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From Holy War to Holy Terror, 18 Years Inside Afghanistan
GUEST: Kathy Gannon, Associated Press reporter based in Afghanistan from 1986 to 2005, author of “I is for Infidel: From Holy War to Holy Terror, 18 Years Inside Afghanistan”

After the September 11th 2001 attacks the name of Osama bin Laden became synonymous with terrorism. Yet much of what led up to the attacks was not understood by the US public, the media, or the intelligence apparatus. In the months that followed, the US launched Operation Enduring Freedom, bombing Afghanistan where bin Laden was supposedly hiding. The US’s campaign led directly to the re-emergence of warlords. Associated Press reporter Kathy Gannon, who is the longest serving foreign reporter in Afghanistan, claims that it was US backed warlords who first invited Osama bin Laden into Afghanistan, not the …

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A Story of Struggle and Hope in Compton
GUEST: Sarah Sentilles, author of “Taught by America: A Story of Struggle and Hope in Compton”

We spend the hour today speaking with Sarah Sentilles, who wrote down her memoirs of two years in Compton, Southern California. She was teaching elementary school there. After graduating from Yale University, Sarah joined a program called Teach for America and was sent to Compton. Far from the life of privilege and the protected environment she was raised in, she found herself in charge of thirty-six first graders in a classroom without books. There she experienced her own education. I spoke with Sarah Sentilles recently and asked …

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Exposing the Dark Side of American Policing
Norm Stamper, former Seattle Police Chief, author of “Breaking Rank: A Top Cop’s Expose of the Dark Side of American Policing”.

Norm Stamper is the former chief of the Seattle Police Force and deputy chief of the San Diego Police Department. His book is entitled, “A Top Cop’s Expose of the Dark Side of American Policing” and features provocatively titled chapters such as “Why White Cops Kill Black Men” and “Sexual Predators in Uniform.” According to Stamper, cops can be racist, corrupt, overly militaristic, and chauvinist, but yet are also made up of brave and good men and women. He oversaw the Seattle police response to the 1999 protests against the World Trade Organization and eventually resigned over the controversies surrounding that event.

Sonali’s Subversive Thought for the Day:

P. …

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Sundown Towns
GUEST: James Loewen, author of “Sundown Towns, a Hidden Dimension of Racism in America,” “Lies Across America,” and “Lies My Teacher Told Me”

From Maine to California, thousands of communities across the United States kept African Americans, or sometimes Chinese Americans and Jewish Americans out of their towns by force, law, or custom. These communities are sometimes called “sundown towns” and they are a little known facet of American history that has tremendous relevance today for all-white suburbs and neighborhoods. Our guest today is historian James Loewen here to discuss his latest book called “Sundown Towns, a Hidden Dimension of Racism in America.” Jim Loewen taught race relations for twenty years at the University of Vermont. Previously he taught at predominantly black Tougaloo College in Mississippi. He now lives in Washington, D.C., continuing his research on …

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The Restoration of Apartheid Schooling in America
GUEST: Jonathan Kozol, author of “The Shame of the Nation: The Restoration of Apartheid Schooling in America,” previous book, “Savage Inequalities”

Despite the gains made after the 1954 desegregation ruling Brown Versus Board of Education, schools today are more segregated than ever. My guest Jonathan Kozol, well known for his books about the American educational system and children’s rights, such as Savage Inequalities, has a new book out. It’s called “The Shame of the Nation: The Restoration of Apartheid Schooling in America.” Kozol visited 60 schools in 11 states over a five-year period and found that schools in the US are racially segregated, and that wealthy white suburbanites receive far better facilities and resources for their children than poor children of color. Kozol believes that a new civil …

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A Story of Struggle and Hope in Compton
GUEST: Sarah Sentilles, author of “Taught by America: A Story of Struggle and Hope in Compton”

We spend the hour today speaking with Sarah Sentilles, who wrote down her memoirs of two years in Compton, Southern California. She was teaching elementary school there. After graduating from Yale University, Sarah joined a program called Teach for America and was sent to Compton. Far from the life of privilege and the protected environment she was raised in, she found herself in charge of thirty-six first graders in a classroom without books. There she experienced her own education. I spoke with Sarah Sentilles recently and asked her to begin by reading an excerpt of her book, “Taught by America: A Story of Struggle and Hope in Compton.”

Sonali’s Subversive Thought for the Day:

Anti-racist …

Our weekly edition is a syndicated one-hour digest of the best of our daily coverage.

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Empire Notes
GUEST: Rahul Mahajan, author of Full Spectrum Dominance and The New Crusade

We’d like to open today’s program with our weekly commentary Empire Notes by Rahul Mahajan, author of Full Spectrum Dominance and The New Crusade. Today’s commentary sets the stage for our next interview – it’s about Bush’s wiretapping program.

Empire Notes is online at www.empirenotes.org.

Bush Domestic Spying Program Revealed
GUESTS: Sherman Austin, political activist targeted by the government, Nancy Talanian, Director of the Bill of Rights Defence Committee

The New York Times reported last Friday on a government program of spying on US residents. It had known the story for …

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Police to Enforce Immigration Laws in Costa Mesa
GUESTS: Bishop Jaime Soto with the Roman Catholic Diocese of Orange County, Arnoldo Garcia, Coordinator of Enforcement and Justice Program at the National Network for Immigrant and Refugee Rights

On December 7th the City Council of Costa Mesa approved by a 3-2 vote, to train Costa Mesa police in immigration law enforcement. The vote was reached shortly after 1 a.m. and followed several hours of public comments by numerous speakers. Scaled back from the original proposal introduced by mayor Allan Mansoor, which would have extended enforcement duties to patrol officers, the approved plan will allow undocumented immigrants to be reported by investigators and certain jail personnel. The Costa Mesa plan seeks to be a replication of the Orange County Sheriff’s proposal to formalize the relationship between U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement and …

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Diebold Machines Certification Stalled!
GUEST: Jim March, an investigator with Black Box Voting

On December 1st, Uprising spoke with Jim March of the voting watch dog group, Black Box Voting about the California Secretary of State’s invitation to test Diebold corporation’s voting machines. Diebold Corporation is notorious for its efforts to squelch the publication of documents indicating serious flaws in its electronic voting systems. While Black Box Voting negotiated with the Secretary Bruce McPherson’s office for a fair testing procedure, there have been several dramatic developments regarding Diebold. Last week, coming on the heels of the Diebold CEO’s resignation, Florida’s Leon County announced that it would never again use Diebold machines. Meanwhile, this week California announced that many security questions remain regading Diebold components being tested by the state’s Independent Testing Authorities. And, Diebold is fighting stockholder …

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Impact of Disasters on Women
GUEST: Kavita Ramdas, President and CEO of the Global Fund for Women

It was almost one year ago that a terrifying Tsunami killed over 200,000 people in 12 countries in Asia and Africa. Since then, Hurricane Katrina in the US displaced over a million and killed over a thousand, Hurricane Stan hit Central America, killing hundreds and wiping out crops, and an earthquake in Pakistan killed more than 70,000. Despite the geographic and ethnic diversity of the disaster victims, one common factor has been found to tie them all together. According to the Global Fund for Women, it’s always the women who are disproportionately affected by natural disaster – for example, in the wake of natural disasters, more than 75% of displaced people are women and children. Kavita Ramdas is the …