Brandon Johnson Defeated Paul Vallas’s Austerity Agenda Last Night
In Chicago’s mayoral runoff last night, Paul Vallas’s vision of budget cuts and law and order lost to Brandon Johnson’s promises to tax the rich and invest in social services.
17 Articles by: Miles Kampf-Lassin
Miles Kampf-Lassin is the web editor of In These Times.
Brandon Johnson Is Heading to Chicago’s Mayoral Runoff as a Champion of the Working Class
The results of last night’s Chicago mayor election were stunning: former Chicago Teachers Union organizer Brandon Johnson advanced to an April runoff against neoliberal architect Paul Vallas — pitting working-class power against austerity.
The Great Chicago Sell-Off
When Chicago sold 36,000 parking spaces to a conglomerate for 75 years, they did more than just rip off their residents.
Give Everybody the Month of August Off
In the United States, paid time off is hard to come by. But many Europeans leave work for the whole month of August to revel in the joys of summer. Everyone deserves August off.
A Tale of Two Inauguration Memes
After Trump’s 2017 inauguration, the meme saturating our political discourse was neo-Nazi Richard Spencer getting punched in the head. Today, it’s Bernie Sanders in mittens, dutifully but joylessly sitting through Biden’s inauguration. It’s a marker of our new political context: white nationalists thankfully don’t occupy the White House anymore, but nobody should cheer the neoliberal status quo.
Abraham Lincoln Taxed the Rich. This Election Day, Illinois Can, Too.
A tiny handful of rich people make life worse for the vast majority of us, and most of the time it feels like we can’t do much about it. But Illinois voters could change that on Election Day: the state can follow the example of Abraham Lincoln and finally establish a progressive state income tax.
Let Us Drink in Public
Open container laws criminalize working-class people and make public life less fun. We need to legalize public drinking.
Lori Lightfoot’s Coronavirus Response in Chicago Has Been Anything But “Progressive”
Chicago’s Lori Lightfoot has worked hard to portray herself as a “progressive” mayor. But her coronavirus response has largely shielded the city’s corporate elite — while rejecting policies pushed by democratic socialists on the city council that would benefit working-class residents.
No Hugs for Rahm
Former Chicago mayor and Obama staffer Rahm Emanuel was a featured commentator during Thursday’s Democratic debate. It was, unsurprisingly, completely terrible.
A Popeyes Chicken Sandwich Under Socialism
Popeyes’ new chicken sandwich is great. The fast food industry’s labor practices are not. Under democratic socialism, the entire working class would benefit from the spoils of such culinary delights.
They’re Not Just Mad at AOC — They’re Scared of Her
Nancy Pelosi’s war of words with Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez isn’t about clashing personalities. It’s about Democratic elites trying to undercut AOC’s bold, left agenda.
Nobody Should Listen to Anything Rahm Emanuel Says
Rahm Emanuel is no longer Chicago’s mayor. Now he’s a pundit. His approach to governance has been an abject failure — nobody should listen to anything he has to say, about politics or anything else.
What Chicago Taught Bernie
Chicago is the city where Bernie Sanders first organized as a socialist, struggled for civil rights, and “began to understand the futility of liberalism.”
Trump Is Running Scared of Socialism
Donald Trump’s economic advisers released a bizarre report attacking socialism yesterday. Socialists can only take one lesson from it: we’re winning.
What Nixon’s Left Turn Means
That Cynthia Nixon is proclaiming herself a socialist shows the ascendance and popularity of left politics, in New York and across the country.
Don’t Trust Jeff Bezos — or Rahm Emanuel
The Amazon sweepstakes is about cities valuing tech profiteers more than their residents.
Chicago’s Fountainhead
Chicago Public Schools CEO Forrest Claypool has spent his career putting free-market ideology over the needs of the public.