A Kenyan tribe living near the area famous for its links to Prince William and Kate Middleton’s engagement has been engulfed by violence after wildlife charities arranged to buy their land.
Kenya’s Laikipia district has been part of the traditional territory of the Samburu tribe for centuries until two US-based charities – The Nature Conservancy (TNC) and the African Wildlife Foundation (AWF) – agreed to pay $2 million for their land, which was officially owned by former Kenyan President Daniel arap Moi.
Soon after, the Kenyan police began a series of brutal evictions of the tribe, burning their villages, killing and stealing their animals and assaulting men, women and children. Survival has recently received reports of an elder being shot ‘in cold blood’.
2,000 Samburu families now live in makeshift squats on the edge of the land and 1,000 others have been forced to relocate entirely.
Conditions are appalling, and resources scarce. A Channel 4 documentary caught on camera the extreme nature of these evictions in the Eland Downs.
Tuesday, December 13, 2011
Violence engulfs Kenyan tribe just miles from royal hideaway - Survival International
Violence engulfs Kenyan tribe just miles from royal hideaway - Survival International
Monday, December 12, 2011
Kansas tea party illustration draws racism claims - Democratic Underground
Kansas tea party illustration draws racism claims - Democratic Underground: HUTCHINSON, Kan. | A tea party group in Kansas says its depiction of President Barack Obama as a skunk is satire, not racism as the leader of a civil rights group alleges.
Hutchinson-based Patriot Freedom Alliance says on its website that like the president, the skunk is “half black, half white, and almost everything it does stinks.”
Local NAACP president Darrell Pope sees no humor in the depiction, which he calls a blatant statement of racism.
Hutchinson-based Patriot Freedom Alliance says on its website that like the president, the skunk is “half black, half white, and almost everything it does stinks.”
Local NAACP president Darrell Pope sees no humor in the depiction, which he calls a blatant statement of racism.
Thursday, December 08, 2011
Massive Population Drop Found for Native Americans, DNA Shows
Massive Population Drop Found for Native Americans, DNA Shows Ker Than
for National Geographic News
Published December 5, 2011
The number of Native Americans quickly shrank by roughly half following European contact about 500 years ago, according to a new genetic study.
The finding supports historical accounts that Europeans triggered a wave of disease, warfare, and enslavement in the New World that had devastating effects for indigenous populations across the Americas.
(Related: "Guns, Germs and Steel—Jared Diamond on Geography as Power.")
Using samples of ancient and modern mitochondrial DNA—which is passed down only from mothers to daughters—the researchers calculated a demographic history for American Indians. (Get an overview of human genetics.)
Based on the data, the team estimates that the Native American population was at an all-time high about 5,000 years ago.
The population then reached a low point about 500 years ago—only a few years after Christopher Columbus arrived in the New World and before extensive European colonization began.
for National Geographic News
Published December 5, 2011
The number of Native Americans quickly shrank by roughly half following European contact about 500 years ago, according to a new genetic study.
The finding supports historical accounts that Europeans triggered a wave of disease, warfare, and enslavement in the New World that had devastating effects for indigenous populations across the Americas.
(Related: "Guns, Germs and Steel—Jared Diamond on Geography as Power.")
Using samples of ancient and modern mitochondrial DNA—which is passed down only from mothers to daughters—the researchers calculated a demographic history for American Indians. (Get an overview of human genetics.)
Based on the data, the team estimates that the Native American population was at an all-time high about 5,000 years ago.
The population then reached a low point about 500 years ago—only a few years after Christopher Columbus arrived in the New World and before extensive European colonization began.
OpEdNews - Article: Understanding American Racism
OpEdNews - Article: Understanding American Racism: In recent times the New York Times, the York Daily News and Metro New York all reported on the expose that cops from the New York City Police Department (NYPD) had posted a series of racist rants on the social networking website Facebook. The threats to "drop a bomb and wipe them all out" and the characterization of a group of Black people from the Caribbean enjoying their culture in the adopted homeland as "animals and savages" underscored the nature of white supremacist racism and the fact that in the Age of Obama it's still very much alive and well.
If anything racism in the United States is on the upswing and threatens a social explosion that will define America in the 21st century. And it points to the fact that America has not yet confronted or come to grips with the legacy of white racism. Or maybe it's a DNA thing and it will take generations of inbreeding to "wash it out of the system." So while I am no sociologist and profess no training in race relations I crave the forgiveness of the intellectually informed for any mistake that I may make in writing this piece. But I believe that there must be a discussion on racism in American today.
If anything racism in the United States is on the upswing and threatens a social explosion that will define America in the 21st century. And it points to the fact that America has not yet confronted or come to grips with the legacy of white racism. Or maybe it's a DNA thing and it will take generations of inbreeding to "wash it out of the system." So while I am no sociologist and profess no training in race relations I crave the forgiveness of the intellectually informed for any mistake that I may make in writing this piece. But I believe that there must be a discussion on racism in American today.
Sunday, December 04, 2011
Events, News — Historic Event for Mumia to be held on Dec. 9 at National Constitution Center
Historic Event for Mumia to be held on Dec. 9 at National Constitution Center
ADMISSION/REGISTRATION IS FREE, YET REQUIRES REGISTRATION!
Reserve your ticket for pick-up at the door by 7:00 p.m. on December 9th at the National Constitution Center, by emailing december9maj@gmail.com.
FOR BUS/TRAVEL INFORMATION:
PHILADELPHIA: 267-760-7344
NYC: 212 -330-8029
FEATURING:
Cornel West, Michelle Alexander, Vijay Prashad, Immortal Technique, Mark Lamont Hill, Ramona Africa, Michael Coard, Louisa Hanoune, Amiri and Amina Baraka, IMPACT Youth Repertory Theater, African Dance Ensemble, and SURPRISE GUESTS!
* THIS EVENT WILL STREAM LIVE. TO WATCH CLICK HERE!
* ON DEC. 10 THERE WILL BE A FOLLOW UP FUNDRAISER TO THIS EVENT FEATURING PROFESSOR GRIFF, C RAYZ WALZ, REBEL DIAZ AND MANY MORE. CLICK HERE FOR MORE INFORMATION!
ADMISSION/REGISTRATION IS FREE, YET REQUIRES REGISTRATION!
Reserve your ticket for pick-up at the door by 7:00 p.m. on December 9th at the National Constitution Center, by emailing december9maj@gmail.com.
FOR BUS/TRAVEL INFORMATION:
PHILADELPHIA: 267-760-7344
NYC: 212 -330-8029
FEATURING:
Cornel West, Michelle Alexander, Vijay Prashad, Immortal Technique, Mark Lamont Hill, Ramona Africa, Michael Coard, Louisa Hanoune, Amiri and Amina Baraka, IMPACT Youth Repertory Theater, African Dance Ensemble, and SURPRISE GUESTS!
Saturday, December 03, 2011
Friday, November 25, 2011
The Marmar Experience - Pepper Spray Is Just the Beginning: Here Are More Hypermilitarized Weapons Your Local PD Could Use
The Marmar Experience - Pepper Spray Is Just the Beginning: Here Are More Hypermilitarized Weapons Your Local PD Could Use: On Friday, November 18, a group of UC Davis students staged a sit-in to protect their Occupy encampment from destruction by a horde of riot police. Seated on the ground, the students defensively ducked as Lt. John Pike approached them. They were right to do so: Pike aimed a riot-extinguisher at them, showering the crowd of unarmed students with pepper spray as calmly as if he were watering his garden. A group of officers then proceeded to break up the crowd with batons and arrest them. The video of the incident has since gone viral.
The counterinsurgency-like tactics used to subdue unarmed, peaceful demonstrators at Occupy encampments around the country have left people shocked and appalled at the grotesque treatment of protesters as if they were violent enemy combatants. This dynamic was captured best by a photo published in the News Observer showing machine-gun toting police officers dressed in combat attire, pointing their weapons at unarmed Occupy Chapel Hill demonstrators.
The counterinsurgency-like tactics used to subdue unarmed, peaceful demonstrators at Occupy encampments around the country have left people shocked and appalled at the grotesque treatment of protesters as if they were violent enemy combatants. This dynamic was captured best by a photo published in the News Observer showing machine-gun toting police officers dressed in combat attire, pointing their weapons at unarmed Occupy Chapel Hill demonstrators.
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