Chicago, IL – Noam Chomsky, Gilbert Achcar, Paul Le Blanc, Suzi Weissman, Tithi Bhattacharya, Charlie Post, Robert Brenner, Gayatri Spivak, Alex Callinicos, Ashley Smith, Eric Toussaint, Marc Cooper, Etienne Balibar. These are a handful of the over 500 signatories on an open letter directed to the blockaded Cuban government on July 12 demanding “respect for the democratic rights of all Cuban people” and the release of “dissident Marxist” Frank García Hernández and his comrades from jail after the protests of July 11.
Topeka, KA – On July 5, more than 800 Frito Lay Workers in Topeka began a strike that has now entered its third week. The workers are members of Local 218 of the Bakery, Confectionery, Tobacco Workers and Grain Millers (BCTGM) Local 218.
Minneapolis, MN – On July 22, 50 people gathered outside Minneapolis City Hall for a press conference in defense of the 646-plus people who were arrested on November 4, 2020. They demanded City Attorney Jim Rowder and other prosecutors drop the charges against the 646, and that the charges be dropped against all protesters since the murder of George Floyd last summer.
Mick Kelly is a member of the Standing Committee of the Central Committee of Freedom Road Socialist Organization and is responsible for the organization’s international relations. The following essay appeared in the book, A Century of the Communist Party of China, Statements from 100 Foreign Communists, published by the Contemporary China Publishing House.
Chicago, IL – The Chicago movement against racist policing made history July 21 with the passage of the most progressive police accountability legislation in the country. The ordinance, named Empowering Communities for Public Safety (EPCS), was passed by the Chicago City Council on a 36-13 vote.
Oppressed nationalities hit more than twice as much as US whites
San José, CA – On Wednesday, July 20 the National Center for Health Statistics released their provisional report on lifespans in 2020. The report found that the COVID-19 pandemic, which has killed more than 600,000 people in the United States, lowered the lifespan by one and half years in 2020. This is the worst drop since World War II. Lifespans have generally increased over time, but this sets the trend back almost 20 years to 2003.
Tucson, AZ – After a record six weeks of ballot counting and false claims of fraud by right-wing candidate Keiko Fujimori, Pedro Castillo was officially announced the newest president of Peru, on the evening of July 19. Castillo, from a poor peasant background and the candidate of the Peru Libre party, found support in the masses of poor and working Peruvians fed up with the lack of response to COVID-19 and the high rates of unemployment. Equally important is the defeat of “Fujimorismo” the far-right ideology of neoliberalism and chauvinism of former President Alberto Fujimori, Keiko’s criminal father.
Memphis, TN – On July 17, over 40 people gathered at the intersection of South Cooper Street and Young Avenue here for a rally called by the Memphis chapter of the Freedom Road Socialist Organization, in coalition with Memphis Voices for Palestine. Representatives from Never Again TN and Jewish Memphians for Social Justice, two Jewish-led organizations, were also present.
Chicago, IL – On July 12, more than 2500 Cook County, Illinois workers who are members of SEIU Local 73 ended an 18-day strike after winning major improvements on key issues. Two issues remained outstanding in the deal but will now move to interest-based arbitration, which only became an option because the workers went on strike.
