AMERIKKKAN TERRORISM

Even though I think this is a good article, it should be noted that the majority of amerikkkan terrorism comes from the u.s. government itself, with the invasion and killing civilians of other countries, and their unmanned drones raining death upon women and children in the tens of thousands.

U.S. terrorism comes from the right

By Teresa Gutierrez posted on June 28, 2015

The capitalist media would have the people of this country believe that the main terrorist threat in the United States comes from terrorist attacks carried out by Muslims.

But a June 16 op-ed piece in the New York Times revealed that “headlines can mislead. The main terrorist threat in the United States is not from violent Muslim extremists, but from right-wing extremists. Just ask the police.”

This usually buried fact comes from a 2014 survey conducted by the writers of the opinion piece with 382 law enforcement agencies of the Police Executive Research Forum.

The police themselves document that it is not Muslims who are the big threat, but right-wing anti-government extremists, the overwhelming majority of them white men. Over 70 percent of the police surveyed report that anti-government extremism is one of the top three terrorist threats in their jurisdiction. In addition, only 3 percent of the police surveyed identified the threat from Muslim extremists as severe.

The study continued: “An officer from a large metropolitan area said that ‘militias, neo-Nazis and sovereign citizens’ are the biggest threat we face in regard to extremism. One officer explained that he ranked the right-wing threat higher because ‘it is an emerging threat that we don’t have as good of a grip on, even with our intelligence unit, as we do with the Al Shabab/Al Qaeda issue, which we have been dealing with for some time.’ An officer on the West Coast explained that the ‘sovereign citizen’ anti-government threat has ‘really taken off,’ whereas terrorism by American Muslims is something ‘we just haven’t experienced yet.’”

So there you have it, straight from the horse’s mouth: the real terrorists are not that racist image of Muslims promoted by Hollywood but rather white, racist, right-wing men.

This opinion piece is limited, however. It ignores the other blatant terrorists in our midst: the unbridled wrath of police in the oppressed communities, for example, who wage war with impunity against people of color. And then there is the terrorism of the Pentagon that has for decades carried out horrific crimes against the peoples of the world, also mostly with impunity.

However, this well-documented exposé about the terrorists in our midst is important to know about in the wake of the heinous racist assassination of nine Black people carried out by Dylann Roof in Charleston, S.C.

After Roof was captured, information came out about his worldview. He had posted a 2,000-word manifesto on his website where he identified himself as a “white nationalist.” He stated that he was “truly awakened” to his beliefs after reading material from the Council of Conservative Citizens, an infamous racist so-called hate group.

“I have no choice,” he wrote. “Someone has to have the bravery to take it to the real world, and I guess that has to be me.”
Roof is one of those extremists that the June op-ed article refers to, one of those white men shaped by racist websites that more and more promote a “white nationalist” agenda.

The Southern Poverty Law Center, which for decades has monitored and exposed “hate groups” and other extremists throughout the U.S., reports that “currently, there are 784 known hate groups operating across the country, including neo-Nazis, Klansmen, white nationalists, neo-Confederates, racist skinheads, border vigilantes and others.”

The SPLC, however, erroneously throws Black separatist groups into that mix. This is false, as the reaction of the oppressed to their oppressors is never equal to that of racism and white supremacy.

Nonetheless, “since 2000,” the SPLC states, “the number of hate groups has increased by 30 percent.”

They write that “this surge has been fueled by anger and fear over the nation’s ailing economy, an influx of nonwhite immigrants, and the diminishing white majority, as symbolized by the election of the nation’s first African-American president.”

The SPLC has determined that there is actually a “powerful resurgence of the anti-government Patriot movement” that was behind the Oklahoma City bombing. According to their studies, “the number of Patriot groups, including armed militias, skyrocketed following the election of President Obama in 2008 — rising 813 percent, from 149 groups in 2008 to an all-time high of 1,360 in 2012. The number fell to 874 in 2014.”

Dylan Roof’s horrible racist crime did not occur in a vacuum. A significant portion of the superrich in this country are very fearful of the rising popular movements against low wages, racism, sexism, anti-LGBTQ bigotry and police brutality. They are throwing huge amounts of money behind right-wing politicians and media whose agenda is divide and conquer. Some of it trickles down to the far-right extremists and also feeds their paranoia and hate.
The source of this fear, instability and hatred — capitalism — must be abolished in order to root out the right-wing ilk.

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SNIVELLING LIBERALS

In the aftermath of the charleston massacre, of course there are going to be whiny shitmunching liberals screeching for gun control, without actually talking about controlling the guns in the hands of the killer pigs. There will also be smug kkkanadians talking about how it is "south of the border", and how great it is up here. This article might frighten some of those morons....

“Gun Control” Is Not a Solution to Violent White Supremacy

June 22, 2015 | Revolution Newspaper | revcom.us

When a white supremacist murdered nine people in a historic Black church in Charleston, South Carolina, he reportedly told the victims, “You’ve raped our women, and you are taking over the country ... I have to do what I have to do.” According to press reports, he has told authorities he committed the crime to start a “race war.”

In the face of what is undeniably a racist mass murder in a racist society, Barack Obama’s response to the massacre said: “At some point, we as a country will have to reckon with the fact that this type of mass violence does not happen in other advanced countries. It doesn’t happen in other places with this kind of frequency. And it is in our power to do something about it.”

Only after that did Obama acknowledge: “The fact that this took place in a black church obviously also raises questions about a dark part of our history. This is not the first time that black churches have been attacked.”

A specific defining factor in the history and culture of the United States is that this country is built on genocide and white supremacist violence carried out not only by the official forces of violent repression (the army and police) but by significant sections of armed white people. Above: Two African American men lynched in Marion, Indiana, 1930. (Photo: Library of Congress)

The horrible murders in Charleston are a product of and component of vicious, violent, societal white supremacy that runs from the Confederate flag above the South Carolina State House to the AmeriKKKan flag on the shirts of police who murder Black people from New York to California and everywhere in between.

Yes, the United States is unique among powerful imperialist countries like those in Western Europe, Japan, Australia, or Canada, in the number of guns in people’s hands and the amount of violence associated with that. The question iswhy, what that serves, and what’s the solution?

And then how do calls for “gun control” (in quotes because “gun control” advocates are not in any way calling for controlling all guns!) fit into this picture?

Guns in AmeriKKKa

We live in a society of intense exploitation, alienation, and—correspondingly—an ethos of “might makes right.” That he who has the most and biggest guns gets to assert his interests. And a specific defining factor in the history and culture of the United States is that this country is built on genocide and white supremacist violence carried out not only by the official forces of violent repression (the army and police) but by significant sections of armed white people.

From the gold mines of South Dakota to the farms of Oklahoma, as the army drove Native Americans from their land, armed settlers who occupied that land were formally or informally “deputized” to enforce their “right” to that stolen land with guns. Mexicans were also frequently the targets of lynch mobs in the Southwest, from the mid-1800s until well into the 1900s, to drive Mexican landowners from the land.

The iconic American myth of the “rugged individual” supposedly defending “his” farm, his ranch, his claim, his property from so-called “savages,” is set on a stage of genocidal massacres of Native Americans and theft of land from Mexico.

Communism and Jeffersonian Democracy (RCP Publications, 2008) by Bob Avakian

Bob Avakian takes on the ideals of Jeffersonianism, and convincingly locates even its “loftiest aspirations” in social relations of exploitation and oppression—the social relations out of which those ideals grew, and which they served and continue to serve. In doing so, he draws on a wide range of scholarly research and polemically takes on major contemporary defenders of Jeffersonian democracy. Avakian demonstrates why and how these ideals of democracy co-existed with—and, indeed, arose on the basis of—the enslavement of Black people and the deep embedding of white supremacy into the body politic and ideological psyche of the U.S. But he goes further: not only showing why events turned out that way, but why those ideals themselves could only and can only generate and serve relations of exploitation and the division, and polarization, of people into antagonistic classes. . .into oppressor and oppressed. Moreover, he convincingly points the way to a vision and future that is truly emancipatory—to a vision of freedom far more radical and thoroughgoing than anything imaginable within the constricted horizons of Jeffersonianism. In doing this, Avakian includes a devastating critique of the “free marketplace of ideas,” contrasting it to a genuinely unfettered search for the truth—and he shows what kind of economic and political system would be necessary for that to flourish.

Order here

The deep economic, political, and cultural roots of this mentality in the psyche of “white America”—the “yeoman” mentality, in short—are gone into in the pamphletCommunism and Jeffersonian Democracy, by Bob Avakian.

After the Civil War, the oppression of Black people in slavery-like conditions and the enforcement of Jim Crow laws took the form of official state violence, but also the lynch mob, the Texas posse, and the KKK. Movies like Birth of a Nation glorified lynching and Klan terror as “defending traditional Southern culture and way of life”—which was a tradition and culture ofslavery.

And the history of the United States is a history of wars of aggression around the world, against rival reactionary powers, and against rebellions and revolutions. The murderers are glorified as “heroes,” and the victims demonized with racist venom (as “Japs,” “Chinks,” “Gooks,” or “Sand Niggers”). George Bush II told his generals in Iraq, “Kick ass! If somebody tries to stop the march to democracy, we will seek them out and kill them!”

This “might makes right” gangster, “kick ass,” bullying “logic” and “morality” trickles down and infects this society very broadly. In the United States, all kinds of people resort to violence with guns for all kinds of reasons—and many of those reasons are very bad, including too many of the most oppressed killing each other over nothing.

But this system and its spokespeople legitimize white supremacist, male chauvinist, anti-immigrant, and racist gun violence, both by their official enforcers (like the police and army) and by vigilantes and “lone wolf” racists and reactionaries.

A number of commentators have pointed to the fact that the massacre in Charleston isn’t being treated as a terrorist attack by the media. If the killer was a Muslim, he would have been branded a terrorist. And can anyone deny that had the murderer in Charleston been Black, he would have been branded a “thug” and Black people as a whole would have been blamed and vilified? In either instance, the incident would have been used to ratchet up racist demonization and repression. And imagine if one of the recent victims of racist violence—either at the hands of police like Eric Garner, or at the hands of a racist like the person who killed Trayvon Martin—had exercised a right to armed self-defense? What do you think the authorities, or the National Rifle Association, would have to say about that?

“Gun Control” Is Not the Solution, But It Would Ratchet Up Repression

Do you know anyone else—any person or organization—that has managed to bring forth an actual PLAN for a radically different society, in all its dimensions, and a CONSTITUTION to codify all this? — A different world IS possible —Check out and order online theConstitution for the New Socialist Republic in North America (Draft Proposal).

Not every gun owner is doing something bad with their gun, or planning to. And individual gun ownership and the ability to train in firearm use is actually an important right of the individual against the state, one which is upheld in the Constitution for the New Socialist Republic in North America (Draft Proposal). At the same time, right now, in capitalist-imperialist America, there is an epidemic of reactionary violence committed with guns. But what would be served by passing new laws restricting gun ownership in light of everything we’ve pointed to about the nature of this system?

First off: the police kill hundreds of people every year in the United States, many of them Black or Latino and unarmed. Is anyone advocating disarming the police? The U.S. military inflicts mass death around the world. The U.S. invasion of Iraq alone was responsible for the deaths of over a million people. Are any “gun control” advocates talking about taking the guns (and drones and nukes and poison gas) out of their hands?

And why is it that the powers-that-be, as a whole, either do not want to or do not dare move to disarm these white supremacist militias, border vigilantes, and other armed fascists? For some in the ruling class, they count on these paramilitary fascists to enforce the status quo and to be a violent force in future societal clashes, and to be ready and able to try to crush a serious attempt at a liberating revolution.

As for others in the ruling class, they don’t dare stir up the hornet’s nest that would be set off if they seriously moved to disarm these forces. People should remember a year ago when a fascist named Cliven Bundy organized all kinds of white people to take up guns to “defend his property” against the federal government and totally got away with it. What do you think would happen if Black or Latino people did anything even remotely similar in the inner cities of this country? One thing for sure—the government would not have “stood down”! (For more on the ominous implications of the Cliven Bundy incident, see “Three Outrages in Four Days in AmeriKKKa.”)

The reality is, “gun control” has historically been used and would be used as a tool for ratcheting up repression directed against the oppressed. We are not here advocating anything, but to pose a hypothetical: How do you think stricter “gun control” laws (or even the ones on the books now) would be used in a future situation where there might be legitimate resistance and self-defense against racist attacks either by police or unofficial racist vigilantes? And how would these laws be used in the event of an attempt at a revolution—under conditions that do not exist today but that could emerge?

And get real: Who do you think would be targeted for any “gun control” clampdown? We’ve already seen how so-called “Stand Your Ground” laws that set an atmosphere where a white racist could kill Trayvon Martin in Florida were applied completely differently when a Black woman defended herself and her children—by firing a warning shot into the ceiling of her own apartment―from a man who was threatening them. (See “The Whole Damn System is Guilty, Free Marissa Alexander!”)

New laws that gave the authorities—the State—more of a monopoly of control of guns would notaddress or solve the problem of violently enforced white supremacy. And would not be a good thing. But revolution can solve the problem of white supremacy, along with providing the basis to overcome and end all oppression and in so doing put an end to all antagonistic conflicts among people. That would be a good thing!

FUCKING LOWLIFE SWINE

They fucking lied about it from day one despite the video evidence, they are lying about it now, and they fucking continue to lie about it. Robert Dziekanski did not have to die in the fucking vancouver airport. The very idea that those fucking idiots couldn't find someone who speaks Polish is astounding. Not to mention keeping the guy locked up for fucking hours with no explanation, except to taser him when he got fed up. They fucking killed him, and when his mother asked about her son, they told her to go home. Fucking lowlife swine.

Const. Kwesi Millington, the RCMP officer who fired a Taser the night Robert Dziekanski died at Vancouver International Airport, has been sentenced to 30 months in prison for perjury and colluding with his fellow officers at an inquiry into the death.

That's a longer sentence than Dziekanski's mother said she had hoped for.

"It is some justice finally, after almost eight years," said Zofia Cisowski, who was in tears as the judge read his sentence.

She had wanted Millington to serve at least two years. "I am so happy and I am so nervous … I could jump to the sky."

Millington has been granted bail pending the appeal of his sentence.

Robert Dziekanski died after being stunned multiple times with a Taser in the arrivals lounge of Vancouver International Airport. (Paul Pritchard)

Dziekanski was Tasered by RCMP multiple times at Vancouver airport in 2007, after four officers responded to reports of a man throwing furniture.

All four officers were charged with perjury following the inquiry into Dziekanski's death, for testimony inquiry commissioner Thomas Braidwood called "patently unbelievable."

Millington and former RCMP corporal Monty Robinson were convicted of perjury; the other officers, Const. Bill Bentley and Const. Gerry Rundel, were acquitted.

Lies 'stood in the way' of inquiry, said judge

Const. Kwesi Millington has been sentenced for perjury and colluding with fellow officers for his testimony at an inquiry into Robert Dziekanski's death. (Darryl Dyck/Canadian Press)

B.C. Supreme Court Judge William Ehrcke said the sentence was on the higher end of recommendations, because Millington's lies "stood in the way of getting a true explanation" at the inquiry.

He had earlier said it was "preposterous" for Millington to claim Dziekanski was standing while he Tasered him a second time, when it's clear frombystander video the Polish immigrant was already on the ground.

• Taser video shows RCMP shocked immigrant within seconds of their arrival
• Mountie found guilty of perjury in Robert Dziekanski Taserdeath

Ehrcke considered the Crown's recommendation of a sentence up to 36 months, he said, but opted for 30 in part because of the difficulties a police officer would face in prison.

The judge dismissed the defence's request for a conditional sentence without jail time.

"While I have no doubt the accused is sad about the death, that is not the same as remorseful," said Ehrcke.

Millington released on bail pending appeal

Millington, whose imprisonment was to begin immediately, was quietly shown the door to the holding area, escorted at a distance by the sheriff without handcuffs.

His lawyers are appealing his conviction and are expected to appeal his sentence. Later Monday a different judge granted him bail pending that appeal.

Cisowski, who was aware of the appeal, is hopeful the prison sentence will stand.

"I admire this judge about his decision," she said.

"[Millington] Tasered my son five times. He lied about [it] and covered it up."

With files from Megan Batchelor and Curt Petrovich

YES IT'S TRUE, THE INTERNET MOSTLY SUCKS

It would seem that as soon as someone sets out to do something about the fucking rotten state of affairs in this world, there are millions of fucking morons who love nothing better than to hide behind their computers and knock them down. From the average citizen writing " I'm not racist but....", to these fucking self important shitheads sharing their bullshit analysis about why everyone is wrong. Fuck all of them. If you are right and everyone else is wrong, put your ideas into practice, and let's fucking see what happens. Either that, or continue hiding and throwing your pointless garbage criticisms out there into cyberfuckingspace. Fuck you.

What IS an Actual Revolution?

December 22, 2014 | Revolution Newspaper | revcom.us

An actual revolution is a lot more than a protest. An actual revolution requires that millions of people get involved, in an organized way, in a determined fight to dismantle this state apparatus and system and replace it with a completely different state apparatus and system, a whole different way of organizing society, with completely different objectives and ways of life for the people. Fighting the power today has to help build and develop and organize the fight for the whole thing, for an actual revolution. Otherwise we’ll be protesting the same abuses generations from now!

THIS IS AMERIKKKA

No matter how much the asshole politicians cry their fake ass tears and "condemn" what happened in south kkkarolina, the truth is that this is what that country is all about, and has been since it's founding.

Statement by Carl Dix

Download PDF for printing and getting out everywhere

Outrage in Charleston— This IS America!

June 18, 2015 | Revolution Newspaper | revcom.us

Carl Dix is the co-founder of the Stop Mass Incarceration Network and a representative of the Revolutionary Communist Party, USA

Outrageous! A white supremacist motivated by racist venom enters Emanuel African Methodist Episcopal Church in Charleston, South Carolina, during a Bible study class. He sits down with people there for a while and then starts shooting them, murdering six Black women and three Black men. He calmly reloaded in the course of carrying out these foul murders, telling his victims that he had to do this “because you [meaning Black people] rape our women and are taking over our country"!

Mass murder carried out in a church—a place that is supposed to be a sanctuary in the face of injustice. This brings to mind the bombing of the 16th Street Baptist Church in Birmingham in 1963 which killed four little girls. And the wave of burnings of Black churches in more recent decades.

Mass murder carried out at this church, which has a history of being a place Black people gathered to organize themselves to stand up to the savage oppression this system has enforced on them for centuries. This history goes back to the church's founding in 1816. Among its founders was Denmark Vesey who was hung in 1822, along with 35 other Black people, for planning a slave uprising.

QUESTION: WHY THE FUCK IS THAT GODDAMN SLAVEHOLDERS' RAG STILL FLYING AT ALL ABOVE THE CAPITOL OF SOUTH CAROLINA? And what does the fact that it is have to do with the atrocity carried out there this week?

For answers, go to:

»  Yes, this society was NOT designed to give Justice to Black and Latino people. But why is that so—And what must be done about it?

»  Communism and Jeffersonian Democracy, by Bob Avakian

»  The Oppression of Black People, The Crimes of This System and the Revolution We Need

If you are angry or hurt or agonizing over the atrocity in Charleston, if you burn for and dream of human emancipation and an END to all oppression and oppressive divisions… if you think about revolution and want to learn more… then be with us this weekend!

What kind of society IS this? How long must we put up with it? What can we do to end this madness and emancipate humanity? More

The time for healing is once the disease has been diagnosed and rooted out, not while it is still raging.More

What happened in Charleston is not about gun control or mental illness—it is about racism. And the violent insanity that marks this society flows from the genocidal, slavemaster roots of American capitalism and the predatory gangsterism that enforces U.S. imperialism around the world.More

The blood of the nine people murdered in Charleston is on the hands of the rulers of this country. Whether this guy acted alone or not, he was acting within a climate that has been deliberately whipped up. White supremacy has been ingrained in the fabric of America from its very beginning. This country was founded on theft of land from and genocide inflicted on the native inhabitants and the dragging of millions of Africans to these shores in slave chains. And white supremacy remains at the heart of this society right down to today.

What does it tell you about this country that George Zimmerman could murder Trayvon Martin as he walked home carrying Skittles and iced tea and walk away with no punishment. That cops could choke Eric Garner to death, ignoring his cries of “I can't breathe,” and get off scot free. That a South Carolina cop could feel he could get away with shooting Walter Scott in the back as he ran away. That Black communities are built on toxic areas that poison people. That Black couples with good credit were steered to sub-prime loans that led to them disproportionately losing their homes in the 2007 economic meltdown. That 2+ million people are imprisoned in this country, vastly disproportionately Black and Latino. These and more amount to a genocidal program of suppression and deprivation targeting Black people. And they have contributed to a climate in which it is legitimate to view Black people as criminals and justified to murder them. In these and a thousand other ways a message is delivered that Black life doesn't matter.

All this faces us all with an urgent question: Which side are you on? Are you on the side of the savage oppression and brutality this system enforces on Black people? Or do you stand against these kinds of horrors?

The crocodile tears being shed by those who preside over the brutality and murder this system inflicts on people are worse than useless. It will take revolution, nothing less, to uproot white supremacy and end the oppression of Black people and all the other horrors this system inflicts on humanity. If you want to see these horrors stopped, there is a movement you can get with, a movement for revolution that the Revolutionary Communist Party is building. To get information and to join in dealing with the questions and obstacles this revolution faces, go to the website: www.revcom.us.

Everyone should understand that there is no middle ground in this struggle where people can be neutral while this system grinds away, crushing the bodies and breaking the spirits of those on the bottom of society. If you have an ounce of humanity, you must add your voice to those demanding that horrors like these STOP! Right Now!

FUCK IT

From the most diehard asshole conservative to the whiniest liberal, there is a prevailing consensus of kkkanada being the kinder, gentler imperialism. As we get closer to kkkanada day, you're going to hear more and more assholes talking about this being "the best country there is". This is meaningless. It says nothing. It's better to hear the truth, no matter how uncomfortable it makes you feel.

Canadian genocide condemned

By G. Dunkel posted on June 13, 2015

May 31 march.
Photo: Powless

Beginning in 1820 and continuing until the 1980s in some provinces, Canada had an explicit policy of erasing the culture, languages and religion of Indigenous nations — First Nation, Métis and Inuit — by taking children from their parents and placing them in foster homes or residential schools.

The government seized 150,000 children, of whom at least 6,000 died and thousands suffered physical and sexual abuse. The Catholic Church had a major hand in running these schools. Some leaders of Idle No More, a militant Indigenous rights group in Canada, have called on the Catholic pope to personally apologize for the church’s crimes.

The Truth and Reconciliation Commission, set up by the Conservative-led national government in 2007, released its report of this program June 2. Thousands of people, mainly First Nation and their supporters, as well as contingents of Métis and Inuit, marched from Gatineau, Quebec, across the Ottawa River into Ottawa, the Canadian capital, on May 31. To the demonstrators, the publication of the TRC report officially acknowledged Canada’s policy of “cultural genocide,” which lasted for 160 years.

Melissa Mollen-Dupuis, one of the founders of Idle No More, gave an interview June 7 to the French TV channel TV5, pointing out that Indigenous people had long known about this cultural genocide. They lived it; they felt it and its effects. But the question was: What would be the effect of the TRC report on the broader Canadian public?

Mollen-Dupuis also said there had been “physical” genocide. Canada has had a number of “physical” exterminations — the clearest and most complete being the extinction of the Beothuks in 1829. This occurred in Newfoundland, which at that time was not part of Canada but was part of British North America.

The Beothuks were a First Nation people, related to the Mik’maks of eastern Canada, who developed in Newfoundland after the Norse left L’Anse aux Meadows around 1000 C.E.

They had very antagonistic relations with the European-origin fisher folk who began to settle Newfoundland in the 17th century, with raids going back and forth. The Beothuks generally lost in any physical confrontation due to the superior arms of the Europeans. They were gradually driven off the coast, where they caught fish and seals that were an important part of their diet, into the interior where they starved.

The 2015 book “Unsettling Canada” presents a summary of the conditions Indigenous people face today in Canada: “Along with suffering all of the calamities of life that hit the poor with greater impact, our lives are seven years shorter than the lives of non-Indigenous Canadians. Our unemployment rates are four times higher. The resources to educate our children are only a third of what is spent on non-Indigenous children. Our youth commit suicide at a rate five times higher.” (page 8)

Canada’s economy heavily depends on resource extraction. Indigenous peoples, while only 4.3 percent of all Canadians, are the majority in two territories: Nunuvut and Northwest Territories, which make up most of northern Canada. Indigenous peoples are often the majority in smaller areas in provinces like British Columbia and in territories like the Yukon. These majorities give physical weight to the legal and political demands Indigenous peoples are making, which are well documented in “Unsettling Canada” and on www.idlenomore.ca.

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BRINGING TRUTH

Here are some comrades in Cleveland bringing truth to the people....

The Travels of a “Role of the Police” Poster

June 9, 2015 | Revolution Newspaper | revcom.us

For over 2 years, a poster with pictures of Malissa Williams and Timothy Russell – the two people killed in a hail of 137 police bullets in Cleveland in 2012 – along with a quote from Bob Avakian, the leader of the Revolutionary Communist Party, has been a fixture at protests in Cleveland.

The quote is:

The role of the police is not to serve and protect the people. It is to serve and protect the system that rules over the people. To enforce the relations of exploitation and oppression, the conditions of poverty, misery and degradation into which the system has cast people and is determined to keep people in. The law and order the police are about, with all of their brutality and murder, is the law and the order that enforces all this oppression and madness.

BAsics, from the talks and writings of Bob Avakian (1:24)

This poster has been a feature of almost every protest in Cleveland against police brutality ever since. And beyond those who have carried it and connected with it live and in person, hundreds of thousands of people have seen this poster on MSNBC, on CBS, in photos syndicated  to newspapers around the country by Associated Press, on YouTube channels of different kinds of political trends, on the cover of The Final Call and beyond.

Revolution asked a comrade in Cleveland for the story behind the poster.

Q: Tell us some of the places this poster has been.

A: That sign was made right after the killing happened, been passed around for over 2 years. It has been passed around, and carried all kinds of places. Family members of Malissa Williams had it when they held a press conference speaking out against letting the police who murdered Malissa go free. Activists will call me when a rally or march is going to happen and ask if I am coming because they need that sign. The sign and the quote goes deep into the hearts and minds of the people who have felt the pain and sorrow of the brutality and murder by the police that goes on everyday. This poster with the pictures of Timothy and Malissa, unarmed and Black, along with the quote about the role of the police, reaches people.  I have asked people what they think of the quote. Most say it speaks some truth from their experience and they have said, “Yes, I agree,”  even though many of the same people still think there are good and bad cops and not so much a system behind  the murdering cops. BA’s quote does percolate in people’s thinking.

The poster connects in the areas where people catch the hardest hell but not just that. We took it to a march of religious people – the forces who organized this are not always that excited to see the revolutionary communists. But they insisted it be at the front of the march – they said “Where’s that sign” and they carried it.

Q: What do you think accounts for how broadly this poster, the pictures, and the quote resonates with people? What do people say? Like the ministers you mentioned.

A: The “serve and protect” thing really gets people. Especially when police kill people’s children, like Tamir Rice. One of the people at the ministers' march was talking about how people go to schools and do presentations and pass out materials about how to interact with police to keep from getting killed. Why do our children need training, then, in how to avoid being killed by police when you encounter them if the role of the police is to “serve and protect” the public? The police themselves pass that out or have people pass them out at the meetings they sponsor. At these meetings, we speak to the role of the police and use the quote BAsics 1:24 to hit back at the truth of their role and hundreds dig the point BA is making. 

Q: Finally, how has the sign remained intact for over a year?

A: It is mounted on ¾”  foam board and laminated with plastic wrap.

Protesters outside the courthouse after the Michael Brelo verdict in Cleveland, May 23. (AP photo/Tony Dejak) 

 

FALLING SHORT

I have a tremendous amount of respect for Cornel West , public intellectual and principled religious man that he is, but currently I am reading his book "Democracy Matters", and certain things in it I have to completely disagree with. 
  There are several occasions in the book in which he talks about "america's deep democratic tradition", while acknowledging slavery and jim crow . Now, I understand that there were always people fighting against slavery and jim crow laws, but the fact remains that the very foundation of the country, and empire for that matter, rests on the bones of the genocide of the Native people of this continent, and the labour of the slaves. This is amerikkka's real tradition, without which it would not exist.


Another point he mentions on more than one occasion, perhaps in an effort to give "equal time" to both sides, is the "horrifying suicide bombings in israel killing civilians", and comparing that to the u.s. sponsored israeli state terror against the Palestinian population. Again, he does talk about the 3 billion dollars a year that the u.s. government gives to the state of israel, but to equate the suicide bombers with the fighter jets raining death upon children living in refugee camps is ludicrous. But I suppose it is the same as saying that children throwing rocks is the equivalent of men shooting at them from tanks. Since the year 2000, 1,196 israeli citizens had been killed, vs. 9,136 Palestinians. Stats take from here . And no, I don't believe the rhetoric about the israeli army trying to avoid civilian casualties. Complete and utter bullshit. 
   Despite all of these criticisms, I will finish the book , and continue to listen to Mr. Cornel West.  He is worthy of our respect. And watch this video . It is well worth your time. 

YOUR HEROES

And these are the assholes who are in charge of protecting your "freedom"......

Chief: Miami Beach police sent hundreds of racist, pornographic emails

Miami-Dade State Attorney Katherine Fernandez Rundle (L) listens as Miami Beach Police Chief Daniel Oates speaks during a news conference to announce that sixteen Miami Beach Police officers exchanged numerous racist and pornographic emails on May 14, 2015 in Miami, Florida.  JOE RAEDLE, GETTY IMAGES

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Last Updated May 15, 2015 1:01 PM EDT

MIAMI -- A handful of Miami Beach police officers sent hundreds of racially offensive and pornographic emails, including about President Barack Obama, and possibly jeopardized dozens of criminal cases in which they are witnesses, the department's chief said.

An internal investigation revealed that two of the 16 officers were high-ranking within the Miami Beach Police Department and were the main instigators, Chief Daniel Oates told reporters Thursday. One has retired, and the other was fired Thursday.

Oates identified them as Former Major Angel Vazquez and Former Captain Alex Carulo, CBS Miami reports.

"They were the primary purveyors of pornography and high volume of it. I was shocked and angry," Oates told the assembled press.

Vazquez has since retired, but could face a potential criminal charge for his alleged role in circulating an autopsy photograph of Raymond Herisse who was shot by police in 2011 during Memorial Day, Oates said.

Oates said the probe revealed about 230 emails demeaning to African-Americans and women or pornographic in nature. Many were depictions of crude racial jokes involving Obama or black celebrities such as golfer Tiger Woods. One shows a woman with a black eye and the caption, "Domestic violence. Because sometimes, you have to tell her more than once."

One of the racially offensive emails depicted a board game called "Black Monopoly" in which every square says "go to jail."

Miami-Dade State Attorney Katherine Fernandez Rundle said about 540 cases in which the officers were witnesses are being reviewed to determine if they are tainted racially. Some charges could be dropped as a result, or prisoners could be freed from jail.

"These activities are a breach of trust. They are disgusting," Rundle said.

Rundle added that criminal charges are possible if any minors are depicted in the pornographic images. One officer also emailed an autopsy photo of a man fatally shot by police in 2011, possibly in violation of Florida law.

Oates said the emails came to light in an unrelated 2013 internal affairs probe. Most of the emails spanned the years 2010 to mid-2012, and many of the officers involved apparently just received the offensive ones rather than forwarding them.

Oates, who took over the department last year, said the investigation shows these types of offensive actions and attitudes are no longer tolerated.

"I can't tell you how angry we are," Oates said. "We want to send a message to our officers and our employees that this kind of behavior is over."

The case comes in the wake of another scandal in the San Francisco Police Department involving officers exchanging racist and homophobic text messages.

It also comes amid a national debate about issues of race and law enforcement, including several instances of unarmed black men killed by police.

© 2015 CBS Interactive Inc. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. The Associated Press contributed to this report.

THIS FUCKED UP WORLD

Two nights ago I watched the documentary Hot Girls Wanted , and even though I feel jaded at times, it opened my eyes to shit I wasn't completely aware of. All of the coercion and horribly abusive shit that goes on in pornography is utterly loathesome. I know that a lot of people will just say that it's a matter of "personal choice", but I really doubt that most of these young girls who get involved in the business really know what's going to happen, and also the fact that so many people get turned on by scenes involving forced sexual acts is fucking worthy of burning everything down. Everything. I am convinced now more than ever of the need for Revolution. Watch this clip of Bob Avakian . This is the truth about this fucked up society.

CHILD KILLERS

No, I'm not talking about u.s. and western troops invading other lands to kill civilians and steal, although that applies too. I'm talking about the way cleveland pigs killed twelve year old Tamir Rice, and the response to that. Fuck the pigs.

Ongoing and Growing Outrage and Protest in Cleveland

Updated June 1, 2015 | Revolution Newspaper | revcom.us

Police attack protesters Saturday, May 23 outside Quicken Loans Arena in Cleveland after a judge let the only cop charged in the police murder of Timothy Russell and Malissa Williams go free. Photo: special to revcom.us.

From the moment Michael Brelo, a Cleveland cop, was pronounced not guilty on May 23 there have been outbreaks of protest in Cleveland. Brelo was one of about 100 Cleveland area cops who, on November 29, 2012, chased and fired 137 shots into a car murdering two unarmed Black people—Timothy Russell and Malissa Williams (See “137 Shots—The Whole Damned System Is Guilty! Cleveland Judge Lets Cop Involved in Murder of Timothy Russell and Malissa Williams Walk!” a statement by Carl Dix).

Saturday…

Protesting outside the NBA playoffs, Cleveland, May 24, 2015

Immediately after the verdict was announced, there were angry confrontations between protesters and police at the courthouse, and several protesters were arrested. Also, shortly after the verdict, protesters blocked traffic on a major freeway.

Two hundred people gathered at the recreation center where 12-year-old Tamir Rice was murdered by police six months ago speaking outrage and chanting “No justice, no peace.”

In the evening, protesters marching in Cleveland were repeatedly attacked by police in riot gear in Cleveland’s upscale district near the baseball stadium – Quicken Loans Arena (see video atCleveland.com).

There were over 70 arrests throughout the first day of protests. Most of those arrested have been arraigned, and many pled not guilty.

Sunday 5/24…

On Sunday, May 24, over a dozen protesters marched in front of the playoff game between the Cleveland Cavaliers and the Atlanta Hawks chanting “Indict, convict, send the killer cops to jail/The whole damn system is guilty as hell.”  Hundreds of people going to the game took notice, many giving thumbs up or fists in the air, and a few joined the protest. 

Then people blocked the intersection in front of the arena for 2 hours. A couple young Black women who joined the action and said, “We been looking for the protest, this verdict is so wrong, they think they can kill Black people and get away with it.”   

Monday 5/25…

May 25, 2015: As many as 200 people marched through housing projects and past schools in Cleveland, blocking streets, demanding justice. Image from video used with permission from Ed Sweeney.

On Monday, May 25, a couple dozen people gathered at a rally called by Cleveland Revolution Books at the Zelma George Rec Center. Four hours later, marching through housing projects, chanting, getting out Carl Dix’ statement and the statement from the Cleveland Branch of the Revolutionary Communist Party, the crowd grew to two hundred. People came out of their houses, youth joined on bikes in an angry, boisterous expression of outrage. People chanted “Fists up, fight back!” “Drop the charges,” and “Indict, convict, send the killer cops to jail, the whole damn system is guilty as hell!” and “137 shots, how you justify that?!”

Getting out the Statement by Carl Dix, Cleveland, May 25, 2015.

An organizer from Revolution Books told Revolutionthat many people had been waiting for a chance to make a statement, and were challenged to get into the Stop Mass Incarceration Network and get with what Bob Avakian has brought forward.

Housing Project police harassed people throughout the afternoon, claiming they were concerned with the “safety” of the young people who joined – to which people responded, “What about Tamir Rice?” People refused to back down, blocking streets with their bikes.

The organizer from Revolution Books reported that people were raising a need to reach out and draw in people beyond the projects, and that is a challenge to solve. This evening, a protest has been called by religious forces. The struggle continues! 

Marching through Cleveland, 5/25, demanding no charges against arrested protesters and justice for Timothy Russell and Malissa Williams.  Vine used with permission @edscle.

Tuesday, May 26…

Hundreds of religious people rally at Cleveland City Hall, May 26. (Photo: Twitter @ScottTaylor19)

Over 500 people of different nationalities from 40 church congregations in the Cleveland area marched through downtown to City Hall in protest of the not-guilty verdict. People loudly chanted, “We can't wait," calling out the injustices in the prison system and the racism among police. The Greater Cleveland Congregations, an interfaith advocacy group, delivered a letter to the prosecutor urging police reforms. A woman in the march said, “The march was important because we have to keep confronting the authorities. They don’t want to do anything, and we have to keep bothering them. And the diversity of people and religions was good.”

Weekend of May 29 - 31

Cleveland: Saturday, May 30, 2015.

On Friday, May 29, 15 people rallied in a poor area of Cleveland including several of the young people arrested on Saturday, May 25, when the not guilty verdict on cop Brelo came down. It was lively, with posters, chants, and lots of exchanges with people going by. People got out the Stolen Lives posters, revolution kits, and Revolution papers to cars and people coming from their apartments, and raised almost $50 for materials. The crew then went to where Al Sharpton was speaking to continue to spread the word and distribute the Carl Dix statement and the local RCP statement.

The next day there was a small march through a busy area of the Black community. From the minute people went into the street, horns blew, fists went up, and people grabbed the Stolen Lives posters and gave money. People disrupted traffic and cars were backed up, which only drew more attention to the call to STOP POLICE MURDER, as people saw the posters and heard the loud chants, like “Indict, Convict, Send the Killer Cops to Jail. The whole damn system is guilty as hell!” Hearing and seeing the big Stolen Lives posters, a shoe repair shop owner called people over to get posters to put up in his window.

Sunday May 31

Some 40 people, mostly Black, marched through East Cleveland, an extremely poor Black community, in rain and cold. The chant, "Indict, convict send the killer to jail/The whole damn system is guilty!" rang out loud and clear. As we came to the place where Malissa and Timothy were legally lynched, balloons were released to remember and honor them. The march was organized by Cleveland Renaissance, a movement of young people and by "my loud radio" a network radio and was joined by the movement for revolution. We blocked an intersection and marched to where Malissa Williams and Timothy Russell, unarmed and Black, were murdered with 137 shots by 13 pigs. As the protest broke up, a young Black woman said, " I felt I had to be here. We need answers to the current system, which will not bring justice. We can't let this die down."

The struggle continues!

Follow developments at revcom.us.