Archive - May 8, 2009

• Some Congress members angry over budget cuts
• New unemployment figures better than anticipated
• Remittances slowing down as migrant workers lose jobs
• 75th anniversary of history ILWU strike
• West Bank demonstrators say they were attacked by IDF

• Pakistan wages all-out offensive against Taliban
• Italy changes immigration policy, ignores asylum seekers
• Colombia arrests more soldiers in “false positive” scandal
• Company acquitted of poising Libby, Montana with asbestos
• Santa Barbara wildfire still burning out of control
• 3.5 million kids under the age of 5 face hunger in the US
• US Soldier convicted of murdering Iraqi girl; family calls for death penalty

Let the showdown begin. Some Congress members are fuming over President Obama’s proposed spending cuts in the budget. Nevertheless, those reductions are tiny compared to significant increases in other areas. FSRN’s Tanya Snyder brings us the numbers – and what they say about the Administration’s priorities.

Unemployment figures for April were released today, and the numbers are better than what some economists anticipated. The market shed 539,000 jobs in April, bringing the unemployment rate to 8.9 percent, that’s up from 8.5 the previous month. Despite that percentage rising, and despite the fact that the unemployment rate is the highest it’s been since 1983, keep in mind that nearly 700,000 jobs were lost in March. To be exact, the number of people who lost their jobs in March was originally estimated at 663,000 – but it was corrected to 699,000. Making the estimated 539,000 jobs lost in April sound a little better. Aura Bogado speaks with economist and Director of UCLA’s Institute for Research on Labor and Employment Chris Tilly about the numbers.

One measurement often overlooked in this financial crisis is the money that is sent – or not sent – home from Latin American migrants working in the U.S. A new study indicates that financial hardships will result in migrant workers sending $5 billion less than last year to support their families south of the border.  FSRN’s Sam Greenspan reports.

Tomorrow marks the 75th anniversary of a pivotal strike that changed the trajectory of the labor movement in the US. In 1934, ports along the west coast came to a standstill, as dockworkers walked off the job, demanding safer working conditions and an end to discriminatory hiring practices. As Africa Jones reports, the struggles of the International Longshore and Warehouse Union opened up new possibilities for all unions in the country.

Scores of Palestinians, Israelis and international activists participated in non-violent actions in the West Bank, calling for an end to the Occupation. As FSRN's Ghassan Bannoura reports, some demonstrators say they were attacked by Israeli Defense Forces.