One of Black Panther leader Fred Hamptons most famous quotes is: You can kill a revolutionary, but you cant kill the revolution. Unfortunately, as the new documentary The First Rainbow Coalition demonstrates, the movement can be set back decades when a revolutionary of Hamptons magnitude is killed. That struggle will continue for as long as people are subjected to racial discrimination, eco-apartheid, oppressive policing, displacement, a lack of affordable housing, jobs, health care, and other basic needs resulting from inequitable laws and government policies.

This great film shows how the shared experience of oppression and resistance led to the Black Panther Party, the Young Lords and the Young Patriots Organization forming an unlikely coalition. Young Lords leader Jos Cha-Cha Jimnez provides insightful commentary throughout the film, alongside other still-living members of the Rainbow Coalition who were interviewed by director Ray Santisteban. While the coalition first connected around policing issues, the Chicago Police Department (CPD) was not their only shared adversary; they took on the entire political establishment because they recognized their struggles as systemic. As Hampton said in a clip from The Murder of Fred Hampton that was included in the documentary, Were not a racist organization because we understand that racism is an excuse used for capitalism. Its a byproduct of capitalism.

Socialism was a driving force behind the original Rainbow Coalition. As former Black Panther Ericka Huggins states in the film,

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Class consciousness cuts across all kinds of strata. For poor Black people to be working with poor white people was unheard of [but] the motto of the Black Panther Party was all power to all the people. Not all power to some of the people.

Accordingly, socialist analysis heavily influenced the Black Panthers survival programs, which they introduced to the coalition. These revolutionary forms of mutual aid included the breakfast for children program, medical clinics, legal aid, transportation services, political education classes and more. The programs were all free, and the coalition made sure to let the people know that in a just world, they would be provided by city, state and federal governments. The coalition set out not only to meet the needs of the people, but to educate them about how the system of capitalism depends on poverty and produces precarity, and ultimately to empower them to work toward the liberation of all people.

However, the groups increasingly political messaging led to intensified repression from the CPD, States Attorney Edward Hanrahan and even the FBI. As Jimnez states,

The police were harder on us when we were political than when we were in a gang. If we were in a gang, we would get picked up on Friday, released Monday. When we were political, they were talking about life in jail.

City officials and the CPD constantly portrayed the group as violent criminals to justify their illegal and unconstitutional arrests and brutality. As former Young Patriot Bobby McGinnis says in the film,

Police [were] everywhere, aggravating everybody. And just any reason to get us in that police station. And they had a bench with the handcuff on the side so they can cuff you and beat the shit out of you with a phonebook or whatever they wanted to hit you with, as long as they didnt leave any marks.

Though the Rainbow Coalition did not advocate violence, they did promote self-defense, which is a constitutional right of all Americans. This was a necessary survival tactic given the level of harassment that the groups faced, even in their community service efforts. One powerful shot from the film shows the aftermath of a police raid on the location of the free breakfast program, which CPD officers completely destroyed, needlessly trashing food meant for impoverished children.

Even though the promotion of self-defense was completely justified and deeply political, it made the Black Panthers and Young Lords an easy target for racist white Chicagoans. As former Chicago Tribune reporter Carolyn Toll Oppenheim states,

It appeared to me they wanted the white community to think that they could be violent if they had to on behalf of their people, so dont mess with our people. They were meant to scare the police, but it was turned against them. It played right into the hands of [Chicago mayor Richard] Daley to say, You see how violent these people are?

This racist and political repression eventually culminated in the assassination of Fred Hampton on December 4, 1969.

Despite the fact that a Chicago police officer murdered a 21-year-old community activist in his sleep after he was drugged by an FBI informant no government official was ever held responsible. The 4 am raid on the Panthers apartment in which the states attorneys police fired over 100 bullets to the Panthers one (fired by Mark Clark as he fell to the floor after being shot and killed) was followed up with criminal charges against the injured Panthers who managed to survive. Those charges were later dropped, and the Clark and Hampton families were able to secure a substantial civil settlement after a 13-year-long legal battle in which the city, police and FBI attempted to cover up their responsibility for the deaths.

Despite this blatant murder and cover-up, today the Chicago police and political establishment still portray Hampton as a thug who deserved to be killed. As Journalist Edward P. Morgan writes,

Stripped of their experimental context in violent inner-city America in the mid-to-late 1960s, and detached from their political analysis of economic and racial exploitation, the Panthers are easy targets for the ongoing effort by the powerful to restore the hegemony threatened in the 1960s era. Within the mass media culture, state repression pays off twice. It adds to the likely visibility of militancy and violence, widely viewed as alienating by mass audiences, while it runs these radical fringe elements into the ground.

That is why documentaries like The First Rainbow Coalition are so essential. In this moment of environmental, political and economic crisis, we must continue their struggle.

A few days after the films release on PBS, the University of Illinois at Chicagos Institute for Research on Race and Public Policy released a report about how racial inequality has contributed to Chicagos Black population loss. Professor Barbara Ransbys essential contribution to the report demonstrates that while poor Chicagoans still face the same troubles with police, housing, health, schools and jobs, the community-building spirit of Hampton lives on in the people who have fought this inequality and injustice. Ransby writes, In Chicago, the cost of housing has skyrocketed, schools and services feel out of reach or only for the few, and surveillance and police violence make some neighborhoods feel under siege even as street level violence, fueled by economic factors, continues to destabilize where poor and working-class Black people live. Yet, people have not only fled the growing inequality and injustice in the city, but have confronted and resisted it.

Similarly, in The First Rainbow Coalition, former Black Panther Lynn French describes how the coalitions struggles still resonate today,

We want[ed] true education, decent housing. We want[ed] people to have fair trials with a jury of their peers. We want[ed] an end to police brutality. Pretty much the same things that ring true now, unfortunately.

In 2020, grassroots community organizers and activists resisting oppression in Chicago and across the country are continuing the legacy of the Rainbow Coalition, described by historian Johanna Fernandez in the film as, [giving] voice to the voiceless, and demonstrat[ing] that ordinary people can change society through collective action. Progressive organizations and lawmakers today fighting for policies like decarceration, decriminalization, ending cash bail, rent control, single-payer health care, universal daycare and school meals, and government investment in social housing, public schools, public utilities, jobs programs, reparations, decarbonization, and other climate emergency efforts are continuing the struggle of Hampton and the Rainbow Coalition. People promoting anti-capitalism and international anti-imperialist solidarity are continuing the anti-colonial efforts of the Young Lords and the Black Panthers.

The crises that face humanity share the same fundamental causes, rooted in a global system of racial capitalism that puts profit over people and the future of the Earth. It will take a mass movement to build the political will necessary to implement these policies, but the Rainbow Coalition provides one of the best examples of how to build that movement. More people are always needed to do the work, so as Hampton said, Why dont you live for the people? Why dont you struggle for the people? Why dont you die for the people?

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New Film Showcases How the Rainbow Coalition's Struggle for Justice Lives On - Truthout

Jaylan Butler said officers threatened to blow his head off before it became clear that they mistook him for a suspect.

Watching all of these white Presidential candidates discuss Black issues, with no Black people able to offer some real perspective these privileged and delusional candidates is frustrating. The nightmarish and traumatic events that white law enforcement inflicts on young Black men further reinforces the dire need for people of color to be involved in the national conversation.

Jaylan Butler, a Black student at Eastern Illinois University returning from an out-of-state tournament with his teammates and coaches said several police officers handcuffed him, pointed a gun at his head and threatened to blow his head off. They were allegedly searching for a wanted suspect.

Sounds familiar right? Black men have long been killed, incarcerated beaten and abused based on mistaken identity.

Butler, 20, is a sophomore swimmer at the school and filed a lawsuit in January in the U.S. District Court for the Central District of Illinois for unlawful search and seizure, false arrest and excessive force.

Via nbcnews.com:

Butler said he was traveling on a bus with his team last February when it pulled over shortly after 8 p.m., near a rest stop in East Moline, Illinois, so the players could stretch their legs.

Butler got off the bus and took a selfie in front of a sign on the road and was shredded back to the bus when several officers pulled up.

The officers approached with guns drawn according to the American Civil Liberties Union of Illinois, which is representing Butler in his lawsuit.

Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker called on Friday for a thorough and transparent investigation into Butlers arrest.

Im deeply troubled by what Ive read about how Jaylan Butler, an African-American athlete at EIU, was mistreated by law enforcement in East Moline, he said in a Facebook post. Its unacceptable for any young person to feel unsafe and disrespected anywhere in this state but every day, too many young people of color live through it.

Its an admirable response, but weve heard it all before as we wept over funeral caskets or protested for wrongly convicted young men of color to be liberated from the chains of systemic government oppression.

According to the lawsuit, the officers shouted at Butler to put his hands up and get down. He complied. The suit then states that several officers forced the scared young student to the snowy ground as he was handcuffed, with one putting his knee on the students back and another pressing on his neck.

One of the officers squatted down in front of him put a gun to his forehead and said, Im going to blow your fucken head off, the suit says.

At first, Butler told NBC News that he thought everything was a big misunderstanding and tried to stay chill throughout the traumatizing ordeal.

After his life was threatened, he says his thought process shifted.

I felt numb. I didnt really know what to expect, he explained.

Even after members of the swim team got off the bus and explained to police officers that Butler was not their perp, they obnoxiously and racistly still put him in the back of the police car.

They wouldnt let a little misunderstanding stop the initiation of the Black criminal Butler saw the gun, had his life threatened, felt the cuffs. All that was left to complete the indoctrination process was to put him into the back of a cop car.

Eventually, Butler got his ID from the bus, showed the officers and they let him go.

According to the lawsuit, Butler was never told why he was detained and arrested. It also alleges that officers never documented the stop that night.

The East Moline police chief, Jeff Ramsey, told NBC that none of the officers named in the suit East Moline officer Travis Staes, Hampton officer Ethan Bush, and Rock Island sheriffs deputies Jack Asquini and Jason Pena were disciplined.

Of course, the story doesnt end there for Butler, who is currently undergoing therapy for the trauma and hes seeking unspecified damages.

Evan Sholudko, head swim coach for Eastern Illinois University, said the team is supportive. But Butler should have a huge support system, bringing light to this situation, helping him get through this devastating dagger to his pride, mind, and belief in the law enforcement community.

These blatant deadly and racist attacks on innocent Black men by police officers is still a problem, four years after Colin Kaepernick sacrificed his NFL career to bring global attention to these atrocities.,

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Black College Swimmer Has Life Threatned, Gun Pointed At Forehead By Police - The Shadow League

Claiming that police obstructed BNPs procession and arrested their activists and leaders, partys Secretary General Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir on Saturday said the government cannot stop people from demanding Khaleda Zias release through its repressive acts.

He came up with the remarks while addressing a rally in front of BNPs Nayapaltan central office demanding its Chairperson Khaleda Zias release from jail.

The government thinks it can obstruct the movement seeking Khaleda Zias release by oppression but they [govt] have forgotten that one cannot ones stay in power through such oppression. The just demand of people can never be put down by oppression, he said.

Terming the current government illegal, he said they have forcefully captured power and ruling without peoples mandate. The government resorted to repression and torture to establish one-party rule. Today, people have no confidence in this government, he claimed.

The BNP leader also claimed that 25 lakh activists and leaders of the party have been put behind bars.

Fakhrul said they appealed to the government for Khaleda Zias proper treatment and release since she is extremely sick.

Khaleda has been in jail since she was convicted in the Zia Orphanage Trust corruption case on February 8, 2018. She was found guilty in another corruption case later the same year, though her party claims both cases are politically motivated.

The BNP chief has been receiving treatment at BSMMU since April 1 last year.

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Repression can't stop people from demanding Khaleda's rele... - United News of Bangladesh

The Sudanese government and rebel groups in Darfur agreed on Tuesday that all those wanted by the International Criminal Court (ICC) should appear before the tribunal. In June 2019, the ICC retained the five suspects Ahmed Haroun, Ali Kushayb, Omar al-Bashir, Abdallah Banda and Abdel Rahim Mohammed Hussein on their list for crimes against humanity.

Although Faisal Saleh, the countrys Information Minister who announced the decision, did not explicitly name al-Bashir, he stated that the decision applied to all five Sudanese suspects wanted by the ICC over Darfur war crimes.

Also commenting on the decision was the chief negotiator of the Darfur people in Juba, Nimri Mohamed Abd, who said that Darfur groups and Sudans government had agreed to fully cooperate with the International Criminal Court, and that the timing of the handover would be decided in final negotiations.

A statement by one of the members of Sudans sovereign council, Mohamed al-Hassan al-Taishi, states that the government and the rebel groups reached an agreement during a meeting in South Sudans capital Juba that included the appearance of those who face arrest warrants before the International Criminal Court. He added that two sides agreed to create a Darfur special court to investigate and hear cases including those investigated by the ICC.

The alliance between the transitional government and the rebel groups indicates their interest in Sudans common good. This move could also signal warnings to other African leaders that no crime against humanity would be overlooked by international communities.

The Darfur conflict was a guerrilla war that took place in the Darfur region of Sudan from 2003 to 2010 to challenge the governments racism against black Sudanese. During the conflict government forces and a militia group known as the Janjaweed militia attacked black Sudanese in the region. This made the Sudan Liberation Army and the Justice and Equality Movement carry an attack on the Sudanese government in response to the perceived oppression of black Sudanese by the majority Arab government. These actions have been described as genocide by a number of governments and human rights groups. However, Omar al-Bashir, Sudans president at the time, denied that his government had links to Janjaweed.

Last year, Sudans transitional government and a rebel group signed a preliminary peace deal, paving the way for eventual reconciliation. General Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo, the deputy chief of Sudans Sovereign Council and Malik Agar, head of one of the two factions of Sudan Peoples Liberation Movement-North (SPLM-N) signed the truce. SPLM-N has been fighting the government in the Blue Nile and South Kordofan regions.

The rest is here:

Sudan's government, rebel groups agree for al-Bashir to appear before the ICC - Ventures Africa

A WOMAN killing her newborn girl shows the harrowing reality of gender inequality. In the face of unbearable torture and abuse from her husband and in-laws for giving birth to a girl three consecutive times, a woman in Rangpur on Saturday killed her 53-day-old daughter by drowning her in a water drum and landed in police custody. The incident made visible the preference for male child and unjust blame that women carry for carrying a girl child in patriarchal families. There are reported instances in which men have killed their wife or the girl for the same reason. In July 2017, a man in Narayanganj burnt his nine-month-old daughter alive as he wanted a son and was enraged at the birth of a girl. In 2019, a Dhaka University population science department study showed, while 60 per cent of married women wanted healthy child irrespective of gender, 28 per cent married women preferred a male child. A son preference may not be as prevalent as it is in other neighbouring countries, but it is still a reality that warrants government attention.

Rights activists and feminist scholars have seen son preference as a clear affirmation of the fact that gender determines womens economic worth or political significance in society. Men are seen as the provider of a household and protector of family inheritance. This patriarchal assumption that women are economically burdensome provides men with ideological ammunition to devalue girl child and blame women for carrying a girl child. Such scholarly pursuits are not empirically unfounded as women are still not granted equal share of inheritance. Marriage registration, rights to resources and property, guardianship and adoption are defined under separate family laws followed by separate religious communities. For example, Muslim women are entitled to inheritance although not as equally as their male counterparts are while Hindu women do not have any right to inheritance. As a signatory to the UNs Convention on the Elimination of all Forms of Discrimination against Women, Bangladesh is bound to put the provisions into practice. But successive governments have maintained reservations about two CEDAW articles. The unequal laws create grounds for son preference and different forms of domestic violence. Without addressing the structural inequality that women face in society, it will not, therefore, be possible to end son preference.

It will be mistaken to consider the death of the child outside the larger structure of oppression against women. For any real chance at justice for the child in question, the government must attend to the legal and policy level inequality that views women as economically burdensome. In doing so, it must amend the inheritance law granting women equal access, abolish unequal wage for women in the informal sector and withdraw its reservations about the CEDAW articles to establish gender equality.

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A harrowing reality of son preference - newagebd.net

Over the last decade, most science-fiction fans have experienced at least some level of teen-dystopian-series fatigue. After Suzanne Collins Hunger Games trilogy took over the world, movies and shows about young people on the far side of an apocalyptic event started cropping up everywhere. There were some good tales (The CWs The 100) and some not-so-great ones (like the Divergent trilogy), but even the best ones piled up until they made fans skeptical of new additions to the subgenre.

So Hulus new dystopian-future YA series Utopia Falls was already facing an uphill battle with science-fiction fans, even before it introduced the second half of the shows premise: rigidly socially controlled teens in a oppressive regime rediscover ancient hip-hop, then use music and dance to rebel against authority. It sounds downright corny, but by blatantly merging other hit teen shows and movies, the creators have set up an all-or-nothing gamble. Utopia Falls seems designed to either draw fans in quickly, or turn them off by the middle of the first episode.

On its surface, the storyline does seem outlandish. But really, what better genres to use to question the status quo than hip-hop and science fiction? When hip-hop first emerged, it almost immediately attracted frustrated artists who wanted to provide social commentary about the ills facing a marginalized group of people. And science fiction is often literally a forward-thinking genre, a way to imagine new ways of life, and the perils humanity could face if it continues on a path of destruction.

Created by Canadian filmmaker R.T. Thorne and Dark Matter and Stargate producer Joseph Mallozzi, Utopia Falls is set in a futuristic city called New Babyl, about 400 years in the future. The city is divided, Panem or Divergeiverse-style, into four sectors: Industry, Progress, Nature, and Reform. The people of these factions are, respectively, the citys builders, thinkers, growers, and (perceived) troublemakers. Most of the citizens in Reform are there to redeem themselves for past wrongs through restorative justice except for the children of transgressors, who are sent to Reform along with their families, and must remain there until a committee decides their fates after their 18th birthdays, or their parents are redeemed, whatever comes first. But the rest of the Sectors are dedicated to keeping the city running.

New Babyls populace is governed by Chancellor Diara (Alexandra Castillo) and the other members of the Tribunal, and protected and controlled by a militant police force led by the villainous Authority Phydra (Kate Drummond). The city is meant to represent an idyllic future. The idea is that humans of old allowed their differences to drive them into ruin, and the citys founder, Gaia, created New Babyl as a fresh start for humanity. Its both a literal and figurative bubble protected from the outside world by a force field, and completely cut off from human history. Vague stories of the strife ancient humans suffered are used to justify the way the current government keeps the populace in line and uses propaganda to make them fear to step outside of their prescribed way of life.

New Babyls children are expected to fulfill their sectors respective duties, but theyre also expected to train in the arts, with the goal of being picked for The Exemplar, an entertainment competition where two dozen 16-year-old candidates compete for the chance to become New Babyls cultural ambassador. Given that New Babyl is cut off from the rest of the world (and may be the only inhabited city in existence), that title doesnt make much sense. But since the populace has nothing to do but meet their quotas and vote for a winner of the Exemplar, the competition largely seems like entertainment to keep the masses happy.

The children are all vocalists, dancers, and musicians. No other art forms are encouraged, and the ways theyre allowed to perform are strictly regulated. The vocalists sing classic pop songs that are approved by the Tribunal. Dancers perform a sort of combination of contemporary dance and ballet, not as avant-garde as modern dance, but full of leaps, pirouettes, and sweeping arm motions. Theyre all accompanied by musicians, who mostly seem to be regulated to playing the piano.

This years Exemplar candidates include Aliyah (Robyn Alomar), a Progress-sector dancer whose father is in the Tribunal; her friend and potential love interest, Tempo (Robbie Graham-Kuntz); Sage (Devyn Nekoda), a quiet dancer from the Nature sector; Tempos friend Apollo (Phillip Lewitski), a musician from Industry; Brooklyn (Humberly Gonzlez), an Industry vocalist/dancer who comes in bucking the system by daring to personalize her issued uniform; and vocalist Bohdi (Akiel Julien) and singer/dancer Mags (Mickeey Nyugen), two friends from the maligned Reform sector, who are shocked that they were both allowed to compete.

The candidates first group dance performance expresses the citys imposed artistic limitations very clearly. When they initially arrive at the Exemplar training facility, theyre stilted and dull. The singers, accompanied by the musicians, belt out a beautiful but bloodless cover of Alessia Caras Wild Things. On a technical level, the dancing is solid, too. The jets are high, the pirouettes are clean, the movements sweeping and fluid. But its dull and forgettable, and the head of the Exemplar, Mentor Watts (Huse Madhavji), rips the performance apart.

Then, during a secret off-campus excursion, a behind-the-scenes figure pushes Aliyah and Bohdi toward a strange discovery: hidden in the forest near the Exemplar training facility is a hidden cave full of art and books from the past. Soon, they discover that it also houses an artificially intelligent library system called The Archive (voiced, in an amusing bit of stunt casting, by Snoop Dogg) that houses information about ancient humans, particularly focusing on long-lost art and music.

Aliyah and Bohdi are almost immediately hooked on hip-hop. As a stigmatized Reform resident, Bohdi particularly identifies with the messages of frustration and rebellion in 80s and 90s East Coast hip-hop, and he begins weaving verses from Mos Def (Mathematics), Nas (Hate Me Now) and his favorite artist, The Notorious B.I.G. (The Skys the Limit) into his performances. As the performers Archive knowledge colors their Exemplar routines, alarm bells are raised for the Tribunal and Authority. The citys leadership claims to celebrate diversity (this appears to be a world where racism and homophobia no longer exist), but they view any personal expression as disharmony and vanity that will be detrimental to the common good.

Its endearing and amusing to watch the young performers figuring out how to bop and body-roll. At first, theyre enthusiastic, but stiff and awkward. They arent sure how to express themselves comfortably, outside of the sweeping, dramatic motions theyve been taught. The movements are as foreign to them as the music. But as they grow more confident with the material (and study ancient dance routines from The Archive), they begin to incorporate more elements of hip-hop dance into their routines, including formations, waterfalls, and breakdancing.

The dancing in Utopia Falls is entertaining and well-executed (particularly Tempos high-energy, acrobatic solos and Sages fluid flamenco performance), but the performance interludes arent the most compelling thing about the show. They take a back seat to the plot. For most of the 10-episode season, the characters dont even seem entirely invested in who wins the Exemplar competition. They arent fighting to get the big solo, or fretting that their entire dance careers will be ruined if they fail to catch a company directors eye during the big showcase. Instead, theyre risking everything to connect with a past that was stolen from them.

At first glance, Utopia Falls appears to be a run-of-the-mill teen show, featuring actors attractive enough to be on The CW, and blending familiar elements from The Hunger Games, Divergent, Glee, and the 2000 cult-classic ballet movie Center Stage. But the mysteries that begin to unfold through the first season give the story meat and originality. Once the teens deviate from The Tribunals norms, they face immediate consequences. Their supposedly peaceful city reveals its hypocrisy and oppression, and the government proves comfortable with forceful tactics.

Utopia Falls teenagers can be painfully naive, and the story periodically waves away pertinent details where they might get in the way of the story. Its unclear, for instance, why children would be stuck in the Reform sector, even after their malefactor parents die. And if technique isnt enough to win the Exemplar competition, how are performers expected to inject spirit into their routines, when any form of self-expression is discouraged and even criminalized?

Utopia Falls is essentially trying to tell several stories at once. It asks how people can learn from their histories while erasing all cultural differences, and flattening centuries of human life into a cautionary tale in the name of peace and prosperity. There are teen love triangles, the mysterious string-pulling behind-the-scenes figure, a government conspiracy, and a city-wide, televised dance competition, all happening at the same time.

None of this would function if the Utopia Falls team didnt clearly understand just how far they are asking their audience to suspend their disbelief. But as corny as it is, the show takes itself just seriously enough to be fun. Its manufactured and familiar, but for fans of hip-hop and science fiction for people who still find themselves drawn to this familiar throwback genre, even after a decade of overuse its worth a second look.

All episodes of Utopia Falls season 1 are available on Hulu now.

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Utopia Falls review: The Hunger Games meets Glee in Hulus throwback dystopia - Polygon

Viewpoint by Tim Gee*

LONDON (IDN) In 2011, after a racial slur was used on a women's rights march, writer Flavia Dzodan wrote a blog called, 'My feminism will be intersectional or it will be bullshit'. The framing was picked up by others, adapting the title to environmentalism and to activism more broadly but it was far less talked about in the peace movement.

Peace campaigners have long pointed out the connections between struggles for peace and for equality in its various forms. Yet the very reason that so much has needed to be written on these themes is that the transition to becoming a fully equal, anti-sexist, anti-racist peace movement has very often been resisted.

So, I want to argue that the stated aim of non-violent action should be the liberation from all kinds of oppression, which in the process will help end war, and for that matter climate change too. The word 'pacifism' was adopted by peace activists at the tenth Universal Peace Congress in Glasgow in 1901, to describe the practice of actively creating the conditions for peace, as an alternative to 'anti-war-ism'. Very quickly though and in particular through the course of the First World War it became a word principally used to describe what a person was against.

The term 'intersectional' was coined by academic and civil rights advocate Kimberl Crenshaw in 1989 as a means for understanding how different forms of injustice and oppression compound one another. The 'intersection' is the crossroads where traffic representing racism, sexism, classism, ageism, disablism, homophobia or transphobia converges, leading to the risk of harm being done to any person at the intersection.

For proponents of peace, the frame applies to the outbreak of armed conflict, where the effects of such injustices come together. I make no claim to know whether the capacity for violence is part of human nature or not. I do say with confidence, though, that structural violence is the product of systems made by humans, which can be remade by humans into something better.

The pathway to ideas that link masculinity to violence starts early. If you grew up male, the chances are that someone at some stage gave you a toy soldier or a gun to play. This often forms part of a sub-conscious strategy of preparing boys to fight.

To some extent the strategy works: most of the world's soldiers are non-trans, straight, men. It's also likely that it has side effects: the vast majority of terrorist attacks are by men. Most knife crime is by men. Most domestic abuse is perpetrated by men. Most of the politicians who send people to wars are men.

Racism is another violent mindset, often closely intertwined with xenophobia and religious intolerance. Again, it is not inherent or natural to anyone, but instead is learnt and, to some extent, taught. Among those doing the teaching are governments, seeking to persuade their populations that it's okay to kill people born elsewhere.

This has domestic effects too, including street violence and abuse against people perceived to share the nationality, ethnicity or religion of the places with which the government is at war. Thus, Islamophobia has grown in North America and Europe, fuelled by the so-called 'War on Terror' and far-right political forces.

We also need to talk about class, because the people who profit from resources won in war are usually the rich. Meanwhile, it is mainly workers recruited to fight and die in wars for those resources. If they survive, a great number later become homeless or experience post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD).

Ultimately, war harms everybody; soldiers, casualties, families, civilians, even those not yet born. If we look to those most affected by war, it is often women of colour, especially if they are already experiencing poverty. If people are disabled, LGBTQI+, old or very young, the ability to access support networks that would help them move out of warzones, become even more limited.

In the face of such entrenched injustice, it can be hard to imagine what peace would look like. But if we picture a more equal world, free of racism, toxic masculinity and other discriminatory worldviews, then perhaps we could hold an image maybe a feeling of a peaceful world within reach.

Non-violent revolutionaries often say the means shape the ends. The hierarchy inherent in winning change through war tends to be reflected in post-transitional societies. Social approval for violence as a tool of political change very often then gives legitimacy to those who do not like the actions of the post-liberation governments to pursue their agendas through violence. This then leads to greater state repression in response.

Indeed, a 2011 study by Erica Chenoweth and Maria Stephan compared over 300 anti-regime, anti-occupation or independence campaigns over 100 years, concluding unarmed people power campaigns are more than twice as likely to win in whole or in part compared with those using armed resistance.

But there's a problem. While non-violent campaigns have helped transitions from dictatorships to democracy as well as speeding the end of extreme injustices in constitutional democracies, the method has rarely been followed by the election of governments willing to renounce violence abroad.

Likewise, its often said that unarmed struggles like Indian independence and U.S. civil rights movements did not have an appreciation of gender equality, and as a result the progress achieved was not accompanied by improvements in womens rights.

If ostensibly non-violent movements fail to 'join the dots' between different forms of structural violence during their campaigns, then the chances are that the governments and policies that follow their revolutions will fail to do so too.

Most people would agree that peace is a laudable goal, and many would agree justice must be part of it. But many people and institutions who desire peace and justice do not call themselves pacifists. This partly results from terminology and believing peace is a condition.

But peace is a process, of working for justice through non-violent means. By definition, this involves working with people who are working against inequality, whether or not they see themselves as peace campaigners.

The pacifist holds that killing is wrong, as are the systems of systemic injustice. What then if a group to whom extreme injustice has been done, decides to take up arms in the cause of liberation or to defend themselves against an immediate threat? To criticise those caught up in such a situation is rarely a route to understanding. To do so without first recognising the violence of the structures they are fighting could rightly be called hypocritical.

From a position of working against the same injustice faced by the oppressed group though, we may well say that we dont think that violence is right or effective and that it always runs the risk of entrenching the same dynamics from which the group is seeking to liberate itself. This is an old discussion and, in practice, pacifists over the years have worked in the same spaces as those who have chosen other routes.

In the Spanish Civil War (among many other conflicts), pacifists assisted those displaced by the conflict by setting up refugee camps and support. In the Second World War, many pacifists worked with the Friends Ambulance Unit, despatched amongst other missions to travel with the Free French. In the USA in the 1960s, when parts of the civil rights movement carried guns, Quakers in Baltimore and Philadelphia found ways to work with Black Panthers to run services for the community. In South Africa's anti-apartheid struggle, non-violent activists continued the non-violent campaign, even after the African National Congress (ANC) and South African Communist Party began training for armed struggle.

Today, pacifists create safe spaces for conversation between different sides in conflicts and act as mediators during wars. Their pacifism means each side knows no violence will be done by those they were speaking with. Pacifists have called for halting weapons sales to regimes that would use them in human rights abuses. Is this just a cop-out?

Aside from the duty to follow conscience, there are few hard and fast rules that apply to all situations. There are, however, some. War crimes, torture and capital punishment need to always and universally, publicly and confidently be named as unacceptable anywhere.

Pacifists are often asked if we believe in defence. The answer is yes but not necessarily in the way the questioner thinks. In any major war in the world, you'll find that combinations of toxic masculinity, racism, classism and other forms of inequality helped pave the way for conflict. Tackling such injustices is the best route to global security.

Instead, money is poured into weapons like Trident. These weapons don't protect us from major threats like climate crisis. Warnings have gone unheeded, so violence is now being perpetrated through extreme weather. Nevertheless, governments spend 12 times as much on war as they do on climate change.

The goal of the pacifist is to take away the occasion of all wars. But would this approach have stopped Hitler? With an intersectional approach, the answer is yes.

We now know Nazism grew in Germany thanks to racism, nationalism and fear among the elite of wealth being redistributed so they sided with the far-right. Rather than take these as lessons of history though, elites have used the memory of the Second World War to justify continued imperialist violence.

Spurious comparisons to Hitler were used to inform the decisions to assassinate the Congo's first democratic Prime Minister, Patrice Lumumba, to imprison Ghana's independence leader, Kwame Nkrumah, and to put hundreds of thousands of people in detention camps in Kenya, in which tens of thousands died, in response to anticolonial unrest.

Similar rhetoric was used to justify the invasion of Afghanistan in 2001, Iraq in 2003, Libya in 2011 and Syria in 2015. Each of these led to countless people being killed and led to further conflict.

Supporters of war will often search for the 'exception to the rule' against violence, before working from there to defend the use of armed force more broadly.

But the focus of this argument is different. It's about identifying the causes of war and violence and finding ways to transform them. Sometimes that means clogging up the roads leading to weapons bases by sitting in the road. But it also means trying to disrupt the traffic of toxic masculinity, racism, classism, disablism, homophobia, transphobia, ageism and other inequalities.

If we fail to adopt an intersectional approach, and our movement ends up entrenching inequality, we would be well deserving of a great deal of the criticism we get. If we truly do tackle inequality as well as war though, then we will be forging the pathways that lead to peace. [IDN-InDepthNews 16 February 2020]

* Tim Gee is the author of Why I am a Pacifist (John Hunt, 2019). This viewpoint, which is based on his talk at the Edinburgh Radical Book Fair on the book, originally appeared in Scottish Left Review.

Image credit: A march of 2,000 anti-conscription protesters in London,1939. IWM

IDN is flagship agency of theInternational Press Syndicate.

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Why the Peace Movement Must Be Intersectional - IDN InDepthNews | Analysis That Matters

This is, left to right: Din ze Knedebeas, Warner William, Din ze Hagwilnegh, Ron Mitchell, Din ze Woos, Frank Alec, Din ze Madeek, Jeff Brown, Din ze Gisdaywa, Fred Tom. In back is Din ze Ste ohn tsiy, Rob Alfred. Wetsuweten territory near Houston, B.C. on Jan. 4, 2020. (Amber Bracken)

Amber Bracken is an award-winning photojournalist based in Edmonton. Much of her reporting focuses on issues affecting Indigenous people. Shes spent months, over multiple trips, covering the interpretation of Aboriginal title rights inside Wetsuweten territory.

Ahead of the impending RCMP enforcement of Coastal GasLink (CGL) pipelines temporary injunction in late 2018, the Wetsuweten held an important feast, to decide what to do next.

The bahlat, or potlatch in English, is the seat of their ancient government. That it exists today is a credit to the Wetsuweten resisters who were jailed for protecting it during the potlatch ban that lasted from 1884 to 1951, even as their regalia was burned in front of them.

Bahlats are open to everyone from the nation. The proceedings that day took hours of protocol and discussion before the hereditary chiefs announced the decision, on behalf of the five clansthey would not leave quietly, they said. They would block pipeline workers.

MORE:The need for protest

Decisions made like this have underpinned the Wetsuwetens hereditary chiefs decade-long stand against all pipelinesin their remaining culturally viable land. Its only a portion of their total unceded territory equalling roughly the size of New Jersey.

Conversely, of the five Wetsuweten elected band chiefs, only the Hagwilget Village Council declined to sign benefits agreements with the LNG pipeline, citing that it was not their place to make decisions about the territory.

The opposing positions of the two sets of chiefs has been represented by B.C. Premier John Horgan and in the media, as a fight within the nation between the equal actors of hereditary chiefs, who defend the land, and the band chiefs, who seek escape from poverty. Premier Horgan told the CBC he doesnt think a handful of people can stop progress and success for people who have been waiting for a break like this for many, many years.

MORE:Standing against a B.C. pipeline from three provinces away

But this simplification obscures the fact that both sets of chiefs are on the side of their people, working against a colonial system that seeks economic certainty and the surrender of Indigenous land.

The Wetsuweten are not a nation divided, they are a nation with differing opinions on the best route to a better future after history of oppression. The band councils have sought opportunity, and funding, where they can find it. But based on Wetsuweten and Canadian law, its ultimately the hereditary chiefs who have jurisdiction to the territory, and they have been clear about their aimto assert self-governance over their land and demand a nation-to-nation relationship with Canada. Its a move that would benefit all Wetsuweten.

Each set of leaders has unique jurisdiction, in the same way that municipal and provincial governments do. The band chiefs, who were imposed by the Indian Act, govern their reserves, while hereditary chiefs predate Canada, and govern the entire Wetsuweten territory. Its worth noting that they are not anti-industry and have long held logging agreements.

MORE:Does the B.C. gas pipeline need approval from hereditary chiefs?

Divide and conquer is a classic strategy thats been used effectively to rule Indigenous lands throughout Canadian history. In the 1870s,Cree people were intentionally scattered across multiple reserves to prevent them from organizing. In the contemporary politic, just the appearance of fracture can undermine public support for grassroots movements.

By lumping Indigenous people together and by funding pro-pipeline factions within the Wetsuweten nation, B.C.s government and gas industry have caused confusion about who has say. Well-meaning Canadians dont want to infringe on Indigenous rights. But when the determination of whether pipeline work should continue has been represented as a democratic exercise, majority rules becomes an easy conclusion.

A key point that project proponents emphasize, is that 20 elected band councils signed benefits agreements, a phrasing that relies on Canadians social conditioningone that assumes democratic systems are fundamentally more fair.

While talking about benefits agreements, duress is inherent in the processFirst Nations cant actually say no to any project in Canada. In addition, most councils are cash-strapped, and some reported that they were told the project would go ahead with or without their consentthey might as well get on board for a payout. Leaked examples of Coastal GasLink agreements show evidence of large provincial subsidies to get First Nations on board, attempts to muzzle pipeline dissent,and to limit Aboriginal rights.

While there are communities who are excited for LNG development, like the Haisla of Kitamaat Village, there is no pan-Indigenous monolith; each independent nation has rights that need to be respected. Its messy and difficult, but important.

This is not an equation where Haisla rights, plus band chiefs, minus an implementation strategy for the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, justifies the trampling of the Wetsuweten hereditary chiefs. Their voice is the one that counts for the 190 kms of pipeline proposed for their territory.

Their position has been supported by their system of bahlat as well as a survey that was reported to me by Chief Knedebeas (Warner William), as well as Chief Howihkat (Freda Huson), who was on the council of Witset (the largestWetsuweten community) while the survey was being completed. It was conducted by CopperMoon Communications, a company that doesnt seem to exist anymore. The surveyed stated that 83 per cent of Witset members (its population is 2,000 among the greater Wetsuweten population of 5,000) were against the pipeline.

The Wetsuweten Matrilineal Coalition (WMC) was formed in 2015 by Gloria George, Darlene Glaim and Theresa Tait-Day, with $60,000 each in funding from LNG Canada, Coastal Gaslink, and the Provincial Ministry of Reconciliation and Relations. WMC was formed expressly to sign a benefits agreement on behalf of the clans, after the hereditary chiefs would not, according to Glaims resignation letter two years later. At the time, Glaim held a hereditary title but notes in the letter that she would consider renewed involvement, if her clan wanted her to, saying that clan organization with the current resources has not worked thus far.

The coalition never brokered an agreement, but have petitioned for the project and bolstered the public image of collaboration between Wetsuweten and the Coastal GasLink pipeline.

Public support matters, because it creates social license in the current climate of reconciliation, where Indigenous rights are often discussed. Premier Horgan recently said reconciliation discussions with the hereditary chiefs are ongoing, but Wetsuweten opposed to the pipeline say reconciliation is dead. This national outcry follows the arrests of 28 people from Wetsuweten camps.

Chief Howihkat was dressed in her regalia, conducting ceremony with six family and supporters when RCMP came to remove them from her home, just like when police came for her ancestors.

The reverberations of public opinion have been felt across the country. The hashtags #reconciliationisdead, #shutdowncanada and #wetsuwetenstrong have been trending on social media, while the Gitxsan, Mohawk, other Indigenous and non-Indigenous protestors occupy bridges, ports, railways, offices, radio stations, and the B.C. Legislature in support of the Wetsuweten. More than 50 protestors have been arrested so far, and business leaders are alarmed about their inability to move commodities by rail or seaalong with the potential harm to the Canadian economy.

In response, Coastal GasLink announced that work would resume in the area this week, also highlighting the benefits and the return to work of many members of the Wetsuweten community, who the CBC reported numbered approximately two dozen. CGLs official Twitter feed has been posting pro-pipeline Wetsuweten voices, including a hereditary chief, and an employee whos been used extensively in their marketing, to drive the point home.

Jody Wilson-Raybould recently wrote in the Globe that reconciliation requires transitioning from the colonial system of government imposed on First Nations through the Indian Act, to systems of Indigenous governance, and that its up to each nation to clarify the roles of the two systems.

The Wetsuweten people have already put forward their hereditary chiefs to speak for the territory, during the 1997 case Delgamuukw v The Queen. They were also recognized by the Supreme Court of Canada as the representative of the collective land rights holders in that decision, the first comprehensive account of Aboriginal title in the country.

But after over a decade and millions spent in court, even though their law is older than Canadian law, that case fell short of establishing the boundaries of where their title applies. So its business as usual with government, RCMP and gas industry until they go back to court.

If Aboriginal title is established, the Wetsuweten nation will gain a critical new power. Developments in their territory will require their consent rather than the murkily defined consultation thats required now.Band councils work hard to make the most of limited resources, and the pipeline has been framed as a salvation for an impoverished nation.

In contrast, Aboriginal title would empower the Wetsuweten to retain culturally significant territory or to negotiate projects in their territory, as true equals, rather than brokering from desperation created by the Indian Act. The power to say no could change everything.

See the original post:

The Wetsuweten are more united than pipeline backers want you to think - Maclean's

2020-02-16 10:00

But, 26 years on, the ANC cant blame the Apartheid government for the poor quality of our education system, rampant corruption, state capture, collapse of our SOEs and destruction of our economy, writes Herman Mashaba.

In 1994 we had that magical moment where we achieved a peaceful transition to democracy.

I was sceptical that this could happen.

On the 27th of April 1994, when I stood in a queue to vote for the first time in my life, I was happy to be proven wrong.

But this magical moment was underwritten by a condition, that the success of the South Africa project depended on our ability to see the painful legacy of our past to be redressed.

Without this, that magical moment would remain exactly that, just a moment.

The ANC has proven to be a greater perpetrator of poverty, unemployment and inequality than the Apartheid government. It is a disgrace. The ANC could blame the state of our country in 1994 on the Apartheid government.

But, 26 years on, the ANC cant blame the Apartheid government for the poor quality of our education system, rampant corruption, state capture, collapse of our SOEs and destruction of our economy.

The democratic project is in dire health because the ANC has deepened the inequalities they found when they first started to govern.

This is why the antics of those who seek to deny the role of race in South Africa, or be blind to the continued correlation between race, poverty and inequality, is not only insensitive, but patently irresponsible.

The one universal truth, is that people who think this way have never felt the sting of poverty and unemployment arising from historical injustice.

I am someone who wants to achieve a non-racial future for South Africa. I believe deeply in this ideal both personally and for South Africa.

However, two preconditions to achieving this ideal exist.

Firstly, we have to acknowledge the reality of historical injustice and its direct relationship with our race.

To deny this, and to tolerate denial of this, is folly.

The majority of our population have endured more than three centuries of systematic oppression and exclusion, solely on the basis of race.

The basis for inclusion, opportunity, education, association and residence were all determined on the grounds of prejudicing black people.

I was born into a country, which by law, classified me as a communist on the basis of my race.

Secondly, in recognising we need to move forward, we need a programme to redress the legacy of our past that makes a non-racial future a reality with a timeline.

This requires that we do not approach redress in academic terms, but with full acknowledgement of the lived experiences of those who continue to live without access to opportunity, the vast majority of whom are black.

This is not to say that those living in poverty are exclusively black, or that affluent communities are exclusively white.

I equally reject this reductionist thinking.

Instead it is to say that we cannot afford to negate the role that race played in the past, the role it continues to play today in access to opportunity, and tackle this reality head on.

So, the question becomes how?

This is precisely the question that I will be posing next week in The People's Dialogue, so that the political alternative we are working to set up, can be guided by the voices of the South African people.

From my perspective, we need to appreciate that BBBEE has failed fundamentally, producing a handful of very wealthy beneficiaries, while it does nothing for the majority of black businesses.

BBBEE has done nothing to assist black-owned small businesses to improve their chances of success. It remains a program to benefit the connected few.

Instead, we need an alternative that lifts more people into opportunity, allowing them to compete on an even footing. We need an opportunity revolution which focuses on driving massive levels of investment into increasing access to opportunity for black people in South Africa.

This means we need to invest in education, and vastly improve the calibre of those emerging from our schooling system.

This means revamping our school curriculum, improving the skills of our teachers and reward for our teachers, dealing with under-performing teachers and principals and the lack of educational facilities.

If this means going to war with SADTU, it is a small price to pay.

I would like to see black learners leaving schools and having the opportunity to attend a greater number of universities.

I believe tertiary education needs to be funded for those who cannot afford it, but must be paid back (interest free) when they graduate and gain employment.

I want to see young people have the opportunity to attend a burgeoning number of artisanal, entrepreneurial and TVET schools.

Most importantly, the legacy of our past will never be redressed until we have a growing economy providing opportunities to better skilled young people from the measures above.

Tough decisions need to be made that require real leadership and not the current level of policy ambiguity, pandering to socialist and labour interests and indecisiveness.

The steps required to turn our economy around, so that it creates opportunity, are known and our country has many great minds that can guide this process.

It needs the political will and an unwavering focus on implementing the tough measures required.

What we need is a period of revolutionary public and private investment into communities where people still live under the oppressive weight of Apartheid, and continue to struggle.

We must not allow any confusion or political expediency to confuse that this is, un-apologetically, investment into black communities.

Embracing this principle, and by driving massive investment into creating opportunities, will ensure that we can achieve this second phase of project South Africa that never followed our political freedom in 1994.

What is critical is that these efforts and focused, heavily funded, produce access to opportunity and time-bound so that we can move towards a non-racial future for South Africa.

It is proven throughout the world, and nowhere more so than in South Africa, that people are better at improving their own circumstances far more than government has ever proven capable of achieving.

It requires a government that understands its role is to provide access to opportunity through massive investment in generating those opportunities and un-apologetically targeting those black South Africans who still suffer from the oppression of their parents, grandparents, great-grandparents and so on.

I am committed to working together with all South Africans of all backgrounds, so that we can craft real solutions to the legacies of our past.

By doing so, we can deliver on a vision for a prosperous, non-racial South Africa that can truly achieve the reconciliation and nation building envisioned in 1994.

- Mashaba is founder of The People's Dialogue, an entrepreneur and the former executive mayor of the City of Johannesburg.

Disclaimer: News24 encourages freedom of speech and the expression of diverse views. The views of columnists published on News24 are therefore their own and do not necessarily represent the views of News24.

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Herman Mashaba: The solutions to fixing South Africa lie with redressing our past - News24

Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander readers are advised this article contains names of deceased people.

In the quiet of the State Records Office, I have spent many hours searching for knowledge about my family.

In Australias archives, we can find letters written by Aboriginal people to the government. We hear echoes of their voices in their words on the page.

Some of these letters express grief, anger and frustration. Some protest the injustice of oppressive legislation.

Archives in the State Records Office of Western Australia hold hundreds of letters written by Noongar people to the Chief Protector of Aborigines and other government officials from the turn of the 20th century. The letters were captured within manic record-keeping systems used to surveil and control Aboriginal people.

These letters are an historical record of the agency of Noongar people to reckon with systematic human rights violations under the 1905 Aborigines Act and in particular the cruel administration of Chief Protector A.O. Neville from 1915 to 1940.

Aboriginal people are working to reclaim knowledge about our families in archives. The recovery of these letters has become a catalyst for storytelling, as we piece together archival fragments and living knowledge.

My searching has recovered many letters written by my family. It has recovered stories that had been lost for generations.

Within personal files and those relating to institutions for Aboriginal children is a collection of precious letters written by Noongar mothers and fathers to Neville pleading for children who had been forcibly removed as part of the Stolen Generations.

These letters are handwritten, often in faded pencil on yellowing paper with worn edges.

Emotions linger in words, in the handwriting itself, or in other marks on the page. A small indent is imagined to be the resting of the pencil on the page as the letter writer collected their thoughts.

Under the 1905 Act, Aboriginal parents were not the legal guardians of their own children. Neville unjustly became the guardian of every Aboriginal child in Western Australia under the age of 16.

Read more: Friday essay: reflections on the idea of a common humanity

Decades of pleading for children unfold within these letters, revealing deep Noongar truths about unending love and care for children. They are love letters written by mothers and fathers, and sometimes by children themselves.

Reading these letters, we come to feel rather than know the heart-breaking pain of having a child taken from you.

The words on the pages of these letters sound with a spirit of tenacity to restore broken connections within families.

One of these many histories belongs to my grandmothers grandfather, Noongar man Edward Harris. He campaigned for more than a decade between 1915 and 1926 for the return of his four children: Lyndon, Grace, Connie and my great-grandmother Olive.

He wrote these letters from the heart, a place where he held his children close to him. His letters, captured within archives, have become a treasured historical record of his love for his children.

I never expected to find him in archives and to listen to his voice in his words on the page.

Edwards letters are assertions of humanity and human rights. Assertions of rights as a father.

In a letter to Neville dated February 1 1918, he writes:

And now before bringing this letter to a close I again appeal to you to have my children placed in my care, and to remind you that I am their father, and if you cannot do that, Ill have to try some other means to have my children restored to me, either through the press or else a court of justice.

Edward met all the demands Neville placed on him in their correspondence for the return of his children: he could provide good character references; he had a stable job as a farm manager; he had a good home there; he had a wife to take care of the children; he had money to send them to school.

In a letter dated December 31 1918, he writes:

I am anxious to have my children home with me [] In order to have them with me, I have done what you thought was necessary.

On March 29 1919, he writes:

I can never convince myself that you are anxious for me to have my children back. I have told you before that you are hostile and biased, I still believe you are the same []

[I]n all my dealings with you re the children you have raised too many obstacles and created too many difficulties, the result to me has always been disappointment. I have carried out all the conditions you have imposed on me, and I expect you to fulfil your promises re the children.

Neville refused to return Edwards children from Carrolup Native Settlement near Katanning, and later Moore River Native Settlement.

This refusal had everything to do with oppression, and nothing to do with Edwards ability to love and care for his children.

Reading these letters, from many parents, proves time and time again the structural nature of child removal.

Edward was a family man whose advocacy was motivated by his love and care for his children. He demanded the repeal of the 1905 Act. He held Neville to account for his abuse of power.

On August 21 1920, he writes:

[] it would be a hard matter for you or anyone else to convince me that it is in the interests of the children that you are keeping them shut up at Carrolup. Your past actions show that you are malicious, you have never missed an opp[o]rtunity of hurting me. Not once. Also you have used your position as Protector and the Aboriginal Act to gratify your malice.

You speak of doing the best in the interests of my children. I cannot see it []

Edwards advocacy continued as he wrote letters, requesting a departmental inquiry into Nevilles refusal to return his children, and attempting to take his case to court.

In a letter to the Deputy Chief Protector of Aborigines, in March 1920, he writes:

Several times I have asked him [Neville] on what grounds does he refuse to restore me my children, and so far I am still in the dark as to his reasons for holding my children. Of course I will apply again for my children and also ask for an inquiry as I consider that I have been victimised by Mr Neville.

The way I have been treated by that gentleman is an outrage to ones feelings and affections.

It is an outrage to anyones feelings and affections.

Edward, with his brother William Harris and many other Noongar families, went on to establish the first Aboriginal political organisation in Western Australia, the Native Union, in 1926.

William Harris described the organisation as a protective union for all Aboriginal people.

The Native Union demanded the repeal of the Aborigines Act 1905, in particular the power of the government to forcibly remove Aboriginal children from their families. It also held Nevilles administration to account for its systematic violation of Indigenous rights.

The Western Mail reported that during a meeting with Western Australian premier Philip Collier in 1928 William Harris said:

The department established to protect us, is cleaning us up [] Under the present Act, Mr Neville owns us body and soul []

Taking up pen and paper, Edward Harris and many other Indigenous activists of his generation were involved in fundamental work to advocate for transformative discourses of humanity and human rights.

For our generation, their letters humanise histories of colonisation and intergenerational trauma.

The recovery of this collection of letters is a practice of truth-telling about Stolen Generations. These letters reveal Aboriginal truths about unending love and care for children. They reveal truths about our collective humanity. These letters restore some humanity to the inhumanity of the Stolen Generations.

Recovering Aboriginal cultural heritage in archives contributes to the revitalisation of our storytelling as branches of knowledge about who we are and where we come from.

This is the legacy of these letters for the next generations.

These letters, some written more than a century ago, echo our current demands. Aboriginal people continue to contend with contemporary practices of child removal.

As the Uluru Statement reflects: This cannot be because we have no love for them.

It is an honour to recover these letters, to shine some light on the long history of this love and the love in my own family story, too.

All excerpts of Edward Harriss letters have been reproduced with permission. These excerpts may not be reproduced outside of the context of this article without the authors permission.

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Friday essay: I am anxious to have my children home: recovering letters of love written for Noongar children - The Conversation AU

MEXICALI, Calif. (KYMA, KECY), Shelters in Mexicali are starting to see a new wave of immigrants come in from an unexpected place -- Russia.

One shelter that helps asylum seekers says it's housing at least 50 Russian immigrants. And it says, more are on their way.

One immigrant tells us leaving his homeland wasn't easy, but he had no other choice but to flee from the political oppression he faces in Russia.

In my country, its a very hard political situation. The president of Russia changed the constitution, its no good," said Vladimir Kuznetsov, immigrant from Moscow.

Kuznetsov said living under president Putins regime is living without freedom.

Hes one of 9 Russian immigrants taking shelter at the Alpha and Omega shelter in Mexicali.

Everyone thinks that Moscow has a good life, but it's far from it. Independent business is almost destroyed. Many people in Russia work for the state and aren't able to speak freely," said Kuznetsov.

He said the state interferes with public life and its impossible to speak out about injustices without being punished by the government.

One Russian immigrant we spoke to, who feared being on camera, shared with us he had been falsely imprisoned and held at gunpoint by government officials. He said theres no plan B for him. Going back to Russia would mean death.

The majority of the Russian immigrants at the shelter traveled alone and came with very little in their pockets, but the Alpha and Omega Shelter has given them hope their cases will be heard by U.S. Immigration Services.

Some of them are fleeing the government, violence, they all have a different story. We already know that the situation in Russia is a difficult one," said Alberto Alvarez, one of the directors at Alpha y Omega Shelter.

Alvarez says the shelter received its first Russian immigrant back in December.

His name was Liam, he was granted asylum and is now in the U.S. We also had a second immigrant that was here and was also granted asylum. Their path for asylum is different then the Central Americans. The central Americans have to go through court proceedings which takes a lot longer, and the Russians here are going by numbers." said Alvarez.

Alvarez says theyve been told more Russian immigrants are on their way to Mexicali, even women and children.

Meanwhile for Kuznetsov, though his asylum status is unclear, he says there's no turning back.

I hope the U.S. will provide my asylum," said Kuznetsov.

The Alpha and Omega Shelter currently has 100 immigrants under its care. Shelter directors say they're prepared to take in more immigrants with open arms.

Read more from the original source:

Wave of Russian immigrants seeking asylum arrive in Mexicali - KYMA

Elon Universitys upcoming performance of We Will Rock You, guest-directed by Paul Stancato, explores themes of non-conformity and oppression in a dystopian society. By the end of the night, audiences will get to experience a rock concert with all the hits from British pop rock band Queen.

Where: McCrary Theatre When: Feb. 13-16 at 7:30 p.m. and Feb. 16 at 2 p.m. Admission: $15 or free with an Elon ID

The show, written by Ben Elton, is a jukebox musical, meaning the plot heavily centers around pre-existing songs. This contrasts with other musicals where the songs are written for that particular show, according to sophomore John Zamborsky. Zamborsky is set to play the role of Galileo, one of the productions leads.

Queen is probably the most famous British pop rock band, so with that being said, they had all these songs, and they were so theatrical and they decided to make this plot around these songs, Zamborsky said.

The musical is set in a futuristic society where individual expression is banned. The plot follows the adventures of two characters who dont fit the status quo Galileo and Scaramouche who meet after getting arrested. Once the two escape, they find a group of underground rebels called the Bohemians who also resist conforming to the oppressive society.

We find out that Galileos purpose is to bring back music, to bring back individual expression, and all the while were being tracked by the government, said junior Dariana Mullen, who plays Scaramouche.

"Queen is probably the most famous british pop rock band, so with that being said, they had all these songs, and they were so theatrical and they decided to make this plot around these songs."

John Zamborsky

sophomore

We Will Rock You highlights the consequences of a world where art is banned and where individuality is suppressed through Galileo and Scaramouches story.

I think the biggest thing that you can take out of this is the importance of not only art, theater, music, songs, literature, anything like that and the importance of individuality, Zamborksy said. [At] the start of the show, you see sort of the corrupt world that they have fallen into because of a lack of expression and a lack of a voice, the lack of an outlet.

Mullen says the relationship between the two leads plays a crucial part in the show.

Once we have the band together and we have the music at full capacity and we have the story at full capacity, it really is just a very human story about finding somebody that you care about enough to do some crazy things, Mullen said.

Zamborsky hopes the audience is as excited as he is.

Our job really is to entertain, to give people an escape for a few hours and that is definitely what you get from the show, Zamborsky said. You follow this very emotionally-driven plot, but then at the very end of it, its just a rock concert. Youll have a great time.

Originally posted here:

'We Will Rock You' combines Queen music and the struggle for individuality - Elon News Network

Amb. Kemayah and Kenya Foreign Affairs Minister

(New York, February 15, 2020) Liberias Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary and Permanent Representative to the United Nations, His Excellency Dee-Maxwell Saah Kemayah, Sr. is encouraging United Nations Member States to strive for the promotion and protection of human rights as a way to counter the global threat of terrorism.

Ambassador Kemayah stressed that upholding human dignity, respecting the values and culture of people, as well as embracing diversity and fostering inclusion is critical for the existence of social peace and addressing the factors that prompt and drive terrorism and extremism.

Ambassador Kemayah named exclusion from the socio-economic, religious and political system; unemployment and the lack of opportunities for growth; injustice, corruption and oppression of certain groups; and fragile state capacity and failing security; as few factors that prompt and drive acts of terrorism.

Ambassador Kemayah emphasized while he is of the personal view that the factors listed are not justification for acts of terror against humanity, it was important to adequately address them to mitigate terrorism and extremismacts that are advancing daily and creating safety concerns globally.

Ambassador Kemayah recalled that in 2018 alone, terrorist attacks claimed the lives of approximately Twenty-seven thousand (27, 000) individuals and noted that fears as a result of terrorism have quadrupled, with half of the worlds population expressing concern about being victimized by terrorism.

Addressing a Seminar on the Political Trends and Implications for Peace and Security in Africa and the Changing Face of Terrorism and Extremism: Practical Responses in Mombasa, Kenya, Ambassador Kemayah also stressed the need to strengthen democracies, and enhance regional and international cooperation as practical steps to address the growing threats of terrorism and extremism.

Said Ambassador Kemayah: The consideration and/or implementation of the following could be a number of ways to address the growing threats of terrorism and extremism: We must ensure the continuous strengthening of our democracies; vigilance should be stepped up so as to reduce the number and risks from terror acts; the formulation of legal framework for enhanced international cooperation that would limit or prevent the financing of terrorism; including, but not limited to curbing money laundering, should be relentlessly pursued; we should intensify regional cooperation; aimed at addressing cross-border crimes; especially illegal trafficking flows; elevating the relevant role women can play in trying to mitigate acts of terrorism and extremism; hence enhancing gender equality and empowering women would be key; terrorist groups exploit idle youth; therefore youth engagement and empowerment will surely mitigate the recruitment of youth by terrorist groups; the use of sports as a unifying tool should be enhanced; and finally, we should increase effectiveness of our collaboration and exchange of information in the fight against terrorism.

The Liberian Envoy further stressed that peace, security, and resilient democracies, significant pillars that contribute towards the sustainable development of any nation, can only be achieved within a society that promotes and practices vibrant democracy; such as the Republic of Liberia a democracy under the Leadership/Presidency of His Excellency Dr. George Manneh Weah that is ensuring that justice and equalities reign; a democracy that is espousing social-politico and economic development.

Sharing the Liberian experience, Ambassador Kemayah asserted that under the astute Leadership of His Excellency President Weah, Liberians are witnesses to how resilient democracy has proven capable of managing violence and protests in amicable and peaceful manners. With democracy like ours, under the ever potent leadership of His Excellency Dr. George Manneh Weah, President of the Republic of Liberia, people are given the opportunity to discuss issues affecting them. Working together as Liberians, we are able to settle our political and social differences; and our democracy avails the stage for the Government to cater to its citizens; a responsibility that thankfully the Government of His Excellency President Weah continues to be fully committed to upholding and delivering on. Ambassador Kemayah emphasized.

Ambassador Kemayah then reaffirmed on behalf of His Excellency President Weah and the Government and People of Liberia, Liberias unwavering commitment and support towards the fight of the United Nations and International Community against Global Terrorism and Extremism aimed at the sustenance of Global Peace and Security.

The Liberian Diplomat to the United Nations thanked the Government and People of Kenya for organizing and supporting the Seminar on the Political Trends and Implications for Peace and Security in Africa; and the Changing Face of Terrorism and Extremism: Practical Responses, stressing that it gave the subject of terrorism the relevance that it deserves. The seminar brought together several stakeholders in the peace and security sectors, including some United Nations Security Council members and other Ambassadors and Permanent Representatives to the United Nations.

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Kemayah urges promotion and protection of human rights at International Seminar on Peace, Security and Terrorism in Africa - Global News Network

Boris Johnsons government needs to defy the lefts mob bullying tactics and start appointing actual conservatives to key positions really important ones that dont merely annoy the opposition but actually demoralise it.

So argues author Douglas Murray in a characteristically hard-hitting interview on how to reclaim the culture from the regressive left.

This government has a two- to five-month window to make appointments that demoralise the opposition, says Murray.

He believes that key jobs should go to controversial (to the left) figures like Toby Young, the journalist and founder of a London free school, whose attempted appointment to some extremely minor government education quango two years ago was cancelled after the left ganged up to conduct some offence archaeology on some of his twenty-year-old tweets.

Murray said in an interview on the Delingpod podcast:

So, Toby Young, havingnotbeen able to get totally unimportant membership of a 15 member advisory quango, ought to be put in charge of a major educational institution.

Of course this will cause the usual far-left cry bully outrage mob to kick up a huge stink but the government must stand firm:

The far left will rail and rage. To which the Conservatives can respond: If you dont like it, you ought to have won an 80-seat majority in Parliament at the last election.

Murrays remarks follow research by the Taxpayers Alliance (TPA) showing that despite ten years of Conservative governments, a vastly disproportionate number of public appointments still go to avowed liberal leftists, not conservatives.

In fact, in the last decade only two public appointments have been given to known conservatives: one, for head of the Charities Commission, to William Shawcross (who isnt even a member of the Tory party, just a cultural conservative); the other to the late Sir Roger Scruton as an unpaid advisor on the governments Building Better, Building Beautiful commission.

And that second appointment, as we know, did not end well for Sir Roger or show the then Conservative government to be remotely interested in defending its own.

All it took was a dishonest, manufactured hit-job on by a left-wing activist journalist in the New Statesmanfor the government (and at least two prominent Conservative MPs on Twitter) to distance itself from the great conservative philosopher.

Sir Roger was, of course, subsequently vindicated. But by then he had been caused a years worth of unnecessary misery and opprobrium even as he was, as we now know,dying of cancer.

This kind of surrender to the left has got to stop, says Murray.

He argues that it doesnt even matter so much if the jobs running government advisory bodies and public institutions like Oxbridge colleges go to self-declared conservatives. What matters more is that they should go to heroic people.

We need to promote heroic people who have held fast against the prevailing winds of the era. People who have demonstrated in their lives how adults ought to behave in an era run by children.

Murray is withering in his assessment of the kind of people who get given such jobs as the masterships of Oxbridge colleges.

One of the reasons the appointments are so low grade is that the headhunting firms which search for candidates all work from the same list of people who push the right diversity buttons, favouring those who happen to be female or belong to an ethnic minority.

Among those on the list, he warns, is Saeeda (now Baroness) Warsi a failed MP who was such a failure that because she happened to be female and a Muslim was immediately put by David Cameron into the House of Lords.

As Murray put it elsewhere in the interview: One of the hilariously fascinating things about our era is that all the people that shout most about their oppression most publicly are the luckiest people of the day.

Douglas Murrays full interview can be heard on Podbean, iTunes, YouTube or at Delingpoleworld.com

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Douglas Murray: Boris Must Appoint More Real Conservatives to Demoralise the Left - Breitbart

Jay EdwardsFebruary 15, 2020

By Jay Edwards, (he/his/him) Director of Diversity and Inclusion for the Student Government Association.

As a Black person who has decided to dedicate my life to social justice and equity, you could say that I was more than excited to take African American Literature. Excited to learn about the amazing work that came from people that look like me. Excited to better understand my culture and the experiences my predecessors conveyed through writing.

This excitement came to an abrupt end very soon after the start of the class. While quoting The Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass, Dr. Kristina Groover decided to read out the word n-r. Though she could have made the non-racist decision to skip over the word or even say n-word, she made the decision to say it with all the confidence of the master that she was quoting.

Not only did she unapologetically say this hateful and disparaging word, but she encouraged her white students to say it as well. She invited her overwhelmingly white class, at this predominantly white institution, to say a word that every person in that classroom, including her, knew was not acceptable for a white person to say.

Something that only gets worse when having a class discussion revolving around the suffering of my people and the oppression they faced.

Varying emotions flooded into my body during that moment. I was angry, then sad, then angry again, but mostly in shock. The only thoughts racing through my mind were ones of utter disbelief, though this did not surprise me at all. This did not surprise me since our university is known to hypocritically preach about wanting diversity, but doing very little to attain it. This university does not want diversity. They want an opportunity to say that they arent racist.

The reason she said it was because she felt comfortable saying it. So comfortable, in fact, that she affirmed her stance against her black students by inviting her non-black students to join in her openly racist antics.

Being the person I am, I realized that this could be a great educational opportunity. After the end of the class, I had not confronted her about her actions. Instead, I diplomatically expressed my concerns and uncomfortability with her saying n-r, something that I shouldnt have to do to a person with a Ph.D. and teaching African American literature.

She seemed to have grasped my point of view and even told me that she would be super conscious going forward. Though I thought we had come to an understanding on the matter, she continued to use the word in class.

This not only was an extremely racist act of aggression, but I thoroughly consider this an act of violence. Violence, not in the physical sense, but in the way that negatively affects my mental health and my educational experience. I refuse to sit through a class where the professor believes it is fine to disregard the feelings and comments of their black and brown students. And since I cannot sit through that class, I do not get the opportunity to learn at a university that I pay tuition to.

Dr. Kristina Groover made sure to express how much she wanted us to feel the impact, of the word n-r. She did just that.

She made the impact of the word hurt much worse than it already did. As an institution, university, and home to many, once again, App State has failed its Black students. This is just one example of what is happening on our campus and in our classrooms.

After taking to social media to express my concerns, many others shared in my struggle. Dr. Kristina Groover has had an overwhelming amount of her black students express their concerns to her about her repeated use of the word n and her invitation to other students to say it.

For years now, this professor has been spewing what is nothing other than hate speech. The context does not matter. The fact that it was written down does not matter. Teaching an African American Literature course does not matter. Context is irrelevant because at the end of the day, a white professor saying n-r in their classrooms should be more than enough to know that is racist and morally wrong.

This is not a matter of ignorance, it is a matter of hatred toward the wellbeing of black and brown students that was nurtured and fostered by App State.

I have said it before and I will continue to say it, white students do not have to go through these types of struggles. They get the privilege of getting an education uninterrupted by actions that distract from the education, itself.

I dont want an apology because that is completely useless to me. I want this educator to resign as soon as possible and by allowing her to continue teaching, they are condoning her racism. I want actions to be taken by the university to prevent anything like this happening again. But I wont hold my breath on that.

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Letter to the Editor - The Appalachian Online

If the state fails to control corruption, ensure accountability and provide basic needs such asfood, shelter, clothes, education, health and employment, threat of insurgency will always loom

Few days ago, a person claiming to belong to banned communist party called me for some monetary assistance for his party. He had misunderstood me for a manpower supplier to foreign countries. I said that he was calling a wrong number. A follow up to that call has not arrived yet. But this is the indication of the fact that threat looms large in Nepali society and that Nepal needs to formulate a pragmatic and stringent policies and programs to curb rogue elements activities by investigating into the root causes of the problems.

Terrorism existed even in America during colonial time. This great power could experience failed counter-insurgency operations, most notably in South Vietnam in the 70s and later in Iraq and Afghanistan in the late 90s, where as Britain also had a win story in Malaysia in the 70s but they were of different nature. Although both American and British social scientists recognized the need to capture hearts and minds, they never reached a consensus on the question of how to win the hearts and minds of dedicated aliens.

We experienced the decade-long bloody insurgency when then Nepal Communist Party (Maoist) challenged the state authority in the 90s. They devised terror tactics in the fashion of the ancient Chinese proverb, kill one, and frighten ten thousand later forcing the government to put a price tag on their supremos head.

Maoist insurgency started with a 40-point demand related to different aspects. Comrades even wanted abrogation of Nepal-India Peace and Friendship Treaty of 1950. The ranks and file of the party were indoctrinated on faulty structural problems of the country which included semi-feudal structure, regional disparity and oppression of nationalities. They claimed to solve these problems under their leadership. Their demands included ethnic autonomy, devolution of state power, secular state, equality and end of ethnic domination. These demands resonated well among marginalized people. Many domestic and foreign researchers have revealed that caste, ethnicity, poverty, inequality, lack of opportunity, illiteracy and cultural and religious domination were the root causes of Nepals decade-long conflict.

Even today, many of these grievances prevail in Nepali society and caste and ethnicity have been found as a significant factor to increasing poverty. A 2003 USAID-commissioned study said caste and ethnicity were a significant contributing factor to the growth of Maoist movement and that it was driven by grinding poverty and economic marginalization.

The situation still remains unchanged.

Nepal entered into an era of sustainable peace with the signing of Comprehensive Peace Accord (CPA) which promised new constitution and state restructuring. Academicians and politicians agree that Nepals peace process could reach the logical conclusion primarily because integration of Maoist fighters was finalized, only leaving behind the outstanding task of resolving the cases of abuse and crime to Commission of Investigation on Enforced Disappeared Persons (CIEDP) and the Truth and Reconciliation Commission (TRC). Let us hope these two bodies will be able to accomplish their mandate.

Yet the fact remains that major grievances of the people remain unaddressed due to various factors. Discrepancy at social level such as asset inequality, unequal access to public employment and public services, over-taxation, and economic mismanagement stare at our faces. And the underground Maoist group led by Netra Bikram Chand has used the tactics their parent party in the 90s had used: covert indoctrination and recruitment. This could lead to the rise of new insurgency. Based on this scribes original field experience and a thorough analysis of past events, the state machinery should step up efforts to win the peoples hearts and prevent them from falling into Chands revolutionary rhetoric. Chands group has begun to carry out revolutionary cultural program or activities for increasing awareness in remote villages. It is no secret that they are extorting money, the way Maoists used to do during the 90s.

Kautilya in Arthashastra has written that a state could be at risk from four types of challengesinternal, external, externally aided internal and internally aided external. He argues that internal challenges should be taken care of immediately. If state fails to control corruption, ensure accountability and provide basic needs such as food, shelter, clothes, education, health and employment to the people, threat of insurgency always remains. Small states cannot override such threats. States failing to manage the issues may experience instability and social disorder in the long run.

Any form of conflict has economic, social and cultural costs and the damages it causes are colossal. Apart from direct cost, there are indirect costs such as psychological effects on the affected population, which are difficult to measure. Military option is the principal way to address violent extremism but nothing is more effective than political negotiations.

The author, former Spokesperson of Nepal Army, is Chief Executive Officer at Nepal Institute for Strategic Studies

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Fear the threat - myRepublica

Cavid Qara, a candidate for parliament in Azerbaijans northern Quba region, admits that many of his would-be constituents arent moved by his declaration of a climate emergency.

But he says that when he frames it in terms that rural voters relate to water quality, irrigation, pollution they get it. We have to word it in a different way, to link it to farming and how global warming will affect farming and how its affecting it already, he said. When you link it like that, its interesting for them.

In previous elections, Azerbaijans opposition politicians have traditionally been focused on a single message: the need to get rid of the corrupt, authoritarian ruling regime in Baku. What, precisely, would be the plan after that has not been a large part of the discussion.

But Qara, 28, is one of a group of young activists who are taking a novel approach in the upcoming February 9 vote: a focus on ideas and ideology. Qara has put environmental issues at the forefront of his campaign.

Im the only candidate in our district that has a clear platform, the other ones have short brochures with some abstract claims, he told Eurasianet.

The activists are mostly part of a new bloc, Hereket (Action), that is non-partisan but definitely opposition-leaning, in the words of Turgut Gambar, one of the blocs founders and himself a candidate in the election. Hereket includes a wide variety of ideologies, from the leftist Togrul Veliyev (the Azeri Bernie Sanders) to the libertarian Samed Rahimli.

The emergence of Hereket has been one of the few notable developments in an otherwise unremarkable election season, which an interim report by OSCE monitors described as low key with limited visibility.

Compared to the last parliamentary elections in 2015, the current electoral period is accompanied by increased political activeness in the pre-election period, where some positive elements are noticed, wrote one independent group, the Election Monitoring and Democracy Studies Center, in a pre-election report. Especially, the participation of the growing number of young opposition-minded candidates in the elections in an independent manner has drawn attention.

What we see now, for 20 years the general anti-government campaigns havent worked, Rahimli said. Thats why were trying a different strategy left, or right, or libertarian, or Marxist, or social democrat, some kind of coherent ideology. Ideology is important without ideology, pragmatism doesnt work.

Rahimli, a prominent human rights lawyer, has been taking his message of small government decentralization, lower taxes and abolishing military conscription to tea houses and cafes in his Baku district. He said he has faced skepticism from voters about whether the ideas are workable. Many people say, this is a very crazy thing for Azerbaijan, it cant be done in Azerbaijan. And I say: I know, but we should talk about it.

Despite their disagreements on principles, the activists in Hereket cooperate on logistical matters like making promotional videos or posters and in organizing election monitoring the day of the vote. Rahimli said that in a freer political environment, he would be competing against a leftist, not cooperating with him. But because of the political reality, we are in the same electoral bloc, he said.

Not everyone in Hereket believes that ideology should be the focus of the campaign.

Nurlana Jalil describes herself as a feminist, and as she campaigns for a seat representing Zaqatala, in northwestern Azerbaijan, empowering women is a plank on her platform. But its behind more technocratic promises like budget transparency and agricultural development.

Jalil said that, in an environment of heavy government oppression, political parties and civil society groups have barely been able to form.

In this situation how can we develop an ideology? she asked. In this moment, we independent young politicians have to build a new era in Azerbaijan. First, we can enter parliament and be the voice of the population, and maybe then after some years we can create the field for some ideologies. Maybe in five years, in the next election, we can run on ideologies. But in this case, its impossible.

There is room for both approaches, Gambar said.

The main argument was that yes, we can all have different political points of view and ideologies, but first its necessary to solve the issue with the government and then we will have elections and we will know whos who, he said. This is still a very popular approach, and I dont necessarily think that its wrong, because only in a truly democratic society where elections are free, the political party system and ideological system can truly develop. At the same time, I think its very good that there are people challenging this view and who want to do their work based on ideological lines. I think thats good as well.

It remains unclear whether any of this will matter on February 9. Independent monitors have reported that, in spite of the governments rhetoric that it is modernizing and liberalizing, significant obstacles to a free and fair vote remain. One of major opposition blocs, the National Council of Democratic Forces, is boycotting because it believes the conditions are unfair. Candidates supported by President Ilham Aliyevs ruling New Azerbaijan Party benefit from substantial support from state institutions and it will be a major upset if any opposition candidate is elected.

The young, independent candidates have faced varying levels of official harrassment. Jalil was the target of an online campaign attacking her, which she attributed to government troll armies. Qara said police in Quba invited him to the station for a conversation on February 5, but he declined, and said he hasnt suffered any repercussions. He also said he is bracing for fraud on election day, but has organized dozens of observers to watch polling places.

The Baku-based candidates have faced fewer problems. In general, they [the authorities] ignore me, Veliyev said.

The day before speaking to Eurasianet, Veliyev had knocked on 300 doors in his Baku district, spreading the word about his platform of eliminating university fees and raising pensions, among other proposals. My campaign is based on leftist ideas, he said. Were thinking about people, not the economy in general.

Voters are receptive to new voices, he said. People are tired of the old faces, the same faces, he said.

There can be some confusion about leftist ideas, though. While canvassing, Veliyev met some government supporters and told them he was a socialist. They said oh, socialism, we love Stalin! We said no, we are not Stalinists, we are socialists, we want a more equal society, he said with a laugh. They said they would vote for us.

Even if they dont achieve success on election day, the candidates say their strategy is a long-term one.

Parliament is not our main goal. Our main goal is society. We change society, we change the culture, and we will change our future, Rahimli said. Because we are younger, we have a lot of time, this isnt the last election for us.

Jalil said she may not win this time. But, she added: This is not the end for me. Next elections I will run and I will win and I will sit in parliament.

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Young Azerbaijani opposition candidates have a plan for that - Eurasianet

Our birthdays, wedding anniversaries and Christmas are all celebrated with special gifts. Yet we ignore the day that provides our most important possessions of freedom, security and the opportunity to attain prosperity.

That very special anniversary is Sept. 17 Constitution Day.

The Constitution of the United States was written in 1787 and ratified in 1788. This year we will celebrate the 232nd birthday of our countrys constitution. The Constitution of the United States is the worlds longest-surviving written charter of government. Its first three words, We the People, proclaims the intent of the United States government is to serve the citizens.

According to an old joke: A patron went into a library and asked for a copy of the French Constitution, only to be told that the library does not stock periodicals. A bit of an exaggeration? Maybe. Although, according to statistics, the average lifespan of the worlds constitutions is a mere 17 years. Poorly written constitutions have even shorter life spans.

France holds the world record in the field of new constitutions. Since 1789, she has been changing her constitution after about every 12 years. Between 1789-1858, France had 16 constitutions, one of which, in the year,1835, remained in force for only 21 days.

Why do many countries frequently change their constitutions? As we all know, correcting a problem often creates a new set of problems. For instance, in 1917, the 18th Amendment (Prohibition) became part of our Constitution. Its intent was to curb production, distribution and sales of recreational alcohol. Which it did. However, by deterring the use of legal alcohol, the Mafia moved in to fill the needs with their illegal underground network that still exist today.

Recently we are hearing from those that would take away our right to bear arms legally. This action will create the similar illegal response from organized crime, as did Prohibition.

In 2004, legislation was passed that required teaching, in federally funded schools, the contents and meaning of the US Constitution. It is the legal obligation of those schools to provide students with programs that define the meaning and importance of the Constitution in our society. If taught properly, students can understand the true meaning of their rights and the vital constitutional amendments that protect those rights.

Teaching the Constitution in our public schools, as it was written, without editorial comments, and slanted half-truth interpretations, is a must. Too often, professors and educators insert their slanted personal viewpoints when presenting the Constitution to students. A survey of college political science professors found that 68% preferred Socialism over Capitalism.

How free would we be without our Constitution? How would our government operate without it? These questions should be answered with education programs, not only on Constitution Day the 17th day of September, but every day of the school year.

Our youth must learn and understand how amazing this nation is. Thomas Jefferson said: Enlighten the people and tyranny and oppression will vanish like evil spirits at the dawn of day.

George Washington said, of the Constitution: What duty is more pressing than communicating it to those who are to be the future guardians of the liberties of the country? It is We the People Who Preserve Our Constitutional Rights. The Founding Fathers agreed the youth of America must learn about the document that makes their success possible.

As times change, one thing should remain constant: the guarantee of our inalienable rights as free citizens. Our basic rights are not given to us by a government, they belong to us as part of the human experience.

Certain politicians have forgotten or ignored how the US Constitution protects our rights and freedoms. It is only through teaching in the schools that We the People can ensure that ourselves and our children know the principles of liberty and self-destiny. It is through education we are capable of taking our freedom into our own hands.

Power belongs in the hands of the people, not the government. When our students understand the US Constitution, they will better understand what our government can and cannot do, and if a law is unconstitutional and must be removed.

The US Constitution, together with the Declaration of Independence, is the foundation of our nation. Using it to guide us we stand free of oppression and tyranny, including that of our own government. Not only does our Constitution protect our national sovereignty, but it also protects our religious freedom, freedom of speech and guarantees the right to own property and to bear arms.

Our countrys Constitution was created to protect citizens from external as well as internal tyranny. The Founding Fathers took special efforts to create a system of checks and balances that prevented any one branch of government from gaining power over the others. Our founders brilliant constitutional control systems assure us that our country will not fall prey to a dictators uncontrolled rule.

Also, our nations founders did not create our Constitution to protect the government quite the contrary, our Constitution was created to protect We the People.

Mark Schenck is a former chairman of the Scotland County Republican Party.

Mark Schenck Scotland GOP

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Constitution protects the rights of all - Laurinburg Exchange

Caitlin Johnstonesaysbought politicians and owned news outlets domoreharm out in the open than government secrecy.

By Caitlin JohnstoneCaitlinJohnstone.com

I write a lot about government secrecy and the importance of whistleblowers, leakers and leak publishers, and for good reason: governments which can hide their wicked deeds from public accountability will do so whenever possible. Its impossible for the public to use democracy for ensuring their government behaves in the way they desire if they arent allowed to be informed about what that behavior even is.

These things get lots of attention in conspiracy circles and dissident political factions. Quite a few eyes are fixed on the veil of government opacity and the persecution of those brave souls who try to shed light on whats going on behind it. Not enough eyes, but quite a few.

What gets less attention, much to our detriment, is the fact that the primary mechanism of our oppression and exploitation is happening right out in front of our faces.

The nonstop campaign by bought politicians, owned news outlets, and manipulated social media platforms to control the dominant narratives about whats going on in the world contribute vastly more to the sickness of our society than government secrecy does.

We know this from experience: any time a whistleblower exposes secret information about the malfeasance of powerful governments like NSA surveillance orCollateral Murder, we see not public accountability, nor demands for sweeping systemic changes to prevent such malfeasance from reoccurring, but a bunch of narrative management from the political/media class.

Retraining Attention

This narrative management is used to shift attention away from the information that was revealed and onto the fact that the person who revealed it broke the law or misbehaved in some way. Its used to convince people that the revelations arent actually a big deal, or that it was already basically public knowledge anyway.

And its used to manipulate public attention on to the next hot story of the day and memory hole it underneath the white noise of the media news churn. And nothing changes.

Weve seen it happening over and over and over again. The narrative management machine has gotten so effective and efficient that its been able to completely ignore the recent revelation that the U.S., U.K. and France almost certainly bombed Syria in 2018for a completely false reason. A few half-assed Bellingcat spin jobs and an otherwise total media blackout, and its like the whole thing never happened.

What this tells us is that our first and foremost problem is not the fact that conspiracies are happening behind a curtain of government secrecy, but that the way people think, act and vote is being actively manipulated right out in the open.

Government secrecy is indeed one aspect of establishment narrative control, but controlling the publicsaccessto information is only one aspect. The bigger part of it is controlling how the publicthinksabout information.

The reason people never use the power of their superior numbers to force real change, even though theyre being exploited and oppressed in myriad ways by the ruling class, is because theyve been propagandized into accepting the status quo as desirable (or at least normal).

The propaganda of the political/media class is therefore the establishments front line of defense. It is its most powerful, and essential, weapon.

This is important for dissidents of all stripes to understand, because it means were not just passively waiting around for another Manning or Snowden or an Ian Henderson to give us information which we can use to fight the oppression machine.

Those individuals have done a great public service, but the battle to awaken human consciousness to whats really going on in our world is in no way limited to leakers and whistleblowers. It is not at the mercy of government secrecy.

If you are engaged in any type of media, you are engagingthe narrative matrixwhich keeps the public asleep and complacent. It doesnt matter if you have a Twitter account, a Youtube account, some flyers or a can of spray paint: if you are capable of getting any kind of message out there, you are able to directly influence the mechanism of your oppression.

You are able to inform people that they are being lied to, you are able to explain why, and you are able to point them to where they can find more information.

This is extremely empowering. You do not need to wait around hoping that some bombshell piece of information makes it past all the various security checks and spinmeisters and triggers a real social awakening. You canbethat information. You can become a catalyst for that awakening.

The key to turning this ship around does not lie hidden somewhere behind a veil of government opacity. It lies in you. It lies in all of us. We can begin awakening our fellow humans right now by attacking the narrative management of the propaganda machine that sits right in front of us, unarmored and unhidden.

Caitlin Johnstone is a rogue journalist, poet, and utopia prepper who publishes regularlyat Medium. Follow her work onFacebook,Twitter,or herwebsite. She has apodcastand a book, Woke: A Field Guide for Utopia Preppers.

This article was re-published with permission.

The views expressed are solely those of the author and may or may not reflect those ofConsortium News.

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The Primary Mechanism of Oppression is Not Hidden - Consortium News

The government of the Islamic Republic of Iran has stepped up its pressure on the countrys Bahai community by preventing members of the faith from obtaining national identity cards, confiscating their property, and arresting and searching their homes.

According to the Bahai World News Service, these measures are part of the increased persecution of the Bahais community in Iran.

In the past few months, the Bahai minority in Iran no longer have the right to receive new smart national ID cards after the countrys Revolutionary Guard Corps removed the other option for religious affiliations other than Muslim from Irans new application forms.

This change has brought a series of hardships to the Bahai community, which was founded in Iran in the middle of the 19th-century. Without a national identity card, a member of the Bahai community is barred from obtaining a drivers license, acquiring a passport, and opening a bank account or transferring money.

The Islamic Republic has also seized houses and farmland from the Bahai community, most of which have been owned by members of the faith for generations.

A court has ruled that all properties belonging to Bahais in the village of Ivelsome of which they have owned since the mid-19th Centurybe confiscated on the basis that Bahai have a perverse ideology and therefore have no legitimacy in their ownership of any property, according to a report from the Bahai World News Service.

Bani Dugal, the Principal Representative of the Baha International Community, has called upon to the international community to shine a spotlight on these issues, which represent a major further deterioration

UN Special Rapporteur to Iran, Javaid Rehman, stated that the Bahai are considered unprotected infidels by the Islamic Republic.

According to UN estimates, there are about 350,000 Bahai believers in Iran, making it the countrys largest religious minority. Bahais are usually imprisoned on vague charges and denied public education on the basis of their faith.

The Bahai faith, based on Shiite Islam, believes the values of unity and equality of all people. The Bahai also believe that religion is orderly and progressively revealed by one God through the Manifestations of God,who are the founders ofmajor world religionsthroughout history;Buddha,Jesus, andMohammad. Three principles are central to these teachings: the unity of God, the unity ofreligion, and the unity of humanity.

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Iran intensifies its campaign of oppression against the Baha'i community - New Europe