Feature Archives

Michael Moore's movie "Sicko" opened Friday June 29th at movie theaters around the US. The movie focuses on the problems in the US health-care system. It highlights several countries that do not have these same problems since their health systems are not based around the profit motives of insurance companies, hospitals and pharmaceutical companies. On opening night, raging Grannies, doctors, nurses, and patients engaged theater-goers at the Century 16 in Mountain View California, passing out over 1,000 leaflets and collecting postcards that demanded a single payer health care system for California.

On June 15th, one day after the Yes Men made a joke announcement in Calgary at Canada's largest oil conference that ExxonMobil plans to turn billions of climate-change victims into a brand-new fuel called Vivoleum, the Yes Men's upstream internet service provider shut down Vivoleum.com, the Yes Men's spoof website, and cut off the Yes Men's email service, in reaction to a complaint whose source they will not identify. The provider, Broadview Networks, also made the Yes Men remove all mention of Exxon from TheYesMen.org before they'd restore the Yes Men's email service.

The first ever United States Social Forum opened on Wednesday, June 27 with a march of thousands through downtown Atlanta protesting a proposal to privatize Atlanta's only public hospital. Trade unionists, peace activists, community organizers, students and others are converging on Atlanta this week to march, rally and develop strategies in their fight against the ultra-right. An Indymedia Caucus is scheduled for Saturday at 5pm.

Copwatch held its first National Conference from July 13th-15th at Laney College in Oakland. The conference consisted of a "weekend of networking, workshops, film showings, and discussions in support of direct observation of police as part of a strategy for stopping police brutality." Saturday was a day of workshops, with a screening of "Free Ya Hood" and other Copwatch footage from around the country. The conference closed on Sunday morning with final presentations and discussion.

Chinatown - 5.03.07

Up a dusty flight of stairs in the heart of Boston’s Chinatown lies the arterial lining of the Boston anti-biotech movement. Banners for the US Social Forum line the walls, stacks of the Bioustice 2007 underground newspaper sit prepared for distribution, and various flyers await eager hands. Amidst these tools of resistance, there is a murmur of activity as a motley crew of committed individuals plot and laugh heartily. These are not your typical anti-authoritarians.

Berkeley-based KPFA radio joined thousands of webcasters around the US in a Day of Silence on June 26th. KPFA is part of a national network that aims to draw attention to an impending July 15th royalty rate increase that, if implemented, would lead to the virtual shutdown of this country's Internet radio industry. Two bills that could alleviate the rate increase are moving slowly through Congress.

George Cadman of Free Radio Santa Cruz 101.1 fm interviews Stephanie Seay of the Buffalo Field Campaign about the Montana state and the federal government practice of capturing wild buffalo on public lands and slaughtering them or transporting them hundreds of miles. In the last two weeks in Montana state and federal authorities planned to slaughter 300 wild buffalo, including calves and their mothers. In the last 7 years the government has trucked 2,000 wild buffalo to slaughter, 1,000 last year alone.