police, but that threatens to open up a huge crisis as the cops […]
Crisis looms as capitalists struggle to rein in police. It certainly was a beautiful sight: Derek Chauvin being led away with his hands cuffed behind his back, and millions celebrated it […]
For me, this last week was dominated by watching the Chauvin trial, and working on Burma/Myanmar solidarity and finally getting into shape the interview/discussion with Kieran Knutson and Cheryl Zuur. (See main […]
In the second half of this interview with CWA Local 7250 president Kieran Kieran Frazier Knutson, we focused on labor’s political role. As the Derek Chauvin trial was ongoing at the time, […]
This is the first part of a two part interview with recently elected president of CWA Local 7250, Kieran Frazier Knutson. In this first part, Kieran mainly discusses how he sees his […]
Here are some comments on the Derek Chauvin trial as it was unfolding plus comments on some other news, for the week ending April 11. Where I have included a few comments […]
Also see Oaklandsocialist’s articles: Myanmar in Struggle: Workers of the World, Unite! General Strike in Myanmar: Don’t Forget the Rohingya!
What is happening here that workers in the Amazon distribution center in Bessemer Alabama voted down the union by almost 2-1? It’s not that unions in general are unpopular. On the contrary, […]
Zoom Meeting Saturday, April 10, 9:00 a.m. Pacific Coast Time: What are the latest developments in the movement in Myanmar, what are some of the problems and complications, and how can we […]
Oaklandsocialist spoke at this Free Burma rally in San Francisco. We drew the links between the struggle in Burma/Myanmar, the global struggles for democratic rights, and the struggle here in the United […]
Note: Oaklandsocialist will try to have a regular weekly article with comments on events of the previous week. Last week, all the stars aligned to focus attention on the trial of Derek […]
Zoom Meeting The Derek Chauvin Trial: Remember George Floyd! Hear a first hand report from Linda Mann in Minneapolis on the Derek Chauvin trial. Linda will discuss last year’s uprising and the […]
President Trump may be out of office, but his drive to eliminate (capitalist) democracy is not. It has just taken a new route: Vastly increased voter suppression. So far, over 250 voter […]
Zoom meeting: Myanmar in struggle A huge movement against the military coup continues in Myanmar. The army there, which previously carried out atrocities against the Rohingya people, is now using similar methods […]
183 killed, 74 last Sunday, March 14, alone. 2,175 reported arrested, many facing charges that could mean execution. Yet tens of thousands, hundreds of thousands, maybe millions continue to pour onto the […]
PERSPECTIVES FOR THE USA A Workers’ International Network meeting introduced by John Reimann (Oakland Socialist) and Tia Kurtisnger-Edison (Kentucky Alliance) The USA has entered a period of turmoil and instability. What […]
Here is a recording of the Zoom meeting we announced, the discussion on what is happening in the British Labour Party. Presenters were Tina Werkmann, Pam Bromley and John Dunn. The discussion […]
Here is a podcast of the discussion on the British Labour Party.
Zoom meeting Saturday, March 6 What is happening with the British Labour Party? When left wing Jeremy Corbyn won the leadership of Britain’s Labour Party, millions of workers and young people were […]
Here is a documentary of Fred Hampton in his own words, unedited and revolutionary. The second half is a documentary investigation of his murder. Overall, this video not only shows the fearless […]
(Recently there has been denials on the left of reports of repression of the Uyghur people in Xinjiang Province in China. Here, Aaron Ruby, an avowed communist, who visited Xinjiang Province […]
I wrote once before about these weird deep state hearing aids that I got. As I noted then, if truth is stranger than fiction sometimes, then fiction can be truer than truth. With […]
A political vacuum of unprecedented proportions has opened up in the United States. Not since the US Civil War has the US capitalist class faced such a political crisis. It spent four […]
They poured out onto the streets in the millions. They have brought the country to a virtual standstill. This is Myanmar today – workers, youth, small business people, opposing the military coup […]
Police open fire on protesters in Mogadishu by Mohamed Abdi Nour General Secretary, Somali Public Trade Union Gunfire erupted in the Somali capital, Mogadishu, Friday morning after security forces cut off a […]
Republican Party Declares War on Black & Latino Voters Union Activists Can Organize to Stop Them The Republican Party has declared war on black and Latino voters. That is what happened when […]
On the second day of the senate trial for Trump’s second impeachment, Democratic impeachment managers showed chilling video of the marauding mob rushing through the Capitol building, looking for various politicians. At […]
As the impeachment hearings approach, it pays to look back at the what lead up to the January 6 lynch mob/coup attempt and what lessons can be learned. An article in the […]
The lack of a mass working class party in the US is the key to the crisis workers are facing. If and when that starts to build, that will transform US and […]
Brian Taylor is the author of the article ” PROSECUTE and JAIL KILLER COPS! A Tale of Mis-leadership: Why ‘Black Lives Matter: Cincinnati’ Changed Its Name” Here he explains this issue. We […]
Marxism is so marginalized that it is just a drop in the ocean of the wider working class. Because of this, we tend all too often to just think only of ourselves […]
We Can’t Wait New Orleans was one of the only groups in the US to hold a rally demanding real economic relief. Here is a video of a discussion they organized around […]
Although things are very much in flux, the dim outlines for the next two years are starting to emerge from the mist. Executive Orders Whatever the reason, Biden’s Covid relief proposal goes a […]
My speech at an anti-fascist rally earlier today. One of the groups that was a main organizer is a group that supports Assad, so I had to speak on that issue, among […]
Senator Everett Dirkson once said “You take a billion here, a billion there, and pretty soon you come up with serious money.” So, what in the world has come over Joe Biden? […]
For 150 years the US capitalist class has ruled through alternating the power between one of its two parties. The secondary differences in their roles helped assure the stability of that system […]
We have received the following message of solidarity from the Somali Public Trade Union. Such solidarity is what is needed. In sending this message, the SPTU is setting an example for the […]
What will happen over the next 13 days is not a slam dunk. Trump is on the retreat as he has never been before. Even some Republicans are talking about impeachment or […]
In Munich Germany in 1923, Adolph Hitler instituted the “Beer Hall Putsch”. This attempted coup was a total failure as far as seizing power and it resulted in Hitler’s arrest. After a […]
A couple of off-the-cuff thoughts on the state of affairs in US politics: (As this is being written, there are reports of a minimum of 30,000 Trump hysterics and various bigots gathering […]
Introduction: Nowadays truth is stranger than fiction and fiction is truer than truth. Keeping that in mind… I got a set of hearing aids the other day, but I think the hearing […]
Sisters and Brothers, we hope you as an individual and/or your political group or union will sign onto this call: Call to Action The Covid relief bill passed by the Democrats and […]
From John Dunn in Britain, who is starting off the new year right I did my best to have a good Christmas, as I always enjoy commemorating the birth of an imaginary […]
As 2020 comes to a close, two old stories are put to rest. Or so the cops and capitalist politicians hope. Those are the stories of Tamir Rice and Breonna Taylor. Tamir […]
Twas the week before Christmas and all through the hood, A man was walking who meant no good. He was posting a note on many a door, Telling the folks they would […]
Pay close attention to the “debate” on the Senate floor over whether that body will take up the one time only $2000 payment. It’s a reminder that those who control the agenda […]
A long time comrade of mine in Britain was comparing Boris Johnson to Trump. “Johnson’s less grotesque, but he’s also completely incompetent, unprincipled and narcissistic,” he wrote. After a bit of back […]
Oaklandsocialist interviewed Leda Victoria, revolutionary socialist, feminist and member of MAS (Movement Towards Socialism) in Mexico. She discusses her candidacy as part of an Anticapitalist United Front that is preparing to run […]
History matters, whether it is the history of 10 years ago or one hundred . That is especially true for the process of revolution and counter revolution. If we completely misunderstand those […]
A recent article in the NY Times plus some articles by scientist Dale W. Harrison help us understand what the three new Covid-19 vaccines apparently can and cannot do. Sterilizing vs. Disease […]
by Michael Frank Primaries in American politics have often been referred to as “money primaries,” meaning that big money determines who the final candidates are. Those candidates who fall behind their competitors […]
The capitalist talking heads are celebrating. “It’s been five weeks now, and the institutions of our democracy held against this onslaught,” said constitutional lawyer Ben Ginsburg on CNN on Friday night. “Our […]
Oaklandsocialist launches its powerful new Marxist time machine to bring you this news report from February, 2021: Congressional Republicans walk out as President Biden addresses joint session of congress February 30, 2021 […]
(By John Reimann, Oaklandsocialist administrator and reprinted from Left Voice.) There is currently a record 90,000 hospitalized with Covid-19, and over a quarter of a million people in the United States have […]
The assassination of the Iranian nuclear scientist Mohsen Fakhrizadeh was almost certainly carried out by Israel. Nor is it likely to be any coincidence that they did it before Trump leaves office […]
Not just food “insecurity”, but absolute hunger is stalking America. A community food bank in Rhode Island reports a 26% increase in those seeking assistance and they estimate that one in four […]
A friend and comrade of mine has been urging me to put together a bibliography of some of the books I have in my “library”. Here it is. I have put in […]
The news of this new method of producing vaccines may be just as ominous as it is welcome. Of course, we welcome a vaccine that can provide protection against Covid 19. But […]
Every thinking worker, every worker who cares about other people (or the planet), every worker who understands the need for working class solidarity will be breathing a sigh of relief that Trump […]
Just when we thought things were settling down in the US, Trump has provoked a new crisis with his refusal to accept the election results. What does this crisis tell us about […]
