Lightnews — Scholar-powered news

Manfred Elfstrom @manfrede.bsky.social · 19d

Was delighted to see that a reader on Goodreads was angry at the suggestion that hot dogs could be healthy.

Manfred Elfstrom @manfrede.bsky.social · 19d

Hey, now! A is for Activist is not too bad. Forever stuck in my head: “Hummus, Hot dogs, Havarti cheese. Hot dogs!?! Yes! Healthy hot dogs please! (And pizza.)”

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Manfred Elfstrom @manfrede.bsky.social · 19d

Lucky to have gotten to hear this incredible call to action: podcasts.apple.com/ca/podcast/l...

Cecil Roberts: “ You must continue to fight”

Podcast Episode · Labor History Today · 2025-09-21 · 34m

podcasts.apple.com

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Manfred Elfstrom @manfrede.bsky.social · Sep 10

Send the email. www.amnesty.org/en/documents...

South Sudan: End two deportees' arbitrary detention: Nyo Myint and Enrique Arias Hierro - Amnesty International

On 4 July, Nyo Myint and Enrique Arias Hierro were deported from a US military base in Djibouti to Juba, South Sudan, as part of the United States government’s mass deportation campaign and have since...

www.amnesty.org

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Reposted by Manfred Elfstrom

Lev Nachman @lnachman32.bsky.social · Dec 3

Big news!

My book "Contested Taiwan: Sovereignty, Social Movements, and Party Formation" is officially available for pre-order through University of Washington Press!

Here's a brief summary of the book, contested politics, and why Taiwan matters for political science:

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Manfred Elfstrom @manfrede.bsky.social · Sep 4

Congrats! Looks excellent!

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Manfred Elfstrom @manfrede.bsky.social · Aug 26

Update: I declined the contract.

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Manfred Elfstrom @manfrede.bsky.social · Aug 26

The anniversary of the start of the Blair Mountain uprising just passed. Here's a nice video on the incredible work done by the West Virginia Mine Wars Museum to keep that history alive. www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZUxq...

10 Years of the West Virginia Mine Wars Museum

YouTube video by West Virginia Mine Wars Museum

www.youtube.com

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Manfred Elfstrom @manfrede.bsky.social · Aug 26

Have been getting requests from my book's publisher to sign / decline an AI agreement. My instinct is to say "no" for now. But, then, I would want stuff generated about my areas of interest to draw on work like mine. Thoughts about the best course of action?

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Manfred Elfstrom @manfrede.bsky.social · Aug 14

Really horrible. I can imagine the setting.

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Manfred Elfstrom @manfrede.bsky.social · Aug 11

Enjoyed doing this interview with Asian Labour Review about Chinese worker activism. labourreview.org/a-question-o...

A Question of Strikes

Editor's Note: For the labour movement, strikes occupy a special place, taken often as the most direct and visible demonstration of working-class power to disrupt the operations of capital. When worke...

labourreview.org

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Manfred Elfstrom @manfrede.bsky.social · Aug 11

Not everything that was demanded. But these kinds of moves add up. South Africa's apartheid regime similarly suffered a thousand cuts by investors.
www.huffpost.com/entry/norway...

Norway's $2 Trillion Wealth Fund Ends Contracts For Israel Asset Management

After a review into the fund's links to the Israeli military, the arm of Norway's central bank said it's also divested from 11 of the country's firms.

www.huffpost.com

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Manfred Elfstrom @manfrede.bsky.social · Jul 21

Haha! :)

Manfred Elfstrom @manfrede.bsky.social · Jul 3

Enjoyed doing this interview with Serhii Shliapnikov for Links International Journal of Socialist Renewal links.org.au/node/7352

China’s labour movement under fire: An interview with Manfred Elfstrom

Manfred Elfstrom discusses recent labour struggles in China and what they tell us about prospects for change under an authoritarian regime.

links.org.au

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Manfred Elfstrom @manfrede.bsky.social · Jul 2

This is just staggering. In a fair world, there would be tribunals at the end of all this and some sort of accountability. www.cnn.com/2025/07/01/p...

Rubio hails end of USAID as study says its elimination could contribute to 14 million deaths in next 5 years | CNN Politics

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio hailed the end of the US Agency for International Development (USAID) Tuesday as a new analysis found that its demolition could contribute to 14 million deaths in the...

www.cnn.com

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Manfred Elfstrom @manfrede.bsky.social · Jun 17

This is great, extremely valuable research.

G Elliott Morris @gelliottmorris.com · Jun 15

Based on crowd-sourced records of No Kings Day event turnout, and extrapolating for the cities where we don't have data yet, it looks like roughly 4-6 million people protested Trump across the U.S. yesterday. That's nearly 2% of the U.S. pop!

Mobilized anti-Trump resistance is exceeding 2017 levels

"No Kings Day" protests turn out millions

Our unofficial estimate is that around 4 million people attended a protest event yesterday. Anti-Trump resistance is outpacing 2017.

www.gelliottmorris.com

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Manfred Elfstrom @manfrede.bsky.social · Jun 10

Yes. Exactly what I was thinking. The assumption seems to be that this will all play into Trump’s hands. But we have evidence from the past that this need not be the case—and, in fact, that images of police overreaction can backfire for the White House, at least outside of its hardcore supporters.

mtsw @mtsw.bsky.social · Jun 10

The mainstream/centrist punditocracy seems to exist in an alternate universe around discussing protests where 1) BLM happened while Joe Biden was President and 2) it resulted in an electoral wipeout for Dems

Manfred Elfstrom @manfrede.bsky.social · Jun 6

Fingers crossed!

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Manfred Elfstrom @manfrede.bsky.social · Jun 6

Trump seems to be having his 1971 Lin Biao moment with Musk. Hopefully, with the same blow to support among core supporters to follow…

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Manfred Elfstrom @manfrede.bsky.social · Jun 6

Proud to be a signatory of this letter. medium.com/@lawasia/pet...

Petition Against Visa Restrictions on Chinese Students

Introduction

medium.com

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Reposted by Manfred Elfstrom

Daisy Pitkin @daisy-pitkin.bsky.social · Jun 5

600 election victories. I’ve been trying to let that sink in all day. Workers have chosen the union SIX HUNDRED times in the last 3.5 years. That’s about one election win every other day. Truly incredible.

Starbucks Workers United @sbworkersunited.org · Jun 4

🚨BREAKING: We just surpassed 600 UNION ELECTION VICTORIES!

CONGRATULATIONS to Starbucks partners who won their unions in a NEAR UNANIMOUS LANDSLIDE!!

✊Albuquerque, NM - Coors Bypass & 7 Bar L - [15-0]
✊Moon Township, PA - Moon Township - [13-0]
✊Richmond, VA - North Robinson Rd - [10-1]

A big group of Starbucks partners laugh, pose, and model party streamers while holding balloons that say 600

A large group of Starbucks partners pose and hold signs that say "OUR UNION IS STRONG" and Pride flags

A group of SBWU members wearing SBWU shirts pose and hold balloons that are numbered 600.

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Manfred Elfstrom @manfrede.bsky.social · Jun 4

I do think public pressure has made a difference here in Canada to date—under Trudeau and now under Carney. People should keep applying it. nwmd.social/s/copylink/4...

Tell Carney to Sanction Israel

It’s time for Canada to act. Send an urgent message demanding that Prime Minister Carney and Foreign Affairs Minister Anita Anand follow through with their threat of sanctions, and impose an arms emba...

nwmd.social

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Manfred Elfstrom @manfrede.bsky.social · May 13

Jason Isbell! In the Okanagan! Obligatory grainy documentation!

Jason Isbell performing on stage with blue lights in Kelowna.

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Manfred Elfstrom @manfrede.bsky.social · Apr 29

Hot air.

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Manfred Elfstrom @manfrede.bsky.social · Apr 29

Kelowna still being counted…

CTV map with Kelowna highlighted. The Liberal candidate is at 26,061 votes; the Conservative, at 25,891 votes.

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