Portside

American democracy has been failing for decades, so a disturbing number of us are turning to authoritarianism. Is Trump our Juan Perón? Trump's Atlantic City empire has crumbled. But Trump himself has somehow emerged stronger than ever. The man who sought to lure all aspiring monarchs to A.C. ('welcome to a kingdom where everybody's treated like a king') has whipped up a heady mix of xenophobia, political bromides, and so-light-it-floats policy proposals into a movement

For Sanders, and to build a more multi-racial left, progressive whites must prioritize work as loyal allies in struggles for racial justice led by activists of color. Jessie Jackson in his 1984 and 1988 campaigns boldly ventured into lily-white states, speaking at farm foreclosures and picket lines from Maine to Iowa. Ultimately, Sanders' "political revolution" must be as diverse as those who constitute the 99 percent.

The Bernie Sanders campaign is primarily a political movement with social overtones - in particular, its embrace by students and young people, mainly white, who are responding to an anti-austerity message presented clearly, forcefully and repeatedly. Social movements have also appeared (or re-appeared) in response to social issues stimulated by neoliberalism, and the rise of the nativist, religious, and armed far Right - #BLM; Fight for $15; DREAMers - and many more.

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The following excerpt is the Foreword to America's Addiction to Terrorism. Portside is pleased to share this with our readers. In the U.S. today, the term "terrorism" conjures up images of dangerous, outside threats: religious extremists and suicide bombers in particular. Harder to see but all the more pervasive is the terrorism perpetuated by the United States, itself, whether through military force overseas or woven into the very fabric of society at home.

"Finance capital supports war and chaos and strives towards it, because it can use chaos to seize national assets. In my opinion, our mafia-like capitalism cooperates and collaborates with foreign capital, which does not care for our sovereignty and prosperity," explains Maziyar Gilaninejhad from the Iranian metal workers and mechanics union in a interview in which he also describes the repression workers in Iran face.

A union leader is being hailed as a possible mayor in Chicago while elsewhere mayors are pursuing policies Obama has been unable to enact on the national stage. Now Karen Lewis is seriously considering running against Rahm Emanuel in Chicago next year. She could win. A Chicago Sun Times poll last month gave Lewis a nine-point lead with 18% undecided.

The Nation blog, The Curve - Where feminism and economics intersect - examined Thomas Piketty's Capital in the Twenty-First Century. If economic inequality continues to soar, as Piketty says it will, and inherited wealth plays a growing role in our economy, in what ways does that affect women specifically? And what weaknesses arise in Piketty's own analysis due to the absence of gender and race from his book? Where can we, as feminists, build on Piketty's analysis?

Everywhere you look there is destruction: mosques, factories, schools, hospitals, universities and thousands of houses, many shattered into piles of bricks, glass and metal. The death toll - more than 1,900 killed, including at least 450 children. But a longer-term trauma may be the large number of wounded - more than 9,800, mostly civilians, including at least 3,000 children.

Increasingly Jews in the United States, in Israel and around the world are finding their voice - speaking out and demonstrating against the siege of Gaza. Many Jews are also questioning what hard-line politics and policies have done to Israel - increasing racism, discrimination and inequality. Sally Gottesman wrote the following letter to her family and friends, after living in Israel the past seven months. She has been in Israel more than 50 times.