contributions

By Amitabh Pal
Randall Robinson is a disillusioned man. So much so that he decided to leave the United States in 2001 and settle down in St. Kitts, where his wife is from. He has written a book, Quitting America: The Departure of a Black Man from His Native Land, explaining the reasons for his relocation. Robinson hasn’t completely quit the United States, though. He still maintains a home in Virginia and comes back often for visits.
A lifelong activist, Robinson is best known as the (…)

Robert Greenwald’s upcoming documentary about Wal-Mart’s predatory practices is part of an unprecedented progressive media campaign.
By Don Hazen
Wal-Mart has taken advantage of the tragedy of Hurricane Katrina to try to distract the public from the myriad controversies that have plagued it recently. The extent of Wal-Mart’s sins includes lawsuits about discrimination, union busting, worker anger over backlogs of unpaid overtime, and health care and compensation policies that send many (…)

By Steve Early
Having two labor federations, instead of one, is not a new idea in America—or necessarily a negative development.
Prior to the 1955 merger of the American Federation of Labor (AFL) and Congress of Industrial Organizations (CIO), union competition was more often the norm in the U.S. than not. As a result, workers often had a wider range of options when they decided to organize or became dissatisfied with their existing union representation.
In the 1880s and ’90s, for (…)

If Enthusiasm on Display Were Substance, CtW Could Claim a Good Start
by Jerry Tucker
The founding convention of the Change-to-Win labor federation held in St. Louis on September 27, 2005 was, if nothing else, filled with enthusiasm and efficiently managed. The founding unions’ top leaders put forward a lean and specifically organizing-focused agenda, and it was adopted without even a hint of dissent. The longer-term question is whether this self-described new direction in unionism will (…)

by Elly Leary
On March 8, 2005, the Coalition of Immokalee Workers (CIW) in Immokalee, Florida won a significant victory. In a precedent-setting move, fast-food giant Yum! Brands Inc., the world’s largest restaurant corporation, agreed to all the farm workers’ demands (and more!) if the CIW would end the four-year-old boycott of its subsidiary Taco Bell. (Yum!, a spin off from Pepsi, includes Taco Bell, Kentucky Fried Chicken, A&W, Long John Silver’s, and Pizza Hut franchises.) As (…)

By Cindy Sheehan
I was honored and humbled to be in the presence of holy man, Thich Nhat Hahn, today at MacArthur Park in a very Hispanic neighborhood in Los Angeles.
Thay (teacher), as he is known, is a Buddhist monk who was active during the Vietnam War years, bringing peace and reconciliation to the countries of North and South Vietnam. He was nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize by Martin Luther King Jr. He walks with an aura of peace and acceptance radiating from him. (…)

See footage of the violent clashes between protestors and police
Forty-five Italian police and medical staff have gone on trial accused of brutality against protesters arrested during the G8 summit in Genoa in 2001.
The case, which opened at a court in Genoa, was adjourned until November.
The defendants - which include senior officers from Genoa - deny the charges, including unlawful violence.
On Friday, in a related case, 28 officers are due appear in court over a raid at a school (…)

Iraqis apprehend two Americans disguised as Arabs trying to detonate a car bomb in a residential neighborhood of western Baghdad’s al-Ghazaliyah district on Tuesday.
A number of Iraqis apprehended two Americans disguised in Arab dress as they tried to blow up a booby-trapped car in the middle of a residential area in western Baghdad on Tuesday.
Residents of western Baghdad’s al-Ghazaliyah district told Quds Press that the people had apprehended the Americans as they left their Caprice (…)

By Sarah Meyer
On 11 October, the reporter Robert Fisk made one of his rare appearances in London. The bookshop, Bookmarks arranged for Mr Fisk to speak to an audience of about 250 in a church hall close to Tottenham Court Road. The event marked the publication of Mr. Fisk’s new book, The Great War of Civilisation, the Conquest of the Middle East, published by Fourth Estate, London.
Robert Fisk is an outstanding journalist. His clarity, courage and in-depth knowledge have, throughout his (…)

"I stopped eating because I was given a removal letter which was to take me back to Uganda it was on 16 August which was stopped by my solicitor. Today I was given another removal letter to remove me on 18 October.
"I need you to intervene and help me. I have explained to Immigration my whole story - that I have no home, my family has died and no one to help me in Uganda and that I was tortured and raped.
"I escaped from government detention and I am not safe if I return to Uganda. (…)