Social Justice Blog

"Did the traditional union die of natural causes, or was it murdered? It may be up to historians to settle the debate. Meanwhile, pragmatism demands alternative models to protect the interests of workers. Increasingly, these are found in 'social movement unionism': an approach that is flexible and broad in its definition of workers' issues, often enlisting the cooperation of business and government, rather than being tied to a specific job or employer. Here are three diverse recent examples."
-Anja Kamenetz-

One of my closest friends works for the AFL-CIO and we always have pretty lengthy discussions about the changing face and shape of the American labor movement. Kamenetz's article touches on some key movers such as the SEIU and the Freelancers Union. She also spotlights an interesting new study by Fordham University Law Professor Jennifer Gordon. As union density continue to decline (from 12.5% in 2004 and 2005 to 12% in 2006), both legislative steps and social movement action is necessary for "renegotiating a real social safety net for all."
posted by Alexandra at 1/31/2007 10:57:00 AM

"George Bush has a habit of firing military leaders who tell him the Iraq war is failing. He can't fire you...He can't fire us...The founders of our country gave our Congress the power of the purse because they envisioned a scenario exactly like we find ourselves in today. Not only is it in our power, it is our obligation to stop Bush." -Rep. John Conyers (D-Mich)-

That's what John Conyers, Michigan Democrat and the second most senior member of the House of Representatives had to say to the tens of thousands of people who gathered on the National Mall this past Saturday in protest against the war in Iraq. Rep. Lynn Woolsey joined him in addressing the rally, urging activists and lobbyists to support legislation to withdraw Congressional approval for the war in Iraq.

This comes on the heels of President Bush's statements ignoring Congress's opposition, and, in fact, rebuffing Congress in saying that "I'm the decision maker." Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi said she was puzzled by the president's minimalist explanation for his confidence in the new surge of 21,500 U.S. troops, presented as the crux of a new "way forward" for U.S. forces in Iraq. As reported by Politico, Pelosi said: "He's tried this two times -- it's failed twice...I asked him at the White House, 'Mr. President, why do you think this time it's going to work?' And he said, 'Because I told them it had to.'"

You can read more about what members of Congress had to say in the coverage by Common Dreams. You can also visit The Nation for some ground coverage of the protest in Karen Houppert's article "Voices of Protest," Peter Rothberg's "Surge for Peace" and John Nichol's "DC Marchers Challenge Congress to end War."
posted by Alexandra at 1/28/2007 08:31:00 PM

"He was aware, like many of us in the United States, Europe, Turkey and all over the world who belong to our Turkish-Armenian network, that the solution to this problem lies in cooperation, in dialogue, and in reconciliation. He was aware that we need to tackle this issue as a community of scholars who, like him, believe in the ultimate goodness of humanity, and who, like him, fervently hope and strive on a daily basis to move that dialogue, the possibility of that reconciliation forward."-Fatma Muge Gocek-

On January 19, 2007, upon leaving his office in Istanbul, Turkey, journalist Hrant Dink was shot and killed, an assassination. Dink wrote as a columnist and editor-in-chief of the weekly AGOS, widely regarded at the voice of the Armenian community (since 1996). Dink had struggled against the Turkish state from the start. On October 7, 2005, he was convicted for "insulting Turkishness" (under that country's penal code) on the grounds of stating that he "was not a Turk ... but from Turkey and an Armenian." However, Prime Minister Erdogan castigated the murder saying, "the kind of people who did this might be anything, but they can definitely not call themselves nationalists."

Read Dink's last column written for AGOS, entitled "A Pigeon-Like Unease of Spirit," as well as a eulogy by Fatma Muge Gocek, both published at OpenDemocracy.
posted by Alexandra at 1/24/2007 06:01:00 PM

"African women spoke fiercely about the challenges. 'We know that we have paid a hard price for globalisation. It is critical to understand the process and what it has done to poor countries, particularly women and children,' explained Aminata Traore." -Patricia Daniel, reporting from the World Social Forum 2007-

World Social Forum gathers for the seventh time, bringing the world (150,000 participants, 1,460 organisations and over 1,000 separate activities) to Africa as activists, social movements, networks, coalitions and other progressive forces from Asia-Pacific, Latin America, the Caribbean, North America, Europe and all corners of the African continent converge in Nairobi, Kenya. Patricia Daniel is in Kenya reporting on how the status of women is being covered (if at all). If equality and democracy is going to be discussed, it must include a woman's perspective, it must include women's voices. You can read her article "Is Another World Possible Without The Women's Perspective" and also check out her blog from Nairobi here.
posted by Alexandra at 1/19/2007 12:11:00 PM

"Our ability to meet the needs of the urban poor is one of the greatest humanitarian challenges of this century. It is also going to shape key global developments - from the security of those who live in nearby luxury apartments to the stability of Arctic ice sheets near the planet's poles. It is particularly ironic that the battle to save the world's remaining healthy ecosystems will be won or lost not in the tropical forests or coral reefs that are threatened but on the streets of the most unnatural landscapes on the planet." - Christopher Flavin, President, Worldwatch Institute-

Flavin makes a call for smart urban development, explaining that battles against global problems such as unemployment, HIV infections, water shortages, education, terrorism and climate change, will be largely won, or lost, in the world's cities. In turn these policies will affect smaller communities around the world. It is our policy approach both in the United States and globally that will test the ability to create inclusive and environmentally sound policies that will renew and revitalize both our ecosystems as well as our own lives.

You can read the entirety of Flavin's article here. Another great organization with similar goals is the World Resources Institute.
posted by Alexandra at 1/18/2007 10:34:00 AM

"But if supporters of condo conversion view this candy-colored house on Maple Street as a sign of new life, Peter O'Callaghan sees it as a kind of death. O'Callaghan rented a one-bedroom apartment at 122 Maple until he was evicted in October. Unable to find an apartment as affordable as the one he lost, the 51-year-old decided to try living out of his car. Three and a half months later, he's still homeless...

'How do you create homelessness in America?' O'Callaghan asks rhetorically. 'Well, this is one of the ways.'"

Read "A House Divided" by Cathy Resmer of Seven Days, an article investigating how condo conversion is driving low-income residents from Burlington and throwing a wrench into the issue of affordable housing.
posted by Alexandra at 1/12/2007 10:40:00 AM

"The Campaign for America's Future reports that, since 2000, the average inflation-adjusted cost of tuition at a public institution has increased 42 percent while median household income, adjusted for inflation, had fallen $1,273. In 2005, a family making the median household income of $46,326 would have to spend one-fourth of that to cover the tuition for one child at a typical public four-year university. Paying the tuition at a typical private four-year university would eat up a staggering 57 percent of their income."
-Alex Carter, Campaign for America's Future-

Follow-up on yesterday's post. Read the article by Alex Carter here.
posted by Alexandra at 1/11/2007 12:16:00 PM

The new Democratic Congress has placed cutting student loan interest on the legislative agenda, and it's about time making college more affordable made its way onto the agenda.

As Anja Kamenetz explains in her excellently researched book, "Generation Debt," every year students across the nation fall victim to unmanageable student loan debt and are unable to crawl out from under an impending nightmare. In the mean time, loan companies are making a pretty penny off fresh-faced college undergrads, and students are struggling at a time they should be focused on developing themselves.

I will admit that, when I was in college, I was completely clueless when it came to college finances. I signed promissory notes, dutifully showed up for work-study selection, tried to compare the relative advantages of certain loans and attempted to decipher the greater meaning of the bills that so religiously arrived but whose information so reluctantly made its way into my brain. I can only imagine the stress I would have endured had my financial situation been as burdensome as it was for the students Kamenetz profiles in her book.

Here's what Kamenetz has to say about Congress' plans:

"I just got this press release from George Miller, your man on the House Education & Labor Committee. They are planning to cut student loan interest rates as part of the Democrats' "first 100 hours of Congress" gimmick. For some reason, they are doing it in five steps:

'On Wednesday, January 17, 2007, the House of Representatives will consider legislation to cut interest rates in half on federal college loans. Specifically, the legislation will cut interest rates on need-based federal loans for undergraduate students from 6.8 percent to 3.4 percent in five steps: to 6.12 percent in 2007; 5.44 percent in 2008; 4.76 percent in 2009; 4.08 percent in 2010; and 3.40 percent in 2011. Once fully implemented, these cuts will save the typical borrower - with $13,800 in need-based loan debt - approximately $4,400 in interest costs over the life of his or her loan…'"

You can read more at Kamenetz's blog, also called "Generation Debt." You can read more about the new campaign to make college affordable here.
posted by Alexandra at 1/10/2007 09:29:00 AM

Six political prisoners await their fate in China. Will they become the victims of refoulement? Refoulement, the process of reintroducing political prisoners into their country of origin, is a process akin to sending dissenting citizens to their deaths and was formally banned in the Convention Concerning the Status of Refugees in 1951:

Article 33. - Prohibition of expulsion or return ("refoulement")
1. No Contracting State shall expel or return ("refouler") a refugee in any manner whatsoever to the frontiers of territories where his life or freedom would be threatened on account of his race, religion, nationality, membership of a particular social group or political opinion.

Unfortunately, although international law forbids it, it still takes place more often than we think. Consider the Shenyang Six, a group of political dissidents who emigrated to China only to find themselves imprisoned with the grim future of a forced return to North Korea. North Korea treats its dissidents in the most atrocious manner, but the other criminal here is China, a country that willfully defies the mandate set out in the aforementioned Convention. It is time for international leaders and countries with diplomatic ties to China to pressure the country to change its policy on refugees to fall in line with international mandates.
posted by Alexandra at 1/09/2007 09:12:00 AM