On December 7, 2023, an Israel airstrike murdered Refaat Alareer, a poet, writer, editor and teacher. This show is a memorial to his life and work. We present an interview with Refaat Alareer and Laila El-Haddad, co-editors of “Gaza Unsilenced. Written in the aftermath of the 2014 Israeli pogrom. Many of their statements bear directly on the situation today. In an excerpt from the talk “Revolution, Nothing Less,” Bob Avakian speaks to the importance of Internationalism, The Whole World Comes First.
Broadcasting from WRIR-LP 97.3 FM and www.wrir.org in Richmond, Virginia USA. "The Other Black Music" broadcast Black music ignored by other Richmond stations. Soul, Zydeco, Funk, Afro-Pop, Blues and more. Every other Sunday 3-5pm EST
Part two of our highlight episode details Stockton's transformation from "most miserable city" to a model of urban renewal. Featuring former Mayor Michael Tubbs, youth leaders, and organizers, it explores how community engagement and grassroots efforts tackled crime and despair, creating an inspiring, actionable blueprint for other cities seeking positive change.
A documentary uncovers Abraham Lincoln’s gay love life; the “Rainbow Rewind” debuts with early October birthdays and a horrific murder; Slovakia limits genders and bans surrogacy, Japan creeps up on de facto marriage equality, Canada tells X passport bearers to reconsider U.S. travel, Amtrak and ICE bust gay men in a New York City Penn Station bathroom sting, Harvard’s drag professor perplexes rightwing pundits, and more LGBTQ news from around the world.
Stockton leaders demonstrate how grassroots collaboration drives community transformation. Phoenix Scholars builds pathways for first-generation students while coalitions address safety, housing, and cultural preservation. Family members of Michael Tubbs, nonprofit directors, and community advocates share strategies for cross-sector change that lifts South Stockton and inspires citywide momentum.
Prominent Lesbian activist, novelist and nonfiction writer Sarah Schulman speaks in Vancouver BC, Canada, about her book Conflict Is Not Abuse: Overstating Harm, Community Responsibility, and the Duty of Repair. Despite Schulman's strong reputation, the book could not find a publisher in the US, but was picked up by Vancouver's Arsenal Pulp Press. By 2018, it had sold more than 10,000 copies, and it is still in print. Schulman says it is not simple to divide the good and the bad, where the good are the abused and the bad the abusers; many who've been abused feel threatened by discomfort and respond with abuse. She argues that we need to untangle as best we can what is really happening between ourselves and others.
WINGS: Women's International News Gathering Service
Global A Go-Go's annual preview of the Richmond Folk Festival, which is bringing these interesting international-minded artists to town: Armenian-American oud player Richard Hagopian, Pakistani singers Ustad Saami & the Saami Brothers Band, Hawaiian falsetto singer Raiatea Helm, young música norteña stars Villa 5, Cuban son specialists Son Qba, the outstanding modern reggae group Meta & the Cornerstones, and the exciting Washington DC-meets-Lomé project Dogo du Togo & the Alagaa Beat Band
Broadcasting from WRIR-LP 97.3 FM and www.wrir.org in Richmond, Virginia USA. "The Other Black Music" broadcast Black music ignored by other Richmond stations. Soul, Zydeco, Funk, Afro-Pop, Blues and more. Every other Sunday 3-5pm EST
Indigenous in Music with Larry K and Francis Baptiste in our Spotlight Interview (Country, Folk)
Welcome to Indigenous in Music with Larry K, On today’s show, we welcome Francis Baptiste, an Indigenous singer-songwriter from the Syilx Nation of British Columbia. Francis brings raw honesty to his music, exploring themes of family, resilience, and cultural survival. He joins us to talk about his upcoming album Lived Experience in East Vancouver and share his latest singles.
Francis Baptiste is featured in our current issue of the SAY Magazine, read all about Francis Baptiste. at our homepage at www.indigenousinmusicandarts.org/past-shows/francis-baptiste.
Enjoy music from Francis Baptiste, The City Lines, Mitchell Makoons, The Melawmen Collective, Irv Lyons Jr, Thea May, Matchitim, Saltwater Hank, Melody McArthur, Bryce Morin, Aysanabee, Robbie Robertson, Leah-Micks-Manning, Rhonda Head, Angel Baribeau, Siibii, Shylah Ray Sunshine, The Deed, Tracy Bone, Samantha Crain, Dustin Harder, Mike Bern, Ailaika, Elastic Bond, The Sober Junkie, QVLN, Morgan Toney and much more.
Visit us on our home page to learn about us and our programs at www.indigenousinmusicandarts.org, check into our Two Buffalo Studios and our SAY Magazine Library to find out all about our Artists and Entrepreneurs.
First aired October 9, 2015
1. Do You Want More ?!!!??! - The Roots
2. Rolling With Heat - The Roots ft. Talib Kweli
3. Raw Shit - Jaylib ft. Talib Kweli
4. Old School - DangerDoom ft. Talib Kweli
5. The Good, The Bad and the Desolate - The Roots ft. Skanky Don
6. Lift Your Fist - Guru ft. The Roots
7. Hardware - Black Thought
8. NY Weather Report - Talib Kweli
9. Crystal Stair - Kayo:Smif-N-Wessun ft. Talib Kweli
10. Sacrifice (*BBC One performance) - The Roots
11. Move Somethin' - Reflection Eternal
12. It's About That Time - Pete Rock ft. Black Thought and Rob O.
13. Where's The Love - Diamond D. ft. Talib Kweli, Elzhi, Skyzoo
14. Hard Hitters - Dilated Peoples ft. Black Thought
15. K.O.S. (Determination) - Black Star ft. Vinia Mojica
16. Nothing Ventured - Edo. G ft. Black Thought
17. Hip 2 Hip - Pete Rock
This week's show looks at dance crazes down through the years, we've got a 1948 record titled Rock and Roll by Manhattan Paul, an early Platters record made before they developed their polished sound, some blues from an up-and-coming Texas group as well as Tampa Red, Slim Harpo and much more.
There is a chasm—wide and unforgiving—between those who speak truth at great personal cost and those who hide behind titles, paychecks, and polite silence. In every generation, we are given a choice: to stand with justice, even when it threatens our comfort, or to retreat into the safety of complicity, hoping history won’t notice.
Brave people do not wait for permission. They do not ask whether it’s convenient. They speak because silence is betrayal. These are the whistleblowers, the journalists who refuse to be censored, the artists who risk exile, the workers who walk out, the veterans who testify, the students who organize. They know the price—lost jobs, broken contracts, surveillance, smear campaigns. And still, they speak. Not because they are fearless, but because they are principled. Because they understand that truth is not a luxury—it’s a duty.
Then there are those who choose comfort over conscience. They write carefully worded statements that say nothing. They nod in meetings, avoid eye contact, and tell themselves it’s not their fight. They hide behind the lines of their profession, behind the pen that could have been a sword, behind the excuse that “it’s complicated.” They fear powerful political figures not because those figures are right, but because they hold the keys to their careers. They trade integrity for access. They trade justice for job security.
And the question must be asked: How do they look in the mirror every morning? How do they face their own children, knowing they stood on the wrong side of history—not out of ignorance, but out of fear? What will they say when their kids ask, “What did you do when Gaza was burning? When voices were silenced? When truth was punished?” Will they say, “I kept my head down”? Will they say, “I didn’t want to lose my job”?
The brave will say, “I spoke.”
The brave will say, “I stood.”
The brave will say, “I paid the price, and I would do it again.”
History does not remember the quiet collaborators. It remembers the disruptors. The ones who refused to be bought. The ones who chose the harder road. And while the cowards may enjoy temporary comfort, they will never know the peace that comes from doing what is right.
So to those still hiding: your silence is not neutral. It is a choice. And one day, when the world has shifted, and the truth is undeniable, you will have to answer for it—not to the powerful, but to your own reflection. To your own children. To your own soul.
And to the brave: we see you. We honor you. You are the pulse of conscience in a world that desperately needs it. Keep speaking. Keep standing. The future belongs to you.
A webinar held by the International Manifesto Group and Friends of Socialist China on September 21, 2025.
The webinar celebrated the 80th anniversary of Japan’s surrender - marked in China with spectacular celebrations attended by an array of heads of state and government - focusing in particular on the contributions of the Chinese and other Asian forces which are forgotten in the largely Eurocentric narrative of the Second World War.
The old adage that history is written by the victors does not seem to apply to the real victors of the Second World War, the Soviets and the Chinese on the Eastern and Pacific fronts respectively.
The webinar uncovered some crucial but little-known aspects of the war: for example, that China was the first country to wage war against fascist occupation; that in the course of 14 years of war (1931-45) China suffered over 35 million casualties; and that without the contribution of Chinese, Korean, Mongolian and largely Communist-led resistance forces across the region, the Japanese imperial armies would have had free rein to deploy their forces against the Soviet Union and the Western Allies.
The webinar participants assessed the renewed threats to China and other Asian countries emanating from the US, Japan and the rest of the capitalist world.
https://internationalmanifesto.org
https://socialistchina.org
