Portside

1. Building the Democracy Front
2. Can Ukraine Win?
3. Cuba’s Crisis
4. Die Linke Congress
5. Africa Reports
6. Antiracists Confront Racists in London 
7. Indigenous in Three Continents
8. In Puerto Rico, Independence is Back on the Table
9. France, the Caribbean and Africa: Colonial Legacies
10. China and Taiwan

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Building the Democracy Front

Maria J. Stephan / Just Security (New York)

In Brazil, Poland, and France, politicians, business leaders, religious actors, trade unions, popular sports figures, and other core groups united to reject politicians who peddled fear and vowed to strip away core freedoms. These groups and individuals instead rallied around those who espoused a more hopeful, pluralistic vision for their country. “Big tent” organizing was key to their success.

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Can Ukraine Win?

 • No, They Can’t   Charlotte Claes / transform! Europe (Vienna)

 • Yes, They Must   Yuliya Yurchenko / Red Pepper (London)

 • It’s the People’s Fight   Oleksandr Kyselov / Links (Sydney)

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Cuba’s Crisis

Joy Gordon / Le Monde diplomatique (Paris)

Cuba is facing a moment that is extraordinarily precarious. While numerous factors that have led to this — ranging from the pandemic to natural disasters to economic policies that did not succeed — US sanctions have, at every juncture, triggered or worsened every aspect of the current crisis.

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Die Linke Congress

Marc Martorell Junyent / Jacobin (Brooklyn)

Germany’s left-wing party is in trouble, with divides over Gaza adding to the split by former spokeswoman Sahra Wagenknecht. At the recent party congress, a new leadership set out plans to reconnect with working-class voters in order to avoid collapse.

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Africa Reports

 • Botswana Election   / Firstpost (Mumbai)

 • Mozambique   Fredson Guilengue / Rosa Luxemburg Stiftung (Berlin)

 • Nigeria   Ayoola Babalola / Africa is a Country (New York)

 • Tanzania   Nicholas Mwangi / Peoples Dispatch (New Delhi)

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Antiracists Confront Racists in London 

Brian Melley / Independent (London)

Thousands of supporters of jailed far-right activist Tommy Robinson marched through London as anti-racism demonstrators mounted a nearby counter-protest. Thousands of people organized by the group Stand Up to Racism held signs saying “Refugees welcome” and “Oppose Tommy Robinson.”

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Indigenous in Three Continents

 • Brazil   Brett Wilkins / Common Dreams (Portland ME)

 • Kenya   Stephanie Leah Simmons Wood / Red Pepper (London)

 • Philippines   Bay Remo Camote / Europe Solidaire Sans Frontières (Paris)

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In Puerto Rico, Independence is Back on the Table

Raquel Reichard / Refinery29 (New York)

Juan Dalmau, representing the Independence Party and the Citizen Victory Movement, would make history as the first win by a candidate outside of the two major parties that have long dominated Puerto Rican politics. For decades, the New Progressive Party and the Popular Democratic Party held an iron grip on the island's electoral system.

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France, the Caribbean and Africa: Colonial Legacies

 • Unrest in Martinique and Guadeloupe   David A. Vivian / The Conversation (Walham MA)

 • Anti-French Juntas   Alex Batubo / National Record (Abuja, Nigeria)

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China and Taiwan

Guoguang Wu / Asia Society (New York)

How do nonmilitary and military means mutually support each other in China’s overall reunification strategy? As the Taiwan populace seemingly drifts further away in terms of a shared Chinese identity and rejects future unification, why does China still deem nonmilitary means optimal for dealing with Taiwan?