NFL’s Racism, Sexism Grows Out of Biggest Abuser: Capitalism

As the howls of anger against black pro football players Ray Rice and Adrian Peterson continue unabated, they highlight the bosses’ efforts to divert anger from the biggest abusers, racists and oppressors of women and young people.
Sexism is rampant under capitalism. Driven by the need to force women into low-wage jobs and no-wage labor (to raise the next generation of workers), capitalism has both tacitly and openly encouraged degradation of women. Women are crudely objectified by capitalist culture. Young men are encouraged to use women as if they were commodities.

Click to read more ...

Declare War on Haitian President’s Anti-Communist Attack

Port-au-Prince, August 17 — A speech by Haitian Pres. Martelly in a recent “home government” meeting in Miami with members of his cabinet and the Haitian-American business community, appealed to his base to reject the candidacy of Moïse Jean-Charles, a fake leftist, for Haitian Senate. “I don’t want anyone to vote for a communist,” ranted Martelly.  

Click to read more ...

Social Fascists vs. Open Fascists—All Serve Finance Capital

PARIS, September 13 — The Socialist government running France for the bosses since May 2012, is wobblier than ever. The bosses’ other governing party, the right-wing UMP, has been discredited by the 2007-2012 Sarkozy regime’s policies and by current scandals. The National Front fascists are eager to grab power. That’s France today: social fascists versus open fascists. The elections are a mechanism by which French banks and businesses (finance capital) maintain state power. Whether it’s the liberal fascists or the outright fascists, both sides spell disaster for workers.

Click to read more ...

Comrade Val Woodward, Staunch Antiracist

Comrade Val Woodward, a staunch antiracist and champion of the working class, died on June 6 at age 87. Starting in the early 1970s, Val and his wife Clare organized the International Committee Against Racism (InCAR) in Minneapolis-St. Paul. InCAR was founded nationally by the Progressive Labor Party to combat racism on the job, in education and in academic publications.

Click to read more ...

To End Global Warming, End Capitalism

Thousands are gathering in New York and other cities around the world for the September 21 People’s Climate March to attack capitalist complicity in global warming.  Two days later, government leaders will meet yet again at the United Nations in another doomed and hypocritical show of concern over climate change. Meanwhile, Barack Obama has sanctioned a huge expansion of fracking for natural gas. Fracking leaks methane, a greenhouse gas that traps 25 times more heat than carbon dioxide.

Click to read more ...

Racist Murders Expose Face of U.S. Fascism

When the bosses’ mad-dog cops murdered Michael Brown and Eric Garner, the cause of death was capitalism.
Brown was shot six times by racist cop Darren Wilson for walking while black on a street in Ferguson, Missouri. Garner was killed by a chokehold by racist cop Daniel Pantaleo after trying to break up a fight on Staten Island, New York City. These are just two of many murders of black and Latin workers and youth nationwide. There are at least 400 police killings per year that are reported to the FBI by local police. These racist executions represent the rise of fascism —  capitalism in crisis, capitalism unmasked.  

Click to read more ...

PL’ers Greet Rebels with Communism Ferguson — Workers Lead Antiracist Fight

Ferguson, MO, August 29 — During the recent rebellions here, a young multiracial team from Progressive Labor Party visited the area to support these antiracist actions and put forward the idea that communism is the only way to defeat racism and capitalism. Here is one account.
The bosses’ media keep spreading the lie that “outside agitators” aren’t wanted in Ferguson, but that couldn’t be further from the truth. Hundreds of workers and students received CHALLENGE and a PL leaflet calling for more rebellion against racist police murders. They embraced communist ideas and calls for communist revolution. An older couple contributed to our lunch after a brief discussion on the history of racism in Ferguson and the U.S. and the lack of opportunities for working-class youth.

Click to read more ...

‘What has to go? ‘The whole system!’

Chicago, August 29 — “I’ll go!” shouted a young woman near the end of tonight’s Fight Back Like Ferguson forum. She was responding to an appeal for volunteers to attend a rally in Ferguson, Missouri called for the next morning. The news of hundreds of workers violently fighting back against the racist police murder of a young black man in Ferguson has inspired millions of workers and youth, from St. Louis to Chicago to Palestine. As one speaker who had visited Ferguson shortly after the rebellion explained, “I’ve never been in a demonstration before where people were willing to die.” This fearless commitment to fighting racism deeply moved those who went to Ferguson. By the end of the forum, a new team of four volunteers was preparing to head out early in the morning.

Click to read more ...

Demand Racist Cops Pay for Murdering Tyrone West

Baltimore, MD, August 27 — Supporters of justice for Tyrone West — 44-year-old black worker beaten to death while in police custody in July, 2013 — chanted, “Can’t stop! Won’t stop! Till killer cops are in cell blocks!” They also expressed anger about the police murder of Michael Brown. Solidarity was strongly voiced in support of the struggle for justice in Ferguson. There were frequent chants of “Hands up! Don’t shoot!”
Every week since Tyrone’s murder, family members and supporters have rallied, demanding prosecution of the Baltimore City police and Morgan State University police who took the life of another black man after what began as a traffic stop.

Click to read more ...

Marchers Indict Racist NYPD Murderers of Eric Garner

STATEN ISLAND, NY August 23 — The ripple effect of the 10-day Ferguson rebellion over the murder of Michael Brown reached Staten Island today, both in good ways and bad. In fact, it was more like there were two rallies today, one inspired by the rebellion, and the other determined to make sure the rebellion will not be repeated.
The vast majority of the 4,000 workers, students and youth, women and men of all colors came inspired by, and in solidarity with the Ferguson rebellion. This was evident as thousands put their hands in the air and chanted, “Hands Up, Don’t Shoot,” the rallying cry of Ferguson.

Click to read more ...