Social Justice

Yes, They’re Mostly Students Occupying a Public Square. But Here’s Why Hong Kong’s Protesters Are Different

Hong Kong’s “Occupy Central” movement is neither revolutionary nor subversive: It’s a basic demand for a more responsive and accountable government.

John Feffer | Oct 21, 2014

Native rights | Local economies

Beating Climate Change by Retooling the Economy—The Story Begins in Navajo Country

A proposed community-owned solar project on an abandoned coal mine in Arizona illustrates how cooperative economomics make it possible to stop extracting fossil fuels—without leaving workers behind.

Mary Hansen | Oct 16, 2014

Kansas People's Action canvassing event. Photo by the author.

Activism | Local economies

To Build a New Economy, a New Government Comes First

National People’s Action Campaign is training the next wave of progressive candidates for 2016. Here’s how they could win.

Jacob Swenson | Oct 16, 2014

Photo courtesy of LBJ Presidential Library.

Local economies | Jobs

When Poverty Was the Enemy, Not the Poor

The poverty rate in the U.S. would be 15 percent higher if not for the War on Poverty and government anti-poverty programs since 1967.

Tom Eblen | Oct 10, 2014

Sustainable food and farming

Americans on Food Aid Document Their Hunger in Photos

“Before I was on SNAP, I budgeted $50 a week for all groceries for my two children and myself. This was for food, shampoo, toilet paper, everything.”

Oct 10, 2014

Bangladeshi Domestic Worker photo courtesy of UN Women

Jobs

Bangladeshi Workers Organize to Protect Their Most Valuable Export: Themselves

In the evolving global economy, migrants facing virtual indentured servitude abroad—and coming home to debt and social isolation—feels like the new normal.

Tiffany Williams | Oct 9, 2014

A scene from the People’s Climate March. Photo by Light Brigading / Flickr.

Activism

These 8 Projects Are Sustaining the Momentum of the People’s Climate March

From people who are still literally marching to campaigns to sue the government for failing to take action on climate change, these projects make it clear that the People’s Climate March was just the beginning.

Joseph Boutilier | Oct 8, 2014

This graphic came out of Freedom Summer 2014. Image courtesy of Waging Nonviolence / Sandra Khalifa.

After Ferguson, It’s Time to Turn a Civil Rights Moment Into a Human Rights Movement

“We need to expand the civil-rights struggle to a higher level—to the level of human rights.”

Nathan Schneider | Oct 8, 2014

The author marches in the Flood Wall Street demonstration. Photo by Shadia Fayne-Wood / Project Survival Media.

Activism

Photo Essay: Scenes from the Heart of the #FloodWallStreet Sit-In

There was more to #FloodWallStreet than a guy in a polar bear suit getting arrested. Here’s a gallery of lesser-known moments from the day’s events.

Sachie Hopkins-Hayakawa | Oct 3, 2014

At the People's Climate March in New York City. Photo by Stephen D. Melkisethian / Flickr.

Climate | Activism

Time for a New Containment Strategy? What Climate Marchers Can Learn from the Cold War

The leading strategies in the climate justice movement already resemble the Cold War policies of containment, roll-back, and isolation. But can they wear down the political power of the fossil fuel industry?

Jim Shultz | Sep 30, 2014

Activism | Jobs | Climate

Nurses’ Unions Send Thousands to Climate March, Call Global Warming a “Health Care Emergency”

The nurses’ unions focus on health gives them a unique perspective on climate change among organized labor.

Yessenia Funes | Sep 25, 2014

The Key to a Sustainable Future Is Resisting Violence Every Day

The Nonviolence Handbook teaches that when we exhibit patience and refrain from criticizing others harshly, we're building nonviolent potential.

Yessenia Funes | Sep 18, 2014

Activism | Wealth and inequality | Jobs

Occupy Offshoot Cancels $4 Million in Predatory Student Loans—and Starts a Debtors Union

First, they started buying up—and canceling—individuals’ medical debt. Now the people behind Rolling Jubilee are taking on student loans from a for-profit university that exploits the poor—and the whole debt system could be next.

Christa Hillstrom, James Trimarco, Liz Pleasant | Sep 17, 2014

Icebergs near the South Orkney islands. Photo by Grapesmc / Flickr.

Activism

For the Beaches and the Barrios: Why Next Week’s Climate March Will Be the Largest Ever

We’re tired of winning the argument and losing the fight. And so we march.

Bill McKibben, Eddie Bautista, LaTonya Crisp-Sauray | Sep 16, 2014

#WhyIStayed: 20 Years After VAWA, a Groundswell of Empathy for Domestic Violence Survivors

From Janay Palmer Rice to Jennifer Lawrence, we blame women for the bad things that happen to them. But last week—on the 20th anniversary of the Violence Against Women Act—women took the conversation back.

Christa Hillstrom | Sep 15, 2014

Activism

This Former NASA Intern Just Wrote The Best Sci-Fi Book of the Year: Monica Byrne on “The Girl in the Road”

A future where India is the major world superpower, gender is flexible, and energy comes from waves? This writer’s version of the near future feels much more real than apocalyptic nightmares we’ve come to dread.

Leigh Finke | Sep 13, 2014

This graphic came from the images out of Ferguson

Activism

Today’s Movement for Racial Justice Has Found Its Graphic Designer (And Her Name Is Sandra Khalifa)

In this Q and A, the talented Khalifa talks about how she became interested in issues of racial justice, her work with the Dream Defenders, and the power of social media.

Joe Solomon | Sep 9, 2014

Let’s End Poverty: We Have the Money, Do We Have the Will?

47 million Americans live beneath the official poverty line, under a daily judgment of failure. The question today is: Whose failure?

Dean Paton | Aug 29, 2014

Activism | Jobs

The Faces Behind the Fight for $15 an Hour

For low-wage workers, Seattle's minimum wage increase means a chance to go to college, pay the rent, and visit the dentist.

Betty Udesen | Aug 29, 2014

Volunteer giving a free hug at the Ferguson Farmers Market. Photo courtesy of Molly Rockamann.

Shaken by Violence, Ferguson Residents Gather to Talk and Heal

At the local farmers market, Ferguson residents find a safe place to deal with the trauma of Michael Brown's death.

Molly Rusk | Aug 27, 2014

Activism | Climate

Climate Comeback: A Grassroots Movement Steps Back Into the International Arena

Three major international meetings about climate change are on the horizon. Is this the moment to fix the failures of Copenhagen?

Jim Shultz | Aug 27, 2014

Photo courtesy of US Department of Education / Flickr.

Mental health

How the #FergusonSyllabus Can Help Teachers Talk About Race and Rights on the First Day of School

Teachers and educators collect ideas and resources for how to talk about Ferguson with students of all ages.

Liz Pleasant | Aug 27, 2014

“We Need Tear Gas Packets Now!” Two Simple Ways to Support the Protesters in Ferguson

The goal is to raise enough money to send 500 treatments for tear gas exposure to support protesters in Ferguson, Mo.

Liz Pleasant | Aug 20, 2014

A Quechua woman harvests potatoes at a site more than 13

Native rights

Photo Essay: Indigenous Farmers Gather in the Andes to Plan for Climate Change

These photos document a gathering of indigenous groups from China, Bhutan, and Peru. They met in the spring to discuss climate change and plan a crop exchange program.

Adam Kerby | Aug 19, 2014

Palestinian in support of Ferguson protestors.

Palestinians and Ferguson Protesters Link Arms Via Social Media

Other tweets from Palestinians pointed out parallels in racial injustice between the two situations.

Alexis Goldstein | Aug 16, 2014

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