Black Agenda Report
Black Agenda Report
News, commentary and analysis from the black left.

  • Home
  • Africa
  • African America
  • Education
  • Environment
  • International
  • Media and Culture
  • Political Economy
  • Radio
  • US Politics
  • War and Empire

After Winning the Election Do We Govern the Place or Transform It? Kali Akuno on the Lessons of Jackson MS So Far
Bruce A. Dixon, BAR managing editor
26 Oct 2017
🖨️ Print Article

This is a hasty and cleaned up version of Kali Akuno's remarks at the Movement School for Revolutionaries, which was hosted by Cooperation Jackson in Jackson Mississippi on October 21, 2017. My apologies for the previous less accessible version and for this one too. Haven't edited video in a long while. Will do better next time, I promise.

Among much else, Akuno summarizes the long history of struggle, including electoral struggle to which Jackson MS and Cooperation Jackson are heirs. He outlines the factors behind Cooperation Jackson's break with City Hall in Jackson and with the Democratic party. He examines the problems encountered by left movements which win elections in this neoliberal era -- can the limited powers of local government be harnessed to transform the economy and peoples lives, or are local officials merely rubber stamps and friendly faces for the forces of austerity, perpetual war and privatization. Akuno also touches upon the connection between local and global politics, and frankly assesses the prospects of human, economic and social transformation from the front lines of Jackson Mississippi.

Cooperation Jackson

Related Podcasts

Cooperation Jackson's Kali Akuno: Elections Don’t Necessarily Change a Damn Thing
Nellie Bailey and Glen Ford
Cooperation Jackson's Kali Akuno: Elections Don’t Necessarily Change a Damn Thing
06 December 2017
A key strategist among the Black radicals that were behind the election of two Black mayors in Jackson, Mississippi, says his fellow activists have
Coope ra tion Jackson: Reclaiming Democracy and Building a Solidarity Economy in Mississippi and Beyond
This Is Hell
Cooperation Jackson: Reclaiming Democracy and Building a Solidarity Economy in Mississippi and Beyond
01 November 2017
Kali Akuno and Ajamu Nangwaya discuss building a solidarity economy at Cooperation Jack

More Stories


  • U.S. Corporate Media Watch: An Interview with Richard Medhurst
    Roberto Sirvent, Richard Medhurst
    U.S. Corporate Media Watch: An Interview with Richard Medhurst
    04 May 2022
    In this feature, we interview Syrian-born journalist Richard Medhurst about state propaganda, the mainstream media, and U.S. imperialism.
  • BAR Book Forum: Interview with Adam Bledsoe and Willie Wright
    Roberto Sirvent, BAR Book Forum Editor
    BAR Book Forum: Interview with Adam Bledsoe and Willie Wright
    04 May 2022
    This week’s featured scholars are Adam Bledsoe and Willie Wright. Bledsoe is an Assistant Professor at the University of Minnesota. Wright is an Assistant Professor at the University of Florida.…
  • The Sports World’s Selective Moral Indignation
    Gus Griffin
    The Sports World’s Selective Moral Indignation
    03 May 2022
    Russian athletes have been banned from the Boston Marathon, Wimbledon tennis championships, and perhaps the next Olympic games. These punishments were not meted out to citizens of the U.S. and allied…
  • Venezuela Continues To Be the Model for True Democracy in the Americas
    Jacqueline Luqman
    Venezuela Continues To Be the Model for True Democracy in the Americas
    03 May 2022
    The 2002 attempted coup against Venezuelan president Hugo Chavez was undone because of popular action. The Bolivarian Republic recently held an international summit commemorating events which…
  •  West African “Coup Contagion” Analysis
    Djibo Sobukwe
    West African “Coup Contagion” Analysis
    03 May 2022
    The people of Africa's Sahel region want truly sovereign governements that act in their interests. But U.S. interference, the continued influence of France and other colonizers, and neo-colonial…
  • Load More
Subscribe
connect with us
about us
contact us