This Is America #98: Stop the Sweeps Austin, Newnan Update, An Anarchist Analysis of ‘A Warning’

Podcast: Play in new window | Download

Subscribe: RSS

Welcome, to This Is America, December 4th, 2019.

In this episode, we speak with two people from Stop the Sweeps in Austin, Texas, about the group’s efforts to fight back against attacks on the homeless in an area that is increasing gentrifying.

Today TXDoT gave another ultimatum to folks staying under the overpasses

They tried the same type of ultimatum last week and got delayed & deterred by allied observers & supporters of the city’s unhoused residents. We can do it again #StopTheSweeps pic.twitter.com/2oVUtVnVri

— Stop The Sweeps Austin (@StopSweepsATX) November 25, 2019

We then speak to an attorney in Georgia who is representing antifascists against charges stemming from a rally against the neo-Nazi organization the National Socialist Movement (NSM) back in 2018. We discuss the case, the charges, and the police response. Donate to help out with the case here.

Heavily armed police officer points weapon at antifascist and anti-racist protesters in Newnan, Georgia in April of 2018. Hundreds came out to shut down the Nationalist Socialist Movement (NSM), one of the longest running neo-Nazi groups in the US.

We then switch to a discussion on the ongoing Trump impeachment crisis and present an anarchist analysis of the new anonymous book from inside the White House entitled, A Warning, and discuss what insight it offers to those fighting the current regime.

All this and more, but first, let’s get to the news!

Living and Fighting

The Trump administration is pushing for attacks on Food Stamps, which could result in upwards of over 3 million people being removed from the program or see a reduction in their benefits. The Trump administration claims that there is less of a need for government assistance programs as unemployment is low and the economy, at least for the wealthy, is doing good.

As Common Dreams wrote:

More and more Americans are facing financial difficulty. Estimates of adults living from paycheck to paycheck range from half to 60 percent to 78 percent. Any sign of a recession would be devastating for most of us.

The extreme levels of American poverty and inequality are ripping apart once-interdependent communities with mental health and homelessness problems, and with a surge in drug and alcohol and suicide “deaths of despair.”

Speaking of homelessness, the Trump administration has recently recruited “Robert Marbut, a consultant who has urged cities to stop feeding the homeless, to lead the agency that coordinates the government’s response to the crisis,” which has drawn the condemnation of advocacy groups.

In immigration news, almost all of those that apply legally for asylum in the United States in order to flee domestic, government, and gang violence are not allowed into the country, according to former a Asylum Officer who has come forward after quitting their job. This is the end result of the Trump administration’s policies such as the “Remain in Mexico” law, which forces people applying for asylum to wait in Mexico, leaving them potentially open to kidnapping and extortion. Those attempting to come into the US must also first apply to “safe countries” for asylum that they pass through along their way to the United States; a way to essentially end migrant caravans and stop legal asylum seekers.

This policy has been coupled with the growth of the newly formed National Guard in Mexico (tasked with policing migrants) and the proliferation of border infrastructure across the global South at the bequest of the US. The US is also currently targeting many Iraqis and others living in the US, legally since they were children, for deportation, as it clamps down against employees who hold an H-1B.

According to Reveal:

The administration says it’s tightening H-1B policies to prevent fraud and award visas only to the “most-skilled or highest-paid beneficiaries.” Yet an investigation by Mother Jones and Reveal has found that the administration has been denying visas to experienced, well-paid workers, many of whom have degrees from American universities and have previously received H-1Bs.

This clamp down has been pushed by Stephen Miller, long tied to white nationalism and one of Trump’s chief policy advisors. As one immigration law professor stated:

We see an assault on legal immigration just as vociferously as we’ve seen the assault on illegal immigration. It’s really Make America White Again.

 

Like the Democrats push for a “smart wall,” which utilized surveillance and counter-insurgency tech already tried out in the occupied Palestinian territories, the Trump administration is not only seeking to push non-white so-called immigrants out of the US, but also prepare for the incoming flood of climate refugees.

Upcoming Events

• December 4th – 17th: CrimethInc. west coast tour! More info.
• December 7th: New Orleans Anarchist Bookfair. More info.
• December 7th: Rally against neo-Nazis in Olympia, WA. More info.
• December 14th: Humboldt Anarchist Bookfair. More info.
• December 14th – 15th: Hackers Next Door Conference. Radical security and privacy. NYC. More info.
• December 31st: New Year’s Eve Noise Demonstrations. All over! More info.