TO: The readers of People’s World
FROM: C.J. Atkins, Managing Editor
That headline should alarm you—and here’s why.
With two weeks left in the People’s World 2026 Fund Drive, we’ve raised only $67,400 of our $140,000 target.
Not reaching that goal won’t just be a disappointment—it would have an immediate and damaging impact on the publication and its work. Finances are unbelievably tight right now, and every aspect of our operations is being reviewed to look for savings and efficiencies, but pinching pennies only gets you so far.
COVID-19 might seem like a long time ago, but the health of People’s World is still suffering the effects of that pandemic. The mass layoffs and soaring inflation triggered by coronavirus devastated working families—and since we have no corporate sponsors, when their incomes suffered, ours did too. We furloughed staff, cut travel, and deferred upgrades. But we never missed a single day of publishing, and we have our readers and donors to thank for that.
People’s World has been there for every major fight of the last few years: the Black Lives Matter national uprising, the January 6th MAGA coup attempt, the Women’s Marches, Gaza, the 2024 effort to block fascism, the resistance to DOGE cuts and ICE violence, the Target boycott and efforts to save DEI policies, and the growing No Kings movement.
Right now, we’re covering the labor upsurge building toward a massive May Day 2026—including our April 16th Town Hall featuring top labor leaders—and our reporting on the May 1st “No Work, No School, No Shopping” actions is already getting pickup from the AFL-CIO, the Chicago Federation of Labor, and the Chicago Teachers Union.
And of course, we bring you the most up-to-date analysis on the wars against the peoples of Iran, Venezuela, Cuba, Lebanon, and Palestine, as well as ideas for how to stop them.
It’s a lot, right? As I hope you can see, People’s World is a powerful tool for the working class, but it can do even more with your support. So, we’re appealing to you, our readers:
- Can you become a monthly sustainer? — Reliable income keeps our journalists in the streets when the labor and people’s movements are in action.
- If you can’t be a sustainer, how about a one-time donation? — Any amount is welcome, and it could make the difference in keeping a reporter on staff.
- How about placing an ad in our May Day Greetings Book? — The deadline is now, and it’s a chance for your group or union to reach a national audience with a message important to you.
We know that People’s World asks a lot of our readers, and it might sometimes feel like we’re always coming to you for money. But we hope you think this publication is worth keeping alive. With war raging, elections on the horizon, and the resistance in motion, we can’t afford to let this voice for the working class grow quieter. Please give today.
With solidarity and gratitude,
C.J. Atkins
Managing Editor
CONTRIBUTOR
