This week’s show features a conversation with Katie Burgess of the Trans Youth Support Network about the case of CeCe McDonald. Chrishaun âCeCeâ McDonald is a young African American transgender woman who is charged with two counts of âsecond degree murderâ after an incident that began when she was violently assaulted because of her gender and race. We’ll talk about some of the realities of how gender and race are dealt with by police and prisons and critiques of the effectiveness of Hate Crimes legislation.
There are 3 upcoming days of action around the case: 11am on 11/21/11 in Minneapolis, a day of call-ins/faxes/emails on 11/22/11, and court solidarity on 12/05/11.
Today’s show features an interview with the Portland-based author and activist, Kristian Williams. Williams speaks on his first book, Our Enemies in Blue (a history of policing in America), on recent articles about community policing and the counterinsurgency training shared between the U.S. military and domestic law enforcement agencies and the growing movement calling for the abolition of police in the United States, and the Pacific Northwest in particular). The show will air at 1pm EST at www.ashevillefm.org and be archived for a week at www.ashevillefm.org/the-final-straw .
Check out www.kristianwilliams.com for more information on the interviewee
This weeks show was a conversation my friend Loida. Loida lives in the Asheville area, works here, was up until recently a student here. Loida is undocumented. We spend the hour talking about some of the laws recently passed around the U.S. and NC (and on their way to passage) that target folks without documentation, we discuss racism, we explore belonging and exclusion and identity.
An hour-long conversation with Ben Saari, member of Santa Rosa CopWatch and longtime police accountability activist from the Bay Area. We spoke about the case of Johannes Mehserle, BART cop who was video taped shooting Oscar Grant III in the back by numerous witnesses. The show was not edited for FCC consumption. The playlist features many songs concerning the shooting of Grant.
This week’s show features a conversation with Gail Stevens. Gail is the mother of imprisoned activist and anarchist, Connor Stevens, who is one of the four anarchists that the FBI is accusing of attempting to blow up a bridge outside of Cleveland, Ohio. Connor and two other defendants, Brandon Baxter and Doug Wright, have taken a non-cooperating plea deal in the case and face their sentencing hearing on November 5th & 6th of 2012. Joshua Stafford is currently undergoing psychiatric testing to see if he can stand trial. Anthony Hayne took a cooperating plea.
During the interview Gail talks about her son, Connor, and offers a different story than what the FBI and even Rolling Stone Magazine have proposed as to what happened leading up to the arrest of the 5 on April 30th of this year. Gail also rips into the poor journalism involved in “The Plot Against Occupy” and tells us what Sabrina R. Erdely got wrong.
This week’s show features a conversation with William Munger, co-editor and contributor to the upcoming AK Press book, Life During Wartime (2013). We talk about the application of Counterinsurgency praxis by law enforcement domestically in the U.S. and what that looks like in it’s varying forms.
What is COIN (Counterinsurgency)? How is it being applied to movements and communities in the United States? How do we resist it? These are among the topics covered during the conversation.
Among other things, Will’s research has focused on the case study of the relationship and dialogue developed between law enforcement in Salinas, California and the Monterey, California-based Naval Postgraduate School. This relationship has allowed NPS to conduct the beginnings of a proxy-war on the local Latino populations with a focus on eradicating gang networks. Will’s essay, “Social War in the Salad Bowl” won a grant from the Institute for Anarchist Studies this last year.
This week’s show features two conversations around the fbi, prisons and Anarchists.
The first is with Will Potter, author of Green is the New Red and blogger at greenisthenewred.com . Will is an award winning, independent journalist based out of Washington, D.C. Our conversation revolves mostly around the recent case of Anarchists in Cleveland entrapped into plotting destruction of infrastructure by the FBI and an informant.
The second conversation is with Ian This show is also in preparation for the upcoming June 11th International Day of Solidarity with Long-Term Anarchist Prisoners. Ian updates us on Marius Mason and Eric McDavid, two of the main focuses of his recent tour of the U.S. called Never Alone, in run-up for June 11th. Ian also speaks about security culture, revolutionary solidarity and growing cultures of resistance, as well as updates us on the cases of Pax in Portland (accused of property destruction) and the Grand Jury in the S.F. Bay Area.
In recognition of June 11th as a Day of Solidarity with Long Term Anarchist Prisoners, this week’s The Final Straw (now 1-2pm EST on Fridays) will present the second of two shows on the Green Scare. I’ve interviewed supporters of Marius Mason and Eric McDavid, both victims of the Green Scare serving 20 year sentences and, also, Anarchists.
The first was an interview with Will Potter, author of Green is the New Red and is archived on archive.org
This week we’re speaking with Jesse, a Midwest organizer of June 11th Solidarity about the history of June 11th and the importance of being out here for the folks in there. We’ll also be speaking with Sarah on Marius Mason’s struggle as well as with Jennie from Sacramento Prisoner Support, which handles the case of Eric McDavid. Both Marius and David are anarchists facing around 20 years each for crimes that either: a.) didn’t harm anyone; b.) didn’t ever happen (Eric was convicted of conspiracy despite lacking intent). Both cases involve snitches cooperating with the law enforcement. Both cases concern people taking action (or thinking about it) to defend the earth.
As the June 11th day of Solidarity with long-term anarchist political prisoners approaches, The Final Straw will be addressing the Green Scare over the next two shows.
I’m happy to bring you an interview with Will Potter, author of the new book, “Green is the New Red” and founder of GreenIsTheNewRed.com , a blog where Will follows the suppression of free speech and activists working to end animal cruelty and the destruction of our natural environment.
Next week, The Final Straw will bring you an interview with members of the support committees for long-term anarchist political prisoners Marie Mason and Eric McDavid (respectively).
Soundtrack for this week’s episode was taken from Filastine’s album, Burn It, which was pressed by CrimethInc to benefit the legal defenses of victims of Operation Backfire and the Green Scare.
Free all prisoners!
For more info on these shows, check out:
http://www.greenisthenewred.org
http://www.june11.org
http://supporteric.org
http://www.supportmariemason.org
http://breakthechains.info/
