Stories by Tom Hayden

Tom Hayden was a leader of the student, civil rights, peace and environmental movements of the 1960s. He served 18 years in the California legislature, where he chaired labor, higher education and natural resources committees. He is the author of ten books, including "Street Wars" (New Press, 2004). He is a professor at Occidental College, Los Angeles, and was a visiting fellow at Harvard's Institute of Politics last fall. subscribe to Tom Hayden's feed

Federal Prosecutors Hiding Evidence in War on Gangs

Posted on: Sep 2, 2010, Source: The Nation

The revelations threaten to undermine the state’s case while raising serious questions about the legality of the US government’s global war on gangs.

Our Government Is Planning to Stay at War for the Next 80 Years -- Anyone Got a Problem with That?

Posted on: Mar 30, 2010, Source: LA Times

Without public debate and without congressional hearings, a segment of the Pentagon and fellow travelers have embraced a doctrine known as the Long War.

US More Vulnerable on Afghanistan as It Leans Harder on NATO Allies for Support

Posted on: Jan 3, 2010, Source: TomHayden.com

Democracy and domestic priorities will be the casualties in the US, Canada and Europe if the US-NATO military expansion into Afghanistan holds sway.

Hayden Criticizes MoveOn for being Silent on Wars in Iraq, Afghanistan and Pakistan; MoveOn Responds

Posted on: May 26, 2009, Source: AlterNet

Peace activist Tom Hayden argues that most powerful grassroots peace movement isn't pushing Obama on U.S. wars. Update: MoveOn sends a response.

Is Obama's New Afghan Commander a Violator of the Geneva Conventions?

Posted on: May 19, 2009, Source: TheNation.com

Allegations emerge that Gen. Stanley McChrystal oversaw secret prisons that violated human rights laws.

Why Is a Progressive Think Tank Telling Obama to Escalate the War in Afghanistan?

Posted on: Mar 26, 2009, Source: Huffington Post

It is deeply disappointing that the Center for American Progress has issued a call for a 10-year war in Afghanistan.

Maliki Endorses Obama's Iraq Timeline in Huge Blow for McCain, Bush

Posted on: Jul 19, 2008, Source: Huffington Post

In a stunning breakthrough for Obama, Iraq's prime minister endorsed the Dem candidate's timeline for withdrawing combat troops from Iraq.

Obama Wants to Shrink One War, But Expand Two Others

Posted on: Jul 15, 2008, Source: AlterNet

Obama is serious about a withdrawal plan for Iraq, but he's committed himself to expanding the wars in Afghanistan and Pakistan. Dumb Idea.

The U.S. Has Its Own Dr. Strangelove in Iraq

Posted on: Jun 21, 2008, Source: Huffington Post

Meet David Kilcullen, an Australian academic and military veteran who advises Gen. Petraeus on counterinsurgency doctrine in Iraq.

Pressuring the Dems for Peace

Posted on: Mar 21, 2008, Source: Huffington Post

The presidential candidates have passed up the chance to say something new or hopeful that might end the killing.

Anti-War Lessons from New Hampshire

Posted on: Jan 10, 2008, Source: TheNation.com

While Dem contenders spouted rhetoric about "ending the war," the real Iraq War continued safely unchallenged.

Why Barack Should De-Escalate on Pakistan

Posted on: Jan 6, 2008, Source: Huffington Post

Barack Obama's support for intervention in Pakistan if there is "actionable intelligence" against al-Qaeda legitimizes Bush's escalation plans.

Launching the 2008 Presidential Campaign With Ethnic Cleansing in Iraq

Posted on: Jan 8, 2007, Source: Huffington Post

How the escalation in Iraq is both a campaign move and a way to force Sunnis out of Baghdad and into second-class status.

Calls for Withdrawal from Iraq Echoing in Washington

Posted on: Sep 19, 2005, Source: AlterNet

Far from demanding to 'bring the troops home now,' Congress has begun considering what steps will create a stable Iraq without involving our soldiers.

How to Get Out of Iraq

Posted on: Aug 24, 2005, Source: In These Times

The door is swinging wide open for the peace movement -- and politicians in the Democratic Party -- to offer an exit strategy for Iraq.

How to End the Iraq War

Posted on: Nov 22, 2004, Source: AlterNet

The anti-war movement can force the Bush administration to leave Iraq by denying it the funding, troops, and alliances necessary to its strategy for dominance.

Learning from the Loss

Posted on: Nov 7, 2004, Source: AlterNet

A transition to a new generation of leadership is needed if the massive outpouring of activism of the past year is to flourish and be funded for the future.

Getting Physical

Posted on: Oct 31, 2004, Source: AlterNet

On Tuesday, the traditions of civil disobedience and electoral politics may converge.

Scapegoating the Protests

Posted on: Aug 26, 2004, Source: AlterNet

The belief that the Chicago '68 protests were the reason that Humphrey lost is unfounded. So too is the idea that John Kerry's prospects will be hurt by the demonstrations at the Republican convention in New York.

Remembering Dave Dellinger

Posted on: Jun 6, 2004, Source: AlterNet

Dave Dellinger was a coalition-builder, a nonconformist, a pacifist. He was a living mountain of a man.

'Homies Were Burning Alive'

Posted on: Jun 1, 2004, Source: AlterNet

105 gang members burned to death in a Honduran prison fire in May. It's clear that the Honduran war on gangs is out of control; what isn't so clear is the U.S. connection.

When Bonesmen Fight

Posted on: May 17, 2004, Source: Yale Politic

Four decades after the egalitarian '60s and some 225 years since the Declaration of Independence, American voters must choose between two members of an elite secret society. The lesson is that aristocracy still survives democracy.

Bolivia in Crisis

Posted on: May 6, 2004, Source: AlterNet

Bolivia is becoming the epicenter of battles against neo-liberal financial institutions like the World Bank and the U.S.-sponsored forced eradication of coca production.

Peace in the Streets

Posted on: Apr 27, 2004, Source: AlterNet

The war on gangs has resulted in a body count of 25,000 people nationwide in the past two decades. We need to drastically change our approach to inner-city youth and gangs; we need a peace movement against the war on gangs and the war on drugs.

Back to Vietnam

Posted on: Mar 7, 2004, Source: The Nation

While most Americans would like to forget the past, the Vietnam War is about to be relived this election season. Misrepresenting Jane Fonda's involvement -- again -- is just the beginning.

The Progressive Populist Moment Has Arrived

Posted on: Feb 16, 2004, Source: AlterNet

The Democratic presidential candidates have adopted the broad goals of the peace and justice movements, becoming anti-war and pro-fair trade in the course of the primaries.

Post-Marx From Mumbai

Posted on: Jan 26, 2004, Source: AlterNet

The close of this year's World Social Forum poses an opportunity to explore the organizational and ideological challenges that lie ahead, and to decide how the movement will push forward with its goals.

Out Of the Melting Pot

Posted on: Jan 22, 2004, Source: AlterNet

A new generation of progressive Indian-Americans are taking on the conservatives now trying to dominate and speak for their community.

A Global Peace Movement Revival

Posted on: Jan 18, 2004, Source: AlterNet

Instead of fragmenting the global justice movement, the war in Iraq has prompted a peace movement heavily influenced by the anti-globalization analysis of the World Social Forum.

Talking Back To the Global Establishment

Posted on: Jan 17, 2004, Source: AlterNet

Developing countries at the WSF are saying no to Washington's agenda. Will anti-Americanism become the driving passion of global politics?

The Anybody-But-Dean Syndrome

Posted on: Dec 8, 2003, Source: AlterNet

As the January primaries quickly approach, the Anybody-But-Dean syndrome is becoming as infectious as the flu among rival Democrat camps.

FTAA Ship Runs Aground, But Party Goes On

Posted on: Nov 30, 2003, Source: AlterNet

The Miami summit left many questions in its wake, like, what's up with Brazil, and what's next for the global justice movement?

Arresting The Future

Posted on: Nov 20, 2003, Source: AlterNet

Even as FTAA protestors and trade ministers poured out of town in droves, the city's Robo-Cops continued to demonstrate the 'Miami model' of suppression -- with pepper spray, rubber bullets and drawn weapons.

Miami Vice

Posted on: Nov 19, 2003, Source: AlterNet

The FTAA summit began with a paranoid police force attacking peaceful demonstrators. A sudden decision to end the event a day early has averted a possibly bloodier ending.

Democratic Demolition Derby

Posted on: Nov 6, 2003, Source: AlterNet

With Sharpton's attack on Dean, the Democratic presidential candidates enter a new phase, marked by nastier assaults on the frontrunner than on Bush.

The Harvard Primary

Posted on: Oct 28, 2003, Source: AlterNet

Politics becomes live entertainment when Chris Matthews and an audience of Ivy League students get up close and personal with the presidential candidates.

Evidence Of Things Unseen: The Rise of a New Movement

Posted on: Oct 20, 2003, Source: AlterNet

Converging progressive movements are in sync with the larger body of public opinion, and are spilling over into the mainstream to create a new global movement.

Cancun Files: As Empire Falls, Protesters Celebrate

Posted on: Sep 14, 2003, Source: AlterNet

The derailment of the WTO summit is the biggest triumph for the anti-globalization movement since Seattle.

Cancun Files: A Kinder, Gentler Mexican Police

Posted on: Sep 14, 2003, Source: AlterNet

Marking a break from years of bloody confrontations and outright police violence, security forces show unprecedented restraint at the WTO.

Cancun Files: A Day of Cooperation

Posted on: Sep 12, 2003, Source: AlterNet

While members of G-21 led by Brazil ally themselves with activists to resist U.S. pressure, protesters have a rare moment of accord with the police.

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