Anthony Alvarez
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asalvarez.bsky.social
Anthony Alvarez
@asalvarez.bsky.social
180 followers 300 following 4 posts
Economic Sociologists @ CSUF

Basketball. Desserts. Tennis. Professor. Nerd. Interested in Consumer Finance, Wealth, Debt, Taxation, Inflation. And monster movies. Former Terp. Former Bruin. Current Titan.
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Reposted by Anthony Alvarez
joojitsulee.bsky.social
Just got the cover art from the press! Dropping in March 2026!
October 1, 2025 at 11:44 PM
Reposted by Anthony Alvarez
jamellebouie.net
i have said this before but when “getting rid of race in admissions” for the administration means “you can’t even try to reach out to underrepresented communities and encourage them to apply and if you do it is illegal discrimination against white people” then the actual goal here is segregation
Harvard Ends Undergraduate Minority Recruitment Program as Trump Targets Race in Admissions | News | The Harvard Crimson
By ending the minority recruitment program in May, Harvard shuttered a more than 50-year-old initiative to encourage minority high school students to apply.
www.thecrimson.com
September 15, 2025 at 12:16 PM
Reposted by Anthony Alvarez
qasimrashid.com
SCOTUS: We stopped Affirmative Action to ban targeting based on race, but we allow legacy admissions, white Afrikaaner "refugees," targeting of Latinos, over-policing Black communities, & bans on Afghan refugees and South Korean workers—because its okay to target based on race to help white people.
September 9, 2025 at 10:03 PM
Reposted by Anthony Alvarez
donmoyn.bsky.social
Full resignation letter from Demetre C. Daskalakis, a CDC leader, does not hold back.
"The recent shooting at CDC is not why I am resigning. My grandfather, who I am named after, stood up to fascist forces in Greece and lost his life doing so. I am resigning to make him and his legacy proud."
My resignation letter from CDC. Dear Dr. Houry, I am writing to formally resign from my position as Director of the National Center for Immunization and Respiratory Diseases at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), effective August 28, 2025, close of business. I am happy to stay on for two weeks to provide transition, if requested. This decision has not come easily, as I deeply value the work that the CDC does in safeguarding public health and am proud of my contributions to that critical mission. However, after much contemplation and reflection on recent developments and perspectives brought to light by Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., I find that the views he and his staff have shared challenge my ability to continue in my current role at the agency and in the service of the health of the American people. Enough is enough. While I hold immense respect for the institution and my colleagues, I believe that it is imperative to align my professional responsibilities to my system of ethics and my understanding of the science of infectious disease, immunology, and my promise to serve the American people. This step is necessary to ensure that I can contribute effectively in a capacity that allows me to remain true to my principles. The recent change in the adult and children’s immunization schedule threaten the lives of the youngest Americans and pregnant people. The data analyses that supported this decision have never been shared with CDC despite my respectful requests to HHS and other leadership. This lack of meaningful engagement was further compounded by a “frequently asked questions” document written to support the Secretary’s directive that was circulated by HHS without input from CDC subject matter experts and that cited studies that did not support the conclusions that were attributed to these authors. Having worked in local and national public health for years, I have never experienced such radical non-transparency, nor have I seen such unskilled manipulation of data to achieve a political end rather than the good of the American people. It is untenable to serve in an organization that is not afforded the opportunity to discuss decisions of scientific and public health importance released under the moniker of CDC. The lack of communication by HHS and other CDC political leadership that culminates in social media posts announcing major policy changes without prior notice demonstrate a disregard of normal communication channels and common sense. Having to retrofit analyses and policy actions to match inadequately thought-out announcements in poorly scripted videos or page long X posts should not be how organizations responsible for the health of people should function. Some examples include the announcement of the change in the COVID-19 recommendations for children and pregnant people, the firing of scientists from ACIP by X post and an op-ed rather than direct communication with these valuable experts, the announcement of new ACIP members by X before onboarding and vetting have completed, and the release of term of reference for an ACIP workgroup that ignored all feedback from career staff at CDC. Their desire to please a political base will result in death and disability of vulnerable children and adults. Their base should be the people they serve not a political voting bloc. I have always been first to challenge scientific and public health dogma in my career and was excited by the opportunity to do so again. I was optimistic that there would be an opportunity to brief the Secretary about key topics such as measles, avian influenza, and the highly coordinated approach to the respiratory virus season. Such briefings would allow exchange of ideas and a shared path to support the vision of “Making America Healthy Again.” We are seven months into the new administration, and no CDC subject matter expert from my Center has ever briefed the Secretary. I am not sure who the Secretary is listening to, but it is quite certainly not to us. Unvetted and conflicted outside organizations seem to be the sources HHS use over the gold standard science of CDC and other reputable sources. At a hearing, Secretary Kennedy said that Americans should not take medical advice from him. To the contrary, an appropriately briefed and inquisitive Secretary should be a source of health information for the people he serves. As it stands now, I must agree with him, that he should not be considered a source of accurate information. The intentional eroding of trust in low-risk vaccines favoring natural infection and unproven remedies will bring us to a pre-vaccine era where only the strong will survive and many if not all will suffer. I believe in nutrition and exercise. I believe in making our food supply healthier, and I also believe in using vaccines to prevent death and disability. Eugenics plays prominently in the rhetoric being generated and is derivative of a legacy that good medicine and science should continue to shun. The recent shooting at CDC is not why I am resigning. My grandfather, who I am named after, stood up to fascist forces in Greece and lost his life doing so. I am resigning to make him and his legacy proud. I am resigning because of the cowardice of a leader that cannot admit that HIS and his minions’ words over decades created an environment where violence like this can occur. I reject his and his colleagues’ thoughts and prayers, and advise they direct those to people that they have not actively harmed. For decades, I have been a trusted voice for the LGBTQ community when it comes to critical health topics. I must also cite the recklessness of the administration in their efforts to erase transgender populations, cease critical domestic and international HIV programming, and terminate key research to support equity as part of my decision. Public health is not merely about the health of the individual, but it is about the health of the community, the nation, the world. The nation’s health security is at risk and is in the hands of people focusing on ideological self-interest. I want to express my heartfelt gratitude for the opportunities for growth, learning, and collaboration that I have been afforded during my time at the CDC. It has been a privilege to work alongside such dedicated professionals who are committed to improving the health and well-being of communities across the nation even when under attack from within both physically and psychologically. Thank you once again for the support and guidance I have received from you and previous CDC leadership throughout my tenure. I wish the CDC continued success in its vital mission and that HHS reverse its dangerous course to dismantle public health as a practice and as an institution. If they continue the current path, they risk our personal well-being and the security of the United States.
August 28, 2025 at 1:01 AM
Reposted by Anthony Alvarez
ddayen.bsky.social
Buy the book too! It's called Little Bosses Everywhere.
www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/715421...
Little Bosses Everywhere by Bridget Read: 9780593443927 | PenguinRandomHouse.com: Books
A “gripping” (The Washington Post) work of history and reportage that unveils the stranger-than-fiction world of multilevel marketing: a massive money-making scam and radical political conspiracy...
www.penguinrandomhouse.com
July 29, 2025 at 4:54 PM
Reposted by Anthony Alvarez
edwardnh.bsky.social
As Mark Carney, the prime minister of Canada, recently put it, “The United States is beginning to monetize its hegemony.” www.wired.com/story/enshit...
The Enshittification of American Power
First Google and Facebook, then the world. Under Trump 2.0, US statecraft is starting to mimic the worst tendencies of Big Tech.
www.wired.com
July 15, 2025 at 12:26 PM
Reposted by Anthony Alvarez
haymarketbooks.org
ALL Haymarket Books are 40% off through August 22nd! ✊🏾✊🏿✊🏽
July 9, 2025 at 3:07 PM
Reposted by Anthony Alvarez
georgemonbiot.bsky.social
Today the order banning #PalestineAction as "terrorists" came into effect. But they are not terrorists. They are protesters trying to stop a genocide. This is a "first they came for ..." situation. Unless we stand in solidarity against this assault on our freedom, they will pick us off one by one.
July 5, 2025 at 6:12 AM
Reposted by Anthony Alvarez
qasimrashid.com
A reminder that the @nytimes.com told New Yorkers to not rank Mamdani at all, & instead endorsed former hedge fund manager Whitney Tilson.

Tilson sits at a whopping .8%.

Corporate media trust is dead. They killed themselves by failing to fulfill their promise of holding the powerful accountable.
June 25, 2025 at 2:43 PM
Reposted by Anthony Alvarez
perrybaconjr.bsky.social
"Democratic leaders have a consistent message for vulnerable constituents: Trump is trying to bait us into helping you, and we won’t be taking the bait. This “distraction” trope had steered Schumer into describing a setback to equality as unworthy of attention." www.offmessage.net/p/democrats-...
Democrats' "Distraction" Trope Reaches The End Of The Line
If a president will green light evil to indulge himself and distract others, then he must be removed.
www.offmessage.net
June 23, 2025 at 2:06 PM
Reposted by Anthony Alvarez
alondra.bsky.social
"Black applicants would, on average, need credit scores approximately 120 points higher than white applicants to receive the same approval rate, and about 30 points higher to receive the same interest rate."
June 7, 2025 at 5:09 AM
Reposted by Anthony Alvarez
nkalamb.bsky.social
Al Jazeera reports Israel has just murdered at least 27 more Palestinian aid-seekers near Rafah, bringing the total number of people massacred in cold blood while seeking aid to 102 in just eight days.

Unspeakable crimes against humanity.

www.aljazeera.com/news/liveblo...
Gaza’s Government Media Office has accused Israel of “a horrific, intentionally repeated crime”, saying it has lured starving Palestinians to aid centres run by the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation and killed 102 of them in the past eight days. At least 27 Palestinians have been killed in the latest such attack in southern Gaza’s Rafah governorate, according to the enclave’s Health Ministry.
June 3, 2025 at 12:12 PM
Reposted by Anthony Alvarez
atrupar.com
Trump officials' showings at hearings today were disasters, but it doesn't make headlines bc the media's default assumption is that Rs are clownish rascals. But if Dems didn't know what was happening at their agencies or what habeas corpus is, it'd be front page news. This is a key media asymmetry.
May 21, 2025 at 3:32 AM
Reposted by Anthony Alvarez
jonathanmladd.com
Beware of fighting the last war. Times will change, and conventional wisdom about the last war can be wrong. After 2004, many said the Dems needed a candidate who appealed to evangelicals. After 2012, people said Republicans needed a moderate on immigration. I doubt podcasting is the key to '28.
May 20, 2025 at 11:34 PM
Reposted by Anthony Alvarez
scott-delaney.bsky.social
My ongoing request:

If your NSF or NIH grant was terminated--whether at Harvard or elsewhere--please report it here.

NSF: grant-watch.us/submit-nsf.h...

NIH: grant-watch.us/submit-nih.h...

Our trackers are actively used in lawsuits and are often the only record that terminations ever occurred.
dangaristo.bsky.social Dan Garisto @dangaristo.bsky.social · May 14
NSF appears to be terminating hundreds of its grants to Harvard, per internal sources at NSF and at Harvard. At least one division has had all its grants cut.
May 14, 2025 at 2:22 PM
Reposted by Anthony Alvarez
rahimk.bsky.social
There's one month until Indefensible Spaces: Policing and the Struggle for Housing is published. Thanks to Eduardo Bonilla-Silva for his blurb, which highlights the book's contributions to the study of racial domination. You can learn more about the book here: www.ucpress.edu/books/indefe...
"Indefensible Spaces traces the long history of residential apartheid in a neighborhood north of Los Angeles. Although the neighborhood seems demographically ‘integrated,’ whites maintain racial domination through ‘housing policing’ practices such as accusing poor minority families of violating city codes. This book is a sociological treat that should influence social policy as well as how we study neighborhoods for years to come.”—Eduardo Bonilla-Silva, author of Racism without Racists: Color-Blind Racism and the Persistence of Racial Inequality in America
May 12, 2025 at 6:59 PM
Reposted by Anthony Alvarez
daniellaurison.bsky.social
FACULTY - if you want your campus leaders to defend higher education, you can organize a letter on your campus to urge them to do so. We are coordinating (and have templates and tools) at bit.ly/CampusLetters2025. We'll release all the letters as part of the @aaup.bsky.social day of action April 17.
Campus Letters 2025
bit.ly
April 11, 2025 at 4:51 PM
Reposted by Anthony Alvarez
acyn.bsky.social
Sanders: If Musk can do this to federal employees, some of whom are in unions, some of whom have worked for years, what do you think he's going to be doing when artificial intelligence and robotics comes for your job?
April 10, 2025 at 1:16 AM
Reposted by Anthony Alvarez
joshtpm.bsky.social
NEW: Having Gutted the IRS, DOGE is Now Preparing to Shutter the Tax Division at the Department of Justice. For the Super-Rich Paying Taxes Will Probably Be All But Voluntary Going Forward. talkingpointsmemo.com/edblog/doge-...
DOGE to Shutter DOJ Tax Division
I didn’t know this until this morning. And I’m surprised it hasn’t...
talkingpointsmemo.com
April 8, 2025 at 6:34 PM
Reposted by Anthony Alvarez
victorerikray.bsky.social
We’ve entered a golden age of cowardice, full of people and institutions with historically anomalous levels of money and power who are terrified of stating simple truths. It is pitiful and embarrassing.
politico.com Politico @politico.com · Apr 4
A huge swath of Silicon Valley is horrified by what Elon Musk is doing — but they’re increasingly afraid to say so.
👉 politi.co/4jkwGR2
April 8, 2025 at 10:30 PM
Reposted by Anthony Alvarez
ddayen.bsky.social
This is an absolute travesty, Russ Vought today vacated the case against (and *returned money to*) Townstone Financial, which ran an openly racist radio program to get leads for its mortgage business. Vought calls it DEI-based persecution.
www.consumerfinance.gov/about-us/new...
CFPB Seeks to Vacate Abusive, Unjust Case Against Townstone | Consumer Financial Protection Bureau
CFPB Seeks to Vacate Abusive, Unjust Case Against Townstone
www.consumerfinance.gov
March 27, 2025 at 12:06 AM