People of Sahel inspire global movement against imperialism

By the Peoples Dispatch

From November 19-21, hundreds gathered in Niamey for the Conference in Solidarity with the Peoples of the Sahel and heard first hand from people who have been on the frontlines of the struggle against French colonialism.

Shouts of “Free, Free Palestine” and “Down with Imperialism” rang through the streets of Niamey as anti-imperialists from Niger and around the world marched together against Israel’s genocide on Thursday, November 21. The march culminating in the landmark Thomas Sanakra Memorial came at the conclusion of the three-day Conference in Solidarity with the Peoples of the Sahel, organized by the Pan-Africanism Today Secretariat and the West African People’s Organization.

Unlikely Trump can actually eliminate Education Department, experts say

By Shauneen Miranda

The Trump administration could, however, manage to ‘shrink its footprint,’ says University of South Carolina law professor

WASHINGTON — President-elect Donald Trump’s pledge to get rid of the U.S. Department of Education will be far easier said than done.  As Trump seeks to redefine U.S. education policy, the complex logistics, bipartisan congressional approval and redirection of federal programs required make dismantling the department a challenging — not impossible — feat.

It’s an effort that experts say is unlikely to gain traction in Congress and, if enacted, would create roadblocks for how Trump seeks to implement the rest of his wide-ranging education agenda.

History Will Not Be Kind to Biden's Complicity in Gaza

By James Zogby

History will not be kind to the presidency of Joseph Biden when it evaluates his administration’s handling of Israel’s genocidal war on Gaza. At best, his response will be judged weak and feckless. At worst, he will be seen as enabling of or even complicitous in the crimes committed.

Trump's Nomination of Project 2025 Architect Means Social Security, Medicare 'Are At Risk'

By Jake Johnson

"Vought's nomination makes it crystal clear that Trump lied to the American people," said Rep. Rosa DeLauro. "Trump's agenda is the Project 2025 manifesto."

President-elect Donald Trump's choice of Russell Vought, a Project 2025 architect, to lead the White House budget office was seen as further evidence of the threat the incoming administration poses to Social Security, Medicare, and other critical government programs.

Vought, who currently heads the far-right think tank Center for Renewing America think tank, served as director of the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) during Trump's first term, and he's set to return to the post after playing a central role in crafting the Project 2025 agenda that the Republican president-elect attempted to disavow on the campaign trail.

Trump still has not signed critical transition agreements allowing access to agencies

By Ashley Murray

WASHINGTON — Less than two months before being sworn into office, President-elect Donald Trump has yet to sign the presidential transition paperwork that unlocks critical clearances, information and access to White House resources for his transition team.

Political experts say this is worrisome because history shows the period early in a presidency can be a vulnerable time for a new administration, and the point of easing the transition is so a new president’s staff can access government offices early and avoid problems.

Trump, who has rapidly announced senior staff and Cabinet picks over the last 15 days, has still not finalized multiple agreements that are foundational for his team to begin receiving confidential information and briefings across all federal agencies, as well as millions of dollars in transition resources, including office space and staff assistance.

Prison telecom companies, reform advocates debate lower phone fees for incarcerated people

 By Bobbi-Jeanne Misack 

The state’s utilities regulator this week heard arguments on whether to adopt lower in-custody phone call rates to comply with a new FCC rule. The rule has faced industry pushback and legal challenges.

The Louisiana Public Service Commission on Wednesday (Nov. 20) reviewed the rates that prisons and jails charge inmates to make phone calls, following a directive from the Federal Communications Commission earlier this year mandating lower fees than are currently charged at Louisiana state prisons and most jails.

At the meeting, held in Baton Rouge, commissioners heard testimony from both prison and jail telecommunications companies and advocates pushing for free calls. 

The second struggle for African independence has begun in the Sahel

By Pavan Kulkani 

 

“Before the arrival of the white people, we had no borders in Africa. They were drawn by colonizers. We should erase these borders and regain our freedom of movement,” said Nigerien leader Aboubakar Alassane of West Africa People’s Organization (WAPO), addressing a panel discussion on the emergence of the Alliance of Sahel States (AES) on the second day of the three-day Conference in Solidarity with the Peoples of the Sahel.

“The US has 50 states united. Why can’t Africa,” he asked. Kwame Nkrumah, Pan-Africanist leader and the first president of independent Ghana, “had warned that Africa should unite or perish.” And Africa, disunited, was consequently “being killed.”

Are the 2024 elections building a false sense of comfort?

words by Charles Brooks

President Biden struggles began within the first few months of winning the presidency, and continued right up to the June debate. News reporting and polling results consistently showed his struggle with Black voters and younger voters while questions about his age and cognitive capacity, escalated over time. The broken campaign promises on criminal justice and voting rights while personal economies took the hit from the rising costs of living.  For months, Gaza protests stretched from the streets to college campuses across the country, inviting deeper scrutiny and criticism on the Biden presidency.

Then the 90-minute debate debacle between Biden and former president Trump took place, as Biden’s poor performance triggered a public display of panic inside the Democratic Party.

The internal turmoil set in motion an incredible sequence of events culminating in the installation of the Vice President to the top of the ticket.

Israel's War on Gaza and Beyond Has Cost US Taxpayers At Least $22.76 Billion: Report

By Brett Wilkins

"It has been difficult for the U.S. public, journalists, and members of Congress to get an accurate understanding of the amount of military equipment and financial assistance that the U.S. government has provided."

U.S. armed aid to Israel and related spending on American militarism in the Middle East cost taxpayers at least $22.76 billion over the past year, according to new research published Monday.

The Costs of War Project at Brown University's Watson Institute for International & Public Affairs—which has long been the premier source for statistics on the human and economic costs of ongoing U.S.-led post-9/11 wars and militarism in the Middle East and beyond—called the $22.76 billion estimate "conservative."

"This figure includes the $17.9 billion the U.S. government has approved in security assistance for Israeli military operations in Gaza and elsewhere since October 7—substantially more than in any other year since the U.S. began granting military aid to Israel in 1959," report authors Linda Bilmes, William Hartung, and Stephen Semler wrote. "Yet the report describes how this is only a partial amount of the U.S. financial support provided during this war."

In addition to the repeated multibillion-dollar rounds of military aid to Israel, related U.S. operations in the region, particularly bombing and shipping defense in and near Yemen—where Houthi rebels have attacked maritime commerce and launched missiles at Israel—have cost over $2 billion since last October.

"It has been difficult for the U.S. public, journalists, and members of Congress to get an accurate understanding of the amount of military equipment and financial assistance that the U.S. government has provided to Israel's military during the past year of war," the report states. "There is likewise little U.S. public awareness of the costs of the United States military's own related operations in the region, particularly in and around Yemen."

The analysis adds that regional hostilities "have escalated to become the most sustained military campaign by U.S. forces since the 2016-19 air war" against the so-called Islamic State in Iraq and Syria.

"The Costs of War project has an obligation to look at the consequences of the U.S. backing of Israel's military operations after October 7, especially as it reverberates throughout the region," Costs of War director Stephanie Savell said in a statement. "Our project examines the human and budgetary costs of U.S. militarism at home and abroad, and for the last year, people in Gaza have suffered the highest consequences imaginable."

According to the Gaza Health Ministry and international agencies, Israel's yearlong assault on Gaza has left at least 149,000 Palestinians dead, maimed, or missing, and millions more forcibly displaced, starved, or sickened. U.S. military aid to Israel has continued in successive waves, even as the country stands trial for genocide at the International Court of Justice.

The Hamas-led October 7 attack on resulted in more than 1,100 Israeli and other deaths—at least some of which were caused by so-called "friendly fire" and intentional targeting under the Hannibal Directive—with more than 240 people kidnapped.

Although the Costs of War Project report mainly covers U.S. aid to Israel since last October, it also notes that since 1948—the year the modern state of Israel was founded, largely through the ethnic cleansing of Palestine's Arabs—American taxpayers have contributed over a quarter trillion inflation-adjusted dollars to the key Mideast ally.

A second report published Monday by the Costs of War Project found that around 90% of Gaza's population has been forcibly displaced by the Israeli onslaught and 96% of Gazans face "acute levels of food insecurity." The publication cites a letter sent last week by a group of U.S. physicians to President Joe Biden—who has repeatedly declared his "unwavering" support for Israel—stating that "it is likely that the death toll from this conflict is already greater than 118,908, an astonishing 5.4% of Gaza's population." That figure includes 62,000 deaths due to starvation.

"In addition to killing people directly through traumatic injuries, wars cause 'indirect deaths' by destroying, damaging, or causing deterioration of economic, social, psychological and health conditions," report author Sophia Stamatopoulou-Robbins wrote. "These deaths result from diseases and other population-level health effects that stem from war's destruction of public infrastructure and livelihood sources, reduced access to water and sanitation, environmental damage, and other such factors."

The new report comes less than two weeks after Israel secured yet another U.S. armed aid package, this one worth $8.7 billion. Meanwhile, the Federal Emergency Management Agency said it faced a nearly $9 billion shortfall for Hurricane Helene relief efforts.

This article originally appeared in Common Dreams October 7th, 2024

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U.S. appellate court temporarily allows enforcement of DeSantis’ ‘Anti-Riot’ law

By Jackie Llanos

A federal appellate court is temporarily allowing Florida to enforce the 2021 state law imposing harsher penalties for protesters who engage in violent or disorderly conduct.

The unanimous decision by a three-judge panel of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit reverses a federal trial judge’s ruling blocking the law because its definition of the word “riot” was too vague. Now, the Eleventh Circuit is sending the dispute between several civil rights organizations and Gov. Ron DeSantis back to the lower court.

Although temporary, the reversal of U.S. District Judge Mark Walker’s preliminary injunction means that DeSantis is likely to prevail against the legal challenge to (HB 1), officially labeled the “Combatting Violence, Disorder, and Looting, and Law Enforcement Protection Act,” but better known as the “Anti-Riot Act.”

“The plaintiffs’ fear of guilt by association under the statute is also unfounded,” wrote Judge Jill Pryor in the 17-page opinion. She was appointed to the 11th Circuit by former President Barack Obama. “If a protestor lacks the ‘intent to assist others in violent and disorderly conduct,’ the spontaneous violence of unrelated individuals is not enough to trigger liability under the statute.”

She added: “The statute does not broadly prohibit constitutionally protected speech. Nor does it reach the plaintiffs’ hypothetical photographing or videotaping of police officers at a violent protest, so long as the photography or videography is not intended to assist others in carrying out violence.”

Much of the appellate court’s opinion hinges on the Florida Supreme Court’s interpretation of the law. In June, the Florida court ruled that the law didn’t apply to peaceful protesters who happened to be with a crowd that turned violent. Both DeSantis and the ACLU of Florida celebrated the state Supreme Court’s opinion at the time, with the civil rights organization calling it a “monumental victory for protesters.”

Daniel Tilley, the ACLU of Florida’s legal director, also celebrated Monday’s ruling, writing in a statement that HB 1 threatened Black Floridians who have been criminalized and targeted for exercising their rights.

“Today’s decision reaffirms important legal protections that will benefit anyone who wants to take a public stand to demand racial justice, as well as all Floridians who want to peacefully demonstrate for what they believe in without fear of reprisal,” Tilley wrote.

Walker will have to reevaluate the law in accordance with the appellate ruling.

Pryor thanked the Florida justices for their input in the ruling.

The Florida Legislature passed the law the spring after protests broke out throughout the state and nation against police brutality after George Floyd’s murder by Minneapolis Police Department officers.

After the law’s passage, groups such as Dream Defenders, the Florida State Conference of the NAACP, Black Collective Inc., Chainless Change Inc., and Black Lives Matter Alliance Broward filed suit in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Florida. The groups claimed the law chilled First Amendment rights.

This story has been updated to include comment from the ACLU of Florida sent to Florida Phoenix after publication.

This article originally appeared in the Florida Phoenix October 7th, 2024

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