Category Archives: Uncategorized

Who’s running the immigrant rights movement?

Posted on August 12, 2013 by David S. Meyer

Lots of people. No one. In this regard, the immigrant rights movement isn’t very different from virtually every other social movement in recent American history. While I’ve been awed by the bravery and commitment of the DREAM 9, subjecting themselves … Continue reading →

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DREAM 9 and organizing around civil disobedience

Posted on August 8, 2013 by David S. Meyer

I’m in awe of the courage and commitment of the DREAM 9, and their (probably inappropriate) confidence in their ability to move the immigration debate forward toward some kind of reform. On July 22, the nine young non-citizens, who had … Continue reading →

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Cooper Union occupation ends with promises of consultation

Posted on July 16, 2013 by David S. Meyer

Cooper Union students, who have been occupying the offices of the school’s president for more than two months, have announced that they’re moving out.  Free Cooper Union started when the Board of Trustees announced that they would begin charging tuition … Continue reading →

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Martin, Zimmerman, judicial backlash and policy change: update

Posted on July 15, 2013 by David S. Meyer

Yesterday I claimed that the disappointment and mobilization in the wake of unpopular judicial verdicts in the Rodney King and O.J. Simpson cases didn’t lead to changes in policy.  (That’s another disappointment!)  I asked for corrections. Lindsey Lupo, a political … Continue reading →

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Zimmerman, Martin, and the Courts

Posted on July 14, 2013 by David S. Meyer

Don’t count on the courts to produce justice, but sometimes it’s disappointment with the legal system that does make change. We expect too much from the courts and we’re constantly disappointed.  The trial in Florida could have ended with George … Continue reading →

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Massive hunger strike in California prisons

Posted on July 9, 2013 by David S. Meyer

An astonishing 30,000 prisoners in California prisons have refused meals.  The Corrections Department doesn’t call it a hunger strike until 9 meals have been missed, but what’s going on is pretty clear. A hunger strike reflects commitment and desperation; prison … Continue reading →

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Social movements, governance, democracy, and Egypt

Posted on July 4, 2013 by David S. Meyer

What are we to make of the military coup that the military refuses to call a coup in Egypt?  I’m generally ready to cheer the departure of an unpopular putative theocrat, but quite suspicious of the military deposing elected officials … Continue reading →

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How the anti-gay movement faces defeat

Posted on June 26, 2013 by David S. Meyer

Social movement activists lose all the time.  The stalwarts find ways to be more optimistic about the next battle (see Bill McKibben tracking the Keystone pipeline).  Occasional activists and amateurs can pick other issues and redirect themselves to more promising … Continue reading →

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Inspiration across borders: Brazil and Turkey

Posted on June 18, 2013 by David S. Meyer

Will a clever name, like Arab Spring or Occupy, link the protests erupting in disparate parts of the globe?  Will 2013 become a sign uniting all of them in memory, just like 1848, 1968, and 1989? The spread of wildly … Continue reading →

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Just another Moral Monday

Posted on June 17, 2013 by David S. Meyer

Democrats and liberals have been losing in North Carolina.  Democrats lost control of both houses of the legislature in 2010, but Republican legislative efforts were slowed by Democratic Governor Bev Perdue.  In 2012, Republican Pat McCrory soundly defeated Perdue’s lieutenant … Continue reading →

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