Cornel West theorized the "Santa Clausification" of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., a process by which his radical politics were co-opted into a more respectable veneer for the consumption of patriotic white liberals. The official history of Dr. King has been largely whitewashed away from his anti-imperial, socialist, and at times even communist roots. Joining us to provide a fresh perspective on Dr. King's radical politics is Dr. Gerald Horne. Dr. Horne is a distinguished professor of history and African American studies at the University of Houston, and has written well over 30 books and 100 scholarly articles on racism, history, labor, militarism, war, and many other issues. We also discuss the larger legacy of black radical politics, which includes understanding the American Revolution to be in essence a counter-revolution by an entrenched colonial slaveocracy. This episode of People's Republic of Austin is the first in a continuing series of discussions on black radical thought that we will be developing in the coming months.

Around the New Year, protests began emerging in rural areas of Iran. Partly driven by economic grievances due largely to U.S.-imposed sanctions, the Iranian protests have seemingly taken on a more chauvinistic attitude. Some protesters have even chanted, "Not Gaza, not Lebanon, Sacrifice both for Iran," which would give pause to the U.S. media-driven narrative that the protests are against the country's religious leadership.

Media reporting practices have been increasingly disingenuous. Corporate media outlets have repeatedly misrepresented pictures from the massive pro-government demonstrations, claiming them to be part of the anti-government demonstrations, which reportedly number only in the thousands nationwide.

In addition, publications such as the Wall Street Journal, New York Times, New York Post, and Politico have relied largely on commentary from the far-right wing, pro-Israel think tank Foundation for Defense of Democracies. They present this think tank - funded largely by casino mogul Sheldon Anderson, Home Depot founder Bernard Marcus, and Wall Street speculator Paul Singer - as an objective analysis group rather than a largely propagandistic front.

Joining us to discuss the history of U.S. media coverage of Iran is Adam Johnson, a writer for Fairness and Accuracy In Reporting (fair.org) and host of Citations Needed Podcast, which covers "the media, power, PR, and the history of bullshit." We discuss Johnson's latest work for FAIR.org, "Think Tank-Addicted Media Turn to Regime Change Enthusiasts for Iran Protest Commentary," and get into his earlier analysis of media coverage of the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action, also known as the Iran nuclear deal.

While there are no doubt a number of legitimate grievances and human rights concerns in Iran, as with almost all countries on Earth, the greater threat remains the spectre of U.S.-backed regime change. Everywhere that the U.S. has tried to intervene in the name of the "human rights" of a country, the result has been devastating to the quality of life of that country's citizens. Yugoslavia, Afghanistan, Iraq, Libya, Syria, and many other countries have all been the proud recipients of U.S. "humanitarian bombings," and each instance of U.S. interference has led to a massive plummet in the quality of life for the population.

As we cover the Iran protests on People's Republic of Austin, we will continue to remind listeners that regardless of the window dressing of "human rights" concerns, the government of the United States does not have a mandate, either by their own people or the international community, to destabilize or interfere in the affairs of another sovereign nation.

January 1 marks the 59th year of the victory of the Cuban Revolution against the Batista dictatorship. With this victory, the Cuban people were able to chart a new course for the development of society, one that put the needs of the workers before the profit margins of U.S. corporations. Despite 59 years of U.S.-backed counterrevolutionary plots, Cuba has continued to completely reverse the oppression and economic impoverishment wrought by the Batista dictatorship. Cuba now leads the way in LGBTQ rights, women's rights, and is making great strides in medical technology, proving that a socialist society can undo in decades the oppressive social structures that capitalism took centuries to impose.

But the fight is not yet over. The presidencies of Clinton, Bush, Obama, and Trump alike have seen both overt attempts to penetrate Cuban society with international finance capital via the tourism industry, as well as subversive acts by U.S. regime change operatives to completely subvert Cuban democracy. Whether in the guise of economic "freedom" or ruthless blockade of badly needed resources, the U.S. continues to invest massive resources into overthrowing the Cuban government - resources that could have been spent to provide healthcare and education to its own population. Despite these threats, the Cuban experiment of radical democracy rooted in the community remains strong.

This week, we talk to Gloria La Riva, the 2016 presidential candidate for the Party for Socialism and Liberation, about the history of the Revolution and the state of Cuba today. Gloria La Riva just returned from her most recent trip to Cuba, where she observed Cuban society, visited several key locations including a major center for biotechnology research, and studied the state of economic production on the island. This episode will cover a diverse array of Cuba-related issues from a perspective never heard in corporate media.

After the show, this interview will be available on Soundcloud, iTunes, and Stitcher. Just go to your podcast app of choice and type in "People's Republic of Austin" to stay updated with our show. You can also follow host Brian Griffith at twitter.com/PeoplesRadioATX for political news and updates about the show!

The Donna Brazile revelations added new fuel to the fire of the allegations against the Democratic Party. This week, we're talking about the DNC's continual rightward shift over the past few decades with Brandon Sutton, host of The Discourse with B.J. Sutton and a journalist with Progressive Army. We also get into deeper aspects of social and political theory, such as defining the "republic" and understanding the Constitution as a symbolic document.

Half a year after the passing of SB4, Texas communities continue to fight for the rights of immigrants against a draconian and arguably proto-fascist bill. Much of the legality of SB4 has been tied up in the court system. Still, ICE raids remain an ever-present threat and the processes of raids and deportations remain unaccountable and opaque to the public.

Joining us this week to talk about the status of SB4 is Jose Garza, Executive Director of the Workers Defense Project. We also discuss other projects of the WDP, including the Work Strong campaign for paid sick leave for Austin workers, and the WDP's work in Houston during the aftermath of Hurricane Harvey.

Immigrant communities in the United States have long lived in a state of upheaval and uncertainty. The last decade of immigration "reform" was dominated largely by executive orders, as Congresss skewed far to the right of popular opinion. If any action is taken to ensure the security of immigrants against racist and arbitrary deportations, it needs to be pushed by the people.

Joining us to talk about the DREAM Act and Texas culture are Zaira Garcia of FWD.US, as well as Maura Masters from Austin High School. We take a digression from policy analysis to talk about the Austin High School Ballet Folklorico, and also discuss the contributions of immigrants to the U.S. economy.

One year after the election of Donald Trump, the official narrative of the Russiagate conspiracy theory continues to change rapidly, and to date, zero evidence has been produced by any party to show that Russia “hacked” the elections. Instead, the conspiracy theory that Russia "hacked the elections" has largely fallen apart. The accusations have grown increasingly broad and abstract to include "collusion," "meddling," and "interference." Why the turn to such unprovable and indefinable terms?

The three interested parties that have driven the Russiagate conspiracy theory are 1) the Clinton wing of the Democratic Party; 2) the establishment media; and 3) an alliance of state intelligence agencies, chiefly the FBI, CIA, and NSA. All three of these major parties have faced serious and repeated crises of legitimacy in the eyes of the public, and all three have obvious political and financial incentive to stoking war between two nuclear-armed powers that could potentially end in nuclear apocalypse. More immediately, they are using the Russiagate conspiracy theory to silence dissenting voices in the media that object to endless U.S. warmongering in Asia, Africa, Latin America, and the Middle East.

Joining us for the next two weeks to talk about Russiagate is Brian Becker. Becker is the National Coordinator for the Act Now to Stop War and End Racism (A.N.S.W.E.R.) Coalition, a revered anti-war and anti-capitalist organizer, and host of Loud and Clear on Radio Sputnik. Our interview covers the history of Russiagate, the state of international politics, the electoral college, the rehabilitation of George W. Bush, CIA whistleblowers, and media censorship as Russiagate continues to devolve into a political witch hunt. This is one of our most thought-provoking interviews that provides a compelling counterpoint to the prevailing corporate media narrative on the Russiagate conspiracy theory.

On November 2, 1917, the British empire declared its support for a Jewish colonial state in Palestine. Why did Zionist leaders seek support from European imperial powers. and why did the British declare support for Zionism at the height of the struggle for world empire? Is the Israeli state under Netanyahu facing a crisis of legitimacy, and if so, what would follow after an end to military occupation of Palestine?

Joining us for a two-week special interview is Dr. Samir Abed-Rabbo, author of The Case for One Democratic State in Historic Palestine. Dr. Abed-Rabbo argues that if a two-state solution was ever viable, Israel's military occupation and continued ethnic cleansing of Palestinian land has made this impossible. As do many other scholars of Palestinian history, he believes that the only viable path to peace in the Middle East is now a single, democratic state spanning historic Palestine that favors social and economic justice instead of the apartheid of the current Israeli state.

Also joining us for today's show is Tura Cook of the Interfaith Community for Palestinian Rights. The ICPR has an upcoming event, "Palestine & The Aftermath of Britain's 1917 Balfour Declaration," to be held on Thursday, November 16, at the Westminster Presbyterian Church on 3208 W Exposition Blvd. More information about the ICPR can be found at https://www.facebook.com/ICPRAustin.

The first half of the interview will air Tuesday, November 7 at 2pm on KOOP. The second half will air the following week, November 14 at 4pm. Afterward, the whole interview will be available on our Soundcloud page, soundcloud.com/PeoplesRadioAustin.

Sustainable development for Guatemala and the first ever Cumbre de Migrantes y Retornados, to take place in Guatemala on October 20-21.

Regina Joseph of the Tallahassee SDS and the student movement to take back control of universities from neoliberalism, as well as the upcoming SDS national convention on October 21-22.