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-grovernmental 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
Greetings, comrades and welcome to B(A)DNews, Angry Voices from Around The World for December, 2017, a product of the International Anarchist & Anti-Authoritarian Radios Network. This month, we’ll hear the following segments from member-groups:
first, 105fm presents on local news from Lesvos Island and other Aegean Islands, refugee struggles, the occupation of the Syriza headquarters in & the trial of the head of the the Greek fascist party, the Golden Dawn. Here‘s the script for this portion.;
Radio Kurruf in so-called Chile shares about the murder of Mapuche youth, Rafael Nahuatl, in Argentinian portions of Walmapu;
A-Radio Berlin’s presentation of a report about repression against the radical left in Germany about the anti-G20 demonstrations in Hamburg in the summer and up into December in other parts of Germany against the radical left;
Radio Fragmata from Athens, tells us about organizing against the new Correctional Code in Greece;
Dissident Island Radio with Lauri Love who is fighting extradition to the U.S. from the U.K. for charges of hacking;
98FM, Radios Of Subversive Expressions from Athens gives updates about the eviction of the Garre Squat, and the hunger strikes and solidarity with Pola Roupa & Nikos Maziotis;
Črna Luknja with ecological resisters in Germany’s Rhineland region against the lignite, brown coal pit mine in the old growth Hambacher Forest;
The Final Straw airs the latest segment of the #DropJ20 podcast, updating listeners to the latest details in the first segment of the trials of 194 anti-fascist and anti-capitalist protestors facing up to 60 years in U.S. prisons for anti-Trump-Inauguration demonstrations on January 20th, 2017. The script can be found in this text.
If you’d like to find out more about the projects involved in the A-Radio Network, learn more about our work or hear past episodes of B(A)DNews: Angry Voices from Around the world, check out our new website, A-Radio-Network.Org .
syriza changes Law
attack on the french institute of athens
harm of environment / shipowner and gold mining
law about the gender issue
15 years of prison in cause of self-defence
attack against goethe intitut of athens
several actions of a anarchist group
*Interview about the case of Herman Bell
(- who is a beloved organizer and family member, a political prisoner clocking 44 years behind bars, and former member of the black panther party. they
spoke to his daughter in law, kihana Ross, about recent developments in
his case.)
This week William interviewed Mark Bray, who is a professor, author, and anti authoritarian, about the G20 protests that took place in Hamburg Germany last week. We will talk about the event, how it unfolded, much in the way of cultural and historical context for resisting G20 summits, and much more! You can follow our guest on Twitter @Mark__Bray and search any search engine to find his books.
B(A)D News #2
The July 2017 edition of the monthly English language podcast, Bad News: Angry Voices from Around The World, is just out from the International Anarchist Radio Network. As of this moment, the network’s website has yet to debut at a-radio-network.org, so check out our post and our rss podcast feed for a link to this newest episode.
Fuck a Grand Jury; Grand Jury Resistance
[00:03:14 – 00:07:15]
We’d like to present a breaking announcement. Longtime North Carolinian, organizer and anarchist, Katie Yow has just released a statement that she’s been subpoena’d to a Federal Grand Jury in Greensboro and will be refusing to cooperate. We at the Final Straw Radio wish to express our care and support to Katie as she faces down this threat with our hearts full of the knowledge that she won’t be resisting this alone, but alongside all of us who know that backing down is not a choice. Many before have resisted and will. To the recalcitrant refusals of Team Grumbles!
In the Asheville area, here are a few upcoming events:
On Thursday, July 20th at 7:30pm at Firestorm there’ll be a showing of Trouble #4, about movement defense and resisting repression followed by episode 2 of Channel (A)!, a compilation of screen representation of anarchists from popular media. This event sits in the international week of solidarity from July 20-27th with J20 defendants from the inauguration protests in D.C. this year.
“We are calling for a Week of Solidarity with the J20 defendants from July 20 to 27, 2017. July 20 marks six months from the initial actions and arrests during Donald Trump’s inauguration, and on July 27, a motion to dismiss the charges will be argued in court. On January 20, 2017, tens of thousands of people converged in Washington, D.C. for the DisruptJ20 protests to oppose the inauguration of yet another president. A combination of blockades, marches, and festive demonstrations shattered the spectacle of a peaceful transition of power. Unfortunately, with resistance comes repression. Approximately 214 arrestees now face a total of eight felony charges a piece, including conspiracy and destruction of property. All of the J20 defendants are now facing up to 75 years in prison. The majority of defendants are working together, collectively responding to the charges and using solidarity to push back against the state. How effectively we support the inauguration day defendants will determine how effectively anyone can keep resisting under the Trump administration. Turning protest into a felony offense is dangerous for anyone who believes in the right to resist. We call on supporters to organize events and actions in solidarity with the J20 defendants throughout the week. Be creative and strategic! Help cultivate a spirit of resistance and mutual aid! Visit Defend J20 Resistance for more information”
On July 21st at 8pm at Firestorm, a report-back from the protests in Hamburg, Germany, will take place at Firestorm. From the original announcement
“In July 2017, the rulers of the world’s 20 most powerful nations met in Hamburg, Germany to coordinate the preservation of capitalism and state power at the expense of humanity and the natural world. Over 20,000 police were brought into the city in order to brutally suppress dissent. Yet the more violently the police attacked demonstrators, the more the general population of Hamburg came together in rebellion against them. In the end, in response to escalating attempts at repression, massive riots paralyzed the city, with some areas becoming police-free zones. We will hear a full report from Hamburg, complete with photos and video.”
On July 22nd, don’t forget about the bbq, bake sale and benefit punk show for J20 defendants. Details should be up on It’s Going Down along with other scheduled events around North Carolina for the week.
Download This EpisodeThis is the second installment of the International Anarchist Radio Network’s monthly show, featuring resistance news from around the world in the voices of the member-projects of the A-Radio Network.
It includes news from: 105fm : about resistance to a rape by a security guard at University of the Aegean of one of the students housed there
The Final Straw on the August 19th Prisoner solidarity activities against slavery in the U.S. & information on the suppression of 214 inauguration protesters arrested in D.C. on January 20th, 2017 & the week of solidarity with J20 arrestees from July 20-27th.
Rosas Negras : Social activism for the defense of Trans-gendered people in El Salvador.
Dissident Island: Segments from recent episodes, including their 10th anniversary episode, a conversation with Peter Gelderloos, housing activism in the U.K., homeless “aid” used to deputize social workers into outing the homeless and more
Kurruf Radio : On the deaths of Mapuche at the hands of local police and landlords in Walmapu
A-Radio Berlin: coverage of the resistance in Hamburg against the G20 Convention and the eviction of Friedel54
as well as from Radiozones Of Subversive Expressions, 98FM in Athens speaks about the recent threats of attack by the Telecommunications authority for the possibly benefit of a private, pirate radio station!
In this week’s episode we feature two interviews. In the first, we spoke with Em, a supporter of the mass arrestees from the January 20th inauguration of Donald Trump in Washington DC earlier this year. We also speak with Jay, who was one of the arrestees. The two share first and secondhand experiences of the arrests, detention, denial of medication, rough rides and arraignment that accompanied those arrested at 12th & L that day. We also talk about where the court case is now and how to support the over 230 people kettled as Assistant U.S. Attorney Jennifer Kerkhoff and other state agents attempt to give everyone 80 years in prison for alleged property destruction. More info on the effort at https://defendj20resistance.org
In the second portion, I chatted with anarchists in Hamburg, Germany about the upcoming protest against the G20 summit that is scheduled there between July 6th and 8th. The guests speak about the history of resistance in Hamburg, the state ramping up repression, it’s impacts on marginalized folks living there and on the planned protests and how to get involved. More info on this initiative can be found at https://g20tohell.blackblogs.org/2017/02/11/english/
Our blog and podcast will also host links and audio from a few songs in German meant to bring folks out into the streets of Hamburg. Here’s a video for one.
If you’re listening still on June 11th, happy day of Solidarity with Long Term Eco & Anarchist Prisoners, Marius Mason and beyond! Whatever your solidarity looks like, don’t get caught. Local events can be found at june11.org. Don’t forget to submit your anonymized and proxied exploits to june11@riseup.net. Also, check out the awesome series of interviews with prisoners, former prisoners and their supporters done by the June 11th crew that are up at It’s Going Down by searching for june 11th.
Announcements
Kevin “Rashid” Johnson
New Afrikan Black Panther, Kevin “Rashid” Johnson is a long term prison organizer and published author. Rashid is being retaliated against for his prison organizing. According to the blog PAPS Texas, “He had a shank planted on him which was used as an excuse to take away his legal materials and typewriter.
Please call the following numbers.
William Clements Unit
(806) 381-7080 – ask to speak to the warden’s office or if unavailable to property
open 24/7
Region V Director
Phone: 806-296-4500 or FAX 806-296-4521
Ask for Captain Ramirez
Monday through Friday 8:00 a.m. – 3:00 p.m.
Texas Department of Criminal Justice
Ombudman’s office
Phone: (936) 437-4927
Monday through Friday 8:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m
Follow up by emailing: ombudsman@tdcj.texas.gov”
more info, including a script you can borrow from and more in-depth descriptions of what happened to Rashid can be found at http://rashidmod.com
Editorial
As in many locations yesterday (June 10th 2017), Raleigh NC saw immense opposition to the Anti-Sharia Law marches, for the most part called for by Act for America which is a far right islamophobic group that alleges that the US is slipping into Sharia Law via whatever wingnut influence they think is going on. Like pretty much everything in this vein, this notion belies an extremely poor understanding of what Sharia is and how it functions, basically transforming it into yet another proxy for islamophobia and “patriotic”, white supremacists zealotry in the mouths of racists. Yesterday saw (as I mentioned before) nationwide opposition to this farce, with battles from Seattle and Portland to our very own North Carolina, where the anti-racist crew outnumbered the racists by about 4 to 1, demoralizing them into an early dispersal and hopefully a lowered self esteem. Keep your eyes peeled for updates and report backs on your favorite anarchist news sites, like It’s Going Down!
To editorialize for a second, at the start of this Pride month 2017 there were seemingly a lot of LGBTQ people joining the Act for America shindig in the name of protesting the alleged homophobia and misogyny under Sharia. As a gay person myself, I would say to any LGTBTQ individual who joined Act for America yesterday that you need look no further than your own home country to see brutal and systemic attacks against women and queer folks any day of the week without resorting to otherising and racist rhetoric to express your so called rage at homophobia. And before you start crying, wringing your hands, and trying to derail this statement, it’s true that patriarchy and homophobia exist everywhere, it would be ridiculous to say otherwise. That’s not what I’m talking about tho. What you did yesterday and what you are continuing to do by joining the right is lending them another facet by which they justify their own bigotries (plus I daresay expressing your own as well), and by lending them numbers. What in any case is the point of protesting this phenomenon, which the right neither understands nor knows how to interpret, other than to oppress an already beleaguered demographic of people in the States?
In closing, I’ll say that make no mistake that the far right will throw you under the bus at the first opportune moment. They historically always have. So if you like that kind of thing, then knock yourself out. If not, check your shit and examine who is telling you what, why, and at what cost to you.
The first is Sean Swain’s most recent challenges to Governor Kasich of Ohio.
Next up, William interviewed CeCe McDonald. CeCe was recently released after her arrest in 2011 after the death of neo-nazi who attacked CeCe and friends while hurling transphobic, homophobic and racist epithets. CeCe talks about the support she received, what time was like inside for her and how release has been. For more about her case, check out: http://supportcece.wordpress.com/
Then, Bursts spoke with Dane Rossman, who was extradited to Canada from the U.S. in relation to charges around the 2010 Toronto anti-G20 protests. Dane speaks about his experiences in detention, the other 3 known extraditees and what they face with their convictions, how to support them and anti-border and detention work going on in the Southwest of the U.S.
This week we’ll feature a segment by anarchist prisoner Sean Swain about education under Capitalism, a quick update about the U.S. activists threatened with extradition to Canada in relation to the 2010 Toronto anti-G20 protests and finally an interview with Orie Lumumba about the MOVE9, their 1978 conviction and their bid for parole. The last 20 minutes will feature tracks by Vallendusk from indonesia, Ah Ciliz from Los Angeles.
Firstly, we speak with Sterling Stutz, a former co-defendant in the Main G20 Conspiracy case stemming back to the 2010 anti-G20 protests in Toronto, Canada. Sterling shares her experiences around the protest, collective defense and resistance to the G20 and Canadian State.She also speaks a bit about Det. Sergent Gary Giroux, who is the most public cop prosecuting post-G20 arrests, as well as the pig who pushed for the prosecution of Nyki Kish. More info at http://www.freenyki.org/
Next up, we speak with Fatimah, who speaks about the case of Dane Rossman. Dane is an American activist facing extradition to Canada in for charges stemming from the G20 protest of 2010. We talk about Dane’s work, borders, neoliberalism, incarceration and how to support Dane. Find out more at http://supportdanerossman.blogspot.com/
Finally, we speak with Katherine about the case of Joel Bitar, another activist from the U.S. facing extradtion. We speak about Joel’s case and how he can be best supported. Find out more at http://supportjoel.com/
For more info on other cases surrounding the ongoing repression of G20 arrestees: http://g20.torontomobilize.org/ http://appetitesforchange.wordpress.com/
