Defund is Not a Liability
Defunding the police has been portrayed as a political liability, but a forthright condemnation of police violence has proven to be compelling.
Interviews
“We can no longer just survive” Oscar Sanchez and the 10th Ward
Former hunger striker and aldermanic candidate Oscar Sanchez talks about building sustainable futures, violence de-escalation, and facilitating community involvement on the Southeast Side.
“Schools are the heartbeat of every neighborhood”
In the aldermanic race for Chicago’s 50th Ward, Mueze Bawany lays out his vision for a community built around belonging, organizing, and a future for youth.
Busting Down the Door for the Southwest Side
Aldermanic candidate Victoria "Vicko" Alvarez aims to put the community in charge of governing Chicago’s southwest side 15th ward. But as a socialist, Alvarez hasn’t lost sight of the need to restructure the larger systems that disenfranchised us in the first place.
The Spirit of the Union at the Field Museum
Workers at the Field Museum are building community, camaraderie, and power by organizing a union. Several workers share their stories and why they are joining the cultural worker unionization wave.
Union Victory at Howard Brown Health
After years of understaffing and poor compensation during multiple pandemics, strike-ready nurses at Howard Brown Health just won a huge victory. Howard Brown workers discuss their campaign and the significance of their struggle.
“We will be defined by liberation”
Palestinian writer Yara Hawari speaks with the founders of Hajar Press on unity and fragmentation, joy and pain, and her novella, The Stone House.
“Everything in it is true”
Brekhna Aftab and Farhaana Arefin, founders of Hajar Press, speak with Palestinian writer Yara Hawari on cycles of dispossession, the beauty of oral history, and her novella, The Stone House.
“Operating without the Police Came Naturally to People”
Legendary Irish socialist Eamonn McCann reflects on police abolition in Free Derry, the rapid and challenging dynamics of the movement, and humiliating the Brits.
“We are our future”: An Interview with Chi-RADS
Rampant talked with members of the radical youth group Chi-RADs about their recent walkout, their ongoing struggle, and their vision for Chicago’s schools and beyond.
Making Mental Health a Public Priority
A leader in Chicago’s fight to fund public mental health care reflects on the ongoing work to right the city’s upside-down priorities.
There’s No Such Thing as Childhood in Gaza: Interview with a Palestinian Mother
The Israeli siege has made daily life in Gaza a particular kind of nightmare. Here, a Palestinian mother speaks about her grim experience, as well as the hopes that sustain her.
‘See for Yourself’: The Lynching of Jelani Day
A Black graduate student at Illinois State University, Jelani Day, went missing on August 25. His body was found in a river near a modern-day racist sundown town, and the official story doesn’t add up.
Hillbilly Nationalists & Chicago’s Rainbow Coalition
In 1960s Chicago, organizations of poor white people rejected racism and threw in their lot with the Black Panthers and Young Lords to fight for collective liberation. Their story is rich with lessons for today.
Fight Zionism With Socialism
The heroic Palestinian struggle is the beating heart of the international revolution. Grasping the imperialist dynamics of Zionism and the region is essential for solidarity struggles.
Rank-and-File Amazon Workers Can Organize Themselves
No simple trick will organize Amazon. A Chicago Amazon worker speaks on how long-term relationships and trust have allowed rank-and-file workers to flex their power on the warehouse floor.
Primed for Struggle: Organizing Inside Amazon
"We're not sitting around waiting for anyone to recognize us as a union in order to be or act as a union." An Amazon worker in Chicago talks to Rampant about what it will take to unionize the behemoth.
Hunger Strikers Fight for All Chicagoans
Seven days ago a group of activists started a hunger strike to fight to stop the city from allowing a toxic General Iron metal shredder from being built on Chicago’s Southeast Side.
Behind the Far-Right Mob
A researcher of far-right activity discusses the forces behind the pro-Trump mob at the Capitol and the challenges ahead for combating a growing fascist movement.
We Have to Win for Each Other
Educators in North Carolina's Organize 2020 union caucus discuss how they are building membership and leadership through struggle.
Deadlier Than a Pandemic
A new study shows that Black people die at a higher rate in a normal year than the rate of white people dying from the pandemic this year. In this interview, the author of the research explains its significance.
We Take Care of Us
Mutual Aid work in this Chicago neighborhood is forging new communities amid the pandemic and the antiracist rebellion. Rampant interviewed the organizers for a window into their ongoing project.
There’s Nothing Left but the Streets
The recent rebellion in Philly against the police murder of Walter Wallace Jr. is rooted in struggles of the past and reflects the uprisings of the future.
Black Lives Matter and the Power of History
African Americans have mobilized against the police to defend Black life since the 1960s and before. For this cycle of massive urban rebellion to succeed in changing the racist structures of society, it will require learning from this history and struggles abroad.