Tag: the new england unsettler

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Communique 017, the last on Boston Free Radio, airs today!

Good morning, Unsettlers. Apologies for the lack of updates here! A few weeks back, The Unsettler became a twice-monthly podcast, rather than a weekly podcast, as there was simply too much research, art-making, and prep work to be done between communiques. As of August, The Unsettler will be on hiatus from regular broadcasting, doing DIY communiques as inspiration strikes and time allows.

Don’t fret! The backlog will stay available via SoundCloud and iTunes, even as the show moves away from live material.

Please tune in for our final BostonFreeRadio installment this evening at 6 p.m. ET to hear a great interview with candidate for Somerville Ward 3 Alderman, Ben Ewen-Campen that covers radical and progressive battles in and outside of local mainstream politics.

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New schedule for live communiques, podcasts

Hello Unsettlers!

You may have noticed a lack of activity here, which is the result of other projects taking up a good portion of my time this month. I’m scaling back The Unsettler to accommodate these other creative outlets, and hoping to keep (improve, even) the quality of future installments of the NEU.

The 1st, 3rd, and occasional 5th Monday of each month, you’ll be able to catch The Unsettler on BostonFreeRadio.com at 5 p.m. ET; 2nd and 4th Mondays will be reruns. That means you can expect new podcast updates twice monthly on our SoundCloud and iTunes (leave a review and rating, if you have a moment).

Thanks for your support!
Eljasz

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Communique 012: The Carceral State of the Nation

Stream or download on SoundCloud or iTunes.

Elias sits down with Dr. Christopher Petrella, a Lecturer in American Cultural Studies and Associate Director of Programs for the Office of Equity and Diversity (OED) at Bates College in Lewiston, Maine, and contributor to Boston Review and Black Perspectives (African American Intellectual Historical Society) to discuss his work on exploring and exposing the private prison industry, which has previously been featured in The New York Times, Harper’s Magazine, The Nation, Boston Review, and The New Yorker, has appeared on ESPN and NPR, and has been debated in the U.S. House of Representatives. Strap in, Unsettlers, this is a good one!

Talking points:

Renown Scholar Forced to Discuss The Onion; a town with more prisons than stop lights; when private prisons become ubiquitous, are private prisons “normal”?; “mass incarceration” vs “the carceral state”; you don’t have to be in prison to be imprisoned–how are bodies criminalized?; immigration becomes a crime–crossing the Streamline; detainment as a “market”; bed quotas and minimum occupancy requirements for ICE and prisons; “if you build it, you will fill it”–empty prisons lead to uncomfortable questions; banks built the prisons; don’t get it twisted–“state-funded” prisons aren’t “better”; our previous “victories”; why stocks for private prison corporations surged after Trump’s win; race and the state; weaponizing a census; “real estate companies who dabble in incarceration.”

Related links:

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Communique 008: Happy Belated Inhalants Day!

Aaand we’re back! Elias and Athena bring you another weekly roundup of late capitalist fuckery as the masses clamber for fully automated luxury queer space communism. Download or stream Communique 008 on SoundCloud or iTunes!

Talking points: Post-Patriots; Back from the Brink; Narcy Narc; Running Far, Slowly, for Free; .8 of a host does 0% research; internshit; sway (not power); floor sweepings in the Nazi cola; Raytheon–whatta crazy feelin’; Trump: war profiteer; when a Father of All Bombs and a Mother of All Bombs love each other very much; energy chunks; vote for Ben Ewen-Campen; shocking developments; libertarian municipalism; Make AntiFa Sexy Again?!; who’s in their lane; Happy Belated Inhalants Day; Happy Slight Dehydration Day; the anniversary of the Warsaw Ghetto Uprising; small acts of resistance; Athena’s upcoming show; Bill O’Reilly got fired!; more like Henry Dolt, amiright?; s/o to Chapo; nuke volleyball; the Alex Jones meat sweats; don’t get directions from Trump; will Mass get a non-racist flag?!; let’s take down Casey Affleck next.

Related Links:
Sorry, Pepsi Haters, But Social Justice Needs Capitalism (Samuel Hammond, LiberalCurrents.com)
Donald Trump personally profited from missile-maker Raytheon’s stock jump after his Syria attack (Tom Boggioni, RawStory)
Trump’s For-Profit Presidency Takes Ugly Turn as He Makes Money by Attacking Syria (Hrafnkell Haraldsson, PoliticusUSA)
US drops ‘largest non-nuclear bomb’ in Afghanistan area populated by Isis members (Tom Batchelor, Will Worley, Mythili Sampathkumar, The Independent)
Father of All Bombs (Wikipedia)
Ben Ewen-Campen for Ward 3 Alderman, Somerville
Prospects for Social Democracy in the US: Insights From a Syndicalist in Sweden (Enrique Guerrero-López, Adam Weaver, Truthout)
IGDCAST: Louise Rosealma on Berkeley and It’s Implications
4/20 Is Bourgeoisie Bullshit, Proletariats Don’t Smoke Pot We Do Inhalants! (William Todd, Clash)
Remembering the Warsaw Ghetto Uprising (Marcus Barnett, Jacobin)
Bill O’Reilly’s publisher stands by him after Fox sacking (Danuta Kean, The Guardian)
Chapo Trap House – Episode 100: Chapo Goes to College
Alex Jones’ first day in court went just great (Sam Barsanti, A/V Club)
Activity Spotted at North Korea Nuclear Test Site: Volleyball (William J. Broad, The New York Times)
Changing views may lead to re-examination of state seal (Andy Metzger, The Lowell Sun)
“All Star” By Smash Mouth But All Instruments Are Bill O’Reilly Saying His Name

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Today on the Unsettler: Communique 004 goes LIVE at FIVE

This afternoon, we’ll have Caitlin of Seek & Find Boston in the studio to chat about her upcoming zine, which will compile local self-defense education resources for women in the Greater Boston Area, as well as her work organizing and promoting low-cost and free events in and around the city. Plus: it’s vernal equinox! Fight for equal rights on this equal night, and listen in at 5 p.m. ET.

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Events & Actions: Monday, 3/13-Sunday, 3/19

Monday, March 13th

Tuesday, March 14th

  • 350 Boston Node Meeting for climate action at First Church in JP (Eliot Street).

Wednesday, March 15th

  • 6:00-8:00 p.m. – Somerville Ward 2 Committee Meeting at NU Cafe and Juice Bar in Somerville (195 Washington Street)
  • 6:00-9:30 p.m. – Intro to NVDA for POC, presented by the FANG Collective at their office in Pawtucket, RI (545 Pawtucket Ave – Park in the lot and enter building through lots entrance and follow the wolf signs!). This is a brief workshop for People of Color ONLY that offers an introduction to the history of Nonviolent Direct Action and its implementation as well as examples of intersectionality within our community/movements, affinity groups and their formation, consensus decision making, and a discussion on self-care and community care. Register online and contact Sherrie by email for any childcare/accessibility needs. 
  • 6:30-9:00 p.m. – Matty’s St. Paddy’s at American Fresh, Assembly Row (301 Canal Street) in Somerville. This is Ward 1 Alderman Matt McLaughlin’s annual fundraiser. Food will be served. Donations gratefully accepted. If you cannot attend please consider making a donation online.
  • 7:00-9:00 p.m. – Boston Food Not Bombs has its weekly planning meeting during this time at Encuentro 5 (9 Hamilton Pl Suite 2a) in Boston. This is, of course, the long-running, non-sectarian, but definitely radical free food organizations that’s been serving in MA for decades now.
  • 7:00-9:00 p.m. Black & Pink has weekly volunteer drop-in hours on Wednesdays, as well. They’re at First Baptist Church (633 Centre St) in Jamaica Plain. “Bring a laptop, if you can. If not, you can help write birthday cards!”

Thursday, March 16th

Friday, March 17th

Saturday, March 18th

  • 9:00 a.m.-12:00 p.m. – Food Not Bombs cooks for its Saturday Central Square Meal in Cambridge. E-mail us for details.
  • 10:00 a.m.-6:00 p.m. – Movimiento Cosecha’s allies group is holding its first CosechAllies day-long retreat in Boston! Trainings will clarify the role of allies within the movement to provide permanent protection, dignity, and respect for the 11 million undocumented workers in the US. Participants will also learn about and join working groups that will support Cosecha’s national expansion. Please register here.
  • 12:00-3:00 p.m. – Black & Pink holds drop-in volunteer hours at this time each week at Swissbakers (168 Western Ave) in Allston.
  • 12:30-4:00 p.m. – Food Not Bombs’ Central Square Meal is served at this time each week.
  • 2:00-4:00 p.m. (tentatively) – Boston DSA Annual Meeting and Local Elections at the 32BJ SEIU 615 office (26 West Street) in Boston.
  • 6:00-11:00 p.m. – Food Not Bombs’ Haymarket Produce Rescue happens during these hours each Saturday. Volunteers meet up near Faneuil Hall at Haymarket (corner of Blackstone and North, across the street from a Hard Rock Cafe) to rescue and sort produce destined for the compost heap or landfill and deliver it, by car, to shelters in the Boston/Cambridge area to stock them with food. Volunteers with cars are especially needed.

Sunday, March 19th

  • 12:00-1:30 p.m – Boston Homeless Solidarity Committee weekly meeting at Encuentro 5 (9A Hamilton Pl in Boston). All are welcome, including people who are currently experiencing or have experienced homelessness. For an idea of what will be discussed, including the proposed agenda, or to be added to their mailing list, please contact them by email.
  • 1:00-5:00 p.m. – “Buy Art. Support Resistance.” Activist Art Pop Up Market at Aeronaut Brewing Company in Somerville (14 Tyler Street). Activist artists, groovy tunes, delicious beer – all for a good cause! Vendors are donating to: Planned Parenthood, ACLU, Flint Water Crisis, Standing Rock, Black and Pink, and more!
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Communique 001: Throwing Our Hat in the Chex Mix

Stream or download from Soundcloud.

In this episode: A reading from Two Cheers for Anarchism by James C. Scott, introducing Elias and Athena, Athena recites Robert’s Rules of Order backwards, 311 was an inside job (by paid protesters), stop police-stating yourself, throwing our hat in the chex (and balances) mix, I think that means something else, please don’t call in using this number, 45 revokes federal protections for trans students, we incept you, EVENTS, promo requests, MORE EVENTS, feel free to call us out, check out Feminist Killjoys, PhD, just a reminder that you’ve been incepted.

Referenced graphics, stories, etc:


(Graphic by Vice. See also: National Equality Maps from Transgender Law Center.)

Music:
Intro (Styles of Beyond – Survival Tactics [NEU Edit])

John Zorn – The Sicilian Clan
Wu-Tang Clan – Preservation
El-P – Drones Over Brooklyn

Against Me! – True Trans Soul Rebel

Run the Jewels – Banana Clipper
KRS-One – 1-2-3 Here’s What We Gonna Do
Deltron 3030 – Battlesong
J Dilla – Fuck the Police
Ice Cube – It Was a Good Day (Remix)

G.L.O.S.S – Lined Lips and Spiked Bats
The Spook School – Binary

Little Shalimar – The Revolution Might Be Televised
Deltron 3030 – Memory Loss
Dan the Automator – Bang the Ball

Outro (Run the Jewels – Kill Yr Masters [NEU Edit])