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This week on Uprising:

* Fatima Bhutto on the Pakistan Floods and Governmental Responses
* Black Agenda Report on Nigeria and Oil Exploration
* Floodlines: Community and Resistance from Katrina to the Jena Six
* Nobody Turn Me Around: A People’s History of the 1963 March on Washington

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Fatima Bhutto on the Pakistan Floods and Governmental Responses

Monsoon floods that started in late June along the Indus River in northwest Pakistan have killed at least 2,000 people, destroyed an estimated 1.7 million acres of farmland and the livelihoods of 20 million people. More than 5 million people have been left homeless and more than a 1 million face the prospect of starvation. The United Nations has called the Pakistan floods the greatest humanitarian crisis in recent history with more people affected than in the 2004 Asian tsunami, the 2005 Pakistan earthquake, and the 2010 Haiti earthquake combined. Pakistan’s southern region is now expecting to see even more flooding as 800,000 people remain stranded. Forty more helicopters are needed, according to the World Food Programme, to reach those people and deliver aid. The U.S. has pledged $150 million, but aid to the Pakistani government, NGOs, and the UN has been trickling in very slowly. Some say the inadequate response to this disaster may have to do with the recent Wikileaks release of the Afghan War Diary documents, which show a continued relationship between Pakistan’s military spy service and the Taliban, even as Pakistan receives more than $1 billion a year from Washington for its help combating militants. The Pakistani government’s own response has been criticized by many. Pakistan’s President, Asif Ali Zardari visited Europe during the deadly floods. Writer Fatima Bhutto has criticized his actions saying, “Pakistan can ill afford a president who prioritizes his personal political future over the lives of millions of his citizens” and frames the event as “Zardari’s Katrina.” A well known Pakistani poet and writer, Fatima Bhutto is the granddaughter of former Prime Minister Zulfikar Ali Bhutto and the niece of former Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto. She has written a book about the experiences of victims of the 2005 Kashmir earthquake and her latest book, “Songs of Blood and Sword: A Daughter’s Memoir,” is a biography of the Bhutto political family.

GUEST: Fatima Bhutto, author of “Songs of Blood and Sword: A Daughter’s Memoir”

Fatima Bhutto recommends Merlin USA for listeners to make donations to for Pakistan flood relief. Find out more at www.merlin-usa.org.

Fatima Bhutto’s website is fatimabhutto.com.pk.

Black Agenda Report on Nigeria and Oil Exploration

Glen Ford is a writer and radio commentator and the Executive Editor of The Black Agenda Report. This week’s commentary is on Nigeria and Oil Exploration.

Visit www.blackagendareport.com for more information.

Floodlines: Community and Resistance from Katrina to the Jena Six

Five years ago on Monday August 29th Hurricane Katrina made landfall on the Southeast coast of Louisiana causing severe infrastructure damage but not directly causing any loss of life. However, extensive damage to the levees protecting the city of New Orleans from post-hurricane floods, triggered a post-storm disaster that few expected. As flood levels rose in the city in the days following the storm, thousands of residents who either chose to stay, or could not afford to evacuate, were trapped. The ensuing disaster eventually killed nearly 2000 people and became a low point in President George W Bush’s tenure, as the federal government’s response, or lack thereof, did little to alleviate the situation. With mass media coverage portraying the majority black residents of New Orleans as looters and rapists, Katrina became a symbol of the worst of the US’s racism, institutionalized and otherwise. Five years later, residents of the city still wait for relief. Many are separated from family members after having been forced to relocate. Suicide rates are up, as are diagnoses of substance abuse and Post-traumatic stress disorder. With this year’s oil spill from the exploded off-shore oil rig operated by BP, the Gulf Coast has once more been set back from its recovery efforts. Yet, in the nexus of so much tragedy, community activism and resistance that has been part of the heart and soul of New Orleans, has risen up to the challenge. In a new book called Floodlines: Community and Resistance from Katrina to the Jena Six, New Orleans-based journalist and Katrina survivor Jordan Flaherty paints a vivid and loving picture of how ordinary people and long-time activists have worked against all odds to attempt to rebuild one of the US’s most unique cities.

GUEST: Jordan Flaherty, writer and community organizer based in New Orleans, author of “Floodlines: Community and Resistance from Katrina to the Jena Six”

Read more about Flaherty’s book at www.floodlines.org.

Nobody Turn Me Around: A People’s History of the 1963 March on Washington

Conservative radio talk-show host and Fox News commentator Glenn Beck will be hosting a national rally on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial in Washington DC on August 28. The rally, titled “Restoring Honor 8/28” coincides with the 47th anniversary of the 1963 March on Washington, at which Martin Luther King Jr. made his legendary “I have a dream” speech. The rally has been advertised as “non-political,” and Beck has specifically stated that it won’t be a Tea Party rally. However, keynote speakers include Sarah Palin and Ted Nugent, and sponsors include the National Rifle Association. Civil rights activists and leaders have criticized the event. Marc Morial, president of the National Urban League, referred to Beck’s record of racially insensitive comments when he denounced the Honor rally as "an effort to embarrass and poke a finger in the eye of the civil rights community." Reverend Al Sharpton has planned a march for the same day to commemorate King’s legacy, but he has also confirmed that his march will not interact with or confront Beck’s Honor Rally. August 28 also marks the release date of Charles Euchner’s book “Nobody Turn Me Around, A People’s History of the 1963 March on Washington.” Building on extensive interviews, archives, FBI files, and private recordings, the account reveals the complex struggles of march organizers and civil rights leaders in 1963, while also weaving in stories of ordinary people who traveled across the country to participate in the movement. In bringing to life this critical day in US history, Euchner’s book serves as a powerful reminder of the arduous and on-going struggle for equality.

“Change does not roll in on the wheels of inevitability, but comes through continuous struggle. And so we must straighten our backs and work for our freedom. A man can’t ride you unless your back is bent.” — Martin Luther King, Jr.