U.S. STUDENT RALLY: WE WON’T BE COWED!

If you want to sum up the feeling of U.S. student protests against Israel’s destruction of Gaza, this clip does a good job.

Sean Blackmon is speaking at a rally at the campus of George Washington University. He’s a member of the Party for Socialism and Liberation and tells the crowd: ‘What kind of system do we live in where an institution can call the police on you for opposing g*n*cide, but there’s no authority that you can call on an institution that supports g*n*cide,?’

Colleges nationwide are telling police to remove students who’ve set up encampments on campuses amid demands universities cut their Israeli-linked investments. In less than a fortnight, nearly 1,000 students have been arrested.

Continued…. The crackdown jars with the universities’ claims of supporting freedom of expression. They argue setting up tents on their territory amounts to trespassing and violates their institutional policies.

Whatever the arguments, students remain defiant and we’re seeing more speeches like this one. Meanwhile, in Gaza, scores of Palestinian students and children gathered on Sunday to show appreciation for the U.S. college demonstrations. It’s a movement that’s being heard. And it shows no signs of slowing.

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NAMIBIAN OIL DISCOVERY AMONG WORLD’S BIGGEST

Namibia should be joining the ballers club following the discovery of one of the world’s largest oilfields. Containing at least 10-billion barrels, the Mopane complex, off the coast, holds a promise of riches for years to come…or does it?

Portugal company Galp made the discovery and currently has an 80 per cent stake in the venture, with the remainder going to Namibian firms. It sounds like a repeat of what we’ve seen too often on the continent. In places like Guyana, it is companies like Exxon that make a killing, taking home a vast sum of revenues, leaving the country with peanuts and holding the bag in case of events like environmental pollution.

Continued…. However, Galp has said it might sell half its interest but would the Namibian government step in to buy it? It could give the country a unique chance to take control of its resources and use oil money to address vast wealth inequality. Windhoek can grasp a unique opportunity, or will it choose a depressingly familiar path?

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RACIST KARENS GO WAY BACK

The word Karen is often used to described self-ennoscriptd White women, who abuse Black men. However, the racist phenomenon was around long before it became an internet meme.

One such example is the shocking case of 14-year-old Emmett Till who was lynched in Mississippi in 1955. He was tortured and killed after being wrongly accused of whistling at White woman, Carolyn Bryant, in her family’s grocery store.

His case galvanised the rising civil rights movement, but also highlighted the emergence of what we call ‘Karens’ today. It's deep-rooted behaviour that's been around for decades.

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CONGOLESE ABANDONED BUT
$1BN RAISED IN 24H FOR NOTRE-DAME?

In this clip from our round table with Congo activist Chakabars, he compares how the West has totally ignored the ongoing genocide in DRC with how it rallied to stump up a billion dollars in just 24 hours after Paris’ iconic Notre-Dame Cathedral burnt down.

Obviously cultural preservation is a wonderful and important thing, but you’d have thought human life is - or rather, millions of human lives are - a more urgent priority.

If this discussion piques your interest, the full round table is on our YouTube channel. As always, your input in the comments is appreciated.

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What do you see here? Just a diplomat sleeping at the job while the world falls apart around him? Not quite. This was in fact a 1960 protest by Nigeria’s then-Permanent Representative to the UN.

Jaja Anucha Wachuku had been refused a request to respond to a racist remark made by an earlier speaker. So - to signal his displeasure - he pretended to be asleep and ignored the proceedings. His protest highlighted a general contempt at the UN at the time for newly independent African nations.

Continued….. You’d think six decades down the line, the global body would have fundamentally reformed in how it elevates certain member nations above others. However, the situation remains essentially the same as it was during Wachuku’s time. The five permanent members of the UN Security Council - all non-African - continue to wield more power than the rest of the members combined. They are able to veto decisions that have been agreed upon by the General Assembly. This power has been frequently abused. For example, the US recently vetoed progressive resolutions on a ceasefire in Gaza and on ending its own 60-year economic blockade against Cuba.

What do you reckon? Should the envoys of the world’s nation’s pick up the torch of Wachuku’s protest - staging a collective snooze-in in the General Assembly hall to send a message to the UNSC that it’s high time it reformed? What reforms would you like to see?

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RACISM IN THEIR BLOOD: HOW U.S. BANNED BLACK DONORS

Throughout the ‘80s, during the height of the AIDS scare, the US banned first Haitians and then Africans from donating blood.

Back then, Black immigrants along with gay and bisexual men, haemophiliacs and users of hypodermic needles were all deemed by The United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA) as high risk when it came to transmitting HIV.

In response, tens of thousands of Haitian and African immigrants took to the streets in protest - leading, eventually, to the reversal of the FDA’s decision.

It’s a reminder of the institutional racism our people have had to combat, but also an inspiration - collective action works. In what struggle today do you want to see more collective action?

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REMEMBERING THE 1866 MEMPHIS MASSACRE

The Memphis Massacre was a three-day conflict that erupted in late afternoon on May 1st, 1866, in Tennessee.

It started when local police tried to break up a public gathering of Black soldiers and their families. The crowd refused to disperse and the officers backed off - though one accidentally shot himself in the leg. This was blamed on the soldiers and rumours quickly swept through the town that a Black insurrection was underway.

Continued…. A mob consisting of White police officers, firemen and citizens hastily assembled and began rampaging through Black districts committing atrocities. The initial targets were Black soldiers, but the violence was soon directed against all Blacks. Over three days, 46 Blacks were murdered and some 75 injured - with a number of Black women raped. Black homes, schools and churches were looted, vandalised and torched. White Northerners who worked as missionaries and school teachers in Black schools were also targeted. It took the military to finally end the violence.

The national impact of the riot was significant. A Congressional committee’s investigation and report, which was controlled by Radical Republicans, was used to gain support for Reconstruction policies, including the rapid endorsement of the Fourteenth Amendment to the Constitution, which made all ex-slaves citizens. The report also singled out Irish Southerners as a major threat to Southern Blacks, blaming the overwhelmingly Irish police force of Memphis and the Black-Irish competition for manual labour jobs for the underlying tensions that led to the conflict. However, the report largely ignored the role of non-Irish Whites who participated in the rioting and the authority given to Black soldiers, which had disturbed many of Memphis’s White citizens.

No criminal proceedings were held for the instigators or perpetrators of atrocities committed.

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UK-RWANDA BILL DOESN’T CURE MIGRANT CRISIS

It’s been revealed the UK has sent its first failed asylum seeker to Rwanda. He voluntarily agreed to leave after being offered £3,000 by the British government. And Kigali has opened itself up to receive many more. From the summer, illegal migrants in Britain will be FORCIBLY deported to the East African country.

It will happen under the UK’s controversial The Safety of Rwanda Bill which became law at the end of April. The scheme will see Rwanda process asylum claims on the UK’s behalf and could deport applicants back to their country of origin.

Continued…. It’s thought the deal will cost the UK government around £1.8-million per asylum seeker, although it’s not clear how much Rwanda will receive. But whatever the financial benefits, the scheme’s faced a barrage of criticism from human rights experts. Rwanda’s opposition parties have also been vocal, claiming the scheme does nothing to address the root cause of the UK’s migration ‘problem’. Migrants are fleeing wars, famine and economic catastrophe.

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GEORGE THE POET REJECTED MBE

George Mpanga, better known by his stage name George the Poet, is a UK-based African spoken-word artist, poet, rapper and podcast host.

For @georgethepoet's achievements, the British Empire chose to award him Member of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire (MBE), which the 33-year-old rejected in 2019 because of how the empire treated his homeland, Uganda, and other colonial holdings.

In this 30 April interview with the UK's Channel 4, George the Poet said all Global South people should question what the British Empire stands for and reject such awards. He also spoke about how British politics has morphed into displaying indifference toward the working class, which may have more to do with the evolution of capitalism than a breakdown of ethics.

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GAZA CHILDREN FIND RARE PEACE

Palestinian children can be seen playing in the rubble in Gaza. They’ve created a makeshift swing from collapsed power lines. A moment captured by Gaza press photographer Mariam Dagga.

Over 13,000 youngsters have been killed by Israel’s bombardment since October. That’s higher than from four years of global conflict, according to the UN agency for Palestinian refugees (UNRWA). Images like these vividly remind us of the desperate human cost. Amid the chaos, little boys and girls are finding a semblance of peace and joy. Perhaps a small chance to relive their childhood robbed by war.

Back in February, UNICEF estimated the conflict has orphaned 17,000 children. That figure is now likely way higher with the number of Palestinians killed topping 34,000.

Continued…. We’ve noticed some people on social media have questioned this footage, based on the fact some of the children are Black. FYI Afro-Palestinians make up around one per cent of the Gaza Strip’s population. You can read more about their history here:

https://www.voice-online.co.uk/news/world-news/2024/04/15/afro-palestinians-the-untold-story-of-a-community-caught-in-gazas-crossfire/

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WHAT IS THE UAE DOING IN THE DR CONGO?

In Late 2022, the United Arab Emirates signed a 25-year, 1.9-billion-dollar deal with the Congolese government to mine tin, tantalum, tungsten and gold.

African Stream's @ahmed.ghoneim.official explains how the contract's exclusive rights, preferential tax rate and lengthy duration go against Kinshasa’s aim of developing processing capacity within the country and maximising its mineral wealth.

In other words, this will not benefit millions of internally displaced Congolese, but further contribute to the plunder of their riches.

Do you agree that the deal is bad for Congo, or have we missed something?

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Continued…. Harper requested identification from the driver, noticed a discrepancy, asked him to exit the car, and questioned him at the vehicle’s rear.

Accounts differ regarding what followed, but a shootout ensued. Shots instantly killed Zayd, Assata was shot and wounded with her hands raised, and Sundiata Acoli was apprehended after fleeing.

Foerster died after being shot twice in the head with his gun, while Harper was wounded.

Though Harper acknowledged shooting and killing Zayd, police charged Assata and Sundiata with killing Foerster. Police also charged Assata with killing Zayd, her closest friend, whom Professor James Small has referred to as Assata’s husband.

In 1979, the Black Liberation Army liberated Assata from prison. In 1984, Cuba granted her political asylum, and she continues to live there to this day. Meanwhile, authorities released Acoli in May 2022 after nearly 50 years behind bars.

We hail these Black liberation fighters.

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HOW COLONISERS FORCED DESTRUCTIVE CAPITALISM ON AFRICA

George Mpanga, better known by his stage name, George the Poet (@georgethepoet), breaks down how European colonisers introduced capitalism in Africa against the will of our ancestors. The Ugandan spoken-word artist describes how our land was ruthlessly appropriated from its rightful owners and converted into an asset for the sole benefit of colonisers. Thus were the livelihoods of Africans destroyed, and the exploitation continues today despite the attainment of ‘flag independence.’

George admits his rise to fame was enabled by the British capitalist system. He was offered an MBE before turning 30, and was invited to read a love poem at the 2018 royal wedding of Prince Harry and Meghan Markle.