Volume 21, Number 6
Mississippi’s SB 2988
David Bacon
StratCom
Bruce k. Gagnon
A War on Communities
Cynthia Peters
Commentary
Letters
Z magazine Readers
Campaign Issues
Lydia Sargent
Aircraft Maintenance
Carl Finamore
Racial Profiling
Margaret Kwoka
Sean Bell Verdict
Rosa Clemente
Religious Right
Bill Berkowitz
Water Crisis
Alex Stonehill
Culture
Damming the Flood
Ben Terrall
Review: Takeover
Jeffrey Frank
Features
Triumph of Lunacy
Edward Herman
Dr. Wall Street
Jeremy Brecher
Market Madness
A.k. Gupta
Financial Crisis and Financialization's Appropriations
William Tabb
Epic Recession?
Jack Rasmus
Colombia Trade Deal
Roger Bybee
Zaps
Zaps
Various submissions
NOTE: Z Magazine subscribers and sustainers have access to all Z Magazine articles here and in the archive. The latest Z Magazine articles available to everyone are listed in the Free Articles box at the top of the table of contents, and are starred in the list below. Questions? e-mail Z Magazine Online.
Zaps - June 2008
Events
WOMEN - The National Council for Research on Women's annual conference is June 5-7, 2008 at the Kimmel Center
Contact: National Council for Research on Women,
CLASS STUDY - The Center for Study of Working Class Life will have its annual conference, "How Class Works" at the State University of New York at Stony Brook June 5-7.
Contact: Michael Zweig, Department of Economics, State University of New York , Stony Brook , NY 11794
MEDIA - The 2008 National Conference for Media Reform is scheduled for June 6-8 at the Minneapolis Convention Center
LABOR - The Pacific Northwest Labour History Association will hold its 40th annual conference, Indigenous, Immigrant, Migrant Labour & Globalization, at Simon Fraser University Harbour Centre in Vancouver , BC
Contact: Conference Services, Halpern Centre, Simon Fraser University 8888 University Drive , Burnaby , British Columbia Canada V5A 1S6
BIKING - Join Bikes Not Bombs June 8 for their 21st annual Bike-A-Thon and Green Roots Festival in Boston , Massachusetts
Contact: Bikes Not Bombs,
CONVERGENCE - An East Coast Unconventional Convergence is scheduled for June 13-15 on the campus of American University in Washington , DC
CARAVAN - Between June 14 and July 14, the annual US- Cuba Friendshipment Caravan (including Hip-Hop Without Borders) will head to Cuba Texas
Contact: IFCO/Pastors for Peace, 418 W. 145th St. , New York , NY 10031
JUNETEENTH - Juneteenth is the oldest known celebration commemorating the ending of slavery in the United States
Contact: Middle East Fellowship, PO Box 1252 , Brea , CA 92822
WORKPLACE - The 2008 National Conference of Democratic Workplaces will be held at Loyola University this June 19-22 in New Orleans
Contact: US PO Box 170701 , San Francisco , CA 94117
DEBT RELIEF - The Jubilee USA Network 2008 Grassroots Training & Action Conference is scheduled for June 20-22 in Columbus , Ohio
Contact: Jubilee USA 212 East Capitol Street NE , Washington DC 20003
ANTIWAR - A National Antiwar Conference to stop the war in Iraq and bring the troops home now, sponsored by the National Assembly, is scheduled for June 28-29 in Cleveland , Ohio
Contact: National Assembly to End the Iraq PO Box 21008 , Cleveland OH 44121
G8 SUMMIT - Anti-G8 Japan actions are being planned for June and July in Japan , in conjunction with the G8 Summit which will be held from July 7-9 in Hokkaido , Japan
Contact: Rights Action, PO Box 50887 , Washington DC 20091
GREENS - The 2008 Green National Convention: Live Green, Vote Green will take place in Chicago United States
Contact: Green Party of the United States 1711 18th Street NW , Washington , DC 20009
LA RAZA - The Annual National Council of La Raza (NCLR) Conference is scheduled for July 12-15 in San Diego
Contact: NCLR Headquarters Office, Raul Yzaguirre Building 1126 16th Street, NW , Washington , DC 20036
INSTITUTE - The Center for Popular Economics will hold its 2008 Summer Institute July 27-August 2 at Roosevelt University in Chicago
Contact: Center for Popular Economics, PO Box 785 , Amherst , MA 01004
ORGANIZING - Democracy Unlimited of Humboldt County invites concerned citizens to "Community Organizing for Deep Democracy"—in Humboldt County , California in August and in Sonoma County
Contact: Democracy Unlimited of Humboldt County P.O. Box 610 , Eureka
RETREAT - The Union for Radical Political Economics (URPE) is holding its 2008 Summer Conference/Retreat on August 15-18 at Camp Deer Run in Pine Bush,
Contact: Union for Radical Political Economics, Gordon Hall,
ZINES - The 8th annual Portland Zine Symposium is a free two-day conference and social gathering, celebrating independent publishing at the
Contact: Claudia McBarron at 503-249-8503 or Justin Hargesheimer at 503-975-5731; www.pdxzines.com.
Campaigns
BILLBOARDS - United for Peace & Justice has a program to help non-profit organizations place local billboards with anti-war / peace messages in their local communities at reduced public service rates.
Contact: United for Peace & Justice, PO Box 607, Times Square Station, NY , NY 10108
HEALTHCARE - A universal single-payer plan has again been introduced in Congress by Rep. Conyers (D-MI), this time with the support of 90 other members, numerous unions, and independent groups.
Contact: HR676.org, PO Box 882122
NEW NUKES - Dozens of organizations are conducting a Congressional lobbying campaign to stop the Administration from building a new nuclear weapon, the so-called Reliable Replacement Warhead (RRW) program, which violates U.S.
Contact: Friends Committee on National Legislation (FCNL), 245 Second Street Washington , DC 20002
SWEATSHOPS - The anti-sweatshop group Play Fair issues a report called "Clearing the Hurdles," which shows little progress in the sportsware industry since the last Olympics, or from the International Olympic Committee or the corporate Olympics sponsors. PlayFair is conducting an ongoing campaign.
Books
COMMUNITY - Toolbox for Sustainable City Living: A Do-It- Ourselves Guide by Scott Kellogg and Stacy Pettigrew explains how to build and grow in a variety of reclaimed spaces using cheap, salvaged, and recycled materials; illustrated by the Beehive Collective.
Contact: South End Press, 7 Brookline Street #1 , Cambridge , MA 02139
GRAPHICS - Reproduce & Revolt: A Graphic Toolbox for the 21st Century Activist, edited by Josh MacPhee and Favianna Rodriguez, offers a collection of original anti-copyright graphics to be freely used for various political posters, flyers, and campaigns.
Contact: Soft Skull Press, 19 West 21st, Suite 1101New York NY 10010
MARCOS - The Speed of Dreams: Selected Writings 2001-2007 by Subcomandante Insurgente Marcos offers a broad array of prose by the leader of Mexico
Contact: City Lights Publishing, 261 Columbus Avenue San Francisco , CA 94133
OURSTORY - Chris Harman's A People's History of the World presents a radical social history of human civilization. "An indispensable volume on my reference bookshelf," Howard Zinn.
Verso Books, 20 Jay Street Brooklyn , NY 11201
PRISON - When the Prisoners Ran Walpole: A True Story in the Movement for Prison Abolition by Jamie Bissonette tells the little known history of the prisoners at Walpole
Contact: South End Press, 7 Brookline Street #1 , Cambridge , MA 02139
ZAPATISTAS - The Fire and the Word: A History of the Zapatista Movement by Gloria Muñoz Ramírez tells the story of the Zapatista movement by interviewing participants, from its birth in the jungle of Chiapas to its impact on Mexico
Contact: City Lights Publishing, 261 Columbus Avenue San Francisco , CA 94133
Errata
In Volume 21, Issue 5, page 20, the first sentence of the final paragraph of "Helter Smelter" should read: TCEQ's decision to grant ASARCO an air permit has now cleared the way for the smelter to emit nearly 8,000 tons of pollutants per year. Also in this issue, in "Right-Wing Witch Hunts Then and Now" the page 41 photo caption should read: "Flanagan's HUAC testimony as portrayed by Cherry Jones in Cradle Will Rock."
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Announcements
LABOR - May 1 is May Day. Workers of the world will celebrate the 124th anniversary of International Worker’s Day. Born out of a call for an 8-hour workday in the United States, this day is an opportunity for all workers to show their solidarity with one another, as well as to renew the call for labor rights.FARM CONFERENCE - The Farm Conference on Community and Sustainability will be held May 24-26 in Summertown, TN, in partnership with the Fellowship of Intentional Communities. Tour green homes, see sustainable food production, learn about solar installations, alternative education, midwifery, and more.
Contact: Douglas@thefarmcommunity.com; http://www.thefarmcommunity.com/.
PALESTINE - The Conference of the Palestinian Shatat in North American will be held June 3-5 in Vancouver. The conference will examine the future of the Palestinian liberation movement.
Contact: palestinianconference@gmail.com; http://www.palestinianconference.org/.
LABOR - The Pacific Northwest Labor History Association’s 45th annual conference will be held May 3-5, in Portland, OR. This year’s theme is Labor Under Attack: Learning from the Past and Preparing for the Future. A call for presentations, workshops and papers is currently underway.
Contact: PNLHA, 27920 68th Ave. East, Graham, WA 98338; 206-406-2604; PNLHA1@aol.com; http://www3.telus.net.
MARIJUANA - On the first Saturday of May marijuana legalization activists will hold informational and educational events, rallies and marches in over 300 cities around the world.
Contact:http://globalcannabismarch.com/.
ECONOMICS - The Union For Radical Political Economics will hold its 39th annual conference May 9-11 in New York City.
Contact: http://www.ramapo.edu/eea/2013/.
RECLAIM THE DREAM - The 2013 Poor People’s Campaign & March from Baltimore to Washington D.C. will be May 11. Communities, schools and unions interested in participating are encouraged to contact the Baltimore People’s Assembly.
Contact: 410-500-2168; 410-218-4835; BaltimorePeoplesAssembly@gmail.com; Southern Christian Leadership Conference of Baltimore and the Baltimore Peoples Power Assembly, 2011 N. Charles St., Baltimore, MD 21218.
MOTHER’S DAY - The 17th Annual Mother’s Day Walk For Peace will be May 12th, in Dorchester, MA. The walk began in 1996 for families who had lost children to violence. The day has become a way for thousands of people to financially support the work of the Louis Brown Peace Institute.
Contact: http://www.ldbpeaceinstitute.org/; http://mothersdaywalk4peace.org/.
NATO 5 - An International Week of Solidarity with the NATO 5 has been called for May 16-21. Supports call on supporters to raise awareness of the NATO 5 and support funds for the defendants on the one-year anniversary of their preemptive arrests.
Contact: nato5solidarity@gmail.com; https://nato5support.wordpress.com.
MOUNTAINTOP - The 2013 Mountain Justice Summer Activist Training Camp will be held May 19-27 in Damascus, VA. It will be a week of workshops, field trips to view Mountain Top Removal coal mines, direct actions, and service project.
Contact: http://rampscampaign.org/.
FEMINIST SCI-FI - The feminist science fiction convention WisCon 37 is scheduled for May 24-27 in Madison, WI.
Contact: WisCon, ? SF3, PO Box 1624, Madison, WI 53701; concom37@wiscon.info; http://www.wiscon.info/.
ANARCHY FEST - A month-long Festival of Anarchy is scheduled for May in Montreal. The festival includes The Montreal Anarchist Bookfair (May 19-20).
Contact: http://www.anarchistbookfair.ca/; http://www.radicalmontreal.com/.
LABOR - The International Labor Rights Forum will present: Down the Supply Chain, Driving Corporate Accountability, on May 22 in Washington, DC. The Labor Rights Awards Ceremony and Reception will honor pioneers in supply chain worker organizing, working solidarity and international labor rights policy.
Contact: http://laborrights.org/.
MULTICULTURE - The 26th annual National Conference on Race & Ethnicity in American Higher Education (NCORE) will take place May 28-June 1, in New Orleans.
Contact: SWCHRS, 3200 Marshall Avenue, Suite 290, Norman, OK 73072; 405-325-3694; ncore@ou.edu; www.ncore.ou.edu.
MEDIA - The 2013 Alliance for Community Media Annual Conference will be held May 29-31, in San Francisco, CA. Participants will include educators, community leaders, media professionals, journalists, nonprofit leaders, policymakers and students.
Contact: http://www.allcommunitymedia.org/.
RADIO - The 38th Annual Community Radio Conference is schedule for May 29-June 1, in San Francisco, CA, with discussions and workshops.
Contact: 1101 Pennsylvania Ave. NW, Suite 600, Washington, DC 20004; 202-756-2268; comments@nfcb.org; http://www.nfcb.org/.
BRADLEY MANNING - On June 1, a rally will be held at Fort Meade in support of Bradley Manning.
Contact: http://www.bradleymanning.org.
BIKES - Bikes Not Bombs is holding its 24th annual Bike-A-Thon and Green Roots Festival in Boston, MA on June 3, with several bike rides scheduled, music, exhibitors and more.
Contact: Bikes Not Bombs, 284 Amory St., Jamaica Plain, MA 02130; 617-522-0222; mail@bikesnotbombs.org; www.bikesnotbombs.org.
LEFT FORUM - The 2013 Left Forum will be held June 7-9, at Pace University in New York City.
Contact: 365 Fifth Avenue, CUNY Graduated Center, ? Sociology Dept., New York, NY 10016; http://www.leftforum.org/.
VEGAN FEST - Mad City Vegan Fest will be held in Madison, WI, June 8. The annual event features food, speakers, and exhibitors.
Contact: 122 State Street, Suite 405 B, Madison, WI 53701; madcityveganfest@gmail.com; http://veganfest.org/.
ADC CONFERENCE - The American-Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee (ADC) holds its annual conference June 13-16, in Washington, DC, with panel discussions and workshops on civil rights, media and other topics.
Contact: 1990 M Street, Suite 610, Washington, DC, 20036; 202-244-2990; convention@adc.org http://convention.adc.org/.
CUBA/SOCIALISM - A Cuban-North American Dialog on Socialist Renewal and Global Capitalist Crisis will be held in Havana, Cuba, June 16-30. There will be a 5 day Seminar at University of Havana, plus visits to a cooperative, urban garden, community development project, social research centers, and educational & medical institutions.
Contact: cuba@globaljusticecenter.org; http://www.globaljusticecenter.org/.
NETROOTS - The 8th Annual Netroots Nation conference will take place June 20-23 in San Jose, CA. The event features panels, trainings, networking, screenings, and keynotes.
Contact: 164 Robles Way, #276, Vallejo, CA 94591; registration@netrootsnation.org; http://www.netrootsnation.org/.
MEDIA - The 15th annual Allied Media Conference will be held June 20-23, in Detroit.
Contact: 4126 Third Street, Detroit, MI 48201; http://alliedmedia.org/.
GRASSROOTS - The United We Stand Festival will be hosted by Free & Equal, June 22 in Little Rock, Arkansas. The festival aims to reform the electoral process throughout the U.S.
Contact: http://freeandequal.org/.
SOCIALISM - The Socialism 2013 Conference is scheduled for June 27-30 in Chicago, featuring talks and panel discussions.
Contact: info@socialismconference.org; http://www.socialismconference.org.
LITERACY - The National Association for Media Literacy Education (NAMLE) will hold its conference July 12-13 in Los Angeles under the heading, Intersections: Teaching and Learning Across Media.
Contact: 10 Laurel Hill Drive, Cherry Hill, NJ 08003; http://namle.net/conference/.
IWW - The North American Work People’s College will take place July 12-16 at Mesaba Co-op Park in northern Minnesota. The event will bring together Wobblies from branches across the continent to learn new skills and build One Big Union.
Contact: http://workpeoplescollege.org/.
PEACESTOCK - On July 13th, the 11th Annual Peacestock: A Gathering for Peace, will take place at Windbeam Farm in Hager City, WI. The event is a mixture of music, speakers and community for peace. Sponsored by Veterans for Peace.
Contact: Bill Habedank, 1913 Grandview Ave., Red Wing, MN 55066; 651-388-7733; billhabedank@yahoo.com; http://www.peacestockvfp.org.
CHILDREN’S DEFENSE - July 15-19, join clergy, seminarians, Christian educators, young adult leaders and other faith-based advocates for children at CDF Haley Farm in Clinton, Tennessee, for five days of spiritual renewal, networking, movement building workshops, and continuing education about the urgent needs of children at the 19th annual Proctor Institute for Child Advocacy Ministry.
Contact: cdfinfo@childrensdefense.org; http://www.childrensdefense.org.
ACTIVIST CAMP - Youth Empowered Action (YEA) Camp will have sessions in July and August in Ben Lomond, CA; Portland, OR; Charlton, MA. YEA Camp is designed for activists 12-17 years old who want to make a difference in the world.
Contact: info@yeacamp.org; http://yeacamp.org/.
LA RAZA - The annual National Council of La Raza (NCLR) Conference is scheduled for July 18-19 in New Orleans, with workshops, presentations and panel discussions.
Contact: NCLR Headquarters Office, Raul Yzaguirre Building, 1126 16th Street, NW, Washington, DC 20036; 202-785-1670; www.nclr.org.
LABOR - The Eastern Conference For Workplace Democracy: Growing Our Cooperatives, Growing Our Communities, will be held at Drexel University in Philadelphia, PA, July 26-28.
Contact: info@east.usworker.coop; http://east.usworker.coop/.
WOMEN/LYNNE STEWART- Radical Women is asking for support letters and cards to be sent to Lynne Stewart. Stewart is a civil rights attorney and political prisoner who is currently in jail. She has breast cancer and authorities have denied her request for transfer from her Texas prison to the New York City hospital where she received medical attention during a prior bout of breast cancer. Send messages and cards to: Lynne Stewart 53504-054, Federal Medical Center Carswell, P.O. Box 27137, Fort Worth, TX 76127.
Contact: 747 Polk Street, San Francisco, CA 94109; 415-864-1278; RadicalWomenUS@gmail.com; http://lynnestewart.org/; http://www.radicalwomen.org/.
HAITI/WOMEN - Haiti’s government is considering a legal reform measure that would prohibit and punish all sexual assault, including marital rape. MADRE and the International Campaign to Stop Rape & Gender Violence in Conflict are launching a petition to raise international support for this push to address violence against women in Haiti.
Contact: 121 West 27th Street, #301, New York, NY 10001; 212-627-0444; madre@madre.org; http://www.madre.org.
SYRIA/MIDDLE EAST - The Middle East Children’s Alliance (MECA) is currently seeking funds to assist more than 200,000 refugees fleeing violence in Syria.
Contact: https://www.mecaforpeace.org.
FOLK FESTIVAL - The Falcon Ridge Folk Festival will be held August 2-4, in the Berkshires, NY.
Contact: http://www.falconridgefolk.com/; falcridge@aol.com.
WAR RESISTERS - The War Resisters League will hold its 90th anniversary conference, Revolutionary Nonviolence: Building Bridges Across Generations and Communities, August 1-4, at Georgetown University. The event will focus on the U.S.’ long history of antimilitarism.
Contact: 339 Lafayette Street, New York, NY 10012; 212-228-0450; wrl@warresisters.org; http://www.warresisters.org.
POPULAR ECONOMICS - The Center for Popular Economics is holding its 2013 Summer Institute August 4-9 at Hampshire College in Amherst, MA. No background in economics is needed for this intensive training. This year’s theme is, The Care Economy: Building a Just Economy with a Heart.
Contact: Center for Popular Economics, PO Box 785 Amherst, MA 01004; 413-545-0743; programs@populareconomics.org; www.populareconomics.org.
VETERANS - Veterans for Peace is holding the 28th annual convention August 6-11 in Madison, WI. This year’s theme is, Power To The Peaceful.
Contact: http://www.vfpnationalconvention.org/.
DEMOCRACY - The Democracy Convention will take place August 7-11 in Madison, WI. The convention brings together nine conferences including topics such as media, education, defense, race, environment and others.
Contact: https://democracyconvention.org/.
MEN - The 38th National Conference on Men & Masculinity: Forging Justice: Creating Safe, Equal and Accountable Communities, presented in partnership with HAVEN, will be held in Detroit, MI, August 8-10.
Contact: ccardinal@haven-oakland.org; http://www.nomas.org/.
OCCUPY - An Occupy National Gathering will be held in Kalamazoo, MI, August 21-25.
Contact: natgat2013@gmail.com; http://occupynationalgathering.net/.
COMMUNITIES - The Communities Conference is a networking and learning opportunity for co-operative or communal lifestyles, with workshops, events and entertainment; scheduled for August 30-September 2 at the Twin Oaks Community in Louisa, Virginia.
Contact: http://www.communitiesconference.org/.
LABOR DAY - The 29th annual Bread and Roses Festival, a celebration of the ethnic diversity and labor history of Lawrence, MA, will be held September 2, in honor of the 1912 Bread and Roses Strike. There will be music, dance, poetry, drama, ethnic food, historical demonstrations, walking & trolley tours.
Contact: PO Box 1137, Lawrence, MA 01842; 978-794-1655; http://www.breadandrosesheritage.org/.
OCCUPY WALL STREET - September 17 is the two-year anniversary of the Occupy Wall Street movement. Events are planned in New York City and worldwide.
Contact: http://occupywallst.org/.
TEACHERS - The 13th Annual Conference, “Teaching for Social Justice: The Politics of Pedagogy,” will be held October 12 in San Francisco, CA. The free event features workshops, resources, and free childcare.
Contact: 415-676-7844; teachers4socialjustice@yahoo.com; http://www.t4sj.org/.
HAITI - International Action, which brings clean water and chlorinators to Haiti, seeks office space capable of housing up to six people and their office equipment.
Contact: Zach Bremer, Zbrehmer@haitiwater.org; 202-488-0735; http://www.haitiwater.org/.
MEDIA - The Union for Democratic Communications and Project Censored are sponsoring a joint conference on media democracy, media activism and social justice to be held November 1-3 at the University of San Francisco. Proposals for presentations, workshops and panels from activists and critical scholars are invited.
