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The Passion of the Bureaucrats

Tim Parks London Review of Books
It is striking how many Catholic organisations seem to do a whole range of lucrative things they were never set up to do, while still enjoying tax exemption as religious institutions. On closing these books many readers will feel that the only way out of the Vatican impasse would be to wind up the territory's anomalous statehood, hand it over to the Italian government and free the Church and above all Pope Francis to get on with their Christian mission. Right...

What If Bernie Gave His Speech at AIPAC?

Katie Miranda Mondoweiss
Unlike the other four presidential candidates, Democrat Bernie Sanders declined the invitation to speak at the AIPAC conference in Washington on Monday, and instead delivered a foreign policy address in Utah. The speech has gotten wide circulation because of its affirmations of Palestinian human rights. Katie Miranda imagines what would have happened If Bernie Sanders had delivered his Israel speech at AIPAC instead.

The Truth About Abolition

Adam Rothman The Atlantic
A new book about the abolitionist movement puts African Americans in the center of the history of our country's movement to end slavery.

Mass Incarceration: The Whole Pie 2016

Peter Wagner and Bernadette Rabuy Prison Policy Initiative
This new report by the Prison Policy Initiative offers some much needed clarity by piecing together this country’s disparate systems of confinement.

The Zika Virus: Government Responses Add to Women’s Burden

Maisie Davies Red Pepper (UK)
The Zika virus, and responses to it, have shone a light on the inadequacies of abortion and family planning laws in Latin America. Nevertheless, the Zika outbreak represents an opportunity for Latin America to review its sexual health policies and address long overdue issues, from access to contraception and abortion to a machismo culture that fosters sexual violence and discrimination.

Sanders Declines To Pander To Israel Lobby In Speech Prepared For AIPAC

Kevin Gosztola Shadowproof
Unlike Clinton, and all the Republican presidential candidates who spoke at AIPAC, Sanders called attention to Palestinian human rights issues. He said security meant “achieving self-determination, civil rights, and economic wellbeing for the Palestinian people.” Sanders also said peace meant ending the “occupation of Palestinian territory.”