The Final Straw Radio is a terrestrial radio show and podcast started in 2009 featuring information by, for and about anarchists and other anti-authoritarians. The show airs weekly on Sundays from 2-3pm EST out of Asheville, NC, USA.
This week, we’re sharing two segments on the episode: updates on the federal sentencing in the Prairieland Antifa terrorism case; followed by a discussion of a recent anti-Flock surveillance sabotage case in the Great Lakes region.
First up, two members of the DFW Support Committee return to give a rundown of the sentencing in that case with people receiving decades in relation to a noise demonstration in support of detainees at the Prairieland ICE Detention facility on July 4th of 2025. This case, framed in terms of Trump’s State Dept declaration of Antifa as a terrorist organization and his NSPM-7 memo titled “Countering Domestic Terrorism and Organized Political Violence” declaring the intention to prosecute those motivated to violence by views of “anti-Americanism, anti-capitalism, and anti-Christianity; support for the overthrow of the United States Government; extremism on migration, race, and gender; and hostility towards those who hold traditional American views on family, religion, and morality.”
Then you’ll hear a guest speak about a recent court case involving two individuals in the Great Lakes region who took action against flock surveillance cameras. You’ll hear some insights into the sorts of evidence presented, the defendants experiences of incarceration and how you can send support their way as they do their bid.
You can send funds to support them at @deez_zines on venmo. If you donate $20 or more to the fundraiser, send proof of donation and an address to deez_zines@tutamail.com and you’ll be sent a thank you gift from the support team.
This week, you’ll hear a conversation with Bam and Row, two residents of so-called Durham, NC to talk about that city and industries and their experience of solidarity with houseless neighbors, particularly in the Oakwood Park encampment which the city has already attempted to evict once this year. The guests give a long term and detailed view of the development of the city and the role of Duke University and adjacent, co-constitutive businesses and the city’s research park play in the day to day grind of living in that triangle city.
GoFundMe to support mutual aid with the Oakwood community
Also, after the interview the guests reached out wanting to uplift Traingle Anarchist Black Cross as one group involved in community support for the Oakwood Park encampment. They meet 4th Sunday (that’s today!!!) from 2-4pm for letter writing at The Burrow in Durham. More at linktr.ee/triangleabc
Finally, many of the people listed as inspirational by Row at the end of the interview have been either guests on this show in the past or the subject of episodes, which you can find under the tag of Black Anarchism.
Announcements
Recent Repression Updates
Federal Indictments have come down against people alleged to have taken part in anti-ICE protests (accused of being Antifa) in so-called Minneapolis. We plan to cover this in an upcoming episode, but meanwhile would direct listeners to recent episodes of It Could Happen Here, Outlaw Podcast and Live Like The World is Dying on the topic (the latter two are pending but should pop up at those links)
Also, sentencing has begun in the Prairieland “Antifa” case, with decades being handed out to make a political point (in the words of one judge). You can follow the updates at PrairielandDefendants.com (and we should be sharing an interview on the sentencing next week, once it’s complete for the Federal case).
Request for call-in to support mentally ill prisoner at the Joe Corley Detention Center in Texas
The prescribed collective action I believe will solve this issue here at the Joe Corley Detention centers RHU cellblock is:
1) A phone zap to warden Dickey’s office, the commissary office and the US Marshals office. The Marshals pay these inmates $1 a day and are responsible for their work ethics while awaiting transfer to a BOP.
Joe Corley Detention Center phone number: (936) 521-4000
US Marshals Office Southern District of Texas phone number: (713) 718-4800
2) Request that these individuals review surveillance cameras in the RHU cellblock where the incident involving a mentally ill prisoner name Brandon that live in cell 243 took place on the morning of 6-25-26 while he was forced to go to rec. This is to verify that he just purchased nearly $100 worth of commissary, a T-shirt- batteries, boxers, etc yesterday.
3) Demand that all of his items be returned to him.
4) Disciplinary for the officers involved in allowing the inmate worker to enter Brandon’s cell wholly unsupervised, take his items and refuse to investigate his valid complaint because he’s mentally ill and can’t comprehend what happened.
Background
On the morning of June 25 2026 officer Henley and a male white or Hispanic looking officer approached Brandon’s cell (243). They told him he was going to rec whether he liked it or not. Brandon complied with their order and was handcuffed and taken to the rec cage outside. I note Brandon wasn’t wearing a commissary T-shirt, nor was he carrying anything when he left the cell.
Moments later a Black inmate worker with a yellow skin tone entered the cellblock with a cart used to carry cleaning materials. They say he is amongst the most despised for his interest in stealing from other inmates.
This inmate worker was ordered to clean Brandon’s cell. Not only did he clean the cell, he cleaned him out. As both guards left him to his own device, taking their eyes off of him to tend to less important things. The inmate worker took a large plastic bag full of Brandon’s commissary that he’d just bought yesterday, two bags of coffee and a few things laying around and tossed them in the cart’s trash compartment like it was trash.
Soon after Brandon was placed back into an empty cell and to his dissatisfaction, he protested that Henley had set him up to be robbed.
Henley blew his concern off to a female mailroom employee as a hallucination, but what happened was reality.
Around 10:20am the inmate worker returned to sweep and mop the cellblock wearing, what looked like, Brandons brand new T-shirt under his own jail issued prison garb.
The officer who helped Henley take Brandon to rec halfheartedly asked the inmate worker if he stole Brandon’s commissary, implying he wasn’t present while the worker was in Brandon’s cell. Of course the worker denied taking anything, merely suggesting that the only thing in the cell was trash on the floor. Though he did admit to the officer to taking Brandon’s shampoo to use as he wanted. And his other inmate co worker gritted at Brandon that that’s what gets done to psych patients.
From what transpired both officers not only knew what happened but they created the incident as they already dislike Brandon because of his mental illness, forced him to leave his cell so that an inmate that openly despised him could clean it up unsupervised and stock piled with goodies.
If such acts against the mentally ill are perceived as heroic deeds in the eyes of this inmate worker and guards who condone it. What does that say about observers on standby that cheer them on, or an administration that chooses to assist by covering it up?
The conversation vacillates between the past and the present as Taylor talks about the misconduct and cover-up by the FBI and Chicago PD in the assassination of Chicago Black Panther’s Leader Fred Hampton, the forty year effort to freeJackie Wilson, the tradition of movement lawyering, and the legacy of the People’s Law Office.
This week, we’re taking a break from new content and sharing with you content from the May 2026 episode of B(A)D News: Angry Voices from Around The World. B(A)D News is a collaboration of members of the A-Radio Network of anarchist and anti-authoritarian radios and podcasts with member projects from Europe, the US and Chile at this moment.
Each month, a project takes responsibility to put together audio segments form other radio and podcast projects in the A-Radio Network. About the time that we’re releasing this, the June 2026 episode should be released, so keep an eye out at A-Radio-Network.org and clicking the link for B(A)D News to see the monthly episodes as they are released.
From the notes of episode 102:
This is episode number 102 of “B(A)D NEWS -angry voices from around the world”, a news program from the international network of anarchist and antiauthoritarian radios, consisting of short news segments from different parts of the world.
Content of this episode
Črna Luknja with a contra-report about the situation on borders of greece and migrant struggles. They discuss this with a member of Open Assembly Against Pushbacks in Athens and also active in Notara (migrant) squat.
Frequenz A with an interview of a comrade from Santarém, Brazil about indigenous struggles. They spoke with Raphael about anarchist organizations in the region, the main threats for indigenous communities, Indigenous struggles and how anarchists can support them.
First up, a long sharing of perspectives from occupied Kumeyaay [Kum-ee-aih] land, the Mexico-US border. Devi Machete from Contra Viento Y Marea in Tijuana in the Mexican state of Baja California about the history and activity of that project and journalist and activist James Stout speaks from San Diego in the US state of California about desert conditions north of the border wall. For this chat, you’ll hear third-hand accounts of border crossings, imprisonment, and deaths in border regions but also about solidarity, organizing, and resistance among those on the move as well as the communities they encounter.
After that, at roughly one hour and forty six minutes in, you’ll hear this year’s statement for the June 11th Day of Solidarity with Marius Mason and long term anarchist prisoners which will include perspectives of organizers, updates in folks struggles and conditions of confinement and reflections on solidarity and insurrection. Check the show notes for a few links and the time stamps of where this section begins. [ 1:46:45 ]
Many of you have been asking for an update, so here’s where things stand.
While at Scotland Correctional Institution, Shine was helping organize political education among prisoners and speaking out about conditions and serious medical concerns inside the facility. As many already know, he had a contraband cell phone. According to Shine, that phone contained recordings and information documenting conditions inside Scotland, including prisoners begging for medical attention. Not long after, Shine and others around him were transferred and separated across different facilities.
In mid-April, Shine was transferred overnight from Scotland to Granville Correctional Institution in what he described as one of the fastest transfers he had seen in 17 years of incarceration. Upon arrival, he was immediately placed on HCON (High Security Maximum Control). Shine maintains the placement was arbitrary, requested a grievance regarding that placement, and to our knowledge has yet to receive a meaningful opportunity to challenge it. He has been on hunger strike ever since.
Over the past few weeks, many of you participated in Calls to Action, making phone calls and sending emails seeking answers about his health, communication, property, grievances, and HCON status. Those efforts led to direct conversations with Assistant Regional Director Timothy Jones, who assured us that concerns were being reviewed and investigated.
Here’s the problem.
We have now confirmed through official records that Shine was already housed at Central Prison on the same date we were being given information that appeared to place him at Granville. We still don’t know whether that means the Regional Office had outdated information, didn’t know where he was, or something else entirely. What we do know is that the answers we were given don’t line up with the timeline we can now verify.
At this point, we have no direct communication with Shine. Updates are coming through fellow comrades who have been able to get word out through prison channels.
What we know right now:
Shine remains on HCON.
Shine remains on hunger strike.
Shine is housed in Central Prison’s medical unit.
Communication remains extremely limited.
Questions about his mail, property, grievances, and classification remain unanswered.
The transfer changed the address. It did not answer the questions.
This week we are launching another Call to Action. Supporters will once again be contacting Central Prison, the Regional Office, and NC DAC leadership seeking answers and accountability.
If Shine’s status remains unchanged and these concerns continue to be ignored, we are preparing for an in-person demonstration later this week.
If the goal was to make people stop paying attention, it didn’t work.
This week, as the 2026 FIFA World Cup looms across Turtle Island, we’re pre-sharing an interview with Jules Boykoff about one of his latest books about international sports spectacles, the upward money flow and authoritarian political power they facilitate but also a bit about the folks that are fighting back entitled Red Card: The 2026 World Cup, Sportswashing, and the FIFA Greed Machine (O/R Books, 2026).
This conversation falls into the same series as the recent interview with Kristian Williams and Sam Schmidt as regards evacuation of public spaces and attacks on community by the state and capital in the aid of police state capitalism.
This year has felt like there’ve been a series of large sports mega events and summits planned and taking place in cities across the USA. For instance, starting in June the FIFA World Cup will be hosted in cities across the country (as well as a few in Mexico and Canada). Also a few cities are hosting meetings and an eventual summit related to the G20, or group of 20 economies, a gathering between large capitalist industries, banks, para-governmental neoliberal international institutions, government ministries and heads of state that share policy decisions effecting immigration, wars, trade policy and the climate. In 2028 Los Angeles will host the Olympics.
This episode will feature two discussions about some of the security impacts of hosting large sports or political events and the ways that the state and capital work to change the landscape and norms of the locations they take place. First up, Kristian Williams speaks about National Special Security Events like the G20 or World Cup, how they change local police and surveillance landscapes and work to turbocharge gentrification and displace working and poor people, making our cities more hostile to anything but commerce and control. Then, you’ll hear from Sam Schmidt at Our Streets Collective to speak about homeless sweeps in Pittsburgh, PA in the run-up to and aftermath of the 2026 NFL Draft taking place in that city.
Prosfigyka coverage by Pyrias of Athens appears on this episode of B(A)D News podcast
Announcement
Marius Mason
Longtime listeners to The Final Straw Radio will be familiar with the yearly June 11th Day of Solidarity with Marius Mason and other Longterm Anarchist Prisoners. Well, stay tuned for an announcement from the June 11 crew in coming weeks with a recording of this year’s call. We are happy to announce here that Marius Mason, a long standing ecological, animal rights and trans prisoner rights activist will is on his way out of prison, currently in a halfway house having served out his sentence,
Past interviews on Marius’ case, other prisoners supported on the day and June 11th yearly event
Here’s our recent chat with two members of The Peoples Want Network, an attempt to build an Internationalist movement from below and to the left. For this chat, Rindala and Doxie speak about sharing lessons from movements and uprisings of the recent past from around the world among participants and those hoping to create movements in their own lives, organizing in exile, the enriching practice of building solidarity and the recently published English booklet of The Peoples Want manifesto, Revolutions Of Our Times (Haymarket 2026). At the end of the chat, Rindala announces the upcoming, June 2026 project Mujawara for networking local movement sites with those around the world to further increase intercommunication and solidarity and support such spaces in conflict sites in the SWANA.
We’ve covered a number of the uprisings, migrant struggles, and internationalist organizing topics and movements discussed in the episode since we started in 2010, so feel free to pick through our website if you want to dig a little deeper and hear some views from the times.
This week, we’re sharing an interview with Andrew Krinks, author of White Property, Black Trespass: Racial Capitalism and the Religious Function of Mass Criminalization from NYU Press, 2024. For the chat, we speak about taking a theological lens to the question of what ties exclusive private property, white masculinity, police impunity and mass incarceration in the US. We discuss aspects of Christian thought, employ concepts borrowed from the Black Radical tradition and try to get closer to the root of the sickness in our culture that flourishes from others pain.
During the chat Vicky talks about intellectual property and how it overlaps between entertainment and other elements like technology and medicine, the shaping and limiting effects IP has on popular culture and imagination, the film industry and more.
To hear Vickys past appearances on our show check out:
