KPFA - Hard Knock Radio

In this powerful episode, organizer and independent journalist Rosa Clemente speaks with Vijay Prashad, historian and Co-Director of the Tricontinental: Institute for Social Research. Together, they dive into the urgent global and domestic issues shaping our time—Trumpism, the U.S. role in Israel’s occupation of Palestine, the fight for Palestinian sovereignty, the ongoing realities of police terrorism, and the work of grassroots community building.

Tricontinental is an international institute rooted in popular movements and dedicated to bridging academic thought with political and social action. Through a global lens and an emancipatory perspective, Prashad and Clemente explore the interconnected struggles facing oppressed communities and the radical possibilities that emerge when movements work in solidarity.

Tune in for a critical conversation that challenges dominant narratives and uplifts collective resistance.

Hard Knock Radio is a drive-time Hip-Hop talk show on KPFA (94.1fm @ 4-5 pm Monday-Friday), a community radio station without corporate underwriting, hosted by Davey D and Anita Johnson.

The post Hard Knock Presents: Rosa Clemente Speaking with Vijay Prashad, the Co-Director of the Tricontinental Institute for Social Research appeared first on KPFA.

In a special edition of Rootwork on KPFK, Thandi Chimurenga of Black Liberation Media sat down with Kali Akuno of Cooperation Jackson to explore bold strategies for grassroots survival and resistance. Part of the ongoing “Build and Fight Formula” series, the conversation unpacked the urgency of food sovereignty, mutual aid, and community-based power in the face of mounting economic and political instability.

“We’ve been warning that hard times were coming—and now they’re here,” said Akuno, co-founder of the Jackson, Mississippi-based organization. The conversation centered on how capitalism weaponizes food, land, and trade, especially under what Akuno dubbed “Trumpflation”—a fusion of inflation, nationalist economic policy, and neoliberal collapse.

Akuno stressed that food is not scarce—it’s withheld. “The U.S. produces and throws away more food than most countries consume,” he said. “It’s not about supply, but control.” Referencing historic famines in India and Ireland, and the burning of surplus crops during the Dust Bowl era, he pointed to the deliberate commodification of food as a tool of domination.

At the heart of the “Build and Fight Formula” is food sovereignty—the ability for communities to produce what they need, free from corporate or state dependence. Akuno advocates for agroecological practices rooted in Afro-Indigenous traditions, rather than extractive industrial farming. “We’re talking about production that heals the land, nourishes our people, and builds self-reliance.”

But production requires land. Akuno challenged listeners to decommodify it: transform lawns into gardens, repurpose churches and vacant lots, and pressure local governments to turn over abandoned spaces for community use. “Make every yard a farm, every garage a factory,” he urged.

Chimurenga echoed the call, noting the vast number of unused properties in cities like Los Angeles and Detroit. “If it’s sitting empty in our neighborhood and not serving the people, we should be able to reclaim it.”

The conversation also touched on broader geopolitical threats, including rising tensions with China and the risk of war. Akuno warned that trade wars often precede military ones. “We must prepare—not just physically but politically—for what’s ahead,” he said.

Ultimately, the message was clear: local action must scale into collective power. “Don’t rely on the Democrats. Don’t wait for permission,” Akuno said. “We need autonomous movements that federate, build solidarity, and confront the forces of capital and the state.”

The series continues with future sessions focused on land access, political organizing, and creating sustainable infrastructure.

Hard Knock Radio is a drive-time Hip-Hop talk show on KPFA (94.1fm @ 4-5 pm Monday-Friday), a community radio station without corporate underwriting, hosted by Davey D and Anita Johnson.

The post Hard Knock Radio – April 10, 2025 appeared first on KPFA.

In a special edition of Rootwork on KPFK, Thandi Chimurenga of Black Liberation Media sat down with Kali Akuno of Cooperation Jackson to explore bold strategies for grassroots survival and resistance. Part of the ongoing “Build and Fight Formula” series, the conversation unpacked the urgency of food sovereignty, mutual aid, and community-based power in the face of mounting economic and political instability.

“We’ve been warning that hard times were coming—and now they’re here,” said Akuno, co-founder of the Jackson, Mississippi-based organization. The conversation centered on how capitalism weaponizes food, land, and trade, especially under what Akuno dubbed “Trumpflation”—a fusion of inflation, nationalist economic policy, and neoliberal collapse.

Akuno stressed that food is not scarce—it’s withheld. “The U.S. produces and throws away more food than most countries consume,” he said. “It’s not about supply, but control.” Referencing historic famines in India and Ireland, and the burning of surplus crops during the Dust Bowl era, he pointed to the deliberate commodification of food as a tool of domination.

At the heart of the “Build and Fight Formula” is food sovereignty—the ability for communities to produce what they need, free from corporate or state dependence. Akuno advocates for agroecological practices rooted in Afro-Indigenous traditions, rather than extractive industrial farming. “We’re talking about production that heals the land, nourishes our people, and builds self-reliance.”

But production requires land. Akuno challenged listeners to decommodify it: transform lawns into gardens, repurpose churches and vacant lots, and pressure local governments to turn over abandoned spaces for community use. “Make every yard a farm, every garage a factory,” he urged.

Chimurenga echoed the call, noting the vast number of unused properties in cities like Los Angeles and Detroit. “If it’s sitting empty in our neighborhood and not serving the people, we should be able to reclaim it.”

The conversation also touched on broader geopolitical threats, including rising tensions with China and the risk of war. Akuno warned that trade wars often precede military ones. “We must prepare—not just physically but politically—for what’s ahead,” he said.

Ultimately, the message was clear: local action must scale into collective power. “Don’t rely on the Democrats. Don’t wait for permission,” Akuno said. “We need autonomous movements that federate, build solidarity, and confront the forces of capital and the state.”

The series continues with future sessions focused on land access, political organizing, and creating sustainable infrastructure.

Hard Knock Radio is a drive-time Hip-Hop talk show on KPFA (94.1fm @ 4-5 pm Monday-Friday), a community radio station without corporate underwriting, hosted by Davey D and Anita Johnson.

The post Grow or Die: Build and Fight Formula for Survival in a Collapsing System appeared first on KPFA.

Davey D speaks with Zahra Billoo, Executive Director of the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR), about a disturbing trend impacting international students across the U.S. In this conversation, they examine the recent cases of students—many of them from the Middle East and South Asia—who have had their visas suddenly revoked by U.S. immigration authorities. The revocations appear to be directly tied to students’ political engagement and participation in protests calling for an end to the ongoing genocide in Gaza.

Billoo discusses how these revocations reflect a broader crackdown on dissent, the chilling effect this has on academic freedom and free speech, and the weaponization of immigration policy to suppress solidarity movements. She also highlights CAIR’s efforts to defend students’ rights, the legal and political implications of this federal overreach, and the urgent need for academic institutions and civil liberties organizations to respond.

Hard Knock Radio is a drive-time Hip-Hop talk show on KPFA (94.1fm @ 4-5 pm Monday-Friday), a community radio station without corporate underwriting, hosted by Davey D and Anita Johnson.

The post Zahra Billoo on Political Repression and Visa Revocations appeared first on KPFA.

Hard Knock Radio is a drive-time Hip-Hop talk show on KPFA (94.1fm @ 4-5 pm Monday-Friday), a community radio station without corporate underwriting, hosted by Davey D and Anita Johnson.

The post Hard Knock Radio – April 7, 2025 appeared first on KPFA.

In this episode of Hard Knock Radio, we begin with a report from Free Willing Frank Sterling on the quiet release of former Contra Costa County Sheriff’s Deputy Andrew Hall, who served less than half of his six-year sentence for the fatal shooting of Laudemer Arboleda. The news has sparked outrage among community members and families of Hall’s victims, who see his early release from San Quentin as a deep injustice.

Hard Knock Radio is a drive-time Hip-Hop talk show on KPFA (94.1fm @ 4-5 pm Monday-Friday), a community radio station without corporate underwriting, hosted by Davey D and Anita Johnson.

The post System Failure: From Police Violence to Poverty Resistance appeared first on KPFA.

To unpack the severity of this situation, Hard Knock Radio host Davey D sat down with long-time peacemaker and activist Alex Sanchez of Homies Unidos. Based in Los Angeles but rooted in the struggles of Central America, Sanchez has been raising alarms for decades about the dangerous intersection of immigration policy, criminal justice, and international politics.

Hard Knock Radio is a drive-time Hip-Hop talk show on KPFA (94.1fm @ 4-5 pm Monday-Friday), a community radio station without corporate underwriting, hosted by Davey D and Anita Johnson.

The post U.S. Deportations to El Salvadors Mega-Prison PT. 2 and ABC’s of HBCU’s with Claudia Walker appeared first on KPFA.

Over the past few months, deeply unsettling images have emerged showing men with shaved heads, shackled, and made to kneel”lined up in scenes disturbingly reminiscent of war prisons. These arent images from a foreign battlefield, but snapshots of whats happening in El Salvador. Even more disturbing? Many of those detained were picked up in the U.S. and deported without due process, dumped into a prison system designed to disappear people.

To unpack the severity of this situation, Hard Knock Radio host Davey D sat down with long-time peacemaker and activist Alex Sanchez of Homies Unidos. Based in Los Angeles but rooted in the struggles of Central America, Sanchez has been raising alarms for decades about the dangerous intersection of immigration policy, criminal justice, and international politics.

Hard Knock Radio is a drive-time Hip-Hop talk show on KPFA (94.1fm @ 4-5 pm Monday-Friday), a community radio station without corporate underwriting, hosted by Davey D and Anita Johnson.

The post U.S. Deportations to El Salvadors Mega-Prison PT. 1 appeared first on KPFA.

On Hard Knock Radio, Davey D spoke with Professor Butch Ware—hip hop artist, activist, and Green Party vice presidential candidate—about the deep links between culture, politics, and resistance.

Ware opened the convo by emphasizing that music and hip hop aren’t just art—they’re tools for spiritual and political survival. Drawing on West African griot traditions, he called out what he terms an “epistemicide”—a systemic effort to erase Black and brown ways of knowing, from defunding arts to censoring DEI initiatives.

He warned Californians not to get comfortable. Despite its progressive rep, the state is seeing ICE raids on campuses, university crackdowns on protests, and bipartisan support for repression. “This is a war on culture and resistance,” he said.

Ware spoke on the power of student encampments, comparing them to past movements that helped end apartheid and the Vietnam War. What made them dangerous? They were organized, not just mobilized.

He also broke down how both major parties have failed the people, especially the working class and youth. “We don’t just need votes—we need to build community power,” he said. His gubernatorial campaign blends mutual aid with electoral strategy, drawing on the legacy of the Black Panthers.

Ware called on listeners to:

“There’s enough for everyone—we just need the will to redistribute power,” Ware said. “If we don’t fight back now, comfort won’t protect you later.”

Follow Butch Ware at butchware4gov.org or on Instagram for more.

Hard Knock Radio is a drive-time Hip-Hop talk show on KPFA (94.1fm @ 4-5 pm Monday-Friday), a community radio station without corporate underwriting, hosted by Davey D and Anita Johnson.

The post Butch Ware on Culture, Resistance and Building Power appeared first on KPFA.

Hard Knock Radio is a drive-time Hip-Hop talk show on KPFA (94.1fm @ 4-5 pm Monday-Friday), a community radio station without corporate underwriting, hosted by Davey D and Anita Johnson.

The post Hard Knock Radio – March 31, 2025 appeared first on KPFA.