Free trade or protectionism: Workers go to the wall either way

Vol. 82/No. 11 - March 19, 2018

The Wall Street Journal calls President Donald Trump’s proposed hefty tariffs on steel and aluminum imports “the biggest policy blunder of his presidency.” The tariffs — announced on the pretense of protecting “American” jobs — “will benefit a handful of companies,”…



Cubans help put out fire at US-occupied Guantánamo base

Vol. 82/No. 11 - March 19, 2018

Cuban and U.S. firefighters worked closely together in February to put out a fire that raged on the perimeter of the U.S. military base in Guantánamo, Cuba. “The illegally occupied territory of Guantánamo constitutes an open wound to Cuban sovereignty,…


Moscow looks to expand reach, weaken US  rulers’ dominance

Vol. 82/No. 11 - March 19, 2018

Russian President Vladimir Putin seeks to sustain the gains the country’s capitalist rulers have made in extending their influence through Moscow’s military intervention in the Mideast and Ukraine without provoking unrest at home. The U.S. rulers want to push back…


Socialist Workers Party: No nuclear weapons!

Vol. 82/No. 11 - March 19, 2018

Russian President Vladimir Putin announced March 1 that Russia is developing new nuclear weapons that he says are capable of evading U.S. missile defenses. This comes shortly after the Pentagon said it would produce nuclear-tipped sea-launched cruise missiles. The U.S.…


J.C. Penney’s full-time workers are now part time

Vol. 82/No. 11 - March 19, 2018

Hammered by stiffening competition from retail giants Walmart and Amazon, department store chain J.C. Penney is making moves to stay afloat by targeting its workers’ hours, wages and benefits. The company plans to eliminate most full-time jobs, converting them to…


Cuban Revolution involves all, with sight or not

Cinema clubs with audio descriptions expand access to culture for visually impaired
Vol. 82/No. 11 - March 19, 2018

HAVANA — In February I learned about “Tocando la luz” — Touching the light — a cinema club for the visually impaired in Cuba. So, while I was here for the Havana International Book Fair, I went to the Infanta…


Ukraine miners fight for back wages, raises, better conditions

Vol. 82/No. 11 - March 19, 2018
After walking out of work Feb. 14, coal miners in Donetsk region of Ukraine, joined by family members, protest at company headquarters during strike demanding payment of back wages.

Wage arrears owed to working people in Ukraine reached a staggering 2.37 billion hryvnia ($88 million) as of Jan. 1, a 33 percent increase over the past year. About 80 percent is owed to workers in the mining and heavy…


Workers celebrate victory in nine-month-long fight at Mears

Vol. 82/No. 11 - March 19, 2018

MANCHESTER, England — After a nine-months battle, and more than 80 days of strike protests, the 180 housing maintenance workers employed by the contractor Mears won a 20 percent pay raise. Their main demand was to end the wage differential…


25, 50 and 75 Years Ago

Vol. 82/No. 11 - March 19, 2018

March 19, 1993 The big-business media and the FBI have used the explosion that shook New York’s World Trade Center February 26 to whip up a campaign against “terrorism.” Six days after the blast FBI agents and other cops arrested…