Special Report (8/28/2025)

In this special report we hear audio from a protest at the Minneapolis VA Medical Center on Monday August 25th 2025. A speech and two short interviews with workers.

(NOTE: An audio version of this interview on YouTube includes CAPTIONS: youtu.be/V5Pt0VN03UU?si=32pzkag9TMleYyPt)

INTERVIEW with Jihad Jneid (https://www.instagram.com/jeehad.jn/), Journalist and Producer from Tripoli, Lebanon. He entered Syria just hours after the fall of the Assad regime there.

Here we discuss the situation on the ground in Syria shortly after the fall of Assad and later. Then we discuss the release and return of Georges Abdallah to Lebanon and the state of the left in that country.

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LINKS TO ITEMS DISCUSSED IN THIS INTERVIEW:

What happened in Syria? How did al-Assad fall?: https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2024/12/8/what-happened-in-syria-has-al-assad-really-fallen

Georges Abdallah freed after four decades in French prison: https://english.almayadeen.net/news/politics/georges-abdallah-freed-after-four-decades-in-french-prison

Will Lebanon succeed in disarming Hezbollah?: https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2025/8/10/will-lebanon-succeed-in-disarming-hezbollah

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PREVIOUS SOCIALIST NEWS AND VIEWS PODCASTS ON THESE TOPICS:

EXTRA: Update From Syria - Full Interview with Thomas Schmidinger: https://soundcloud.com/socialistnewsandviews/extra-update-from-syria-full-interview-with-thomas-schmidinger

SNV Special Interview: Discussion On The Developments In Syria: https://soundcloud.com/socialistnewsandviews/snv-special-interview-discussion-on-the-developments-in-syria

SNV Special Report: George Ibrahim Abdallah Is Free!: https://soundcloud.com/socialistnewsandviews/snv-special-report-george-ibrahim-abdallah-is-free

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MUSIC (clip) that ends the interview: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YzLEbVnywh0

Special Interview Recorded (8/5/2025) and Uploaded (8/14/2025)

In this Special we speak with Raycurt Johnson (AKA Raycurt Lemuel AKA FIDDLA: http://raycurt.com/bio.htm). He has been in Minneapolis for about 5 years. He is based at the Center for Performing Arts where he has a studio and at George Floyd Square (https://www.instagram.com/38thandchicagogfs) where the community still meets twice a day and Brass Solidarity (https://www.facebook.com/BrassSolidarity) play and practice music every Monday night at 5:30pm.

Here is RAW video of music from Brass Solidarity at George Floyd Square on Monday July 21st (Provided by Urban Cabin Studios): https://youtu.be/b0Lnnm4PcZQ?si=wNuejrcNEuLh2xLB

Special Report (8/7/2025)

In this special we discuss the release on July 25th, 2025 of George Ibrahim Abdallah from a French prison after 41 years as a political prisoner. Abdallah played a leadership role within the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine – External Operations (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Popular_Front_for_the_Liberation_of_Palestine_%E2%80%93_External_Operations) and founded the Lebanese Armed Revolutionary Factions (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lebanese_Armed_Revolutionary_Factions). Abdallah was also a member in the United Front of Immigrant Workers and Working-Class Neighborhoods/Front uni des immigrations et des quartiers populaires (https://fuiqp.org/) and is the honorary President of the Union for Communist Reconstruction/Pour la reconstruction d’un Parti communiste (https://urcommuniste.fr/).

George Ibrahim Abdallah has now returned to Lebanon and is again using his platform to organize for resistance and to achieve a Free Palestine.

Links to other items covered in the report:

Pro-Palestinian Lebanese fighter freed from France welcomed home in Beirut: https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2025/7/25/pro-palestinian-lebanese-fighter-released-from-french-prison-after-40-years

French court orders release of Lebanese political activist jailed for 40 years: https://www.middleeasteye.net/news/france-court-orders-release-lebanese-political-activist-jailed-40-years

Who is Georges Abdallah?: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IdPXWHa7SHw

GEORGES IBRAHIM ABDALLAH finally FREE! (Interview with SAÏD BOUAMAMA): https://youtu.be/7s7jUgVtZdQ?si=pJ_YWJ69HIea4JAf

MARXIST CHRISTIANS IN A LEBANESE TOWN: A LINK TO TERROR BOMBING IN PARIS (archive): https://www.nytimes.com/1986/09/19/world/marxist-christians-in-a-lebanese-town-a-link-to-terror-bombing-in-paris.html

Protest outside embassy over delay in repatriation of militant Abdallah: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2xndxJf7zoQ

Freedom for Georges Abdallah and all political prisoners! (June 18, 2017): https://www.redspark.nu/political-prisoners/freedom-for-georges-abdallah-and-all-political-prisoners/

Free Georges Ibrahim Abdullah! (February 10, 2022): https://www.marxistreview.asia/free-georges-ibrahim-abdullah/

Georges Abdallah’s Release Is Long Overdue (10.30.2024): https://jacobin.com/2024/10/georges-abdallah-french-prison-release

France to release pro-Palestinian activist Georges Abdallah after 40 years of prison • FRANCE 24: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gj1ZDQLamQw

Georges Abdallah will be free; Palestine will be free! (17 July 2025): https://samidoun.net/2025/07/georges-abdallah-will-be-free-palestine-will-be-free/

Shackled and Unbowed: How Georges Ibrahim Abdallah Became A Universal Emblem of Resistance (18/07/2025): https://countercurrents.org/2025/07/shackled-and-unbowed-how-georges-ibrahim-abdallah-became-a-universal-emblem-of-resistance/

Georges Abdallah: The Lebanese activist France has held for over 40 years (THU, 19 JUN 2025): https://www.modernghana.com/news/1409984/georges-abdallah-the-lebanese-activist-france.html

The people freed Georges Abdallah! Free all political prisoners!: https://fightbacknews.org/articles/the-people-freed-georges-abdallah-free-all-political-prisoners

Georges Abdallah: My salute to the Resistance, its martyrs, and Dahieh: https://www.youtube.com/shorts/mkx4JkYnqeA

Georges Abdallah slams Arab silence over ongoing famine in Gaza: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fYkjCEUpojY

Special Interview Recorded (7/29/2025) and Uploaded (7/31/2025)

(NOTE - A video version of this interview is available from Urban Cabin Studios here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZBi2jBWWtz8)

In this special we speak with Leslie Myint (She/Her) an Associate Professor of Data Science and Statistics at Macalester College (https://www.macalester.edu/) and also a member of the Zero Burn Coalition (https://hercshutdown.org/). In this special we discuss The Hennepin Energy Recovery Center (commonly referred to as the HERC) which is a waste-to-energy facility located in downtown Minneapolis that burns garbage to generate energy. The community has spent decades trying to close down the HERC and we may be closer than ever.

The biggest group withint the Zero Burn Coalition is the Minnesota Environmental Justice Table which can be found here: https://www.mnejtable.org/anti-incinerator-campaign

Zero Burn Coalition demands Hennepin County take steps immediately to shut down HERC (Longfellow/Nokomis Messanger): https://www.longfellownokomismessenger.com/stories/zero-burn-coalition-demands-hennepin-county-take-steps-immediately-to-shut-down-herc,117671

Special Interview Recorded (7/10/2025) and Uploaded (7/24/2025)

In this special we speak with long-time activist Beth Blick, Board Member of Minnesota Citizens for Global Solutions (globalsolutionsmn.org) and MN State Chapter of the National Organization For Women (NOW: https://now.org/). In this special we speak about ending the practice of allowing sheltered workshops for disabled individuals that pay a subminimum wage, disabled organizations by and for disabled people, and many other topics about creating a better world.

Beth Blick has recently started getting involved with Democratic Socialists of America (DSA: https://twincitiesdsa.org/)

Beth Blick has also written previous columns for Minnesota Women's Press:

VIEW: What We Need for the Disabled Community: https://www.womenspress.com/view-what-we-need-for-the-disabled-community/

Feline Power: https://www.womenspress.com/feline-power/

#Ableism #DisabilityRights #DemocraticSocialistsOfAmerica

NEWS + POEM + ESSAY - Empty and Fill: Seven Days in Chengdu, China ready by Anne Winkler-Morey (https://annewinklermorey.com/fill-up-and-empty-seven-days-in-chengdu-china/).

NEWS:

Good Trouble Lives On: https://goodtroubleliveson.org/

(FULL) Good Trouble Lives On: Socialist News And Views Interview with Monique Cullars Doty, Co-Founder of Black Lives Matter Minnesota: https://youtu.be/NV5wgvzP-Yk?si=aQom71OnfYYcDXbo

Help Kamel Aljamal Become a Surgeon and Escape the Genocide: https://www.gofundme.com/f/help-kamel-aljamal-become-a-surgeon-and-escape-the-genocide

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POEM:

I held my little boy as he slept: https://www.facebook.com/share/p/14MxKhStu3T/

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ESSAY:

Empty and Fill: Seven Days in Chengdu, China: https://annewinklermorey.com/fill-up-and-empty-seven-days-in-chengdu-china/

From her blog Aging On The Run: https://annewinklermorey.com/about-the-author/projects/travel-blog-political/

From Anne Winkler-Morey's website: https://annewinklermorey.com/

You can buy Anne Winkler-Morey's book Allegience to Winds and Waters here: https://bookshop.org/p/books/allegiance-to-winds-and-waters-bicycling-the-political-divides-of-the-united-states-anne-winkler-morey/18195167?aid=82747&ean=9781634895163&gclid=CjwKCAjwo9unBhBTEiwAipC116PmxxHe8GXitGZsB33pcPzCR9BBaxdpMh7C2gGbLNJtohfILHlr8BoCF7cQAvD_BwE&listref=allegiance-to-winds-and-waters-bicycling-the-political-divides-of-the-united-states

You can see Winkler-Morey's previous appearances on the podcast - Here: https://soundcloud.com/socialistnewsandviews/snv-special-interview-anne-winkler-morey-interviews-host-nick and Here: https://soundcloud.com/socialistnewsandviews/snv-special-interview-aging-on-the-run and Here: https://soundcloud.com/socialistnewsandviews/allegiance-to-winds-and-waters-socialist-news-and-views-episode-37

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Special Report (7/10/2025)

In this special we revisit 40 years since the 1985 bombing of Greenpeace's Rainbow Warrior (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sinking_of_the_Rainbow_Warrior) in the Port of Auckland. The bombing and subsequent sinking of Rainbow Warrior, codenamed Opération Satanique, was a "covert operation" by the French secret service agency, the Directorate-General for External Security (DGSE). Fernando Pereira, a Greenpeace photographer, died in the sinking ship. Thirty years later the individual who planted the bomb Jean-Luc Kister confessed and apologized for doing it.

Links to topics discussed in this special:

Bombing and Sinking of Rainbow Warrior (1985): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1-CGX7_baRQ

Terrorising Greenpeace: The French Bombing of the Rainbow Warrior (1985) | Political History: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FIzafGm9CUA

Rainbow Warrior: 30 Years On - Skipper Pete Willcox reflects (PMC): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5uQaEwTeX6E&t=172s

French Agent Breaks Silence on Bombing Greenpeace’s Rainbow Warrior in 1985: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6-xA8UavHSM&t=18s

Justice has 'absolutely not' been done - Rainbow Warrior captain: https://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/justice-has-absolutely-not-been-done-rainbow-warrior-captain/FHGVHX54TPIDO7QDIVI2QLITAE/

USA: GREENPEACE DEMONSTRATION OVER RAINBOW WARRIOR SEIZURE: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zDJiD8x_GG4

Rainbow Warrior 7/7: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5qTURi-iCOA

Special Interview Recorded (6/19/2025) and Uploaded (7/3/2025)

(NOTE: A video version of this interview is available from Urban Cabin Studios on YouTube here: https://youtu.be/obXNp1uHXaY?si=mSTzS09o-DXlE95P)

In this Special Interview the great Author and Globetrotter Anne Winkler-Morey (https://annewinklermorey.com/about-the-author/projects/travel-blog-political/) interviews the Host of Socialist News and Views, Nick Shillingford. NOTE: Unfortunately the answer to the first question about the FREE BOOKS table was not saved correctly so this interview starts with the second question.

Nick Shillingford is a Registered Nurse, Marxist, Artists and Podcaster based in South Minneapolis. He hosts Socialist News and Views, a weekly podcast on politics, history, art and culture.

#travel #socialism #podcasting

Special Interview Recorded (6/24/2025) and Uploaded (6/26/2025)

(NOTE - A video version of this interview is available from Urban Cabin Studios here: https://youtu.be/mIS-vmbJfg4?si=UO4txy3BHOPqbrfj)

In this special we speak with Bjorn Johnson, a Paraprofessional at Inver Grove Heights School Districts who works primarily in Special Education. Johnson is a member of Teamsters Local 320 (https://www.teamsterslocal320.org/). A member there already lost her job as a result of Trump's government and funding cuts.

Here is what Teamster President Sean O’Brien said about cuts that mean job losses for his own members: There is “a lot of fat in the government that he is trimming and I don’t think people are opposed to that.”

An article on Left Voice discusses O'Brien's comments and support for Trump's Secretary of Labor. Sean O’Brien’s Support for Trump’s Labor Secretary Is Everything That’s Wrong with U.S. Labor (Left Voice): https://www.leftvoice.org/sean-obriens-support-for-trumps-labor-secretary-is-everything-thats-wrong-with-u-s-labor/

Here is the very neutral sounding statement from Teamsters 320 about Trump's clear attacks on workers: https://www.teamsterslocal320.org/news-details/news/news/9834/97473

On Saturday June 21st Bjorn Johnson wrote the following post on Facebook (https://www.facebook.com/bjornejohnson/posts/pfbid0fbJQktohMhMUA2b3zGtibK61dzXYqGApPiwm1pqards4vjSs51EJcQDu98kVEZ1Dl) saying of the firing of a fellow worker that "if they don't take action in the next 72 hours I am cancelling my membership."

#union #bureaucracy #labor