Trayvon Martin: Re-opening Wounds of Racism

The shooting death of Trayvon Martin has re-opened old wounds for many in Sanford, Florida's black community, and fueled an existing distrust of police. My son, Jesse Lloyd Guma, visited the community last week to produce this segment for The Grio. It aired Friday on MSNBC. 

Visit msnbc.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy

     Sanford Mayor Jeff Triplett attended a town hall meeting on Wednesday after traveling to Washington DC with a delegation. They urge the Justice Department to review the case, including why police failed to arrest the shooter, George Zimmerman. But the main source of mistrust, many residents said, is the department led by a man who wasn't there, Sanford police chief Bill Lee.

     Outside the town hall, a group of young men from a local church wore Skittles candy boxes around their necks to signal their fear that they could become victims of racial profiling, just like Trayvon. National NAACP president Ben Jealous said the fear of profiling, especially after the killing of Trayvon Martin, is not limited to Sanford.

     The Department of Justice and a Florida grand jury are investigating the police handling of Trayvon's death.

Vermont Yankee: Taking Back the Power

3/23 Update: More than 1,000 people turned up in Brattleboro on Thursday to march the 3.5 miles from the town common to Entergy’s offices at Vermont Yankee. Dozens trespassed on the company’s property and were arrested. Continue reading

^^^

Calling all citizens,

Defying the will of Vermonters, Entergy Nuclear has successfully won the first stage of its strategy to break its word and to usurp the authority of the Vermont legislature. 

In their negotiations to get permission to buy Vermont Yankee, corporate officials agreed to abide by future state statutes, and promised to forgo the right to sue the state over statutes that might be contrary to Entergy's interests. But they were lying, sued the state, and have won the first round in a federal court suit that reverses the state legislature's refusal to extend Vermont Yankee's operating license.

Judge J. Garvin Murtha effectively said that [contrary to prior Supreme Court rulings] the legislature has no authority to regulate the operation of the Vermont Yankee nuclear reactor. The Public Service Board is now the only state entity with the power to decide Yankee's future.

The judge also bought Entergy's argument that he should base his ruling not on the written legislation, but rather by retroactively reading the minds of the legislators to judge what they were thinking at the time.

This ruling goes hand in glove with current Federal policies that enrich the 1% and keep power firmly in the hands of large corporations. It affirms that corporate power and influence trump the interests of the citizenry. And it reinforces the notion that only the federal government can be trusted to keep us safe from radiological accidents caused by corporate malfeasance and profit-driven lax practices.

More significantly, the ruling should serve as the catalyst to spark Vermonters who have been watching the struggle from the sidelines to join the citizen effort to shut down VY before an accident shuts it down for us.

A majority of Vermonters know that Vermont Yankee has run its course and needs to be shut down, as originally licensed. Now is the time to turn to your neighbors.

With as few as five to ten friends, you can form an affinity group that takes non-violent training to help in the effort to shut down VY. You customize your affinity group to match the interests and willingness of its members, from pledging to engage in direct action/civil disobedience, to standing quietly on the sidewalk or organizing other actions. While a coalition of organizations IS working to coordinate these diverse efforts, don’t wait to engage in any way that seems appropriate to you.

Entergy has the judge's approval to continue operating past its March 21 close down date. But Vermont can (and may) appeal the decision, and the Public Service Board should be encouraged to deny a Certificate of Public Good.

But more important…

The region is mobilizing to descend upon Entergy's presence in southern Vermont and engage with a campaign of rallies, marches, direct action and political engagement to make it increasingly difficult for Entergy to conduct business as usual.

THE MOBILIZATION BEGINS

Civil disobedience and direct action will continue as needed. The State of Vermont will continue to assert its right to control the state’s energy generating future. But it needs the help of everyone. Only with a strong partnership of people power and government action can we assure victory over the entrenched interests of the money powered corporate oligarchy.

Starting now, every American who lives anywhere near an Entergy related establishment should know the truth about the company – and how they use their influence with the federal government (they brag about it on their website) to increase profits and deny the sovereign rights of communities and governments.

Together, we can take actions and create a narrative that resonates with people across the country and contributes to the growing political consciousness that the Occupy Movement has nurtured. Let’s keep up the momentum. The expiration date of Vermont Yankee’s license provides a sharp focus for the months ahead.

Contact www.sagealliance.net for help organizing an affinity group and staying connected. Take back the power from federal overreach and take back Vermont from those who would put us all at risk for the sake of profit. The Arab Spring and the Occupy movement demonstrate the potential power of the people. When we stand by and watch, we often find ourselves in peril. When we assert our sovereign power we take the first step towards building a better future.

Never Violence, Only Victory.

The SAGE Alliance  sagealliance.org

Will Maverick Go to Netroots? You decide

Democracy for America and America's Voice are teaming up to provide financial scholarships to 40 bloggers and activists so they can attend this year's Netroots Nation conference, to be held June 7-10 in Providence, RI.  Netroots Nation provides bloggers, progressive activists and candidates a forum to strengthen the online community and grow progressive movements.

     If you think I should be there, please add your support to my scholarship application.

The scholarship winners will be decided over the course of three rounds. The first round runs through 11:59 PM PST on March 21. The three applicants with the most support from DFA Members and Netroots will automatically win a scholarship in each round. Others will be chosen by a selection committee.

     The competition is tough and I need your help. Please support my application in the Netroots Nation Scholarship Competition. Also, spread the word over the next two weeks through your social networks.  Here’s the link: Greg Guma’s NetrootsScholarship Page.

     Early votes are extra important, since they can help to build momentum. So, if you think I ought to be there, let them know. Sound like a plan? Thanks in advance. – GG aka Maverick Media

In case you wondered….

To apply, I answered a series of interesting questions. I don’t know if this qualifies as transparency, but here are most of my responses:

A little about me: Questioning illegitimate authority and assisting new social movements has been my privilege for decades. Since returning home to Burlington in 2010, I've been challenging the corporate media consensus through my blog (Maverick Media), reporting and investigations for VtDigger.org, and articles on sites like Alternet, Truthout, Common Dreams, ZNet, and many more. 

      Starting out as a reporter in the late 60s, I launched several alternative publications in the 1970s, including as editor of The Vermont Vanguard Press, which set the stage for the election of Bernie Sanders and the launch of Vermont's modern progressive movement. In the 80s and 90s I was a syndicated columnist, launched community bookstores in Vermont and Santa Monica, coordinated Burlington's Peace and Justice Center and New Mexico's leading immigrant legal services organization. 

     Returning to Vermont, I edited Toward Freedom, a respected international affairs magazine, and supervised its digital transition. I also organized one of the first Indy Media conferences in 2000 and participated in the Quebec Mobilization against corporate globalization. In 2004 I co-founded Vermont Guardian, a print and online weekly. In 2006 I became Executive Director of Pacifica Radio, attempting to promote its national programming and internal reconciliation. 

      I'm the author of The People's Republic: Vermont and the Sanders Revolution; Uneasy Empire: Repression, Globalization, and What We Can Do; Big Lies: How our corporate overlords, politicians and media establishment warp reality and undermine democracy; and the radio play, Inquisitions (and Other Un-American Activities). I currently work for VTDigger.org, a Vermont news website, as its Burlington correspondent.

Why I deserve a scholarship: To begin, I am a 65-year old activist of long-standing living on a fixed income. Over the years, fighting centralized and entrenched power has required some sacrifices. In 1974, for example, I was blacklisted from public service for becoming a whistle blower on misuse of federal funds. Several years later, while teaching at a Vermont college, I was improperly fired for standing up for student rights and fair pay.

     But more relevant, I have decades of on-the ground organizing experience -- and have also kept pace with major technological innovations. From alternative publications, photography and community radio to documentary films, books, a CD on nonviolence, a radio drama on civil liberties that has been aired in more than 20 states -- I use many techniques and platforms to investigate, educate and create a counter-narrative of resistance and liberation.

     I continue to participate in the evolution of Vermont's progressive and independence movements, and write several widely-read stories weeklies on everything ranging from financial scandals, elections and education to Vermont's Yankee and significant historical events.
     Without a scholarship, my limited income and current commitments make hard for me to deal with transportation and housing. But I'd be excited to attend and exchange ideas.

What first inspired me to get involved: In a way it began in high school, defying arbitrary authority in a repressive parochial school. But being a reporter in the turbulent 60s revealed deep social injustices, and later work in government exposed the bankruptcy of the current social order. By the mid-70s I'd become a full-time organizer and media activist. By the end of the 80s the head of the local Republican Party called me a "serious professional revolutionary anarchist." I turned it into a campaign button.

How I’ve gotten others involved: I've been mentoring young writers and activists for more than 30 years, initially as editor of Vermont's leading alternative newspaper. Then, and later with Toward Freedom, I worked with hundreds of young reporters, in the US and later around the world, some of whom went on to do significant work. While in print TF stressed connections with writers in Africa, Asia and Latin America. I have also organized campaigns on civil liberties issues, local democracy, energy, militarization, corporate globalization, and the environment. Beyond that, I use my research and writing to challenge conventional thinking and motivate constructive action.

A Twitter manifesto? Bringing us together globally, new media challenge the management of mass perceptions and the knowledge monopoly of elites, fueling hope and direct action to make another world possible.

Bumper Sticker:  

THE EMPIRE ENDS HERE!

Video Diary: Burlington's 40 Percent Question

Once upon a time voters in Vermont's largest city faced a difficult choice between the leader of an ad hoc coalition that crossed party lines and a Democrat with solid backing from the political establishment. That was 1981, and a political outsider named Bernie Sanders was the ultimate winner.
     In March 2012 it's happening again, and the election could be just as consequential.
     Here's a video summary of the race...


For a detailed analysis, go to VTDigger.org.-- Campaign Notebook.

Free Speech TV to Launch on Basic Cable

Burlington Telecom, the publicly owned cable, internet and phone utility in my hometown, will add Free Speech TV to its basic cable line up on March 1. It will become Channel 122 for thousands of Vermont cable subscribers. Although FSTV already reaches millions via satellite and DIRECTV, this will be its first US appearance on a basic cable line up. 
    It wasn't quite a done deal until today, when a Kickstarter fundraising campaign finished raising almost $3,000 in less than a week ...

The video above was produced by Friends of Free Speech TV, a Burlington area group organized to make FSTV's launch happen. It include clips from the channel. Please take a look.... 
    To insure carriage on the basic tier received by all cable subscribers, FSTV and its supporters agreed to raise $10,000 to cover some start-up costs -- by the end of February! 
    A Friends of Free Speech TV group stepped up, a $5,000 match was offered, and the rest was raised in the last days of the month. If the goal wasn't reached, the match would have been lost, possibly jeopardizing the basic cable deal.

FSTV is an essential alternative on television. It airs Democracy Now! three times daily, and has coverage of cutting-edge current affairs like the Occupy movement and many independently-produced documentaries. A daily talk show hosted by Thom Hartmann features “Brunch with Bernie,” a Friday noon discussion and call-in segment with Vermont's Independent US senator.
    The mission of FSTV is to “inspire viewers to become civically engaged to build a more just, equitable, and sustainable society,” says Greg Epler-Wood, a former member of BT’s Community Advisory Council and member of Friends of FSTV.
    It was a race to the finish. But we made it! Congratulations and thanks to all who took part.

UPDATED 2/29/2012