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

Cooperation Jackson's Kali Akuno: Elections Don’t Necessarily Change a Damn Thing
Nellie Bailey and Glen Ford
06 Dec 2017
🖨️ Print Article

A key strategist among the Black radicals that were behind the election of two Black mayors in Jackson, Mississippi, says his fellow activists have a decision to make: “Are we trying to be a good steward of the rules as they exist -- which I think is a complete waste of time -- or are we pushing for transformation of society?” asked Kali Akuno, of Cooperation Jackson. Akuno warned against falling into “the Syriza trap,” in which radicals wind up carrying out the policies imposed by banks and big business.

Cooperation Jackson

Related Podcasts

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
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
After Winning the Election Do We Govern the Place or Transform It? Kali Akuno on the Lessons of Jackson MS So Far
26 October 2017
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…

More Stories


  • BAR Radio Logo
    Black Agenda Radio with Margaret Kimberley
    Black Agenda Radio November 21, 2025
    21 Nov 2025
    In this week’s segment, we discuss a march to support Mumia Abu Jamal and all political and elder prisoners. But first, we hear about the latest climate change conference, COP30, and the limits of…
  • Cop 30
    Black Agenda Radio with Margaret Kimberley
    COP30 and the Failure of the Climate Conference Process
    21 Nov 2025
    The latest United Nations climate change conference, COP30, recently took place in Belem, Brazil. A people’s counter summit was also held, attended by indigenous Brazilians, Afro-Descendants, and…
  • Mumia Abu Jamal
    Black Agenda Radio with Margaret Kimberley
    March for Mumia
    21 Nov 2025
    Beginning on November 28, a March for Mumia Abu Jamal and will begin in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, and end on December 9 at S.C.I. Mahanoy prison in Frackville, Pennsylvania, where Mumia is being…
  • Trinidad and Tobago
    Clau O'Brien Moscoso , Erica Caines
    Trinidad and Tobago in the Crosshairs of U.S. Imperialism
    19 Nov 2025
    Sariyah Mohammad of Trinbago for Palestine and David Abdulah of the Movement for Social Justice joined National Co-Coordinator Erica Caines and Haiti/America Team Co-Coordinator Clau O'Brien Moscoso…
  • Margaret Kimberley, BAR Executive Editor and Senior Columnist
    Eric Adams, Zionism, and Pre-Emptive Strikes Against Mamdani
    19 Nov 2025
    Eric Adams, New York City’s blustering and corrupt outgoing mayor, is working with his allies to undermine mayor elect Zohran Mamdani in a blatant power grab and a violation of all norms of democracy.
  • Load More
Subscribe
connect with us
about us
contact us