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Robert Belano

Robert Belano is a writer and editor for Left Voice. He lives in the Washington, DC area.

Argentina: The Revolutionary Left in the Struggle against Milei

Just weeks into his administration, Argentina’s far-right president, Javier Milei, has unleashed a draconian program of austerity, layoffs, and attacks on democratic rights. In this context, new possibilities are opening up for building a revolutionary workers’ party, an effort to which the Party of Socialist Workers (PTS) has concentrated its work.

Robert Belano

January 12, 2024

Bernie Sanders Is Giving Cover to the Genocidal Policies of Biden and Netanyahu

With his refusal to back even a ceasefire, Bernie Sanders has shown the limits of social democracy and its inability to confront U.S. imperialism.

Robert Belano

November 20, 2023

In Argentina, a Surprise Finish for the Establishment While the Trotskyists Add to Their Congressional Seats

The far-right Javier Milei suffered a setback in Sunday’s elections. But voting the lesser evil won’t deal a definitive blow to the Right. That’s only achieved through building a socialist alternative for the working class.

Robert Belano

October 25, 2023

What Explains the Rise of the Far Right in Argentina?

The Peronists’ “lesser evil” strategy has failed to stop the rise of Javier Milei, the most reactionary major candidate Argentina has seen in decades.

Robert Belano

August 22, 2023

“The Democratic Party has a very obvious class character”: Interview with Rhode Island DSA

Left Voice Writers Rob Belano and Tristan Taylor spoke with Rhode Island DSA co-chair Tony Unger about the chapter’s recent resolution against trying to “transform” the Democratic Party, committing itself to endorsing candidates who are independent socialist, and advocating the construction of a mass socialist party.

Robert Belano

July 20, 2023

Jujuy: An Indigenous and Working-Class Rebellion in the Lithium Triangle

Workers and indigenous people in Jujuy, Argentina are facing off against antidemocratic reforms enacted by the provincial government and the international lithium mining corporations behind it.

Robert Belano

June 26, 2023

Historic Election for the Anticapitalist Left in Jujuy, Argentina

Alejandro Vilca, Trotskyist, sanitation worker and representative of the Workers’ Left Front socialist coalition, earned 13 percent of the vote in Sunday’s gubernatorial election. It’s an achievement unmatched in 40 years.

Robert Belano

May 9, 2023

Thousands of Workers and Young People Participate in Socialist-led Assemblies across Argentina

Last weekend, the Party for Socialist Workers (PTS) in Argentina held over 100 democratic and open assemblies in cities and towns across the country to debate the inflationary crisis, government’s the austerity program, and a working-class solution.

Robert Belano

November 15, 2022

Democrats’ ‘Climate Bill’ Puts Polluters before People and the Planet

Congressional Democrats, supported by President Biden, just passed a major spending bill focused on climate change, health care, and taxes. But it’s no win for the climate or the working class.

Robert Belano

August 13, 2022

Over 50 Migrants Found Dead in Texas. Biden Has Blood on His Hands.

The Biden Administration has maintained virtually all of Trump’s draconian and murderous immigration policies. Dozens have died in a trailer in Texas as a result.

Robert Belano

June 29, 2022

Peru’s ‘Progressive’ President Sends the Police to Repress Popular Mobilizations

Protests against the rising cost of living have shaken Peru. The crisis demonstrates the dead end of “anti-neoliberal” figures like President Pedro Castillo and parties who try to administer the capitalist state.

Robert Belano

April 9, 2022

Ireland and Argentina Won Abortion Rights through Struggle. Protecting Our Rights Here Won’t Be Any Different

Abortion rights are under threat in the United States. As the abortion movements in Ireland and Argentina have shown, the right to free, safe, and legal abortions can only be won through combative action and mass mobilization in the streets.

Robert Belano

December 11, 2021

Meet Alejandro Vilca, the First Indigenous Worker Elected to Argentina’s Congress

The Indigenous sanitation worker Alejandro Vilca is set to enter Congress for the Workers Left Front — Unity (FIT-U). A militant campaign by thousands of workers, young people, and Indigenous communities made history.

Robert Belano

November 16, 2021

Biden and the Democrats Have Given Up on Meaningful Climate Action

Democrats have accepted major cuts to Biden’s already-inadequate climate and social-spending plan, once again showing that the interests of big business come first for the party.

Robert Belano

November 10, 2021

The Trotskyist Left Is a Rising Force in Argentina

In Sunday’s primary elections in Argentina, the Workers’ Left Front - Unity, an electoral coalition of four Trotskyist parties, had its best election yet and is now the country’s third-largest electoral force.

Robert Belano

September 13, 2021

New Orleans Looks Out for Big Business, Not Residents in Ida’s Wake

Another major hurricane has battered the South. But instead of providing the relief residents need, authorities are deploying “anti-looting” police to discipline the region’s poorest — overwhelming Black folks.

Robert Belano

August 31, 2021

The Demand for Carbon Capture Is a Gift to the Fossil Fuel Industry

Oil companies, governments, unions, media outlets, big environmental groups, and even sections of the Left have all declared carbon capture technology to be an important way to combat climate change. But what this demand actually does is justify continued fossil fuel extraction and preserve the unsustainable status quo.

Robert Belano

August 21, 2021

The Northwest Heatwave Killed Hundreds and Capitalists Won’t Stop Fossil Fuel Extraction

Record-breaking temperatures were felt across the Pacific Northwest in the past week, affecting 13 million people and creating deadly wildfires and thunderstorms. The connection between extreme weather and climate change is as clear as ever, but neither Biden nor Trudeau are capable of taking meaningful action.

Robert Belano

July 3, 2021

None of This Was Inevitable: Half a Million Covid Deaths and Counting

In less than a year, 500,000 people have died of Covid-19 in the United States. The failure to contain the pandemic has been a bipartisan affair.

Robert Belano

February 23, 2021

Science, Profit, and Anti-Vaxxers

Understanding vaccine skepticism requires a look at the nature of health care and science in the U.S.

Robert Belano

February 7, 2021

Biden’s Climate Plan Is a Catastrophe in the Making

Liberals have hailed the president-elect’s climate plan as “ambitious” and even “revolutionary.” In fact, it’s a middle-of-the-road plan that can only lead to catastrophe.

Robert Belano

December 4, 2020

Against Pragmatism: Socialists Shouldn’t Vote for the “Lesser Evil”

A section of socialists like Eric Blanc and Dan La Botz are urging a vote for the pro-imperialist Joe Biden as a lesser evil to Trump. This “pragmatic” logic is deeply rooted in the ideology of American capitalism.

Robert Belano

November 2, 2020

For the Planet, There Is No “Lesser Evil”

As fires rage on the West Coast, Donald Trump and the Republican Party continue to deny the basic science of climate change. Many people hope that voting for Joe Biden will save the planet. But the Democrats’ record on the environment shows they offer nothing to stave off a climate catastrophe.

Robert Belano

September 16, 2020

Bolsonaro’s Coronavirus Response is a Campaign of Terror Against Black and Indigenous People

Brazil is a new epicenter in the worldwide coronavirus pandemic. The death toll has doubled in only the last two weeks, reaching more than 30,000. Not coincidentally, the country is led by the world’s foremost coronavirus denier: Jair Bolsonaro.

Robert Belano

June 3, 2020

Ecocide and the Coronavirus: How the Capitalist Mode of Production Makes Pandemics Inevitable

The capitalist mode of production has proven itself fatal for nature and humanity. The most recent manifestation of this is the global spread of the coronavirus. As socialists, how can we confront these problems in a way that will be both sustainable for the environment and for human life?

Robert Belano

April 30, 2020

While Brazilians Die, Bolsonaro Continues to Deny the Pandemic

President Jair Bolsonaro of Brazil has gone beyond even Trump in his denialism toward the coronavirus. With Brazil now leading South America in Covid-19 cases, how can the right-wing leader continue to ignore the facts?

Robert Belano

April 7, 2020

Democrats and Republicans to the Rescue… of Corporations

Republicans and Democrats have agreed on an unprecedented $2 trillion stimulus package, much of it going to shore up corporate profitability. While hundreds of thousands are sick and dying from the Covid-19 pandemic, Congress makes clear again in whose interest it governs.

Robert Belano

March 25, 2020

“Neoliberalism Has Led to a Public Health Emergency” — Interview with an Italian Socialist

Left Voice spoke with Giacomo Turci, a member of the Revolutionary Internationalist Fraction (FIR), about the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic in Italy, the reasons why the healthcare system is overwhelmed, and the urgent measures needed to confront this crisis.

Robert Belano

March 16, 2020

Langston Hughes Reflects on the Promise of The Soviet Union

Not only one of America’s preeminent poets, Langston Hughes was also firmly committed to the liberation of Black people and the working class. His accounts of his journey to the USSR in 1933 provide a powerful insight into the Revolution’s advances in fighting the oppression of religious and ethnic minorities.

Robert Belano

February 18, 2020

Amazon’s Green Capitalism Is a Cruel Joke

Megacorporations like Amazon are racing to rebrand themselves as leaders in environmental sustainability. But capitalism is a system that is inherently dirty and unsustainable.

Robert Belano

January 15, 2020