A general strike by students at the National Polytechnic Institute (IPN) reveals a longing for universality, for going deeper and lower within society.
Author: Franklin Dmitryev
Youth in Action, November-December 2014
Newark high school protests; Egypt bans student movements; students and teachers defy Colorado school board brainwashing; Yemen youths’ political graffiti; Philadelphia high school students strike to support teachers.
Michael Brown rally
A participant reports on demonstrations in St. Louis and Memphis over the killing of Michael Brown and others by police.
Revolutionary Rojava
November 24, 2014A correspondent writes: For years now Rojava (“Syrian Kurdistan”) has been making perhaps the most advanced revolution we will see anywhere in our lifetimes practically alone.
Queer Notes, November-December 2014
Kyrsten Sinema, out Bisexual, elected to Congress in Arizona; Alison Bechdel and Mary L. Bonauto are among the 2014 MacArthur Fellows; same-sex marriage bans upheld in some states and struck down in others, makes it likely that the Supreme Court will have to decide.
Deadly nursing home protested by disabled
Three years ago, state officials vowed to shut the troubled Alden Village North nursing facility in Chicago down after more than a dozen deaths of children and young adults with severe disabilities. But it remains open today. A protester reports on a demonstration there.
Detroit developers flee angry homeowners
Nearly one-third of Detroit’s residential properties are blighted. Participants at an October protest at a Town Hall meeting speak.
Hundreds of thousands throng People’s Climate March
Central Park in New York City was filled with hundreds of thousands at the People’s Climate March on Sept. 21.
Britain’s recognition of Palestine
London—You could be forgiven for being surprised at the recent UK Parliament vote last month, with a sizable majority, to recognize Palestinian statehood. After all, when the Palestinians won a hard-fought campaign for recognition at the UN last year, Britain joined a chorus of nations ambivalent or hostile to their efforts. Look beneath the surface, however, and it becomes clear that the British government has little intention of putting words into action….
Philosophic dialogue on Dunayevskaya’s May 12, 1953, letter on Hegel’s Absolutes
November 23, 2014Raya Dunayevskaya’s May 12, 1953, letter on Hegel’s Absolutes needs to be read in the context of how what is embryonic is developed, and of the continuity and discontinuity in relationship to her earlier thinking and to the Johnson-Forest Tendency.
Praxis en America Latina noviembre-diciembre 2014 edición
November 19, 2014La nueva edicion de Praxis en America Latina. Esperamos sus comentarios. Por favor, reenvíenla a sus redes y contactos.
Los normalistas de Ayotzinapa: Asesinato y criminalización de la juventud en México
November 7, 2014A la barbarie del Estado mexicano, sus adherentes y secuaces, nosotros le oponemos la necesidad de construir un nuevo humanismo, la unidad de teoría y práctica —en suma: la revolución en permanencia.
Support the people of Kobane’s struggle for self-determination!
October 13, 2014As Marxist-Humanists we call for the support of the ongoing Syrian Revolution. We call for the right of self-determination of the Kurdish people, and we call for military and political support to the heroic defenders of Kobane. This struggle isn’t just local, or sectarian, but rather it cuts deeply into the universal history of humanity’s striving for freedom.
Chicago meeting: Philosophical ground for revolutionary organization today
October 11, 2014Monday, October 13, 6:30 PM
News and Letters library
228 S. Wabash, Room 230, Chicago, IL 60604
The role and nature of revolutionary organization is widely debated today. We consider how those debates are illuminated by the way Marx, as philosopher of revolution in permanence, laid ground for organization in his “Critique of the Gotha Program.” This discussion [=>]
Oakland meeting: 2014 is not 2011: What’s happened to the idea of freedom that animated the Arab Spring and the occupy movement?
September 20, 2014Sunday, 9/21/14, 6:30 pm
Niebyl-Proctor Library,
6501 Telegraph Ave., Oakland
(come up the back staircase)
2014 is not 2011: What’s happened to the idea of freedom that animated the Arab Spring and the occupy movement?
Can the idea of freedom re-emerge in the face of counter-revolution, permanent war and a world reshuffling of the global alliances, where it’s not freedom, [=>]
Chicago meeting: Racism in Ferguson, Missouri, puts American civilization on trial
September 17, 2014Monday, September 22, 6:30 PM
News and Letters library
228 S. Wabash, Room 230, Chicago, IL 60604
A participant in NMOS14 in Chicago. Photo for News & Letters by Franklin Dmitryev.
Racism is, and has always been, fundamental to all stages of the development of U.S. capitalism. The vicious police murder of Michael Brown in Ferguson, Missouri, [=>]
Nuevo libro: Contradicciones históricas en la civilización de los Estados Unidos
September 16, 2014Jueves 18 septiembre 5 – 7 de la tarde
Galería autónoma CU — Auditorio Che Guevara
UNAM, Ciudad de México
Presentación de libro y círculo de estudio
Contradicciones históricas en la civilización de los Estados Unidos
“Dawning of a New Day,” mural at 1207 7th Street North, Kansas City, Kansas
* La verdadera historia de los Estados Unidos
* Las [=>]
Oakland meeting: New Voices for Freedom in California’s Central Valley
September 4, 2014Sunday, 9/7/2014, 6:30 pmNiebyl-Proctor Marxist Library
6501 Telegraph Ave. (at Alcatraz)
Oakland, Ca.
(come up the back staircase)
Our discussion will be on “New Voices for Freedom in California’s Central Valley.” Urszula will lead off this report-back from our recent trip to McFarland near Delano. Some of it is reflected in “‘Trail for Humanity’ links immigration, environment, prisons” in [=>]
Essay: Karl Marx’s ground for organization
August 30, 2014Today’s vital debate about revolutionary organization is illuminated by Marx’s concept of organization in his “Critique of the Gotha Program.”
1953 letters on Hegel’s Absolutes, Part 1 of 3
Raya Dunayevskaya’s May 12, 1953, letter—presented in two parts, here and in the next issue—is one of the historic-philosophic writings included in The Philosophic Moment of Marxist-Humanism
Justice for Ezell Ford
August 29, 2014From the September-October 2014 issue of News & Letters
Los Angeles—On Aug. 17 over 1,000 protesters gathered at the downtown LA Police Department (LAPD) headquarters. We were there not only in support of Michael Brown, but also to protest the many killings over the years of Black, Brown and even a few white youths [=>]
We march in Oakland for #NMOS14
From the September-October 2014 issue of News & Letters
Oakland, Calif.—Several hundred came out on Aug. 14 to a vigil in Oscar Grant Plaza, as part of a national day of protest over the police murder of Michael Brown. We read out the names of a growing number of unarmed young Black men executed [=>]
Kansas City for Michael Brown
Over 700 people gathered in the Plaza in Kansas City, Mo., to protest the police murder of Michael Brown in Ferguson, Mo., and the militarized attacks on protesters.
NYC Police murder Eric Garner
From the September-October 2014 issue of News & Letters
New York, N.Y.–There are certain facts in the case of the police murder of Eric Garner which are not in question. The use of the chokehold by the NY Police Department (NYPD) has been illegal for over 20 years. Eric Garner was a 43-year-old father [=>]
Thousands in Chicago: From NY to Ferguson, stop killer cops!
Thousands of people packed into Daley Plaza on Aug. 14 for the National Moment of Silence. Observed in 90 cities, it was called to respond to the police killing of Michael Brown, an 18-year-old African American, in Ferguson, Mo.
Nueva edicion de Praxis en America Latina, 8-9/2014
August 28, 2014Por favor, comparta con sus amigos y redes.
revista Praxis en América Latina – teoría/practica
www.praxisenamericalatina.org
No. 12, agosto-septiembre 2014
Los números anteriores: # 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11,
Desde México
Por un socialismo de autogestión común a todos los anti-capitalistas
Panorama del movimiento estudiantil en Xalapa
“¿Por qué ya no luchamos?, ¿por qué no defendemos”: la lucha del pueblo de San Bartolo Ameyalco por el agua
Prólogo a la [=>]
Photos from National Moment of Silence, Chicago
August 15, 2014Chicago photos here: https://www.flickr.com/photos/29775879@N06/sets/72157646490687482/ Send in your own photos and reports to include in our coverage of this nationwide event on Aug. 14, 2014.
New York City and Ferguson, Missouri, police show pattern of violence against Black people
August 11, 2014Queens, New York–The first story was that Eric Garner had died of a heart attack in the ambulance as he was being taken to the hospital. Segments of the New York press were happy to report that the heart attack was probably caused by his obesity and diabetes, letting the cops off the hook. People [=>]
Oakland meeting: Participate in revolutionary journalism
August 9, 2014Sunday, 8/10/2014, 6:30 pm
Niebyl-Proctor Marxist Library6501 Telegraph Ave. (at Alcatraz)Oakland, Ca.(come up the back staircase)
This Sunday, 8/10 at 6:30 p.m., we will discuss possible contributions to the next issue ofNews & Letters. Some examples are: 1) a report from a demonstration in McFarland, Ca., on 7/31, where the Dreamers marching on a “Trail for Humanity” and [=>]
Chicago meeting: Stop Israel’s war on Gaza: the need for revolution in life and thought
August 7, 2014Monday, August 11, at 6:30 p.m.
News and Letters Library
228 S. Wabash Ave., #230
Chicago, Illinois 60604
Speaker: Gerry Emmett, author of “The Syrian Revolution as the test of world politics”
See the News & Letters statement on Gaza at http://sr3.supportedns.com/~rayaduna/newsandletters/stop-israels-war-gaza-need-revolution-life-thought/
Deadline for September-October 2014 issue of News & Letters
July 28, 2014Sunday, August 17, is deadline for the next issue. Share your story with the world! Send in reports on your workplace, your town, your country; conditions, events, ideas, and debates. Send in Readers’ Views responding to articles in News & Letters and/or responding to what is happening in the world.
Oakland meeting: History of Dialectics–Considerations on Franz Fanon
July 27, 2014Sunday, August 3, 10:30 a.m.
Niebyl-Proctor Marxist Library6501 Telegraph Ave. (at Alcatraz)Oakland, Ca.(come up the back staircase)
Ron will join Lew and Ibrahim for another “History of Dialectics” discussion of “Considerations on Franz Fanon” on Sunday, August 3 at 10:30 a.m. at the Niebyl-Proctor Marxist Library.
Oakland meeting: From U.S. to Ukraine, the whip of counter-revolution calls for starting from the Absolute
Sunday, 7/27/2014, 6:30 pm
Niebyl-Proctor Marxist Library
6501 Telegraph Ave. (at Alcatraz)
Oakland, Ca.
(come up the back staircase)
Chicago meeting: Low-wage strike wave shows workers reaching for a new way of life
July 10, 2014Monday, July 21, at 6:30pm
News and Letters Library
228 S. Wabash Ave., #230
Chicago, Illinois 60604
Speaker: Franklin Dmitryev, National Organizer of News and Letters Committees, author of “Low-wage strike wave shows workers reaching for a new way of life”
From the July-August 2014 issue of News & Letters:
The recent wave of strikes at Walmart and fast food restaurants [=>]
Oakland meeting: On the 50th anniversary of the Free Speech Movement and Mississippi Freedom Summer: the need for the Hegelian-Marxian dialectic of freedom
July 9, 2014Sunday, 7/13/2014, 6:30 pm
Niebyl-Proctor Marxist Library
6501 Telegraph Ave. (at Alcatraz)
Oakland, Ca.
(come up the back staircase)
Sunday, 7/13 at 6:30 p.m., on the 50th anniversary of the Free Speech Movement with its roots in the Mississippi Freedom Summer, we will discuss the need for the Hegelian-Marxian dialectic of freedom in real time engagment with on-going struggles. One [=>]
LA meeting: Low-wage strike wave shows workers reaching for a new way of life
July 8, 2014Sunday, July 13, at 5:00pm
Echo Park United Methodist Church
1226 N Alvarado St, Los Angeles, California 90026
(1 block north of Sunset, side door)
Speaker: Franklin Dmitryev, National Organizer of News and Letters Committees, author of “Low-wage strike wave shows workers reaching for a new way of life”
From the July-August 2014 issue of News & Letters:
The recent wave [=>]
WORLD IN VIEW: Latin America’s people in view and in motion
Colombia’s Election and ‘Peace’; Zapatista Activist Assassinated; World Cup Shows Other Brazil.
WORLD IN VIEW: Turkish miners killed
On May 13, an explosion in a coal mine in Soma, Turkey, claimed the lives of 301 miners. Turkey is the most dangerous place on earth in which to be a coal miner.
Youth in action, July-August 2014
ISIPE; Ché Café; Lindsey Stocker; Australian students protest fee increases.
Educators rally in New York City
From the July-August 2014 issue of News & Letters
New York—More than 300 teachers—as well as education personnel, parents, students, and community leaders and supporters—from New York City and other parts of the tri-state area concerned about education inequalities rallied outside New York City’s City Hall.
In a “Take Back Our Schools” rally, we [=>]
Tiananmen Square Massacre 25 years later
From the July-August 2014 issue of News & Letters
Crowds filled Hong Kong’s Victoria Park on June 4 to remember the massacre in Tiananmen Square 25 years ago. Under Hong Kong’s separate administration they bore witness to the two-month-long mass movement of students and workers that spread to city after city across China, and [=>]
Right wing wins in Europe
It’s been dubbed a “political earthquake” that has struck the heart of the European Parliament. Yet this surprising victory for the right—where Britain’s own United Kingdom Independence Party (UKIP) made unprecedented electoral gains–signifies not merely disillusionment with mainstream politics, but growing intolerance across Europe.
Queer Notes, July-August 2014
July 7, 2014Namibia documentary “It’s All about Love”; sex-reassignment surgery coverage on Medicare; Laverne Cox.
Intersex voices
From the July-August 2014 issue of News & Letters
Germany recognizes a third gender on legal documents such as birth certificates. Australia’s Sex Discrimination Amendment Bill 2013 makes Intersex people a protected class, with no religious exemptions. In the U.S., Chicago’s Lurie Children’s Hospital has a Gender Identity Clinic which provides physical and mental [=>]
Sam Greenlee
From the July-August 2014 issue of News & Letters
The late Sam Greenlee (1930 – 2014) is best known today for his classic 1969 novel The Spook Who Sat by the Door. This story of Freeman, the first Black CIA agent, who returns to his Chicago neighborhood to organize a revolutionary army of young [=>]
De Blasio’s phony housing policies
From the July-August 2014 issue of News & Letters
New York—When new Mayor Bill de Blasio was campaigning, his pledge was to end the “two cities” here, one of the rich and one of the rest of us. And a major component of that was to address the housing problem. Some may contend that [=>]
For disability rights
From the July-August 2014 issue of News & Letters
Chicago—On May 26, a group of 14 people from Chicago ADAPT went to Springfield, Ill., to push for the passage of House Bill #349 whose purpose is to make the 5% temporary personal income tax in Illinois permanent. Without that happening, we face huge cuts in [=>]
Voices From the Inside Out: On prison and race
From the July-August 2014 issue of News & Letters
by Robert Taliaferro
Race has always been at the forefront of this nation since its founding. It seems ironic that the generation that produced the country’s first Black president is also the generation that is seeing the advances made in civil rights during [=>]
Handicap This! July-August 2014
UK protests by WinVisible vs. ATOS profiteering; Harris v Quinn at US Supreme Court
No rehabilitation
From the July-August 2014 issue of News & Letters
Oakland, Calif.—On June 14 Critical Resistance (CR), an organization working for the abolition of the prison system, held a community forum on California Department of Corrections and rehabilitation (CDCr). (Prisoners refuse to capitalize the “R” because there is no “rehabilitation.”)
The forum took up new [=>]