America's Brutal Society
Hundreds rally in Pittsburgh to demand justice for unarmed teen killed by police
By Samuel Davidson, 22 June 2018
Antwon Rose, a 17-year-old Woodland Hills High School honor student, was shot three times in the back Tuesday as he ran from a traffic stop.
Survivors Guide to Prison: The American nightmare
By Joanne Laurier, 22 June 2018
This documentary exposé of the US prison and criminal justice system includes a host of celebrities commenting on the phenomenon of mass incarceration.
Mexican immigrants seek asylum amidst growing social inequality and crime
By Clodomiro Puentes, 20 June 2018
The majority are forced to make the long and risky journey to seek political asylum in the US, due to cartel-related crime and violence in Mexico.
US becomes first nation to quit UN human rights body
By Bill Van Auken, 20 June 2018
The decision came after the head of the council condemned both Washington’s policy of separating children from their families at the border and the US-backed war in Yemen.
The United States of America: Land of internment camps
By Eric London, 20 June 2018
The attack on immigrants and democratic rights is of urgent importance to the entire working class.
Five die fleeing US immigration police as children spend Father’s Day in jail
By Eric London, 18 June 2018
The five immigrants died in a car crash in south Texas, while seven others were wounded in what police called “good police work.”
Video shows Border Patrol vehicle fleeing after striking Native American man
By Norisa Diaz, 18 June 2018
The Tohono O’odham are seen as a stone in the shoe of Washington as its members have historically moved freely across the current US-Mexico border.
Illinois Governor calls for reinstatement of the death penalty
By Michael Walters, 9 June 2018
Republican Governor Bruce Rauner issued an amendatory veto to gun control legislation which would, if approved, make the killing of two or more people or police officers capital crimes.
US Border Patrol execution of undocumented Guatemalan woman sparks anger and nationwide protests
By Alec Andersen, 4 June 2018
Claudia Gomez Gonzalez, 19, was summarily executed by a Border Patrol agent in the border town of Rio Bravo near Laredo, Texas, on May 23.
New effort to cover up impact of lead poisoning in Flint
By James Brewer, 30 May 2018
A resolution reportedly passed by doctors at Flint Hurley Medical Center puts forward the false narrative that no one was lead poisoned in Flint, but lead-exposed.
US Border Patrol agent executes Guatemalan woman
By Alec Andersen, 28 May 2018
The summary execution of Claudia Gonzalez comes amid a sharp escalation in the Trump administration’s campaign of terror against immigrant communities.
The nightmare inside America’s child immigrant jails
By Eric London, 25 May 2018
An ACLU report details widespread rape, beatings and neglect by prison guards in America’s immigration jails.
Police engaged in 25-minute shootout with Texas high school gunman
By Kate Randall, 21 May 2018
According to the Galveston County sheriff, it is unclear whether some of the Santa Fe High School victims were in fact shot by police officers responding to the shooting.
Ten killed in mass shooting at Texas high school
By Trévon Austin, 19 May 2018
The horrific frequency of mass shootings in the US is indicative of a diseased society, combining extreme levels of social alienation with the endless promotion of militarism by the ruling class.
US plans to detain minors on military bases as Trump calls immigrants “animals”
By Bill Van Auken, 18 May 2018
A savage new immigration policy will result in tens of thousands of children being separated from their parents and sent to detention centers.
US Senate pays homage to CIA torturer
By Bill Van Auken, 10 May 2018
Gina Haspel, nominated by Trump to head the CIA, defended her intimate role in the torture of detainees as “lawful” at her Senate confirmation hearing.
Ben Carson: “Poverty, to a large extent, is also a state of mind”
US housing secretary proposes tripling rent for poorest households
By Kate Randall, 27 April 2018
Carson's proposal comes amidst a housing crisis that is forcing millions to live in squalid conditions and driving increasing numbers of people into homelessness.
Tennessee Waffle House shooting leaves four dead and several injured
By Trévon Austin, 23 April 2018
While police have yet to determine a motive for the shooting, many signs point to the suspected perpetrator suffering from a long history of mental illness.
Anger mounts over police killing of unarmed man in Barstow, California
By Alec Andersen, 23 April 2018
Police unleashed a hail of 30 bullets into a car being driven by 26-year-old Diante Yarber, killing him and wounding two passengers.
Alabama executes 83-year-old Walter Leroy Moody
Oldest inmate put to death in modern era
By Kate Randall, 21 April 2018
The US Supreme Court cleared the way for the lethal injection, first issuing a temporary stay 15 minutes before the scheduled execution and then lifting it later without explanation.
Trump signs executive order attacking US social programs
By Matthew Taylor, 13 April 2018
President Trump signed an executive order Tuesday requiring his cabinet to target for destruction any social programs that do not have work requirements.
East Kentucky residents hit by rate hikes and shutoffs of undrinkable water
By Phyllis Steele, 10 April 2018
The Public Service Commission announced a rate increase and water surcharge fee for Martin County residents who have been fighting contaminated water and service interruptions.
City of Detroit resuming brutal policy of mass water shutoffs
By Debra Watson, 5 April 2018
Amidst talk of Detroit making a “comeback” the city is preparing to once again carry out the mass disruption of water service to thousands of low income residents.
Sheriff’s deputy runs down Sacramento protester and flees scene
By Alec Andersen, 2 April 2018
A woman taking part in demonstrations against the police murder of Stephon Clark Saturday evening had to be transported to the hospital after a Sacramento County sheriff’s deputy struck her with his SUV and fled the scene.
Fourth suicide since June at Hudson County, New Jersey jail
By Mark Ferretti, 31 March 2018
Carlos Borroto’s suicide is only the latest product of the criminal neglect and inadequate health care that has persisted for years at the Hudson County jail.
Pulse nightclub shooter’s father was an FBI informant
By Niles Niemuth, 27 March 2018
Critical details about Omar Mateen’s father’s decade-long relationship with the FBI came out this week during the trial of Noor Salman, who has been charged as an accomplice in the 2016 mass shooting.
Tens of thousands protest mass shootings in New York, Michigan, Boston and the southern United States
By Tom Hall, 27 March 2018
IYSSE members and supporters spoke to demonstrators at a large number of demonstrations throughout the country.
“This can be turned around by people who want to build a new society”
California: Protesters denounce war and social inequality
By our reporters, 27 March 2018
The large turnout in the most populous US state reflects a political shift, as a new generation of young people are being thrust into politics for the first time.
African immigrants report grave abuses at West Texas detention center
By Meenakshi Jagadeesan and Norisa Diaz, 26 March 2018
Around 80 immigrant men have been subjected to horrific physical abuses, alleged hate crimes, and sexual abuse, according to a report recently cited by the Intercept.
Another New York City taxi driver commits suicide due to financial ruin
By Sandy English, 26 March 2018
Nicanor Ochisor killed himself after a dramatic decline in his income due to the deregulation of Uber and other e-hailing services in the city.
The protests against school shootings and the growth of the class struggle
By Joseph Kishore, 24 March 2018
The simultaneous development of a movement among workers and student youth portends a major eruption of social and class conflict in the United States and internationally.
Now available from Mehring Books
New pamphlet: The social and political roots of mass shootings in America
By Shannon Jones, 24 March 2018
There is a growing awareness that something is deeply amiss with the present social order.
Confessed Austin, Texas bomber dead in apparent suicide blast
By Niles Niemuth, 23 March 2018
Police officials announced that 23-year-old Mark Anthony Conditt confessed on video to the string of package bombings that killed two and wounded five others, but no apparent motive has been determined.
Trial begins for Border Patrol agent who murdered Mexican teenager
By Kevin Martinez, 23 March 2018
Opening arguments were heard in the trial of a Border Patrol agent who shot and killed 16-year-old Mexican Jose Antonio Elena Rodriguez for allegedly throwing rocks near the US-Mexico border in 2012.
Officials call for more police in schools after shooting in suburban Maryland
By Nick Barrickman, 22 March 2018
The most recent school shooting comes just days before Saturday’s scheduled “March for Our Lives” protests in Washington, DC and across the United States.
Fourth bomb blast in three weeks sends panic through Austin, Texas
By Trévon Austin, 20 March 2018
After the latest explosion, police believe a serial bomber is behind the incidents.
Alabama and Georgia carry out executions, Oklahoma to begin using nitrogen gas
By Alec Andersen, 17 March 2018
Two successive executions by lethal injection Thursday night followed the announcement that death row prisoners in Oklahoma would soon be killed through asphyxiation.
Three package bombs explode in Austin, Texas, killing two
By Trévon Austin, 16 March 2018
While the Austin police agree that the bombings over the last two weeks are related, they have yet to suggest a motive or a suspected perpetrator.
The significance of the mass student protests against gun violence in America
By Genevieve Leigh, 16 March 2018
While Democrats and the media have sought to restrict the protests to calls for gun control, there are much broader issues behind the politicization of young people in the US.
One million students walk out of class to protest gun violence and mass shootings in the US
By Genevieve Leigh and Kayla Costa, 15 March 2018
Students participated in thousands of demonstrations in the United States and around the world to mark the one-month anniversary of the Parkland high school massacre.
The social and political roots of mass shootings in America
the International Youth and Students for Social Equality, 14 March 2018
The framework of the official debate over the horrific regularity of mass shootings like that in Parkland, Florida obscures the underlying causes: social inequality and war.
Details emerge about Northern California veterans home shooting suspect
By Alec Andersen, 13 March 2018
Albert Cheung Wong, a 36-year-old veteran of the war in Afghanistan, has been identified as the man who allegedly killed three hostages at the veterans care facility Friday.
Anger mounts over video of police beating unarmed man in North Carolina
By Alec Andersen, 9 March 2018
Although the beating of Johnnie Rush occurred in August, the public was not informed until police body camera footage was leaked to a local newspaper this week.
Alabama death row inmate’s lawyer: “This was clearly a botched execution that can only be accurately described as torture”
By Kate Randall, 28 February 2018
Doyle Hamm was subjected to about two-and-a-half hours of torture Thursday night in Alabama’s death chamber before prison officials called off the execution.
Tennessee death row inmates challenge plan to fast-track executions
By Zachary Thorton and Warren Duzak, 27 February 2018
Tennessee is seeking to fast-track the executions of eight death row inmates before the state’s supply of lethal injection drugs expires.
In wake of Parkland school shooting, Republicans and Democrats call for boosting police powers
By Kate Randall, 26 February 2018
What is not being addressed in the official debate are the social issues that lie at the root of repeated eruptions of mass violence in America.
Florida inmate denounces governor, screams “Murderers!” before lethal injection
By Kate Randall, 24 February 2018
Despite briefs filed by a group of former judges, Florida Supreme Court justices and other professionals, the US Supreme Court denied a stay of execution.
The Parkland shooting: Why are mass killings so common in the United States?
By Eric London, 23 February 2018
Thousands of students have joined demonstrations in the aftermath of the latest eruption of homicidal violence. But to stop the killings, they need to understand the deeper social and political roots of these tragedies.
Student protests spread over US school shootings
By Patrick Martin, 22 February 2018
Thousands of students took part in demonstrations and school walkouts from coast to coast, while a delegation of survivors of the Parkland massacre visited the White House.
Mounting protests, walkouts by US students against school shootings
By Kate Randall, 21 February 2018
Protesting students have aimed their fire at local politicians, the US Congress and President Trump over their failure to do anything to stop school shootings.
Trump administration pursues inhumane policy of separating migrant children from parents
By Meenakshi Jagadeesan, 21 February 2018
The systematic separating of children of undocumented immigrants from their parents is part of a conscious policy to “discourage border crossings.”
Records show neglect of Florida school gunman’s mental health
By Trévon Austin, 19 February 2018
Cruz’s counselor told the Florida Department of Children and Families that he was reported to have “an emotional behavioral disability” and was diagnosed with autism.
Funerals begin in Florida as details emerge of prior warnings about school shooter
By Patrick Martin, 17 February 2018
The FBI admitted that it had received two separate warnings about the Nikolas Cruz, the second, only six weeks ago, suggesting he was likely to target a school.
The Parkland massacre and the dysfunction of American society
By Patrick Martin, 16 February 2018
The horrifying frequency of mass killings in the United States testifies to the advanced state of societal breakdown.
Seventeen killed in mass shooting at Florida high school
By Barry Grey, 15 February 2018
The mass shooting in Parkland is the latest in an endless series of violent incidents at schools in America.
One dead as fires strike homeless encampments in Oakland, California
By Guillaume Garnier and David Brown, 14 February 2018
A fire that burned down the tents of roughly 20 people in a semi-official encampment was followed by a blaze in a separate camp that killed one man.
Tennessee police deliberately murder fleeing unarmed suspect, as sheriff boasts, “I love this sh*t”
By Dan Conway, 9 February 2018
A lawsuit is being brought against a Tennessee sheriff after footage revealed him encouraging other officers involved in a car chase to kill the man they were pursuing.
Deliberate neglect leads to inmate death at New York’s Rikers Island
By Leslie Murtagh and Philip Guelpa, 3 February 2018
The planned closure of Rikers Island will do nothing to stem police brutality and abuse of prisoners in New York City.
Supreme Court issues last-minute stay of execution of Alabama inmate
By Kate Randall, 26 January 2018
The US Supreme Court issued a stay of execution in the case of Alabama death row inmate Vernon Madison 30 minutes before the scheduled lethal injection.
Another American mass shooting, this time in western Kentucky
By Tom Eley, 25 January 2018
Media and politicians dare not confront the most glaringly obvious question: Why do these attacks happen with such horrifying regularity in the United States?
Texas carries out first US execution of 2018
By Kate Randall, 19 January 2018
Anthony Allen Shore, 55, was killed by a lethal injection of one dose of pentobarbital, a short-acting barbiturate.
US police kill over a thousand for fourth year in a row
By George Gallanis, 27 December 2017
The killing of thousands in the span of a few years is an indication of growing fear and hatred of the working class in ruling class circles.
Horrific death at Ohio meatpacking plant
Industrial carnage continues in US workplaces
By Jerry White, 18 December 2017
A 62-year-old immigrant worker is the latest victim in a wave of industrial fatalities in the US. On-the-job injuries claim nearly 5,000 lives every year.
UN rapporteur “shocked” by deep poverty in US
By Eric London, 18 December 2017
A statement by UN Special Rapporteur Philip Alston details the nightmarish conditions faced by tens of millions of impoverished Americans and condemns the US government for human rights abuses.
West Virginia governor orders National Guard to Huntington after drug-related killings
By Naomi Spencer, 16 December 2017
After three homicides in the span of as many hours Thursday night, the city at the heart of West Virginia’s heroin epidemic stands on the verge of military occupation.
Government report details human rights violations at US immigration detention centers
By Norisa Diaz, 16 December 2017
According to a Department of Homeland Security report, inhumane treatment, lack of health, food, and safety provisions are rampant at both government and for-profit detention centers.
Nevada and Nebraska move to use powerful opioid in state executions
By Nick Barrickman, 11 December 2017
Fentanyl is a powerful synthetic painkiller that has been linked to a substantial number of drug overdoses throughout the US.
Homeless rate among Seattle public school students rises by 55 percent
By Alec Andersen, 8 December 2017
Between 2012 and 2016, in the city with the two richest men in America, the rate of homelessness among public school students skyrocketed.
Louisiana man wrongfully convicted of rape leaves prison after nearly 46 years
By Kate Randall, 18 November 2017
A state district judge called the case against Wilbert Jones “weak, at best,” and said authorities withheld evidence that could have exonerated him in 1974.
Ohio sets new execution date for 69-year-old inmate
By Kate Randall, 17 November 2017
Alva Campbell’s execution-gone-wrong casts a grim light on all that is repugnant about capital punishment and how it is practiced in 21st century America.
Five dead after mass shooting in small California town
By Hector Cordon, 15 November 2017
Apparently picking out victims at random, the gunman opened fire at houses, cars and in several locations, including an elementary school.
“We have to make sure Jacoby Hennings didn’t die in vain”
Workers denounce scourge of suicides inside US auto plants
By Jerry White, 15 November 2017
The death of the 21-year-old Ford worker amid a rash of suicides in the industry is an indictment of the United Auto Workers union, which long ago abandoned the defense of workers’ interests.
Rhode Island: State and Providence police shoot dead unarmed driver trying to escape traffic stop
By John Marion, 13 November 2017
Based on an erroneous tip about another crime, police provoked a high-speed traffic chase that ended in their firing some 40 bullets into a pickup truck and killing Joseph J. Santos.
Texas executes Mexican national in disregard of international law
By Trévon Austin, 9 November 2017
Ruben Ramirez Cárdenas was executed late Wednesday night via lethal injection after a last-minute appeal by his attorneys to the US Supreme Court was rejected.
US Supreme Court upholds execution of Alabama prisoner who cannot remember his crime
By Kate Randall, 8 November 2017
The high court reversed a federal appeals court ruling that struck down the death sentence of Vernon Madison, 67, who suffers from dementia and memory impairment.
Twenty-six dead in Texas church massacre: A society ravaged by pathological violence
By Kate Randall, 7 November 2017
Although the perpetrators of mass shootings are invariably deranged individuals, there are always deeper societal issues at work.
Over 25 killed in mass shooting in Texas
By Trévon Austin, 6 November 2017
Officials say nearly everyone inside the church was injured, including children and pregnant women.
Review of Tennessee’s bail bond system exposes inequalities in US justice system
By Warren Duzak, 25 October 2017
At a recent public meeting, the Metro Nashville Public Defender reviewed the arcane practice of bail bonding and its impact on working class and poor defendants.
Alabama man raises arms, grimaces as state puts him to death by lethal injection
By Shelley Connor, 21 October 2017
Some pharmacologists have suggested that as many as one in four executions where midazolam is used are botched.
Robert Pruett, first imprisoned at age 16, executed in Texas despite questions about evidence
By Kate Randall, 13 October 2017
The execution of the 38-year-old who spent more time in prison than the outside world is a horrific crime. “One day there won’t be a need to hurt people,” he said in his final statement.
Washington, DC holds worker in jail for months after charges dropped
By Harvey Simpkins, 9 October 2017
The plight of Carlton O. Harris is yet another example of the class-based US legal system and the erosion of fundamental democratic rights.
A week on America’s death row
A lethal injection in Florida, stay of execution in Alabama
By Kate Randall, 7 October 2017
Michael Lambrix was executed Thursday night in Florida, while Jeffrey Borden was issued a last-minute state of execution in Alabama.
The Las Vegas massacre the day after
By David Walsh, 4 October 2017
US politicians and the American media are displaying their usual obtuseness and ignorance in the face of this terrible tragedy, that has ruined hundreds, if not thousands of lives.
The social pathology of the Las Vegas Massacre
By Patrick Martin, 3 October 2017
The worst mass shooting in American history has left 59 people dead and at least 527 wounded.
Alleged Nashville shooting brings social relations into relief
By Warren Duzak, 19 September 2017
Gerald Melton, was shot August 26 after he allegedly objected to the sound of loud music and exhaust fumes coming from a Porsche driven by Katie Quackenbush, 26.
New details highlight criminal neglect in death of Florida nursing home residents
By Niles Niemuth, 15 September 2017
The deaths in Hollywood, Florida have exposed the incompetence and indifference of the American ruling class, which bears ultimate responsibility for this social crime.
Ohio’s second execution of the year: Condemned man writhed in pain as he was killed
By Shelley Connor, 15 September 2017
In January, a federal appeals court responded to litigation by several death row inmates over the use of midazolam by halting executions in Ohio.
United Airlines dodges government discipline for brutalizing passenger
By Marcus Day, 9 September 2017
The US Department of Transportation declined to sanction United Airlines for having Dr. David Dao violently dragged from a flight in April.
Florida executes Mark Asay with untested lethal injection protocol
By Kate Randall, 25 August 2017
Asay was the first person executed by a new protocol that includes the anesthetic etomidate, whose use in lethal injections was condemned by the drug manufacturer.
Missouri governor issues last-minute stay of execution for Marcellus Williams
By Kate Randall, 23 August 2017
Williams’ attorneys argue that he is innocent, and that DNA tests of the murder weapon produced “conclusive scientific evidence that another man committed this crime.”
Baltimore: More videos released showing police officers “manufacturing evidence”
By Adam Soroka, 15 August 2017
The footage came just a week after a previous video showed an officer planting a bag of pills under a pile of garbage in an alley as two other officers looked on.
Reports of women shackled in labor
Barbaric conditions persist in Massachusetts women’s prisons
By Jay James, 8 August 2017
Pregnant women and new mothers in Massachusetts women’s prisons are being subjected to humiliating and dangerous practices, such as shackling during labor, transportation in vehicles with no seatbelts, and denial of nutritional needs.
US court denies damage claim for American citizen wrongfully held for more than three years by ICE
By Nick Barrickman, 4 August 2017
Davino Watson was denied payment for damages on the grounds that the statute of limitations had passed while he was still being wrongfully detained.
Video released of 2013 incident
Border agents urged 16-year-old boy to drink liquid meth, resulting in his death
By Genevieve Leigh, 1 August 2017
No punitive measure was ever brought against the officers, and both remain employed by Customs and Border Protection in San Diego.
18-year-old released from New York’s Rikers Island prison after more than a year without trial
By Katy Kinner, 1 August 2017
Bronx honor student Pedro Hernandez was arrested last year for a crime he did not commit. Faced with a $255,000 bail, he was forced to await his trial in prison.
Texas executes man who received grossly ineffective counsel
By Kate Randall, 29 July 2017
The US Supreme Court rejected a last-minute appeal on TaiChin Preyor’s behalf, allowing the lethal injection to proceed.
US Supreme Court clears way for lethal injection
Ohio carries out first execution in more than three years
By Kate Randall, 27 July 2017
There are three more death row prisoners set to die this year in Ohio and an additional 23 executions scheduled from 2018 through 2019.
Tenth immigrant dies in Texas trailer atrocity
By Genevieve Leigh, 25 July 2017
The corporate media is saying nothing about the government officials, business interests and politicians who bear the overriding responsibility for these deaths.
Tennessee judge offers reduced sentences to inmates who agree to sterilization
By Isaac Finn, 22 July 2017
The order is a return to the ultra-reactionary eugenics policies of an earlier era, as a supposed solution to the immense poverty and ongoing opioid crisis in the US.
Notes on police violence
Woman killed by Minneapolis police had called to report a rape
By Matthew MacEgan and Niles Niemuth, 20 July 2017
Minneapolis police officers claim they thought they were being “ambushed” when they shot the 40-year-old yoga teacher through the door of their cruiser Saturday night.
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