Black Agenda Report and CPR News: Do Americans Have No Shame?

There are many shameful things about this country but hypocrisy about its history is one of the worst. According to one researcher the United States intervened in elections around the world at least 80 times between 1946 and 2000. If the Russian government did interfere in the 2016 elections it is certainly no worse than than this country.

That was the subject of my latest column in Black Agenda Report. As always I followed up with my weekly Don DeBar conversation.

Black Agenda Report and CPR News: Obama and Clinton Brought Slavery to Libya

Such is the legacy of our first black president. Libya helped African migrants earn a living, but that was before Muammar Gaddafi ended up in Obama and Clinton cross hairs. Now these same people are being enslaved by the jihadists the United States, NATO and gulf monarch Arab states brought to power. Read my Black Agenda Report column here and listen to my weekly conversation with Don DeBar here. Don and I didn't just discuss Libya. Our conversation veered off a bit and we talked about other issues regarding U.S. policy in Africa. Sometimes digression is a good thing.

Goal of U.S. Foreign Policy is to Prolong the War in Syria

I was interviewed by Sputnik news last week as "a member of the Hands Off Syria Coalition." They added an article along with audio presented on April 9th. Read the article here.

Black Agenda Report and CPR News: Trump Joins Democrats in the War Party

In retrospect I see that it was inevitable. Whatever Trump meant by changing a relationship with Russia could not withstand the imperatives of the military industrial complex, the neocons, the deep state and the war party. The war party is an integral part of the duopoly and led by the likes of Hillary Clinton has become a requirement for accepted discourse in the democratic party.

Black Agenda Report features work from three of our team on this issue. Glen Ford, Danny Haiphong and yours truly all weigh in on the dangers that America poses to life on earth. As always I discussed this issue with Don DeBar.

Interview with Radio Sputnik "Goal of U.S. Foreign Policy is to Prolong War in Syria"

Yesterday I was fortunate to speak with Radio Sputnik. I was invited as a member of the Hands Off Syria Coalition coordinating committee. Unfortunately my references to HOSC were edited out but I think the 5 minute long interview sums up my feelings about Syria pretty well.

I don't know if Trump was ever serious about having a different relationship with Russia and eschewing regime change plots. Even if he was, the continuing charges of Russian influence, the congressional hearings and threats of impeachment have had the desired impact. Less than one week after saying that regime change was not a goal in Syria his administration now picks up the Obama mantra "Assad must go." He did not eschew American intervention altogether. The plan was to partition Syria into zones of influence and continue the practice of destroying secular Arab regimes by other means.

Now the U.S. is in direct conflict with Russia. And we are living in very dangerous times.

USA: Arrests made during NYC anti-war protest

We had to protest Trump's attack on Syria. Several hundred people gathered with less than 24 hours notice.

Black Agenda Report and CPR News: When Black Misleaders Act Like Republicans

I'm going to admit I had no idea who was mayor of Baltimore, Maryland. I found out last week but not for a good reason. Catherine Pugh is the mayor and I learned her name after she vetoed a bill that would have raised the minimum wage in that city. It is currently $8.75 per hour and the city council voted to raise it to $15.00 over a five year period.

She did so by parroting a favorite republican talking point which claims that raising the minimum wage will increase unemployment. There is no proof of this. She also pleaded poverty, that is to say that paying municipal workers more money would increase the budget deficit. But Baltimore gives tax breaks to big business and that certainly takes money out of the treasury. She said nothing about changing that drain on public funds.

I could go on, but Pugh is just one of the black misleaders, the people who use the rest of us to become errand boys and girls for the democratic party. They get elected office and other high positions and do absolutely nothing that benefits the masses of black people. They lead us to poverty and to political confusion and we must fight them before we fight anyone else.

You can read my analysis in Black Agenda Report and listen to my weekly interview with Don DeBar. By the way, Pugh's act was so awful that BAR had to do a double beat down. Danny Haiphong also weighed in on this issue.

Vladimir Putin and Climate Change

I respect Vladimir Putin for many reasons. I have defended him from the lies told by imperialist politicians and the corporate media. The war party, which is made up of democrats and republicans, wants regime change in Russia. Simply put, the crumbling empire can't sustain itself without controlling this enormous energy rich country which spans two continents. Russia has been turned into an enemy because it insists on exercising its rights as a sovereign nation. It has also stepped back into the breach and foiled America's regime change plot in Syria. That is one of the reasons it is being condemned daily and blamed for the democratic party's self-inflicted wounds.

Having said all of that, I must say that I was extremely disappointed to read Putin's recent remarks on climate change. In the past he did acknowledge that humans were impacting the climate and correctly called the situation a dangerous crisis. But a few days ago he said that climate change was irreversible and besides not caused by humans and what the hell, a melting arctic will give Russia new economic opportunities.

Of course human CO2 production is responsible for dead coral reefs and blistering heat and methane gas bubbles threatening to explode in Russia itself. But it is also important to point out that the world has reached this point because other world leaders feel as Putin does. They may talk a good game but every so-called climate agreement results in sleight of hand and more global warming.

At Black Agenda Report we have been writing about this hypocrisy for a long time. See here, here and here too. Barack Obama marketed himself as an environmentalist, but he made sure that the Copenhagen and Paris agreements gave rich nations the right to keep spewing fossil fuels. What good is a climate change agreement that allows temperatures to keep rising? The U.S., Russia, Europe, China and India have all managed to give the appearance of lowering CO2 emissions when they have done just the opposite.

I call Canadian prime minister Justin Trudeau the Obama Clone because he is also a photogenic errand boy for the 1%. Under Trudeau Canada has failed to meet even the weak emissions reductions targets set by his conservative predecessor. And yes, when Trump announced he was going ahead with the Keystone XL pipeline, the phony progressive Trudeau showed his true colors and called it a good thing.

We may defend or condemn world leaders for particular reasons but in the end few of them make decisions based on the interests of humanity. Those who do are the true revolutionaries.

Black Agenda Report and CPR News: Is Trump the DNC Hacker?

I have said many times that I don't believe the allegations of Russian interference in the 2016 election. Democrats are flogging this horse in order to make the case for a 21st century cold war and to divert attention from their electoral failures.

I did not realize that Nigel Farage met with Julian Assange at the Ecuadorean embassy in London a few weeks ago. An observant reader pointed this out to me. I have connected my own dots and concluded that Donald Trump and or his associates hacked the Democratic National Committee. I also think they did it without any help from Russia. That is the subject of my Black Agenda Report column which you can read here and my weekly convo with Don DeBar which you can listen to here.

14 Black, Latino teenage girls missing in Washington DC in 2 weeks

I spoke about the missing children in a Presstv interview.

Black Agenda Report and CPR News: When America Interfered in a Russian Election and Hillary Returns

The democrats breathlessly claim that the Russian government interfered in the 2016 election on behalf of Trump and that Vladimir Putin ordered this interference personally and that the alleged meddling is and I quote, "An act of war." The democratic party is in a death spiral of failure and a crisis of legitimacy. Blaming Russia kills two birds with one stone. They continue their ratcheting up of the 21st century cold war and distract attention from their pathetic state.

But I argue that even if this account is accurate, and I doubt it, the Russian government only did what the Clinton administration carried out in 1996. In that year a group of political consultants affiliated with Clinton fixer Dick Morris worked to help Boris Yeltsin be re-elected. Yeltsin's poll numbers were well behind those of his communist party rival. The American helpers went to Moscow and manipulated the process to keep Yeltsin and the oligarchs in power. Act of war? Well, its a good thing the Russians didn't feel that way. I dissected this sorry episode in my column in the March 15th issue of Black Agenda Report. I also discussed it with my Don DeBar in CPR News that week.

This week I analyzed the troubling prospect of Hillary Clinton's refusal to disappear. She is back in campaign mode. It is obvious that she must be smacked down but she still runs the democratic party and no one seems willing to hammer a stake into her heart. Hillary Returns is my column and I discussed it with Don DeBar here.

Guest on Edward Rhymes "Rhymes Reasons"

Check Out Current Events Podcasts at Blog Talk Radio with DrRhymes on BlogTalkRadio with Rhymes Media Group on BlogTalkRadio

I had a great conversation with Edward Rhymes tonight. We talked about my recent Black Agenda Report columns. A good use of your time.

Black Agenda Report and CPR News: Trump and Russia, the Perfect Lie

I don't believe that the Russian government interfered in the election. But the story won't die because the corporate media, and democrats and republicans in the war party won't let it. Two birds are killed with this stone. The imperialists get to make the case for hegemony by making Russians out to be the villains and democrats distract their passive rank and file from demanding answers about the electoral debacle.

Read my Black Agenda Report column here and listen to my weekly discussion with Don DeBar here.

Radio Sputnik "Democrats Seek to Delegitimize Trump to Distract Attention from Their Failures"

That is what I said in a Sputnik news interview. They wrote an article too. Very nice of them. You can read it here.

Lynne Stewart at 2015 UNAC Conference

I co-chaired the panel Free All Political Prisoner at the 2015 UNAC conference. Lynne Stewart was among the speakers. This is a treasured memory.

Lynne Stewart

Lynne Stewart passed away this evening at the age of 77. She was an indefatigable defender of human rights, a superior trial attorney who fought for clients others wouldn't defend. So the government put her in jail at the age of 70 after she was diagnosed with cancer.

She was granted compassionate release on December 31, 2013. I joined with hundreds of others to welcome her home at Laguardia airport the next day. Ralph Poynter, her devoted husband, worked tirelessly on her release.

This photo was taken at the 2015 United National Antiwar Coalition (UNAC) conference in Secaucus, New Jersey. I was co-chairing a panel on political prisoners and Lynne was one of our speakers. And Ralph of course was always at her side.

If you don't know Lynne's story you read Glen Ford's words on the occasion of her 74th birthday in 2013. Chris Hedges also gives good background on her case here.

My condolences to Ralph, her children and grand children and to all who loved her.

Radio Sputnik Interview

Today I was interviewed on Radio Sputnik. I talked about my last Black Agenda Report column, Liberals Expose Themselves. I explain why resisting the democrats is as important as resisting Trump. After all their corruption, arrogance and incompetence put him in office. This is a good use of eight minutes of your time.

J20 Resist

I spoke at the J20 protest on inauguration day in Washington. Here is a very brief snippet of my words.

It was a very powerful day. See my January 22nd post for more details about that amazing day.

Margaret Kimberly of Black Agenda Report - "Trump isn't our friend - but neither are the democrats - both want war & profit @DisruptJ20 pic.twitter.com/pXUFx5awZ5

— #J20 ☭ RESIST (@j20resist) January 20, 2017

Black Agenda Report and CPR News: Liberals Expose Themselves

Liberals love the status quo more than they love anything else. What little ideology they have is love for the bourgeoisie and they support democratic politicians based on imagery more than principles. They don't want to fight the corrupt system that democratic politicians depend on and support. They can love war if a democratic president loves war, and they hate the left more than they hate the right.

I analyzed this issue in my Black Agenda Report column, Liberals Expose Themselves and then discussed it with Don DeBar. Listen to our conversation here. The so-called resistance to Trump is a joke, because the resistance should have started with the democratic party, the biggest obstacle to progressive change in this country.

You Have No Rights the Customs and Border Patrol Need Respect

Ever since Donald Trump ordered a travel ban against citizens of seven Muslim countries, there have been reports of heightened enforcement against undocumented immigrants and of international travelers who have a right to be in the country.

Just this weekend two stories received media attention. An Australian writer named Mem Fox was detained for two hours in Los Angeles despite having a valid visa. A French academic named Henry Rousso was detained for ten hours in Houston and was on the verge of being deported. Only swift action from American colleagues allowed him entry. There will be more and more stories like these as the Trump administration unleashes an attack on immigrants. But we can't forget that these incidents aren't new.

In 2010 I wrote about Customs and Border Patrol agents patrolling cities and towns in upstate New York for my Black Agenda Report column. They have authority to act anywhere within 100 miles of the border. Speaking of borders, the U.S./Canadian border appears to be particularly troublesome. A Muslim American writer and her family were detained there in 2013 after returning from a wedding. All were citizens, all had valid passports. But Muslims, so who cares? That same year a white Dutchman was refused entry because he had visited Muslim nations and packed a raincoat. (They actually asked him about the raincoat.)

A very troubling story emerged several days ago when passengers on a Delta airlines flight from San Francisco to New York were required to present I.D. upon disembarking from their plane. CPB claimed that a person scheduled for deportation might have been on the flight, but that raises many questions. Doesn't the airline know who is onboard? Isn't there a manifest? I wonder if such a person even existed or if this is a new way to introduce constant surveillance over our lives.

Customs and Border Patrol(CBP) and Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) now feel that "the shackles have been taken off" as the Trump administration makes clear that all undocumented people are in effect scheduled for deportation. The Obama administration deported more people, at least 2.5 million than any other president. Asylum seekers from African countries were given special and unwanted attention as their claims were routinely denied.

Donald Trump won the presidency in large part because he vowed to build a wall on the Mexican border. The CPB and ICE are obviously anxious to go about the business of targeting people for removal and like all law enforcement they have no concerns for civil liberties. In fact, we have no rights at all at airport customs. It is treated as a legal no mans land and unless a targeted person has outside help like Henry Rousso, he or she is doomed to face whatever treatment the CBP wants to mete out.

The situation will be worse for legal and undocumented immigrants and for international travelers too. But this situation did not spring fully formed from Donald Trump's head. There is a long history of fascistic behaviors at these police agencies and no one was ever safe from them. All an air traveler need do is claim a feeling of unease near a Muslim fellow traveler and voila... The Muslim is kicked off the plane. And yes this happened before Trump. Continuity is the watch word on this and every other Trump policy.

Black Agenda Report and CPR News: The Corporate Media Enemy

Wednesday is Black Agenda Report day and on Thursday I talk to Don DeBar about what I have written. This week The Corporate Media Enemy. Listen to our convo here.

The media aren't Trump's friends but they don't serve our interests either. Not with the Washington Post owner Jeff Bezos also being a CIA contractor. Such is the contradiction of our age. Read and listen. A good use of your time.

Shamnesty International

I was so pleased that Netfa Freeman asked me to appear on his program Voices with Vision on WPFW. We discussed the sham in Amnesty International and its ilk as they make the case for American aggression abroad. You can listen to us right here.

Black Agenda Report and CPR News: The Human Rights Industry Protects Imperialism

Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch are at it again. At the moment when the United States gamble for Syrian regime change has failed, they rear their ugly heads to support the imperialists with spurious charges of human rights abuses. The U.S. and their head choppers escape their analysis.

My Black Agenda Report column, Human Rights Industry Protects Imperialism, dissects the latest efforts of these phony humanitarians to promote the U.S. effort to destroy sovereign nations. AI and HRW are the most prominent and the worst. They have a revolving door of staff going straight to the state department which is prima facie proof of corruption and collusion. Don DeBar and I also discussed that on his CPR News broadcast. Listen to us here.

Black Agenda Report and CPR News: Resist Trump, Resist the Democrats

"There can be no resistance to Trump which includes the Democratic Party. The Democrats are the obstacle to justice at home and peace abroad."

So sayeth yours truly in the current issue of Black Agenda Report. In my column Resist Trump, Resist the Democrats, I explain why the much hyped call for resistance doesn't really amount to much. Very few of the resisters want to acknowledge the degree of continuity from Obama to Trump, just as there has always been from one presidency to another. Listen to my CPR News conversation with Don DeBar here.

Hundreds of undocumented immigrants arrested across 6 US states

I appeared on Presstv to discuss the recent immigration raids and deportations. I see more continuity with Obama administration policy than difference. Lest we forget, Obama deported at least 2.5 million people.

Black Agenda Report and CPR News: Democrats Attack Trump from the Right and Trump is the Less Effective Evil

Donald Trump's victory has revealed who is real, who is fake and who is a traitor. The democrats are lying traitors, but I'm getting ahead of myself.

In the January 25th issue of Black Agenda Report I wrote Democrats Attack Trump from the Right, namely by pursuing the discredited meme of Russian influence. It is especially sad to see members of the Congressional Black Caucus eagerly following a McCarthyite tactic and praise the intelligence agencies which have done so much damage to black people. Listen to my conversation with Don DeBar here. 

This week I wrote Trump is the Less Effective Evil. At Black Agenda Report we always said that Barack Obama was not the lesser of two evils. He was just more effective at quieting democratic protest against policies that are otherwise anathema to liberals. Trump's travel ban on citizens of seven majority Muslim nations (Sudan, Syria, Libya, Iran, Iraq, Somalia, Yemen) has elicited outrage and massive protest. That is all to the good, but Obama's bombing and killing people in these same nations did not spark the resistance it should have. Don and I talked about this too. Listen up right here.

Green News Network: Inaugurate the Resistance

I was invited to join the green party's Inaugurate the Resistance program presented by the Green News Network. Inaugurate the Resistance featured a series of speeches and interviews with green party leaders and activists such as Jill Stein, Ajamu Baraka, David Cobb, Meleizia Figueroa, George Paz Martin, George Friday, Kevin Zeese, Kali Akuno, Darryl Moch, Lydia Caramillo, Julia Varughese, Gloria Mattera, Jerome Scott, Howie Hawkins, Brian Jones, Ursula Rozum, Dr. Margaret Flowers, Patrice Cullors, Muhammad Malik, Melina Abdullah, and Dr. Jack Rasmus in just the first three hours. There was another three hour segment evening program featuring Chris Hedges, Kshama Sawant, Tim Canova and Chase Iron Eyes.

It is all great binge watching. You can see my panel with David Cobb, George Martin and Meleiza Figueroa starting at 1 hour 53 minutes on the youtube video above. We discussed resisting white supremacy and fighting for racist justice. The first step in doing any of those things is to reject the democrat party, which is where movements go to die.

I'm very grateful to have had this opportunity. You can catch all of this on Jill Stein's facebook page too.

J20 Resist

I was in Washington on January 20th with thousands of others protesting on the day of Donald Trump's inauguration. I was there along with my fellow United National Antiwar Coalition (UNAC) administrative committee members Joe Lombardo, Sara Flounders, Phil Wilayto and Abayomi Azikiwe at the J20 Resist rally and march. It is hard to speak for only two minutes, but I was trying to say that we must protest the democrats too. Their corruption and hubris made Donald Trump the president. Their history of presidential administrations is a litany of betrayal; from Clinton's ending the right to public assistance to Obama continuing endless war and making austerity deals with republicans.

We must resist the democrats as much as we must resist the republicans. The democrats are the problem and they hate the left more than they hate the republicans they use to keep us from demanding change. No matter. I dumped them. I joined the green party.

See next post.

Black Agenda Report and CPR News: No Tears for John Lewis

"I was beaten bloody by police officers. But I never hated them. I said, 'Thank you for your service.' "
Congressman John Lewis

I certainly hope that the phrase "civil rights icon" is soon retired once and for all. This flowery moniker has become the property of Georgia congressman John Lewis. Lewis was among the young people who fought against America's apartheid in the jim crow south in the early 1960s. He did risk his safety and his very life on the freedom rides and when he was beaten by police while crossing the Edmund Pettus bridge in the march from Selma to Montgomery. He spoke at the 1963 March on Washington and was the chairman of the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee (SNCC).

His bonafides are solid but do they give him a lifetime dispensation from critique? I answered in the negative in my Black Agenda Report column, No Tears for John Lewis. Lewis has been a congressman for nearly 30 years and he is little more than a democratic party hack. Like the rest of the Congressional Black Caucus he belittled and lied about Bernie Sanders in the effort to defeat him and make Hillary Clinton the democratic party nominee. He dismissed Sanders history in the movement and he sneered at his signature plan to make college education free and end the toll of student indebtedness.

Of course anyone called an icon can get away with uttering nonsense. Lewis has joined the rest of the black misleaders in claiming that the Russian government interfered with the presidential election. Lewis said that this unproven assertion alone rendered Donald Trump illegitimate as president. Mind you he didn't say that losing the popular vote made him illegitimate. Instead the democratic party trope and excuse for ignominious failure makes the case for legitimacy.

Trump was too stupid to leave the comment alone or to be gracious. He lashed out at Lewis in typical Trumpian style and claimed the congressman's district was "crime infested." The liberal hand wringers had a field day turning the mediocre representative into a perpetual hero. It was all to much for me and so I had to write about it. And then of course I talked to Don DeBar about it on CPR News and we had a great conversation as we do every week.

It will be a long four years if every target of a Trump tweet is elevated to sainthood.

BIBC Black Self-determination Rally

Yesterday I was among the speakers at the Black is Back Coalition (BIBC) rally for self-determination in Washington DC. It was a great event with informative speakers such as Omali Yeshitela, Glen Ford, Nellie Bailey, Kamm Howard, Diop Olugbala, Yeshide Orunmila, Zaki Baruti, Khalid Raheem, Lisa Davis and performances by M1 of Dead Prez and Lucy Murphy.

Watch this video if you want to know why Donald Trump won or what we must do in response to fight him and the democrats. Of course you don't have to sit down for five hours. Take your time. My remarks start at about one hour and ten minutes into the program.

Margaret in Trumpland

Someone said that Pennsylvania can be described as Pittsburgh and Philadelphia with Alabama in between. On a recent road trip from New York to Ohio I drove through the Alabama portion of the state. It is not a comfortable place for a black person.

I was with one of my sisters and we stopped for gas and for dinner. A sign outside of the restaurant said, "Hunt safely." I was ready to walk out if I felt uncomfortable but there were two black people dining and I relaxed somewhat.

The waitresses were friendly, one customer was a little too friendly and wouldn't go away. We talked about the Pittsburgh Steelers of course. The other customers wore camouflage jackets and shirts, one had a cap which read Deer Hunter. I would say that half of the people I encountered were missing teeth. There were military t-shirts on sale and caps that read Vietnam Veteran and Purple Heart Veteran. The photo above shows a mural on the wall of the restaurant.

I looked online and as I assumed this county voted for Donald Trump overwhelmingly. They gave him 70% of their votes. Mitt Romney got a mere 55% of votes in 2012.

I admit that I remembered the people I met in this town and elsewhere in Pennsylvania who had missing teeth. That is quite simply a sign of poverty. It is tempting to look down on poor, white republican voters and ask why they vote "against their own interests." But I don't know how they see their interests.

Maybe they just want white people in office who assert their whiteness. Maybe they know that voting for democrats won't get them out of poverty. Maybe they don't see themselves as being poor. I suspect these are all factors but I'm just guessing.

When I think back about some of the people I voted for I just cringe. Mario Cuomo was a democratic governor of New York and he constantly bragged about building prisons but I voted for him. Bill Clinton ended the right to public assistance and put more black people in prison and I voted for him when he ran for reelection. I don't vote for anyone like them anymore but I have to admit I spent most of my life voting against my own interests too.

Black is Back Coalition Rally for Self-Determination

On Saturday, January 14th I will be among those speaking at the Black is Back Coalition rally in Washington DC. The event will be held at Howard University's Blackburn Center. In November we approved a 19-point agenda for black self determination at that same venue.

Black Agenda Report is a founding member of the Black is Back Coalition and I look forward to every opportunity I have to interact with our friends and comrades. Glen Ford, Omali Yeshitela, Charles Barron, M1, Kamm Howard, Nellie Bailey, Marsha Coleman Adebayo, Gazi Kodzo and others are among the speakers.

Please attend and support this important event.

Black Agenda Report and CPR News: Contradiction in the Time of Trump

Don DeBar and I returned to present your Thursday Fix. The contradictions are becoming more acute all over the world and are playing out in our presidential transition. My Black Agenda Report column, Contradiction in the Time of Trump, was the topic of discussion. Listen to it here.

Black Agenda Report and CPR News: Obama's Propaganda Gift for Trump

Don DeBar and I start the new year off right. We talked about my latest Black Agenda Report column, Obama's Propaganda Gift to Trump. Barack Obama used the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) to establish a Global Engagement Center, an official propaganda arm of the U.S. government. There is no pretense of democracy in this country. Nor is there any disagreement between the two parties when an opportunity presents itself to stifle dissent and empower neo-liberal and imperial schemes. Please read my column and listen to Don and me here.

Red Army Crimes Resurrected

“They raped every German woman from 8 to 80.” - Anthony Beevor on the Soviet occupation of Berlin, 1945. https://t.co/hGSKwgk6f7 https://t.co/rV0yia55CP

— David Frum (@davidfrum) January 3, 2017

I knew this was coming. The wave of Russophobia among the elites and the corporate media knows no bounds. I was wondering when this history would be resurrected.

It is well documented that Red Army soldiers were responsible for thousands of sexual assaults as they invaded Germany in 1945. I'm not disputing this fact and I'm certainly not defending it. But I find it interesting what the American media choose to report and when they choose to report it.

Enslaved black women were raped routinely throughout the United States, Caribbean, Central America and South America over the more than 200 year history of slavery. How many indigenous women were raped by conquistadores and pilgrims? I'm sure that number is equally enormous.

Let's look at America's 21st century gulag, the mass incarceration system. Men and women are routinely sexually assaulted and more often by prison personnel than by other inmates. I could go on but I find it odd that when Americans want to make a case against someone they immediately talk about rape, as long as it happened somewhere else on the planet.

Frum is a confirmed neo-conservative and senior editor of the Atlantic. Like all members of the Washington elite and the war party he is a die hard Russophobe. It is no wonder that he resurrects this book published in 2002.

Why now? That should always be the question. The tweet not only highlights a story I doubt Frum is really interested in but has the value of mocking the Russian effort in Syria. That is my issue with this subject being raised now. Every Russian move is denounced and dismissed, lies are told as truth and crimes of 70 years ago are suddenly found worthy of attention. If Russia was America's friend this history would be kept hidden. But Putin is successfully pushing back against U.S. hegemony and that is why he has been declared an enemy. Every bad chapter of his nation's history will suddenly get renewed attention.

Making fun of Putin for riding shirtless on a horse didn't keep him from stopping the regime change plot in Syria. Neither did falsely claiming that he interfered in the presidential election. So now the corporate media will suddenly tell us about rapes in Berlin in 1945. That wouldn't bother me if I thought the retelling came from any honest concern about the past or about brutality committed against women.

The British, French, Spanish, Dutch, Portuguese, Belgians and Germans committed crimes against humanity all over the world. But those crimes are swept under the rug because they were committed against black and brown and yellow people.

Let David Frum write about that.

Now Age Conversations: "2016 Politics Wrap-Up" with Margaret Kimberley

Today I had my third discussion of 2016 with Craig Gordon of Now Age Press. We talked about the election of course and the frightening aftermath. Hillary Clinton's defeat exposed the precarious nature of the American project for world wide hegemony. Obama is spending his last few weeks in office with a determination to repress dissent and perhaps get us into war. The democrats are a mess and have been exposed as frauds. Craig and I dissect it all. Enjoy.

Margaret Kimberley and Ajamu Baraka Live video

I am grateful to the Green Party ticket of Jill Stein and Ajamu Baraka for presenting their live videos during and after the presidential election. I was especially grateful to talk to Ajamu tonight about a wide range of issues for just 30 minutes. We did our best to cram in a lot of conversation. Enjoy.

Eva Bartlett and Hands Off Syria Coalition press conference at U.N. on December 9, 2016

So proud to see my friends journalist Eva Bartlett, Sara Flounders of International Action Center, Bahman Azad from U.S. Peace Council and Dr. Donna Nassor whom I have not met.

The Hands Off Syria Coalition sponsored Eva's nation wide tour. The timing for her trip was perfect. Syria is being liberated from the U.S./NATO, Saudi, Qatari, Turkish sponsored terrorists.

Southern Human Rights Organizers Conference (SHROC) final plenary

So you can download a Facebook live video onto youtube. Voila! Here you can see the final plenary featuring yours truly, Nsombi Lambright, Ajamu Baraka, Lamont Lilly, Karen Marshall, Nigel Jones and Khaula Hadeed.

Panel at SHROC conference

I was on the closing plenary panel. You can see video here.

Southern Human Rights Organizers Conference (SHROC) in Jackson, Mississippi

Photos from my weekend in Mississippi. The professional quality photos were taken by Lovette Kargbo-Thompson. The not so bad photos came from my phone.

Black Agenda Report and CPR News: Fighting for Southern Human Rights

I must give a huge shout out to Don Debar of Community Public Radio (CPR) News. Back in March he asked me to be a regular guest on his program. So almost every week since then we have discussed my latest Black Agenda Report columns. It has been a lot of fun and a great experience for me. Right now Don has been purged from Facebook for mysterious reasons. I think it is because he recently traveled to Cuba. In any case I'm just taking a short end of year break but we'll back together in January.

Today we talked for our final 2016 program about Fighting for Southern Human Rights. I spent the weekend in Jackson, Mississippi at the Southern Human Rights Organizers Conference (SHROC) and met amazing people. We had a direct action at a Nissan plant and I was on a great panel with Ajamu Baraka and others.

There is nothing like being with like minded folks and pursuing a common goal. Our goal is liberation and that struggle continues. Listen to our talk here.

Black Agenda Report and CPR News: Black Fear in the Age of Trump

Don Debar and I resumed our conversations which are a great opportunity to discuss my Black Agenda Report columns in depth. This week Black Fear in the Age of Trump was the topic. Yes Trump is the latest representative of the white people's party and no that isn't good for black people. But it is also not good for us to give up our power and to think that we cannot decide upon or press ahead with our agenda.

In the 1950s and 1960s discrimination was legal. We had no allies in the media or corporate America. We had no money and half of all black Americans lived in the south and had no voting rights. We had nothing we now think we must have and yet we changed the nation.

We can do so again. No need to live in a state of dread or to cling to the discredited democratic party. Listen to Don and I talk here.

Hands Off Syria Coalition

 I am a member of the coordinating committee of the Hands Off Syria Coalition. HOSC is sponsoring a United States tour for Eva Bartlett, an independent journalists who has spend many years reporting from Syria. I was honored to appear on a panel in New York City with Eva, Bahman Azad of HOSC, Sara Flounders of the International Action Center and Dr. Ghias Moussa of Syria American Forum.  Please watch the entire video to learn the latest about Syria, which is not what you will see in the corporate media.

Zero Squared Podcast: Margaret Kimberley Takes on Trump

This grandiose title describes my conversation with Douglas Lain on his Zero Squared Podcast about a week after election day. Unfortunately it was too soon to give numbers on the election. I said that Hillary Clinton got 6 million fewer votes than Obama did in 2012. She actually got 400,000 fewer votes. Aside from that I'll stand by what I said.

Black Agenda Report and CPR News: Black Agenda Report on the Honor Roll

As always Don DeBar and I discussed my Black Agenda Report column. Black Agenda Report on the Honor Roll is a paean to BAR's independence and fearless analysis of United States foreign policy. Because of that we we ended up on the Is It Propaganda or Not list of supposedly Russian controlled media sites. This tale was spun by the  Washington Post which was clearly working with the democrats to make sure that regime change stays on the menu. Listen to our convo here.

Black Agenda Report and CPR News: Obama's Hollow Legacy

"Democratic presidents Jimmy Carter and Bill Clinton began the tradition of getting Democrats to support what they didn't like. Obama perfected the art, which ultimately led to the debacle. He will certainly not be the last to tempt the party faithful but in 2016 Democrats sold their souls and ended up with nothing. Defeat creates the most hollow feeling of all." 

Sorry that you are missing your Thursday Fix. Don DeBar and I took today off because of the holiday. Last week we discussed my Black Agenda Report column entitled "Obama's Hollow Legacy." You can listen to us here.

The Hollow Democrats

I spoke with Brendan Stone of Unusual Sources about my Black Agenda Report column entitled "Obama's Hollow Legacy."

Presstv Interview on Police Murder

I was wearing my Black Power Matters t-shirt as I gave this Presstv interview. This was an opportunity to talk about black community control of the police, an important part of the Black is Back Coalition 19-point agenda for black self-determination. Black community control of the police is also a subtitle on the shirt. Too bad you can't see it.
I begin speaking at about 1 minute 35 seconds.

Black is Back Coalition Convention for Self-Determination

I love this slide from one of the presentations on the subject of black community control of the police. How I spend my free time.

Black Is Back Coalition's Black People's Political Convention

I forgot to mention that I was a speaker at the Black is Back Coalition conference for Black Self-Determination in Washington DC. We strategized on a 19 point agenda. Take a look at the video. You'll see discussions on the agenda, proportional representation, community control of the police, a panel on the then upcoming presidential election, and a great talk on the principles of international law embodied in the demand for reparations.

Sometimes video and audio are not in sync, but not to worry. Also don't try to watch all six hours at once. Take it in small bites. Uhuru! (That means freedom.)

Black Agenda Report and CPR News Interview: Dump the Democrats for Good

My friend Don DeBar was a voice crying out in the wilderness. He said all along that Trump could win. Today we had our weekly conversation about my column in Black Agenda Report. It is called Dump the Democrats for Good and I mean every word of it. Listen up here. A good use of 30 minutes of your time.

Black Agenda Report on Donald Trump Victory

Well, I was wrong. I thought that Hillary Clinton would win the presidency. Donald Trump is now president elect. Do you know why he won? No worries. The Black Agenda Report team explains.

The title of my column, Dump the Democrats for Good, is self-explanatory. Glen Ford tells us all about The Democratic Debacle - the Day After and Bruce Dixon says American Might Not Deserve Trump, But Dems and Hillary Deserved to Lose.

Just remember that Wednesday is always Black Agenda Report Day.

Russophobia: War Party Propaganda

That is the title of my latest Black Agenda Report column. I explain why Vladimir Putin is made a figure of fun, is accused of killing every Russian who ever met an unfortunate end, and is said to menace countries that are in fact threatening him. And in 2016 he is the foil for Hillary Clinton, whose unpopularity forces her to come up with new ways to demonize the already demonic Donald Trump.

Don DeBar and I discuss all this on CPR News. You can read my column here.

Black and Brown Vote 2016

Earlier this year Glen Ford and I were interviewed for the Rhode Island Media Coop podcast Black and Brown Vote in 2016. We are featured in Episode 2. We spoke while the primaries were still underway but our thoughts and comments hold up with just one week to go before election day.

Black Agenda Report and CPR News: Organizing in the Age of Hillary

Don DeBar and I returned to CPR News. We discussed my latest Black Agenda Report column entitled Organizing in the Age of Hillary. I was inspired to write after attending the Right to Exist, Right to Resist conference held in Chicago. More than 200 activists met to discuss strategies to fight imperialism, police violence and neo-liberal attacks on our very lives. We ended the day with a march on the second anniversary of the police murder of young Laquan MacDonald. When the U.S. government talks about human rights violations around the world remember that minor children are killed by the police on a regular basis. This photo was taken from our march.

Presstv Interview

I thank Presstv for giving me the opportunity to once again talk about police murder in the United States. Last night I discussed the latest outrage, this time from California. Police there first tried to run a man over with their vehicle and then shot him 14 times. The interview can be seen here.

United National Antiwar Coalition (UNAC) Statement on Charlotte Police Shooting and Rebellion

UNAC is committed to stopping the wars at home and abroad. You can read our statement on the Charlotte police shooting and protests here.

Community Public Radio (CPR) News - Vote Green

It is Thursday. That means it is CPR News day for me and Don DeBar. As always we talked about my Black Agenda Report column. This week in Vote Green I make the case for supporting the Jill Stein and Ajamu Baraka ticket. In answer to the question about protest votes and wasted votes I say we must work towards getting rid of the democrats and replacing them with a real progressive party. There can be no more whining about a wish for another party. The time to build one is right now.

I am very much afraid of a Hillary Clinton presidency. I fear Donald Trump too but for different reasons. His racist appeals will unleash the undercover rednecks and that is a danger. But Hillary Clinton threatens WWIII. Everything is moot if we end up as nuclear ash.

We must organize and remain in constant struggle against them all. Step one is making an active commitment to replace the party which promises so much and does so little. You can listen to us here.

United National Antiwar Coalition (UNAC) Statement on Syria

UNAC released the following statement on the continuing horror inflicted by the United States in its regime change effort in Syria.

U.S. Bombs Syria Army Escalating Potential for War with Syria/Russia

The US-Russian negotiated cessation of hostilities has collapsed in Syria.  The United States has intervened directly in ways that undermine any possibility of the ceasefire succeeding.   On September 18, US forces, four Jets followed by a couple of helicopters, attacked a Syrian Arab Army (SAA) outpost near Deir Ezzor killing at least 82 soldiers and wounding 100 more and destroying their equipment This was supposed to be a joint operation to go after ISIS, but under cover of this attack ISIS fighters stormed the SAA position and took the hilltops where they were stationed.  

Just after this unprecedented attack on the Syrian Army by the United States, Israel launched an attack on SAA positions in the Golan where they were fighting Al Nusra, killing and injuring several more Syrian soldiers.

The United States claimed that the attack was an accident.  Even so, US allies, Australia, Denmark and the UK- have confirmed that they too took part. All are assisting in imperialist murder

The Russians called a meeting of the UN Security Council to discuss the US violation of both the current cessation of hostilities agreement' and the Geneva agreement on Syria.   US Ambassador Samantha Power chose to boycott the meeting and instead held a press conference outside the door, which she opened by accusing the Russians of attacking civilians, schools and hospitals in Syria, before sarcastically accusing them of hypocrisy and calling the meeting a “stunt”.  She dismissed the murder of nearly 100 Syrians without a pause.  Powers indignation was clearly intended for her US audience as few others in the world would find her sarcasm and her rejection of the international forum for dialogue acceptable.

One day later, on September 19th, a UN Aid Convoy was struck while passing through opposition held territories in Aleppo, and 18 workers were killed.  A video of the wreckage was posted on the internet by the White Helmets, a US supported NGO that operates only in ISIS and Al Qaeda territories. The United States immediately blamed the Syrian air force, then the Russian air force, and finally “the Russians,” who, after a few hours of public silence, released drone footage showing a truck armed with mortars riding in the shadow of the convoy as it entered hostile territory.  They said that neither they nor the Syrians were in the vicinity of the convoy and that a full investigation would be necessary.

The US has moved from supporting proxies to direct intervention in Syria.  It is the second time in as many months that they have killed nearly 100 Syrians in an air raid.    They have betrayed a long negotiated treaty and when confronted, US Ambassador Samantha Power dissembled and attacked the messenger.  It is clear that the United States remains committed to overthrowing the internationally recognized government of Syria.   Pentagon planners have shown no respect whatsoever for international law or for the United States diplomatic commitments in Syria. They hope to prevent any resolution before a new president is inaugurated.

A few days before massacring the Syrian soldiers outside Deir Ezzor, the United States attempted to insert 300 Special Forces troops with Turkish backed Free Syrian Army factions in the town of Ra'i near the Turkish border.   The Americans were driven out by an angry mob of men calling out their hatred of Americans in between cries of 'Allahu Akbar'.   Later in the day, US bombers 'accidentally' struck a nearby town where the hostile organizations were billeted.   Shortly thereafter, US special forces returned to the town of Ra'i to join the remaining Free Syrian Army groups there.  

The United States has been holding up the cessation of hostilities from reaching a full implementation and clearly has no intention of honoring it.   The Syrian military has stood down in the vicinity of Aleppo, yet the US has made only a halfhearted effort to separate their so called 'moderates' from the mercenaries and fanatics of Al Nusra/Al Qaeda.  

The negotiation was a sham and now the US continues to dissemble, buying time to reinforce their proxies and put more US soldiers on the ground.  The Pentagon is sowing the seeds of open warfare against the legitimate government of Syria (and the threat of war with Russia) while exacerbating the horrific humanitarian crisis of the Syrian people.  

The time to stop them is NOW! 

Hands off Syria!

US Out of the Middle East!

Presstv- Charlotte police release dashcam & bodycam video of Scott shooting

Last night I was interviewed by the Iranian network, Presstv. I discussed the latest video of police murder of a black person, this time in Charlotte, North Carolina. I have to say I felt a bit like an old broken record as I said the same things. The Obama justice department can prosecute cops, but he doesn't care and black people won't call him on it.

Blah, blah, blah. But someone has to say it.

Black Agenda Report and CPR News Interviews: Hillary's Emails, Standing with Syria, Russophobe Propaganda

I have fallen behind in posting my Community Public Radio news interviews with Don DeBar so this post is an effort to catch up. We usually discuss my Black Agenda Report columns but as I didn't write one for the first two weeks of September we discussed a variety of issues. On September 8th we talked about Hillary Clinton's email server scandal and why it is relevant. It says a lot about how corrupt she is, how she would govern and how the issue has the potential to derail her presidency should she win. You can listen here.

On September 15th we discussed my column Standing with Syria after Don gives a brief report on the U.N., Gaza and aid to Israel. I believe it is vital for the anti-war movement to stand with the Syrian government. There are too many people who believe they can't express opposition to American intervention without adding that they are not pro-Assad. President Assad has an obligation to protect his country from terrorists in the pay of the United States, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Turkey and Israel. The United States presents the greatest danger to the Syrian people. More than 400,000 of them are dead and 9 million have been displaced by the regime change effort. It is not enough to say the fighting must stop. The American government calls the shots and the anti-war movement must be clear that the regime change project is responsible for the humanitarian crisis.

This past week I was moved to write about anti-Putin hysteria in the American corporate media. It is used quite cynically in an effort to promote Hillary Clinton's campaign. Anti-Putin Hysteria in Service to Hillary is the column and Don and I talk about it here.

Black Agenda Report

My column doesn't appear in this week's Black Agenda Report because I'm taking time to finish another project. I'll be back at BAR in mid-September. But no worries. BAR never disappoints. 

This week you can find out why black self-determination should be a principal organizing position, what is going in Burundi, how republicans and democrats are alike, why Russian can't destroy a non-existent American democracy, the awfulness of the national anthem, and BAR radio on private prisons, debtors prisons, U.S. permanent war, left divergence on Syria and peace talks in the Philippines. Did I leave anything out? Probably. BAR always has a lot to say.

U.S. Refused to Discuss Russian Peace Overtures on Syria

There has been much discussion about Syria lately and how the left should respond. I believe that while this debate is not new it has accelerated because of the presidential election and Hillary Clinton's determination to continute this war. Some "leftists" are finding it hard to break from the democrats. Hence the confusion and juvenile level of analysis.

At the end of my latest CPR News interview with Don Debar I pointed out the Russian's willingness to negotiate Assad's fate. In 2012 both president Vladimir Putin and his foreign secretary Sergei Lavrov publicly said they weren't wedded to Bashar al-Assad remaining as president of Syria. Their overtures were rejected publicly and privately and the carnage continued. It is important to keep this in mind the next time another denunciation of Putin makes the rounds.

In 2015 Finnish diplomat Martti Ahtisaari repeated what the Russians had already said three years earlier. His confirmation that these discussions took place was considered newsworthy. Yet Vaska Tumir pointed out in Off Guardian this "news" was a subterfuge for the corporate media. They acted as though they never knew what the Russians had already said to them.

I don't think that Russia or anyone else should decide Syria's fate but we must have our facts in order. The U.S./NATO, Saudi, Qatari, Turkish, Israeli torment of Syria might have been stopped. But the empire would settle for nothing less than the destruction of that country.

Syria

CPR News, September 1, 2016

Today I had my weekly conversation with Don Debar. We discussed debates among the left on Syria. I am unafraid of defending the Syrian government's right to defend their country from attack from U.S./NATO and their allies. Listen up.

UNAC Response to Terry Burke and In These Times

On March 13, 2016 the United National Antiwar Coalition (UNAC) held a Day of Peace and Solidarity rally in New York City. I was among the many speakers who made clear our opposition to all U.S. interventions abroad. Obviously Syria was a subject of discussion and Syrian-Americans were in attendance who condemned the American led destruction of their country.

Terry Burke condemned the event in an In These Times article published two weeks ago. Burke says that our event was too "U.S. centric" and decried the fact that some of the Syrians who marched with us carried their own flags and images of president Assad. Burke criticizes the lack of a Syrian presence within the anti-intervention movement except there was a Syrian presence which she acknowledges but they are pro-Assad so they don't really count. It was the usual blather from pseudo leftists who don't really mind when wars are carried out by democrats and who are happy to listen to the bogus claims of humanitarian intervention. It is the U.S., Saudi, Israeli, Turkish, Qatari, ISIS camp who have destroyed Syria and displaced 9 million people and killed 400,000 more. There is nothing humanitarian about this brutal war.

It is discouraging that "leftists" aren't in full accord in their opposition to imperialism nor that they repeat corporate media lies about Syria and the rest of the world. UNAC wants self-determination for all people. Self-determination is impossible when a nation is under attack. Syria should be free of outside interference and its people should be able to make changes in their system on their own. That is why this war must end.

None of her arguments makes sense, but we at UNAC felt compelled to respond, point by point. After much discussion we did so and our rebuttal is now posted on the UNAC web site. Please take the time to read it.

Hands off Syria!

Black Agenda Report and CPR News Interview: The Clinton and Powell War Criminal Charade

I love my weekly conversations with Don Debar on CPR News. I have a chance to talk about my Black Agenda Report columns in depth.This past week we have witnessed a public food fight between Hillary Clinton and Colin Powell. Clinton is afraid, and rightly so, that her illegal use of a private server while she served as secretary of state may derail her campaign. She had been blaming Powell and claiming falsely that he did the same thing. He did not and in any case the rules had changed when she led the state department and her actions were illegal. "Colin told me to do it" is not a get out of jail free card. Well, it is if you're a war criminal and she is that. Powell is too and that is what makes his indignation all the more amusing. The episode also points to collusion among the corporate media who have jumped to defend the indefensible Hillary. The Clinton and Powell War Criminal Charade is must reading if I may say so myself.

Ajamu Baraka - Electoral Politics as a Tool for Radical Change

I was privileged to see my friend Ajamu Baraka on the stump as the green party vice presidential candidate. Ajamu came to Brook park in the Bronx, New York and made the case for the green party program. It was a wonderful event. Ajamu shows why the liberals are so afraid of the green party. If they are allowed to deliver their message the democrats will lose millions of votes. I hasten to add that would be an excellent result.

Black Agenda Report and CPR News Interview: Liberal Hate for Stein and Baraka

My thanks to Don Debar for our weekly conversations on CPR News. Last week we talked about my Black Agenda Report column, Liberal Hate for Stein and Baraka. Liberal hate for the green party is off the charts and with good reason. Hillary Clinton's presidency could lead to World War III and the greens are the only ones pointing out the dangers she creates. Obama has laid the ground work already and ham fisted, blood thirsty Hillary could finish the job.

Her administration will be disastrous for many reasons. As Glen Ford points out, the Sanders capitulation and anti-Trump hysteria have resulted in a Big Nasty Tent that will crush the already weak progressive agenda.

I don't care if the green party costs her the white house. We need to lay the ground work for replacing the democrats altogether. Let's help make them history.

Black Agenda Report

This week's issue of Black Agenda Report is pretty awesome. Glen Ford dissects how the "left" and the ruling class are all supporting Hillary Clinton and her big tent of corruption. Plus Eric Draitser, Danny Haiphong and our usual cast of great writers on Libya, Neo-liberalism, charter schools and of course we have Black Agenda Radio too.

Black Agenda Report and CPR News Interview: Police State Fascism

Here is my latest interview with Don Debar on CPR News. Don reports first on the ongoing Russia/Ukraine crisis and the murder of a DNC staffer. Then we talk about my latest Black Agenda Report column Police State Fascism. Trump can't bring fascism to America because it is here already, practiced against black people every day.

Presstv Interview on Police Murder

The headline is misleading. They strictly adhered to the policies of the 21st century slave patrol. I point this out in my comments in a Presstv interview.

Black Agenda Report and CPR News: Trump, Russia and Democratic Lies

That is the title of my latest column in Black Agenda Report. Donald Trump is proving to be the perfect foil for Hillary Clinton and the ruling classes. They continue their anti-Russia propaganda campaign and simultaneously give him a thorough beat down.

I discuss this same issue with Don DeBar on CPR News. First Don reports on the China pivot and then we have our weekly conversation.