Black Agenda Radio - 09.10.18

Welcome to the radio magazine that brings you news, commentary and analysis from a Black Left perspective. I’m Glen Ford, along with my co-host Nellie Bailey. Coming up: A killer cop goes on trial in Chicago, claiming he shot Laquan McDonald 16 times because that’s what police are trained to do; and, the U.S. corporate media lies about Venezuela every day, but Facebook shuts down the page of one of the only publications that tells the truth about that country.

Much of the corporate media is talking about the New York Times op-ed piece, supposedly written by a high ranking staffer in the Trump administration who claims to be working to undermine the President’s policies. The writer claims to be part of a “resistance” and wishes to remain Anonymous. We called Dr. Gerald Horne, the professor of history and African American Studies at the University of Houston, to see what he thinks about Mr. Anonymous.

One of the best political journals on Latin America, written in English, is Venezuel-a-nalysis, which keeps track of the ups and downs of the socialist movement in that South American country. Last month, the long, algorithmic arm of Facebook reached out to temporarily shut down the Venezuel-a-nalysis page, for no announced reason. We spoke with Venezeul-a-nalysis reporter Jeanette Charles.

The trial of white former Chicago cop Jason Van Dyke began last week. Back in 2014, Van Dyke fired 16 bullets into the body of 17 year-old Laquan McDonald -- a killing that was captured on video, but the tape was kept hidden for more than a year. When the video was finally released, it caused a political crisis for Mayor Rham Emanuel and his top cops and prosecutors. Paul Street is an historian, an author and political activist from Chicago. He’s keeping a close watch on the trial of the killer cop.

Ramona Africa, the longtime spokesperson for the MOVE Family, is in failing health. The MOVE Family has suffered horribly at the hands of the Philadelphia police.  Many MOVE members remain in prison for alleged involvement in the death of a cop, in 1978, and 11 family members were killed – including five children – when police bombed their house, in 1985. Ramona Africa was of the two people that survived the inferno. Ralph Poynter is a human rights activist, the husband of the late people’s lawyer and political prisoner Lynne Stewart. Poynter says the movement must embrace Ramona Africa during her health crisis.