America's Brutal Society
The Politician: The unreality of official American political and social life
By Joanne Laurier, 24 January 2020
The Politician centers on the Machiavellian operations of an ambitious California high school senior, determined to win the election for student body president as a stepping-stone, ultimately, to the White House.
Trump backs armed gun-rights rally in Richmond, Virginia
By Barry Grey, 21 January 2020
For the second time in three days, President Donald Trump tweeted support as thousands of gun-rights activists, many of them carrying semi-automatic weapons, descended on Virginia’s capital, Richmond.
Detroit, Michigan man declared innocent and released after nearly 30 years of wrongful imprisonment
By Dan Conway, 18 January 2020
Gerry Thomas, exonerated after spending close to three decades in prison, is one of thousands who have and are currently spending time in US prisons for crimes they did not commit.
Texas becomes the first state to refuse refugee resettlement
By Meenakshi Jagadeesan, 14 January 2020
An order issued by Trump in September precludes non-governmental and non-profit organizations from resettling refugees without the consent of state and local governments.
After two crashes that killed 346 people
Fired CEO Dennis Muilenburg gets $80.7 million on exit from Boeing
By Bryan Dyne, 13 January 2020
The aerospace giant allocated only $50 million to compensate the 346 families who lost loved ones in the two Boeing 737 Max 8 crashes, $144,500 for each life lost.
Florida: James Dailey faces execution based on testimony of a serial jailhouse informant
By Kate Randall, 3 January 2020
Dailey has consistently maintained his innocence in the 1985 murder of Shelly Boggio. By the prosecution’s own admission, no eyewitnesses or forensic evidence connected him to the crime.
Texas church shooting caps record year for mass killings in America
By Trévon Austin, 31 December 2019
This year has marked the most mass killings in the US since the 1970s.
Hasidic Jews injured in machete attack in Rockland County, New York
By Philip Guelpa, 30 December 2019
The attack Saturday was the latest in a growing number of hate crimes occurring within a climate of racial tension encouraged by both Trump and the Democrats.
Washington state legislator investigated for ties with violent far-right groups
By Kayla Costa, 30 December 2019
Representative Matthew Shea mobilized support for armed militia standoffs, and drafted a document of rules for militia-based war during his time in office.
Edward Gallagher, Donald Trump and America’s criminal wars
By Patrick Martin, 30 December 2019
A new report documents the gruesome record of the Navy Seal commander Trump has praised and pardoned.
Christmas Day fire in Minneapolis, Minnesota displaces more than 200
By Kate Randall, 27 December 2019
The tragedy underscores the Trump administration’s vindictive housing policy, which has cut funding for housing programs and strengthened work requirements for obtaining assistance.
“It’s just getting harder and harder to live”
Homeless in San Diego, “America’s Finest City”
By Meenakshi Jagadeesan and Ryley Koffing, 27 December 2019
San Diego has the fourth-highest number of homeless residents in the United States.
Industrial carnage in US: 5,250 workers killed on the job in 2018
By Steve Filips, 27 December 2019
Fatal on-the-job injuries in the US increased by 2 percent in 2018, according to this year’s report by the Labor Department’s Bureau of Labor Statistics.
Workplace violence a major problem for US nurses
By Alex Johnson, 20 December 2019
A major cause of the increase in violence is the lack of mental health resources and treatment for a large section of the population.
Mississippi death row inmate released on bail after being tried six times for the same crime
By Matthew Taylor, 19 December 2019
Curtis Flowers still faces the possibility of a seventh trial and is subject to electronic monitoring as part of his bail conditions.
US rural county jails see a rapid rise in incarceration rates
By Benjamin Mateus, 18 December 2019
There are an estimated 758,400 people incarcerated in local jails throughout the US, an increase of 1.8 percent from mid-year 2017.
Two executions in one week
Blind man dies by electric chair in Tennessee, Texas inmate executed amid claims of false testimony
By Kate Randall, 13 December 2019
The final two executions of 2019 involved cases in which juries were not told about defendants’ mental health struggles and violent upbringing, and trials involving false testimony and faulty jury selection.
Mass shooting in Jersey City, New Jersey being investigated as anti-Semitic hate-crime
By Matthew Taylor, 12 December 2019
New Jersey police believe that two assailants deliberately targeted a Kosher grocery store in an attack on Tuesday.
George Zimmerman, killer of Trayvon Martin in 2012, sues his victim’s family for $100 million
By Fred Mazelis, 12 December 2019
Zimmerman’s legal maneuvers must be treated with the contempt they deserve.
South Florida UPS driver, motorist killed in reckless police shootout in rush hour traffic
By Matthew Taylor, 7 December 2019
At least nineteen police officers fire 200 rounds into a UPS delivery truck which had been hijacked after a jewelry store heist, killing the driver, the two carjackers and an nearby motorist.
Trump administration food stamp cuts spell hunger and destitution for millions
By Kate Randall, 6 December 2019
The Trump Administration announced Wednesday a rule change that will deprive nearly 700,000 people of benefits from the Supplemental Nutritional Assistance Program, increasing hunger for countless families.
Seton Hall Law School report exposes new details of CIA torture program
By Kevin Reed, 6 December 2019
The report reveals for the first time—with drawings and notes provided by CIA detainee Abu Zubaydah—details of the “enhanced interrogation techniques” used by the US government.
Retiring Chicago Police Chief Superintendent fired after video shows police body-slamming a mentally ill man
By Ben Mateus, 3 December 2019
Democratic mayor Lori Lightfoot offered a standard prepared statement noting that the ensuing investigation “will be comprehensive and expedited so that the public may gain a complete picture.”
Over 250 students arrested in Michigan by ICE in fake university scam
By Jacob Crosse, 29 November 2019
After arresting 161 students in January and February earlier this year, US Immigrations and Customs Enforcement revealed that they had detained an additional 91 students in an ongoing sting operation conducted by the federal agency.
Trump threatens to designate Mexican cartels as “terrorists”
By Andrea Lobo, 28 November 2019
The step would set the stage for direct US military interventions in Mexico, while pressuring the Mexican government to escalate militarized repression of social opposition.
Five dead in Minneapolis, Minnesota high-rise fire
By Matt Rigel, 28 November 2019
Most of the victims were Somali immigrants in a neighborhood near the city’s downtown area.
Baltimore, Maryland: Three men exonerated after 36 years behind bars for wrongful murder conviction
By Kate Randall, 27 November 2019
The trio’s harrowing experience was the direct result of a rush to solve a brutal crime, abetted by gross misconduct on the part of police and prosecutors.
Notes on police violence
No charges against US Park Police in 2017 shooting death of Bijan Ghaisar
By Harvey Simpkins, 16 November 2019
US Park Police in Alexandria, Virginia, just outside Washington, D.C., gunned down the unarmed 25-year old in his vehicle after he was the victim of a minor traffic incident.
Two killed, three injured in Santa Clarita, California school shooting
By Dan Conway, 15 November 2019
The victims were aged 14 to 16 with the suspected shooter also admitted to the hospital with an apparent self-inflicted gunshot to the head.
Following Georgia execution
Protests mount vs. planned execution of Texas inmate Rodney Reed
By Kate Randall, 15 November 2019
In the case of both Ray Cromartie and Rodney Reed, state authorities and courts have ruled against new DNA testing that could prove their innocence.
Arizona: Second trial begins of pro-immigrant “No More Deaths” volunteer
By Meenakshi Jagadeesan, 13 November 2019
The main accusation against Warren is that he provided two undocumented migrants with food, water and a place to sleep over three days.
California police arrest woman for delivering stillborn baby with drugs in its system
By Dan Conway, 11 November 2019
California police arrested 25-year-old Chelsea Cheyenne Becker on a charge of 1st degree murder last week after she delivered a stillborn baby with methamphetamine in its system.
Massachusetts: Buffalo Wild Wings worker dies after inhaling toxic fumes
By Jessica Goldstein, 9 November 2019
Ryan Baldera’s death is just one of the latest tragic indictments of the disregard of corporations for the health and safety of the workers who make their profits.
Hundreds protest police violence in Brooklyn, New York subway
By Josh Varlin, 4 November 2019
Recent incidents of police violence in the subway system, connected to the crackdown on “fare evasion,” have fueled growing anger among workers in New York City.
Independent pathologist says evidence shows Jeffrey Epstein’s death was a homicide
By Kevin Reed, 31 October 2019
Private pathologist Dr. Michael Baden found that substantial forensic evidence exists showing that jailed multi-millionaire Jeffrey Epstein was the victim of “ligature homicidal strangulation” and did not commit suicide.
The murder of Baghdadi and Washington’s crisis in the Middle East
By Bill Van Auken, 28 October 2019
The targeted assassination of the ISIS leader was politically timed to deflect criticism within the US ruling establishment and its military and intelligence apparatus of Trump’s Syria policy.
The police murder of Isiah Murrietta-Golding
By Tom Carter, 26 October 2019
The epidemic of police brutality in the US, which enjoys the full backing of the state, is a product of a social and economic system in deep crisis.
Video shows Fresno police officer shooting unarmed 10th grade boy in the head
By Tom Carter, 24 October 2019
After Isiah Murrietta-Golding’s body drops to the ground, another police officer yells, “good shot.”
Police in Washington state seize cache of firearms from suspected Neo-Nazi leader
By Kevin Reed, 24 October 2019
Acting on the provisions of a “red-flag law” in Washington State last month, police from the Seattle area seized a cache of assault weapons from Kaleb J. Cole, a suspected leader of the neo-Nazi Atomwaffen Division.
Youth suicide rate skyrockets in the US: A symptom of a rotting social order
By Genevieve Leigh, 24 October 2019
In the United States, suicide is the second leading cause of death for youth aged 12-18.
California Governor vetoes $2 billion affordable housing bill
By Rafael Azul, 16 October 2019
Gavin Newsom’s veto exposes the Democrat as a fiscal austerity conservative in the mold of Republican governors.
Four homeless men murdered in New York City’s Chinatown
By Owen Mullan and Sandy English, 14 October 2019
The tragic incident, involving six of the poorest people in the United States, is a product of the city’s social decay, the most unequal large American city.
Prosecutors in Illinois charge nine-year-old with murder after mobile home fire claims the lives of five family members
By Jacob Crosse, 11 October 2019
The fire took place on April 6 at the Timberline Mobile Home Park located in Eureka, Illinois, a small community outside of Peoria.
White supremacist Coast Guard officer pleads guilty to drug and weapons charges
By Matthew Taylor, 5 October 2019
A list of potential targets found on Paul Hasson’s computer included the Democratic Party politicians and media figures routinely attacked by President Donald Trump and his supporters.
Thousands of children under age ten arrested every year in the United States
By Casey Gold, 1 October 2019
The recent arrests of two 6-year-old children at their elementary school in Orlando, Florida has shone light on the shocking number of child arrests and detainments in the US.
Sacramento, California killer cops return to work 18 months after murdering 22-year-old Stephon Clark
By Dan Conway, 28 September 2019
The two Sacramento, California, police officers who fatally shot unarmed Clark 20 times last year returned to work Thursday after no federal civil rights charges were brought against them.
Department of Homeland Security counterterrorism strategy targets left-wing politics as “violent extremism”
By Kevin Reed, 23 September 2019
The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) has issued a new strategy document expanding the definition of terrorism to include what it calls “domestic actors inspired by violent extremist ideologies.”
US deal with El Salvador puts new roadblock to asylum seekers
By Norisa Diaz, 23 September 2019
The attempt to label El Salvador as a “safe third country” is a deeply sadistic measure to undermine the rights of asylum guaranteed by international asylum law.
Inspector general report details Trump’s abuse of immigrant children
By Patrick Martin, 17 September 2019
Thousands of children have been subjected to intense trauma in the detention facilities of the Trump administration.
Ohio jury acquits young woman on murder charges in baby’s death
By Casey Gold, 14 September 2019
The jury’s verdict comes as a rejection of barbaric laws and the common practice of prosecutors excessively charging individuals for what amounts to non-criminal behavior.
US study shows: Poverty and social inequality are killers
By Patrick Martin, 12 September 2019
A study by the Government Accountability Office released this week shows that poor Americans are nearly twice as likely to die before they reach old age as rich Americans.
Courts back Trump administration as ICE continues to force-feed immigrants
By Adam McLean, 3 September 2019
Force-feeding typically can causes excruciating pain, is dangerous when performed on unwilling participants, and is recognized by international doctors’ associations as a form of torture.
New York cook arrested by ICE after filing lawsuit for $200,000 in stolen wages
By Owen Mullan, 3 September 2019
There is no doubt that the agency was tipped off on Xue Hui Zhang’s whereabouts in order to make his suit for repayment more difficult.
Texas gunman kills seven people before being shot to death by police
By Patrick Martin, 2 September 2019
The bloodbath in the Midland-Odessa area of west Texas brings the death toll from US mass shootings to 142 this year, more than all of 2018.
Texas prisoner executed despite debunked forensic evidence pointing to his innocence
By Kate Randall, 24 August 2019
The US Supreme Court denied Larry Swearingen’s appeal for a stay, clearing the way for his execution.
Police violence the sixth leading cause of death for young men in the US
By Gary Joad and Kate Randall, 20 August 2019
There were only 22 days in all of 2018 in which someone was not shot dead by police.
Still no explanation for death of Epstein in prison
By a reporter, 15 August 2019
No information has been made public to explain who made the decisions that left the multi-millionaire alleged sex-trafficker alone in his cell the day he died.
US media continues to downplay suspicions about Jeffrey Epstein’s death
By David Walsh, 14 August 2019
After days of breathless coverage, the New York Times and the Wall Street Journal both removed the Epstein story from the front pages of their print editions on Tuesday.
“We can come together as a force:” Nashville resident who saw neighbors stop ICE speaks out
By our reporters, 13 August 2019
Rosheda Martin lives in the Hermitage neighborhood, where residents physically prevented ICE from snatching their neighbors.
Why is the media dismissing questions about Jeffrey Epstein’s death as “conspiracy theories”?
By Patrick Martin, 13 August 2019
Whether a “hit” orchestrated by those who feared he knew too much, or a suicide under conditions of multiple violations of prison protocols, Jeffrey Epstein’s death is the result of a conspiracy.
Five years after police murder of Michael Brown
Police have killed 5,000 Americans since Ferguson protests
By Niles Niemuth, 10 August 2019
Despite popular protests and increased scrutiny in the aftermath of Michael Brown’s killing, US police officers have continued to kill at a rate of more than 1,000 people per year.
Study finds workplace injuries increase risk of death by suicide, drug overdose
By Jessica Goldstein, 10 August 2019
A recent study found a relationship between work-related injuries and the rapid growth of deaths caused by suicide and drug overdose among workers in New Mexico, one of the poorest states in the US.
Trump in El Paso: The culprit returns to the scene of the crime
By Eric London, 8 August 2019
The trip to Texas and Ohio was a dishonest attempt to evade responsibility for the fact that Trump instigated and bears principal political responsibility for what took place.
Fascist violence and the politics of race and racism
By Joseph Kishore, 6 August 2019
Evading the political causes of the reemergence of fascist violence, the New York Times promotes a racialist narrative of American society, centered on “whiteness,” that legitimizes the reactionary claims of the extreme right.
Trump: The political enabler of fascist violence
By Patrick Martin, 5 August 2019
The president is the moral and political author of the bloody violence in El Paso, Gilroy and Dayton.
Big business parties preside over a social catastrophe in 21st century America
By Kate Randall, 3 August 2019
The Democrats have no more intention than the Republicans of addressing the burning social questions confronting the working class on a daily basis.
The fascist attack in Gilroy and the US epidemic of mass shootings
By Patrick Martin, 31 July 2019
Two processes are intersecting in the explosion of violence in America: the long-term impact of social decay and militarism, and the deliberate incitement of fascistic sentiments by President Trump.
US military conducting classified operation in Washington D.C. area
By E.P. Milligan, 31 July 2019
The operation, whose purpose remains unknown, involves Black Hawk helicopters backed by a force of active and reserve duty soldiers of an unknown size.
Three dead in Gilroy, California festival shooting
Gunman motivated by white supremacist ideology
By Kate Randall, 30 July 2019
An examination of this and other heinous mass shootings points to the type of forces Trump and his fascistic advisers seek to rally against the working class.
US attorney general directs Bureau of Prisons to reinstate federal death penalty
By Kate Randall, 26 July 2019
The order by William Barr targeting five federal prison inmates of the death penalty for federal inmates sets the stage for the execution of inmates on federal death row for the first time in 16 years.
Electrical worker killed at pipe mill in Western Pennsylvania
By Samuel Davidson, 26 July 2019
Forty-six-year-old David Bupp was electrocuted last Wednesday while repairing a piece of equipment at a small steel pipe manufacturing plant north of Pittsburgh.
Pennsylvania school threatens children with foster care for school lunch debt
By our reporter, 24 July 2019
Some of the threatened families owe the district as little as $10.
UN human rights chief denounces “outrageous conditions” for immigrants in US concentration camps
By Josh Varlin, 10 July 2019
Indicating that the US government has no intention of heeding Bachelet’s statement, DHS has requested another 1,000 National Guard troops on the border between Texas and Mexico.
Building the infrastructure of a police state
Detroit’s facial recognition surveillance system exposed
By Kevin Reed, 9 July 2019
The poorest large city in the US is being used as a testing ground for invasive surveillance technologies in preparation for coming eruptions in the class struggle.
Global conflict situations, poverty lead to rise in mental health crises
By Alex Johnson, 9 July 2019
US imperialism and its allies bear principal responsibility for the wars and military interventions that have wrought devastation throughout the world.
Latest Office of Inspector General report reveals inhumane conditions at US immigrant detention centers
By Matthew Taylor, 4 July 2019
Children are being detained without access to showers or hot meals and in one instance adult immigrants were held in standing room only conditions for a full week.
US Navy SEAL acquitted of murder and other war crimes by military jury
By Kevin Reed, 3 July 2019
Edward Gallagher was acquitted of the most serious charges against him, including the unprovoked murder of a wounded teenage ISIS soldier, by a military court martial.
Outrage over manslaughter charge facing Alabama woman who miscarried after shooting
By Fred Mazelis, 3 July 2019
The case of Marshae Jones is part of the escalating attacks on abortion rights and the criminalization of the poor.
Washington Post’s Richard Cohen comes to the defense of Linda Fairstein, overseer of the Central Park Five prosecution
By Kate Randall, 3 July 2019
Cohen gushed over Colin Powell’s infamous February 4, 2003 presentation of lies at the UN that formed the justification for the Iraq War.
US Border Patrol agents joke about immigrant deaths in secret Facebook group with 9,500 members
By George Marlowe, 2 July 2019
A report by ProPublica revealed that Border Patrol agents used a secret Facebook group to make sadistic and violent jokes about immigrants as well as members of Congress.
House Democrats give $4.6 billion for Trump’s concentration camps
Ocasio-Cortez plays critical role in ensuring passage
By Eric London, 28 June 2019
House Democrats voted for a Senate bill that exposes the critical role of Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and other “progressive” Democrats in facilitating Trump’s crackdown on immigrants.
No more lies!
The way forward in the struggle against the poisoning of Flint
By the WSWS editorial board, 28 June 2019
The following statement is being distributed to a community meeting in Flint Friday night.
No to concentration camps in America!
By Eric London, 26 June 2019
Hundreds of millions of people around the world are sickened by Trump’s sadistic crimes against immigrants, which have exposed the rot at the core of American capitalism.
Horror across US-Mexico border with multiple parents, infants dead
By Eric London, 25 June 2019
Over the weekend, two young parents and four young children died crossing the desert in separate instances while Mexican police shot a young migrant in the head.
Oregon legislature shut down by right-wing militia threats
By Kayla Costa, 25 June 2019
The Oregon State Capitol building in Salem was shut down after right-wing militias made violent threats in defense of 11 Republican senators who fled the state to prevent a vote on a carbon-emissions bill.
Biden under fire over comments about working with segregationist senators
By Patrick Martin, 21 June 2019
The controversy has put the spotlight on the role of Southern Democrats in defending racial discrimination well into the 1970s.
Three incidents of police brutality spark outrage across US
By Jessica Goldstein, 19 June 2019
Each incident exposes the systematic brutality that workers in all areas of the US suffer at the hands of police on a daily basis.
Mistrial in case against “No More Deaths” volunteer charged with aiding immigrants
By Meenakshi Jagadeesan, 13 June 2019
Scott Warren was arrested for providing food, water and shelter to two undocumented immigrants.
Minneapolis police officer sentenced to over 12 years in prison for murder of Justine Damond
By Anthony Bertolt, 13 June 2019
A month-long trial in April resulted in Noor being found guilty of third-degree murder and involuntary manslaughter.
Alabama governor signs chemical castration bill into law
By Jessica Goldstein, 12 June 2019
The mandate, ostensibly to protect children from rape, follows the recent enactment of an Alabama law that prohibits abortion in the vast majority of sexual assault and incest cases.
Biden drops support for abortion-funding restriction after political firestorm
By Patrick Martin, 7 June 2019
The leading candidate for the Democratic presidential nomination had sought to stake out a right-wing position on access to abortion.
Three immigrants die in US custody in three days
By Niles Niemuth, 6 June 2019
Immigrants are being subjected to inhumane treatment all along the line, guaranteeing that there will be more deaths in federal detention centers across the US.
By Kate Randall, 3 June 2019
Shooter Dwayne Craddock had worked as a certified professional engineer in the city’s public utilities department for about 15 years and was not previously known as a violent individual.
“It’s immoral. It’s unethical. It’s torture”
US uses solitary confinement as weapon against detained immigrants
By Meenakshi Jagadeesan, 1 June 2019
An International Consortium of Investigative Journalists report documents the widespread use of solitary confinement by the US government against detained immigrants.
At least 12 dead in Virginia Beach mass shooting
By Bryan Dyne, 1 June 2019
Mass shootings in America are a product of mounting social inequality at home and unending wars abroad.
Democratic governor signs Louisiana fetal “heartbeat” abortion ban
By Kate Randall, 31 May 2019
Louisiana is the fifth state to pass bans on abortions based on detection of a fetal heartbeat, following Georgia, Kentucky, Mississippi and Ohio.
Chicago police kill bipolar man inside his home
By Andy Thompson, 28 May 2019
Myles Frazier was shot and killed after he barricaded himself in his home in the Woodlawn neighborhood on the city’s south side.
US federal prisoner dies after more than 35 years in solitary confinement
By Kate Randall, 27 May 2019
The dehumanizing conditions of solitary confinement described by Dickens in 1842 have been replaced in the 21st century with its “modern” version, used widely in the US prison system.
Supreme Court justices battle over execution delays
By John Burton, 20 May 2019
In opinions last week, the three most extreme right-wing Supreme Court justices lashed out at two fellow members of the five-vote right-wing bloc.
Alabama abortion ban: Back to barbarism
By Patrick Martin, 16 May 2019
The purpose of the law is to give the new right-wing majority on the US Supreme Court the opportunity to overturn Roe v. Wade.
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