Racism and Capitalism are Intertwined: An interview with Libero Della Piana

Q: When so many African Americans are brutalized and murdered by the police, how do you explain the powerful wave of anger sparked by the death of George Floyd?

I think there is always a breaking point for oppression. We have reached the breaking point. Black people have learned to live with the outrage, with constant harassment, jail, and death. Often times the police killings are localized and isolated. They don’t make it to the national consciousness. The first time that reality changed was with the Rodney King beating in 1992. Black people knew the experience of police harassment and brutality, but to millions of Americans, it could be ignored or dismissed. Then suddenly it was on camera. Then as now, we assumed the evidence of police crimes on tape would lead to justice. When they didn’t in the case of Rodney King, Los Angeles erupted. Now, nearly 30 years later the killing of George Floyd has ignited the anger of the whole country in an unprecedented way.

Only 52 percent of Full-Time Workers of Color Earn Enough to Make Ends Meet

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Nov. 18, 2014 Contact: Kathy Mulady, communications director kathy@allianceforajustsociety.org Only 52 percent of Full-Time Workers of Color Earn Enough to Make Ends Meet Just 57 percent of women and 42 percent of Latino workers earn enough working full time to cover their basic needs SEATTLE — During this season of abundance, manyContinue reading “Only 52 percent of Full-Time Workers of Color Earn Enough to Make Ends Meet”

Washington Community Action Network’s Sunny Summer Conference

On July 23, 250 Washingtonians spent a rare sunny Seattle Saturday in a leadership conference! WashingtonCAN’s annual Summer Leadership Conference was attended by about 250 committed community members. Turnout included people from WashingtonCAN, Working Washington and other progressive organizations and labor unions across Washington. Folks from Vancouver to Tacoma to Spokane participated. Workshop topics rangedContinue reading “Washington Community Action Network’s Sunny Summer Conference”

Politicians Out of Sync with People on Immigration

As Politico reported last week ((Politico, “Gov. candidates in 20 states endorse anti-immigration laws,” September 2, 2010, http://www.politico.com/news/stories/0910/41692.html))  of the 37 governor’s races this year, candidates in over 20 states are pushing anti-immigrant laws.