Ruth Watson
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ruthwatson.bsky.social
Ruth Watson
@ruthwatson.bsky.social
Journalist. Activist. Working for a better tomorrow today.

Political perspectives. Sustainability. Resilience. Food security. Social justice.

Scottish. Irish. Algerian. Kabyl.

There is no Planet B.
Reposted by Ruth Watson
“I don’t want to be in this place I want to go to my school.”

- 7 year old imprisoned by ICE for 70 days in a concentration camp in Texas.

Today, after @propublica.org published this story, the camp was raided to confiscate letters from the children.

www.propublica.org/article/ice-...
February 17, 2026 at 7:31 PM
Reposted by Ruth Watson
Reform’s Matt Goodwin, candidate in the Gorton & Denton by-election, received a salary from a Far Right propaganda group linked to Hungary’s Orban. Details below.
February 17, 2026 at 5:35 PM
Reposted by Ruth Watson
Fascinating. Will the opponents of protofascism have learned enough from Caerphilly?
Labour has now come in from 10/1 to 5/1 in Gorton and Denton, with Reform at 3/1 against, and Greens odds-on.

NB: these are prices (reflecting betting patterns) not predictions

(There has been no representative polling of the constituency published during the campaign + no hard data).
February 17, 2026 at 6:35 PM
Reposted by Ruth Watson
Federal judge orders slavery exhibit at Philadelphia’s Independence Hall be restored, and called the Trump’s attempt to erase history Orwellian and horrifying #FDT #AmericanHistory #TrumpNaziPlaybook #DV1 #ProuBlue www.inquirer.com/news/philade...
Federal judge orders Trump administration to restore slavery exhibits to the President’s House
The order does not give the federal government a deadline for restoring the President's House.
www.inquirer.com
February 16, 2026 at 10:35 PM
Reposted by Ruth Watson
Romania has decoupled economic growth from pollution faster than anywhere else in EU. Its net greenhouse gas emissions intensity fell 88% between 1990 & 2023, so each euro’s worth of economic activity heats planet 10 times less. Emissions have plunged by 75%. www.theguardian.com/environment/...
‘The trend is irreversible’: has Romania shattered the link between economic growth and high emissions?
Emissions have plunged 75% since communist times in the birthplace of big oil – but for some the transition has been brutal
www.theguardian.com
February 17, 2026 at 8:53 AM
Reposted by Ruth Watson
There’s only 1 person in Congress who doesn’t trade stocks, doesn’t take corporate PAC money, and has a public schedule. That’s me. And it should be the standard.
February 17, 2026 at 4:48 PM
Reposted by Ruth Watson
If there's one lesson from recent history it's that nothing bad ever happens after you're unreasonably rude to an FT journalist.
Nigel Farage lashes out at a FT journalist and refuses to answer the question.

Is this how Reform UK would ignore media questions if they got into government?
February 17, 2026 at 2:53 PM
Reposted by Ruth Watson
RIP Rev. Jesse Jackson

There are going to be a lot of tributes to his activism, so I'm choosing to remember how much he crushed hosting SNL
The question is moot Reverend Jesse Jackson Saturday night live
Dailymotion video by Jesse Jackson Jr.
www.dailymotion.com
February 17, 2026 at 12:47 PM
Reposted by Ruth Watson
Jesse Jackson's presidential campaigns of 1984 and 1988 set out the blueprint for a multiracial populist campaign for president.

@jamellebouie.net's piece from 2016 shows how Jackson's legacy could prevail with someone like AOC in 2028 or 2032.

He'll be missed, but his ideas will live on.
Demoralized Democrats Have a Road Map for Success in Trump’s America. It Was Written by Jesse Jackson.
Jesse Jackson first ran for president during the national farm bust of the early 1980s. Debt for farmers had exploded from $85 billion in 1976 to $216 ...
www.slate.com
February 17, 2026 at 3:34 PM
Reposted by Ruth Watson
I was on a commission with her about the rights of EU citizens in the UK after Brexit. She endorsed the suggestions of the commission, but then voted against them in Parliament.
Giving Braverman the education brief is quite a choice for Reform. I was on an education commission with her once before she went completely mad and she knew absolutely nothing at all.
February 17, 2026 at 2:00 PM
Too many folk either have forgotten, or never knew, the struggle is took to gain human rights and equalities legislation.

People like Martin Luther King and Jesse Jackson led the way.

Their influence was felt across the world.

We.
Cannot.
Go.
Back.

#NoMoreRacism
February 17, 2026 at 3:51 PM
Reposted by Ruth Watson
I. AM. SOMEBODY. ✊🏽

Rest in Power, Reverend Jesse Jackson.

youtu.be/NTVwT3j_zqY?...
Jesse Jackson’s - Wattstax Music Festival Opening Speech (1972)
YouTube video by Nightloop
youtu.be
February 17, 2026 at 12:33 PM
Absolutely this. A thousand times, this.

Ditch the aristocracy
#NotMyKing
If you have a Royal Family, you have deference.

If you have a Royal Family, you have a class system.

If you have a RF, you essentially say, "These people are better than everyone else by dint of birth & should maintain enormous influence, wealth and power."

Why would anyone want that at all?
February 17, 2026 at 3:19 PM
Reposted by Ruth Watson
We interrupt tributes to Jesse Jackson to bring you your daily dose of racism.

Thanks, Beeb. Respectfully handled.
February 17, 2026 at 11:42 AM
Reposted by Ruth Watson
I don’t know who needs to hear Jesse Jackson leading the kids on Sesame Street in this beautiful call-and-response reminding them that every child is somebody, but here it is
February 17, 2026 at 11:41 AM
This looks like a fascinating conference about a most pressing issue:

What part do/can localised food systems play in feeding our communities during a time of climate and political upheaval?

#FoodandDrink
#Farming
#FoodSecurity
#ClimateChange
#GrowLocal
#FeedTheWorld

xi-conferencesyal.com
February 17, 2026 at 1:39 PM
Reposted by Ruth Watson
'Farm bankruptcies surged 46% in 2025…

The most recent farm income forecast confirmed that the farm economy has faced extreme fin'l pressure… Significant losses are expected across crop sectors for another year, & many livestock sectors are also tightening margins'

eu.wisfarmer.com/story/news/2...
Farm bankruptcies surged 46% in 2025, signaling deepening financial crisis
Farm bankruptcies surged 46% in 2025, marking the second consecutive year of increases. Declining farm income and rising debt are pushing farmers to the brink.
eu.wisfarmer.com
February 16, 2026 at 11:08 AM
Reposted by Ruth Watson
Dans cet entretien, l'historien Benjamin Badier, spécialiste de l’histoire du Maghreb contemporain, déconstruit les mythes du roman royal autour de Mohammed V, dernier sultan et 1er roi du Maroc, loin des hagiographies habituelles.
histoirecoloniale.net/entretien-mo...
Entretien : Mohammed V, du mythe à l’histoire
Entretien avec l'historien Benjamin Badier, auteur d'une récente biographie de Mohamed V, loin des hagiographies dont ce souverain est souvent l'objet.
histoirecoloniale.net
February 17, 2026 at 1:03 PM
Reposted by Ruth Watson
The US civil rights leader Jesse Jackson, a pioneer of progressive Democratic politics, close ally of Martin Luther King Jr, and two-time candidate for the presidential nomination, has died at 84.

See his life in pictures: bit.ly/3OxOT3f
February 17, 2026 at 12:31 PM
Reposted by Ruth Watson
Scrapping equality law could trigger EU trade retaliation - as this would breach the standstill clause on equality and employment law under the Trade and Cooperation Agreement

(As regards Northern Ireland, it also would breach the withdrawal agreement)
The Reform proposal to repeal the Equality Act + anti-discrimination laws (a proposal which Farage made and u-turned on in 2015, but which is back in 2026) has gone almost completely under the radar
Braverman is now lambasting equalities policies, saying Reform would scrap the equalities brief and repeal the Equality Act. Giving her this role - any role, in fact - does feel like quite a risk for Reform.
February 17, 2026 at 12:26 PM
This looks like a fascinating conference about a most pressing issue:

What part do/can localised food systems play in feeding our communities during a time of climate and political upheaval?

#FoodandDrink
#Farming
#FoodSecurity
#ClimateChange
#GrowLocal
#FeedTheWorld

xi-conferencesyal.com
February 17, 2026 at 12:33 PM
This looks like a vital global conference: what part do/can localised food systems play in feeding our communities during a time of climate and political upheaval?

#FoodandDrink
#Farming
#FoodSecurity
#ClimateChange
#GrowLocal
#FeedTheWorld

xi-conferencesyal.com
International Conference Localised Food Systems
Pivoted towards the future: how can local food systems be future-proofed in the face of current and future challenges? 1-4 Sept 2026, Aberdeen, Scotland
xi-conferencesyal.com
February 17, 2026 at 12:19 PM
February 17, 2026 at 11:59 AM
Reposted by Ruth Watson
Robert Duvall, the legendary actor whose career has spanned over six decades, has died at 95, his wife announced
February 16, 2026 at 6:04 PM