Worcester Independent Socialist Group (ISG) stands in solidarity with union nurses at St. Vincent hospital who voted Wednesday to authorize a strike. Workers everywhere, including essential nurses, have real power in the workplace, and using that power is the only reliable way to win adequate Personal Protective Equipment (PPE), safe staffing ratios, and COVID-19 protections.Continue reading “St. Vincent’s Nurses Authorize Strike – ISG Stands in Solidarity”
Author Archives: Independent Socialist Group
Hunts Point Grocery and Logistics Workers Give Bosses a Bloody Nose
On the night of January 17, 1,400 workers at the Hunts Point Produce Market in the Bronx called a strike, organizing a 24/7 picket line at both entrances to the workplace. The workers, members of Teamsters Local 202, were in negotiations with the company for a new contract. The workers wanted a $1 per hour raise and additional personal and sick time. The company only offered a 32 cent raise.
No Evictions! Fight for Housing Justice
The coronavirus pandemic has been grossly mishandled in capitalist countries throughout the world, and as a consequence, it has had devastating effects on the lives of millions of poor and working people. In the United States, millions of people who were laid off or furloughed in the early months of the pandemic remain unemployed, and costs for essential products and services like food have risen. Tens of millions of Americans have lost whatever degree of economic security they had before the pandemic. One consequence of this is that there are millions of people who are behind on rent and in danger of getting evicted once the federal eviction moratorium (or temporary ban on evictions) is lifted, which is currently set to happen on March 31st.
Trump’s Out – What Next?
Trump’s loss has been a relief to many Americans. There is mass anger at the actions of his administration from deploying the Department of Homeland Security against protestors, to massive tax cuts for the rich, to continued austerity for public services such as cutting SNAP and the Low Income Energy Home Assistance Program, alongside bailouts and tax cuts for corporations, and more. Any defeat of a right-wing figure can be seen as positive, but Biden’s election is far from a victory for the working class. Biden represents the same capitalist interests as Trump.
Solidarity with St. Vincent Nurses
Starting on January 6th, nurses at St. Vincent Hospital in Worcester, MA began informational pickets to raise public awareness of contract negotiations and place pressure on the hospital’s owner, Tenet Healthcare. Although nurses in Massachusetts experienced problems with understaffing and unsafe patient limits for some time, the COVID-19 pandemic exasperated existing problems. Furthermore, St. VincentContinue reading “Solidarity with St. Vincent Nurses”
Biden’s “Progressive” Cabinet: An Attack on the Working Class
by Christopher Chace The Biden administration’s cabinet nominations offer a first glimpse at what the new administration is planning beyond the vague promises of press briefings, Tweets, and stump speeches. Some liberals insisted that Biden could be “pushed left” towards a progressive agenda. But looking at the history and role of the Democratic Party, weContinue reading “Biden’s “Progressive” Cabinet: An Attack on the Working Class”
Worcester City Council Ignores Community, Approves More Police Funding
But while the previous extra quarter of a million dollars allocated was ridiculous, the plan put forward at the City Council meeting this Tuesday, January 19th, was insidious. The request: $150,000 for an expansion of “ShotSpotter” acoustic shot detection surveillance—and for “ShotSpotter Connect,” a “predictive policing” technology that aims to use artificial intelligence and the data from a city-wide surveillance network to, in essence, “predict crime before it occurs.”
ISG Statement on Biden’s Inauguration
January 20th, 2021 marked the inauguration of President-Elect Joe Biden. After the past four years of vicious attacks on organized labor, immigrants, people of color, the LGBTQ+ community, and women, and 10 months of unending capitalist crisis in the face of the COVID-19 pandemic, many people will breathe a sigh of relief at Donald TrumpContinue reading “ISG Statement on Biden’s Inauguration”
Solidarity Campaign Continues Defense of Anti-Racist Activism
By Nicholas Wurst On Friday January 15, Worcester Independent Socialist Group (ISG) organized a second round of actions in defense of the anti-racist protestors arrested last June. The protest in June was demanding justice for George Floyd. Friday’s actions were organized to coincide with a court hearing for nine of the arrested protestors and bystanders. Continue reading “Solidarity Campaign Continues Defense of Anti-Racist Activism”
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Vaccines Alone Will Not End the COVID-19 Crisis
by Jai Chavis As COVID-19 cases and hospitalizations continue to increase and hospitals continue to be understaffed and overwhelmed by patients with coronavirus complications, it is clear that the pandemic is far from over. The recent flurry of reports says that at least three major pharmaceutical companies based in the US and UK have highlyContinue reading “Vaccines Alone Will Not End the COVID-19 Crisis”
Independent Socialist Group 