Portside

A new book by Penny Lewis offers valuable insight into the true nature of the movement to end the war in Vietnam.

A new book by Penny Lewis offers valuable insight into the true nature of the movement to end the war in Vietnam.

Last year, activists in Missouri launched a ballot initiative to cap the rate for loans at 36 percent. The story of the ensuing fight illuminates the industry’s tactics, conducting an underhanded campaign to derail the ballot initiative; and a sophisticated and well-funded outreach effort designed to convince African-Americans to support high-cost lending.

The municipal workers, whose pensions are theoretically protected under the Michigan Constitution, are classified as “unsecured” claimants who will get the scraps after the secured creditors put in their claims. The banking casino, it seems, trumps even the state constitution. The banks win and the workers lose once again.

As the showdown in Philadelphia indicates, the ongoing battle over education “reform” and school funding—topics often discussed in think tanks, political campaigns or Waiting for “Superman”–style media productions—is moving into the streets. These movements are more than mere isolated acts of resistance; in their demands, the outlines of a coherent policy agenda can be discerned—one that looks honestly at what it will take to bring quality education to our country.

In a nation grounded in the belief that all are created equal and deserve equal protection under the law, it was overwhelming to hear that my relationship and family were being embraced as an equal part of the American family.