community-based, non-corporate, participatory media
community-based, non-corporate, participatory media
Rustbelt Radio for July 23, 2007
by Pittsburgh IMC: Rustbelt Radio collective
Tuesday, Jul. 24, 2007 at 11:21 AM
radio@indypgh.org (email address validated) 412-923-3000 WRCT 88.3 FM
On this week's show... * Is Pittsburgh really America's most livable city? Community groups, organizations and individuals gathered to discuss disparities in the Allegheny County region * from Ireland, an update on arrests in the Shell to Sea campaign * The Newark Rebellion - forty years later, denouncing police violence and commemorating people's resistance * Race, Class, Food and You - a lecture by Breeze Harper * and more in our local and global headlines
audio link: 
MP3 at 27.4 mebibytes
Welcome to this week's edition of Rustbelt Radio, the Pittsburgh Independent Media Center's weekly review of the news from the grassroots, news overlooked by the corporate media.
On today's show...
Rustbelt Radio airs live every Monday from 6-7 PM on WRCT 88.3 FM in Pittsburgh, PA, and again on Tuesday mornings 9-10 AM. We're also on Pacifica affiliate WVJW Benwood, 94.1 FM in the Wheeling, West Virginia area, on Thursdays from 6-7 PM. And we're on WPTS, 10-11AM on Wednesday mornings at 92.1 FM from the campus of the University of Pittsburgh.
We're also available on the internet, both on WRCT's live webstream at W-R-C-T dot ORG and for download, stream or podcast at radio dot I-N-D-Y-P-G-H dot org.
We turn now to local stories.
This past Saturday July 21st saw the second annual Pittsburgh Dyke March. About 75 participants, mostly women, left the lawn at CMU around 6pm and marched down Fifth and back up Forbes. Throughout the approximately 40 minute march they were greeted with applause and shows of support from onlookers.
Dyke activist Eli Kootie talks about why she organized the march and about what distinguishes it from the Gay Pride Parade:
But the purpose of the march was perhaps summed up most succinctly by another participant, Virginia Paul:
for more information on the dyke march and other upcoming events email queerevents@gmail.com.
Last year, Rustbelt Radio brought you a story on a mural in McKees Rocks that the mayor deemed “too colorful.” The mural, designed and painted by artists Kyle Holbrook and Maurice Solomon, included a depiction of a four year old child, known as Tink, who had been struck and killed by a van during the planning of the mural. Hays Manor tenant council members objected to the use of bright hues in the mural, especially the color red, which they interpreted as "violent".
Last week, Rustbelt Radio spoke to the muralist and arts educator Kyle Holbrook. Kyle currently coordinates a public mural project where Pittsburgh area youth design and paint in their communities and across neighborhood boundaries.
Kyle had much to say on the varied responses of community members in McKees Rocks last year: =
Rustbelt Radio also spoke to Ashley Hudder, education coordinator for the mural project. Ashley described the importance of documenting a locale in creating mural designs:
A youth-created mural in East Liberty has become popular among local residents:
Ashley also described a work-in-progress in the Hill District:
Stay tuned to future Rustbelt Radio shows for more news on street art in Pittsburgh.
This spring the "The Places Rated Almanac" named Pittsburgh ‘America’s most livable city’ for the second time since 1985. Editors say they looked at nine categories: housing affordability and cost of living; transportation; jobs; education; climate; crime; health care; recreation; and ambience and that Pittsburgh came out on top. The University of Pittsburgh’s Center on Race and Social Problems, however, sees things a little differently. This June the Center published a study entitled ‘Pittsburgh’s Racial Demographics: Differences and Disparities.’ This study begs the question: America’s most livable city for whom?
Ralph Bangs of the Center for Race and Social Problems explains some of the findings:
Church and community groups had a similar reaction to Pittsburgh’s ‘most livable’ status. Last Thursday at the Kingsley Association in Wilkinsburg a coalition of organizations and individuals came together for a press conference to address disparities in Pittsburgh living conditions.
Nate Brown of One HOOD spoke about Pittsburgh as he knows it:
That was Nate Brown from the group One HOOD. You can email One HOOD at OneHOOD@gmail.com for more information on the upcoming national gathering from August 3-5 addressing community development.
For more on local news, you can visit pittsburgh dot I-N-D-Y-M-E-D-I-A dot org.
You are listening to Rustbelt Radio, the Pittsburgh Independent Media Center's weekly review of news overlooked by the corporate media. We turn now to news from other independent media sources around the world.
In the late morning of July 16th there was a clash between the Popular Assembly of the People of Oaxaca (APPO) and security forces of the state of Oaxaca as the Federal Preventive Police and State police attempted to prevent people from entering the alternative Guelaguetza, an annual Oaxacan cultural festival. The alternative festival was planned to combat what has become to the APPO a spectacle for tourists and no longer the cultural festival that reflects indigenous tradition through dance.
Using tear gas, rocks, sticks, unidentified explosive projectiles, and whatever else available, the police attacked the crowd. This violence has left at least one movement participant dead, 30 critically injured, 62 detained, and an unknown amount have disappeared.
There are reports that some crowd members with severe injuries who sought Red Cross help were apprehended by the police. Those who were detained run the risk of suffering torture and constant beatings by the state and federal police – as has been reported in the past.
The people of Oaxaca are calling for an end to police repression, harassment and force as well as the release of all political prisoners.
For more information, please visit http://mexico.indymedia.org/Oaxaca. Or visit the Rustbelt Radio archives for past coverage of police repression in Oaxaca.
In 2006, South Africa became the first county within Africa to allow same-sex marriage. However, members of the LGBT community still live in constant fear of persecution and violence. In the past few months, at least four people in South Africa have been targeted and murdered based on their sexual orientation. On July 8th, Sizakele Sigasa, a lesbian and gay rights activist, and her partner, Salome Masooa, were attacked, tortured, and murdered after leaving a party. The Joint Working Group, which is the head organization among Africa’s gay and lesbian associations, stated that this event marks the continuation of hate crimes against men and women who support LGBT rights in Africa. Members of Africa’s LGBT community are condemning these hate crimes and confronting the inaction of police.
Here is This Way Out Radio Magazine with a story on Victor Juliet Mukasa, a Ugandan woman taking legal action against the government. Mukasa was targeted and harassed as officials searched her home for evidence of homosexuality.
The Joint Working Group also hopes to strengthen resources in Africa’s LGBT community by supporting local organizations and increasing responses to LGBT issues and needs.
In County Mayo, Ireland, the Shell to Sea campaign, which aims to stop Norwegian multi-national Shell, along with its partners Marathon and Stat-oil, from constructing a highly contested oil pipeline and inland refinery, has reached a critical stage. Although there is still NO approved pipeline route, peat haulage, a crucial step on the road to building the refinery, is now slated to be finished in October.
Local residents and activists from around the country have not taken this development quietly. In June a lock-on outside the refinery gates stopped work for nearly four hours. This past Wednesday July 11th the local community was shocked when three local men were sentenced to 4 months imprisonment in addition to a 500euro fine. The men had been charged in relation to a confrontation with Guards, Irish police, last October in which one Guard testified that he wasn’t sure whether he had been hit by a ‘car or a person.’
Over 100 people showed up at the daily picket outside the refinery gates on Thursday and on Friday two men were ultimately taken into custody after a six hour lock-on and charged with public order and road traffic offenses. Other groups also set up spontaneous blockades on the alternative routes to the site. They used their bodies to obstruct the road, preventing Shell vehicles from passing but allowing free movement of other traffic. On Friday evening about 100 people occupied the site for 20 minutes, and On the most recent ‘day of action’ called for Saturday, 50 people occupied the refinery site for about an hour, ultimately leaving without incident.
Pastors for Peace is a special ministry that was created in 1988 to bring humanitarian aid to Mexico, Central America and Cuba. Every summer, over 100 people join Pastors for Peace on their annual caravan trip to Cuba. The group works to bring thousands of pounds of aid to the Cuban people. During their visit, they also cultivate friendship through intercultural exchange. The group intentionally visits Cuba illegally, in order to make a statement against the US government's trade and travel restrictions against the island.
This year, the caravan's attempts to bring aid across borders were met with detention and searches by the border patrol, federal police, and Department of Homeland Security. Lucia Bruno of Pastors for Peace describes the two incidents faced by this year's Caravan to Cuba:
In 2005, the Caravan was also detained and searched at the US-Mexico border in Texas. We asked Lucia what happened to the aid that was confiscated that year:
Despite the detention and delay at the border last Tuesday, by Thursday the 18th, the caravan and its 130 participants successfully arrived in Cuba, bringing 90 tons of aid with them. Much of this year's aid includes medicine, wheelchairs and walkers, which focus on the health care needs of Cuba's elderly population. Lucia gave some insight into how the healthcare system works for the elderly of Cuba.
Included in the 130 activists who traveled to Cuba this year, are approximately 10 youth from the Monumental Baptist Church located in the Hill District of Pittsburgh. Lucia further explains the important role that community members from Pittsburgh play in the annual caravan to Cuba.
In light of this year's detention and confiscation of computers, and the detention in 2005, the Pastors for Peace caravan has no plans to alter their strategies to provide aid and build solidarity with the Cuban people.
For more information and updates about the caravan you can visit www.pastors for peace.org.
You're listening to Rustbelt Radio, the Pittsburgh Independent Media Center's weekly review of news from the grassroots.
On July 12th, 1967, an African American cab driver In Newark, New Jersey was badly beaten by police. False rumors of his death spread quickly, igniting a rebellion against rampant police brutality, widespread unemployment, and substandard housing conditions. In the five days that followed, 26 people died at the hands of the National Guard and the Newark and State Police. All but two were African American.
Forty years later the Peoples Organization for Progress, along with Community Activists and family embers of some of those killed during the rebellion, gathered to commemorate the 40th anniversary of the rebellion. The commemoration rally started at the 4th police precinct in Newark, which was significant, as Larry Hamm, organizer with the Peoples organization for progress, explains.
Amiri Baraka - a Newark born activist, poet and playwright further contextualizes the roots of the rebellion and insists the events of July 1967 be seen not as a riot, but as a rebellion.
Like many of the rebellions across the country that year, the Newark rebellion was met with brutal police repression. Larry Hamm, who was 13 at the time, recalls his neighborhood under a military occupation.
Max Herman, an oral historian with the Newark Historical Society, says this occupation left many innocent people dead.
At the rally, Ernest Rutledge recounted the story of his brother James Rutledge who was gunned down in the Newark Rebellion at the age of 19.
Activists disseminated photos of the deceased James Rutledge as a visual example of the brutal police violence inflicted upon him and many others. To complement these visuals the Newark Legal Services Project collected affidavits of victims and witnesses recounting tales of police brutality during the Rebellion. A volunteer law student with the Newark Legal Services project had to testify before an Essex County Grand Jury about these pictures and affidavits.
Immediately following the Newark Rebellion, a spontaneous uprising erupted in Detroit that left 43 people dead. Rising up against the same injustices that plagued the residents of Newark, Disenfranchised African Americans were met with brutal police violence. The rebellion raged for 5 days and 43 people were left dead. 40 years later no officers in Newark were indicted for their actions and very few officers were charged in Detroit. Amina Baraka, an activist who spoke at the rally feels that 40 years later conditions have barely improved for working class people.
On Tuesday, July 19, Animal Freedom and Voices for Animals of Western Pennsylvania hosted the lecture “Race, Class, Food and You” by Breeze Harper. Harper is the creator of the Sistah Vegan Project and the upcoming anthology entitled “Food, Health, Identity and Society: Female Vegans of the African Diaspora.” Rustbelt Radio brings you excerpts from her lecture, which explored the connections between our diets and social justice. This excerpt focuses on one aspect of Harper's lecture, the concept of addiction as slavery and bell hooks' ideas on decolonization.
That was Breeze Harper's lecture “Race, Class, Food and You” hosted by Animal Freedom and Voices for Animals of Western Pennsylvania. For more information about Breeze Harper, these organizations, and their upcoming events, visit www (dot) animal freedom (dot) info.
And now we present the Indymedia Calendar of Events:
[ Outro Music ]
Thanks for tuning in to Rustbelt Radio here on WRCT Pittsburgh, WVJW Benwood and WPTS Pittsburgh.
Our hosts this week are Ellen Pierson and Diane Amdor with contributions from Veronica Milliner, Carlin Christy, Vani Natarajan, Lizzie Anderson, and Andalusia Knoll. This week's show was produced by Phill Cresswell and Donald Deeley. Special thanks to all of our hosts, producers, and contributors. Extra special thanks to our dedicated producer, Donald Deeley, for all of his hard work over the past 2 years.
You can get involved with Rustbelt Radio! To contact us, or to send us your comments, email RADIO at I-N-D-Y-P-G-H dot ORG. All of our shows are available for download or podcast on our website at RADIO dot INDY-P-G-H dot ORG and this show can be heard again Tuesday morning on WRCT at 9 AM after Democracy Now!
Tune in next week at this time for another edition of Rustbelt Radio, the Pittsburgh Independent Media Center's weekly review of news from the grassroots.
Rustbelt Radio for July 23, 2007 (ogg vorbis)
by Pittsburgh IMC: Rustbelt Radio collective
Tuesday, Jul. 24, 2007 at 11:21 AM
radio@indypgh.org 412-923-3000 WRCT 88.3 FM
audio: ogg vorbis at 24.1 mebibytesaudio: ogg vorbis at 24.1 mebibytes
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