The Brief Origins of May Day, by Eric Chase

Image by brent granby via Flickr

Dandelion Salad
Originally published May 1, 2015

Republished with permission from IWW

by Eric Chase
IWW, 1993
May 1, 2024

Most people living in the United States know little about the International Workers’ Day of May Day. For many others there is an assumption that it is a holiday celebrated in state communist countries like Cuba or the former Soviet Union. Most Americans don’t realize that May Day has its origins here in this country and is as “American” as baseball and apple pie, and stemmed from the pre-Christian holiday of Beltane, a celebration of rebirth and fertility.

The Radicalization of Martin Luther King, Jr. + Where Do We Go From Here?

Image via Cocoabiscuit

Dandelion Salad
Previously published on Jan. 20, 2013
January 15, 2024

“One day we must ask the question, “Why are there forty million poor people in America?” And when you begin to ask that question, you’re raising a question about the economic system, about a broader distribution of wealth. When you ask that question, you begin to question the capitalistic economy.” — Martin Luther King, Jr., “Where Do We Go From Here?” Aug. 16, 1967

Happy New Year! Who Was The Radical MLK?

Screenshot by Dandelion Salad via Flickr
Watch the video below

Happy New Year!

Merry Christmas! + Happy Birthday to Jesus, the Anti-Imperialist Socialist!

Screenshot by Dandelion Salad via Flickr
Watch the video below

Merry Christmas!

“All I want for Christmas is the abolition of imperialist white supremacist capitalist heteropatriarchy!”

Rev. Chris Hedges and Rev. David Bullock: Christmas, Charity, Anti-Empire and the Revolutionary Jesus

Image by Matt via Flickr

Dandelion Salad
Originally published Dec. 24, 2014
December 23, 2023

with Chris Hedges

David Alexander Bullock on Dec 25, 2018

Rev. Chris Hedges and Rev. David Bullock discuss the real meaning of Christmas with Paul Jay.

MFTN: Our Way Of Life Must Die — Another World Is Possible

Image by The All-Nite Images via Flickr

The Essays of The Man From the North by Rivera Sun
Writer, Dandelion Salad
Originally published Nov. 25, 2018
December 8, 2025

Greed is an addiction. Like lab rats choosing pain to get doses of opium, the greed that underlies our way of life is killing us — and make no mistake: our way of life must die. Pathological consumption is no more acceptable in human beings than in locusts. It will die or we will die. The question is only: will we go down with the sinking ship of our culture or will we evolve again, past the folly of homo sapiens’ dubious wisdom into a species willing to live in balance with our one and only planet?

‘Tis the Season To Wage Boycotts! + Shopping as an Act of Resistance

Image by Dandelion Salad via Flickr

The Essays of The Man From the North by Rivera Sun
Writer, Dandelion Salad
Originally published November 24, 2013
November 23, 2023

Boycott Season is now upon us. Let every citizen take careful aim. Your target is the corporate empire. Your weapon is your wallet.

When America Was “Great”… by Paul Street + Indigenous Peoples’ History is More Complicated Than a Holiday Myth

Image by Daniel Lobo via Flickr

by Paul Street
Writer, Dandelion Salad
Originally published November 21, 2018
November 22, 2023

“Your prayers and hymns, your sermons and thanksgivings… are… a thin veil to cover up crimes which would disgrace a nation of savages. There is not a nation on the earth guilty of practices more shocking and bloody than are the people of these United States, at this very hour.” – Frederick Douglass, July 4th, 1852

Labor Day: The Unknown Holiday, by Walter Brasch

Image by Children’s Bureau Centennial via Flickr

by Walter Brasch
Writer, Dandelion Salad
Originally published Sept. 7, 2009
September 4, 2023

It’s Labor Day, and that means millions of Americans are celebrating. Most Americans have no idea what Labor Day is, other than self-serving political speeches, hot dogs, burgers, a pool party, and the last day of a three-day holiday. Few even know that Labor Day exists to allow people to remember and honor the struggles for respect, dignity, and acceptable wages and working conditions for the rank-and-file employees.

Labor History: The Pullman Strike of 1894 + Fight for Your Rights!

By Galtzaurdin – Own work, CC BY-SA 4.0, Link

Dandelion Salad
Originally published Sept. 4, 2017
September 3, 2023

The Pullman Strike of 1894 Explained: US History Review

Keith Hughes on Jun 3, 2014

Join me as we take a look at a pivot strike in US History, the Pullman Strike of 1894. Perfect for inquisitive learners, students of the social studies and the cray cray on the internets.

Salt of the Earth

screenshot by Dandelion Salad via Flickr

Dandelion Salad
Previously posted May 7, 2017

ampopfilms on Jul 16, 2014

Salt of the Earth (1954) is an American drama film written by Michael Wilson, directed by Herbert J. Biberman, and produced by Paul Jarrico. All had been blacklisted by the Hollywood establishment due to their alleged involvement in communist politics.

The Dandelion Insurrection At 10 Years + After The Fireworks, by Rivera Sun

Image by Colin Knowles via Flickr

by Rivera Sun
Writer, Dandelion Salad
July 5, 2023

Rivera Sun on Jul 3, 2023

Author Rivera Sun reflects on reaching the 10-year anniversary of the publication of The Dandelion Insurrection. The novel has been read by thousands, including by activists in tree-sits or on the front lines of pipeline resistance. Over a decade of resistance and reading, Rivera Sun shares a short look-back on the journey.

I’m Sick and Tired of This Thing Called “Patriotism,” by William Blum

Image by rstrawser via Flickr

by William Blum
Writer, Dandelion Salad
Originally published July 5, 2010
July 3, 2023

Some thoughts on “patriotism” written on July 4

Most important thought: I’m sick and tired of this thing called “patriotism”.

Mother’s Day Proclamation: Divest From War! by Rivera Sun

Image by codepinkphoenix via Flickr

Happy Mother’s Day

by Rivera Sun
Writer, Dandelion Salad
Originally posted on May 12, 2019
May 14, 2023

Instead of flowers, give us peace. Instead of brunch, end the wars. Let no more mothers raise their children to kill other mothers’ children. Give us, instead, the abolition of war, the promotion of peace, and the care of people and planet.

The Brief Origins of May Day, by Eric Chase

Image by brent granby via Flickr

Dandelion Salad
Originally published May 1, 2015

Republished with permission from IWW

by Eric Chase
IWW, 1993
April 30, 2023

Most people living in the United States know little about the International Workers’ Day of May Day. For many others there is an assumption that it is a holiday celebrated in state communist countries like Cuba or the former Soviet Union. Most Americans don’t realize that May Day has its origins here in this country and is as “American” as baseball and apple pie, and stemmed from the pre-Christian holiday of Beltane, a celebration of rebirth and fertility.