Portside

Many are familiar with the challenges faced by working moms, but the troubles of women with aging parents are unseen and widely ignored.

The implications of Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia's death for the anti-union case known as Friedrichs are a bit uncertain. Some experts say the appellate ruling in favor of the union would be effectively affirmed by an evenly divided court. Others believe the court will ask for re-argument of the same case next term, presumably after it gets back up to full nine-member strength by the appointment and confirmation of successor to Scalia.

Rather than a problem, we wanted to start with a vision. We asked members three questions: What brings you joy in the work you do with students? What sucks the life and joy out of working with students? What can we propose through bargaining that could increase the joy and reduce the stress in your work?

Stewart Acuff, national organizer for 1199, brings a poet's eye to the struggle for social justice. Fear, he says, is "our humanity overcoming that fear."

On the morning of November 22, 1963, President Kennedy told his wife Jackie as they started for Dallas, where he would later be assassinated, "We're heading into nut country today." The city was full of reactionary Kennedy haters, led by powerful ultraconservatives who would eventually remake the Republican party in their image. The book under review charts what made Dallas a hub of far-right activism back then, shedding light on today's national political landscape.

Unions are the most effective force for social equality, writes British Labour Party leader Jeremy Corbyn. He recalled that Keir Hardie -- who 120 years ago became the first unionist to enter Parliament -- didn’t just fight for workers, he fought for universal suffrage, a universal pension, free education for children, decent homes for all, against powerful monopolies and for peace.

This new memoir by pop culture and music critic Rashod Ollison is about growing up with rhythm and blues, and, writes reviewer Reginald Harris, "about the role of music in the lives of everyday music lovers, as both a consolation and a vision of a possible different future." Ollison writes about coming of age, coming to terms with his sexuality, and about what his early twin loves, literature and music, taught him.

A Federal Judge strikes down Hardin County's "right to work" ordinance. Bill Londrigan,, President of the Kentucky State AFL-CIO, says this was a major victory for Kentucky's working families.

The New York Times, which historically tends to ignore Chomsky, ran a prominent review in its Arts section, going so far as to praise the film and calling Requiem a "well-paced and cogent seminar." Reviewer Daniel Gold writes, "citing Aristotle, Adam Smith and James Madison, among others, he melds history, philosophy and ideology into a sobering vision of a society in an accelerating decline.

On January 29th, Uber had reduced fares in more than eighty cities in the U.S. and Canada. Drivers in some of those cities, including San Francisco, San Diego, Tampa, and New York City, have reacted with strikes and protests.