Portside

Despite current progressive electoral energy and, in some places, major movement gains, we have a long way to go to win lasting fundamental change. Partly vile institutions at the core of our society manipulatively and coercively twist our motives and awareness. Partly a right wing surge is also occurring. And partly the public has still not thrown off cynicism and a trembling fear of enduring even worse outcomes if we try to seek better.

Data from the International Federation of Robotics – a non-profit that protects the interests of the robot industry – show that today, worldwide, for every 10,000 employees, on an average, there are 66 robots. In South Korea, that density is about 400; 300 in Japan; 290 in Germany; and 160 in the U.S. The apocalypse depicted in R.U.R. is far from reality, assures one of the I.F.R.’s brochures. The loss of employment from automation, though, will only fuel fear of robots.

Abdel-Al—who lives in occupied East Jerusalem—is visiting Chicago this week at the invitation of the United Electrical Workers (UE), the U.S. Palestinian Community Network, and Jewish Voice for Peace to enlist the support of the U.S. labor movement in the Palestinian liberation struggle. He addressed standing-room-only audiences of rank-and-file unionists at last weekend’s Labor Notes conference and again on Tuesday night at the local UE Hall.

The Palestine poet Jehan Bseiso depicts the desperation of refugees, pushed from home by war--"barrel bombs and Kalashnikovs"--and lured toward a dubious safety by "a little bit of hope."

Bernie Sanders wins a battleground state by a 57-43 margin. The win in Wisconsin is huge, with Sanders winning seven of the last eight contests. The hope of Sanders and his supporters is that their momentum math will ultimately influence the delegate math, by cutting Clinton's pledged-delegate lead and convincing superdelegates to swing his way - as happened in 2008, when a number of superdelegates who were initially leaning toward Clinton ended up with Obama.

The speakers and the workshops at the Labor Notes conference celebrated labor's new potential both in fighting the boss and becoming more active in pro-worker electoral struggles. The 2,000 or more participants overfilled the Hilton Hotel and spread out into two other nearby venues. The young workers definitely outnumbered those with more seniority at these kind of events, and the diversity of participants was great. Special reports by Judy Atkins and Dan La Botz.

A strategic look at the U.S. political landscape shows how Hillary Clinton or Bernie Sanders would be able to pull together a majority electoral coalition. It also reveals why either might still be thwarted in pulling together an effective governing coalition in 2017, (assuming they are able to defeat Trump or Cruz). The far right has grown in strength and virulence, while the `regular' conservative right has grown in intransigence.

Among the accomplishments of the Cuban revolution have been the great strides made in the education of its entire people. Education is completely free from primary school through university. Cuba today has a literacy rate of over 96 percent, putting it at the top of all Latin America. But the struggling economy has not created the kind of economic opportunity that is commensurate with an educated population, particularly in the professions.

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