Welcome, to the radio magazine that brings you news, commentary and
analysis from a Black Left perspective with Glen Ford and his co-host,
Nellie Bailey.
– Dr. Gerald Horne, the prolific author and
professor of political science at the University of Houston, has another
book out. It’s titled, “Paul Robeson: The Artist as Revolutionary.”
Paul Robeson was an NFL-class athlete, spoke 12 languages, a movie star
who was one of the biggest draws in the American musical theater, and
was probably the best-known American in the world at the height of his
popularity, in the early 1940s. Yet, no more than 20 years later, the
crusading artist and social activists’ name had been all but erased from
public discourse in the United States. How could that happen? We asked
Dr. Horne.
- An analysis of employment statistics shows the Black
jobless rate in Virginia, the state with the lowest Black unemployment
rate in the nation, is the same as the white jobless rate in West
Virginia, the state with the highest white unemployment rate, at 6.7
percent. What does this tell us about the so-called economic recovery?
We spoke with Dr. Valerie Wilson, of the Washington-based Economic
Policy Institute.
- Turkey is threatening to invade neighboring
Syria, creating a direct confrontation with Russian military forces.
Political analyst Eric Draitser, founder of StopImperialism.com,
appeared recently on Russia Today’s “Cross Talk” program. Draitser says
Turkish President Erdogan is playing with fire.
- Hillary Clinton
is one step closer to becoming Commander-in-Chief of the U.S. Armed
Forces, with her victory in Nevada. That’s a scary thought, as far as
Dr. Stephen Zunes, is concerned. Zunes is Professor of Politics and
International Studies, at San Francisco University. He says Hillary
Clinton stoked the flames of war while Secretary of State.
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Ticket sales are soaring for Beyonce’s world tour. The Superstar seems
to have profited from the controversy over her Black Panther-flavored
performance at the Superbowl. Black Agenda Report editor Ajama Baraka, a
co-founder of the U.S. Human Rights Network, says there’s nothing
oppositional, much less revolutionary, about Beyonce’s “Formation”
album. He also maintains that neither Bernie Sanders nor Ta-Nehisi
Coates represents a challenge to the U.S. imperial order.
- Public
television last week showed the acclaimed Stanley Nelson film, “The
Black Panthers: Vanguard of the Revolution,” which previously had been
playing in selected theaters. Former Black Panther Kathleen Cleaver was
honored at the Charles H. Wright Museum of African American History, in
Detroit. Cleaver recounted how she became involved with the Black
Panther Party.
- The nation’s best-known political prisoner, Mumia Abu Jamal, is also a renowned author. Abu Jamal gives a boost to a former political prisoner’s latest book.
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Khalil Bennet is also imprisoned in Pennsylvania. Bennet is what
inmates call “a child-lifer” – a person given a life sentence for a
crime committed while he was a juvenile. The Supreme Court recently
ruled that such sentences are cruel and unusual, setting the stage for
the release of thousands of prisoners. Khalil Bennet says, when these
former child-lifers are let loose, they can become the cadre of a new
