Continued……. The protester mentioned that a group has been camped outside his home to appeal to his conscience for over a year, yet they had not received a response. In July 2024, authorities forced a six-month-long protest encampment off the road across from Blinken’s home in the US state of Virginia, just outside Washington. Protesters returned despite the police and the Virginia Department of Transportation referring to the protest as ‘illegal’ and ‘unsafe.’

Video credit: @skynews

Sources:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rjS77L-KzAU

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vcoQVPrG1n8

https://truthout.org/articles/secretary-of-genocide-blinken-speech-interrupted-by-pro-palestine-protesters/

https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2024/10/7/us-spends-more-than-20bn-in-aid-to-israel-middle-east-conflicts-report

https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2025/1/10/deaths-from-israeli-attacks-in-gaza-undercounted-by-41-percent-study-finds

https://www.thelancet.com/journals/lancet/article/PIIS0140-6736(24)01169-3/fulltext

https://www.nbcwashington.com/investigations/protesters-seek-return-near-blinkens-home-as-police-cost-tops-340k/3726822

https://www.axios.com/local/washington-dc/2024/02/06/tony-blinken-house-protest-camp-gaza-ceasefire

REACTING TO 'TWO KITES': LOVE, LOSS, & THE IMPACT OF WAR

War is hell. While most of us are fortunate enough to witness it on social media, radio or television, it is far from abstract for millions of people worldwide. 

In Lowkey’s ‘Two Kites,’ part of his 2024 album ‘Soundtrack To The Struggle 3,’ he skillfully brings to the fore what love and grief can feel like in the midst of war. He tells of a man who loses his beloved, the one person who anchored him and brought him peace. Her death, caused by the chaos around them, leaves him broken and aimless, living in the shadows of their shared memories as ‘two kites in the sky.’

The song’s emphasis on love and human connection shows that relationships can be both a source of strength and a profound reminder of what is lost in the face of unimaginable suffering.

Watch the whole reaction video on X. You can find our work on Bluesky, Patreon, Rumble and Telegram.

TRAORÉ SCHOOLS RUTO ON DEMOCRACY

What should democracy mean in the African context?

We’ve juxtaposed two visions - the first, that of Kenya’s William Ruto, delivering a noscripted condemnation of last July’s military coup against Niger’s Western-backed president; the second, that of Burkina Faso’s Ibrahim Traoré, speaking candidly from the heart on International Youth Day in August 2024.

Traoré rejects an imperialist version of democracy - crafted to serve a privileged few while leaving the majority in the lurch. Under this form, despite elections, policies are still forced on unwilling citizens. He insists that clinging on to this kind of democracy is tantamount, at best, to incompetence.

Continued……. Traoré could well have been describing Ruto, who has faced accusations of ruthlessly suppressing demonstrations against IMF-backed tax increases and poor governance. Yet, Kenya is often hailed as a beacon of democracy in a tumultuous region. Ruto was the first African president since 2008 to be invited on a state visit to the US.

Many would argue that these ‘accolades’ haven’t translated into a better life for Kenyans. Meanwhile, Traoré, often labelled a putschist by Western mainstream media, is leading a revolutionary anti-imperialist movement in Burkina Faso that’s transforming the lives of the country’s citizens.

So, with their contrasting records, who truly grasps the essence of democracy and freedom?

Video credits:
RTB (Radiodiffusion Télévision du Burkina)
Citizen TV Kenya

Sources:

https://www.thedailyscrumnews.com/how-captain-traore-is-turning-burkina-faso-into-a-model-of-african-independence/

https://www.sidwaya.info/journee-internationale-de-la-jeunesse-le-capitaine-ibrahim-traore-appelle-la-jeunesse-africaine-a-lunion/

https://khrc.or.ke/press-release/ruto-must-take-responsibility-for-protests-gross-human-rights-violations/

https://www.reuters.com/world/africa/how-kenya-police-cover-up-killings-anti-government-protesters-2025-01-06/

https://allafrica.com/stories/202501130299.html

NYT CALLS FOR VENEZUELA INVASION

Here is New York Times columnist Bret Stephens agitating for an invasion of Venezuela on ‘moral and national security’ grounds. 

Perhaps this columnist has amnesia or a reactionary agenda, but history shows geopolitical and economic interests—not humanitarian concerns—drive US interventions. 

For example, the US focuses on Venezuela’s alliances with US adversaries like Iran and leans on issues like drug trafficking and migration to demonise the South American country. Yet, the Washington-based Center for Economic and Policy Research estimated Western economic sanctions killed about 40,000 Venezuelans between 2017 and 2018.

Continued…….. UN special rapporteur Alena Douhan said the sanctions caused an imports drop that left about 2.5 million Venezuelans facing food insecurity by 2021. Tanking oil prices and, later, Western sanctions forced 7.1 million Venezuelans to flee the country between 2015 and 2023. Rather than solve these issues, an invasion would likely exacerbate them, as seen with the migrant flows into Europe after the 2011 NATO invasion of Libya. US interventions have also destabilised Chile, Guatemala, Nicaragua and Panama, causing long-term suffering for their populations.

Further, a US invasion would violate Venezuela’s sovereignty and right to self-determination, preventing ordinary Venezuelans from shaping their future. The columnist’s proposal to install a US-backed government and offer amnesty to military officials would create a neocolonial structure that ensures Venezuelan compliance with US interests, perpetuating dependency in the process.

The United States selectively calls for justice by punishing Venezuela while rewarding US ally, the United Arab Emirates, as it destabilises countries in Africa. 

Sources
News
https://archive.ph/hI5sT

Effects of sanctions on Venezuela
https://www.democracynow.org/2019/4/26/headlines/report_us_sanctions_have_killed_40_000_in_venezuela_since_2017#:~:text=More%20than%2040%2C000%20people%20have,and%20increased%20disease%20and%20mortality

Effects of West invasion of Libya
https://www.counterpunch.org/2018/09/25/bombing-libya-the-origins-of-europes-immigration-crisis/

Effects of US imperialism in Latin America
https://jacobin.com/2023/03/greg-grandin-interview-us-policy-latin-america

UAE as a negative actor in Africa
https://www.alestiklal.net/en/article/airlift-between-the-uae-and-chad-military-support-to-the-rsf-in-sudan-under-humanitarian-guise

https://venezuelanalysis.com/analysis/us-sanctions-are-killing-venezuelans

https://www.humanrightspulse.com/mastercontentblog/humanitarian-impact-of-sanctions-on-venezuela

PALESTINIAN KIDS CELEBRATE GAZA CEASEFIRE

Joy and relief flooded Palestinian homes following Qatar announcing a ceasefire agreement between Israel and H*mas.

This video showing jubilant children reflects the atmosphere in Gaza after 15 months of relentless Israeli military operations that, as of mid-January 2025, have claimed over 46,000 lives, according to the Gaza Health Ministry. However, the Lancet medical journal reported this month that authorities may have undercounted deaths by over 100,000 with an early July 2024 figure surpassing 186,000. The Gaza Health Ministry has said Israel has primarily k*lled women and children.

The latest surge in violence during Israel’s 76-year occupation of Palestine has disproportionately impacted Palestinian children.

Continued…….. A Human Rights Watch report from 9 April 2024 accused Israel of employing starvation as a weapon of war, resulting in severe malnutrition and dehydration among children, as well as pregnant and nursing mothers. Furthermore, Israel’s destruction of nearly all Gaza hospitals has exacerbated the crisis, leading to more child deaths.

While the Geneva Conventions, a set of international treaties that determine how civilians should be treated in armed conflicts, bar civilians from collective punishment, Israel has obstructed humanitarian aid deliveries and severed water, electricity, and fuel supplies to Gaza. An October 2024 UN report revealed that over 1.8 million Palestinians faced ‘extremely critical’ levels of hunger. Disturbingly, Israeli Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich suggested it might be ‘just and moral’ to allow 2 million civilians to starve until hostages are released.

Under the ceasefire agreement set to commence on 19 January, H*mas will return Israeli hostages in exchange for hundreds of Palestinian prisoners, some of whom are women and children.

Yet, the memories of bombings, sniper fire, corpses, and blood may haunt Palestinians for years to come. Further, with Israel violating a ceasefire in Lebanon and the ceasefire drawn up early last year for Ramadan in Gaza, we can’t be sure this will stick. Do you think the ceasefire will stick. Please let us know in the comments.

Sources:

https://www.globaltimes.cn/page/202501/1326986.shtml

https://www.hrw.org/news/2024/04/09/gaza-israels-imposed-starvation-deadly-children

https://www.ipcinfo.org/ipcinfo-website/alerts-archive/issue-97/en/

https://edition.cnn.com/2024/08/06/middleeast/israeli-minister-smotrich-starve-gazans-intl/index.html

https://news.un.org/en/story/2024/10/1155836

https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2025/1/10/deaths-from-israeli-attacks-in-gaza-undercounted-by-41-percent-study-finds

https://www.thelancet.com/journals/lancet/article/PIIS0140-6736(24)01169-3/fulltext

L.A. FIRES: BLACK RESCUERS BRANDED LOOTERS

As California burns, the flames of racism have also been reignited. News coverage of looting going on in abandoned homes was accompanied by video of Black people going in and out of houses - immensely misleading, as a closer look reveals they were helping rescue items from the fire. It’s unclear whether the implicit racism was intentional, but our brother Louis Plummer (@advicefromloius), sick of the way upstanding Black people are still being constantly disparaged in the US, breaks the issue down.

https://x.com/AdviceFromLouis/status/1877524332735508642

JAMES BALDWIN ON FLEEING ‘SOCIAL TERROR’ IN U.S.

James Baldwin (1924-87) used his essays and speeches to challenge systemic racism and injustice in the United States.

In this clip from a 1969 debate with philosopher Paul Weiss (1901-2002) on ‘The Dick Cavett Show,’ Baldwin explained how it was impossible to extricate himself as a writer from the Black experience in the US. He explained how leaving the US in 1948 freed him from the ‘social terror’ he faced as a Black man. Outside the US, he could write without the constant fear of oppression.

Continued….. Baldwin has said the ‘American dream’ was built on the subjugation of Black people, and true freedom required the country to confront its racist past and present. He challenged the idea that racism was solely an individual failing, framing it instead as a systemic problem. His works, such as ‘The Fire Next Time’ and ‘Notes of a Native Son,’ explored the intersection of race, class and sexual identity, advocating for social justice and equal rights for all marginalised people.

Video Credit: ‘The Dick Cavett Show,’ @ABC/@PBS (X)

Sources:

1. https://www.openculture.com/2020/08/james-baldwin-talks-about-racism-in-america-civil-rights-activism-on-the-dick-cavett-show-1969.html#google_vignette

2. https://nmaahc.si.edu/explore/stories/introduction-james-baldwin

3. https://time.com/5859214/james-baldwin-racism/

L.A. FIRE BURNS HISTORIC BLACK TOWN

Wildfires do not choose their victims, yet the recent southern California blazes reveal the underlying racial disparities within a community.

High winds and lack of water supplies led to wildfires in the Los Angeles area tragically claiming the lives of at least 25 people, forcing about 180,000 residents to evacuate and reducing entire neighbourhoods to ashes. One such area, Altadena, located 22 kilometres (14 miles) northeast of Los Angeles, has a population of 42,000.

Continued……. During the 1960s Civil Rights era, Altadena was one of the few places in California where Black people could own homes. As a result, Black home ownership in Altadena surged to 81 per cent, nearly double the national average. Sadly, what’s been called the ‘Eaton fire’ destroyed about 1,400 homes in Altadena and neighbouring Pasadena.

In this video, Kahlil Greene, who calls himself the ‘Gen Z historian’ on TikTok, said residents fear the government overlooking them as it directs aid toward more affluent areas like Malibu. Many are also anxious about receiving adequate insurance payouts to help them rebuild their lives. Residents expressed their frustration, noting the absence of fire trucks in Altadena during the early morning on 8 January, leaving them feeling their community was not a priority.

Video credit: @kahlil_greene (X)

Sources:

https://nap.nationalacademies.org/read/25622/chapter/4#18

https://www.nationalww2museum.org/war/articles/lieutenant-willa-brown

https://www.nbcnews.com/news/nbcblk/l-wildfires-leave-diverse-historic-altadena-ashes-rubble-rcna187065

https://www.cbsnews.com/losangeles/news/altadena-left-devastated-by-deadly-eaton-fire-everything-is-gone/

https://www.usatoday.com/story/money/2025/01/14/altadena-california-fires-burned-rebuilt/77623737007/

https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2025/01/13/homes-burned-los-angeles-wildfires/77669976007/

CIA AND LUMUMBA’S ASSASSINATION

The US-backed assassination of Patrice Lumumba, the first prime minister of the DRC and the country’s independence hero, took place 64 years ago today, on 17 January 1961. The gruesome murder was the culmination of multiple plots by the American, British and Belgian governments, which relied on paid Congolese accomplices and a Belgian execution squad to carry out the hit. Declassified CIA documents revealed the American government’s desire to assassinate Lumumba even before the country’s independence, and the director of the CIA had called him “worse than Castro.”

The straight-talking pan-Africanist stated numerous times that his interests were those of the Congolese people and described himself as a nationalist.