OtherWords

OtherWords is a free, non-profit editorial service published by the Institute for Policy Studies. Each week, OtherWords distributes a batch of publication-ready op-eds, along with a cartoon, to thousands of readers — including hundreds of editors of small and medium-sized newspapers. Each year, these op-eds appear thousands of times in local newspapers throughout the country, as well as in a growing number of online outlets. We believe that strong social movements need informed citizens, and that people learn best from conversations in their own communities — neighbor-to-neighbor. But between a consolidated, corporate-controlled mass media and a deafening social media echo chamber, it’s gotten harder than ever to have these conversations, especially in smaller communities with few local media options.

Through OtherWords, we’re able to provide millions of readers in America’s heartland with intelligent commentary on a range of progressive causes — on climate, inequality, war and peace, the movements for race and gender justice, and beyond. Through the trusted local papers that use our service, we reach readers in red, blue, and purple states alike with well-written, timely commentaries on the national issues that affect their lives. To read our work or get information about publishing it in your community, check out OtherWords.org.

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Latest Work

Terrorists’ Right to Bear Arms

Two GOP senators say they wouldn’t support a bill to stop suspected terrorists from buying weapons.

Family-Unfriendly

Arizona’s new immigration law can potentially destroy families.

Mothers Shouldn’t Have to Fear for their Lives

It’s possible to reduce the risks to women of dying in childbirth.

Anti-Immigrant Vigilante Movement in Disarray

We don’t need armed vigilantes patrolling the border.

Massacres Expose another Reason to End Iraq and Afghanistan Wars

The bylaws and directives of this war allow our Army helicopter gunners to shoot at unarmed Reuters photographers, and military convoys to fire on busloads of civilians in Afghanistan, and U.S. Special Forces to murder pregnant women and teenage girls in Iraq.

I Coulda Been a Hedge Fund Manager

A guidance counselor cast me rudderless on the uncharted waters of higher education, where I drifted into journalism.

New Law Damages Arizona’s Credibility

I believe we need comprehensive, nationwide immigration reform.

Gotta Get Me a Gun

Experience shows that homeowner weaponry has proved more useful in shooting wives, husbands, and estranged sweethearts than in defending one’s castle.

Now Foreign Corporations are Citizens Too

It appears that Toyota, Unilever, Deutsche Bank, Bin Laden Construction group, and thousands of other foreign entities can also add their trillions of dollars to drown out the democratic voices of real Americans.

Arizona Immigration

Docile, reliable, cheap labor welcome.

Priority Check

The military claims more than half our taxes.

But Would Restaurants Have to Serve Libertarians?

A Kentucky Republican seeking a Senate seat endorses right to discriminate.

No More Torture

Former MI6 officials condemn U.S. use of torture.

Letters to the Editor: Kaul’s ‘Enduring Literature’

Donald Kaul’s take on the GOP hits a nerve.

Greed in the Suites Gets a New Yardstick

A landmark leap on executive pay disclosure could be around the corner.

Remembering Dorothy Height

Through it all, Height’s intellect and strength remained as sharp as her signature sense of style.

Tax Policy: Maybe It’s Time to Start Over

The rich actually pay a lower percentage of their total income in taxes than do the poor.

Congress: Rescue the Clean Water Act

Unless we protect headwater streams, our drinking water could be contaminated.

Which Mitch Do You Believe?

The GOP’s cynical hypocrisy either makes you want to either throw up or fall down laughing.

Warning: Shopping May Prove Deadly to Miners

Miners from Utah to sub-Saharan Africa to China’s Shanxi province die, in part, for us.