thenation--2020-09-09--These Big City Mayors Want Green Stimulus Spending to Counter Covid-19

This story is part of a collaboration between The Nation and InsideClimate News as part of Covering Climate Now , a global journalistic collaboration strengthening coverage of the climate story .
The piece below focuses on cities ; to read how green recovery spending can impact rural areas , click here .
Trillions of dollars are on the table , as governments around the world seek to dig out from the economic crater caused by the coronavirus .
With time also running short to avoid the worst of the climate crisis , the growing consensus among world leaders is that @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ” “ This terrible challenge that has caused so much suffering is an opportunity , ” United Nations Secretary General António Guterres said yesterday in an interview with Covering Climate Now .
“ We can either rebuild as it was , which is a huge mistake , because of the fragilities of the world , or we can rebuild a more inclusive and more sustainable economy and society.
” The secretary general ’ s comments echoed statements in favor of a “ green ” stimulus by the European Union , the International Monetary @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and BlackRock , the world ’ s largest investments asset manager .
Climate-conscious stimulus spending creates more jobs per dollar invested than do expenditures on fossil fuel projects , according to an Oxford University study of more than 700 stimulus programs initiated after the 2008 global financial crisis .
Nevertheless , with the exception of the EU , a majority of Covid-19 recovery spending to date by the world ’ s leading economies has reinforced the carbon-intensive status quo , propping up the very economic sectors and practices that have driven the climate @ @ @ @ @ @ @ airline industries .
States Are Doing What Big Government Won ’ t to Stop Climate Change At the local level , however , leaders are calling for a better way .
In a recent letter coordinated by the C40 Cities Climate Leadership Group , dozens of mayors from the world ’ s biggest cities declared that the economic recovery “ should not be a return to ‘ business as usual , ’ because [ business as usual is ] on track for 3 degrees Celsius or more of over-heating.
” What ’ s @ @ @ @ @ @ @ have existing and “ shovel-ready ” projects that could put climate-smart stimulus spending to work right away , if only national governments or central banks provide it .
“ Mayors are in a position to really define what a recovery from Covid-19 looks like , ” David Miller , a former mayor of Toronto and C40 ’ s North American director , said in an interview .
“ It ’ s not just their voices advocating to the national governments ; it ’ s their actions demonstrating what ’ s possible.
” Here @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , Miami ’ s Republican mayor , has been consistently aggressive on climate .
Dismissing the idea that taking climate change seriously makes him somehow less conservative , Suarez says the idea of a green stimulus is “ music to my ears.
” States Are Doing What Big Government Won ’ t to Stop Climate Change The Sitting President Has No Climate Plan .
Why Isn ’ t That Headline News ?
During the Conventions , the Media Needs to Be Treating Climate Like the Emergency It Is More in this series In @ @ @ @ @ @ @ was elected , Miamians voted to authorize a $ 400 million “ Miami Forever ” bond that seeks to develop long-term resilience for the city , including against sea-level rise , flooding , and hurricane storm surge .
That means building seawalls , installing stormwater pumps with valved outfalls ( so water ejected from the city into water bodies is clean and doesn ’ t damage local ecosystems ) , and physically raising some city roads .
Flooding in the city is already routine , putting billions of dollars in property at risk @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of Miami-Dade county is less than six feet above sea level—anxiously looking for somewhere else to go .
This past November , Suarez led Miami to declare a “ climate change emergency.
” But $ 400 million isn ’ t nearly enough to prepare Miami for the full extent of what ’ s coming , Suarez said .
And Covid-19 budget cuts have only complicated matters : Recently , the city weighed eliminating its chief resilience officer , for instance .
“ Miami Forever was sort of a down payment , ” Suarez @ @ @ @ @ @ @ going to solve all our problems .
So , if we were to get a stimulus , we would be able to put the money to use right away.
” A green stimulus would also give a boost , Suarez said , to more ambitious , engineered solutions in the works .
Large urban reservoirs , designed to trap and expel excess waters , are under construction along the inland Miami River , and along the ocean-side Biscayne Bay .
The benefits are three-fold , Suarez said : elevating the sea wall , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the form of a reservoir , and creating new public space .
“ And whenever you ’ re investing in public spaces , you get infinite return , because by their very nature they ’ re not going anywhere , ” Suarez said .
Climate change notwithstanding , new residents are still flocking to the Magic City , and gentrification is rampant .
With typically wealthy coast-dwellers now retreating inland to higher ground , the city recently established an anti-climate-gentrification fund , but the program is not deeply funded .
“ With stimulus @ @ @ @ @ @ @ supplement to the fund , ” Suarez said .
“ We ’ re trying to give homeowners the ability to make their homes more resilient to climate change so that they don ’ t have to sell and move out.
” Phoenix is hot .
It ’ s among the fastest-warming cities in the United States , with temperatures topping 100 degrees on 103 days in 2019 .
This summer was the city ’ s hottest season ever .
And for four years running , Phoenix has set records for heat-related deaths .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ Transportation Department fast-tracked a “ cool pavement ” pilot program .
Roads in eight neighborhoods are being outfitted with a special , water-based treatment that is lighter in color than traditional asphalt and reflects sunlight instead of absorbing it .
If the cool pavement proves effective in mitigating the urban “ heat island ” effect—and is resilient to Phoenix ’ s high temperatures , persistent sunshine , and monsoon storms—officials hope to implement it far and wide in the city .
Meanwhile , however , the Covid-19 lockdown has shrunk potential sources of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ way down on public transit , fare collection has fallen by more than 50 percent .
To ensure that cooling projects and sustainable development continue to reach the city ’ s residents , Phoenix needs a green stimulus , said Mayor Kate Gallego .
Federal support , Gallego said , would aid the expansion of cooled bus stops , shaded walking paths , and elevated solar panels around the city .
The solar panels would provide not only electricity but also badly needed shade in open areas , especially in lower-income neighborhoods where @ @ @ @ @ @ @ guaranteed .
In 2019 , Arizona was the state with the sixth most solar-related jobs—last year , the state produced enough solar energy to power three-quarters of a million homes—and nearly 90 percent of those jobs reside in the Phoenix metropolitan area .
But the economic slowdown following the coronavirus hit the solar industry hard .
Thousands of solar jobs were lost , and plans to expand solar deployment in Arizona were dramatically scaled back .
Federal funding , especially for workforce training and development , could help the industry bounce back .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ to help people and businesses , particularly in low-income areas , adopt solar and other green technologies , such as more efficient windows , air conditioners and other appliances .
“ There are so many energy efficiency products that pay for themselves over time , but there are upfront [ financial ] barriers to some people taking advantage , ” Gallego explained .
“ There are beautiful and important ideas waiting to happen , ” the mayor added .
“ If the federal government could lead the way , there are so many @ @ @ @ @ @ @ when local government needs them most.
” Bogotá ’ s mayor says developing nations can be sustainability leaders In Colombia , the funds a city receives from the national government are more or less fixed in the constitution , based on the city ’ s population and relative wealth compared with other parts of the country .
When it comes to a stimulus , then , it ’ s a matter less of lobbying for better support than of rebalancing priorities in Bogotá ’ s budget .
That ’ s fine for the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ who already counted climate action among her foremost priorities in Bogotá .
The coronavirus pandemic has caused a significant shortfall in tax collection , so this is a time for fearless and intelligent use of debt , López said .
“ This is a time to invest heavily and push .
This moment [ calls for ] a Keynesian approach .
If we start doing some neoliberal solution , we ’ ll only depress the economy.
” López , who began her four-year term this January , is the first member of Colombia @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Bogotá ’ s mayorship , generally viewed as the second-most-important elected position in the country after president .
López is also the first woman—and the first gay woman—elected to the post .
“ We don ’ t want to just comply [ with UN climate goals ] .
We want to be a world leader , ” López said .
“ We want to be a big , developing city in a developing country leading not only in what we achieve but in how we achieve it.
” Equity and reconciliation are foremost @ @ @ @ @ @ @ a country that is recovering from a long and recent civil war .
“ What we do has to be sustainable in both climate change and social inclusion terms , otherwise it ’ s not really sustainable in the long-term , ” López said .
In the near-term , López plans to implement a universal basic income and invest heavily in education , especially post-secondary education , with a focus on skills that lead to green jobs in digital and knowledge-based economic sectors .
Before the pandemic hit , López ’ s government @ @ @ @ @ @ @ in the city , where air pollution levels often are more than twice as high as the World Health Organization recommends , contributing to thousands of deaths annually .
Cleaning up the air means changing how Bogotá gets around .
Since March , the city has added 80 kilometers of new bikeways , adding to the 500-some already in place .
By the end of her term , López hopes to add 300 kilometers more , taking space away from cars directly and giving it to bikers : “ inverting the pyramid ” @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the city , López said , enough that 80 percent of commuters in the city will be able to get around by bike if they choose to .
( López has set an example in this regard , biking seven kilometers from home to her inauguration ceremony in Bogotá ’ s Parque Simón Bolívar . )
The city will also aim to replace its buses with lower-emissions models and push forward with a new , all-electric mass transit system .
All of these plans were already in the works , López said , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ’ s front-loading them and striking while the iron is hot .
“ We have no choice , ” she explained .
“ Just like we have no choice to wear masks and social distance and invest to improve our health and testing systems , there is no point to discuss here .
The way we produce , the way we live , the way we consume , it ’ s simply unsustainable for humanity .
We need to act.
” Paris champions “ the 15-minute city ” to cut both stress and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ prompted cities to reclaim streets from cars and preserve them for bikes and pedestrians .
In Paris , that work had been underway for years .
Since her inauguration in 2014 , mayor Anne Hidalgo has eliminated thousands of on-street parking spots across Paris , barred high-polluting vehicles from entering the city , and banned cars from some streets entirely , including along the river Seine .
Still , the lockdown this spring offered a calming , if uneasy , glimpse of what a green future could look like in the City of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ” Hidalgo recently told Time magazine .
“ We could hear birds.
” Environmental pledges were central to Hidalgo ’ s campaign for reelection , which she won this June by a landslide .
Hidalgo championed “ the 15-minute city , ” a planning concept in which neighborhoods function as villages unto themselves , where virtually all needs can be met with 15 minutes or less of walking or biking : stores , restaurants , fitness centers , schools , banks , work centers , and more .
The need for cars , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ city , or la Ville du quart d ’ heure , represents a shift away from the conventional zoning wisdom , which separates residential and commercial districts , that has dominated city development over the past century , said Carlos Moreno , an urban planning advisor to Hidalgo and professor at the Sorbonne .
It ’ s not just Paris that ’ s going green .
France is in the midst of a “ green wave , ” with environmental party candidates winning mayoral elections in June in large cities across the country @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , and Bordeaux .
The election marked a decided shift , commentators said , toward public concern for climate action , driven perhaps in part by the unbearable heat of recent summers in Western Europe ; Emmanuel Macron , the centrist president , has suggested a referendum to amend the country ’ s constitution to include language about fighting climate change .
With people ’ s movement necessarily constricted , the pandemic shutdown was a great time to pilot many aspects of the 15-minute city , including a further reclamation of public space @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , he added , the 15-minute city will prove key to Paris ’ s economic revitalization .
As part of a “ big bang of proximity , ” as Hidalgo puts it , the city will move to reimagine work life , revolutionize child and elder care , revisit dated real estate practices , and ensure that cafés and cultural opportunities are more ubiquitous in all 20 arrondissements .
In theory , this will help rekindle economic activity citywide , Moreno said—including in parts of the city that were underdeveloped and marginalized under @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
But to do all of this , while also ensuring that those devastated financially by the coronavirus shutdown don ’ t fall through society ’ s cracks , will take spending .
“ Automatically , we will have a deficit , ” Moreno said .
The 15-minute city is a Paris project , and not something that requires explicit support or approval from France ’ s central government .
But the central government can , Moreno said , help the city stay afloat financially as it charts a way forward in this @ @ @ @ @ @ @ a green stimulus would “ supercharge ” the shift to EVs In the car capital of the world , it ’ s little surprise that plans for tackling climate change would focus on how Angelenos move .
As a part of the city ’ s extensive and thorough Green New Deal , announced by Mayor Eric Garcetti in the spring of 2019 , work is underway to electrify the city ’ s bus fleet and to get more car owners into electric vehicles ; the goal is for a complete , citywide transition @ @ @ @ @ @ @ requires installing more EV chargers .
The city ’ s Green New Deal calls for increasing the number of chargers from 8,000 at present to 10,000 by 2022 and 28,000 by 2028 .
That was the plan , at least .
But the coronavirus lockdown is forecast to cost the city ’ s transit agency , which partially funds green initiatives , $ 1.8 billion—a quarter of all forecast revenues for 2020 , according to Doug Mensman , Los Angeles ’ s director of transportation .
That doesn ’ t mean that the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ will be scrapped , but all could be delayed or deferred .
“ It may take up to two years to recover to pre-Covid levels of financial security , so federal funding is imperative to backfill that loss , ” Mensman said .
The transition to low-emissions cars , in particular , is funded by Low Carbon Fuel Standard credits , which reward the sale and consumption of cleaner fuels .
But that requires a robust marketplace .
Here , too , the federal government can play a role , in part by @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the way of the future , said Lauren Faber O ’ Connor , LA ’ s chief sustainability officer .
The Trump administration has done the opposite , rolling back fuel emissions standards for gas-powered vehicles .
A crucial element of the city ’ s Green New Deal , O ’ Connor said , is that all the city ’ s residents reap the benefits of change .
That includes ensuring that jobs created through the Green New Deal reach historically underemployed populations .
“ We ’ re building a new economy .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ ensuring that everyone has the ability to participate in it.
” To help low-income residents access electric vehicles , the city ’ s EV car-share program , BlueLA , offers steeply subsidized rates to consumers who need them .
BlueLA is another program that could benefit immediately from climate-smart stimulus spending , O ’ Connor said .
“ We want to help people in every way to make the right decision.
” Los Angeles is also working to get drivers out of their cars and instead to choose public transportation , walking , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , such as scooters .
“ It ’ s not rocket science .
The solutions are there , ” O ’ Connor said .
“ We know what we need to do , and the strategies are no-regrets , economically and from a health perspective .
All signs point in this direction .
We just need the federal government to embrace it .
”

This story is part of a collaboration between The Nation and InsideClimate News as part of Covering Climate Now, a global journalistic collaboration strengthening coverage of the climate story. The piece below focuses on cities; to read how green recovery spending can impact rural areas, click here.
Trillions of dollars are on the table, as governments around the world seek to dig out from the economic crater caused by the coronavirus. With time also running short to avoid the worst of the climate crisis, the growing consensus among world leaders is that Covid-19 recovery spending must be “climate-smart.”
“This terrible challenge that has caused so much suffering is an opportunity,” United Nations Secretary General António Guterres said yesterday in an interview with Covering Climate Now. “We can either rebuild as it was, which is a huge mistake, because of the fragilities of the world, or we can rebuild a more inclusive and more sustainable economy and society.” The secretary general’s comments echoed statements in favor of a “green” stimulus by the European Union, the International Monetary Fund, the International Energy Agency, and BlackRock, the world’s largest investments asset manager.
Climate-conscious stimulus spending creates more jobs per dollar invested than do expenditures on fossil fuel projects, according to an Oxford University study of more than 700 stimulus programs initiated after the 2008 global financial crisis. Nevertheless, with the exception of the EU, a majority of Covid-19 recovery spending to date by the world’s leading economies has reinforced the carbon-intensive status quo, propping up the very economic sectors and practices that have driven the climate crisis, including the fossil fuel and airline industries. Rural Climate Change States Are Doing What Big Government Won’t to Stop Climate Change James Bruggers, Judy Fahys, Marianne Lavelle, Evelyn Nieves and Sabrina Shankman
At the local level, however, leaders are calling for a better way.
In a recent letter coordinated by the C40 Cities Climate Leadership Group, dozens of mayors from the world’s biggest cities declared that the economic recovery “should not be a return to ‘business as usual,’ because [business as usual is] on track for 3 degrees Celsius or more of over-heating.” What’s more, mayors say, their cities have existing and “shovel-ready” projects that could put climate-smart stimulus spending to work right away, if only national governments or central banks provide it. Popular "swipe left below to view more authors"Swipe → The Evisceration of a Public University The Evisceration of a Public University Lisa M. Corrigan The Patronizing Moralism of David Brooks The Patronizing Moralism of David Brooks Chris Lehmann “The Blind Side” Was Always Trash “The Blind Side” Was Always Trash Dave Zirin How the “Brooks Brothers Riot” Set the Stage for Insurrection How the “Brooks Brothers Riot” Set the Stage for Insurrection Chris Lehmann Popular "swipe left below to view more authors"Swipe → The Evisceration of a Public University The Evisceration of a Public University Lisa M. Corrigan The Patronizing Moralism of David Brooks The Patronizing Moralism of David Brooks Chris Lehmann “The Blind Side” Was Always Trash “The Blind Side” Was Always Trash Dave Zirin How the “Brooks Brothers Riot” Set the Stage for Insurrection How the “Brooks Brothers Riot” Set the Stage for Insurrection Chris Lehmann
“Mayors are in a position to really define what a recovery from Covid-19 looks like,” David Miller, a former mayor of Toronto and C40’s director of international diplomacy, said in an interview. “It’s not just their voices advocating to the national governments; it’s their actions demonstrating what’s possible.”
Here are five leading examples.
In Miami, a Republican mayor embraces climate-smart stimulus spending
Francis Suarez, Miami’s Republican mayor, has been consistently aggressive on climate. Dismissing the idea that taking climate change seriously makes him somehow less conservative, Suarez says the idea of a green stimulus is “music to my ears.” Covering Climate Now How to Stop the Spread of Climate Disinformation Erika Seiber and Michael Khoo A Soundtrack for the Climate Emergency Mark Hertsgaard Can Gen Z Save the Midterms for Democrats? Mark Hertsgaard
In 2017, on the same day Suarez was elected, Miamians voted to authorize a $400 million “Miami Forever” bond that seeks to develop long-term resilience for the city, including against sea-level rise, flooding, and hurricane storm surge. That means building seawalls, installing stormwater pumps with valved outfalls (so water ejected from the city into water bodies is clean and doesn’t damage local ecosystems), and physically raising some city roads.
Flooding in the city is already routine, putting billions of dollars in property at risk and leaving many low-lying residents—nearly 60 percent of Miami-Dade county is less than six feet above sea level—anxiously looking for somewhere else to go. This past November, Suarez led Miami to declare a “climate change emergency.”
But $400 million isn’t nearly enough to prepare Miami for the full extent of what’s coming, Suarez said. And Covid-19 budget cuts have only complicated matters: Recently, the city weighed eliminating its chief resilience officer, for instance. “Miami Forever was sort of a down payment,” Suarez said. “It’s not going to solve all our problems. So, if we were to get a stimulus, we would be able to put the money to use right away.”
A green stimulus would also give a boost, Suarez said, to more ambitious, engineered solutions in the works. Large urban reservoirs, designed to trap and expel excess waters, are under construction along the inland Miami River, and along the ocean-side Biscayne Bay. The benefits are three-fold, Suarez said: elevating the sea wall, creating a buffer for the community in the form of a reservoir, and creating new public space. “And whenever you’re investing in public spaces, you get infinite return, because by their very nature they’re not going anywhere,” Suarez said.
Climate change notwithstanding, new residents are still flocking to the Magic City, and gentrification is rampant. With typically wealthy coast-dwellers now retreating inland to higher ground, the city recently established an anti-climate-gentrification fund, but the program is not deeply funded. “With stimulus money, we would see a significant supplement to the fund,” Suarez said. “We’re trying to give homeowners the ability to make their homes more resilient to climate change so that they don’t have to sell and move out.”
Reviving a battered solar industry to help cool Phoenix
Phoenix is hot. It’s among the fastest-warming cities in the United States, with temperatures topping 100 degrees on 103 days in 2019. This summer was the city’s hottest season ever. And for four years running, Phoenix has set records for heat-related deaths.
This June, Phoenix’s Street Transportation Department fast-tracked a “cool pavement” pilot program. Roads in eight neighborhoods are being outfitted with a special, water-based treatment that is lighter in color than traditional asphalt and reflects sunlight instead of absorbing it. If the cool pavement proves effective in mitigating the urban “heat island” effect—and is resilient to Phoenix’s high temperatures, persistent sunshine, and monsoon storms—officials hope to implement it far and wide in the city.
Meanwhile, however, the Covid-19 lockdown has shrunk potential sources of funding for climate-smart projects. With ridership way down on public transit, fare collection has fallen by more than 50 percent. To ensure that cooling projects and sustainable development continue to reach the city’s residents, Phoenix needs a green stimulus, said Mayor Kate Gallego.
Federal support, Gallego said, would aid the expansion of cooled bus stops, shaded walking paths, and elevated solar panels around the city. The solar panels would provide not only electricity but also badly needed shade in open areas, especially in lower-income neighborhoods where regular access to air conditioning is not guaranteed.
In 2019, Arizona was the state with the sixth most solar-related jobs—last year, the state produced enough solar energy to power three-quarters of a million homes—and nearly 90 percent of those jobs reside in the Phoenix metropolitan area. But the economic slowdown following the coronavirus hit the solar industry hard. Thousands of solar jobs were lost, and plans to expand solar deployment in Arizona were dramatically scaled back. Federal funding, especially for workforce training and development, could help the industry bounce back.
The government could also provide up-front loans to help people and businesses, particularly in low-income areas, adopt solar and other green technologies, such as more efficient windows, air conditioners and other appliances. “There are so many energy efficiency products that pay for themselves over time, but there are upfront [financial] barriers to some people taking advantage,” Gallego explained.
“There are beautiful and important ideas waiting to happen,” the mayor added. “If the federal government could lead the way, there are so many transformative projects that could happen, just when local government needs them most.”
Bogotá’s mayor says developing nations can be sustainability leaders
In Colombia, the funds a city receives from the national government are more or less fixed in the constitution, based on the city’s population and relative wealth compared with other parts of the country. When it comes to a stimulus, then, it’s a matter less of lobbying for better support than of rebalancing priorities in Bogotá’s budget.
That’s fine for the new mayor, Claudia López Hernández, who already counted climate action among her foremost priorities in Bogotá. The coronavirus pandemic has caused a significant shortfall in tax collection, so this is a time for fearless and intelligent use of debt, López said. “This is a time to invest heavily and push. This moment [calls for] a Keynesian approach. If we start doing some neoliberal solution, we’ll only depress the economy.”
López, who began her four-year term this January, is the first member of Colombia’s center-left Green Party elected to Bogotá’s mayorship, generally viewed as the second-most-important elected position in the country after president. López is also the first woman—and the first gay woman—elected to the post. “We don’t want to just comply [with UN climate goals]. We want to be a world leader,” López said. “We want to be a big, developing city in a developing country leading not only in what we achieve but in how we achieve it.” Current Issue View our current issue
Equity and reconciliation are foremost on López’s mind, in a country that is recovering from a long and recent civil war. “What we do has to be sustainable in both climate change and social inclusion terms, otherwise it’s not really sustainable in the long-term,” López said. In the near-term, López plans to implement a universal basic income and invest heavily in education, especially post-secondary education, with a focus on skills that lead to green jobs in digital and knowledge-based economic sectors.
Before the pandemic hit, López’s government declared a general alarm for environmental pollution in the city, where air pollution levels often are more than twice as high as the World Health Organization recommends, contributing to thousands of deaths annually.
Cleaning up the air means changing how Bogotá gets around. Since March, the city has added 80 kilometers of new bikeways, adding to the 500-some already in place. By the end of her term, López hopes to add 300 kilometers more, taking space away from cars directly and giving it to bikers: “inverting the pyramid” of how transportation space is allocated in the city, López said, enough that 80 percent of commuters in the city will be able to get around by bike if they choose to. (López has set an example in this regard, biking seven kilometers from home to her inauguration ceremony in Bogotá’s Parque Simón Bolívar.) The city will also aim to replace its buses with lower-emissions models and push forward with a new, all-electric mass transit system.
All of these plans were already in the works, López said, but in the wake of Covid-19 she’s front-loading them and striking while the iron is hot. “We have no choice,” she explained. “Just like we have no choice to wear masks and social distance and invest to improve our health and testing systems, there is no point to discuss here. The way we produce, the way we live, the way we consume, it’s simply unsustainable for humanity. We need to act.”
Paris champions “the 15-minute city” to cut both stress and emissions
Around the world, pandemic shutdowns prompted cities to reclaim streets from cars and preserve them for bikes and pedestrians. In Paris, that work had been underway for years. Since her inauguration in 2014, mayor Anne Hidalgo has eliminated thousands of on-street parking spots across Paris, barred high-polluting vehicles from entering the city, and banned cars from some streets entirely, including along the river Seine. Still, the lockdown this spring offered a calming, if uneasy, glimpse of what a green future could look like in the City of Light. “We could breath,” Hidalgo recently told Time magazine. “We could hear birds.”
Environmental pledges were central to Hidalgo’s campaign for reelection, which she won this June by a landslide. Hidalgo championed “the 15-minute city,” a planning concept in which neighborhoods function as villages unto themselves, where virtually all needs can be met with 15 minutes or less of walking or biking: stores, restaurants, fitness centers, schools, banks, work centers, and more. The need for cars, in turn, decreases.
The 15-minute city, or la Ville du quart d’heure, represents a shift away from the conventional zoning wisdom, which separates residential and commercial districts, that has dominated city development over the past century, said Carlos Moreno, an urban planning advisor to Hidalgo and professor at the Sorbonne.
It’s not just Paris that’s going green. France is in the midst of a “green wave,” with environmental party candidates winning mayoral elections in June in large cities across the country, including Marseilles, Lyon, Strasbourg, and Bordeaux. The election marked a decided shift, commentators said, toward public concern for climate action, driven perhaps in part by the unbearable heat of recent summers in Western Europe; Emmanuel Macron, the centrist president, has suggested a referendum to amend the country’s constitution to include language about fighting climate change.
With people’s movement necessarily constricted, the pandemic shutdown was a great time to pilot many aspects of the 15-minute city, including a further reclamation of public space from cars, Moreno said. Now, he added, the 15-minute city will prove key to Paris’s economic revitalization. As part of a “big bang of proximity,” as Hidalgo puts it, the city will move to reimagine work life, revolutionize child and elder care, revisit dated real estate practices, and ensure that cafés and cultural opportunities are more ubiquitous in all 20 arrondissements. In theory, this will help rekindle economic activity citywide, Moreno said—including in parts of the city that were underdeveloped and marginalized under France’s old economic status quo.
But to do all of this, while also ensuring that those devastated financially by the coronavirus shutdown don’t fall through society’s cracks, will take spending. “Automatically, we will have a deficit,” Moreno said. The 15-minute city is a Paris project, and not something that requires explicit support or approval from France’s central government. But the central government can, Moreno said, help the city stay afloat financially as it charts a way forward in this difficult time.
In Los Angeles, a green stimulus would “supercharge” the shift to EVs
In the car capital of the world, it’s little surprise that plans for tackling climate change would focus on how Angelenos move.
As a part of the city’s extensive and thorough Green New Deal, announced by Mayor Eric Garcetti in the spring of 2019, work is underway to electrify the city’s bus fleet and to get more car owners into electric vehicles; the goal is for a complete, citywide transition to zero-emissions vehicles by 2050. That requires installing more EV chargers. The city’s Green New Deal calls for increasing the number of chargers from 8,000 at present to 10,000 by 2022 and 28,000 by 2028.
That was the plan, at least. But the coronavirus lockdown is forecast to cost the city’s transit agency, which partially funds green initiatives, $1.8 billion—a quarter of all forecast revenues for 2020, according to Doug Mensman, Los Angeles’s director of transportation. That doesn’t mean that the city’s Green New Deal projects will be scrapped, but all could be delayed or deferred. “It may take up to two years to recover to pre-Covid levels of financial security, so federal funding is imperative to backfill that loss,” Mensman said.
The transition to low-emissions cars, in particular, is funded by Low Carbon Fuel Standard credits, which reward the sale and consumption of cleaner fuels. But that requires a robust marketplace. Here, too, the federal government can play a role, in part by telling car manufacturers that low-emissions vehicles are the way of the future, said Lauren Faber O’Connor, LA’s chief sustainability officer. The Trump administration has done the opposite, rolling back fuel emissions standards for gas-powered vehicles.
A crucial element of the city’s Green New Deal, O’Connor said, is that all the city’s residents reap the benefits of change. That includes ensuring that jobs created through the Green New Deal reach historically underemployed populations. “We’re building a new economy. We need to be very deliberate about ensuring that everyone has the ability to participate in it.” To help low-income residents access electric vehicles, the city’s EV car-share program, BlueLA, offers steeply subsidized rates to consumers who need them. BlueLA is another program that could benefit immediately from climate-smart stimulus spending, O’Connor said. “We want to help people in every way to make the right decision.”
Los Angeles is also working to get drivers out of their cars and instead to choose public transportation, walking, bike share systems, or micromobility systems, such as scooters. “It’s not rocket science. The solutions are there,” O’Connor said. “We know what we need to do, and the strategies are no-regrets, economically and from a health perspective. All signs point in this direction. We just need the federal government to embrace it.”


thenation--2020-09-09--What Do Young Black Women Want From This Election?

This story is the first article to be published as part of StudentNation ’ s Vision 2020 Election Stories from the Next Generation , stories reported by young journalists that center the concerns of diverse young voters .
In this project , working with Dr. Sherri Williams , we recruited young journalists from different backgrounds to develop story ideas and reporting about their peers ’ concerns ahead of the most important election of our lives .
We ’ ll continue publishing two stories each week over the course of the next month .
On the night Barack Obama was elected @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the sound of bullets ringing outside her Louisiana home .
When she went outside to look , her friend ’ s car , adorned with a large pro-Obama bumper sticker , was riddled with holes .
Coffey said she “ just knew ” the attack was in response to the first Black president ’ s win .
“ That was the first taste , ” said Coffey .
When Trump became the Republican nominee in 2016 , Coffey felt a knot of dread in the pit of her stomach .
The bullet holes @ @ @ @ @ @ @ realized , was the culminating backlash .
The past four years under Trump only confirmed her fears—but it also fueled her participation in local and federal elections .
“ This election will tip what the next 20 years will look like , ” said Coffey , the 33-year-old practicum director for graduate students at George Washington University ’ s School of Public Health .
Some younger Black women view this presidential election as an opportunity to consolidate and increase social , economic , and political power for marginalized people .
They want more @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
They want policies that will improve their lives and their communities .
They are dissatisfied with Trump and weary about issues like student loan debt , health care , reproductive rights , and income inequality .
For many Black women , voting is still a way to mobilize this power .
So is demanding justice and change by taking to the streets .
Recent protests across America in response to the murders of George Floyd , Breonna Taylor , Tony McDade , Sean Reed and others were the result of years of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ people of color .
The Black Lives Matter movement is led by a generation of young leaders , many of them Black women , who have learned from civil rights activists like Diane Nash and Fannie Lou Hamer about what it means to hold systems of power accountable .
During the protests , Black women have also been critical about the lack of response and justice for Black women and girls who have been murdered and abused by police officers , men , calling out the systems of power that dismisses their needs @ @ @ @ @ @ @ for good reason .
The country continues to systematically oppress Black women .
Black women have experienced the highest unemployment rates during Covid-19 .
Black girls are suspended in school at a rate six times higher than white girls .
Black women experience higher levels of violence and are killed at a higher rate than any other group of women .
As the ACLU put it earlier this year , “ The Legal System Has Failed Black Girls , Women , and Non-Binary Survivors of Violence.
” According to a study conducted by @ @ @ @ @ @ @ United States young Black girls are perceived as “ less innocent ” and treated more like adults than like children .
Despite these historical , systemic inequalities , Black women have always shown up .
They are a powerful voting bloc , and their votes have substantially contributed to the victories of the first Black president , senators , and other elected officials across the country .
Black women overwhelmingly voted for Obama in 2008 and ’ 12 .
In 2016 , they accounted for 94 percent of Democratic voters , according to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , helping Hillary Clinton earn the popular vote .
The outcome of the 2018 Senate midterm election in Alabama hinged on Black women voters , helping a Democrat win a Senate seat for the first time in 25 years .
Nearly 16 million Black women are eligible to vote and 67 percent are registered , according to Higher Heights for America , a nonprofit that advocates for Black women voters and politicians .
“ One thing about Black women voters , we don ’ t go to the polls alone .
We bring @ @ @ @ @ @ @ church , our union , our sorority , ” said Glynda Carr , the president and CEO of Higher Heights for America .
“ This year , we are going to do what we ’ ve always done.
” This story was produced for Student Nation , a section devoted to highlighting campus activism and student movements from students in their own words .
For more Student Nation , check out our archive .
Are you a student with a campus activism story ?
Send questions and pitches to Samantha Schuyler at samantha @ @ @ @ @ @ @ is made possible through generous funding from The Puffin Foundation .
For Nykidra Robinson , the president and CEO of Black Girls Vote , the 2020 election is about legislation that will help her community .
“ This is the perfect time for Black people to hijack the Democratic Party , ” said Robinson .
“ We demand policy in exchange for our vote.
” Robinson , 37 , founded the organization in Baltimore after the death of Freddie Gray , a Black man who died in 2015 of fatal spinal injuries he @ @ @ @ @ @ @ “ We need policy ; we need lives changed ; we need Black businesses ; we need Black people thriving and not just surviving , ” said Robinson .
She said she doesn ’ t just want symbols of hope anymore .
Carr agreed that Black women deserve a “ return on their investments ” this year .
“ For Black women , this is not an Obama moment when you were inspired by a candidate , ” Carr said .
“ We want candidates to do two things : hold the line @ @ @ @ @ @ @ last 50 years and protect the rights that we are seeing being rolled back in real time.
” Living at the intersections of youth , race , and gender , millennial and Gen Z Black women differ in their approach to the political process from older Black women and voters .
According to Azuree Bateman , a 26-year-old living in Philadelphia , most older Black voters don ’ t always accept younger voters ’ support of progressive candidates like Bernie Sanders .
“ We have been told all our lives , ‘ You @ @ @ @ @ @ @ said Bateman .
“ So , if I am old enough to vote , if I ’ m old enough to do this , don ’ t you think I ’ m old enough to make a conscious decision ?
” Bateman believed that the protests this year were “ inevitable ” because young people like her were fed up with the disparities and inequalities around the country .
“ Coronavirus has caused us to really stop and look at everything that ’ s wrong , ” said Bateman .
“ I ’ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Black people calling for policy changes .
It ’ s not just justice anymore ; it ’ s policy changes .
That ’ s birthed a whole new generation of organizers in their own right.
” Like Bateman , Chelsea Torres , a 29-year-old student at the University of Maryland , wants the country to know that Black women voters are not a monolith .
“ Especially in this primary season , it ’ s been like , ‘ All Black voters like Joe Biden , ’ ” said Torres .
“ I @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Black people that were like , ‘ Joe Biden ’ s my number-one pick.
’ There were a bunch of people who were fine with him if they had to.
” Torres said she wants a candidate who has been vocal about concerns like Black maternal health .
She is expecting a baby and is particularly concerned about the country ’ s response to COVID-19 .
“ I want to make sure a candidate that I support is a good person to an extent , ” said Torres .
“ If I have @ @ @ @ @ @ @ I want to know they aren ’ t going to go out of their way to make it the worst-case scenario for me.
” Others echo Toress ’ s desire to see someone in office who they feel understands them .
“ Representation really matters , ” said Coffey .
“ Having your voice heard in this democratic process is crucial , and I want to get more people that have my interests at heart , or maybe have a better understanding of my lived experience.
” The lack of support for women @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , like Gaelle Ivory , 31 , of Washington , D.C. “ One thing that has struck me is the number of candidates that there were and who ’ s remaining are the two white men .
They always seem to make it , no matter how good the other candidates were , ” said Ivory , a Howard University administrator .
“ We have to really look at our systems that allow us to have two white male candidates , yet again.
” A July poll released by Politico noted that 60 @ @ @ @ @ @ @ see Joe Biden pick a Black woman as his running mate .
Seemingly , Biden listened .
On August 11 , Kamala Harris became the first Black and South Asian woman to be nominated for the office of vice president of the United States .
Nationally , less than 27 percent of millennial and Gen Z voters believe Trump deserves to be president , according to a poll conducted by Isos , and 77 percent of Black Americans believe that Trump and Republicans in Congress are racist , according to BlackPac .
“ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ’ s the right fit for any political position .
It ’ s no doubt that he has a narcissistic personality , ” said Kenyardda Callaham , a 25-year-old private health care coordinator from Washington .
The election is simple for her .
“ I am voting this year hopefully to get Donald Trump out of office , ” Callaham said .
Bateman , the young activist , said Trump ’ s presidency has contributed to the rise in racial tension throughout the country .
“ You look at the surge in KKK @ @ @ @ @ @ @ in hate crimes , I think for him to get reelected just puts the entire country at stake , so many marginalized communities in more jeopardy , ” said Bateman , whose sheer motivation to vote is Trump .
A candidate once backed by white supremacists like David Duke , Trump has not condemned racism in American nor said the names of the hundreds of Black and Brown lives cut short by police violence .
This year , he has even denounced the Black Lives Matter protests as “ discriminatory ” and “ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , Trump ’ s policies have been a threat to many structures young Black women depend on such as the Affordable Care Act and LGBTQ+ rights .
Some Black women voters also pointed to what they believe are racist immigration policies and Trump ’ s appointment of conservative Supreme Court justices aiming to overturn Roe v. Wade as reasons they ’ re so invested in this presidential election .
The Trump administration has also gained more criticism for its response to COVID-19 , which has disproportionately affected Black Americans .
The president casually @ @ @ @ @ @ @ terminology like “ Kung Flu , ” and , since March , he and members of the Republican party have rejected advisories from the CDC and experts like Dr. Anthony Fauci , the director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases .
Lawmakers around the country and in Congress have backed bills supporting voting by mail in November , as fears about the spread of the virus could affect voter turnout .
Christina Greer , PhD , associate professor of political science at Fordham University , believes this crucial election is @ @ @ @ @ @ @ candidate .
“ People say , ‘ Well , the system won ’ t change if we just go with the lesser of two evils , ’ and I argue that sometimes one person is less evil than the other , ” said Greer .
“ You might get some change .
With Trump you are guaranteed to get nothing.
” The fight to get Trump out of office is shared even by prison abolitionists like Angela Davis , who said that she would vote for Biden in the upcoming election .
“ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ about who gets to lead the country to a better future , but rather how we can support ourselves and our own ability to continue to organize and place pressure on those in power , ” Davis said in an interview with Democracy Now !
“ I don ’ t think there ’ s a question about which candidate would allow that process to unfold.
” Greer said Black women don ’ t have the “ luxury ” of skipping elections .
Black women have been voting legally in America for only 55 @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Voting Rights Act of 1965 .
“ We ’ re the newest to the party , but we also have the most to lose because of the intersection of race and class , ” said Greer .
“ But that often explains why we over-perform at the ballot.
” The perception that a majority of women in America agree when it comes to the political process is a false one , according to experts like Greer .
“ White women vote Republican , but Black women vote Democratic so overwhelmingly that it creates @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
“ But there isn ’ t. ” Despite the uncertainty of the upcoming election , voting remains a priority for young Black women who want to see the political power , representation , and policy changes they ’ ve invested in that are needed to drastically improve the nation , their communities , and personal lives .
“ Black women are always the ones who are asked to save folks , whether or not we get thanked or supported for it , ” said Ivory .
“ We need to give Black @ @ @ @ @ @ @

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This story is the first article to be published as part of StudentNation’s Vision 2020 Election Stories from the Next Generation, stories reported by young journalists that center the concerns of diverse young voters. In this project, working with Dr. Sherri Williams, we recruited young journalists from different backgrounds to develop story ideas and reporting about their peers’ concerns ahead of the most important election of our lives. We’ll continue publishing two stories each week over the course of the next month.
On the night Barack Obama was elected president in 2008, Courtney Coffey heard the sound of bullets ringing outside her Louisiana home. When she went outside to look, her friend’s car, adorned with a large pro-Obama bumper sticker, was riddled with holes. Coffey said she “just knew” the attack was in response to the first Black president’s win.
“That was the first taste,” said Coffey.
When Trump became the Republican nominee in 2016, Coffey felt a knot of dread in the pit of her stomach. The bullet holes were a precursor; this, she realized, was the culminating backlash. The past four years under Trump only confirmed her fears—but it also fueled her participation in local and federal elections. “This election will tip what the next 20 years will look like,” said Coffey, the 33-year-old practicum director for graduate students at George Washington University’s School of Public Health.
Some younger Black women view this presidential election as an opportunity to consolidate and increase social, economic, and political power for marginalized people. They want more than just promises and idolization from candidates. They want policies that will improve their lives and their communities. They are dissatisfied with Trump and weary about issues like student loan debt, health care, reproductive rights, and income inequality. For many Black women, voting is still a way to mobilize this power.
So is demanding justice and change by taking to the streets. Recent protests across America in response to the murders of George Floyd, Breonna Taylor, Tony McDade, Sean Reed and others were the result of years of violence and abuse against Black people and people of color. The Black Lives Matter movement is led by a generation of young leaders, many of them Black women, who have learned from civil rights activists like Diane Nash and Fannie Lou Hamer about what it means to hold systems of power accountable. During the protests, Black women have also been critical about the lack of response and justice for Black women and girls who have been murdered and abused by police officers, men, calling out the systems of power that dismisses their needs. Current Issue View our current issue
And they’re doing it for good reason. The country continues to systematically oppress Black women. Black women have experienced the highest unemployment rates during Covid-19. Black girls are suspended in school at a rate six times higher than white girls. Black women experience higher levels of violence and are killed at a higher rate than any other group of women. As the ACLU put it earlier this year, “The Legal System Has Failed Black Girls, Women, and Non-Binary Survivors of Violence.” According to a study conducted by the Georgetown Law Center, in the United States young Black girls are perceived as “less innocent” and treated more like adults than like children. Popular "swipe left below to view more authors"Swipe → The Evisceration of a Public University The Evisceration of a Public University Lisa M. Corrigan The Patronizing Moralism of David Brooks The Patronizing Moralism of David Brooks Chris Lehmann “The Blind Side” Was Always Trash “The Blind Side” Was Always Trash Dave Zirin How the “Brooks Brothers Riot” Set the Stage for Insurrection How the “Brooks Brothers Riot” Set the Stage for Insurrection Chris Lehmann Popular "swipe left below to view more authors"Swipe → The Evisceration of a Public University The Evisceration of a Public University Lisa M. Corrigan The Patronizing Moralism of David Brooks The Patronizing Moralism of David Brooks Chris Lehmann “The Blind Side” Was Always Trash “The Blind Side” Was Always Trash Dave Zirin How the “Brooks Brothers Riot” Set the Stage for Insurrection How the “Brooks Brothers Riot” Set the Stage for Insurrection Chris Lehmann
Despite these historical, systemic inequalities, Black women have always shown up. They are a powerful voting bloc, and their votes have substantially contributed to the victories of the first Black president, senators, and other elected officials across the country. Black women overwhelmingly voted for Obama in 2008 and ’12. And in 2016, 94 percent of Black women voted for Hillary Clinton, according to an exit poll conducted by Edison Research, helping Hillary Clinton earn the popular vote. The outcome of the 2018 Senate midterm election in Alabama hinged on Black women voters, helping a Democrat win a Senate seat for the first time in 25 years. Nearly 16 million Black women are eligible to vote and 67 percent are registered, according to Higher Heights for America, a nonprofit that advocates for Black women voters and politicians. “One thing about Black women voters, we don’t go to the polls alone. We bring our house, our block, our church, our union, our sorority,” said Glynda Carr, the president and CEO of Higher Heights for America. “This year, we are going to do what we’ve always done.” This story was produced for Student Nation, a section devoted to highlighting campus activism and student movements from students in their own words. For more Student Nation, check out our archive. Are you a student with a campus activism story? Send questions and pitches to Samantha Schuyler at [email protected]. The Student Nation program is made possible through generous funding from The Puffin Foundation.
For Nykidra Robinson, the president and CEO of Black Girls Vote, the 2020 election is about legislation that will help her community. “This is the perfect time for Black people to hijack the Democratic Party,” said Robinson. “We demand policy in exchange for our vote.”
Robinson, 37, founded the organization in Baltimore after the death of Freddie Gray, a Black man who died in 2015 of fatal spinal injuries he suffered while in Baltimore police custody.
“We need policy; we need lives changed; we need Black businesses; we need Black people thriving and not just surviving,” said Robinson. She said she doesn’t just want symbols of hope anymore.
Carr agreed that Black women deserve a “return on their investments” this year. “For Black women, this is not an Obama moment when you were inspired by a candidate,” Carr said. “We want candidates to do two things: hold the line on gains we have made over the last 50 years and protect the rights that we are seeing being rolled back in real time.”
Living at the intersections of youth, race, and gender, millennial and Gen Z Black women differ in their approach to the political process from older Black women and voters. According to Azuree Bateman, a 24-year-old living in Washington, DC, most older Black voters don’t always accept younger voters’ support of progressive candidates like Bernie Sanders. “We have been told all our lives, ‘You guys are the future,’” said Bateman. “So, if I am old enough to vote, if I’m old enough to do this, don’t you think I’m old enough to make a conscious decision?”
Bateman believed that the protests this year were “inevitable” because young people like her were fed up with the disparities and inequalities around the country. “Coronavirus has caused us to really stop and look at everything that’s wrong,” said Bateman. “I’ve never seen such an increase of Black people calling for policy changes. It’s not just justice anymore; it’s policy changes. That’s birthed a whole new generation of organizers in their own right.”
Like Bateman, Chelsea Torres, a 29-year-old employee of the University of Maryland, wants the country to know that Black women voters are not a monolith. “Especially in this primary season, it’s been like, ‘All Black voters like Joe Biden,’” said Torres. “I didn’t actually know that many Black people that were like, ‘Joe Biden’s my number-one pick.’ There were a bunch of people who were fine with him if they had to.”
Torres said she wants a candidate who has been vocal about concerns like Black maternal health. She is expecting a baby and is particularly concerned about the country’s response to COVID-19. “I want to make sure a candidate that I support is a good person to an extent,” said Torres. “If I have to trust them with something extreme, I want to know they aren’t going to go out of their way to make it the worst-case scenario for me.”
Others echo Toress’s desire to see someone in office who they feel understands them.
“Representation really matters,” said Coffey. “Having your voice heard in this democratic process is crucial, and I want to get more people that have my interests at heart, or maybe have a better understanding of my lived experience.”
The lack of support for women candidates this election concerned some Black women, like Gaelle Ivory, 31, of Washington, D.C. “One thing that has struck me is the number of candidates that there were and who’s remaining are the two white men. They always seem to make it, no matter how good the other candidates were,” said Ivory, a Howard University administrator. “We have to really look at our systems that allow us to have two white male candidates, yet again.”
A July poll released by Politico noted that 60 percent of millennials and Gen-Z wanted to see Joe Biden pick a Black woman as his running mate. Seemingly, Biden listened. On August 11, Kamala Harris became the first Black and South Asian woman to be nominated for the office of vice president of the United States.
Nationally, less than 27 percent of millennial and Gen Z voters believe Trump deserves to be president, according to a poll conducted by Isos, and 77 percent of Black Americans believe that Trump and Republicans in Congress are racist, according to BlackPac.
“I just don’t believe he’s the right fit for any political position. It’s no doubt that he has a narcissistic personality,” said Kenyardda Callaham, a 25-year-old private health care coordinator from Washington. The election is simple for her. “I am voting this year hopefully to get Donald Trump out of office,” Callaham said.
Bateman, the young activist, said Trump’s presidency has contributed to the rise in racial tension throughout the country. “You look at the surge in KKK rallies that have happened, the surge in hate crimes, I think for him to get reelected just puts the entire country at stake, so many marginalized communities in more jeopardy,” said Bateman, whose sheer motivation to vote is Trump.
A candidate once backed by white supremacists like David Duke, Trump has not condemned racism in American nor said the names of the hundreds of Black and Brown lives cut short by police violence. This year, he has even denounced the Black Lives Matter protests as “discriminatory” and “bad for Black people.”
Since 2016, Trump’s policies have been a threat to many structures young Black women depend on such as the Affordable Care Act and LGBTQ+ rights. Some Black women voters also pointed to what they believe are racist immigration policies and Trump’s appointment of conservative Supreme Court justices aiming to overturn Roe v. Wade as reasons they’re so invested in this presidential election.
The Trump administration has also gained more criticism for its response to COVID-19, which has disproportionately affected Black Americans. The president casually refers to the deadly virus with racist terminology like “Kung Flu,” and, since March, he and members of the Republican party have rejected advisories from the CDC and experts like Dr. Anthony Fauci, the director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases. Lawmakers around the country and in Congress have backed bills supporting voting by mail in November, as fears about the spread of the virus could affect voter turnout.
Christina Greer, PhD, associate professor of political science at Fordham University, believes this crucial election is not about picking a flawless or favorable candidate.
“People say, ‘Well, the system won’t change if we just go with the lesser of two evils,’ and I argue that sometimes one person is less evil than the other,” said Greer. “You might get some change. With Trump you are guaranteed to get nothing.”
The fight to get Trump out of office is shared even by prison abolitionists like Angela Davis, who said that she would vote for Biden in the upcoming election.
“The election will not so much be about who gets to lead the country to a better future, but rather how we can support ourselves and our own ability to continue to organize and place pressure on those in power,” Davis said in an interview with Democracy Now! “I don’t think there’s a question about which candidate would allow that process to unfold.”
Greer said Black women don’t have the “luxury” of skipping elections. Black women have been voting legally in America for only 55 years, after the passage of the Voting Rights Act of 1965. “We’re the newest to the party, but we also have the most to lose because of the intersection of race and class,” said Greer. “But that often explains why we over-perform at the ballot.”
The perception that a majority of women in America agree when it comes to the political process is a false one, according to experts like Greer. “White women vote Republican, but Black women vote Democratic so overwhelmingly that it creates a gender bias,” said Greer. “But there isn’t.”
Despite the uncertainty of the upcoming election, voting remains a priority for young Black women who want to see the political power, representation, and policy changes they’ve invested in that are needed to drastically improve the nation, their communities, and personal lives.
“Black women are always the ones who are asked to save folks, whether or not we get thanked or supported for it,” said Ivory. “We need to give Black women the credit they deserve.”


’Tis Perdition

oulder , olo.—The call to action my generation received , during our first moment of inflection , was to get back to business .
I was in my last year of high school on September 11 , 2001 , when an airliner slammed into the Pentagon a few miles away .
Later that month , while visiting O ’ Hare International Airport , President George W. Bush implored the American people to “ do your business around the country .
Fly and enjoy America ’ s great destination spots .
Get down to Disney World in Florida.
” Don ’ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Don ’ t learn Arabic or better understand the wider world .
Take a picture with Mickey Mouse , where Jeb Bush was governor .
To someone young and looking to find a calling and a purpose , such leadership was crushing .
It was an invitation to waste the best energy of youth .
In 2006 , as President Bush ’ s delusional wars in Afghanistan and Iraq raged on , he told us much the same thing : “ I encourage you all to go shopping more.
” Back to shopping @ @ @ @ @ @ @ again .
I teach at the University of Colorado now , and my students are coming of age in another moment of inflection .
They are entering adulthood during a pandemic , an economic collapse , and a historic uprising for justice .
What calls to action have they received ?
This Is What Dystopia Looks Like More in this series The virus , their president told them , is no cause for change : “ It ’ s going to disappear .
One day—it ’ s like a miracle—it will disappear.
” @ @ @ @ @ @ @ everything would be back to normal by April .
Trump ’ s delusions exceed those of his predecessor .
But I don ’ t want to focus on presidents any more than they deserve , for they are not the only ones teaching the young .
I have had delusions of my own .
Until the very last minute , I thought I could still make it to long-planned engagements in Europe in late February .
I let myself believe the assurances that , somehow , our kids would be impervious to the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ I can go back to business as usual .
Now my university is opening again , behind plastic shields and face masks .
Students are repopulating the dorms and roving around town in partially masked flocks .
Since we receive only an infinitesimal part of our budget from the state , we ’ re told , institutional survival requires business as usual .
I am refreshing an old syllabus .
Vast bureaucratic expertise has gone into establishing the fiction that such a thing is reasonable , that we can continue to provide the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ paying so much for .
Perhaps , if we taught a different lesson , we could .
Earlier in the summer , a group of my colleagues published an open letter arguing that the return to campus would be not only a medical danger but also poor pedagogy .
“ It is the responsibility of the leadership to tell them , ” these professors wrote , “ to put public health first , and not to make false promises about a meaningful on-campus experience , when health and lives are on the line.
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ I was still waiting and seeing .
NYU anthropologist Angela Zito has diagnosed higher education ’ s failure of imagination especially pointedly : She reminds me of two lines from a poem by Ralph Waldo Emerson .
At some old colleges , these lines are carved into monuments to students killed in the Great War ( and , surely , the concurrent influenza pandemic ) : As a student at Brown University , I walked by those words almost daily , hearing their call to sacrifice in grating opposition to what President Bush @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
The words themselves invert Angela Zito ’ s lament : “ man ” rather than all of us together ; an adventure of death as opposed to the struggle for collective safety .
Yet Zito and Emerson are united in their embrace of a morality that embraces non-normal times , that invites the young to take history upon themselves and act in it—not merely for the sake of approximating their earlier expectations but in order to raise their expectations and live lives that mean something .
Can we teachers “ address our @ @ @ @ @ @ @ institutional pretense ( and masks and screens ) of normal education delivery ?
As Zito says , we need to grieve .
Then we can get down to the non-normal work of reshaping our world out of this cataclysm .
I hope my students will hear the call to put their best selves into this moment .
It ’ s their time .
Those who most want to rush back to normal are probably those who most fear the opportunity for change that the young now have before them .
Scenes From a @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and Kopkind , a living memorial to radical journalist Andrew Kopkind , who from 1982–94 was the magazine ’ s chief political writer and analyst .
This series of dispatches from Kopkind ’ s far-flung network of participants , advisers , guests , and friends is edited by Nation contributor and Kopkind program director JoAnn Wypijewski , and appears weekly on thenation.com and kopkind.org .

B oulder, C olo.—The call to action my generation received, during our first moment of inflection, was to get back to business. I was in my last year of high school on September 11, 2001, when an airliner slammed into the Pentagon a few miles away. Later that month, while visiting O’Hare International Airport, President George W. Bush implored the American people to “do your business around the country. Fly and enjoy America’s great destination spots. Get down to Disney World in Florida.”
Don’t soul-search or undertake shared sacrifice. Don’t learn Arabic or better understand the wider world. Take a picture with Mickey Mouse, where Jeb Bush was governor. To someone young and looking to find a calling and a purpose, such leadership was crushing. It was an invitation to waste the best energy of youth.
In 2006, as President Bush’s delusional wars in Afghanistan and Iraq raged on, he told us much the same thing: “I encourage you all to go shopping more.”
Back to shopping, back to school—we are there once again.
I teach at the University of Colorado now, and my students are coming of age in another moment of inflection. They are entering adulthood during a pandemic, an economic collapse, and a historic uprising for justice. What calls to action have they received? Scenes From a Pandemic Untethered, or The Year of Living Virtually Patricia J. Williams The Art of the Meal Mary Lewis Maybe We Shouldn’t Go Back to Normal Bri M.
The virus, their president told them, is no cause for change: “It’s going to disappear. One day—it’s like a miracle—it will disappear.” That was in February. He said everything would be back to normal by April. Trump’s delusions exceed those of his predecessor. But I don’t want to focus on presidents any more than they deserve, for they are not the only ones teaching the young.
I have had delusions of my own. Until the very last minute, I thought I could still make it to long-planned engagements in Europe in late February. I let myself believe the assurances that, somehow, our kids would be impervious to the virus at school. I keep imagining I can go back to business as usual.
Now my university is opening again, behind plastic shields and face masks. Students are repopulating the dorms and roving around town in partially masked flocks. Since we receive only an infinitesimal part of our budget from the state, we’re told, institutional survival requires business as usual. I am refreshing an old syllabus. Vast bureaucratic expertise has gone into establishing the fiction that such a thing is reasonable, that we can continue to provide the experience that students and their families are paying so much for. Perhaps, if we taught a different lesson, we could.
Earlier in the summer, a group of my colleagues published an open letter arguing that the return to campus would be not only a medical danger but also poor pedagogy. “It is the responsibility of the leadership to tell them,” these professors wrote, “to put public health first, and not to make false promises about a meaningful on-campus experience, when health and lives are on the line.” I didn’t sign. I was still waiting and seeing. Popular "swipe left below to view more authors"Swipe → The Evisceration of a Public University The Evisceration of a Public University Lisa M. Corrigan The Patronizing Moralism of David Brooks The Patronizing Moralism of David Brooks Chris Lehmann “The Blind Side” Was Always Trash “The Blind Side” Was Always Trash Dave Zirin How the “Brooks Brothers Riot” Set the Stage for Insurrection How the “Brooks Brothers Riot” Set the Stage for Insurrection Chris Lehmann Popular "swipe left below to view more authors"Swipe → The Evisceration of a Public University The Evisceration of a Public University Lisa M. Corrigan The Patronizing Moralism of David Brooks The Patronizing Moralism of David Brooks Chris Lehmann “The Blind Side” Was Always Trash “The Blind Side” Was Always Trash Dave Zirin How the “Brooks Brothers Riot” Set the Stage for Insurrection How the “Brooks Brothers Riot” Set the Stage for Insurrection Chris Lehmann
NYU anthropologist Angela Zito has diagnosed higher education’s failure of imagination especially pointedly:
Colleges missed the chance to directly address our students as moral beings rather than desiring consumers, and invite them to join us in a time of grieving perseverance in order to save ourselves together. Will never get over that. Intend to teach that way myself.
She reminds me of two lines from a poem by Ralph Waldo Emerson. At some old colleges, these lines are carved into monuments to students killed in the Great War (and, surely, the concurrent influenza pandemic):
’Tis man’s perdition to be safe,
When for the truth he ought to die.
As a student at Brown University, I walked by those words almost daily, hearing their call to sacrifice in grating opposition to what President Bush was asking of us at the time. The words themselves invert Angela Zito’s lament: “man” rather than all of us together; an adventure of death as opposed to the struggle for collective safety. Yet Zito and Emerson are united in their embrace of a morality that embraces non-normal times, that invites the young to take history upon themselves and act in it—not merely for the sake of approximating their earlier expectations but in order to raise their expectations and live lives that mean something.
Can we teachers “address our students as moral beings” behind the institutional pretense (and masks and screens) of normal education delivery? As Zito says, we need to grieve. Then we can get down to the non-normal work of reshaping our world out of this cataclysm.
I hope my students will hear the call to put their best selves into this moment. It’s their time. Those who most want to rush back to normal are probably those who most fear the opportunity for change that the young now have before them.
Scenes From a Pandemic is a collaboration between The Nation and Kopkind, a living memorial to radical journalist Andrew Kopkind, who from 1982–94 was the magazine’s chief political writer and analyst. This series of dispatches from Kopkind’s far-flung network of participants, advisers, guests, and friends is edited by Nation contributor and Kopkind program director JoAnn Wypijewski, and appears weekly on thenation.com and kopkind.org.


thenation--2020-09-09--Biden Must Resist the Calls for a ‘Sister Souljah’ Moment

Pundits across the political spectrum are pushing similar advice on Joe Biden : In the words of Washington Post columnist George Will , “ He needs a Sister Souljah moment.
” The Wall Street Journal editorial board , Bret Stephens in The New York Times , conservative Amanda Carpenter , liberal George Packer , and more urge the same tactic .
Packer warned that the upheaval in Kenosha could be fatal to Biden ’ s chances in November .
“ In the crude terms of a presidential campaign , voters know that the Democrat means it when he denounces police @ @ @ @ @ @ @ denounces riots .
To reach the public…Biden has to go beyond boilerplate and make it personal , memorable.
” A “ Sister Souljah moment ” is now a political meme , shorthand for a candidate ’ s forcefully calling out and condemning the extremes of his or her own base , and making it “ personal , memorable.
” It dates back to a Bill Clinton campaign ploy in the 1992 Democratic primaries .
Sister Souljah was a young rap singer who , in the wake of the Los Angeles riots that erupted @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the beating of Rodney King , was quoted in The Washington Post saying , “ If black people kill black people every day , why not have a week and kill white people ?
” Weeks later , having already clinched the nomination , Clinton traveled to Rev .
Jesse Jackson ’ s Rainbow Coalition convention and publicly denounced her presence there .
“ If you took the words ‘ white ’ and ‘ black , ’ and you reversed them , ” the Arkansas governor said , “ you might think David @ @ @ @ @ @ @ received editorial plaudits across the country , while reassuring conservative Democrats that he ’ d be willing to stand up to African Americans and leftists in the party .
Before Biden drinks from this cup , he might take a look at the poison in its depths .
Clinton ’ s appearance at the Rainbow came after Jackson and Clinton ’ s aides ( I was working with Jesse Jackson at the time ) talked through the possibility of a Jackson endorsement .
Clinton kept his intention secret , even as his campaign @ @ @ @ @ @ @ following him .
Seated next to him at the head table , Machinist representative Barbara Shailor reported that Clinton ’ s hands shook and his voice quavered as he called out Sister Souljah .
Jackson and his allies were taken by surprise and were , understandably , furious .
In reality , Sister Souljah was at the conventio n because Jackson reached out to her and talked to her about nonviolence .
She always claimed the quote was misleading , that she was trying to explain the mindset of those doing the burning @ @ @ @ @ @ @ came to the convention to announce her decision to help spearhead a new effort to register young African Americans to vote and to get them engaged in political action .
She and Jackson deserved praise , not condemnation , for her commitment .
Clinton , in turn , was a far remove from a principled leader .
His campaign was focused on the racial backlash that had soured suburban working- and middle-class voters on supporting Democrats .
Clinton ’ s pollster , Stanley Greenberg , had done pathbreaking research on the white working-class @ @ @ @ @ @ @ a suburb of Detroit , that highlighted how strong the backlash was .
Clinton ’ s Sister Souljah moment was merely one in a long train of infamous ploys that Clinton used to reassure white voters that he was a “ different sort of Democrat.
” Beleaguered by revelations of his dalliances with Gennifer Flowers , he flew back to Arkansas in January 1992 to carry out the execution of Rickey Ray Rector , a prisoner so mentally incompetent that he asked his guard to save the pecan pie of his last meal @ @ @ @ @ @ @ “ end welfare as we know it ” and to get tough on crime .
His campaign staged a photo op with conservative Georgia Senator Sam Nunn , standing in front of a line of black inmates from a Georgia boot camp .
That was so egregious that California Governor Jerry Brown , a late entrant into the primaries , called him out for pulling “ almost a Willie Horton ” in the next debate .
These campaign postures may have helped Clinton in the campaign , although Jackson and other progressives never @ @ @ @ @ @ @ these stances , Clinton was blaming the victims of America ’ s racism , not the perpetrators .
And that set the stage for Clinton ’ s embrace of truly deplorable policies as president , from repealing aid to dependent children to embracing harsh sentencing , leading to the mass incarceration rightfully denounced as the new Jim Crow by Michelle Alexander .
Biden would be wise to ignore those urging a rerun .
The unprecedented—and overwhelmingly peaceful—demonstrations that have spread across the country in the wake of the murder of George Floyd have @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , particularly among the young .
Biden was wise to stand with them as he did at the Democratic Convention .
This is a time when a moral voice is needed , not a cynical one .
In a parallel circumstance in 1960 , John F. Kennedy reached out to call Coretta Scott King when Dr. Martin Luther King was jailed in Reidsville , Ga. That call contributed directly to an outpouring of black votes that contributed directly to Kennedy ’ s razor-thin victory over Richard Nixon .
Moreover , the vandalism and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ by armed white agitators , often loosely organized into right-wing militia groups .
If Biden were to call out the excesses of those protesting injustice , as the pundits suggest , he would demonstrate not independence but weakness in standing up against the forces of intolerance , the very forces that Trump ’ s divisive rhetoric enflame .
Happily , to date , Biden has ignored the advice .
He has denounced the “ deadly violence ” in Portland and elsewhere as “ unacceptable ” : “ I condemn violence of every kind @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , “ by anyone , whether on the left or the right .
And I challenge Donald Trump to do the same.
” When he traveled to Kenosha after the shooting of Jacob Blake by police , he spoke with the family and with Blake himself , and pledged to redress the “ systemic racism ” that scars our criminal justice system .
The contrast with Trump , who used the visit to call for law and order and refused to talk with Blake ’ s mother , was clear .
Biden campaign @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , laying out the chaos and disorder and calamities of Trump ’ s misrule and asking people if they feel safe in Trump ’ s America .
While rejecting calls to defund the police , Biden has continued to call for police reform .
That may not satisfy the demands of either the demonstrators or those reacting to them .
But it does show Biden to be more courageous and a far straighter shooter than Clinton was when he pulled the Sister Souljah stunt in 1992 .

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Pundits across the political spectrum are pushing similar advice on Joe Biden: In the words of Washington Post columnist George Will, “He needs a Sister Souljah moment.” The Wall Street Journal editorial board, Bret Stephens in The New York Times, conservative Amanda Carpenter, liberal George Packer, and more urge the same tactic. Packer warned that the upheaval in Kenosha could be fatal to Biden’s chances in November. “In the crude terms of a presidential campaign, voters know that the Democrat means it when he denounces police brutality, but less so when he denounces riots. To reach the public…Biden has to go beyond boilerplate and make it personal, memorable.”
A “Sister Souljah moment” is now a political meme, shorthand for a candidate’s forcefully calling out and condemning the extremes of his or her own base, and making it “personal, memorable.” It dates back to a Bill Clinton campaign ploy in the 1992 Democratic primaries. Sister Souljah was a young rap singer who, in the wake of the Los Angeles riots that erupted after the acquittal of police officers for the beating of Rodney King, was quoted in The Washington Post saying, “If black people kill black people every day, why not have a week and kill white people?”
Weeks later, having already clinched the nomination, Clinton traveled to Rev. Jesse Jackson’s Rainbow Coalition convention and publicly denounced her presence there. “If you took the words ‘white’ and ‘black,’ and you reversed them,” the Arkansas governor said, “you might think David Duke was giving that speech.” He received editorial plaudits across the country, while reassuring conservative Democrats that he’d be willing to stand up to African Americans and leftists in the party.
Before Biden drinks from this cup, he might take a look at the poison in its depths. Clinton’s appearance at the Rainbow came after Jackson and Clinton’s aides (I was working with Jesse Jackson at the time) talked through the possibility of a Jackson endorsement. Clinton kept his intention secret, even as his campaign gave a heads-up to the press corps following him. Seated next to him at the head table, Machinist representative Barbara Shailor reported that Clinton’s hands shook and his voice quavered as he called out Sister Souljah. Jackson and his allies were taken by surprise and were, understandably, furious. Related Article The Whitelash Next Time Kali Holloway
In reality, Sister Souljah was at the conventio n because Jackson reached out to her and talked to her about nonviolence. She always claimed the quote was misleading, that she was trying to explain the mindset of those doing the burning, not urging more violence. She came to the convention to announce her decision to help spearhead a new effort to register young African Americans to vote and to get them engaged in political action. She and Jackson deserved praise, not condemnation, for her commitment. Popular "swipe left below to view more authors"Swipe → The Evisceration of a Public University The Evisceration of a Public University Lisa M. Corrigan The Patronizing Moralism of David Brooks The Patronizing Moralism of David Brooks Chris Lehmann “The Blind Side” Was Always Trash “The Blind Side” Was Always Trash Dave Zirin How the “Brooks Brothers Riot” Set the Stage for Insurrection How the “Brooks Brothers Riot” Set the Stage for Insurrection Chris Lehmann Popular "swipe left below to view more authors"Swipe → The Evisceration of a Public University The Evisceration of a Public University Lisa M. Corrigan The Patronizing Moralism of David Brooks The Patronizing Moralism of David Brooks Chris Lehmann “The Blind Side” Was Always Trash “The Blind Side” Was Always Trash Dave Zirin How the “Brooks Brothers Riot” Set the Stage for Insurrection How the “Brooks Brothers Riot” Set the Stage for Insurrection Chris Lehmann
Clinton, in turn, was a far remove from a principled leader. His campaign was focused on the racial backlash that had soured suburban working- and middle-class voters on supporting Democrats. Clinton’s pollster, Stanley Greenberg, had done pathbreaking research on the white working-class voters in Macomb County, Mich., a suburb of Detroit, that highlighted how strong the backlash was.
Clinton’s Sister Souljah moment was merely one in a long train of infamous ploys that Clinton used to reassure white voters that he was a “different sort of Democrat.” Beleaguered by revelations of his dalliances with Gennifer Flowers, he flew back to Arkansas in January 1992 to carry out the execution of Rickey Ray Rector, a prisoner so mentally incompetent that he asked his guard to save the pecan pie of his last meal for “later.” Clinton promised to “end welfare as we know it” and to get tough on crime. His campaign staged a photo op with conservative Georgia Senator Sam Nunn, standing in front of a line of black inmates from a Georgia boot camp. That was so egregious that California Governor Jerry Brown, a late entrant into the primaries, called him out for pulling “almost a Willie Horton” in the next debate. These campaign postures may have helped Clinton in the campaign, although Jackson and other progressives never forgot the cynical insult. In taking these stances, Clinton was blaming the victims of America’s racism, not the perpetrators. And that set the stage for Clinton’s embrace of truly deplorable policies as president, from repealing aid to dependent children to embracing harsh sentencing, leading to the mass incarceration rightfully denounced as the new Jim Crow by Michelle Alexander. Current Issue View our current issue
Biden would be wise to ignore those urging a rerun. The unprecedented—and overwhelmingly peaceful—demonstrations that have spread across the country in the wake of the murder of George Floyd have roused record support across lines of race, particularly among the young. Biden was wise to stand with them as he did at the Democratic Convention. This is a time when a moral voice is needed, not a cynical one. In a parallel circumstance in 1960, John F. Kennedy reached out to call Coretta Scott King when Dr. Martin Luther King was jailed in Reidsville, Ga. That call contributed directly to an outpouring of black votes that contributed directly to Kennedy’s razor-thin victory over Richard Nixon.
Moreover, the vandalism and violence—which Biden has rightfully condemned—is increasingly driven by armed white agitators, often loosely organized into right-wing militia groups. If Biden were to call out the excesses of those protesting injustice, as the pundits suggest, he would demonstrate not independence but weakness in standing up against the forces of intolerance, the very forces that Trump’s divisive rhetoric enflame.
Happily, to date, Biden has ignored the advice. He has denounced the “deadly violence” in Portland and elsewhere as “unacceptable”: “I condemn violence of every kind,” he said in a statement, “by anyone, whether on the left or the right. And I challenge Donald Trump to do the same.” When he traveled to Kenosha after the shooting of Jacob Blake by police, he spoke with the family and with Blake himself, and pledged to redress the “systemic racism” that scars our criminal justice system. The contrast with Trump, who used the visit to call for law and order and refused to talk with Blake’s mother, was clear.
Biden campaign ads have taken the case to Trump, laying out the chaos and disorder and calamities of Trump’s misrule and asking people if they feel safe in Trump’s America. While rejecting calls to defund the police, Biden has continued to call for police reform. That may not satisfy the demands of either the demonstrators or those reacting to them. But it does show Biden to be more courageous and a far straighter shooter than Clinton was when he pulled the Sister Souljah stunt in 1992.


thenation--2020-09-09--That Was David Graeber

That Was David Graeber

I met David Graeber on August 2 , 2011 , at the first general assembly of Occupy Wall Street .
The GA was chaotic , with socialists using a microphone to try to wrangle us anarchists .
We wanted something a little less hierarchical , so a handful of us got up and sat in a circle at the other side of Zuccotti Park .
Graeber saw us and came over to introduce himself : “ Hi , I ’ m David .
Can I sit with you ?
” I didn ’ t connect the middle-aged man in a @ @ @ @ @ @ @ masterwork Debt : The First 5,000 Years , and he didn ’ t help me get there .
He didn ’ t grandstand or lecture or say a pointed word about “ debt ” or do anything I would expect from an admired intellectual at a political meeting .
Mostly , he listened .
Afterward , I heard the whispers : That was David Graeber .
Graeber went underappreciated at home .
A proud product of the New York City working class , he became a junior faculty cautionary tale when Yale tried @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
The school denied it was retaliation for Graeber ’ s unabated anarchist activities , but scholars and organizers alike knew better .
When he couldn ’ t find another American teaching job , he never doubted he was blacklisted .
Yale and the rest of the American academy weren ’ t wrong to be afraid of Graeber , but abroad he was in demand .
By the end of his life he ’ d found a professorship at the London School of Economics .
Of the 21st century American left ’ s @ @ @ @ @ @ @ likely to be read in 100 years—not just because his work is so original , so varied , and so deep , but also because it speaks to transhistorical practices of mutual belonging and rebellion against authority .
And yet he never settled into a self-satisfied intellectual groove .
Forever known—over his protestations—as “ the anarchist anthropologist ” after his influential collection Fragments of an Anarchist Anthropology , Graeber ’ s subjects ranged from the politics of rural Madagascar to participant observation of the global justice movement to the fascist messaging of superhero @ @ @ @ @ @ @ evocative phrase ; it remains to be seen whether his “ the 99 percent ” or “ bullshit jobs ” will be more influential .
Some people think anarchists don ’ t have leaders , but that ’ s not true .
Graeber led with his actions as well as his intellect , and he was dependable in a way that few famous men are : The collective struggle for liberation always came first .

This article appears in the October 5/12, 2020 issue.
I met David Graeber on August 2, 2011, at the first general assembly of Occupy Wall Street. The GA was chaotic, with socialists using a microphone to try to wrangle us anarchists. We wanted something a little less hierarchical, so a handful of us got up and sat in a circle at the other side of the small Wall Street park. Graeber saw us and came over to introduce himself: “Hi, I’m David. Can I sit with you?” By David Graeber Can Debt Spark a Revolution? David Graeber Lying in Wait David Graeber
I didn’t connect the middle-aged man in a baseball cap with his newly released red-brick masterwork Debt: The First 5,000 Years, and he didn’t help me get there. He didn’t grandstand or lecture or say a pointed word about “debt” or do anything I would expect from an admired intellectual at a political meeting. Mostly, he listened. Afterward, I heard the whispers: That was David Graeber.
Graeber went underappreciated at home. A proud product of the New York City working class, he became a junior faculty cautionary tale when Yale tried to cut his promising academic career short. The school denied it was retaliation for Graeber’s unabated anarchist activities, but scholars and organizers alike knew better. When he couldn’t find another American teaching job, he never doubted he was blacklisted. Yale and the rest of the American academy weren’t wrong to be afraid of Graeber, but abroad he was in demand. By the end of his life he’d found a professorship at the London School of Economics.
Of the 21st century American left’s writers, Graeber is among the most likely to be read in 100 years—not just because his work is so original, so varied, and so deep, but also because it speaks to transhistorical practices of mutual belonging and rebellion against authority. And yet he never settled into a self-satisfied intellectual groove. Forever known—over his protestations—as “the anarchist anthropologist” after his influential collection Fragments of an Anarchist Anthropology, Graeber’s subjects ranged from the politics of rural Madagascar to participant observation of the global justice movement to the fascist messaging of superhero movies. He could also turn an evocative phrase; it remains to be seen whether his “the 99 percent” or “bullshit jobs” will be more influential.
Some people think anarchists don’t have leaders, but that’s not true. Graeber led with his actions as well as his intellect, and he was dependable in a way that few famous men are: The collective struggle for liberation always came first.