"I wasn’t against communism, but i can’t say i was for it either. At first, i viewed it suspiciously, as some kind of white man’s concoction, until i read works by African revolutionaries and studied the African liberation movements. Revolutionaries in Africa understood that the question of African liberation was not just a question of race, that even if they managed to get rid of the white colonialists, if they didn’t rid themselves of the capitalistic economic structure, the white colonialists would simply be replaced by Black neocolonialists. There was not a single liberation movement in Africa that was not fighting for socialism.
The whole thing boiled down to a simple equation: anything that has any kind of value is made, mined, grown, produced, and processed by working people. So why shouldn’t working people collectively own that wealth? Why shouldn’t working people own and control their own resources? Capitalism meant that rich businessmen owned the wealth, while socialism meant that the people who made the wealth owned it.
I got into heated arguments with sisters or brothers who claimed that the oppression of Black people was only a question of race. I argued that there were Black oppressors as well as white ones. That’s why you’ve got Blacks who support Nixon or Reagan or other conservatives. Black folks with money have always tended to support candidates who they believed would protect their financial interests. As far as i was concerned, it didn’t take too much brains to figure out that Black people are oppressed because of class as well as race, because we are poor and because we are Black. …
[Earlier in my life] When someone asked me what communism was, i opened my mouth to answer, then realized i didn’t have the faintest idea. My image of a communist came from a cartoon. It was a spy with a black trench coat and a black hat pulled down over his face, slinking around corners …
I never forgot that day. We’re taught at such an early age to be against the communists, yet most of us don’t have the faintest idea what communism is. Only a fool lets somebody else tell him who his enemy is… It’s got to be one of the most basic principles of living: always decide who your enemies are for yourself, and never let your enemies choose your enemies for you."
Assata Shakur joins the ancestors a free woman. She did not die bound by the carceral system and she did not pass away living in a land that never respected or accepted her.
Assata taught us that liberation can not be bargained for, it must be taken.
Rest Free, Assata.
The cynical “celebration” of Indigenous Peoples Day by a settler state backing another settler state’s genocide against Palestinians and Lebanese shows us nothing is sacred, not even our own survival, until we bury colonialism once and for all.
All my thoughts today with Palestinian mothers, Sudanese mothers, Congolese mothers, Black mothers, indigenous mothers, incarcerated mothers… may we honor and strengthen the love that binds us to you and protect and defend the life you’ve given this planet.
Well, the mask is off, if it was ever really on. As I predicted, the TikTok ban has evolved into blatant censorship of the internet. Let's talk about it. Big rant incoming, but if you enjoy continuing to have even some semblance of personal freedom, you're gonna wanna listen
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An even more insane clip from last night - the sky literally turned into a portal to another universe, it didn't feel real. This aurora explosion was one of the coolest things I have ever witnessed in my lifetime.
I filmed this in Fairbanks, Alaska at around 10:33 pm AKDT. This is now the best aurora I have ever seen in my lifetime, and talking to friends who have lived in Alaska and chased aurora full time for years, they say this tops it for them, too. Truly privileged and still awestruck at how beautiful nature can be.
@TamithaSkov
#aurora #northernlights #spaceweather
Super excited for this incredible 3-day event to benefit AFSP. Look for the link to purchase your tickets tomorrow at 8am PDT. Thank you Warner Bros. for all your support helping to make this happen. #AFSP#FullCircle#Snyderverse#ArtCenter#WarnerBros#DC#AMCTheaters
Defund the emotional insecurity that makes men crave power through uniform expressions of violence upheld by a patriarchal fiction that promotes fear-based faith in invisible men.
One of the most realistic, highest-resolution 3D simulation of star formation to date developed by Northwestern University. STARFORGE simulates an entire gas cloud where stars are born
[video by Mike Grudić: https://t.co/RSbnPeh7xa]