Click here to view this and past newsletters online. Please add "messenger@truthout.org" to your email contacts to ensure delivery.  Dear Reader, You can play a role in working toward economic justice by choosing where you spend your money. For more than a year, Truthout has been offering Progressive Picks of the Week: independent books and DVDs that we believe deserve special attention. Many of them are ignored by the mainstream media, but all of them are making important contributions to the advancement of the common good. By donating to Truthout - and receiving these specially selected gifts - you're helping to build the foundation for a better society. You're also making the choice to support progressive writers and documentary filmmakers, as well as the 100 percent independent, corporate-free journalism of Truthout and BuzzFlash. It's easy. Just take a look at our latest offerings: Precious Knowledge: Arizona's Battle Over Ethnic Studies [DVD] By Ari Luis Palos and Eren Isabel McGinnis: If you're wondering why the Arizona legislature has appeared to turn into a Tea Party version of the Ku Klux Klan, the documentary "Precious Knowledge: Arizona's Battle Over Ethnic Studies" provides invaluable insight. In "Precious Knowledge," this battle for the nation's future plays out in the state's ban of Mexican-American studies, specifically in Tucson. Although Mexican-American young people comprise the vast majority of public school students in Tucson, a couple of opportunistic politicians decided that teaching Mexican-American heritage and culture was threatening the white power structure and banned a curriculum that had nearly doubled graduation rates among Latinos. Occupy the Economy: Challenging Capitalism [Paperback] By Richard Wolff, in conversation with David Barsamian: "Richard Wolff and David Barsamian truly understand, at the deepest levels, both the need for political, social, and economic change in this nation, and the ways such change can happen. This is an essential read for everybody concerned with the future of the world, from academics to concerned citizens; it's also a brilliant and thoughtful manual that every activist must own." - Thom Hartmann, internationally syndicated radio/TV host, and author of "The Last Hours of Ancient Sunlight" Bonsai People: The Vision of Muhammad Yunus [DVD] Directed by Holly Mosher: Muhammad Yunus didn't invent the notion of providing steps for cultivating economic growth among the abject poor and conducting business for the social good. But it is a concept that needed a leader, and Yunus has become that person. Filmed over several years in rural Bangladesh, "Bonsai People" celebrates Yunus's extraordinary humanitarian work, which started when he simply lent $27 to 42 people out of his own pocket. As the founder of Grameen Bank, Yunus pioneered microcredit, the innovative banking program that provides poor people - mainly women - with small loans they use to launch businesses and lift their families out of poverty. And if you haven't already seen it, we strongly recommend Noam Chomsky's recently released book: Noam Chomsky: Occupy [Paperback] According to independent publisher Zuccotti Park Press, "In Occupy, Chomsky comments on the cornerstone issues, questions and demands that have been driving ordinary Americans into the streets. How did we get to this point? How have the wealthiest 1% waged class war against everyone else for the past 30 years? How can we get money out of politics? What would a genuinely democratic election look like? How can we redefine basic concepts like ‘growth' to increase equality and quality of life for all?" Check out more of our progressive picks here. In the coming months, Truthout will also be offering fair trade items that help change our system of economic distribution to enhance the earnings of workers. Remember, you have the power to make change with how you spend your dollars. If you have feedback or recommendations, please contact Mark@Truthout.org. Sincerely, The Truthout Team ---------- Support Truthout with a tax-deductible donation by clicking here.
|
