(2020-05-02). [Perspectives] Society and the slow burn of inequality. thelancet.com On June 14, 2017, Grenfell Tower, a high-rise housing block in the Royal London Borough of Kensington and Chelsea, UK, went up in flames. 72 people died, among the poorest and most marginalised in society. A dramatic conflagration such as this could teach us two kinds of lessons, if we were but open to receiving them. This event exposed underlying problems in society and it showed us that we have to do things differently. In the case of Grenfell, the underlying societal problem was deep-seated and enduring social inequalities and resultant health inequalities.
(2020-05-02). Argentine unions and employers agree to wage cuts pushing millions into poverty. wsws.org More than a million workers will face hunger and poverty while businesses get massive subsidies.
(2020-05-02). Dorothea Lange: Words and Pictures: An exhibition at the Museum of Modern Art. wsws.org Lange's turn to documentary photography was spurred by the Great Depression as she sought to address economic inequality and social injustice through activism and the lens of her camera.
(2020-05-02). COVID-19 Vs the Economy — The trouble Britain now finds itself in. truepublica.org.uk TruePublica Editor: There is no doubting to the observant, that the government of Britain has been negligent in its approach to the coronavirus threat. It is a matter of public record that they have failed in their primary duty to protect us all. Cemeteries and unemployment will be a stark reminder of this abject failure …
(2020-05-01). Germany: Working Class Protests Against Unemployment in May Day. telesurenglish.net On International Workers' Day, Germany's trade unions protested over the collapse of labor rights and the significant increase of unemployment as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. | RELATED: | According to forecasts by Angela Merkel's administration, Germany will experience the worst recession since World War II this year. | Recent unemployment figures have soared despite the economic aid that Germany's authorities have set up to prevent mass layoffs. | In Apr…
(2020-05-01). ILO: Nearly half of all world's workers may lose their jobs due to COVID-19 pandemic. peoplesdispatch.org In the absence of strong support measures by governments across the world, the estimated loss of mostly informal jobs would result in rising poverty, starvation and inequality, an ILO report says…
(2020-05-01). The Recent History of GDP Growth, CO2 Emissions, and Climate Policy Paralysis, All in One Table-Runner. counterpunch.org Note: I began designing this table-runner just before the COVID-19 pandemic blew up in the United States. In the time I have been embroidering it, rates of death and misery have soared while wealth generation and carbon emissions (the two subjects of this work) have ended their decades-long rise and have plummeted. A deadly virus
(2020-05-01). As US Unemployment Reaches Great Depression Levels, Millions Still Unable to Obtain Assistance. globalresearch.ca More than 3.8 million workers in the US filed for unemployment benefits last week as the country faced the worst economic crisis since the Great Depression. More than 30 million American workers have filed unemployment claims since the beginning of …
(2020-05-01). Coronavirus and the Increase in Domestic Violence. counterpunch.org Americans are paying dearly as they suffer through the coronavirus epidemic. The costs of inadequate testing, poor medical care and even death in isolation are only compounded by the nation's staggering economy, mounting unemployment rate and uncertainty of recovery. Making matters worse, there has been an increase in domestic violence. "My husband won't let me
(2020-05-01). Corporate Looting as 'Rescue Plan,' Robber Barons as 'Saviors'. fair.org 
Framing a massive corporate bailout as a "rescue package" (NPR, For a perfect illustration of how corporate media function as ruling class propaganda, watch how they spin a titanic upward redistribution of wealth as a "rescue plan" for the US economy, and paint a robber baron like US Treasury Secretary
(2020-05-01). US: Workers Must Risk Infection or Lose Unemployment Payments. telesurenglish.net Some, among the millions of American workers laid off because of the COVID-19, are beginning to face a tough choice — return to work and risk infection, or stay home and risk losing unemployment payments, The Associated Press reported Thursday. | RELATED: | The decision is most pressing in states where governors have started allowing businesses such as restaurants to reopen with social-distancing r…
(2020-05-01). Recent Unemployment Insurance claims top 30 million. fightbacknews.org San José, CA – On Thursday, April 30, the U.S. Department of Labor reported that more than 3.8 million new claims for unemployment insurance or UI were filed in the previous week ending April 25. This means that over the last six weeks more than 30 million claims have been filed. This means that the actual unemployment rate is about 25%, a level similar to the worst of the Great Depression of the 1930s. | The number of people who are getting Unemployment Insurance benefits as of a week earlier, or April 18, reached 18 million, the highest ever. Since 27 million people had applied for benefits as of that time, mor…
(2020-04-30). U.S. Organizations React to Global Military Spending Report. peaceaction.org Joint Statement: U.S. organizations react to global military spending report April 27, 2020 Our diverse group of 39 think-tanks, non-profits, faith-based organizations, and advocacy groups based in the United States find the exorbitant amount of money spent on militaries worldwide to be an irresponsible and harmful use of global wealth. The Global Military Expenditures Report …
(2020-04-30). Millions More US Jobless than Reported. Real U.S. Unemployment Rate at 38%… globalresearch.ca Based on how it was calculated pre-1990s, Shadowstats economist John Williams has the real US unemployment rate at around 38%, heading higher. | According to the
(2020-04-30). Economist Thomas Piketty: Coronavirus Pandemic Has Exposed the "Violence of Social Inequality" democracynow.org 
As nearly 30 million Americans have filed for unemployment in just six weeks and millions worldwide face hunger and poverty, we look at the global economic catastrophe triggered by the pandemic and its impact on the most vulnerable. As the World Food Programme warns of a massive spike in global hunger and more than 100 million people in cities worldwide could fall into poverty, can this crisis be a catalyst for change? We ask French economist Thomas Piketty. His 2014 internationally best-selling book, "Capital in the Twenty-First Century," looked at economic inequality and the necessity of wealth taxes. His new b…
(2020-04-30). Headlines for April 30, 2020. democracynow.org Jared Kushner Hails "Great Success Story" as U.S. Deaths Top 60,000, Dozens of Decomposing Bodies Found in Trucks Outside Brooklyn Funeral Home, President Trump Claims Coronavirus Will Be "Eradicated" from U.S. | , FDA to Approve Emergency Use of Remdesivir After the Drug Shows Promise Treating COVID-19, More Than 30 Million U.S. Workers File Unemployment Claims in Just Six Weeks, International Labour Organization Warns Pandemic Threatens Livelihoods of 1.6 Billion, South Korea Reports No New Domestic Coronavirus Cases , U.K. Now Has Europe's Second-Highest COVID-19 Death Toll | , Femicides and Domestic Violence…
(2020-04-30). America's super-rich see their wealth rise by $282 Billion in three weeks of pandemic. mronline.org 
America's billionaires have accrued more wealth in the past three weeks alone than they made in total prior to 1980.
(2020-04-30). Five Years After Freddie Gray's Death: The Resistance Makes Change, The Government Doesn't. therealnews.com 
The people at the core of the resistance after Freddie Gray's death are changing lives and building community five years later, while the government has done little to address poverty and isolation in the poorest Black communities of Baltimore.
(2020-04-30). ONE IN SEVEN Americans would avoid Covid-19 treatment for fear of cost, even as pricey new pill shows promise against virus. rt.com 
Some 14 percent of US adults would forgo medical care for Covid-19 symptoms because they couldn't pay for it, a new poll has found — yet oblivious health authorities act as if the epidemic will be solved by drugs alone. | One in seven American adults would avoid seeking healthcare if they or a family member experienced symptoms of Covid-19, out of concern they would be unable to afford treatment,
(2020-04-30). The Coronavirus Pandemic Has Exposed the "Violence of Social Inequality"'. truthout.org As nearly 30 million Americans have filed for unemployment in just six weeks and millions worldwide face hunger and poverty, we look at the global economic catastrophe triggered by the pandemic and its impact on the most vulnerable. As the World Food Programme warns of a massive spike in global hunger and more than 100 million people in cities worldwide could fall into poverty, can this crisis be a catalyst for change? We ask French economist Thomas Piketty. His 2014 internationally best-selling book,…
(2020-04-30). More Thoughts on a Wealth Tax and Alternatives. cepr.net (This post first appeared on my Patreon page.) Last week the Boston Review (BR) published an exchange on a wealth tax that included a proposal from Berkeley economists Emmanuel Saez and Gabriel Zucman, with a number of responses, including one from me. I was critical of the proposal for both political reasons and because I …
(2020-04-30). How Workers Can Win in the Age of COVID-19. progressive.org With thirty million people filing for unemployment, a new project helps organizers fight for the common good.
(2020-04-30). Almost 40 per cent of UK firms to cut staff. truepublica.org.uk Roughly 40 per cent of UK firms expect to lay off staff over the next 12 months, a survey has shown, raising the prospect of many more job cuts in the UK economy. UK unemployment has already surged as coronavirus lockdown measures cause businesses to close or cut costs significantly. Close to a third of …
(2020-04-29). As US Economy Tanks, Study Finds Unemployment Numbers Likely Double Official Figure. mintpressnews.com 
"These findings on the millions of frustrated filers and the UI system's low payment rate highlight the need for policies to improve rather than hinder the UI application process," noted the studies authors.
(2020-04-28). White Collar Criminals, Celebrities, Wealthy Use Privilege For Early Release Amidst Pandemic. therealnews.com 
Michael Cohen and Michael Avenatti were released, and some Los Angeles prisons offer pay-to-stay rooms for celebrities. But a huge number of people are still imprisoned and at risk of COVID-19 just because they can't afford cash bail.
(2020-04-27). How Historical Trauma And Structural Inequality Help Spread COVID-19. therealnews.com 
Historical and generational trauma affect Black and other marginalized communities, and ongoing inequality is making the coronavirus pandemic worse among those groups.
(2020-04-27). How We Should Spell Relief. progressive.org Even before the COVID-19 pandemic, the United States was already suffering from a pandemic of inequality.
(2020-04-24). Georgia's Furloughed Workers Struggled To Get Unemployment Benefits. Now They Worry About Losing Them. therealnews.com 
Once businesses reopen, workers like Cameren Cook in Atlanta may have to decide between risking COVID-19 and not making their rent.
(2020-04-23). Rich are Getting Richer, Despite Pandemic. progressive.org As billionaires' wealth continues to balloon, it's time for them to pay their fair share.
(2020-05-01). As Millions Stripped of Health Coverage Amid Covid-19, House Dems Unveil Bill for Emergency Expansion of Medicare and Medicaid. commondreams.org Just a day after the U.S. Labor Department announced that more than 30 million people have applied for unemployment benefits since mid-March, over 30 House Democrats came together to introduce legislation that would guarantee healthcare coverage to all Americans during the coronavirus pandemic. | www.commondreams.org/sites/default/files/styles/cd_special_coverage/public/headline/thumbs/gettyimages-12108885731.jpg …
(2020-04-11). SPLC condemns attack on Alabama synagogue. splcenter.org The Southern Poverty Law Center condemns the antisemitic attacks that took place during Passover at the Etz Chayim Synagogue in Huntsville, Alabama.
(2020-03-23). How To Think About Corporate Bailouts Correctly. peoplespolicyproject.org As the negotiations over the economic response to the Coronavirus recession heat up, we are seeing more and more talk about how (or whether) to provide relief to corporations and industries that are facing bankruptcy due to the economic slowdown. Some of this talk is intelligent. A lot of it is not. So in this post, I hope to lay out what I believe is the correct way to think about corporate bailouts. | Due to an aversion to socialist rhetoric about "capitalists" or even "the wealthy," American populist lingo tends to focus on "corporations" as the great evil. We talk about "corporate power" and "corporate concen…
(2020-03-18). Understanding Claims About Basic Income and Inflation. peoplespolicyproject.org A variety of elected officials are currently proposing that the federal government send cash payments to every person in the country (sometimes called a "universal basic income" or "UBI") as a way of responding to the recession. These calls have resurrected claims that a UBI is inflationary. Such claims circulate widely among advocates of workfare and in certain niche internet circles. But these claims are nonsensical and deceptive. In this post, I walk through these claims to promote better understanding of the issue. | Deceptive Language: | Many people who claim that UBI is inflationary also belong to t…