The December Indypendent + Welcome to Indy Wednesday
In this period between the election and the inauguration, we worry like a patient waiting for their cancer biopsy to come back. “How bad is it going to be?” We ask. “Are we doomed? Is there still time to beat this thing and fully recover?
We created our December post-election issue to help you make better sense of this moment. In the issue, we look at how we got here (again), the immediate dangers Trump poses and how we can get to a better place.
INDY ELECTION COVERAGE
Running on Empty: How the Dems Lost to Trump for the Second Time in Eight Years
By Danny Katch
It’s almost unfair that the object of a presidential campaign is to win the most electoral votes rather than the highest scores from a panel of talk show hosts and former Obama speech writers.
Trump’s Mafia State Emerges
By John Tarleton
Trump’s Cabinet picks tell us how he plans to run his 2nd administration: like a mafia boss for whom corruption is the point and unconditional loyalty is the only job qualification that matters.
Immigrants on Alert, But Top NY Democrats Show No Sense of Urgency
By Ariana Orozco
With Trump promising mass deportations, immigrant rights groups are pushing New York State and City to do more to strengthen laws that protect their communities.
Identity Politics Is Not Dead, It Just Needs to Get More Radical
By Linda Martín Alcoff
Identity politics can help us better understand power and who has it. Liberals use it to conceal their elitism.
While the U.S. Descends into Trumpian Populism, Mexico’s Left Populist Government Flourishes
By Ariana Orozco
In 2018, Mexico had the same opportunity the U.S. had in 2016: to replace a failed neoliberal status quo with a dynamic leftist, populist government. The different trajectories of the two countries couldn’t be more stark.
10 Reasons to Join a Political Organization
By Amba Guerguerian
Joining a political organization has many benefits at a moment when the system wants us to feel scared and alone.
Reverend Billy’s Revelations
By Billy Talen
Post-election reflections + farewell to the Earth Church.
MORE INDY COVERAGE
Immigrant Sex Workers Dodge Increased Police Presence on Roosevelt Ave
By Tanya Raghu
Mayor Adams is targeting some of NYC’s most vulnerable workers.
Inside One of Gaza’s Internal Displacement Camps
By Amba Guerguerian
The Refaat Alareer camp has become a relatively safe space for some of Gaza’s most severely ill and injured residents, but it still can’t protect people from Israel’s violence.
Audre Lorde Reimagined
By Jessica Max Stein
Alexis Pauline’s new biography of Audre Lorde re-envisions the life story of the legendary “Black lesbian feminist poet warrior mother.”
Editor’s Note: Keep the Presses Rolling
By John Tarleton
The Indy won’t be intimidated by Trump or his weirdo authoritarian allies. The only thing that can shut us down is if reader support falters and we have to cease publishing.
INDY RADIO NEWS
Tune into The Indypendent News Hour every Tuesday from 5–6 p.m. on WBAI-99.5 FM and streaming at wbai.org. On yesterday's show we spoke with Chris Neely, uncle of Jordan Neely, and veteran radical lawyer Eilenn Weitzman about the latest developments in the Daniel Penny trial. We also had an update from student journalist Zach Hussein on the recent victory of Sarah Lawrence College’s Gaza solidarity encampment, and we heard from Elizabeth Gonzalez of Comrades with Kids about how socialist parents are responding to Donald Trump’s election victory. To listen to the show, click here.
WELCOME TO INDY WEDNESDAY
It’s been a hectic week. After last Thursday’s Thanksgiving feasts with family and friends, Americans endured Black Friday, shop-til-you-drop Saturday and Sunday, Cyber Monday, and Giving Tuesday. We hope your email inboxes not only survived yesterday’s barrage of appeals from worthy causes but that you gave to some of them if you had the means to do so. We passed on yesterday’s increasingly frantic “scarcity olympics” to let the dust settle and calmly ask for your support today.
So what is Indy Wednesday? Well, it’s pretty much like any other day when our team of editors, reporters and photographers are out covering and amplifying the voices of grassroots social-justice movements fighting for a more just and humane world here in New York City and beyond. All that work is then disseminated through a monthly newspaper that reaches tens of thousands of New Yorkers, the indypendent.org website, our social media platforms, and on a weekly radio broadcast that airs in prime time in the middle of the FM dial. New York will be at the epicenter of the struggle against Trump’s authoritarian regime. We want to be there every step of the way, but we have bills to pay and we can’t do that work without the support of readers like yourself. In ways large and small, we are all in this together.
There are several ways you can support The Indy’s work. You can make a one-time contribution via PayPal or Venmo. You can also sign up to be an Indy Sustainer at PayPal, Patreon or Substack. If you prefer to send in a check or money order the old-fashioned way, our mailing address is:
The Indypendent
388 Atlantic Commons, 2nd Fl.
Brooklyn, NY 11217
Jerry Meyer Presente!
“The left must be self-funding,” retired CUNY professor and lifelong leftist Gerald “Jerry” Meyer wrote in a short essay for The Indy a couple of years before he passed in 2021. “We must all take responsibility for nurturing and growing its institutions, which are essential to our struggle for a fairer, more humane world. And it can be a great joy to do so.”
Jerry was a staunch Indy supporter. If you are on the fence about donating to The Indypendent or thinking “I’ll get it another time,” please read the rest of what Meyer had to say and visit our donate page.
Thank you for your support!
In Solidarity,
The Indypendent Team
