August 2017 - Page 3 of 7 - Toward Freedom

Onay Martínez holds a sugar-apple on his farm, Tierra Brava, in western Cuba, where he practices conservation agriculture and has turned this sustainable system that minimally disturbs the soil into a model in his country. Credit: Jorge Luis Baños/IPS

Conservation Agriculture Sprouts in Cuban Fields

Ivet González August 21, 2017 Ivet González

At the entrance, the Tierra Brava farm looks like any other family farm in the rural municipality of Los Palacios, in the westernmost province of Cuba. But as you drive in, you see that the traditional furrows are not there, and that freshly cut grass covers the soil. “For more than five years we’ve been practicing conservation agriculture (CA),” said Onay Martínez, who works 22 hectares of state-owned land. He was referring to a specific kind of agroecology which, besides not using chemicals, diversifies species on farms and preserves the soil using plant coverage and no plowing.

Vandana Shiva on Two Futures for Food and Farming

Vandana Shiva August 21, 2017 Vandana Shiva

There are two distinct futures of food and farming. One leads to a dead end. A dead planet: poisons and chemical monocultures spreading. The second leads to the rejuvenation of the planet through rejuvenation of biodiversity, soil, water, rejuvenation of small farms diverse, healthy, fresh, ecological food for all.

Is water the new drug for Mexico’s cartels?

Tamara Pearson August 21, 2017 Tamara Pearson

Source: The New Internationalist

What it’s like when narcos run your privatized water system.

It’s rainy season here in Puebla, Mexico, and water is dripping through my concrete roof, taking chunks of plaster and paint from the ceiling with it. Ironically, we still don’t have enough running water to shower everyday. Other people here have no running water at all, and our drainage system is in a state of utter abandonment.

Yet we all pay 10 times the rates of the rest of Mexico, because here in Puebla – unlike the rest of the country – our water is privatized. What’s more, the men at the helm of the consortium that run it are a collection of corrupt millionaire and billionaire businessmen who have allegedly laundered money for some of the region’s biggest drug cartels. read more

A woman sits with her child next the barrier separating the protesters from the Presidential Palace. All photos by Jeff Abbott.

Guatemala’s Government Palace and the Street: Indigenous Campesinos Occupy Capital to Protest Land Conflicts

Jeff Abbott August 17, 2017 Jeff Abbott

One hundred Q’eqchi Maya families have established an encampment next to the Presidential Palace in Guatemala City to protest the government's unwillingness to resolve agrarian conflicts in their territory. “We are here in front of the National Palace because of the failure of the state," indigenous activist Carlos Choc explained. "Our Q’eqchi communities have risen up."

The "Unite the Right" rally in Charlottesville.

Mobilizing Against the Fascist Creep: A Book Review

E.Z. Kay August 17, 2017 E.Z. Kay

What is fascism, really? This question seems to be coming up more and more since the electoral victory of Donald Trump, and most recently following the events in Charlottesville. The new book Against the Fascist Creep is a useful guide to the many ideological and subcultural manifestations of the contemporary fascist movement.

Protesters march at the G20 Summit in London, 2009.

Dilemmas of the Radical Left in a Dying Capitalist System

Immanuel Wallerstein August 15, 2017 Immanuel Wallerstein

The radical left has emerged as a strong force in a large number of countries over the past decade. In all of these countries there is an internal debate among left militants about future tactics. Should they seek electoral power or should they seek to control the streets?