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This week on Uprising:

* Syria Violence: No End in Sight
* From NY to LA: Occupy Movement Spreads and Grows
* Obama Appoints Richard Cordray to Head Consumer Finance Bureau

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Syria Violence: No End in Sight

A suicide bomber targeting a police bus killed up to 25 people on Friday in Damascus, Syria, in the latest in on-going violence plaguing the Middle East nation. Nearly a hundred observers from the Arab League who arrived in Syria last week plan on staying despite reports that the Syrian government continues to kill civilians. The observers were meant to oversee the Syrian government’s promises to pull back its military presence in Syrian cities, and to release hundreds of political prisoners as per a peace accord sponsored by the Arab League. However, just prior to the observers’ arrival, democracy activists in Syria reported that the government had killed 160 people, including soldiers who were defecting. Dozens more people have been killed in the weeks since, despite the presence of the observers. The Syrian government in turn has linked a pair of suicide car bombs in late December reportedly killing more than 40 people, to the Syrian opposition and Al Qaeda. Opposition spokespeople including those from the so-called Free Syrian Army, vehemently denied they had anything to do with the attacks and hinted that they may have been staged by Bashar Al Assad’s government. The United Nations estimates that more than 5000 Syrians have been killed over the ten month long uprising. There are currently two main opposition groups in Syria, the National Coordination Body for Democratic Change [NCB] and the Syrian National Council [SNC]. In recent days both groups have reportedly attempted and failed to unite. Still, grassroots anger and organizing remains strong. On the Friday before New Year’s Day, hundreds of thousands of Syrians opposed to the government marched in various major cities to demonstrate their on-going resilience in the face of violent repression to the Arab and international community.

GUEST: Elaine Hagopian, a Syrian-American sociologist, a professor emeritus of sociology at Simmons College in Boston and political interviewer for Arabic Hour TV

From NY to LA: Occupy Movement Spreads and Grows

Occupy Wall Street protestors on Tuesday showed their discontent at President Obama’s signing of the controversial National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA), a piece of legislation that would allow the US government to detain anyone suspected of terrorism (including US citizens) indefinitely. Activities began with New York’s Occupy participants visiting the offices of Senators Chuck Schumer and Kirsten Gillibrand (both proponents of NDAA) and culminating with a boisterous presence at Grand Central Station. Earlier, Occupy Wall Street activists celebrated Christmas day at Zuccotti Park reciting prayers and anti-war speeches by Martin Luther King Jr., then showing up in sizeable numbers on New Years Eve to protest economic inequality with dozens being arrested. Meanwhile, here in Southern California, hundreds of Occupy Los Angeles protesters joined the New Year’s day Rose Parade in Pasadena, sporting a gigantic Octopus made from recycled bags. Events such as these have marked the transition of Occupy Wall Street activity from being represented by physical encampments in cities across the nation, to broadening their reach in 2012. With only a few vestiges of actual camps remaining in places like Connecticut and Washington D.C., what will this election year hold for the Occupy movement? In mid-December, a number of leaders from the civil rights era, including Dr. Ben Chavis, announced a march on January 17th, Martin Luther King Jr. Day, called Occupy the Dream. There are also reportedly actions being coordinated to protest in front of the offices of the Federal Reserve on the same day. In Chicago, activists have targeted the G-8 and NATO summits in May for protests in that city. And here in Los Angeles where Uprising is produced, there is on-going focus on the foreclosure crisis, with Occupy LA activists setting their sights on saving several homes facing foreclosure.

GUEST: Nathan Schneider, editor of the website Waging Non-Violence and has been extensively covering Occupy Wall Street from its beginning, Ryan Rice, an Occupy LA Activist, currently in the home of Van Nuys resident Bertha Herrera

Just minutes after my interview with Occupy LA’s Ryan Rice from the home of Bertha Herrera, LA Sheriffs arrived and Hererra along with 15 Occupiers, was evicted at gunpoint. A locksmith and representative from Coldwell Bank accompanied the police. Three protestors were cuffed but then released outside the home. Lydia Breen with the Trailer Trash Project was at Hererra’s home and filed this exclusive report for Uprising.

Visit www.trailertrashproject.com for more information.

Visit www.wagingnonviolence.org to read Nathan Schneider’s writings.

To find out more about the Occupy Movement, visit the following websites:

www.occupywallst.org
www.occupylosangeles.org
www.occupydream.org
www.occupyyourcongress.info
www.occupythecourts.org

Obama Appoints Richard Cordray to Head Consumer Finance Bureau

President Obama on Wednesday took advantage of the Congressional recess to appoint Richard Cordray to head the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB). Facing stiff Republican opposition to Cordray’s nomination, the President made the announcement to avoid the traditional Senate confirmation at a school in Ohio where Cordray used to be the state Attorney General. The CFPB was designed by Harvard Law School professor Elizabeth Warren, who was tipped to head it. However, Warren also faced major opposition based on her strong credentials in standing up to big business. Taking a defiant tone, Obama called out Republicans for holding up the nomination process for too long. The Consumer Finance Protection Bureau, championed by progressives, will at last, offer ordinary Americans the opportunity to petition the government directly when they are victimized financially by businesses. Members of Congress who refused to ratify either Warren or Cordray’s nomination did so based on their demand that its power be significantly weakened. There is likely to be a legal challenge to Obama’s appointment in the coming weeks and months.

GUEST: Jamie Court, President of Consumer Watchdog and author of The Progressives Guide to Raising Hell

Visit www.consumerwatchdog.org for more information.

Sonali’s Subversive Thought for the Day

“Silence never won rights. They are not handed down from above; they are forced by pressures from below.” — Roger Baldwin