|
January 24, 2003 | Issue 437
FRONT AND BACK PAGES
Half a million tell Bush...
No to war!
Half a million people across the U.S. sent George W. Bush an unmistakable message on January 18: We don't want your war on Iraq. And we're ready to take a stand to stop you.
The Bush gang calls for an end to affirmative action
This is an attack on civil rights
Bush took the opportunity of Rev. Martin Luther King's birthday to show his support for overturning affirmative action at the University of Michigan--and quite possibly the entire country.
SPECIAL FEATURES
Thirty years after Roe
The fight to defend abortion rights
January 22 marked the 30th anniversary of the legalization of abortion in the U.S. Now, the attack on abortion rights tops the agenda of Bush and his henchmen in Congress. In this special feature, Socialist Worker looks at the fight to defend a woman's right to choose.
Veterans speak out at Chicago labor meeting
Labor against war
In early January, more than 100 unionists came together in Chicago to form U.S. Labor Against War. The night before, antiwar veterans Dan Lane and Bill Davis were part of a panel of speakers to discuss issues of labor and the war. Here, SW prints excerpts of their presentations.
Who's behind Venezuela's anti-democratic opposition?
Why the bosses are on "strike"
In a world turned upside down, Venezuela has experienced an odd type of "general strike" since December 2. It isn't led by workers demanding higher wages, health benefits or political advances. The strike is a lockout led by bosses.
Back to the top
WHAT WE THINK
Bush and his pals scramble to justify a war against Iraq
Any excuse will do
With close to 150,000 U.S. troops deployed, the Bush White House has made it clear that it's ready for an all-out assault on Iraq--and it will use all the means at its disposal, including more "discoveries" of Iraqi weaponry, to get its war.
Organizing for another world
More than 100,000 people are expected at the third annual World Social Forum this week in Porto Alegre, Brazil. The meeting will mark the latest stage of the rebellion against free-market "neoliberal" policies across Latin America--and the revival of the left internationally.
Back to the top
NATIONAL NEWS
Resisting Illinois prosecutors' death penalty attack
No turning back!
Prosecutors and right-wing politicians across Illinois have launched an all-out campaign to undermine former Gov. George Ryan's emptying of death row. But opponents of the death penalty are determined to stop this attempt to restart the machinery of death.
Back to the top
COLUMNS
WHICH SIDE ARE YOU ON?
Bush steps up class war on U.S. workers
"Class warfare?" queried Business Week recently--as if the question needs asking in Bush's America. "Suppose the rich get richer and income inequality gets worse," the article mused--its unspoken question: "Can we still get away with it?"
THE MEANING OF MARXISM
Can individuals change history?
Most history books treat historical change as the accomplishment of great men (and an occasional woman). The opposite, though less popular, view is that history follows a path which no individual can influence. Both ideas are mistaken.
Inside the system
Misunderestimating Dubya; Georgia's out of the bedroom; Heard it through the grapevine
Back to the top
ON THE PICKET LINE
GE striker killed in picket line accident
We won't forget Michelle
When Kjeston "Michelle" Rodgers left home on January 14 to join the picket line at the General Electric plant in Louisville, Ky., she had everything to live for. But at 5 a.m., a police car plowed into her as she carried her picket sign in front of GE Appliance Park.
D.C. teachers fight union corruption
Impending indictments. A 47-page FBI affidavit. An independent audit revealing $5 million stolen by executive officers. This sounds like any day at Enron or WorldCom. Outrageously, this scandal is unfolding inside the offices of the Washington Teachers Union.
Washington state teachers
Some 25,000 teachers, education workers and supporters rallied January 14 to demand decent funding for education in what was called the largest rally ever at the state capitol.
Back to the top
REPORTS FROM THE STRUGGLE
Campus antiwar groups form network
Some 300 students made their way to Washington, D.C., and San Francisco a day before the January 18 marches for antiwar conferences that founded the Campus Antiwar Network (CAN).
Reports in brief
Abolish Maryland's death penalty; Protest Kissinger
Back to the top
SW READERS SPEAK OUT
New York cops off to a bloody start in the new year
They kill and call it justice
The cops in New York City got the New Year off to a bloody start, killing four young men in the first two days of January.
Librarians take up fight for civil liberties
Librarians and booksellers in Vermont have joined hands to overthrow provisions of the USA PATRIOT Act that threaten to undermine Americans' freedom to research and read in private.
The lies of the first Gulf War
As America rushes to war, I wish someone would broadcast the award-winning documentary that was aired here in Canada following the Gulf War.
Back to the top
REVIEWS
The Two Towers and Bush's "war on terror"
One Ring to rule them all?
The media were quick to latch on to the good-versus-evil theme in the movie The Two Towers, as a profound metaphor for the "war on terrorism." But The Two Towers delivers a very different message.
Ani DiFranco's stand against injustice
There's a lot to love in two recent releases from Ani DiFranco--especially her forceful opposition to war, racism and injustice.
Home page | Back to the top
| 
