What Do These Stories Have In Common?

 

What Do These Stories Have In Common?

We have a guest blogger this week, but before we get to their article, here’s a story that popped up in the news that I felt is very important. The mainstream media barely gave it any notice, which is telling in itself. It shows just how hard American propagandists in both the public and private sectors are working to keep the public in the dark. This news story has something vital in common with our guest’s submission. Can you find the common thread between these two stories?

First off, here is what Eric Zuesse writing for The Duran Newsletter had to say:

Annually, each year, since 2005, the U.S. Government has been one of only from 1 to 3 Governments to vote in the U.N. General Assembly against an annual statement by the General Assembly against racism and other forms of bigotry — an annual Resolution condemning it, and expressing a commitment to doing everything possible to reduce bigoted acts. For the first time ever, on November 4th, America was joined not only by one or two voting against it, but 55 nations, and almost all gave as reasons that Russia was for it and has invaded Ukraine. Ukraine is the only country that has almost always been joining America in opposing such resolutions...

 This year’s Resolution particularly offended America and its allies because “Nazism” is mentioned and condemned specifically in it.

No specific nation is ever mentioned in such resolutions.

The author of this article explains how the United Nations is notorious for making it difficult to near impossible to find the results of their resolution votes online. A week after a vote, and the information just mysteriously disappears. (I can attest to that fact. The UN website tells you you're not allow to access the information anymore.) After much searching and following of screenshots, here is the outcome of the vote on the resolution to combat the glorification of Nazism:

Item 66(a) draft resolution A/C.3/77/L.5

Combating glorification of Nazism, Neo-Nazism, and …

DATE: 4 November 2022

 IN FAVOR (105): Algeria, Angola, Argentina, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Bahamas, Bahrain, Bangladesh, Barbados, Belarus, Belize, Bhutan, Bolivia, Botswana, Brazil, Brunei, Cabo Verde, Cambodia, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Chad, Chile, China, Colombia, Costa Rica, Cote d’Ivoire, Cuba, Dem. PR [N.] Korea, Djirbouti, El Salvador, Equatorial Gunea, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Fiji, Gabon, Ghana, Guatemala, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Guyana, Haiti, Honduras, India, Indonesia, Iraq, Israel, Jamaica, Jordan,Kazakhstan, Kenya, Kuwait, Kyrgyzstan, Lao PDR, Lebanon, Lesotho, Libya, Madagascar, Malawi, Malaysia, Maldives, Mauritania, Mauritius, Mongolia, Mozambique, Namibia, Nauru, Nepal, Nicaragua, Niger, Nigeria, Oman, Pakistan, Paraguay, Peru, Philippines, Qatar, Russia, Rwanda, St. Kitts, St. Vincent, Saudi Arabia, Senegal, Singapore, Solomon Islands, S. Africa, Sri Lanka, Sudan, Surinam, Syria, Tajikistan, Thailand, Timor-Leste, Togo, Trinidad, Tunisia, Turkmenistan, Uganda, UAR, United Rep. Tanza, Uruguay, Uzbekistan, Vietnam, Yemen, Zambia, Zimbabwe

AGAINST (52): Albania, Andorra, Australia, Austria, Belgium, Bosnia, Bulgaria, Canada, Croatia, Cyprus, Czechia, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Georgia, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Iceland, Ireland, Italy, Japan, Kiribati, Latvia, Liberia, Liechtenstein, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Mali, Malta, Marshall Islands, Micronesia, Monaco, Montenegro, Netherlands, New Zealand, N. Macedonia, Norway, Papua, Poland, Portugal, Rep. Moldova, Romania, San Marino, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, Ukraine, UK, U.S.

ABSTAIN (15): Antigua, Congo, Dominican Rep., Ecuador, Egypt, Mexico, Myanmar, Palau, Panama, Rep. of Korea, Samoa, Serbia, Switzerland, Tonga, Turkiye

ABSENT: Afghanistan, Benin, Burkina Faso, Burundi, Comoros, D.R. Congo, Dominica, Eswatini, Gambia, Grenada, Iran, Morocco, St. Lucia, Sao Tome, Seychelles, Sierra Leone, S. Sudan, Tuvalu, Vanuatu, Venezuela

Data from US and Allies Vote For Nazism at UN https://theduran.com/u-s-and-allies-vote-for-nazism-at-u-n/

Ukrainian stamps glorifying Nazis

Why does the US continue to vote against combating the glorification of Nazism year after year? To blame not voting affirmative on this resolution on the proxy war the US and NATO started in Ukraine seems a rather weak excuse. It's common knowledge that Ukrainians have made a national hero out of Nazi collaborator Stepan Bandera and that their very own militia unit, the Azov Battalion, has S.S. symbology as their logo. 

And why didn't the US vote for this resolution when it was first introduced seventeen years ago? Could it be the US has been pro-Nazi all along, and this fact didn't become blatantly apparent until 2022? 

Related Articles:

US and Ukraine Only Two Countries to Vote Against UN Resolution Condemning Nazism (December 2021) https://countercurrents.org/2021/12/u-s-and-ukraine-only-two-countries-vote-against-un-resolution-condemning-nazism/

Why Does the US Government Support Nazis All Around The World

https://countercurrents.org/2022/11/why-does-the-u-s-government-support-nazis-all-around-the-world/

Over 50 Countries Vote Against Russia’s Anti-Nazism Resolution at United Nations  https://orinocotribune.com/over-50-countries-vote-against-russias-anti-nazism-resolution-at-united-nations/

50 Nations Just Defended Nazism at the UN (Video, story starts about 5 minutes in) https://rumble.com/v1t02sk-50-nations-just-defended-nazism-at-the-u.n..html

 

The following article demonstrates that American activists have fought against racism, sexism, fascism, and elitism from our country's very beginnings. The United States' negative vote on the recent United Nations' resolution on combating the glorification of Nazism is an indication that American activists must continue to fight these evils today.

Inspirational Stories Of Black Activists

by Robin Nicole Hamilton

Motivation is a state of mind that helps you achieve your goals and plays an important part in achieving success. It is a feeling or emotion that you get when you want to do something bigger. It keeps you going until you reach your goal.

Black freedom fighters are a source of inspiration. These real-life heroes have always served their people. Freedom fighters like Martin Luther King Jr., Malcolm X, and Harriet Tubman are always remembered and admired, especially by young people who aspire to be like them one day. Let's remember that they fought hard and did not give up until they achieved what they wanted. They made sacrifices and were hurt, but they did not give up because they believed in themselves and their mission.

Black Activists: A True Source of Motivation

The history of black freedom fighters, Martin Luther King Jr. Malcolm X, and others have inspired many to fight for their rights. These activists have shown us that we can achieve anything if we are willing to fight for it.

There have been many other black freedom fighters and activists who have fought for our rights all over the world, but few know about them or even take the time to remember their names and what they did for us. However, their stories should be heard so that we will know that it is possible to change the world.

Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.

Martin Luther King Jr. was a man who dared to dream big to achieve his dreams. He became one of the most cogent civil rights leaders in US history. He was a minister who fought for civil rights for Americans, both blacks and whites. He led a peaceful movement to end injustice and inequality in the USA, especially for people of color. On April 4, 1968, he was murdered by a white extremist, James Earl Ray, while standing on the patio of the Lorraine Motel in Memphis, Tennessee. 

Malcolm X

Malcolm X is another great example of a black activist who achieved greatness despite being on the wrong side of society at one point in time. He was a Muslim convert who became an influential leader in the Nation of Islam movement. He spoke out against racism and segregation.

Malcolm was imprisoned for fifteen years for his involvement in a black separatist organization. After being released from prison, he continued his activism with Malcolm X's Organization (MEO) which promoted black pride, self-defense, and economic empowerment through various means like education and employment opportunities. He went through the ups and downs of life and never gave up on his mission despite the obstacles and hardships. Several iconic films and books cover his life journey. In 1965, soon after Malcolm’s death, his biography was published by Alex Haley. (Learn more about Alex Haley's The Autobiography of Malcolm X.)

Fannie Lou Hamer

Fannie Lou Hamer was an American civil rights activist who fought against racial segregation. Fannie participated in civil rights activism from 1962-1973. She became a key figure in many organizations fighting for change. (Watch this film on the legacy of Fannie Lou Hamer).

One of these organizations was the Freedom Democratic Party (FDP), which was founded by her husband, James Hamer. The FDP was formed to give black voters more power over their own lives and communities by organizing around issues like voting rights and school desegregation. Fannie and James obtained success when the Voting Rights Act of 1965 (VRA) was passed.

While working on behalf of the FDP, Fannie also focused on other issues such as farm labor unions and sanitation workers' rights. She helped organize boycotts against employers who did not pay their workers fairly or provide benefits such as health insurance or pensions. Even the limitations of being a woman of color in the mid-20th century did not scare her from dreaming big or pursuing her goals.

Mary Church Terrell

Mary Church Terrell was a civil rights leader who fought for better treatment for women of color in America. She was the first African-American female to complete a college degree and manage the school board of a major city. She was one of the founders of the National Association Of Colored Women. (Click here to see the Mary Church Terrell documentary.)

Mary fought for the rights of women of color in colleges and workplaces. What she achieved in the late 19th and early 20th centuries is a source of great inspiration for many black women. 

Black Lives Matter (BLM)

BLM is a present-day movement for blacks' and other minorities' rights. This decentralized movement fights against racially motivated violence, discrimination, and police brutality against people of color and minorities. This movement is growing stronger every day because it gives hope to those who have been oppressed by whites.

Similarly, the fight for freedom and equal rights continues and inspires people to become a part of such organizations and follow those individuals who stand for their people. These legends from the history of black activism motivate us to think big and inspire us to achieve our goals.

In conclusion, these people are proof that anyone can achieve success if they have enough drive and perseverance!

BIO: Robin Nicole Hamilton is an American journalist, writer, television host, and principal at "ARoundRobin Production Company". She has worked as a broadcaster in Florida, New York, Boston, Massachusetts, and Washington, D.C. Working at the intersection of media and policy, her work is guided by the principle of providing information to promote transformation. She directed four documentary films from 2015 to 2022. Her fourth film, Odessa’s Reign, profiles the life of a female gangster in 1950s Washington, D.C. The film earned Robin her fourth Emmy. Hamilton has won and been nominated for several awards for her work on the DCW50 TV (WDCW) Living Black History series. She also served as a Public Media Corps (PMC) Fellow which allowed her to promote social media tools to under-served communities. Hamilton is currently offering film and video production services to clients in Capitol Heights, Bethesda, Baltimore, Columbia, Annapolis, Rockville, Maryland, Alexandria, Fairfax, Arlington County, and Tysons, Virginia and in Washington D.C.

 * * *

 

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You Can't Make This Stuff Up

 

We live in a time where leftists and communists are being labeled as Nazis and real Nazis are being labeled as freedom fighters standing up against fascism. We can't make this up. --Kris Legion

You Can't Make This Stuff Up

by C.A. Matthews

After I read this headline, both my mind and my stomach started to churn:

Jon Stewart and the Pentagon Honor Ukrainian Nazi at Disney World

Disney World? "The Happiest Place on Earth"? Jon Stewart? Welcoming Nazis? Really?

Yeah, really. From The Grayzone:

During the Department of Defense’s annual Warrior Games at Disney World in Orlando, Florida this August 19-28, liberal comedian Jon Stewart awarded a Ukrainian military veteran named Ihor Halushka the “Heart of the Team” award for “inspiring his team” with his “personal example.”

Halushka happens to have been a member of the neo-Nazi Azov Battalion, which has been armed by the US and integrated into the Ukrainian National Guard. The award-winning ultra-nationalist wore a sleeve over his left arm as he accepted the prize, presumably to cover up his tattoo of the Nazi Sonnenrad, or Black Sun. (...)

...Even the US government propaganda outlet Voice of America [has] acknowledged the Azov Battalion’s embrace of Nazism. Right Sector group has been similarly identified as a fascist organization. Since the invasion, however, Western corporate media has downplayed the presence of Nazis in the Ukrainian armed forces as groups like Azov have taken on prominent front-line roles. (...)

An unlisted YouTube video by the Invictus Games on YouTube offers a close-up of Halushka working out with Nazi Black Sun symbol tattooed on his left elbow clearly visible. Halushka opted to cover the fascist symbol during photo ops at the Warrior Games.

Halushka has never been shy about his ties to the Azov Battalion. During the Invictus Games this April, he whipped out an Azov flag as he accepted a gold medal, which was hosted in The Hague – where war criminals are normally tried, not awarded. Likewise, in Orlando, Haluskha wore an Azov Battalion t-shirt as he accepted a gold medal for indoor rowing. He was honored days later as the “heart” of his team. (...)

It is difficult to believe that Palevska and Halushka are the only members of Team Ukraine that have belonged to neo-Nazi groups.

A photo posted on the team’s official Facebook page show five team members performing a fascist salute in front of a Warrior Games banner.

In other photos, a member of the team wearing a Warrior Games t-shirt can be seen holding a Right Sector flag; and seven veterans associated with the team bear the flag of the 14th Waffen Grenadier Division of the Schutzstaffel (SS), a WWII-era Nazi military formation made up of Ukrainian nationalists.

American taxpayers have already forked $60 billion over to Ukraine since the war broke out in 2014. They are therefore entitled to know whether the Department of Defense paid Team Ukraine’s travel expenses.

The article provides plenty of video links and photos that clearly show these individuals with Nazi symbology tattooed on their bodies and proof that they belong to Neo-Nazi militias such as the Azov Battalion and Right Sector. (More about The History of Nazism in Ukraine here.) There's no doubt that Ukrainians have a thing for fascists as their own postage stamps attest:

So… Disney World welcomes Ukranian Nazis. Bad enough Disney Corp. welcomes the US Department of Defense (more like Department of Offense) inside their fairy-tale-themed, family amusement park, but they're okay as well with individuals and groups who agree with Ukrainian Nazi collaborator Stepan Bandera and his favorite person Adolf Hitler, the man who had 6 million people murdered in his gas chambers during World War 2.

You know, this incident gives me a completely different take on “The Magic Kingdom.” I can imagine a Teutonic tour guide in a near dystopian future giving us a rundown of its attractions...

“Velcome to DizNa World! It's zee magical land where everyting is kept spotlessly clean by our slave labor. No ve don't pay them low wages--ve just don't pay them at all! Ha ha ha! It's what that sign Arbeit macht frei (Work sets you free) outside the front gates means.”

“Over here, you will see our most popular ride, It's A Small World. Really, it is! We only allow a few northern European countries to be featured on this ride because… Well, you know why. We only want blue-eyed, blond persons in our fairy-tale land. No other colors or non-European religions need apply!”

“Speaking of which, you might have noticed that DizNa's Princess Jasmine character is now also blue-eyed and blonde. Just like Republican Jesus!”

“The Swiss Family Robinson tree house is, of course, still here. We like the Swiss, especially their bankers who kept our gold for us during World War 2. The Robinson home has been tastefully redecorated in red, white, and black.”

“Whatz dat construction over there? Oh, that’s a new attraction being developed. It’s called The Showers. It’s not for everyone. In fact, if you are Aryan you don’t ever have to worry about it.”

Yeah, the whole “Magical Kingdom” aspect of Disney World has been flushed down the drain for me. I can’t see why celebrating any persons who associate themselves with a Nazi organization is a wholesome thing to do at a family amusement park anywhere in the world. I just don’t.

Biden at Nuremberg?

Here we have Biden sending billions of dollars in aid and armaments to these Neo-Nazi groups in Ukraine while millions of Americans are going without health care, rent assistance, and even food. We have millions suffering under the burden of medical and student loan debt in this country, but we can’t do a thing to relieve their pain. Jackson, Mississippi, and Flint,Michigan, still don’t have safe drinking water, and our federal government can’t lift a finger to help these citizens out. But somehow, we can finance an all expenses paid trip to Disney World for a bunch of Nazis.

Hmm… Jackson and Flint are cities with predominantly African American populations. Could that have something to do with it? Biden doesn’t have any problem sending billions of dollars to white Europeans to run a proxy war, but when it comes to helping out fellow Americans of a different ethnic heritage in need of drinkable water he’s got nothing?

Funding and rescuing Nazis is nothing new to the US government. Remember NASA’s rocket scientist Wernher von Braun? He was one of the 1,600 “nice Nazis” who America kept from the hangman’s noose at the Nuremberg Trials and secreted into the US along with their families in Operation Paperclip. The US government was fine with these scientists' Nazi sympathies as long as they worked hard to give us the edge we wanted over the Soviets’ space program. The US would do anything to best the “Russians" during the Cold War, up to and including inviting avowed Nazis into our country.

The more things change… Honestly, you can't make this stuff up.

I don’t think I could feel more disgusted or more embarrassed than I do today at the antics of the US Department of Defense and the military industrial complex as a whole. Many Americans have parents, grandparents, or great-grandparents who fought the Nazis in World War 2. Many Americans have relatives who survived the tortures of the Nazi work camps, POW camps, and the bombings of their cities. Some older Americans themselves are survivors of Nazi atrocities. And now Americans politicians and entertainers openly welcome Neo-Nazis with their words and actions. 

All I can say is what Captain America said in his original 1940s comic book serials: Punch a Nazi!

DizNa World is the dark world neoliberals like Biden and company dream of, maybe even celebrities like Jon Stewart. Perhaps it's time for Jon to retire? He seems out of touch with reality. Nazis were only funny on TV sit-coms like Hogan's Heroes and the British classic comedy series 'Allo, 'Allo! where they were portrayed as bumblers, not the racist killers they really are.

Either way, it’s not the world our loved ones who died fighting fascism would have ever imagined. Neoliberals will do anything to make money selling weapons so their stock portfolios of arms manufacturers continue to grow. It's all about their wealth, their health, and their propaganda machines churning out stories about how great the Azov Battalion is and how the US is all about "freedom and democracy." (Read last week's blog about how that fictitious labeling of wars for resources comes about.)

Ugh. I don't know about you, but I'm never going to consider taking a vacation at Disney World, Disney Land, or any of their related amusement parks ever again. They've convinced me that Mickey Mouse and friends aren't the sort of fictional creatures I want to hang out with. 

Heck, forget Disney+ and all their movies and online streaming channels. Let the white supremacists support them. There's gotta be enough of them to keep Disney Corp. in the black...and red.

Related Articles:

Jon Stewart and the Pentagon Honor Ukrainian Nazi at Disney World  https://thegrayzone.com/2022/08/31/jon-stewart-pentagon-ukrainian-nazi-disney/ 

Jon Stewart Presents Medal to Ukrainian Nazi at Disney World (video)  https://youtu.be/gFpHtufCIZ4 

Residents in Majority Black Jackson Left Without Drinkable Water https://popularresistance.org/residents-in-majority-black-jackson-mississippi-left-without-drinkable-water/

Decision-Makers Cannot Handle End of White Supremacy https://popularresistance.org/us-decision-makers-cannot-handle-end-of-white-supremacy-former-vice-presidential-candidate/

The Noble Lie of a Democratic West https://popularresistance.org/the-noble-lie-of-a-democratic-west/

With Western Imperialism in Decline, Capitalism is in Crisis
https://scheerpost.com/2022/09/01/with-western-imperialism-decline-capitalism-is-in-crisis-a-new-phase-is-emerging/ 

Democrats Are Violent Extremists https://caitlinjohnstone.substack.com/p/democrats-are-violent-extremists 

Wernher von Braun--The Nazi Inside NASA https://youtu.be/Kv0IB-TwFH8

The History of Nazism in Ukraine https://bernie2016.blogspot.com/2022/03/nato-loves-nazis-history-of-nazism-in.html

 Seen on Twitter:

Here is Ihor Halushka, the Nazi honored by Jon Stewart, after he was injured, with his Nazi Sonnenrad tattoo clearly displayed as he grips a Mickey Mouse plushie in his hospital bed https://t.co/NWiqV4GkZS pic.twitter.com/ZWU45ZhL7S

— Alex Rubinstein (@RealAlexRubi) August 31, 2022

Perhaps someone should’ve told Jon Stewart that he was giving a medal to a literal Naaaazi? https://t.co/vO614cXUmF

— Lee Camp [Redacted] (@LeeCamp) September 2, 2022

Europe going to freeze defending this??? https://t.co/QRM3NYOGHy

— Revolutionary Blackout Network🥋 (@SocialistMMA) September 4, 2022

Do the people in Jackson MI want clean water or more weapons sent to Ukraine?

— Eddie (@SoSocialism) September 4, 2022

We live in a time where leftists and communists are being labeled as Nazis and real Nazis are being labeled as freedom fighters standing up against fascism. We can't make this up.

— Kris Legion 🦺📢 (@LegionSocialist) September 4, 2022

The Only Difference Is The Uniform

Portland mom being snatched by "federal agent" (photo by Tommie Sunshine)

It's been a harrowing week--at least if you follow independent media pod casts and web sites. The images of peaceful protesters being gassed, shot, beaten and abducted are the subject of horror stories. Historians and pundits alike have concluded that Trump has taken a page right out of the fascists' playbook. Most of the elected officials in Washington DC give their silent nod of approval to this sending of federal troops into American cities through inaction. When will we wake up from this nightmare? Who knows, but until then keep an eye on the men tossing the pepper spray bombs into a line of brave moms... because the only real difference between these troops and Hitler's thugs is one of fashion sense.

The Only Difference is the Uniform
by Coast Watcher


The Battle for Portland, Oregon, has lasted for over fifty days and counting. Stemming from the murder of George Floyd by the Minneapolis PD, the Black Lives Matter protests have rocked this liberal city in the Pacific Northwest to its foundations. Most of the protests are peaceful; however, the response by the Department of Homeland Security at President Trump’s orders has been out of all proportion.

The Department of Homeland Security Rapid Deployment Force entered Portland in response to what were termed "increasingly violent attacks" according to Federal Protective Services regional director Gabriel Russel. According to documents obtained by Portland journalists, there are currently 114 federal law enforcement officers deployed to protect federal buildings, which also includes statues and monuments according to Trump. Personnel drawn from the Federal Protective Service (FPS), Immigration and Customs Enforcement, US Marshals Service and US Customs and Border Protection make up the contingent—yet knowledgeable sources have also identified mercenaries prowling the streets including some from Triple Canopy, a descendant of the infamous Erik Prince’s Blackwater mercenary corporation.

Videos and photographs are circulating showing these and other "federal" personnel using unmarked vehicles to arrest protesters without warrant or explanation and taking them to undisclosed locations. In one attack, a van used as a first aid station for protesters had its windows smashed out by troops. In another, a professor of European Studies (ironically a specialist in the rise of fascism) at Lewis and Clark University suffered a severe head wound from a baton round during a peaceful demonstration on public land.

None of the heavily-armed personnel involved in these outrages against the First, Fourth and Fourteenth Amendments displayed identification, as is required of law enforcement agents. There is little difference between these overly militarized personnel deployed by Trump and the gray uniformed SS "snatch squads" used as an instrument of terror by Heinrich Himmler in Nazi Germany. Similar snatch tactics causing the "disappearance" of protesters were used in Chile during Augusto Pinochet's regime in the 1970s.

Portland Mayor Ted Wheeler suffered a tear gas attack on the streets of his own city. During this episode Wheeler called the federal intervention an abuse of power and accused the FPS of escalating the violence, which included the tear-gassing and use of baton rounds on peacefully protesting women known as "the Moms." Oregon’s Attorney General filed a lawsuit against the federal authorities citing its snatching of citizens from the streets and their retention under arrest without due process. Mayor Wheeler’s response has been oddly weak. Instead of ejecting the FPS, he’s making statements that fall short of telling the feds to get the hell out of his city.
 
The FPS remains unrepentant. Senior official Ken Cuccinelli stated they will remain on the streets of Portland, and other cities where required, "until the violence recedes." Trump has also threatened to deploy more so-called federal units to Chicago, Detroit, New York, Philadelphia and other urban centers across the country.

Documents show that the FPS spends $1 billion of taxpayers’ money per year on these hired security thugs. It must be noted that the FPS has a long and troubling history of failing to properly vet and adequately monitor these mercenaries or even ensure they have proper training and certifications. In other words, the taxpayers are effectively paying for their own government to oppress them and their fellow citizens. This travesty of justice is happening in a time when a virulent disease has the world and the US in its grip. The economic consequences of COVID-19 with its mass unemployment and threatened homelessness by eviction are still playing out.

Some say this is Trump’s rehearsal for when he declares himself dictator, possibly if he loses the election in November. Analogies with the Nazi  SA "Brown shirts" and Mussolini’s fascisti are clear to see. The ammosexuals--who stockpile thousands of firearms against the day they have to stand against a tyrannical government--have been strangely silent. Some side with Trump. While these gun-lovers cower, mothers and daughters stand tall with interlocking arms against the unconstitutional oppression inflicted by their own government via tear gas and rubber bullets.

Whatever happens in November, whether a second civil war begins or an outright revolution erupts, the experiment in democracy that is the United States will never be the same.

Sources:
https://www.reuters.com/article/us-global-race-portland-valor/court-documents-reveal-secretive-federal-unit-deployed-for-operation-diligent-valor-in-oregon-idUSKCN24N2SH

https://medium.com/@wkc6428/the-lead-federal-agency-responding-to-protesters-in-portland-employs-thousands-of-private-db137349f8b0

https://www.britannica.com/biography/Augusto-Pinochet

BIO: Coast Watcher can't help but draw parallels between current events and Nazi Germany. It's like Trump is taking cues from Mein Kampf--supposedly a book he kept on his nightstand and read to fall asleep. Explains a lot.

Related links:

Federal Agents in Portland Tear Gas the Press (video)
https://youtu.be/wTp-Sj4bZPQ

Portland Protests Escalate! Chicago Mayor Welcomes Federal Goons! (video)
https://youtu.be/Q4YMoeOquaU 

"Wall of Veterans" Arrives in Portland to Protect BLM Protesters From Trump's DHS Troops
https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/us/wall-of-veterans-arrives-in-portland-to-protect-black-lives-matter-protesters-from-trumps-dhs-troops/ar-BB17bnpZ?ocid=sf

Navy Veteran Beaten by Feds in Portland Fears that Trump's Deployment Will Lead to Copy Cats in Combat Fatigue
https://www.businessinsider.com/christopher-david-navy-veteran-beaten-by-feds-speaks-out-2020-7

Trump Plans to Expand the Federal Invasion of American Cities
https://www.motherjones.com/anti-racism-police-protest/2020/07/trump-border-patrol-cities-portland-chicago/

America "Staring Down the Barrel of Martial Law" Oregon Senator Warns
https://readersupportednews.org/news-section2/318-66/64212-america-staring-down-the-barrel-of-martial-law-oregon-senator-warns


From Facebook:

"It dawned on me when I was in the ER, and had a chance to catch my breath (post tear gas): my government did this to me. My own government. I was not shot by a random person in the street. A federal law enforcement officer pulled a trigger that sent an impact munition into my head."

Professor Maureen Healy is the chair of the history department at Lewis and Clark College. She teaches Modern European History, with a specialization in the history of Germany and Eastern Europe (and the rise of fascism). She was shot in the head by federal agents on Monday night and is recovering from the injury and the concussion, but shared a statement of her experience, and gave permission to share this.
--
Statement by Maureen Healy, July 22, 2020
For Immediate Release 

Since June, I have been attending peaceful protests in Portland neighborhoods in support of Black Lives Matter. I have gone with family and friends. 

I am a 52-year-old mother. I am a history professor. 

I went downtown yesterday to express my opinion as a citizen of the United States, and as a resident of Portland. Of Oregon. This is my home. I was protesting peacefully. So why did federal troops shoot me in the head Monday night? 

I was in a large crowd of ordinary folks. Adults, teens, students. Moms and dads. It looked to me like a cross-section of the City. Black Lives Matter voices led the crowd on a peaceful march from the Justice Center past the murals at the Apple store. The marchers were singing songs. We were chanting. We were saying names of Black people that have been killed by police. We observed a moment of silence in front of the George Floyd mural. 

I wanted to, and will continue to, exercise my First Amendment right to speak. Federal troops have been sent to my city to extinguish these peaceful protests. I was not damaging federal property. I was in a crowd with at least a thousand other ordinary people. I was standing in a public space. 

In addition to being a Portland resident, I am also a historian. My field is Modern European History, with specialization in the history of Germany and Eastern Europe. I teach my students about the rise of fascism in Europe. 

By professional training and long years of teaching, I am knowledgeable about the historical slide by which seemingly vibrant democracies succumbed to authoritarian rule. Militarized federal troops are shooting indiscriminately into crowds of ordinary people in our country. We are on that slide. 

It dawned on me when I was in the ER, and had a chance to catch my breath (post tear gas): my government did this to me. My own government. I was not shot by a random person in the street. A federal law enforcement officer pulled a trigger that sent an impact munition into my head. 

After being hit I was assisted greatly by several volunteer medics. At least one of them was with Rosehip Medic Collective. To take shelter from the teargas I was hustled into a nearby van. Inside they bandaged my head and drove me several blocks away. From there my family took me to the ER. I am grateful for the assistance, skill, and incredibly kind care of these volunteer medics. 

We must take this back to Black Lives Matter. Police brutality against Black people is the real subject of these peaceful protests that have been happening in my city and across the country. What happened to me is nothing. It is nothing compared to what happens to Black citizens at the hands of law enforcement, mostly local police, every day. And that is why we have been marching. That is why I will continue to march.

From the web:

First they came for the Muslims,
And I did not speak out
Because I was not a Muslim.
Then they came for the immigrants,
And I did not speak out
Because I was not an immigrant.
Then they came for the Black Lives Matter protesters,
And I did not speak up,
Because I was not a BLM protester.
Then they came for me,
And there was no one left
To speak for me.
(Based on the post WWII poem by Reverend Niemoller)

Paul Rippey of Portland, Oregon, wrote two new verses to A Policeman's Lot Is Not a Happy One:

When you signed up to defend our southern border,
Detaining people mostly black and brown,
You could not anticipate that you'd get orders
To teargas folks in our beloved town.
Now you're beating up on people who speak English,
And their cell phones capture all that you have done.
Ah, take one consideration with another,
A policeman's lot is not a happy one.

When the kids aren't marching in a demonstration
They live their happy lives from day to day,
And they do not feel the threat of deportation
'Cause most are from the good old USA.
In fact you might see one who is your brother,
Your sister, or your daughter, or your son.
Ah, take one consideration with another,
A policeman's lot is not a happy one.

*** 

We’ve been busy all month with our Cops & Capitalism: A Summer Webinar Series along with our partners at LittleSis and we’ve gotten amazing responses from those who have joined us. If you’d like to join us for our next webinar happening this Wednesday, RSVP here!
 
On our first webinar, we explored our groundbreaking research on cities’ use of Police Brutality Bonds, the bonds issued to pay for police brutality settlements which ultimately allows Wall Street to profit from police violence. Those on the webinar learned how bonds work and how to research police budgets in their own cities. 

Then, we dove deeper into the demand to defund police and took a closer look at relationships between corporations and policing. We know that cutting the police budget is a first step towards the world we want to see but in order to fully fund our communities and invest in the things we need we must also redirect funding from the institutions that support policing. Participants on the second webinar also had a chance to follow along with our complimentary How To Guide and ask questions. (If you haven’t had a chance to join any of our previous webinars, you can watch the recordings on our website.) 

And now it's time for the third installment! Join us for our next webinar happening this Wednesday July 29th at 1pm ET.

Register Now

On this webinar, we will explore how billionaires and corporations like Wells Fargo, Amazon, and Target use police foundations to fund and prop up the police. Police foundations--nonprofits that fundraise money from wealthy donors and corporations for local police departments--help maintain the racist policing status quo. We’ll discuss how directly pressuring corporations to cut ties with police foundations can strengthen fights to defund the police and invest in Black and Brown communities, as well as ensure that police departments’ public funding is not replaced by similarly enormous private funding. 

Participants will learn how to research which corporations support their local police foundations and hear examples of demands activists are making around corporations and police foundations in local campaigns. 

For centuries, police have acted as the muscle of racial capitalism, protecting the property and interests of the wealthy, and violently reinforcing systemic and racist disinvestment in our communities. Policing and mass incarceration has made it more possible for the finance industry and corporations to build their profit off our oppression. Because they are inextricably linked, we have to defund the police and tax the rich to fully fund and sustain the communities we want to live in. 

Hope to see you on the webinar! 

In Solidarity always,
Alyx Goodwin
Senior Organizer, ACRE