Mo Torres
@motorres.bsky.social
sociologist: cities, political economy, race/racism umich.edu/~motorres
There is now set to be at least nine democratic socialists in Congress. Donovan McKinney – alongside Melat Kiros, Claire Valdez, Darializa Avila Chevalier, Brad Lander, and Chris Rabb – will join Bernie Sanders, Rashida Tlaib, and Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez.
Abdul El Sayed's open-mindedness on the question of how to actually resolve the question of Palestine is one of the best indicators of his overall intelligence and sincerity. Policymakers in DC should adopt a rights-based approach which prioritizes ending the occupation and apartheid systems.
Ron Skolnik@ronskolnik.bsky.social · yesterdayEl-Sayed: "I believe in equal rights to peace, dignity, and self-determination, for Palestinians and Jewish Israelis alike... If that’s 2 states, I’m for it. If it’s 1 state, I’m for that. If it’s this 'land for all' model, ... or whatever they decide." www.newyorker.com/news/the-new...
Grand Rapids is the first area reporting Michigan election results (currently at 18% reported) and El-Sayed is up 16 points on Stevens (55% to 39). This should be an interesting night.
Exclusive: We obtained a leaked playbook that Flock gives to cops to coach them on "how to speak to city council" to avoid getting their contracts canceled. Includes strategies like "own the narrative" by talking to mayor "before public comment periods" www.404media.co/own-the-narr...
‘Own the Narrative’: Leaked Flock Guide Shows How It Teaches Cops to Promote Its Tech
"This document shows a coordinated effort from Flock Safety to compel law enforcement agencies to convince our elected leaders to represent their interests as a company rather than the interests of co...
404media.co
The 2026 @aaup.org Faculty in the South Survey is live. If you are faculty in Virginia, North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia, Florida, Tennessee, Kentucky, Alabama, Mississippi, Louisiana, Arkansas, Oklahoma, and Texas please take a second to fill it out: forms.gle/iLheVskd4wcA...
2026 AAUP Faculty in the South Survey
The Georgia conference of the American Association of University Professors [AAUP] and its partners in states across the South have been at the forefront of fighting attacks on higher education. To as...
forms.gle
“They're doing this with the active assistance of the U.S. and financial assistance from, up until very recently, institutions like the UAW.” @uaw.org delegates voted to divest $400K in Israel bonds—a historic first. @maximillianalvarez.bsky.social talks with the workers who helped make it happen.
United Auto Workers Divests From Israel
At the 39th Constitutional Convention, delegates voted to divest $400,000 worth of bonds in historic first.
inthesetimes.com
BREAKING: New York just sued Kalshi — alleging it’s an illegal gambling operation. New York AG Letitia James alleges Kalshi failed to obtain a state gambling license and pay taxes. Her office is seeking an order enjoining Kalshi’s operations, plus fines, restitution and forfeiture of profits.
New York sues prediction market Kalshi alleging it’s an illegal gambling operation | CNN Politics
The New York attorney general’s office is suing Kalshi, one of the largest prediction markets, alleging it’s running an illegal gambling operation in the state.
cnn.com
“Harvard paid McKinsey & Company at least $250,000 to consult on the Faculty of Arts and Sciences’ staff restructuring efforts, according to internal documents obtained by The Crimson.” www.thecrimson.com/article/2026...
Harvard Paid McKinsey $250,000 For FAS Consultation, Internal Documents Show | News | The Harvard Crimson
Harvard paid McKinsey & Company at least $250,000 to consult on the Faculty of Arts and Sciences’ staff restructuring efforts, according to internal documents obtained by The Crimson.
thecrimson.com
sakura christmas@prof-christmas.bsky.social · 6d agoUnsurprising that all these cuts being made to #Harvard —from the Office of Student Services to the Writing Center to now the Dudley Co-op—are happening with input from McKinsey, a firm made up of The Second Worst People I knew in college there
See my work on this topic: jbam.scholasticahq.com/article/1516...
Metamimesis: Consultants as a Mechanism of Institutional Isomorphism in Higher Education | Published in Journal of Behavioral and Applied Management
By Mikaila Mariel Lemonik Arthur. Consultants don’t just advise colleges—they shape isomorphic pressures. This article introduces “metamimesis,” showing how consultants both respond to and amplify imi...
jbam.scholasticahq.com
It's especially galling that Haley Stevens is portraying herself as the great protector of the Jews in her campaign against a Muslim candidate, given that in 2022 she beat a wonderful Jewish Congressman in a costly primary in part by accusing him of being insufficiently pro-Israel.
@thejrocktv.bsky.social · 6d agoShe knows she’s losing so she said let’s just go mask off.
"Numerous progressives have won in swing states and districts in the past. Neither El-Sayed nor Hong would be the first progressive candidate to win in the Midwest. Ocasio-Cortez wouldn’t be the first president with a left-wing background." newrepublic.com/article/2136...
Can Progressive Candidates Win in Swing States? They Already Have.
In 2004, not many people imagined Senators Brown and Baldwin and President Obama. America’s voters often progress more quickly than we expect.
newrepublic.com
New job market paper 🚨 Local newsrooms are cutting crime coverage—but not homicide, which nearly every journalist I interviewed considers too important to skip. So why did so many journalists recount open newsroom disagreements over homicide coverage? onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/...
🚨NEW WORKING PAPER🚨 w/ @mjstrawbridge.bsky.social and @stephanieternullo.bsky.social. We help explain the puzzle of steadfast Black identification with the Democratic party by providing new theory and evidence on the role of racial residential segregation 1/n
“We may think companies are immoral, but… we assume they are coldly dedicated to their bottom line, not making billion dollar decisions based on something someone sent them on Facebook... We often look for some rational ruling class plan where only bigotry and short-termist idiocy exist.”
We used to be able to buy things in this country
Locking up toothpaste was a warning sign that our executive class was crazy
dannykatch.substack.com
A fair, dignified defense is the right of every New Yorker, not just those who can afford it. Congratulations to The Brooklyn Defender Services Union for reaching a tentative agreement and thank you to the public defenders who serve New Yorkers every day.
Brooklyn Defender Services ends strike with tentative agreement | amNewYork
The Brooklyn Defender Services Union reached a contract agreement that it said includes a set of economic and workplace gains including a higher wage floor,
amny.com
“I don’t really care about those labels nowadays,” Kelly said. “I like that he stands for making sure nobody seems to feel marginalized, like we’re all in this together, we all win together. “If that’s what socialism is,” she added, “I’m all for it!” www.theguardian.com/us-news/2026...
‘I’m over the moon’: New York’s small business owners rejoice as Mamdani cuts red tape
Initiatives including cutting permits just to serve ice-cream amount to a sweeping program of deregulation
theguardian.com
From the perspective of a cynical AI investor, the question isn't, "Can AI do your job?" The question is, "Can an AI salesman convince your boss that an AI can do your job?" 23/
A dark money campaign is offering influencers $1,500 per post to attack Abdul El-Sayed and support Haley Stevens. Same exact dollar figure that was paid to attack @katmabu.bsky.social (Nobody ever found out who was paying for that campaign.) Gross, lazy and above all cynical shit.
Secret paid influencer campaign backing Stevens floods Michigan Senate race
Rep. Haley Stevens and the Senate Democratic PAC said they were not involved in the effort to pay for user-generated content endorsing her.
ms.now
Get in, there’s a new secret political influence campaign paying people to post. This time, a network targeting people in Michigan. First paid to post about how hard it is to afford groceries and gas, the accounts have gone hard in recent days, supporting Haley Stevens. www.ms.now/news/haley-s...
Secret paid influencer campaign backing Stevens floods Michigan Senate race
Rep. Haley Stevens and the Senate Democratic PAC said they were not involved in the effort to pay for user-generated content endorsing her.
ms.now
Tragic ending to what would’ve been an amazing legacy for Big Gretch. She reversed harmful policies and did so much with a split government. Now, she’s ending it with this photo, supporting data centers, vetoing bills her own party fought for, and this.
Haley Stevens@haleyformi.bsky.social · 2w agoI am absolutely thrilled to have Gov Gretchen Whitmer’s endorsement for U.S. Senate. She is a champion for our state, she understands the stakes of this race and why it’s so important we elect the strongest Dem in this primary, and she gets stuff done for Michigan. Let’s go win!
Job opening: University of Michigan's Ford School of Public Policy is hiring a senior scholar in democracy policy, 'an area of research that treats democracy as a policy domain with identifiable problems, measurable outcomes, and actionable interventions.' Open to all social sciences, deadline 9/13.
Professor of Public Policy, Democracy Policy | U-M Careers
careers.umich.edu
“The actual epistemological crisis we are entering now is one better exemplified by the Vanderbilt report’s AI-generated analyses: automated data collection, sloppy analysis, and a growing sprawl of LLM-generated pseudo-evidence.“
Gabriel Hankins@gabrielh.bsky.social · 3w agoMy response to Appiah's "field report" is up: please repost www.chronicle.com/article/kwam...
I encourage folks to go to the article and its appendix and search for their institution. (This is how I discovered that my institution's campus police uses Flock's surveillance network.)
Alex Hanna@alexhanna.bsky.social · 2w ago"We found that at least 150 institutions of higher ed... are using Flock’s surveillance network.. many campus police departments have facilitated immigration related investigations, even when they are located in sanctuary states and are legally prohibited from doing so" by @torinmonahan.bsky.social
This Is My Jail, my history of Cook County Jail in Chicago and the role of jails in mass incarceration, is in the @pennpress.bsky.social Fall 2026 catalog. It’s out in paperback this December. www.pennpress.org/978151282349...
