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Tag Archives: contemporary proletarianisation

Activist and Indigenous Leader Nelson García Assassinated

16 Wed Mar 2016

Posted by ztnh in Anti-Capitalism, Anti-Imperialism, Civic Engagement (Activism), Environmental Activism, Indigenous Rights, Latin America, Mindfulness, Neoliberalism, Presidential Election 2016

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Berta Cáceres (c. 1973-2016), Beverly Bell, contemporary proletarianisation, Flashpoints, Global Witness, Hillary Rodham Clinton, KPFA, Obama administration, Pacifica Radio Network, President Obama, The Guardian, transcript

caceres_murder_honduras.jpg_1718483346-370x210LUMPENPROLETARIAT  Another Honduran citizen and indigenous rights leader has been assassinated, apparently, by USA-backed neoliberal Honduran death squads, including the poison pens of Hillary Clinton and the Obama administration, determined to proletarianise, to push indigenous Hondurans off their lands, where they’re self-sufficient, and push them onto the mercy of a capitalist mode of production and exploitation, where they face poverty and dependency.

The internationally renowned environmental and indigenous rights leader Berta Cáceres (c. 1973-2016) was not the first and, outrageously, Nelson García will likely not be the last indigenous leader to be assassinated by the forces of transnational capital and neoliberalism.  Twelve environmental defenders were killed in Honduras in 2014, according to research by Global Witness, which makes it the most dangerous country in the world, relative to its size, for activists protecting forests and rivers.

And, now, indigenous rights leader Nelson García was assassinated yesterday, 15 MAR 2016, “shot dead in the face by unidentified gunmen as he returned to his family home in Río Lindo, north-west Honduras – about 100 miles south of La Esperanza where Cáceres was murdered at home on 3 March.”  Honduras is a very different place since President Obama and then-Secretary of State Hillary Clinton helped overthrow the Central American nation’s democratically-elected center-left president Manuel Zelaya in 2009.  Listen to (or download) breaking coverage here. [1]

Messina

***

[Partial transcript of actual radio broadcast by Messina for Lumpenproletariat and Flashpoints]

FLASHPOINTS—[16 MAR 2016]  “Today, on Flashpoints, the brutal assassination of Nelson García, an indigenous rights leader in Honduras and a member of the same rights group as slain activist Berta Cáceres.  Also, an in-depth follow-up report on the continuing dangers the world faces at Fukushima, Japan.  And we’ll feature our regular on-air presentation of Electronic Intifada with Nora Barrows-Friedman.  I’m Dennis Bernstein.  All this, straight ahead on Flashpoints.  Stay tuned.”  (c. 0:50)

[brief intro theme music break]

DENNIS BERNSTEIN:  “And you’re listening to Flashpoints on Pacifica Radio.  I just want to urge you to stay tuned.  Later on in the broadcast, we will be joined by Beverly Bell for the latest in the tragedies of Honduras and the killing of indigenous leaders there.  A second murder and many lives are now hanging in the balance.  That’s coming up later on in the broadcast.

“But first I wanted to continue our dialogue on Fukushima, remind people exactly how dangerous it is, see if we can get some more information about what’s going on with the people closest have faced.  (c. 1:45)  [SNIP]

DENNIS BERNSTEIN:  [SNIP]  (c. 42:05)

“You are listening to Flashpoints on Pacifica Radio.  And, uh, I don’t know how to say this.  We now turn our attention to another terrible assassination, the assassination of Nelson García.

“Now, this is a member of the same indigenous rights group, as murdered activist Berta Cáceres.  This is in Honduras.  This is a very lethal situation.  And the danger is only getting worse and more widespread.

“Joining us to talk about it is Beverly Bell.  Beverly welcome back to Flashpoints.  And tell us what happened here.  This is, this is just two weeks after the late night [i.e., early morning] murder of Berta.”  (c. 43:01)

BEVERLY BELL:  “Yes.  Hi, Dennis.  We’ve gotta stop meeting like this.”

DENNIS BERNSTEIN:  “I’m sorry.”

BEVERLY BELL:  “The news in Honduras keeps getting worse.”

DENNIS BERNSTEIN:  “I’m sorry.”

BEVERLY BELL:  “Yeah.  What happened yesterday was that the Honduran government declared its second stage of war.  (c. 43:19) [SNIP]

[SNIP]  (c. 59:59)

Learn more at FLASHPOINTS.

[This transcript will be expanded as time constraints, and/or demand or resources, allow.]

***

THE GUARDIAN—[16 MAR 2016]  Another indigenous activist has been murdered in Honduras amid an escalating wave of repression against the relatives and colleagues of renowned campaigner Berta Cáceres, who was murdered less than two weeks ago.

Nelson García, 38, an active member of the Civic Council of Popular and Indigenous Organisations of Honduras (Copinh) was killed on Tuesday after a violent eviction carried out by Honduran security forces in a nearby Lenca indigenous community.

García was shot dead in the face by unidentified gunmen as he returned to his family home in Río Lindo, north-west Honduras – about 100 miles south of La Esperanza where Cáceres was murdered at home on 3 March.

García spent the morning with the Río Chiquito community where more than one hundred police and military officers helped evict dozens of families from land which local politicians claim doesn’t belong to them. Their simple timber houses and crops were destroyed using heavy machinery yesterday morning, according to Copinh.

Cáceres co-founded Copinh 22 years ago amid growing threats to Lenca territory from loggers, farmers and state-sponsored projects.

Last year, the activist won the prestigious Goldman Environmental Prize for her opposition to one of the region’s biggest hydroelectric projects, a cascade of four dams in the Gualcarque river basin, including the Agua Zarca dam. The river is sacred to the Lenca people and the proposed dam would cut-off food and medicine supplies to nearby communities.

Cáceres was shot dead at her home after suffering years of intimidation and threats against her life linked to her activism.

Since then, there has been growing fears for the safety of her colleagues and family members who have been subject to harassment and intimidation by the authorities.

Learn more at THE GUARDIAN.

***

Also see related Lumpenproletariat articles, relevant to the USA’s 2015-2016 presidential campaigns, such as:

  • “The Green Party’s Dr. Jill Stein on Democracy and Ranked Choice Voting“, 21 MAR 2016
  • “Activist and Indigenous Leader Nelson García Assassinated“, 16 MAR 2016
  • “Activist Berta Cáceres Assassinated“, 3 MAR 2016
  • “Hillary Clinton, US/NATO, & the Lynching of Gaddafi“, 3 MAR 2016
  • “Historical Archive: Third Party Challenge to Unconstitutional Prop 14“, 2 MAR 2016
  • “Black Agenda Report: On the USA’s Black Electorate, Circa 2016“, 1 MAR 2016
  • “Hillary Clinton for USA Presidency: Pros and Cons“, 13 APR 2015
  • “My Turn: Hillary Clinton Targets the Presidency (2015) by Doug Henwood“, 29 FEB 2016

***

[1]  Terrestrial radio transmission, 94.1 FM (KPFA, Berkeley, CA) with online simulcast and digital archiving:  Flashpoints, hosted by Dennis Bernstein, for Wednesday, 16 MAR 2016, 17:00 PDT.

***

[21 MAR 2016]

[Last modified  20:53 PDT  21 MAR 2016]

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Reclaiming Communism with Political Science Professor Jodi Dean

02 Tue Jun 2015

Posted by ztnh in Anti-Capitalism, Marxian Theory (Marxism), Philosophy, Social Theory

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Against the Grain, Arab Spring, Blog Theory, Bolsheviks, communism, contemporary proletarianisation, free speech radio, Jodi Dean, Karl Marx, KPFA, Mao, Occupy Movement, Occupy Wall Street, Pacifica Radio, Plato, police terrorism, the cognitariat, The Communist Horizon, The Republic, transcript, Verso Books, Žižek’s Politics

kpfa-free-speech-take-it-back-logo-121199LUMPENPROLETARIAT—Yesterday, on free speech radio, Against the Grain aired a notable interview from the KPFA archives.  (Listen here.)  Dedicated KPFA listeners may recall this memorable conversation “around an emancipatory egalitarian communist vision” with Political Science Professor Jodi Dean on Against the Grain last summer. [1]

Dr. Jodi Dean (b. 1962) (Hobart and William Smith Colleges, Political Science Department) is the author of various books, including The Communist Horizon (Verso, 2012), Democracy and Other Neoliberal Fantasies: Communicative Capitalism and Left Politics (Duke University Press, 2009), Žižek’s Politics (Routledge, 2006), Blog Theory (Polity, 2010), and Publicity’s Secret: How Technoculture Capitalizes on Democracy (Cornell University Press, 2002).  Dr. Dean blogs at ICite.com.

Messina

***

KPFA—[2 JUN 2015] Jodi Dean on why communism remains a powerful ideological force.

Learn more at KPFA.

***

AGAINST THE GRAIN—[24 JUN 2014; rebroadcast 2 JUN 2015] It’s a dead idea, or so we’re told, now discarded in the dustbin of history. But political theorist and media scholar Jodi Dean believes communism remains a powerful ideological force; she argues that the left should claim the term without apology. Dean also discusses the successes and limitations of Occupy Wall Street, and advocates revamping the party as an organizational form.

Learn more at AGAINST THE GRAIN.

***

[Working draft transcript of actual radio broadcast by Messina for Lumpenproletariat and Against the Grain.]

Anti-communist propaganda in a 1947 comic book published by the Catechetical Guild Educational Society warning of

Anti-communist propaganda in a 1947 comic book published by the Catechetical Guild Educational Society warning of “the dangers of a Communist takeover”.

AGAINST THE GRAIN—[2 JUNE 2015]  “Today on Against the Grain:  It’s a dead idea, or so we’re told.  Yes, it’s communism.  I’m Sasha Lilley.  Political theorist and media scholar Jodi Dean discusses why communism manages to remain such a powerful ideological force and why the left should claim the term without apology.  That’s after these news headlines.”

[SNIP]  [KPFA News Headlines (read by Gabriela Castelan)]

[This is a rush transcript. This transcript is currently under construction.]

[SNIP]

SASHA LILLEY:  (c. 6:30) “From Pacifica Radio, this is Against the Grain.  I’m Sasha Lilley.

“The term communism conjures up various images—some of them bleak, some of them stirring, many of them scary.  It’s a word and a history, that the existing left often doesn’t want to touch.  But, according to Jodi Dean, that’s a mistake.  The emancipatory egalitarianism at the heart of communism should be embraced; and the ideological baggage the term carries needs to be seen as powerful and, even, useful.

“She makes that argument in The Communist Horizon, published by Verso.  Dean teaches Political and Media Theory at Hobart and William Smith Colleges.  And her many books include Democracy and Other Neoliberal Fantasies [2] and Blog Theory.

“Jodi, I wonder if you could start by telling us how you define communism, since, clearly, it’s a term, which has meant many different things in different times and different places.”  (c. 7:30)

DR. JODI DEAN:  “You’re right to emphasise that it’s a contested term.  And, so, the definition, that I use isn’t one, that I think is set in stone or inadmissable from criticism or anything like that.  But, as a starting point, I think of communism, according to Marx‘s adage:  From each according to ability, to each according to need.  And what’s kind of neat about that definition of communism is that it’s actually not restricted to Marxism.  You see Plato using the same idea in his account of the guardian class in the book The Republic.  And you see in the early church, the early Christian church, the Apostles distributing items amongst each other along the same maxim.  From each according to ability, to each according to need.

“So, even though it’s contested, I think it’s a useful way to think about communism because it stretches across different ideological fields, different ways of thinking.”  (c. 8:38)

[snip]

[snip]  (c. 52:56)

SASHA LILLEY:  “So, what lessons, in particular, would you hope that people come away from the Occupy Movement with?”

DR. JODI DEAN:  “The first and most important lesson is that we are stronger when we organise under a common name.  Right?  What made Occupy so amazing was that all over the country, and all over the world, people were using one name to show their solidarity with one another and their opposition to capitalism.  They were using one name.  That’s crucial.  I think that, by itself, lets us know that a politics fragmented into identity and specific issues is not where we’re trapped anymore, that we can organise together under a common name.

“I think that the other thing we have learned—this is now kind of specific to what happened in New York after the [Occupy Wall Street] evictions—is that we have to have basic processes for organising people.  The Tech Ops Working Group produced a document soon after the eviction, that was saying: You know? We never had a good intake procedure. We never had good ways, when people came in after the first few weeks, of connecting their skills with working groups. We didn’t have a good list of people. We didn’t have names.  Right?

“I mean there wasn’t enough of an apparatus, that could channel people’s skills and energies into places, that would be productive.  So, I think we also learned that we need that.  And we really, really need that under conditions of extreme police repression, which is what Occupy is based all over the country.”  (c. 54:41)

SASHA LILLEY:  “Well, you are a scholar of social media.  And over the last four or five years, as there have been various kind of moments where protest bubbles up, seemingly, out of nowhere.  People have, including on the Left, have pointed to the power of social media.  This was particularly the case with the Arab Spring events in Egypt, also in Britain, a lot of the student protests, that happened.  There was a lot of talk that social media, Facebook, and other forms of media allowed people to come together in ways, that wouldn’t have happened otherwise.

“What’s your take on that argument?  Is social media, sort of, a new force to be reckoned with?”  (c. 55:30)

DR. JODI DEAN:  “The argument that people couldn’t have come together without social media is so annoying.  It’s like:  Gee, I wonder how the Bolsheviks did it?  Or:  How did Mao do it?

“I mean it’s just blind to real history.  So, that has driven me crazy even before the Arab Spring, when the protests in Iran were called the Twitter Revolution.

“But I’ve also been thinking lately that maybe my, kind of, knee-jerk and dismissive annoyance is wrong and that there’s something more to it.  It’s just kind of misconstrued.  And the stuff that it might be—I’ll try this out and see what you think—that might be more to it is that we can understand the attention, that the mainstream media puts on social media as signalling what media theorists were looking for as kind of the revolt of the cognitariat, or the revolt of the knowledge class.

“In other words, contemporary proletarianisation has meant that people were displaced from a set work site, that they’re more likely to have to work from home, that their work is much more precarious.  And, so, people use—instead of being in an office—they use cellphones or laptops from a variety of different places.  We would expect, then, that the movement of a precarious workforce, connected by cellphones and laptops, would happen outside with people connected by cellphones and laptops.

“And, so, maybe, the point is not—like, maybe I’m just wrong to dismiss all of this, kind of, Facebook revolution stuff—but, say:  No, the thing to look at is this is the revolt of precarious workers under the conditions of communicative capitalism.  Right?  These are people using—These are people in their workplace.  The workplace just happens to be the city streets, the parks, these other public settings.

“So, I think that, maybe, that we can actually see something, that’s not just media politics, but an indication of how the new version of this new media economy—or, as I say, communicative capitalism—is generating the force that opposes it.”  (c. 57:53)

SASHA LILLEY:  “Jodi Dean thank you so much for your time.”

DR. JODI DEAN:  “Oh, thank you so much.”

SASHA LILLEY:  “I’ve been speaking with the author of The Communist Horizon, Jodi Dean.  The book is published by Verso Books.  Her other many books include Blog Theory and Democracy and Other Neoliberal Fantasies.  She teaches political theory at Hobart and William Smith Colleges.

“You are listening to Against the Grain.  My name is Sasha Lilley.  I’d like to thank Jim [inaudible] at Ithaca Community Radio.  Thank you for listening.  Please tune in again next time.”

Learn more at AGAINST THE GRAIN.

[This transcript will be expanded as time constraints, and/or demand or resources, allow.]

***

[1] Terrestrial radio transmission.

Also see:

  • Behind The News Presents Professor Jodi Dean On Reclaiming Communism and the Political Party Form; 24 NOV 2016.

I recall the day vividly, listening with headphones on the job working with outdoor machinery as a day labourer on Appletree Lane in Mountain View, California.  Also see:  http://www.againstthegrain.org/tag-directory/communism

[2]  Jodi Dean, Democracy and Other Neoliberal Fantasies: Communicative Capitalism and Left Politics (Duke University Press, 2009)

***

[2 JUN 2015]

[Last modified at 12:23 PST on 28 NOV 2016]

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