Portside

One of the biggest protests of 2016 is still underway at the Standing Rock Sioux Reservation in North Dakota, where Water Protectors and their allies are fighting Energy Transfer Partners’ plans to drill beneath contested Treaty land to finish the Dakota Access Pipeline. EFF has been tracking the effects of its surveillance technologies on water protectors’ communications and movement.

“For Panamanians, nothing justifies the death of a civilian,” said one of the commissioners tasked with uncovering the truth behind the invasion. Panamanians marked the 27th anniversary Dec. 20, 2016 of the 1989 U.S. invasion of the Central American country as the exact number of victims remains unknown more than a quarter of a century after the events.

The Obama era reminded us all that popular movements play an essential role as catalysts for political action. The enthusiasm generated by the Sanders campaign was a surprise, but it did not spring from the void. Any new radicalism needs to learn from the past, but not simply to reenact it. The new American radicalism must be open and multifaceted, speaking the language of American society but receptive to insights from an increasingly interconnected world.

Moderator's NOTE: Bill Fletcher and Bob Wing's article "Fighting Back Against White Revolt 2016" http://portside.org/2016-12-05/fighting-back-against-white-revolt-2016 has sparked discussion from Peter Olney "Go Red" http://portside.org/2016-12-26/go-red-thoughts-labor-movement-age-trump-response-fletcher-and-wing-portside-december-5 and now this piece by Ruth Needleman. Please also read today's reply posting from Fletcher and Wing.

Moderator's NOTE: Bill Fletcher and Bob Wing's article "Fighting Back Against White Revolt 2016" http://portside.org/2016-12-05/fighting-back-against-white-revolt-2016 has sparked discussion from Peter Olney "Go Red" http://portside.org/2016-12-26/go-red-thoughts-labor-movement-age-trump-response-fletcher-and-wing-portside-december-5 and today a response piece by Ruth Needleman. Following is today's reply posting from Fletcher and Wing.

More than 200 employees of Republic Windows and Doors staged a six-day sit-in December 2008 when the factory was abruptly closed, resulting in a settlement. The occupation received international attention and became a symbol of workers’ rights amid the economic recession.

But once you become active in something, something happens to you. You get excited and suddenly you realize you count. -- Studs Terkel

After the election, many on the Black Left are once again grappling with the “race vs. class” debate.

A must-see film about using math to overcome adversity and send humans into orbit

The U.S. has now effectively traded a universal military draft for the far more insidious policy of economic conscription. And while it has become something of a ritual for civilians to address veterans with: “Thank you for your service,” to commend those who have voluntarily put themselves in harm’s way, the ritual also betrays a more profound reality. We are thankful we ourselves aren’t economically desperate enough to have to enlist in this country’s endless wars.