Michelle Chen

Contributing Writer

@meeshellchen

Michelle Chen is a contributing writer for The Nation.

Pre-K Student

Day-Care Costs Can Drive a Family Into Poverty Before a Child Reaches Kindergarten Day-Care Costs Can Drive a Family Into Poverty Before a Child Reaches Kindergarten

But they'll probably impoverish her teacher first.

Dec 7, 2015 / Michelle Chen

An activist protesting polluters at the Climate Generations Areas at COP21, the United Nations Climate Change Conference, Wednesday, December 2, 2015.

Why Are So Many Fossil-Fuel Companies Funding the Paris Climate Conference? Why Are So Many Fossil-Fuel Companies Funding the Paris Climate Conference?

Polluters need to pay, not make decisions about the future of the planet.

Dec 4, 2015 / Michelle Chen

How Debt Collectors Ruin Lives

How Debt Collectors Ruin Lives How Debt Collectors Ruin Lives

They can dock your pay and ruin your credit—and the industry has only grown in recent years.

Dec 2, 2015 / Michelle Chen

A man carries a sack of oranges while walking past a mural depicting a fight between farmers and private landlords in Tegucigalpa, Honduras's capital.

More Than 30 Trade Unionists Have Been Killed in Honduras Since 2009 More Than 30 Trade Unionists Have Been Killed in Honduras Since 2009

Chiquita keeps bananas cheap—and union organizers scared for their lives.

Nov 30, 2015 / Michelle Chen

A worker stuffs newly made toys at the production line of a factory in suburban Shanghai.

The Other Side of Black Friday Price Tags The Other Side of Black Friday Price Tags

Throughout the Global South, underpaid workers face wage theft and injury to meet Western consumers' demands.

Nov 25, 2015 / Michelle Chen

A photograph from the “Portraits of Hunger in NYC” exhibition features four-year-old Brandon, whose family makes a four-mile round trip to collect food at two Queens food pantries.

Thanksgiving Is Almost Here, and Over a Million New Yorkers Might Go Hungry Thanksgiving Is Almost Here, and Over a Million New Yorkers Might Go Hungry

The latest statistics on hunger in the city tells the proverbial Tale of Two Cities as a Tale of Two Pantries.

Nov 23, 2015 / Michelle Chen

A California parolee wears a GPS tracking device on his ankle.

How Prison Reform Could Turn the Prison-Industrial Complex Into the Treatment-Industrial Complex How Prison Reform Could Turn the Prison-Industrial Complex Into the Treatment-Industrial Complex

The private prison industry is exploiting prison reform efforts by shifting from brick-and-mortar carceral facilities to outsourced social services.

Nov 20, 2015 / Michelle Chen

A girl walks at a refugee and migrant camp on the northeastern Greek island of Lesvos.

European Countries’ Closing Their Borders to Refugees Is Collective Punishment European Countries’ Closing Their Borders to Refugees Is Collective Punishment

EU states’ attempts to “opt out” of international law will only fuel more regional chaos.

Nov 18, 2015 / Michelle Chen

Detained Asylum Seekers Seek Transnational Justice

Detained Asylum Seekers Seek Transnational Justice Detained Asylum Seekers Seek Transnational Justice

Refugees of a transnational migration crisis represent the latest wave of social upheaval in Bangladesh now reverberating around the world.

Nov 16, 2015 / Michelle Chen

8 in 10 Hotel Workers Have Been Harassed at Work

8 in 10 Hotel Workers Have Been Harassed at Work 8 in 10 Hotel Workers Have Been Harassed at Work

These hospitality workers are pushing for a “panic button” to prevent the attacks that have become endemic in the industry.

Nov 13, 2015 / Michelle Chen

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