Author: Vijay Prashad
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The Murder of George Floyd Is Normal in an Abnormal Society
There is no need to wonder why George Floyd (age 46) was murdered in broad daylight in Minneapolis, Minnesota, on May 25, 2020. The script of his death is written deep in the ugly drama of US history. I Can’t Breathe 2020 Officer Derek Chauvin’s knee sat on George Floyd’s neck for eight minutes and 46 … Keep reading »
A Dirty Military Incursion into Venezuela
In the early morning hours of Sunday, May 3, speedboats left the Colombian coastlines and headed toward Venezuela. These boats had no authorization to cross the maritime border. They landed on the Venezuelan coastline at La Guaira. This was clearly a hostile action, since the boats carried heavy weaponry, including assault rifles and ammunition; the … Keep reading »
Colombia, the Oligarchs and Washington
Last year, on November 21, the Colombian people took to the streets in massive numbers to reject the policies of the government led by President Iván Duque. In particular, the people called on the government to withdraw two policies. First, the people wanted the right-wing government of Duque to advance the 2016 peace accords between … Keep reading »
The Cost of This Pandemic Must Not Bankrupt the People
The global pandemic of COVID-19 has spread to almost every country on the planet earth. The virus will take many lives, disrupt communities and institutions, and leave behind trauma and a devastated world economy. The United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) estimates that by the end of 2020, global income will collapse by … Keep reading »
IMF Refuses Aid to Venezuela in the Midst of the Coronavirus Crisis
On March 16, 2020, the chief of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) Kristalina Georgieva wrote a blog post on the Fund’s website; it represents the kind of generosity necessary in the midst of a global pandemic. “The IMF stands ready to mobilize its $1-trillion lending capacity to help our membership,” she wrote. Countries with “urgent … Keep reading »
Bolivia: An Election in the Midst of an Ongoing Coup
On May 3, 2020, the Bolivian people will go to the polls once more. They return there because President Evo Morales had been overthrown in a coup in November 2019. Morales had just won a presidential election in October for a term that would have begun in January 2020. Based on a preliminary investigation by … Keep reading »
India’s Democracy Is Facing an Existential Threat
India’s Vice President M. Venkaiah Naidu made a curious comment on 28 December. “Express dissent in a democratic way,” he said. Before he became the Vice President – a largely symbolic role – Naidu was the President of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), the far-right political organization that now governs India. Naidu made his comment … Keep reading »
The People of India Are Taking It to the Streets
Challenging Modi’s Bigoted and Dishonest Government Every day and in every part of India, hundreds of thousands of people – mainly young people – gather on the streets to express their anger at the government. Their protests, like those of the protests in Chile, emerged out of one particular grievance but then have cascaded outward. They … Keep reading »
What Happened in Sudan?
On 19 December 2018, an uprising began in Sudan. This uprising would culminate in the removal of Sudan’s president, Omar al-Bashir, from power on 11 April 2019. The army staged a conservative military coup to abort the revolutionary tide. Keep reading »
Canada’s ‘Liberals’ Have a Disturbing Imperial Streak
Canada’s embassy in Venezuela has just been closed. The spur for this closure is an open attempt by Canada’s Prime Minister Justin Trudeau to overthrow Venezuela’s Nicolás Maduro. Canada is one of the leaders of the Lima Group, a network of countries that came together in 2017 with the express purpose of regime change in … Keep reading »
Communists Sweep the Nepali Elections
You might as well imagine a large red flag fluttering from the summit of Mount Everest. That’s what the outcome of the parliamentary and provincial elections in Nepal suggests. The Communists have won both decisively. In the parliament, the Communist alliance will hold close to a two-thirds majority. The government that this majority forms will … Keep reading »
Global Bonapartism: The G20 and the Planet
“We are left with the politicians who think poorly of us, and who stand back with chaos in their pale old eyes whimpering, ‘That is not what we wanted. No, it was not to have gone that way.’ They are old, but we have been very ill, and cannot yet send them away.” — Bertram … Keep reading »