New Ground 129
March - April, 2010
Contents
The New
New Deal Project: Progressive Politics in the Age of Obama by Bill Barclay
A Living
Wage is Haunting Oak Park
by Tom Broderick
Other News
compiled by Bob Roman
New Ground
129.1 -- 03.31.2010
0. DSA News
Bring America Home
Toward an Economic Bill of Rights
Youth Organizer
1. Politics
As Congress Leaves Jobless in Lurch,
Will Grassroots Push for Strong Jobs Bills?
Coalition to Save Community Banking by Peg Strobel
A Century+ of May Days: Labor
and Social Struggles International Conference
2. Ars Politica
Sweeping
Wicker Park's History Under the Rug
by Jeff Huebner
The Labor Trail
3. Democratic Socialism
The Greying of the Left
4. Upcoming Events of Interest
New Ground
129.2 -- 04.15.2010
0. DSA News
Bring America Home
Justifying a Living Wage
1. Politics
Stealing More Than Wages
Warehouse Workers for Justice
Public Hearings on Proposed Sale of West Suburban and Westlake
Chicago Radicalendar
3. Democratic Socialism
Tony Judt and the Limitations of
Social Democracy
Where's the Working Class Web?
The Future of Socialism
4. Upcoming Events of Interest
New Ground
129.3 -- 04.30.2010
0. DSA News
Young Democratic
Socialists in the News by Bob
Roman
With Enemies Like These
DSA in the News: May Day underscores the importance of a living
wage
It's Not Too Late!
Democratic Left
1. Politics
Jobs
Wal-Mart
May Day Chicago 2010
The Sale of Westlake and West Suiburban Hospitals
2. Ars Politica
The Battle of the Halsted Viaduct
3. Democratic Socialism
An obituary for the Third Way
Taming the Tiger -- The Challenge for European Social Democracy
4. Upcoming Events of Interest
The
New New Deal Project:
Progressive Politics in the Age of Obama
by Bill Barclay
In the aftermath of the 2008 election,
members of several organizations, including some from DSA, joined
together to create the New
New Deal Project (NND). As originally conceived, NND had
two primary purposes. The first was build upon the mobilization
and enthusiasm that was created by the election of Obama. The
second was to serve as a catalyst, an organizing agent to bring
together activists in the Chicago area who were working, often
very hard, on separate issues and seldom talked with, much less
worked with, each other. The NND members were initially Oak Park-based,
but the planning committee has since expanded to include people
from the western suburbs and various portions of Chicago including
both the West and South Sides.
The activities undertaken by the NND
have been primarily educational and to some extent agitational
in nature. The initial event, held in January 2009 after the
inauguration, was a forum that sought to define the major issues
facing, and the progressive policy possibilities available to,
the new Obama administration. These were: labor organizing with
an endorsement of the Employee Free Choice Act, health care with
an argument for a single payer system, military/defense spending
with a proposal for 25% reduction in the military budget, and
job creation based upon a proposal developed by the Chicago
Political Economy Group .
During the rest of 2009, the NND organized
three events, including one that was designed to bring organizers
together in an effort to counter the "silo organizing"
mentality and practice that often limits the reach of progressives.
While these events remained largely educational in nature, they
also expanded the reach of the NND, drawing sponsoring organizations
and participation from across the Chicago metropolitan area.
To initiate the new year, the NND planning
group designed a forum / organizing event focusing on an assessment
of the first year of the Obama presidency. However, the approach
differed from that of other events that appear, on the surface,
to have a similar focus. Rather than discussing to what extent
the Obama administration did or did not realize the goals and
hopes of progressives, speakers were asked to assess our political
practice: what worked and what did not, and, most importantly,
what lessons can we draw from one year of political work in the
age of Obama. In addition, and as an anchor to the event, Amy
Dean, co-author of a New New Deal, was asked to tie together
the ideas and thoughts of the speakers on labor, health care,
jobs and immigrant struggles, using the regional power framework
develop in her book. In addition to NND sponsorship, Roosevelt
University's Economics Department and Center
for New Deal Studies were co-organizers of the February 20th
event. Over 200 people from across the Chicago metro area attended
the forum, and a lively and informative discussion followed the
formal presentations.
Perhaps most importantly, there was
significant coalescence around the issue of a jobs program that
would be funded by a tax on the trading of financial assets.
DSA members associated with the Chicago Political Economy Group
developed many of the arguments for the viability of the program
and the funding. A week after the forum, over 50 activists met
at Jobs with Justice
to outline a national Campaign
for Living Wage Jobs for All . The first action in the campaign,
supported by DSA and more than 20 other organizations, was a
Senate Soup Kitchen at Federal Plaza, calling attention to the
failure of the US Senate to pass either a significant extension
of unemployment benefits or, more importantly, to even consider
a jobs program of sufficient size to address the loss of more
than 8 million jobs since the onset of the "Great Recession."
NND, Jobs with Justice, major labor unions and a broad range
of community groups are resolved to make the Living Wage Jobs
for All a national campaign that overrides the petty politics
of Senatorial holds and filibusters and pushes the Obama administration
and the U.S. Congress to respond to the crisis in jobs. In this
we are seeking to again create the politics of mass mobilization
that drove the first New Deal.
Editor's Note: Bill Barclay represents
GOP DSA on the Chicago DSA Executive Committee, is one of the
organizers of the New New Deal Project, and is a member of the
Chicago Political Economy Group.
A Living
Wage Is Haunting Oak Park
by Tom Broderick
Thirteen months after being assigned
to study the impact that a living wage ordinance would have on
the Village of Oak Park, the Community Relations Commission (CRC)
voted to send their final report to the Village Board. The
report recommends that the Village Board enact a living wage
ordinance.
One more hurdle behind, the biggest
ahead. The Village Board is the only body that can enact a living
wage ordinance and they have their hands full. Oak Park River
Forest High School has just filed suit against the Village for
failure to disburse TIF dollars, and a proposed high rise hotel
at the edge of downtown Oak Park has community members riled.
When the Village Board of Oak Park tasked
the CRC to study our proposed ordinance, the Commission Chair
told me that this was the "first meat and potatoes"
issue that the commission had had to deal with in some time.
To their credit, the members of the CRC took their assignment
seriously. Two members stayed on the Commission past their terms
to continue the work. Both voted "yes."
The night of the vote to submit their
report was passionate. Bard Bartels spoke of the struggle for
gay rights and domestic partnerships and how organized labor
had made these issues part of their negotiations. He also talked
of how opening the real estate market to the gay community made
for a stronger economy. Oak Park was a community that early on
welcomed gays and lesbians. For Bartels, the living wage ordinance
was good public policy. For me, his was a moving testament.
Bartels is also a member of the Oak
Park River Forest Chamber of Commerce and he personally made
an effort to explain the minimal impact that this would have
on business community.
Bamshad Mobasher did a great deal of
research on the history of living wage ordinances. He pointed
out that the doom and gloom scenario painted by some fellow commissioners
and some members of the business community had no basis in historic
fact. Over the course of the thirteen month study, Mobasher constantly
refuted the work done by Commission Chair to sink the proposed
living wage ordinance.
Cecil Hunt approved Bartel's approach
to the issue as one of public policy, but he came down on the
other side. He felt that the living wage ordinance was a solution
in search of a problem and that there was no way to know how
the living wage ordinance would impact Oak Park. He cited the
fears of the business community (both current and potential businesses)
and said they had to be accommodated. Hunt also said he was not
impressed by the 60% "Yes" vote that the living wage
ordinance received in November, 2008.
Bob Kane said he had voted "no"
on that referendum item, but after studying the issue, felt there
would be little negative impact on the business community. He
thought it was good public policy that contractors and subcontractors
hired by the Village pay their employees a wage they could live
on. Whether or not these people lived in Oak Park was irrelevant
as far as he was concerned, which is something that the Chair
repeatedly harped on. Kane said that the beneficiaries of the
proposed living wage ordinance would still spend money in Oak
Park, just as he spends money where he works in Chicago.
John Mikos and Tab Washington both voted
yes because passage would be good for individuals and the economy,
with little negative impact to businesses or the people of Oak
Park. Asa Cain is a high school senior and he provided an interesting
reason for voting in favor of the CRC report. If the CRC voted
against issuing the report, all the hard work that they had done
for the last thirteen months would be for naught. Let's hear
it for logic. The final member voting his support was a brand
new member of the Commission, Bradley Foreman.
Commission Chair, John Murtagh spoke
last. Prior to the CRC voting on their Report, Chairman Murtagh
issued his own report to the Village Board and others, including
members of the business community. Murtagh felt the CRC report
was not thorough. It did not do enough to analyze risk. It would
not positively affect people living in Oak Park, but would transfer
their dollars to those living outside our community. He fantasized
that a family with two working adults, one could be making $100K
per year and the other one could be making minimum wage. If the
person making the minimum wage suddenly got an income increase
because they were covered by our ordinance, how could that possibly
be fair, he asked.
But Murtagh also credited the members
of the CRC with being the most knowledgeable Oak Parkers when
it came to the issue of the living wage ordinance issue. He thanked
them for their hard work and then announced his resignation as
Chair of the CRC and as a member of the CRC. This was his second
attempt at resignation. He gave his first resignation to Village
President David Pope in August. At that time, he just wanted
to resign as Chair, but continue his work on the Commission.
President Pope refused to accept the resignation, so Murtagh
remained Chair until the night of February 18.
That night he resigned from the Commission
completely, stating that he would never work in any parliamentary
situation ever again in his life. It was a night of transition
for the CRC. Bamshad Mobasher and Bob Kane stayed on the Commission
after their terms expired to continue working on the living wage
ordinance. John Mikos' term ended on the night of the vote. And,
of course Bradley Foreman began his term that night.
The referendum that got a 60% "YES"
vote and the Commission's report endorsing a comprehensive living
wage ordinance to the Board are only advisory. The Village Board
can do what it wants with the issue and the advice of the voters
and the CRC. The business community is working to defeat it.
The Wednesday Journal (a local newspaper) ran an editorial
telling the Board to "deep-six" the ordinance.
We will now have to begin the same education
process that we used with the Community Relations Commission.
I can only hope that the Village Board will accept that the members
of the CRC worked hard to get to this point. They should take
note of Murtagh's comment about the knowledge gained by the hard
work of the commissioners.
Other
News
compiled by Bob Roman
Abolition Moves Forward
The Illinois
Coalition to Abolish the Death Penalty has ambitiously targeted
2010 as the year that the Illinois Legislature will abolish capital
punishment. While this will require much work, our movement is
closer to eliminating this cruelty than it has ever been.
In 2009, Representative Karen Yarbrough
(D-7) sponsored House Bill 262 to abolish the death penalty in
Illinois. This year, Senator William Delgado (D-2) did the same
in the Illinois Senate (SB 3569). The House did not vote on Yarbrough's
bill last session, so it remains actionable. This is the first
time that abolition bills have been in the works in both houses
since capital punishment was reintroduced in Illinois. We are
within reach, but our lawmakers must hear from us.
Execution is brutality, not justice.
We kill because we can, not because we need to. The oft-repeated
line that only the "worst of the worst" are condemned
to death is false. Since we brought back the death penalty in
Illinois, 20 condemned human beings have been exonerated, while
12 have been put to death. This is a repudiation of our judicial
system. Contact your State Senator and tell them to co-sponsor
the abolition bill SB 3569, and your State Representative and
tell them to co-sponsor the abolition bill HB 262. Let's make
Illinois the next abolition state.
To get your legislators' phone number
or address, go to www.votesmart.org
. Or leave a message for Tom Broderick at the Chicago DSA office:
773 384 0327. Your message should include your name and phone
number, as well as your complete residential address.
Peace and Economic Justice
On Saturday, April 17th, in Batavia,
IL representatives from anti-war groups across Northern Illinois
will sit down with members, leaders, and organizers of unions
to begin a dialogue about how we can work together. Both groups
want to see Washington DC come up with a strong program to create
new, permanent, living wage jobs for the millions of Americans
who are unemployed. Both groups see the job-creation proposals
being proposed by the administration and Congress as too small
and too narrowly conceived. We want to see a public works program
that creates manufacturing jobs, green jobs, jobs to repair our
infrastructure.
The assignment we will give ourselves
is to build up a credible, grass-roots demand from ordinary Americans
to strengthen the resolve of the Democrats and counterbalance
the arguments of Republicans who are loath to spend taxpayers'
money actually helping the taxpayers.
The meeting will be at The Batavia Public
Library, 10 S Batavia Avenue, Batavia, IL 60510 at 1:00 PM. The
convening group is the Confederation of Northern Illinois Peace
Groups.
Dr. Bill Barclay, an economist and a
member of Oak Park Coalition
of Truth and Justice will speak about how a Financial Transaction
Tax could provide the funds to pay for such a jobs program. There
will be other speakers and lots of time for discussion.
The event is free and open to the public.
Light refreshments will be served. For information call Mary
Shesgreen of Fox Valley Citizens
for Peace & Justice : 847-742-6602
A Century of May Days
During May Day Weekend 2010, April 30
through May 2 at Chicago's DePaul University, there will be an
international gathering with people from around the world: Berlin,
Tokyo, Copenhagen, Iran, Glasgow, Paris, Venezuela, London, Toronto,
Vienna, Stuttgart, Brazil, Pakistan, Sweden and beyond. From
young activists to a Japanese survivor of the A-bomb and a German
anti-fascist who has long outlived Hitler. We will discuss labor
and social struggles, both local and global. Conference participants
will be able to take part in the May Day rally organized by the
Chicago Federation of Labor & Illinois Labor History
Society and a labor history bus tour on Saturday, May 1st.
For more information and to register, go to www.mayday2010.info
.
Happy Birthday Nelson Algren
The Nelson Algren Committee hosts the
21st annual Nelson Algren Birthday Party on Saturday, March 27,
8 p.m. at St Paul's/Acme Art Center, 2215 W. North Avenue in
Chicago's Wicker Park neighborhood, Algren's home turf. The Party
pays tribute to the National Book Award-winning author of The
Man with a Golden Arm, Chicago: City on the Make and
other works that combine gritty noir realism with a profound
compassion for the underdog. Admission is $10 at the door.
The event also honors community artists
and activists who work in the Algren spirit. This year's recipients
of the Nelson Algren Committee Award include film preservationist
and presenter extraordinaire James Bond, legendary stride pianist
and teacher Erwin Helfer and eco-activist Erika Allen. Past Algren
Award winners (including political maven Don Rose and veteran
activist David Williams) will attend the event and say a few
words.
For updates and more information, visit
our Web site at www.nelsonalgren.org
.
|
New
Ground #129.1
03.31.2010
Contents
0. DSA News
Bring America Home
Toward an Economic Bill of Rights
Youth Organizer
1. Politics
As Congress Leaves Jobless in Lurch,
Will Grassroots Push for Strong Jobs Bills?
Coalition to Save Community Banking by Peg Strobel
A Century+ of May Days: Labor
and Social Struggles International Conference
2. Ars Politica
Sweeping
Wicker Park's History Under the Rug
by Jeff Huebner
The Labor Trail
3. Democratic Socialism
The Greying of the Left
4. Upcoming Events of Interest
DSA News
Bring America Home
Author, journalist, columnist
William Greider speaks at the 52nd Annual Debs - Thomas
- Harrington Dinner honoring Carl Rosen and the People's
Law Office on Friday, May 7th. For information or to order
tickets, CLICK
HERE.
Toward an Economic Bill of Rights
In his 1944 State of the
Union address, President Franklin Delano Roosevelt called for
a Second Bill of rights "under which a new basis of security
and prosperity can be established for all regardless of
station, race, or creed." Sixty-six years later, his vision
for a nation, in which no member of society went "ill-fed,
ill-clothed, ill-housed and insecure," is yet to be realized. READ
MORE
Youth Organizer
DSA is looking to hire a new
youth organizer. Deadline for applying: April 19. More information
is HERE.
Politics
As Congress Leaves Jobless in
Lurch, Will Grassroots Push for Strong Jobs Bills?
At In
These Times, Art Levine writes: "Even as Senators
skipped town before a two-week break without extending unemployment
insurance and COBRA health subsidies, hopes are rising among
congressional liberals and unions that stronger job creation
measures could win the backing of emboldened Democratic leaders
and President Obama."
It's not a given, and Levine asks the
crucial question, "will progressives be willing to mount
the strong campaign needed to overcome conservative and centrist
resistance to major jobs spending? That's the political challenge...."
READ
MORE.
People living in Chicago's western suburbs
will have an opportunity to begin that mobilization. The Confederation
of Northern Illinois Peace Groups has called a meeting for community
and labor representatives to strategize about a campaign for
a strong program for permanent, living wage jobs. The meeting
will be on Saturday, April 17, at the Batavia Public Library,
10 S. Batavia Ave, in Batavia.
The meeting will feature presentations
by:
- Dave Rathke,
an organizer for the Illinois Education Association: the value,
the feasibility, and the utility of forging an alliance between
labor and peace & justice groups
- Reverend Geri Solomon, Aurora Peace & Justice Group: the impact
of unemployment on our communities, the rise of poverty, and
the need for a huge jobs program
- Susan Hurley,
Chicago Jobs With Justice: JWJ's jobs campaign
- Dr. Bill Barclay, economist, DSA and Chicago Political Economy
Group: paying for a jobs program with a Financial Transaction
Tax
Coalition
to Save Community Banking
by Peg Strobel
The Coalition to Save Community Banking (CSCB) is a group of
several dozen metro Chicago organizations and individuals that
came together after the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation
(FDIC) seized the assets of a local community bank, Park National
Bank (PNB) with two branches in Oak Park, Illinois, on October
30, 2009. PNB and eight sister banks (including several in California)
were all owned by First Bank of Oak Park, Inc. (FBOP), which
the FDIC then sold to US Bancorp, also known as US Bank. This
seizure happened in the afternoon; that same morning, the Treasury
Department awarded FBOP/PNB Initiatives (an affiliate of PNB)
$50 million in federal "New Market Tax Credit" allocations
to continue PNB's long-standing investment in under-resourced
and minority communities. (For details, see David Moberg in In These Times: "Too
Important to Fail".)
This compelling local story raises serious
nation-wide issues concerning the takeover of community banks
that invest in struggling communities by large banks that do
not have a similar track record and probably don't share the
mission.
Mike Kelly, a white man and now former
owner of PNB/FBOP, has been a beloved figure in Chicago-area
communities of color for decades because of his long-standing
commitments and investments in these communities. He regularly
reinvested about 30% of the profits from his privately held bank
into struggling neighborhoods, funding schools and nonprofits
and helping individuals and institutions buy and keep homes and
businesses.
The coalition has gained the support
of several Congressional Representatives, various local and state
office holders, and grassroots activists.
On Wednesday, April 14, late morning,
CSCB will hold a demonstration in downtown Chicago in front of
FDIC offices and US Bank. For details, contact Peg Strobel, 708-386-1371,
peg.strobel@sbcglobal.net.
What are our goals?
- Include reforms in pending legislation
to preserve and support community-based banks with a demonstrated
community reinvestment commitment, re-capitalize them, and help
them to aid the recovery of Main Street from the Great Recession.
Provisions like those proposed in Senate Bill S 1822 the
"BANK ON OUR COMMUNITIES" ACT (sponsored by Sen. Jeff
Merkley, D-OR, and Sen. Barbara Boxer, D-CA) should be part of
real reform of the banking industry.
- Convince the Inspectors General of
FDIC and OCC to investigate whether the actions against Park
National Bank/FBOP violated the agencies' own rules, and if so,
reverse the decision to seize and sell our community bank.
- Ensure that FBOP's Founder Mike Kelly
may continue to hold a license to operate a bank. (His bank failed
because of the financial crisis, not mismanagement. PNB/FBOP
needed to recapitalize due to losses from investing in Freddie
Mac and Fannie Mae at a time when they were good investments.)
- Secure a strong Community Benefits
Agreement with the new owner, US Bancorp.
- Explore what actions might be taken
by Illinois state officials to protect community banks.
- Continue to enlarge and diversify the
Coalition.
What have we accomplished?
- Rep. Luis Gutierrez (chair of the House
Subcommittee on Financial Institutions and Consumer Credit) held
a Congressional hearing January 21 on the issue of FPOB/PNB and
community banks. We sent more than 60 people to Washington.
- We gained the support of Rep. Danny
Davis; Rep. Bobby Rush; State Sen. Don Harmon; David Pope, President
of the Village Board, Oak Park; and State Rep. LaShawn K. Ford.
- Sponsored by Sen. Don Harmon, Senate
Joint Resolution 81 has passed the Illinois Senate and moves
to the Illinois House, where it is cosponsored by Karen A. Yarborough,
Angelo Saviano, Deborah L. Graham, LaShawn K. Ford, and Marlow
H. Colvin. The resolution "urges the United States House
of Representatives Financial Services Committee and the United
States Senate Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs
to continue hearings to investigate the FDIC's seizure of Park
National Bank."
- December 16, 2009, the Chicago City
Council joined with our coalition in demanding a Congressional
hearing to investigate the seizure and sale of First Bank of
Oak Park/Park National Bank and the repercussions for other community
banks reinvesting in our communities. As reported by the Chicago
Sun-Times, Chicago aldermen condemned as "absurd, bordering
on criminal" the federal government's decision to seize
Park National Bank."
- Within a month of the seizure, community
groups that comprise the Coalition delivered petitions with over
1,000 signatures to the D.C. office of Rep. Luis Gutierrez.
For more information, contact Peg Strobel,
peg.strobel@sbcglobal.net.
A Century+ of May Days: Labor
and Social Struggles International Conference
In Chicago during May Day weekend
2010, the Institute of Working Class History is holding a conference
to discuss, debate and analyze labor and social struggles (both
past and present). The conference will cover an array of important
historical and political topics. In addition to purely academic
pursuits, conference participants will be able to participate
in the May Day rally organized by the Chicago Federation of Labor
and the Illinois Labor History Society. If there is sufficient
interest, a Chicago labor history bus tour also will be organized.
CLICK HERE for more information.
Ars Politica
Sweeping
Wicker Park's History Under the Rug
by Jeff Huebner
For the past couple of decades, I've
questioned why Chicago's Wicker Park -- the neighborhood as well
as the park that gives it its name -- has lacked monuments or
informational markers dedicated to its storied labor heritage
going back to the 1880s Haymarket era.
For instance: Why is there no plaque
in front of the home of martyr August Spies and his family at
2132 W. Potomac? Where are markers telling of the park's fascinating
history -- among other things, that it was dug up by the authorities
looking for anarchist bombs after the Haymarket Riot in May 1886?
I have always found it strange and disconcerting
that this history, while accessible in books, is not visible
in the streets, parks, greens and plazas where it occurred. It
is even stranger when you consider Wicker Park's long history
as a center of radical, working-class/ethnic, anarchist and artistic
culture. (Thanks to gentrification, it is now a Bohemian-themed
entertainment district.) So much is ignored, from the 1887 Haymarket
funeral procession down Milwaukee Avenue, to the struggles of
longtime residents and artists against developers and landowners
in the 1990s, to the anarchist-led MTV "Real World"
demonstrations in front of the former Urbus Orbis Coffeehouse
building in 2001.
Yes, a temporary installation devoted
to Lucy Parsons' life, times and influence stood in a corner
of the park from 1995 to 2004, but there is little in the way
of permanent, meaningful public art. So what did we get several
years ago to represent the neighborhood and its park? A statue
of 19th-century politician and developer Charles Wicker, bearing
a broom, sweeping away dirt. The three-year-old sculpture was
knocked off its base by a group of vandals in August 2009; it
is currently being repaired and is scheduled to be reinstalled
by summer. It is not (yet) known if the deed was pure hooliganism
-- or politically motivated. Or both.
Read veteran arts and culture chronicler
Jeff Huebner's full, two-part story about the Wicker Park public
art controversy at the following online sources:
Part One, from the Beachwood Reporter: "The
Broom of Wicker Park"
Part Two, from Chicago Art Magazine: "Swept
Away: Musings on Wicker's Fallen Statue"
The Labor Trail
For those of you unable to visit
Wicker Park (where the Chicago DSA office resides as one of the
lesser tourist attractions), check out the Labor
Trail, on on-line resource for Chicago's history of working
class life and struggle.
Democratic Socialism
The Greying of the Left
Back in the sixties, man,
the left seemed to be surfing a wave of youthful rebellion. Fast
forward some forty years, (despite some encouraging signs in
DSA and elsewhere) there seems to be a few missing generations.
At Social Europe Journal,
Gabor Gyori writes:
One might argue that there is every
reason for the supporters of European social democratic parties
to see their hair turn grey in agony. With a few exceptions,
European social democracy has heaped major defeat upon defeat.
And as for the victories, well: George Papandreou could be forgiven
for thinking that one should indeed look a gift horse in the
mouth, especially if it's a Trojan one such as the helm of the
Greek government. The painful losses, and the occasional painful
victory, are enough to speed up the process of ageing. Yet, the
problem appears to be that social democracy's supporters were
increasingly grey to begin with. READ
MORE.
As part of Social Europe Journal's
"Good Society Debate," Stephen
Barber argues that social democracy and democratic socialism
have less in common than they imagine.
And if you thought the Democratic caucuses
in the U.S. House of Representatives and the U.S. Senate have
a hard time finding common ground, consider Carl
Rowland's portrait of the Party of European Socialists. Nonetheless,
Rowland maintains a common program for the Party is possible.
Upcoming Events of Interest
Events listed here are not necessarily
endorsed by Chicago DSA but should be of interest to DSA members,
friends and other lefties. For other events, go to http://www.chicagodsa.org/page9.html.
Thursday, April 1, 2 PM
Working for Justice
Interfaith Worker Justice, 1020 W. Bryn Mawr 4th Floor Conference
Room, Chicago
Ruth Milkman discusses her new book, Working for Justice:
The L.A. Model of Organizing and Advocacy. More information
is HERE.
Saturday, April 3, 4 PM
"The Chicago Conspiracy"
Decima Musa, 1901 S. Loomis, Chicago
A screening of a new documentary based in Chile that explores
the legacy of the Pinochet dictatorship and the current political
conflict, followed by a discussion with the director. For more
information, call Nick at 773.401.5091. Sponsored by the Chicago
branch of Solidarity.
Thursday & Friday, April 8 &
9, 10 AM to 9 PM
Art, Access & Action
Columbia College Chicago Film Building, 1104 S. Wabash, Chicago
A Columbia College Chicago Arts & Media Summit featuring
Jeff Biggers, Kari Lydersen, Salim Muwakkil, Paul Street, and
more. More information is HERE.
Thursday, April 8, 1 PM to 4 PM
The State of Worker Protection
in Chicago
UIC Student Center East, Cardinal Room, 750 S. Halsted St, Chicago
A conference about workplace violations and new initiatives to
address them. RSVP appreciated: urban.economy@gmail.com.
Sponsored by the Institute for Policy and Civic Engagement. For
more information, go to the Center
for Urban Economic Development.
Saturday, April 10, 12:30 PM
Chicago DSA Executive Committee
CDSA Office, 1608 N. Milwaukee Room 403, Chicago
Business, but all DSA members are welcome.
Tuesday, April 13, 7 PM
"Rethinking Afghanistan"
DePaul University Art Museum, 2350 N. Kenmore, Chicago
A showing of the Robert Greenwald documentary, followed by a
discussion led by Just Foreign Policy's Robert Naiman.
Sponsored by Lincoln Park Neighbors United for Peace, North Suburban
Peace Initiative, and DePaul University Center for Black Diaspora.
Wednesday, April 14, morning
Demonstration in Support
of Community Banks
Downtown Chicago
Save the date! For details, contact Peg Strobel, 708-386-1371,
peg.strobel@sbcglobal.net.
Saturday, April 17, 1 PM to 3 PM
A Program for Permanent,
Living Wage Jobs
Batavia Public Library, 10 S. Batavia Ave, Batavia
The Confederation of Northern Illinois Peace Groups is bringing
together the community and labor to strategize about a campaign
for a strong program for permanent, living wage jobs.
Sunday, April 18, 1:15 PM to 5:30 PM
Does U.S. Policy on Israel
and Palestine Uphold Our Values?
University of Chicago Ida Noyes Hall, 1212 E. 59th St, Chicago
Modeled after a Congressional hearing, this event will examine
critical questions about the effects of U.S. policies in the
region. An initiative of the American Friends Service Committee.
RSVP required. More information and live webcast is HERE.
Wednesday, April 21
Rally and Lobby Day to Fix
Illinois' Fiscal Mess
Illinois Capitol, Springfield
Save the Date! The Responsible
Budget Coalition and Illinois'
public employees team up to demand responsible government
and passage of HB174.
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New
Ground #129.2
04.15.2010
Contents
0. DSA News
Bring America Home
Justifying a Living Wage
1. Politics
Stealing More Than Wages
Warehouse Workers for Justice
Public Hearings on Proposed Sale of West Suburban and Westlake
Chicago Radicalendar
3. Democratic Socialism
Tony Judt and the Limitations of
Social Democracy
Where's the Working Class Web?
The Future of Socialism
4. Upcoming Events of Interest
DSA News
Bring America Home
Author, journalist, columnist
William Greider speaks at the 52nd Annual Debs - Thomas
- Harrington Dinner honoring Carl Rosen and the People's
Law Office on Friday, May 7th. For information or to order
tickets, CLICK
HERE.
Justifying a Living Wage
The Oak Park Living Wage controversy
continued in the pages of the Oak Leaves wherein GOPDSA's
Tom Broderick said, "Poverty is destructive. We are suffering
an enervating disparity of wealth, unseen since the early 20th
century. A comprehensive living wage ordinance for Oak Park is
a just, local response." READ
MORE.
Politics
Stealing More Than Wages
From the Center
on Urban Economic Development:
"At the start of the 21st century,
workplace laws are failing to protect our country's workers.
Workers are enduring minimum wage and overtime violations, hazardous
working conditions, discrimination, and retaliation for speaking
up or trying to organize. Unregulated
Work in Chicago is the first study of its kind, exposing
systematic and routine violations of employment and labor laws
in core sectors of the economy. In partnership with Cornell University,
National Employment Law Project, and UCLA, we conducted a landmark
survey of workers in low-wage industries in Chicago, Los Angeles,
and New York City. Here, we present findings for Chicago and
suburban Cook County, in order to document the extent to which
employers in the Chicago area are complying with state and federal
laws." MORE
(PDF).
Warehouse Workers for Justice
Apropos, the suburban Herald-News
has just published a three part series on employment in the warehouse
industry in Will County, wherein some two-thirds of the trucking
and warehouse businesses use temp agencies to staff their facilities.
The series by Cindy Wojdyla Cain focuses on the conditions of
employment and the efforts of workers, aided by Warehouse
Workers for Justice, to remedy the situation.
Part 1: Warehouse
workers shed light on injustices
Part 2: Organizing
justice for warehouse workers
Part 3: Warehouses
under fire
Public Hearings on Proposed
Sale of West Suburban and Westlake
The Illinois Health Facilities
and Services Review Board will be holding public hearings on
the proposed sale of West Surbuban Medical Center and Westlake
Hospital to Vanguard Health Systems. As a sale of facilities
owned and managed by a non-profit to a for-profit corporation,
the sale has aroused considerable concern from employees and
the communtiy.
Both hearings will be on Monday, April
26. The hearing on Westlake Hospital will be at 9 AM, Melrose
Park Village Hall, 1000 N. 25th St, Melrose Park. The hearing
on West Suburban Medical Center will be at 1 PM, Oak Park Village
Hall Council Chambers, 123 Madison, Oak Park. For more information,
CLICK HERE.
Chicago Radicalendar
AREA Chicago announced the release
of a new city-wide initiative that is designed to network disconnected
and fragmented communities across Chicago. This new calendar
website will be useful and essential for keeping up with the
complex array of events, actions and happenings across this vast
city. Check it out HERE.
Democratic Socialism
Tony Judt and the Limitations
of Social Democracy
At the Young Democratic Socialists'
blog, The Activist, Chris Maisano reviews Tony Judt's Ill Fares
the Land.
Where's the Working Class Web?
Finding
working-class voices online isn't easy.
The Future of Socialism
Robert Paul Wolff begins his
essay:
"An unpromising title, this, in
the seventh year of the third millennium of the Common Era; rather
like "Recent Developments in Ptolemaic Astronomy" or
"Betamax a Technology Whose Time Has Come." My
grandfather's dream, the faith of my younger days, has turned
to ashes. And yet, I remain persuaded that Karl Marx has something
important to teach us about the world in which we live today."
The weather doesn't get any lighter,
but Wolff makes some interesting (and potentially useful) points
along the way. Read MORE
(PDF).
Upcoming Events of Interest
Events listed here are not necessarily
endorsed by Chicago DSA but should be of interest to DSA members,
friends and other lefties. For other events, go to http://www.chicagodsa.org/page9.html.
Saturday, April 17, 1 PM to 3 PM
A Program for Permanent,
Living Wage Jobs
Batavia Public Library, 10 S. Batavia Ave, Batavia
The Confederation of Northern Illinois Peace Groups is bringing
together the community and labor to strategize about a campaign
for a strong program for permanent, living wage jobs.
Sunday, April 18, 1:15 PM to 5:30 PM
Does U.S. Policy on Israel
and Palestine Uphold Our Values?
University of Chicago Ida Noyes Hall, 1212 E. 59th St, Chicago
Modeled after a Congressional hearing, this event will examine
critical questions about the effects of U.S. policies in the
region. An initiative of the American Friends Service Committee.
RSVP required. More information and live webcast is HERE.
Monday, April 19, 7 PM to 9 PM
Chicago's Drinking Water:
Preventing Another Tax-Payer Rip-Off
Chopin Theatre, 1543 W. Division, Chicago
The city is thinking about selling more taxpayer assets, like
Chicago's water system. Sponsored by Illinois PIRG and Food &
Water Watch. For information call 312.427.2304x212
Wednesday, April 21, 11:30 AM
Rally and Lobby Day to Fix
Illinois' Fiscal Mess
Illinois Capitol, Springfield
The Responsible Budget
Coalition and Illinois'
public employees rally to demand responsible government and
passage of HB174. Lobbying follows rally.
Saturday, April 24; Friday & Saturday,
April 30 and May 1
Haiti on Screen
Northwestern University, Evanston
Films projecting a number of provocative images produced by,
for, or about Haitians in the two decades prior to the earthquake.
Sponsored by Northwestern's Department of French and Italian.
For schedule and venue, CLICK
HERE.
Friday through Sunday, April 30 - May
2
A Century+ of May Days: Labor
and Social Struggles
DePaul University, Chicago
An international conference on labor and social struggles, local
and global. $75 regular, $25 student / low income, Free for DePaul
students and staff. To preregister or for more information, CLICK HERE.
Friday, April 30, 9 PM
East Meets West
Velvet Lounge, 67 E. Cermak, Chicago
Jazz concert featuring Tatsu Aoki and his Miyumo Project in honor
of May Day. $15 cover. Sponsored by the Illinois Labor History
Society. Call 312.663.4107 for information.
Saturday, May 1, 10 AM
Haymarket Rally
Randolph & DesPlaines, Chicago
Japanese labor delegation will present a plaque for the free
speech memorial monument. Sponsored by the Chicago Federation
of Labor and the Illinois Labor History Society. Call 312.663.4107
for information.
Saturday, May 1, 1 PM to 4 PM
May Day Rally and March
Union Park, 1501 W. Randolph, Chicago
March begins at 3 PM. For more information, see Chicago
JwJ.
Friday, May 7, 6 PM to 9 PM
Bring America Home
Crowne Plaza Chicago Metro, Madison & Halsted, Chicago
52nd Annual Dinner featuring author William Greider, honoring
Carl Rosen (UE) and the People's Law Office. Tickets $60. For
more information or to order tickets CLICK
HERE.
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New
Ground #129.3
04.30.2010
Contents
0. DSA News
Young Democratic
Socialists in the News by Bob
Roman
With Enemies Like These
DSA in the News: May Day underscores the importance of a living
wage
It's Not Too Late!
Democratic Left
1. Politics
Jobs
Wal-Mart
May Day Chicago 2010
The Sale of Westlake and West Suiburban Hospitals
2. Ars Politica
The Battle of the Halsted Viaduct
3. Democratic Socialism
An obituary for the Third Way
Taming the Tiger -- The Challenge for European Social Democracy
4. Upcoming Events of Interest
DSA News
Young
Democratic Socialists in the News
by Bob Roman
The Winter 2010 Conference of the Young
Democratic Socialists at New York's historic Norman Thomas
High School had been over for months, not provoking much comment
on the right beyond some lame ranting about just what scum gets
let into our public schools today (protect your children!), when
the folks over at the conservative Christian web site Verum
Serum, ever on the look out for ACORN -- Socialism (and by
extension, Obama) connections discovered that YDS had posted
videos of the head of ACORN, Bertha Lewis, speaking at the conference.
They edited the 20 minute presentation down to a few minutes
of rant and, in a modest sort of way, it went viral.
To call the blog-buzz that followed
"deafening" would be a gross exaggeration, but nonetheless
it was picked up on dozens of sites, then made a brief appearance
in the mainstream media.
And as is typical, the conference was
mostly ignored by the left-wing media, including this additional
attack on ACORN. Mostly, heh: I may have missed it, but I have
yet to see the conference or Lewis mentioned at all.
This has been mostly a tempest in a
toilet bowl, but there was one interesting development. This
time the conservative tempest was entirely self-referential.
In previous attacks on DSA by conservatives, explanatory links
to DSA/YDS web sites were relatively frequent. This time the
explanatory links were almost entirely to other conservative
sites, such as Trevor Loudon's potentially sinister "KeyWiki" (check it out
to see if you're listed) or David Horowitz' "Discover
the Network."
In the interest of "fairness and
balance," you can check out the Young Democratic Socialists'
YouTube "channel" HERE.
It has videos of the presentations by many of the main speakers
at the conference. Bertha Lewis is split in two parts. Part one
is HERE,
and Part two is HERE.
With Enemies Like These
we need friends like you. Isn't
it time you joined DSA? You can do it online HERE.
In these tough times, even the low income dues rate might seem
a bit stiff, but for those of you in the Chicago metropolitan
area, money should be no barrier to joining. You can find out
more HERE.
DSA in the News: May Day underscores
the importance of a living wage
In the Wednesday
Journal, GOPDSA's Tom Broderick writes: "May Day
- International Workers Day - is upon us. There will be global
celebrations on May 1, recognizing those of us who work from
necessity. It is a day to reflect on the work we do in the labor
market, at home and in our communities." Read
MORE.
It's Not Too Late!
This year's Debs - Thomas -
Harrington Dinner will be held on Friday evening, May 7th, at
the Crowne Plaza Chicago Metro, Halsted and Madison in Chicago.
We're pleased to be honoring Carl Rosen, the Western Regional
President of the United Electrical Workers, and the People's
Law Office, a law collective with a long and distinguished radical
past. We're particularly excited to have as our featured speaker
William Greider: author, editor, columnist for "The Nation."
It's not too late to order tickets to
this event, especially as you can do it online at
http://www.chicagodsa.org/d2010/index.html
where you will also find more information
about the event, the honorees, and the speaker.
Democratic Left
The Spring, 2010, issue of Democratic
Left is now available online. Read or download the PDF
HERE.
Politics
Jobs
As part of Labor's campaign
for a jobful economic recovery, the Chicago Federation of Labor,
Chicago Jobs with Justice and others organized a march on Chicago's
financial district on Wednesday, April 28. This was part of a
nation-wide campaign that made Goldman Sachs an object lesson
of what is wrong with the current state of affairs. This was
followed by a Wednesday evening Chicago Jobs with Justice Workers'
Rights Board hearing on "America's Workforce: Too Big to
Fail! Understanding and Solving the Jobs Crisis."
The Chicago Sun-Times coverage of the march can be found
HERE.
The demonstration also gathered some national coverage at MSNBC
(video).
In the meantime, the Responsible Budget
Coalition had, on April 21, pulled off "one of the largest
demonstrations in State Capitol history" by bringing over
15,000 people together to demonstrate and lobby legislators in
Springfield for their
immediate attention to state finances. Read more HERE.
Wal-Mart
The Sun-Times also reports
that Chicago's labor movement has begun talks with Wal-Mart about
a Community Benefits Agreement that would allow Wal-Mart's entry
into the Chicago market. Read about it HERE.
May Day Chicago 2010
Here are some of the events
scheduled around Chicago:
The Sale of Westlake and West
Suburban Hospitals
Resurrection Health Care has
proposed selling two of its facilities, Westlake Hospital and
West Suburban Hospital, to Vanguard Health Systems. This sort
of conversion of non-profit facilities to a for-profit entity
has frequently not worked out well for employees and patients.
HEART / AFSCME has issued a report outlining some of the concerns
specific to this instance. You can read it HERE.
Ars Politica
The Battle of the Halsted Viaduct
POCKET GUIDE
TO HELL TOURS & VERS10N FESTIVAL
present THE BATTLE OF THE HALSTED VIADUCT
a dramatic historical reenactment & art party free!
featuring work by THE EVER SO SECRET ORDER OF THE LAMPREY
& music by ENVIRONMENTAL ENCROACHMENT, "magic circus
band"
In late July 1877, blue-collar workers
from Bridgeport and Pilsen left their streetcars, ships, trains,
and factories and clashed with police, federal troops, and state
militia at the Halsted Street Viaduct. The event, never formally
memorialized at the site until now, was part of "The Great
Upheaval of 1877," which began in Baltimore as a railroad
strike against wage cuts, then spread across the nation. Thirty
workers died at the Viaduct, 100 were wounded, and at least thirteen
cops were injured. The New York Times reported rocks flying
from workers' hands, police shooting guns and swinging clubs,
and "no less than 10,000 men present they were bent on violence
and hesitated at nothing."
"The Battle of the Halsted Viaduct," a full-scale,
live dramatic reenactment presented by Paul Durica's Pocket
Guide to Hell Tours in partnership with Version
Festival 10, is set for Sunday, May 2nd at 16th St. and
S. Halsted, 3 PM sharp. It will last for 45 minutes or so.
An art project built on original research, attention to detail,
and respect for history, the Battle is free and welcome to all,
including children.
All are invited to participate in the roles of 12th Street Station
Police (hats, stars, and paper mustaches provided), The Ragamuffin
Troop, The Howling Mob (safe projectiles provided), and The Bohemian
Amazon Army. Spectators are welcome participants, too. Period
costume is encouraged, with a prize for the best mustache and
side-whiskers.
Dueling historians Allan Pinkerton and Albert R. Parsons will
narrate the event in real time, as accompanied by Environmental
Encroachment. Afterwards, light refreshments will be provided
by Kenneth Morrison.
Special thanks to: The Ever So Secret Order of the Lamprey, Environmental Encroachment,
The Public Media Institute, The North Bridgeport Triangle Arts
District, The University of Chicago and the Regenstein Library,
and Alana Bailey Brand Posters.
Democratic Socialism
An obituary for the Third Way
In Eurozine, Magnus Ryner
argues the Third Way made a virtue out of the necessity to adapt
classical social democracy to global market conditions, conjoining
high finance with commodified forms of welfare provision. When
the US system on which it was modeled collapsed, "modern"
social democracy in Europe was in no state to offer an alternative.
You'll find this is no simple sneer from a marxist... MORE.
Taming the Tiger The Challenge
for European Social Democracy
On the other hand, in Social
Europe, Bob Cannell does not come to bury the Third Way,
or even to praise it, but to ask, "Is the carefully managed
European balance between people and capital becoming unsustainable
and should we be looking for alternative, more humane, economic
strategies?" MORE.
Upcoming Events of Interest
Events listed here are not necessarily
endorsed by Chicago DSA but should be of interest to DSA members,
friends and other lefties. For other events, go to http://www.chicagodsa.org/page9.html.
Saturday, May 1, 10 AM
Haymarket Rally
Randolph & DesPlaines, Chicago
Japanese labor delegation will present a plaque for the free
speech memorial monument. Sponsored by the Chicago Federation
of Labor and the Illinois Labor History Society. Call 312.663.4107
for information.
Saturday, May 1, 1 PM to 4 PM
May Day Rally and March
Union Park, 1501 W. Randolph, Chicago
March begins at 3 PM. For more information, see Chicago
JwJ.
Sunday, May 2, 3 PM
The Battle of Halsted Viaduct
16th Street & Halsted, Chicago
A re-enactment of the Battle of Halsted Viaduct. MORE.
Monday, May 3, 5 PM
Looking for Democracy Film
Contest Screening
Columbia College, Film Row Cinema, 1104 S Wabash Ave, 8th Floor,
Chicago
Screening of the 3 winning short films in the Illinois Humanities
Council's "Looking for Democracy" contest. Free, but
reservations required. CLICK
HERE.
Monday, May 3, 7:30 PM
Jack Hirschman with Kevin
Coval and Chicago Young Authors
Jane Addams Hull-House Museum, Residents' Dining Hall Building
1st Floor, 800 S. Halsted, Chicago
San Francisco poet laureate Jack Hirschman, poet Kevin Coval
and talent from Young Chicago Authors join in celebrating a long
history and tradition of labor activism and the arts. MORE
INFORMATION.
Friday, May 7, 6 PM to 9 PM
Bring America Home
Crowne Plaza Chicago Metro, Madison & Halsted, Chicago
52nd Annual Dinner featuring author William Greider, honoring
Carl Rosen (UE) and the People's Law Office. Tickets $60. For
more information or to order tickets CLICK
HERE .
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