Concerned Families of Westchester Newsletter
January 19, 2020
Hello All – Martin Luther King, Jr. is remembered now as a civil rights leader and an advocate of nonviolence; but in his last years King also became an outspoken opponent of war and a crusader for economic justice. On his day, let us remember and honor the great arc – the entirety – of Dr. King's life.
In one of his last essays, for example, King pointed out that the "black revolution" had gone beyond the "rights of Negroes." The struggle, he said, is "forcing America to face all of its interrelated flaws—racism, poverty, militarism and materialism. It is exposing the evils that are rooted deeply in the whole structure of our society. It reveals systemic rather than superficial flaws and suggests that radical reconstruction of society itself is the real issue to be faced."
This is the Martin Luther King, Jr. that we wish to especially remember and honor today. In the face of our many wars, we recall the words he spoke at Riverside Church in NYC just a year before his death; he said:
America, the richest and most powerful nation in the world, can well lead the way in this revolution of values. There is nothing except a tragic death wish to prevent us from reordering our priorities so that the pursuit of peace will take precedence over the pursuit of war. There is nothing to keep us from molding a recalcitrant status quo with bruised hands until we have fashioned it into a brotherhood.
Millions of people are homeless and suffering because of the wars supported by our government. The disasters of war engulf Afghanistan, Syria, Iraq, and now threatens the people of Iran. Yet the people of America have not been able to act effectively to turn the tide of disaster. In his own day, King addressed a similar dilemma, our failure to stop the war in Vietnam, killing millions of people. In his 1967 speech at Riverside Church, he said:
If we do not stop our war against the people of Vietnam immediately, the world will be left with no other alternative than to see this as some horrible, clumsy, and deadly game we have decided to play. The world now demands a maturity of America that we may not be able to achieve...The situation is one in which we must be ready to turn sharply from our present ways.
Finally, Martin Luther King, Jr. proclaimed that justice and peace couldn't wait. Millions of lives depended on swift and powerful action. He said:
We are confronted with the fierce urgency of now. In this unfolding conundrum of life and history, there is such a thing as being too late. Procrastination is still the thief of time. Life often leaves us standing bare, naked, and dejected with a lost opportunity. The tide in the affairs of men does not remain at flood—it ebbs. We may cry out desperately for time to pause in her passage, but time is adamant to every plea and rushes on. Over the bleached bones and jumbled residues of numerous civilizations are written the pathetic words, "Too late."
On this, the 91st birthday of Martin Luther King, Jr., let us honor his memory by renewing our resolve to do all we can to work for peace and justice.
Some illuminating reading/listening to help us remember MLK – We can starting with his great 1963 "I Have a Dream" speech, move on to his courageous "Anti-Vietnam War speech" at Riverside Church, NY, in 1967; and finally to the speech he gave to striking Memphis sanitation workers on the eve of his assassination, "I Have Been to the Mountaintop." As for some reading, there is so much, but some of these may be new to you: "The Hours Before "I Have a Dream," by Calvin Trillin, The New Yorker [August 30, 1963] [Link]; "Martin Luther King's Radical Anticapitalism," by Keeanga-Yamahtta Taylor, The Paris Review [January 15, 2020] [Link]; and "Martin Luther King Day with Trump," by Jelani Cobb, The New Yorker January 7, 2017] [Link].
Politics
The media-driven scuffle between Elizabeth Warren and Bernie Sanders, and their supporters, thankfully seems to be drawing to a close; but it shows the fragility of the non-aggression pact between the two progressive candidates for the Democratic nomination for president. I think it is very important that we keep our Eyes on the Prize of retaining this progressive united front until it is clear which of the two candidates appears to have the greater chance of winning in November, and then to encourage a blending of the two campaigns behind him or her. In this case, as in so many others, demands for "unity from below" are our safeguard against division among leaders. In support of this, let us congratulate the leaders of 16 progressive organizations who quickly issued a unity statement, and I encourage a close reading of the article by Norman Solomon, a supporter of Sanders, "Not Bernie, Us. Not Warren, Us."
Also fading seems to be the immediate danger of a US-Iran war. In the 48 hours when it appeared that such a war was threatening, it was clear that there was not much popular support for war, and in many places strong opposition. But it was also clear that the antiwar movement was not as strong as it must be if we are to have much effectiveness. Responding to this concern, I think that we all – not just "antiwar groups" – need to give this our attention. Helpful in this respect, I believe, are ""Iran Tensions Showed How Much More Work an Effective U.S. Anti-War Movement Needs to Do," by Natasha Lennard, The Intercept [Link], and a roundtable discussion led by The Intercept's Jeremy Scahill, "Trump v. Iran: What Now?" [Link].
News Notes
The proliferation of "Killer drones," used to assassinate Iranian General Suleimani and thousands of other "bad guys" around the world, is a terrible danger to the human species. In Westchester, www.knowdrones.com is an excellent website to learn about this danger. This week I learned about a UN program that focuses on the dangers of drone robots, the drones guided/programmed by Artificial Intelligence. To learn more about this danger, I recommend a chapter from the just-out annual report of Human Rights Watch, "As Killer Robots Loom, Demands Grow to Keep Humans in Control of Use of Force" [Link].
We learned this week that the past decade was the hottest decade in recorded history, and that 2019 was the second-hottest year ever. Moreover, according to new climate models, it appears that the force of CO2 in the atmosphere has been underestimated, and that it has a greater impact on warming that has been thought up to now. In a nutshell, this is very bad news. Thus the deadline to establish a drastic reduction in greenhouse gas emissions, thought to be some 12 years in the future according to the most recent UN report, may well be some decades behind us. Whether and how much drastic action may mitigate disaster, such as that now burning much of Australia, is of course unknown, but it would be criminal not to try. To get involved in a serious way with efforts to save our civilization from environmental chaos, check out the newly formed group, Extinction Rebellion Westchester.
On December 9th the Washington Post published documents – dubbed "the Afghanistan Papers" – it received under the Freedom of Information Act that showed that the congressionally appointed Inspector for Afghanistan had amassed hundreds of pages of testimony by US military personnel in Afghanistan affirming that the war was going badly and they had no idea what they were doing. Last Tuesday, Rep. Eliot Engel's Foreign Affairs Committee held a lengthy hearing/interview with the Inspector, who confirmed the worst news and more. The video of the hearing can be seen here, and an especially illuminating segment can be watched at 1:17:25 into the video. Because of the Impeachment proceedings and the usual Trump antics of the day, the hearing was poorly attended, with little media coverage; and it is to be regretted that Rep. Engel did not use the full potential of the Afghanistan Papers to launch an extended public investigation into the War against Afghanistan and why we should leave asap, but in an odd way Trump's wars-around-the-world are sheltered from scrutiny by the media/congressional demands of Impeachment.
Last Tuesday, more than 500 people went to Albany to support "Fair and Timely Parole" (S.497A) and "Elder Parole," (S.2144). CFOW member Steve Siebert reports:
Over 500 people (for issues like this, an unexpectedly large and encouraging number) showed up to urge lawmakers to pass these two bills. Much of the day was theatrical – marches though the halls while singing and chanting, a press conference on the Million Dollar Staircase, stories from many formerly incarcerated [under the dome of the aptly but depressingly named War Room, "honoring" acts of genocide against native Americans thought to be part of NY state's glorious history]). But numerous meetings were held with legislators, and additional co-sponsors signed onto the bills. Our subgroup of about eight people met with an aide to Tom Abinanti, who has not yet signed on to sponsor either bill. I've talked to him in the past about the urgency of criminal justice reform, and he seems supportive, but also seems to need political cover for this. Another Hastings-on-Hudson resident who was there and I are going to try to get a petition together with hopefully hundreds of signatures from the river towns, including Tarrytown and perhaps Elmsford.
For details on the issue and the event, go here. And coming up next week, on January 21st in Albany there will be a rally to limit solitary confinement to 15 days. To learn more about the event and the reasons why the action is important, go here. The organizers are aiming for 1,000 participants; please join them!
Finally, as if we don't have enough on our plate, Business Insider reports (and video!) that "The Navy has said it has top-secret information about unidentified flying objects that could cause "exceptionally grave damage to the National Security of the United States" if released." We report, you decide.
Things to Do/Coming Attractions
Tuesday, January 21st – Again in Albany, there will be a rally to limit solitary confinement to 15 days. To learn more about the event and the reasons why the action is important, go here. The organizers are aiming for 1,000 participants; please join them!
Sunday, January 26th – The Sister District Bronx/Westchester with the Social Justice committee at the First Unitarian Society of Westchester and CFOW will show the documentary film "Suppressed: The Fight to Vote," from 3 to 5 pm. The film shows Stacey Abrams' fight to become the first Black female governor in the U.S, and the many challenges that face Georgians, including polling place closures, voter purges, missing absentee ballots, extreme wait times and a host of voter ID issues—all of which disproportionately prevented many students and people of color from casting their ballots. The FUSW is at 25 Old Jackson Rd. in Hastings. For more information email ny16dc@gmail.com.
CFOW Nuts & Bolts
Please consider getting involved with Concerned Families of Westchester. We meet for a protest/rally each Saturday in Hastings, from 12 to 1 p.m., at the VFW Plaza (Warburton and Spring St.) Our leaflet and posters for our rallies are usually about war or the climate crisis, but issues such as racial justice or Trump's immigration policies are often targeted, depending on current events. Also, we (usually) have a general meeting on the first Saturday afternoon of each month. Our weekly newsletter is archived at https://cfow.blogspot.com/; and news of interest and coming events is posted on our CFOW Facebook page. And if you would like to support our work by making a contribution, please send your check to CFOW, PO Box 364, Hastings-on-Hudson, NY 10706. Thanks!
Rewards!
Until this week, I did not know about the Protest Music Project housed at the interesting website www.shadowproof.com. From this site, and in honor of yesterday's many Women's Marches, here is "We Are Rising" by Taina Asili. Enjoy!
Best wishes,
Frank Brodhead
For CFOW
THIS WEEK'S FEATURED ESSAYS
Injustice on Repeat: From mass incarceration to mass deportation, our nation remains in deep denial.
By Michelle Alexander, New York Times [January 17, 2020]
---- We are now living in an era not of post-racialism but of unabashed racialism, a time when many white Americans feel free to speak openly of their nostalgia for an age when their cultural, political and economic dominance could be taken for granted — no apologies required. Racial bigotry, fearmongering and scapegoating are no longer subterranean in our political discourse; the dog whistles have been replaced by bullhorns. White nationalist movements are operating openly online and in many of our communities; they're celebrating mass killings and recruiting thousands into their ranks. … Contrary to what many people would have us believe, what our nation is experiencing is not an "aberration." The politics of "Trumpism" and "fake news" are not new; they are as old as the nation itself. The very same playbook has been used over and over in this country by those who seek to preserve racial hierarchy, or to exploit racial resentments and anxieties for political gain, each time with similar results. [Read More]
The Center Blows Itself Up: Care and Spite in the 'Brexit Election'
By David Graeber, New York Review of Books [January 13, 2020]
---- Politics, in wealthy countries, is increasingly becoming a war between the generations. … Why, then, such an apparently devastating victory? Why did middle-aged swing voters—particularly in the former Labour heartlands of the North—break right instead of left? … Most experienced the next forty or so years largely as a sequence of disasters. In 2016 they turned against the "Eurocrats," then watched in dismay as the entire political class proceeded to engage in endless and increasingly absurd procedural ballet that appeared designed to reverse their decision. This explanation is true, but superficial. To understand why Brexit became such an issue in the first place, one must first ask why a populism of the right has so far proved more adept than the left at capitalizing on profound shifts in the nature of class relations that have affected not just the UK but almost all wealthy societies; second, one must understand the uniquely nihilistic, indeed self-destructive, role of centrism in the British political scene. [Read More] For additional insights into the collapse of the UK, read "Labour's fake anti-Semitism crisis outlives Corbyn" by Asa Winstanley, Electronic Intifada [January 16, 2020] [Link]; and "So Much for England," by Tariq Ali, London Review of Books [January 23, 2020] [Link]
The Playbook for Poisoning the Earth [Bees and Neonicotinoids]
By Lee Fang, The Intercept [January 18, 2020]
[FB – Years ago, the late Jean St. George, an early member of CFOW, would bring up at our monthly meetings, "What about the bees?" To give her her due, we would talk about this for a few minutes and then move on, not knowing how to even start "saving the bees." Looking back, how wrong we were, and how right Jean was, about the centrality of this crisis.]
---- In September 2009, over 3,000 bee enthusiasts from around the world descended on the city of Montpellier in southern France for Apimondia — a festive beekeeper conference filled with scientific lectures, hobbyist demonstrations, and commercial beekeepers hawking honey. But that year, a cloud loomed over the event: bee colonies across the globe were collapsing, and billions of bees were dying. … In the U.S., however, industry dug in, seeking not only to discredit the research but to cast pesticide companies as a solution to the problem. Lobbying documents and emails, many of which were obtained through open records requests, show a sophisticated effort over the last decade by the pesticide industry to obstruct any effort to restrict the use of neonicotinoids. [Read More] For some clues about where this is going, read "Who Controls Trump's Environmental Policy?" New York Times [January 14, 2020] [Link].
Our History
It's Time We Celebrate Ella Baker Day
By Mark Engler, The Nation [January 17, 2020]
---- Honoring Baker alongside Martin Luther King would highlight the long and patient work of building a social movement. King was undeniably an inspirational leader who deserves to be honored. But this weekend also should allow us to appreciate other contributors to the civil rights movement. The life of Ella Baker highlights a different model of leadership and gives insight into the long and patient work of building a social movement. While King is justly remembered as a powerful preacher and rousing orator, a political strategist and practitioner of nonviolent direct action, Baker calls attention to a more specific role: that of the organizer.
Drawing from activist Bob Moses, the sociologist Charles Payne has argued that the civil rights movement of the 1950s and '60s actually contained two distinct traditions. One he labels "the community-mobilizing tradition," which was "focused on large-scale, relatively short-term public events." Payne sees this lineage as "best symbolized by the work of Martin Luther King," and he includes in it such well-remembered events as the March on Washington and the famous campaigns in Birmingham and Selma, Alabama. The second is a tradition of community organizing. This is a lineage, Payne writes, "with a different sense of what freedom means and therefore a greater emphasis on the long-term development of leadership in ordinary men and women," and it is a tradition best epitomized "by the teaching and example of Ella Baker."
Ultimately, both dramatic mass protest and long-term organizing were essential to the gains of the civil rights movement. But in retellings of what it took to secure change, the latter work is too often forgotten. [Read More]
