Set to stun – Children are being Tasered by school-based police officers. No one knows how often it’s happening or what impact it’s having on students

It was just a dumb fight. Two boys, both juniors, stood in the hallway discussing a classic teenage hypothetical: whether one of them could win in a fight against another student. But when one of the teens, Scott, said he didn’t think his friend could win, things turned personal. They flung curse words back and forth that Thursday morning in …

Nika Knight – Scientists Say Expect More 1,000-Year Events Like Louisiana Flood

Parts of Louisiana’s disastrous, ongoing flooding has been upgraded by meteorologists to once-in-1,000-years rainfall, with other areas classified as 500-year and 100-year events, nola.com reported Monday, as scientists warn that such storms are growing more and more frequent as the planet heats up. “On Tuesday, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) is set to classify the Louisiana disaster as the eighth flood considered to be a once-in-every-500-years event to …

Heart of Mind Radio – 08.12.16

On today’s Heart Of Mind Radio, host Kathryn Davis features an interview with Judith Orloff about her new book “The Power of Surrender, Let Go and Energize Your Relationships, Success, and Well Being. In segment two Kathryn continues with a discussion on going beyond intuition to connect with buddies and divine beings.

Dedrick Asante-Muhammad and Chuck Collins – America’s Racial Wealth Divide Is Nothing Short of Shocking

Most media coverage of racial injustice has understandably focused on our country’s unfair policing and criminal justice system. But to fully understand the current reality of racial inequality in America, we also need to take an honest look at our nation’s shocking wealth disparities. Wealth — the total assets a family owns after the bills are paid — is the …

Meditations and Molotovs – 07.18.16

In America, the chickens have come home to roost: killer cops, deranged veterans, Christian Fascists, racial apartheid, Neoliberal dynasties, Pokémon Go, and the rise of Donald Trump. Indeed, there’s plenty to talk about on this somber and muggy Monday.
Most importantly, let’s remember that the police and the military are sources of violence and instability, not peace and security. This is as true in Iraq and Afghanistan as it is in Baton Rouge and Chicago.

Black Agenda Radio – 7.18.16

This is Black Agenda Radio, the radio magazine that brings you news, commentary and analysis from a Black Left perspective. Your hosts are Glen Ford and Nellie Bailey, here they are with a weekly hour of African American political thought and action.

– Something is different in Black America than it was two weeks ago. The police killings of Black men in Baton Rouge and Minneapolis, the massive protests that followed, and Micah Johnson’s retaliation against Dallas police, left a distinct mark on the Black psyche. We asked Dr. Anthony Monteiro, the Duboisian scholar and member of the Black Radical Organizing Committee, if he thinks something has changed in the mood and the minds of Black folks?

– Thousands are expected to descend on Philadelphia next week, for protests at the Democratic National Convention. Scott Williams, of the International Action Center, is an organizer for a “Shut Down the DNC” march, on July 26. However, before the protesters can confront the National Democratic Party, they first have to fight with the local Democrats and the police.

– Angelo Brown, a Black father of 15 children who was shot to death by police in Belleville, Illinois, near St. Louis, was also known as Houdari Juelani, a general in the Revolutionary Black Panther Party. The police claim that Angelo Brown threatened them with a gun. His body showed signs of having been beaten. Dr. Ali Muhammad is Chief General in Command of the Revolutionary Black Panther Party. He’s also a doctor of neurological medicine. Dr. Muhammad talks about his slain comrade.

– Mumia Abu Jamal, a veteran of the original Black Panther Party for Self Defense, is glad to report on a victory for a fellow political prisoner.

– The long arm of civil law reaches at least as deep and far as criminal law – and, if you don’t have money, you will not find justice in civil law, either. Evictions, home foreclosures, domestic disputes – all of these arenas of conflict come under civil law. David Udell is executive director of the National Center for Access to Justice, located at Cardozo Law School, in New York City. His center has created a Justice Index, that measures access to civil court justice in all 50 states. Udell says the civil law caseload dwarfs the criminal justice system.

Visit the BlackAgendaReport.com, where you’ll find a new and provocative issue, each Wednesday.

Leid Stories – Amid the Clamor for Unity, Clarity Takes A Lethal Hit (Part 2) – 07.12.16

Leid Stories concludes a two-part discussion on how The System is managing the current crisis in law enforcement, brought to national attention once again in the back-to-back killings of two African American men by white police officers in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, and Falcon Heights, Minnesota, and an African American ex-soldier’s revenge shooting of white police officers in Dallas, Texas, that killed five and wounded seven of them, and also wounded two civilians.

The System pleads for national “unity” and “healing.” Leid Stories pleads for clarity about The System—the kind of clarity that would help the historically disfranchised and oppressed people it targets change the power equation.

Leid Stories – Amid the Clamor for Unity, Clarity Takes A Lethal Hit – 07.11.16

Officials and “responsible” leaders of almost every stripe are calling for unity in the aftermath of a gruesome week that sparked national outrage over back-to-back killings of two African American men by white police officers in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, and Falcon Heights, Minnesota, and an African American ex-soldier’s revenge shooting of white police officers in Dallas, Texas, that killed five and wounded seven of them, and also wounded two civilians.

It is customary for leaders to sing rousing choruses of the “We-Are-One-America” anthem at times like this—when public thought and action must be managed and controlled. The “unity” plea achieves this through distraction—by changing both the nature and dimension of the national crisis and limiting the people’s power to do anything about it.

Leid Stories discusses why, amid the clamor for unity, clarity about the current crisis is taking a lethal hit.

Egberto Willies – Are liberals living in their own bubble?

The Republican primary looks like a poorly-made reality TV series–but unfortunately, it’s real. It’s even more unfortunate that contrary to popular belief, one of those incompetent demagogues could be our next president. If we’re to believe polling data, America is becoming a much more liberal country. In fact, it’s likely directly responsible for President Obama’s epiphany that support of same-sex marriage …

In Latest Obamacare Fiasco, Most Low-Income Workers Can’t Afford “Affordable Care Act”

Just ten days ago we described the latest unintended (we hope) consequence of the Affordable Care Act known as Obamacare, when Colorado’s largest nonprofit co-op health insurer and participant in that state’s insurance exchange, Colorado HealthOP, announcing it was abruptly shutting down ahead of the November 1 start of enrollment for 2016, forcing 80,000 Coloradans to find a new insurer for 2016. …