KPFT Notes

For those who love innovative radio and Pacifica, an article by Marc Fisher in the Dec. 4 edition of The New Yorker is must reading. Some may disagree with elements of Fisher’s analysis in the article, titled “Voice of the Cabal,” but his tribute to Bob Fass is nevertheless both inspiring and poignant. Unfortunately, the article is apparently not yet available online. But I was so struck by the portrait it paints — and so saddened by how far Pacifica has strayed from its roots — that I feel compelled to share some personal thoughts and excerpts.

Several months back I was privileged to be on Bob’s late-night WBAI show, and prior to that, shortly after becoming Pacifica’s Executive Director, I met Bob while visiting New York. I knew then that he was the veritable “father” of free-form radio, and had also heard rumors about the stacks of tapes he has held onto since launching the show back in 1962. Talk about a valuable and vulnerable treasure. As the article describes it:

“The tapes form teetering piles in the living room, down the halls, and into the bedrooms — boxes and boxes of them, thousands of hours of recordings featuring Bob Dylan and Abbie Hoffman, Allen Ginsberg and Kinky Friedman…”

It’s certainly an archive worth saving! But what are we doing about it? Nothing so far, at least from what I can tell.

*The article is engaging and sad, and unfortunately suggests to me just how little I’ve accomplished so far. That such an important part of Pacifica’s past — and present, for Fass’s “Radio Unnameable” is still aired weekly at midnight — has been so marginalized and largely forgotten is almost a crime. And why? Of course, this is where the story becomes difficult, for there is more than one version. * For example, Fisher writes:

“While much of the station’s white, liberal audience drifted away, managers and program hosts went at one another with lawsuits, personnel purges, and fights over race, ideology, and how to appeal to the city’s growing black, Latino, and Asian populations. Fass, the station’s last link to its role as a narrator and an organizer of New York’s nineteen-sixties protest movement, has been relegated to one night a week, Thursday.”

That’s one take. WBAI’s Program Director Bernard White, who has been both an ally and a critic of Fass over the years, sees it differently. Discussing Fass’s return to the station in 1982 after a five year exile –Fisher says the conflict grew from a 1977 “unilateral” management plan to dramatically change programming at the station — Bernard told Fisher:

“When he (Fass) came back, everyone had heard of these great programs, about his relationship with Bob Dylan and Allen Ginsberg…People were waiting for his greatness to manifest itself. And there were some magic moments, but, mostly, what was once magic became nostalgia. The old sixties crowd says the station is less intelligent now. And it is less dynamic, because it reflects the times we are in. There’s no real challenge to the government now, and the station reflects that.”

The article also briefly recounts more recent times, when, as Fisher puts it, “Pacifica took over WBAI, appointed a new general manager, changed the locks on the station’s door, placed guards outside the studios, fired White, and banned several employees and volunteers from the airwaves. The ‘Christmas coup’ sparked months of protests, lawsuits, and on-air battles.” Fisher notes that Fass sided with White during this time, and more than that, “made his show a forum for the exiled program director,” a fact Bernard readily acknowledges.

But since then there has been a falling out. Bernard explained it this way, according to the article:

“Bob’s actions since the coup have been in line with the aspirations of the racist elements that want to take the station back….Bob’s bitter because he’s seen his colleagues move on and make money and be secure.”

Speaking personally, I don’t agree with this characterization, particularly with the claim that there are “racist elements” at the station’s gates.

This is the type of rhetoric I had hoped to see the station and the network move beyond. If there were racists attempting to make inroads at Pacifica, I would be among the first to condemn them. There is racial division, of course, and institutional racism continues to be a serious problem — for this organization and virtually all others in the US. But Bob Fass isn’t the problem, and is not “in line” with any so-called “racist elements.” In my view, the real problem is the need of some to have their own truth be the main or only truth available on the air.

Fisher puts it this way:

“What listeners hear is a cacaphony of righteous voices, often turned inward against others at the station. Ibrahim Gonzalez, whose show follows Fass’s, said, ‘It became like the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, complete with endless debates over the right of return, over who held the rights to a time slot.’”

These may be controversial views, but that is precisely the question on the table — the right to be controversial. In Los Angeles recently, I was talking to the Local Station Board and noted that I felt that some aspects of the Pacifica mission may no longer be “that relevant.” My point was that it’s important, from time to time, to revisit the basic purposes of an organization — re-affirming those that remain appropriate, identifying new ones, and acknowledging that some may need to be revised. Apparently, some felt that my use of the word “relevant” was inappropriate — that I was perhaps even “trashing” the mission. Not at all. But the fact that there was such a focus on a single word points to a fundamental problem. Should an organization that says it is devoted to free speech — Pacifica has, after all, called itself “Free Speech Radio” at times — spend its time questioning, criticizing or sometimes even banning people for alleged infractions of “appropriate speech?”

On the issue of just how free speech ought to be at Pacifica, the mission seems silent. It talks about providing outlets for creative skills, contributing to a “lasting understanding between nations and between the individuals of all nations, races, creeds and colors,” promoting the full distribution of public information, and “the public presentation of accurate, objective, comprehensive news.” But what about the idea that the best way to promote understanding is to let the broadest possible dialogue occur? The key is not “objective, comprehensive news;” that’s part of a myth — perpetuated by corporate media — that long ago outlined its usefulness. What we need is more truly open and spirited debate.

When I first came on board, some people argued that Pacifica should be a vehicle or even a “tool” of certain movements. Which movements depends on who is talking. But that type of thinking has led to a struggle for ideological hegemony that, in my view, is currently keeping Pacifica from achieving a more noble and important purpose — creating connections between people in disparate communities.

Pacifica was founded by non-violent activists, among others, and it remains dedicated, I think, to the notion that violence does not solve problems. But opposition to violence doesn’t imply the complete rejection of conflict. Sometimes airing conflicting views is essential to clarify group values.

In the search for harmony, peace should not be confused with liberation. Peace can be imposed through repression; in many organizations and some societies it is implemented through forms of “group-think.” What I hope Pacifica will support going forward is full and free expression, since liberation is possible only when dissent and disagreement aren’t just tolerated but also encouraged.

*It has been almost a year since I came to this remarkable, tumultuous, troubled and yet also inspiring organization. My hope has been to stimulate a process of reconciliation and reconstruction. Given the evidence at hand, I’m not too impressed with my progress to date. Too many people still focus on keeping “enemies” out of stations or off the air, others accuse those on the “inside” of plots to rig elections, or to control programming for political purposes or financial gain. What I’ve described as a deficit of trust remains almost as large as it was when I arrived.

And this deficit, combined with an organizational structure created to prevent another “coup,” is instead preventing natural evolution, the emergence of new voices, and a full appreciation of the contributions of people like Bob Fass. * Writing something like this may lead to a further parsing of my words. When I was interviewed for my job, some said it was inappropriate to use the term “identity politics.” More recently, I was warned about the word “quota.” In my discussion of Pacifica’s mission, the word “relevant” is being cited. I hope, in considering these modest thoughts, readers will focus less on the individual words and more on the basic message I am trying to convey.

That message? Simply that people like Bob Fass, who come along so rarely, should be cherished and honored — even when they say things considered “incorrect” from time to time. When they are gone, after all, they are not apt to be replaced.

And this: Taking risks — and sometimes making mistakes — is one of the things that makes radio and other forms of communication exciting and creative. We need more, not less, such risk takers and system changers, people who can help to liberate society from repressive structures — including repressive structures of thought.

It remains to be seen whether Pacifica can rise to the challenges ahead. As Fisher sees it:

“If anyone is creating new communities through radio, it’s happening in broadcasts targeted at ethnic minorities, on podcasts and on music blogs on the Internet — all driven by people who, like Fass, feel compelled to reach out beyond their circle of friends in order to share their music and politics.”

If you want to hear Fisher talk about Fass and listen to clips from his show, “Radio Unnameable,” go to: http://www.newyorker.com/online/content/articles/061204on_onlineonly01?061204on_onlineonly01

For more on Fass’s contribution to Pacifica and community radio, visit http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bob_Fass

– Greg Guma, 12/2/06

The Raza Press Association is accepting nominations for its annual 2006 GUERRILLERO/A DE LA PLUMA AWARD. The award is given to individuals who have done exemplary work and effort in building a press/media that works for the liberation of La Raza. We are talking about Raza who have written books and/or articles that inform and defend our communities; or individuals who have been key to the publication of newspapers and newsletters whose objective is to raise the consciousness of the people and expose the oppressive and inhumane nature of capitalism and imperialism.

To nominate someone or to personally petition to be considered for this truly progressive and liberation recognition, you must send to the RPA a 150-word (or less) statement describing why the accomplishments of the individual you are recommending merit the 2006 GUERRILLERO/A DE LA PLUMA AWARD.

You must send your nomination statement to info@razapressassociation.org by January 5, 2007.

The winner of this year¹s award will be announced by January 10, 2007. She or he, will then be asked to be present at the first RPA meeting of the year to be held on January 20, 2007, in San Diego, Califas. RPA will pay for the transportation and hotel expenses of the winner while he/she is in San Diego.

Submit your nomination now.

Venceremos
RPA Editorial Board

On December 28, 2006, the Pacifica National Board adopted without objection a motion directing that the following resolution be read over the 5 Pacifica stations’ airwaves and encouraging each station, affiliate stations and Democracy Now! to cover national hearings on the state of America’s law enforcement agencies’ use of force and deadly force against the Black, Latino and other communities of color and give this issue the priority coverage that it needs and deserves. Station and national staff are advised to see that this resolution is implemented as soon as possible, and that its contents are distributed throughout the Pacifica community.

Greg Guma
Executive Director

PNB RESOLUTION ON POLICE BRUTALITY AND ABUSE OF AUTHORITY

Be it resolved that:

The Pacifica National Board (PNB) condemns the unwarranted murder of Sean Bell, an innocent and unarmed African American male and the attempted murders of his friends, Joseph Guzman and Trent Benefield, who were also Black and unarmed, in a barrage of 50 bullets fired by 5 New York City Police Officers;

The PNB also condemns the police killing of Kathryn Johnston, a 92 year old African American grandmother who was killed by the police in Atlanta in the same week as Sean Bell, in a botched drug raid, as well as the killings and harassment of all those who have been victimized by police brutality.

Be it further resolved that the Pacifica National Board supports the demand by many organizations and community activists nationwide for an end to police brutality. We join Congressmembers Cynthia McKinney and John Conyers, the incoming House Judiciary Committee Chair, in their demand for Congress to hold national hearings on the state of America’s law enforcement agencies’ use of force and deadly force against the Black, Latino and other communities of color.

Former President Gerald Ford died last night at the age of 93. We begin our coverage of Ford’s time in office with a look at his support for the Indonesian invasion of East Timor that killed one-third of the Timorese population. We’re joined by Brad Simpson of the National Security Archives and journalist Alan Nairn. [rush transcript included]

AMY GOODMAN: An excerpt of the documentary Massacre: The Story of East Timor which I produced with journalist Alan Nairn who’ll be joining us in a minute. But first to talk more about President Ford’s legacy and his role in East Timor, we are joined by Brad Simpson. Brad Simpson works for the National Security Archives and is a Professor at the University of Maryland. Brad, welcome to Democracy Now!.

BRAD SIMPSON: Thank you, very much, for having me on.

AMY GOODMAN: Brad, you recently got documents declassified about President Ford and his role in 1975, in meeting with the long reigning dictator of Indonesia, Suharto. Can you explain what you learned?

BRAD SIMPSON: Yes. Gerald Ford actually met twice with Suharto, first in July of 1975 when Suharto came to the United States. And later in December of 1975, of course, on the eve of his invasion of East Timor. And we now know that for more than a year Indonesia had been planning its armed takeover of East Timor, and the United States had of course been aware of Indonesian military plans. In July of 1975, the National Security Council first informed Henry Kissinger and Gerald Ford of Indonesia’s plans to take over East Timor by force. And Suharto of course raised this with Gerald Ford in July when he met with Gerald Ford at Camp David on a trip to the United States. And then in December of 1975 on a trip through Southeast Asia, Gerald Ford met again with Suharto on the eve of the invasion, more than two weeks after the National Security Council, CIA, other intelligence agencies had concluded that an Indonesian invasion was eminent. And that the only thing delaying the invasion was the fear that US disapproval might lead to a cut-off of weapons and military supplies to the regime.

AMY GOODMAN: How knowledgeable was President Ford at the time of the situation?

BRAD SIMPSON: Well, Ford was very much aware. He was receiving hourly briefings, as was Henry Kissinger, as his plane lifted off from Indonesia, as the invasion indeed commenced. And immediately afterwards Gerald Ford flew to Pearl Harbor, Hawaii, or to Guam-excuse me, where he gave a speech saying that never again should the United States allow another nation to strike in the middle of the night, to attack another defenseless nation. This was on Pearl Harbor Day, of course. Realizing full well that another day of infamy was unfolding in Dili, East Timor. As thousands of Indonesian paratroopers, trained by the United States, using US supplied weapons, indeed jumping from United States supplied airplanes, were descending upon the capital city of Dili and massacring literally thousands of people in the hours and days after December 7, 1975.

AMY GOODMAN: Brad, how difficult was it to get this declassified? The memos that you got? And how long were these memos about Ford and Kissinger’s meeting with the long reigning Suharto? How long were they kept classified?

BRAD SIMPSON: Well, they are kept classified until the fall of 2002. We now know, actually, that a Congressman from Minnesota, Donald Fraser, had actually attempted to declassify the memo, the so-called Smoking Gun Memo, the transcript of General Suharto’s conversation with Gerald Ford, in December of 1975. Congressman Fraser actually tried to declassify this in document in 1978 during the Suharto adm–or during the Carter years and Carter’s National Security Adviser, Zbigniew Brzezinski, realizing full well the explosive nature of this cable would show that the United States had been an accomplice in an international act of aggression, recommended that the State Department refuse to declassify the memo, a mere three years after the invasion.

And it took another 25 years after this episode before the cables were finally declassified and of course much more has come out. And I think it’s incontrovertible that the United States played the crucial role in enabling the Indonesian invasion of East Timor. And I think it’s wrong to say that Gerald Ford was completely unconcerned with the aftermath of the invasion. We now know that just a few days after the invasion Gerald Ford sent a telegram to the State Department asking that an emergency diplomatic cable be sent to General Suharto, in response to his recent visit. And inside the cable, which was sent by diplomatic pouch from the US Embassy, was a set of golf balls from Gerald Ford.

AMY GOODMAN: As we wrap up, the–you have a large body of declassified documents surrounding Indonesia and East Timor, of which this is a part, at the National Security Archive. If people want to look, where do they go online, Brad Simpson?

BRAD SIMPSON: They can go to www.nsarchive.org. And there is a link to the Indonesia and East Timor document case and project on that website.

AMY GOODMAN: Brad Simpson, I want to thank you for being with us. Of the National Security Archive and Professor of History at the University of Maryland, College Park.

-break-

AMY GOODMAN: : To talk more about President Ford’s legacy and his role in Indonesia and East Timor, joined by colleague and Independent Journalist Allen Nairn, who Co-produced the Documentary Massacre: The Story Of East Timor. Alan, welcome to Democracy Now!

ALLAN NAIRN: : Thanks.

AMY GOODMAN: : We just talked to Professor Brad Simpson who got the document declassified on the National Security Archive website, of President Ford and Secretary of State Henry Kissinger’s role in giving the green light for the invasion of Timor, December 7, 1975. Can you talk about your interview with President Ford, and the significance of the information that has come out since?

ALLAN NAIRN: : Well, I interviewed Ford by phone, and beforehand had told his assistant that I wanted to discuss his meeting with General Suharto, the Indonesian Dictator, on December 5th. So coming into the interview Ford knew the topic. And when I asked Ford whether he did in fact authorize the invasion of East Timor, he said, “Frankly, I don’t recall.” He didn’t remember. And I believed him.

What Ford said was that there were many topics on the agenda that day with Suharto. Timor was not very high on the agenda. It was one of the lesser topics, and he just couldn’t remember whether he had authorized this invasion, which ended up killing 1/3 of the Timorese population. And it’s kind of an illustration of the fact that when, like the United States, you’re a global power with regimes everywhere dependant on your weapons, you can start wars, authorize wars, take actions that result in mass deaths in a fairly casual way.

In this case, the US didn’t have a great interest in East Timor. All the evidence suggests that they didn’t particularly care one way or the other whether Timor became independent. But as a favor to Suharto, who was close to Washington, who was their prot g e, they decided to let him go ahead with the invasion. So, for just a marginal, fleeting gain – or, out of doing a favor for a buddy — they ended up causing a mass murder that proportionally was the most intensive killing since the Nazis, a third of the population killed.

AMY GOODMAN: : Now documents, Allan Nairn that you did get declassified were a memo that involved Henry Kissinger, again, it was Kissinger and Ford that gave the go ahead for the invasion when they visited Suharto, the long-reigning dictator. And that was information they were getting as they flew out of Indonesia through to Guam and Pearl Harbor, as Brad Simpson described. But what about those documents and Kissinger’s reaction?

ALLAN NAIRN: : Well, Kissinger, and Ford, they, one of the points they made to Suharto, was that you have to try to get this invasion over with quickly. And Kissinger when he– they wanted them to go in intensively, presumably kill as many Timorese as they could quickly. So that it wouldn’t get international attention, and also, apparently they were worried that it could get attention in Congress. Because Ford and Kissinger knew that by authorizing this invasion, they were technically violating US law. Because the US weapons laws at the time stated US weapons given to foreign clients could not be used for purposes of aggression. And this was in the judgment of the State Department’s own legal analysts, this looked like it would be an act of aggression if Indonesia were to invade East Timor, and that could, technically, if Congress got wind of it and started to pay attention to it, be grounds for stopping, cutting off US weapons supply to Indonesia.

That would have been devastating for the invasion of Timor because about 90% of the Indonesian weapons were coming from the US and they needed spare parts, they needed ammunition, they needed a re-supply. And it also would have been dangerous for the regime of Suharto which was based on repression within Indonesia and needed those weapons to keep their own population down. So Kissinger, in his internal discussions within the state department, was pressing his people to make sure that all information about Timor be kept under wraps. They didn’t want the US Congress paying too much attention to it. As it turned out, I think Kissinger was giving Congress a little too much credit because there was not much evidence at the time that apart from a few members like then-Congressman Tom Harkin, that there was much interest in probing what the US was doing. But Kissinger knew this was an illegal operation so he was trying to keep it quiet.

AMY GOODMAN: : And the information about Suharto’s role in general, in Indonesia at the time, as you mentioned both the invasion of East Timor, but Suharto–what happened, how he came to power? The man that eventually Ford and Kissinger would meet with in the capital of Indonesia, Jakarta?

ALLAN NAIRN: : Well, Suharto came to power on the back of essentially a military coup which overthrew Sukarno who was the founding President of Indonesia. And from the period of 1965 to 67, when General Suharto was consolidating his power, his army and groups working with the army carried out a mass slaughter of Indonesian civilians. It’s not clear exactly how many were killed, but anywhere from 400,000 to perhaps more than a million Indonesians were massacred as the Suharto regime gained power. And they did this, the military did this with US weaponry. And in fact, the US CIA station even gave a list of 5,000 names of people who they had identified as communists and potential opponents of the army, and they turned this list over to Suharto and his military intelligence people and many of those people were subsequently assassinated.

KBUT, Community Radio for the Gunnison Valley, is seeking a full time Program & Operations Director.  This person is responsible for the on air programming of the station, including program selection and scheduling, equipment performance, FCC compliance, and the station broadcasting and webcasting at all times.  The Program Director is also involved with membership drives, fundraising events, production work, community outreach and office operations.  Must have strong leadership, organizational, writing and technical/computer skills.  Salary range $26,000 to $31,000 with health insurance.  Resumes must be received by January 19, 2007.  For more information, contact Kim Carroll Bosler at 349-5225 ext. 17 or kim@kbut.org.

KBUT-FM seeks a full-time general manager to oversee the operations and activities of KBUT, a nonprofit volunteer-based community radio station. The GM hires and supervises all station personnel, develops the budget & oversees finances, maintains licensing, supervises all fundraising and assists with strategic planning. Strong management, communication, financial and computer skills are necessary. Public radio and/or nonprofit experience a plus. Salary range is $36,000 – $41,000 with health insurance. For a detailed job description or more information contact Graham Ullrich, Board President, at gmsearch@flyingcracker.com. Applicants must submit a cover letter, resume and three references by 1/31/07. Send applications to KBUT, PO Box 308, Crested Butte, CO 81224 or gmsearch@flyingcracker.com.

Pacifica Radio offers ongoing coverage of Free Press’ National Conference for Media Reform in Memphis, Tennessee, the largest gathering of activists, media makers, educators, journalists, policymakers and concerned citizens who are assessing the state of our media and mobilizing for better media. The National Conference for Media Reform features PBS journalist Bill Moyers; Rev. Jesse Jackson, founder of the Rainbow/PUSH Coalition; Academy Award-winning actresses Geena Davis and Jane Fonda; veteran television personality Phil Donahue; media critic Robert McChesney, White House journalist Helen Thomas, author and media personality Laura Flanders, Janine Jackson of Fairness and Accuracy in Reporting; and FCC Commissioners Michael Copps and Jonathan Adelstein, among others. In addition, some of Pacifica Radio’s brightest stars, including Amy Goodman and Juan Gonzalez, hosts of Democracy Now!; Davey D of KPFA’s Hard Knock Radio; Deepa Fernandez of WBAI’s Wake Up Call; and others will participate at the conference.

Pacifica Radio’s coverage will include the live keynote events, interviews with the wide variety of media makers and media activists gathering at the conference, and recordings from the conference workshops. Pacifica will also present a regularly updated Internet component to its coverage via www.pacifica.org. Please tune in to your station for broadcast details.

On January 12: 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. Eastern/10-Noon Central/8-10 a.m. Pacific, WBAI, WPFW, KPFT and KPFK will broadcast live the opening plenary from the National Conference for Media Reform with Bill Moyers.

On January 13: 8-10:30 p.m., KPFT will broadcast live the evening plenary from the National Conference for Media Reform with Geena Davis, Rev. Lennox Yearwood, Ben Bagdikian and others. KPFK and other Pacifica stations are expected to air this broadcast Sunday morning.

KPFA and KPFT are expected to air daily wrapup programs from the National Conference for Media Reform, each evening of the conference. Sunday’s wrpaup is expected to feature remarks from Jane Fonda and Van Jones at the closing plenary.

Mitch Jesserich of Free Speech Radio News hosts the program. Broadcasts will be executive produced by Ernesto Aguilar, program director at KPFT.

Free Press (www.freepress.net) is a national, nonpartisan organization working to reform the media. Through education, organizing and advocacy, we promote diverse and independent media ownership, strong public media, and universal access to communications.

Pacifica Radio is the United States’ oldest listener-sponsored radio network, with Pacifica stations in five major markets and over 100 station affiliates. More information is available online at www.pacifica.org.

I can write very little that others haven’t written already about the passing of James Brown.

I was up at the time the news was announced and, like you, was stunned. In addition to being a pioneering artist, social commentator and performer, James Brown transformed radio as we know it – from being not merely just a delivery of music, but something that transformed and influenced popular culture across class and race for generations. While others might be remembered as bigger stars, no one will be able to say they were nearly as influential to pop music. James Brown will be missed, truly.

Democracy Now! on James Brown

WFMU’s 2001 Christmas tribute to JB

NYT on JB [reg. req.]

Greetings All:

I know this is a difficult time of year for sending a request for your dollars. But Boots Riley and other members of The Coup had a terrible accident and barely escaped with their lives; all were injured. Boots has been an active part of the liberation struggle for many years, setting a wonderful example of positive rap and revolutionary action. I worked with him ten years ago when he was leading the Young Comrades who spearheaded the big celebration of geronimo ji Jaga’s release from prison after 27 years. He’s a dedicated, talented brother of great value to our Movement, and I’m sure his comrades share his commitment. The coup lost all their equipment and much more. Please read this and respond as best you can. If you can’t send a dollar, then send them your love and best wishes for healing and recovery.

Thank you very much.

From Boots Riley:

So, we got on the bus after doing a show at The House of Blues San Diego as part of The Coup/Mr. Lif tour. As the bus took off, I thought that I would go lay in my bunk, listen to my Ipod, and write. But then Zhara, Mr. Lif’s friend and the tour’s merchandise seller, announced that she had “Anchorman” on DVD. Oh Shit. Will Ferrell or writing? Hot 16s would have to wait tonight.Good Night San Diego! So I stayed up in the front lounge of the bus and, even though I’ve seen this movie twice, commenced to laugh my ass off. Almost literally, because of what happened next. Shortly after the acapella singing of “Afternoon Delight” by Ferrell et al., a big bump, then another, then plummeting down as we tipped over to the left. I was sitting in the diner-like booth that many of these buses have in the front. I held on to the table with one hand and tried to guard my head with the other, all the while thinking that I was probably about to die. I don’t remember seeing everyone flying and flipping around me as it was happening, but Carter’s (the road manager) and Wiz’s face were covered in blood, and everybody seemed to be laying around hurt. The bus was on it’s side, with the entrance door up. I called for people to say there names so we could get a head count of who was conscious or not. Silk E, Q (drums), Riccol (bass), and Metro (Lif’s hype man) were trapped in the back lounge because the doors connecting the front and back lounges to the bunks were electrically powered and didn’t move with no power on. They ended up ripping and squeezing their way out of a tiny little window and jumped down off the bus as the rest of us got out the front. If anyone had been sleeping in the bunks, they would not have been able to get out. I was the third person to jump off the front of the bus, as I hung down to make the jump shorter, I saw that the front of the bus was on fire. I yelled to everyone, saying to get off the bus immediately because the bus was on fire and it could blow up. We all did. No one was killed. The bus was totally engulfed in flames. For a while no one stopped to help, supposedly because the thought we were “illegal aliens” crossing the border. Eventually some great folks stopped and helped. Silk E has two broken ribs and a punctured lung. Wiz has a broken nose, two deep lacerations to the head, and a shattered knee. Zhara has injuries to her hand and had to undergo surgery. Carter had to get stitches to his head and lip. The driver, Glenn, has a broken jaw. All the first three will be in need of follow-up treatments. We all have aching backs, legs, heads etc. Many of us are on pain killers.

We lost everything in that crash and fire. We were packed to live and do shows on that bus for a month. Most of us had every stitch of clothing we owned on there. We lost clothes, computers, recording equipment, cameras, IDs, phones, keys to cars and homes. We lost cash.We lost all our damn instruments and equipment to perform with. We were and are happy to walk away with our lives. But now we’re home. Most of the band touring with The Coup has kids, rent that won’t quit, bills, and holiday expenses coming. We need money, because like I said the band doesn’t have the tools that they make a living with. Not only did we lose cash and material things on the bus, but we also were depending on this tour for money to make it through. It may take a year for us to see any money from the insurance company.

I have set up a Paypal account so people can make donations for The Coup. The money will be split between Me (Boots Riley), Silk E, Q, Steve Wyreman (guitar), and Riccol. Mr. Lif is setting one up on his site and when I have that info, we’ll let you know.

To make a donation, hit button in the “about” section on the front page of this profile, right below the paragraph and above the “We Are The Ones” video. This allows you to donate even without a paypal account.

http://www.myspace.com/thecoupmusic

If you have an account, ours is thecoupbuscrash@gmail.com . Thank you in advance to anyone who does this, this is a really crazy situation. I never thought I would would be doing something like this. I also never thought that we would almost die like like that. We’re grateful for anything you can do.

Thank you, Boots Riley

P.S. Thank you for the messages of love and warmth we’ve been receiving. It makes a difference.

Dear Sisters and Brothers,

In January 2007, Congressman John Conyers will become the new chair of the United States House of Representative Committee on the Judiciary. The House Committee on the Judiciary jurisdiction includes the following areas: (1) the judiciary and judicial proceedings, civil and criminal; (2) civil liberties; (3) claims against the United States; (4) national penitentiaries and (5) Revision and codification of the Statutes of the United States.

Herman Ferguson, on behalf of The Jericho Movement, has written a letter to Congressman Conyers requesting that he schedule hearings on “COINTELPRO: Its Legacy and Continuing Impact.” A copy of Herman’s letter is below. It is our hope that these hearings, if held, will not only further expose the FBI and local law enforcement crimes against the Black Liberation Movement and many of those involved it, but also result in legislation addressing some of these injustices.

Of particular concern to the Jericho Movement is the release and treatment of our political prisoners. Though the United States steadfastly denies it, presently there are many political prisoners in the United States, the majority of them Black/New Africans who were targets of the COINTELPRO “Black Nationalist Hate Groups” program. Many of these brothers and sisters have been incarcerated for decades.

For example, Jalil Abdul Muntaquin, has been incarcerated since 1971; Sundiata Acoli and Herman Bell since 1973. It is critical that the human rights and constitutional violations surrounding their arrests, trials, sentencing, conditions of their confinement and continuing incarceration because of their political histories–all were members of the Black Panther Party–and continuing commitment to the liberation of Black/New Afrikan be brought to the wider attention of the public. Sundiata Acoli, now 70 and with an near exemplary record, has twice been denied parole.

If nothing else, congressional hearings on “COINTELPRO: Its Legacy and Continuing Impact” would go along way towards achieving this result.

To this end, we are calling on all supporters of political prisoners–defense committees; revolutionary nationalist, radical, and progressive organizations, elected officials, community, religious, spiritual leaders, etc.–to write, fax, or call Congressman Conyers to urge that schedule hearings on COINTELPRO. Congressman Conyers’ address is as follows:

The Honorable John Conyers
2426 Rayburn Building
Washington, DC 20515
(202) 225-5126
(202) 225-0072 Fax

Your support of Jericho’s call will help ensure that it becomes a reality. Forward, download, copy and distribute this letter and Jericho’s call to as many people as possible. Please mail or email copies of your letters to Herman Ferguson at the following address:

National Jericho Movement
P.O. Box 340084
Jamaica, NY 11434
Iyaluua@aol. com

Thank you in advance for your support of this effort. For more information about The Jericho Movement and Political Prisoners in the United States, visit The Jericho Movement website www.the jerichomovement. com. Please also do not hesitate to contact Herman or us if you have any questions about this campaign.

In solidarity,
Joan P. Gibbs, Esq. (718) 270-6296 OR 1-718-757-4093
Mani Gilyard, Chair, Malcolm X Commemoration Committee

The Jericho Movement
For Recognition and Amnesty for Political Prisoners
P.O. Box 340084
Jamaica, New York 11434-3104
Tel: 718. 949.5153

December 7, 2006

The Honorable John Conyers
Ranking Member
Committee on the Judiciary
U.S. House of Representatives
2138 Rayburn House Office Building
Washington, D.C. 20515

Dear Congressman Conyers:

Congratulations on your pending ascendancy to the chair of the House Committee on the Judiciary. We write to request that you schedule hearings on “COINTELPRO: Its Legacy and Continuing Impact.” For more than a decade, many of us have been requesting hearings on COINTELPRO, and hopefully, legislation that begins to address some of the injustices committed against the Black movement and activists as result of COINTELPRO. We hope that one of your acts as the new chair of the Judiciary Committee will be to schedule these hearings.

As I am sure you are aware, COINTELPRO is an acronym for a series of FBI counterintelligence programs against, inter alia, the Communist party, and so-called “Black Nationalist Hate Groups.” The August 1967 FBI memorandum announcing the Black Nationalist Hate Group program describes its goals as:

1. Prevent a coalition of militant black nationalist groups;
2. Prevent the rise of a messiah who could unify and electrify the
militant
nationalist movement;
3. Prevent violence on the part of the black nationalist groups;
4. Prevent militant black nationalist groups and leaders from gaining
respectability by discrediting them;
5. Prevent the long range growth of militant black nationalist
organizations especially among youth.

The targets of the Black Nationalist Hate Group program included a wide array of Black organizations and individuals, among them the Southern Christian Leadership Conference (SCLC), the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee (SNCC), the Revolutionary Action Movement, the Republic of New Akrika, Reverend Martin Luther King, Jr., Kwame Toure, formerly known as Stokely Carmichael, and countless others.

Though the Black Panther (BPP) was not among the original targets of the program, in September 1968, then FBI Director J. Edgar Hoover labeled the BPP “the greatest threat to the internal security of the country.” Thereafter the BPP became the primary focus of the program, and was ultimately the target of 233 of the believed total authorized “Black Nationalist” COINTELPRO actions.

As the Final Report of the 1976 Select Committee To Study Government Operations With Respect to Intelligence Activists states: “Although the claimed purpose of the Bureau’s COINTELPRO tactics was to prevent violence, some of the FBI’s tactics against the BPP were clearly intended to foster violence, and many others could reasonably have been expected to cause violence.”

In its pursuit of the BPP, the FBI, often together with local law enforcement officials, knew no bounds. BPP members and supporters were not only spied on and harassed but, in blatant violation of the both the United States Constitution and International law, falsely accused of crimes that they had not committed. Many were wounded and murdered by police and FBI. December 4, 2006, marked the thirty-eighth anniversary of the assassination of Fred Hampton, one of the leaders of the Chicago chapter of the BPP, by local Chicago police thanks to information from an FBI informant, while he slept in his bed. Hampton was shot twice in the head, once in the arm and shoulder; while three other people sleeping in the same bed escaped unharmed. Mark Clark, sleeping in a living room chair, was also murdered while asleep. Hampton’s wife, who was eight months pregnant, was also shot but survived. Four Panthers sleeping in the apartment were also wounded, while one escaped injury. Fred Hampton was 21 years old when he was assassinated; Mark Clark was 17.

While the true impact of the COINTELPRO Black Nationalist Hate Group Program on the Black Liberation Movement will probably never be known because the FBI never recorded all of its activities, has destroyed many of its files, and many of the architects and participants are now deceased, it is crucial that the impact and continuing legacy of this program be investigated and remedies developed to repair the damage it has done. This is particularly true with respect to the many members of the Black Panther party, the Republic of New Afrika and other organizations that today languish in jail as a result of their having been targeted by the FBI and local law enforcement officials as part of the counterintelligence programs.

We urgently request that you schedule hearings on “COINTELPRO: Its Legacy and Continuing Impact” in the near future. Thank you in advance for your prompt attention this matter. We expect that you will give our request the serious attention that it deserves.

Yours Truly.
Herman Ferguson,
Co-Founder, The Jericho Movement

Four of the leading national Hispanic advocacy organizations in the United States – the League of United Latin American Citizens (LULAC), the Mexican American Legal Defense and Educational Fund (MALDEF), the National Association of Latino Elected and Appointed Officials (NALEO) Educational Fund, and the National Council of La Raza (NCLR) – this week released the text of a letter to President Bush expressing their concern following the raids earlier this month at Swift & Company plants.

The text of the letter follows:

December 20, 2006

Dear Mr. President:

We write to express our deepest concern and alarm over the recent raids by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officials at Swift & Company plants. It has been reported that more than 1,200 individuals have been taken into ICE custody and detained at facilities throughout the country, and some have been removed from the U.S. These raids have separated families, closed factories, and slowed the economies of entire regions. Yet the raids have not significantly reduced the size of the undocumented immigrant population, and have not rooted out unscrupulous employers who hire and exploit immigrant workers. Surely this is not a convincing way to resolve our country s real immigration problems.

While we respect your authority to enforce immigration laws, as Latino organizations we have serious concerns about the manner in which these most recent raids were conducted. Various news reports and accounts from members of the community have claimed that racial profiling was used to single out workers for questioning; furthermore, we have reports that lawful permanent residents were detained. Furthermore, we understand that authorities prevented family members, clergy, and legal representatives from communicating with those detained, including in situations which could affect the health and safety of their family members. We are especially concerned for the children of those detained. In the short term, the children must be housed, fed, and clothed. In the long term, these children face the reality of a future separated from their parents, or living in a foreign country that is not their own. This is simply an unacceptable outcome, destructive to the lives of individual families and entire communities in several states. In all cases, government agencies must respect the due process rights of all individuals, and ICE must take into account the welfare of the children, elderly relatives, or other dependents of those detained.

Perhaps the greatest irony of the Swift raids is that Swift was attempting to obey the law faithfully. As a participant in the Basic Pilot program, Swift was required to verify the documents of each of its employees. ICE has proven that the Basic Pilot is not effective in cases of identity theft or document fraud, and even employers who abide by the rules are likely to lose their workforce and struggle to replace it with authorized workers. In the absence of comprehensive immigration reform, the current enforcement strategy is simply inadequate.

Ultimately, these raids were carried out in the service of an immigration system which the country believes and your Administration agrees is broken. The Swift raids provide additional evidence that Congress and the Administration must work together to pass comprehensive immigration reform legislation. But as that debate unfolds, it seems especially cruel to invest enforcement resources in a strategy which maximizes the human cost of our broken system, while doing nothing to correct the sources of the problem.

We urge you in the strongest possible terms to rethink your immigration enforcement strategy and invest in tactics which maximize effectiveness while minimizing harm to families and communities.

Sincerely,

League of United Latin American Citizens (LULAC)
Mexican American Legal Defense and Educational Fund (MALDEF)
National Association of Latino Elected and Appointed Officials (NALEO) Educational Fund
National Council of La Raza (NCLR)

cc: Michael Chertoff, DHS