Category Archives: General

Antisemitism, Author, fascism, General, Politics, Racism, Shane Burley, Transcribed, zine

Out-Organizing Antisemitism with Ben Lorber and Shane Burley

book cover of "Safety Through Solidarity" with a star of david made of interlocking hands
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A recent conversation we had with the Ben Lorber and Shane Burley, co-authors of the recently published book, Safety Through Solidarity: A Radical Guide to Fighting Antisemitism. For the hour we discuss the roots of antisemitism in the West, pushing back on Zionism in the midst of the genocidal war on Palestinians, a rebirth of Bundism and addressing antisemitism in left spaces. I definitely recommend this book to folks and hope you enjoy the chat! And as always, thanks for supporting this project.

If you’re a non-Pacifica station looking for this weeks 58 minute radio show, you can find it here. We’re hoping Archive.Org will be back online and allow us to upload files there soon.

Past interviews with Shane:

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Featured Track:

Continue reading Out-Organizing Antisemitism with Ben Lorber and Shane Burley →

activism, Deutsch, General, Political Prisoner, Prisons, Transcribed

Prisons and Prisoner Solidarity with Eric King, Jake Conroy and Josh Davidson

Prisons and Prisoner Solidarity with Eric King, Jake Conroy and Josh Davidson

collage of photos of Eric King smiling with his book, Josh Harper and Jake conroy
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This week we’re sharing a discussion recorded some months back in the pacific northwest featuring former political prisoners Eric King, who went in for actions in solidarity with the Ferguson Uprising in 2014, and Jake Conroy, who was convicted for coordinating successful anti-vivisection divestment campaigns against Huntington Life Sciences as one of the SHAC7. They are joined by Eric’s co-author of Rattling The Cages, Josh Davidson. We hope you appreciate the wisdom and passion of the discussion.

You can find Jake’s youtube channel The Cranky Vegan for a long-running and ongoing commentary on animal liberation topics. And you can follow Eric’s panels with other former prisoners and supporters on the instagram for Rattling The Cages and past media and articles by and about Eric (including past interviews we’ve done with or about him) at SupportEricKing.org and find more from Josh at linktr.ee/JoshDavidson..

Prior interviews:

There are two upcoming Firestorm Books political prisoner panel talks in November, both of which you won’t want to miss.

  • Saturday, Nov. 9th, 7:00pm – 8:30pm ET, Eric King will be talking with Jason and Jeremy Hammond. Register now!
  • Saturday, Nov. 23, 7:00pm – 8:30pm ET, Eric will be talking with Linda Evans, Laura Whitehorn, and Nicole Kissane. Register now!

A few other things (per Josh):

  • BPP/BLA comrade and former NY Panther 21 defendant Dhoruba bin Wahad needs our support. Help if you can!
  • The 2025 Certain Days: Freedom for Political Prisoners calendar is now available, and it’s beautiful. Get one or 100 today!
  • If you missed the last panel talk with Eric, Jake Conroy, and Claude Marks – or any of the previous 6 Firestorm Books panel talks – watch them here.
  • Don’t stop talking about Gaza, genocide, and US imperialism. Long live all those dying every day for Palestine.

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Featured Track:

  • Walking Is Still Honest by Against Me! from Crimes As Forgiven By…

Continue reading Prisons and Prisoner Solidarity with Eric King, Jake Conroy and Josh Davidson →

abolition, Appalachia, Asheville, Bail Funds, Capitalism, General, Housing, Hurricane Helene, North Carolina, Palestine, Transcribed, zine

Jail and Housing Conditions, Recovery in Post-Helene Asheville

Jail and Housing Conditions, Recovery in Post-Helene Asheville

WNC Tenants network logo, Sumud Collective logo and Asheville Community Bail Fund logoWNC Tenants network logo, Sumud Collective logo and Asheville Community Bail Fund logoThis week on The Final Straw Radio, you’ll hear three  interviews relating to community needs and recovering concerning Hurricane Helene in Western North Carolina.

If you’re a non-Pacifica radio station airing the show, here’s a link for the 58 minute radio edition while Archive.Org continues to be down due to hacker attacks.

First up, you’ll hear Jen Hampton of the WNC Tenants Network about the re-opening of eviction courts in Buncombe County and conditions of housing in an already difficulty place to live.

Then, Bruce and G talk from the Asheville Community Bail Fund speak about conditions in the local jail during and after this unnatural disaster.

Finally, Yousef of the Palestinian and Arab-led Sumud Collective speaks about his experience of the storm and recovery work in the region in an interview recorded a couple of weeks ago.

Other links from Jen:

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Featured Track:

  • Reflections by The Supremes from Gold

Continue reading Jail and Housing Conditions, Recovery in Post-Helene Asheville →

Appalachia, Asheville, Deutsch, Disaster Relief, General, Mutual Aid, Transcribed, zine

Mutual Aid and Disaster Relief in Southern Appalachia

Mutual Aid and Disaster Relief in Southern Appalachia

<a href='https://traffic.libsyn.com/forcedn/thefinalstrawradio/tfsr-podcast-20241006.mp3">Download This Episode</a>Over the first weekend of October, 2024, there was a deluge from two storms (including level 4 Hurricane Helene) descended on southern Appalachia, mostly on the eastern side which includes Asheville and other parts of western NC, eastern TN, south eastern Ohio, and northern Georgia. At the point of this recording there are over 200 known dead and hundreds missing, portions of the region continue to be without electricity or cellular service, and where the toxic mud and water linger and separate people from medical and community care. This episode, we’re speaking with two people who’ve lived in the region and have been helping other residents distribute storm relief.

Groups worth following doing work on the ground include:

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Featured Tracks:

  • 500 Year Flood by Adam Pope
  • Day 3 on Pigeon River by Sarah Howell

Continue reading Mutual Aid and Disaster Relief in Southern Appalachia →

Africa, Anarchist, Anarchist Media, Author, Autonomy, Colonization, General, History, Philosophy, Racism, Transcribed, UK, zine

Mutt on the (Incomplete) Black Autonomy Reader

Mutt on the (Incomplete) Black Autonomy Reader

a collage featuring photos of Black folks studying, playing, farming and organizing
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This week, you’ll hear my conversation with Mutt, editor of a new and incomplete Black Autonomy Reader, contributor to Muntjac Magazine, Organise! Magazine and Seditionist Distro. We speak about Black Anarchism, intellectual property, community self-defense in response to the racist riots that spread around the UK in August of 2024 as well as other topics. And keep an ear out for an interview on the ItsGoingDown podcast with Mutt as well.

A benefit for Anti-Raids network.

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Featured Track:

  • No Agreement by Fela Kuti and Africa 70 from No Agreement

Continue reading Mutt on the (Incomplete) Black Autonomy Reader →

activism, Arizona, Autonomy, California, Frontera, General, Health, Immigration, Mexico, Mutual Aid, New Mexico, Police, Politics, Racism, Texas, Transcribed, United States, zine

No More Deaths / No Más Muertes on the Mexico / US Frontier

No More Deaths / No Más Muertes on the Mexico / US Frontier

a photo water jugs left in the desert with kind notes scrawled on them
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This week, I spoke with two members of No More Deaths, a 20 year old humanitarian organization operating in the borderlands between Mexico and the USA. We talked about the organization, the work it does, how the border has changed, the political legacy of the Republicans and Democrats in the current situation for immigrants, deaths at the border and ways to get involved in supporting people on the move. Here’s a chat from 2017 we did with NMD as well.

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Featured Track:

  • La Frontera by Lhasa from The Living Road

Continue reading No More Deaths / No Más Muertes on the Mexico / US Frontier →

activism, Anarchist, Deutsch, Disaster Relief, General, Health, Israel, Mutual Aid, Palestine, Transcribed, United States, war, zine

Reflections on Medical Conditions in Gaza by a Recently Returned Nurse

Reflections on Medical Conditions in Gaza by a Recently Returned Nurse

Photo of a bombed hospital in Gaza with rescue workers approaching from the street
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Our chat with Louis, an anarchist emergency room nurse who has just returned from a second tour doing healthcare work in Gaza and is about to leave again. During this difficult conversation, we talk about medical conditions that he encountered in Gaza, what aid is getting in and how it’s being distributed, health infrastructure and how this relates to his prior mutual aid and anti-border work in the so-called USA. You can find a prior interview with Louis from Living and Fighting blog.

Continue reading Reflections on Medical Conditions in Gaza by a Recently Returned Nurse →

Anarchist, Asheville, Bookfair, European Union, General, Immigration, Mediterranean

Migrant Solidarity in the Mediterranean Sea by Quoyle (ACAB 2023)

Migrant Solidarity in the Mediterranean Sea by Quoyle

"Migrant solidarity at sea: a report back from a wayward American anarchist in the Mediterranean search-and-rescue scene - Sunday 3:30 @ Different Wrld" over a photo of a sailboat and other worn out boat at sea
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This week, we’re sharing a presentation from the 2023 Another Carolina Anarchist Bookfair in so-called Asheville, NC. From the presentation:

The Mediterranean Sea is Europe’s deadliest border. For years, non-state actors like Sea-Watch and other NGO’s have played a part in humanitarian search-and-rescue operations. In spite of legal repression and the technical challenges of maintaining a “civil fleet”, anarchists, anti-fascists, and other activists try to stop needless death at sea.

Hear a report back from a wayward American yacht-punk who spent the summer doing rotations on two different SAR (Search And Rescue) ships. We’ll discuss the general political situation, the reality of everyday operations and how you could get involved.

One case Quoyle mentioned was the Luventa Crew in Italy, they were acquitted of all charges in April of 2024!

For more audios from ACABookfair 2023, check out the site. To hear a 2023 interview we conducted with an activist with Maldusa on a similar topic, you can find it at our website.

We also have this 2016 interview by A-Radio Berlin that we aired in 2016 about conditions  a No Border Camp in Greece. And here’s one we conducted with an immigrant from Africa and a supporter in Germany in 2016. Also, check out this podcast called The Civil Fleet with voices of others involved in solidarity in the Mediterranean route.

Anarchist, Colonialism, General, Israel, Palestine, Politics, Transcribed, zine

The No-State Solution (with Mohammed Bamyeh, ACAB2024)

The No-State Solution (with Mohammed Bamyeh, ACAB2024)

"TFSR 8-4-24 | The No-State Solution (with Mohammed Bamyeh, ACAB2024)" alongside a shirt looking like a college sports log reading "The No-State Solution" and details about the presentation
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This week we’re sharing audio from Dr. Mohammed Bamyeh’s presentation entitled “The No-State Solution” as recorded at the 2024 Another Carolina Anarchist Bookfair in so-called Asheville, NC. Dr. Bamyeh is a Palestinian sociologist and professor at Pitt and the author of multiple books. There is a youtube video of this chat available on the Firestorm Books channel.  Shuli Branson’s current podcast is The Breakup Theory and she also authored a zine by the same title as this presentation.

A prior presentation of this title appeared at The Victoria Anarchist Bookfair, a discussion between Dr. Bamyeh and Dr. Uri Gordon. You can find a video or a zine of the dialogue.

Announcements

SCI Fayette hunger strike

According to incarcerated activists in SCI-Fayette in Luzerne Township, Pennsylvania, there are plans to initiate a peaceful hunger strike starting with breakfast on August 5th, 2024, to protest lack of out-of-cell time, locked down for laundry, commissary and evening recreation time during which they can contact family and friends. More on the details in our show notes to support their hunger strike demands.

The brothers at SCI-FAYETTE are planning a peaceful resistance 2 strike all the meals beginning the morning of 8/5/2024 because administration is continuing 2 limit our time out of the cell on the unit, as if we’re in a pandemic. This is the only facility n PADOC that are doing pandemic procedures. Continues to take from us. Creating problems & hostile environment. The men are tired of being locked down for commissary, laundry & now they’re restricting are evening recreation. For most inmates that’s the only time we can contact are family & friends. We want full day room recreation (no cohorts) on every housing unit 7:45-10-30am, 1:15-3:35pm & 5:00pm-8:30pm & more seats on the housing unit 2 accommodate the seating arrangements. We need their help on the outside to call #724-364-2200 & speak up 4 us.

Administration likes to keep matters like this in-house & hope we don’t have any outside support.

Please support us?

To hear about more ongoing and recent prisoner struggles and anti-repression news, check out the monthly column on ItsGoingDown.org entitled In Contempt.

Week of Solidarity with Anarchist Prisoners

August 23-30th is the Week of Solidarity with Anarchist Prisoners. To learn who is being supported, find propaganda and art and how to send your own updates, visit the website solidarity.international

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Featured Track:

  • Viva Tirado (part 1) by El Chicano from Viva Tirado

Continue reading The No-State Solution (with Mohammed Bamyeh, ACAB2024) →

Anti-Racist Action, Antifa, Author, fascism, General, Kersplebedeb, Matthew N Lyons, PM Press, Politics, Sexism, Transcribed, zine

Three Way Fight: Revolutionary Politics and Antifascism (with Xtn Alexander and Matthew Lyons)

Three Way Fight: Revolutionary Politics and Antifascism

"Three Way Fight" book cover featuring three white arrows heading down and to the left
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This week, we’re sharing a conversation I had with Matthew Lyons and Xtn Alexander, editors and contributors to the book Three Way Fight: Revolutionary Politics and Antifascism, out this year from Kersplebedeb Books and PM Press. We talked about the development of the political tendency which troubles the read of both liberal capitalism and the autonomous far right from a revolutionary left libertarian perspective, some of it’s progenitors and a bit about the state of the far right today.

Continue reading Three Way Fight: Revolutionary Politics and Antifascism (with Xtn Alexander and Matthew Lyons) →