Month: March 2010

No Picture

Haiti Looking More and More Like a War Zone

Ansel Herz* March 31, 2010 Ansel Herz*

Source: IPS News


PORT-AU-PRINCE, Mar 30, 2010 (IPS) – On an empty road in Cite Militaire, an industrial zone across from the slums of Cite Soleil, a group of women are gathered around a single white sack of U.S. rice. The rice was handed out Monday morning at a food distribution by the Christian relief group World Vision.

According to witnesses, during the distribution U.N. peacekeeping troops sprayed tear gas on the crowd.

"Haitians know that’s the way they act with us. They treat us like animals," said Lourette Elris, as she divided the rice amongst the women. "They gave us the food, we were on our way home, then the troops threw tear gas at us. We finished receiving the food, we weren’t disorderly. " read more

No Picture

Greece: A Tradition of Revolt

David T. Rowlands March 30, 2010 David T. Rowlands

Source: Green Left Weekly

In every corner of Greece, popular anger over the government’s latest neoliberal assault on job security, pensions and social services has lead to a series of general strikes involving hundreds of thousands of militant workers.

The Greek government’s attacks are being implemented at the behest of the European Union, which is seeking to make Greek workers carry the burden of debt generated by Greek governments in collusion with major banks such as Goldman Sachs.

This is part of a broader international struggle by working people against capital’s drive to make ordinary people pay for the global financial crisis it caused.

But Greek strikers have drawn on an indigenous political culture with deep roots – a culture that validates the people’s right to rise collectively as agents of change. read more

Image

Paraguayan Farmers Mobilize for Agrarian Reform

Benjamin Dangl March 29, 2010 Benjamin Dangl

Photo from Telesur
Thousands of Paraguayan farmers raised their clubs, fists and placards into the air while marching through the streets of Asunción, the capital city, on Thursday, March 25. The farmers demanded that President Fernando Lugo follow through on his campaign promises for agrarian reform. After a year and a half in office, Lugo's failures to meet such demands have led various farmer organizations to directly oppose his administration.

Hip-Hop Artist Gives Algonquins a Good Rap

Stefan Christoff March 24, 2010 Stefan Christoff

Source: The Dominion

An image from the video for Samian’s "Kisakiin."

MONTREAL-Algonquin hip-hop artist Samian raps about the realities of life on First Nations reserves in Quebec. With a growing following on reserves and in Quebec’s cities, he’s also struck a chord with hip-hop communities everywhere.

Exploding the classic political binary of Quebec’s two solitudes, Samian raps about Indigenous people and their history in the province. His chart-topping hit "La Paix Des Braves," a duet with Quebec hip-hop crew Loco Locass, appeals for solidarity between Quebecois and Indigenous people. Samian’s recent collaboration with Sans Pression on their single "Premieres Nations" helped cement his role as a key voice in the Montreal contemporary hip-hop scene. read more