No Ay Revolucion Sin Amor

No podemos olvidar de nuestro jermanos y jermanas trans generos en Boriken. Si no quidamos de ellos, no hay revoluccion, solo un golpe de estado. Aye que tratar a la gente con disphoria con respecto y amor. Aye que dar apollo. Estamos a matando a nuestro propio familia cuando dejamos que discrimen a la gente transgenero. Tenemos que matar a la patriarchado. El patriarchado es un mal de nuestro sociedad en el mundo y en Boriken. Es la systema que permite que uno mata a nuestra hermanas, madres y hijas. Es la sytema qui viola y exploita a nuestro juventude. Es un peste con que los Europeos infecto a nustros padres y madres. De todo nuestro pueblo en este momento son la jente trans masculino, trans femenino, y los que no conformen a ningun genero que estan en peligro. Seve riduclamnte facil que nostros olvidamos que ellos tambien son borikua. Somos quatro millones en una isla, como possible que un espera que seamos uniformados? Si queremos ser libre, si queremos exisitir como borikuas entonces aye que quidar a uno a otro. Basta ya, no ay revolucion sin amor.

Kittens Word Brain Bang! Explosion{ REcent Thoughts; HELP, do not let me blog when I eat candy>

I think Ahjamu Umi and Madeleine Lawrence sneak into my room at night and performed advanced quantum neuro surgery because I talk so much better and different than before. I'll be staying bullshit and people will be like, oh shit, "You changed the way I think!"

If I am just mimicking and being phoney, I can be ok with that. I am the tape you use when the bridge is about to collapse. Them and Alyssa Pagan Checks that shit to make sure it gone done right. If I do enough of a good copy the message will be spread. That is me a Human fax.

What's good, Sally Krantz? or 86 Colonialism

Photo by Amy Bennett

On the 19th of March 2016, people gathered at In Other Words Bookstore to prepare to confront the owner of Saffron Colonial with signs and a message that the celebration of colonization will not go unnoticed or ignored. Saffron Colonial is a new restaurant in a part of Northeast Portland that has been viciously gentrified in recent years. The restaurant offers foods that came from the colonial era of England. The colonial era of England lasted from 1497 to 1997 although they still control 14 other territories.

The group seemed very organized and focused. They walked down and formed a picket in front of the shop while a delegation went in to share their grievances with the owner and her chef, Al Sedaghat. Although the crowd was focused on Krantz and Stephanie Dünx , there was interest in what Sedaghat had to say. Sedaghat felt frustrated and concerned for his safety. “It takes just one person to come in here with a knife.” He felt, as a Persian, that there was nothing wrong with the restaurant and there was nothing racist on the menu. It was in his opinion that the groups encounter with Krantz would not move her to make any changes and that the controversy was helping their establishment.

Meanwhile, Krantz was adamant about educating the group on food from around the world. Frequently she would seem to derail the conversation by asking members of the delegation where they were from. In one exchange Krantz asked a person where a person was from they answered, “ I am from Portland.”  Krantz responded, “No, I meant where are your people from.” To which the indigenous person responded, “They are from Portland.”

Krantz also seems to be very grabby, putting their hands on members of the delegation telling them they were not listening to her when she was presented with the pain and struggles of colonized people from the voices of the survivors.

One east Indian descendent shared their father's story of the partisans and how the Hindus and the Muslims slaughtered each other in the wake of the British departure. Krantz felt it was the fault of the partisans and not the British. Even the tears and obvious pain of a colonialism survivor was not enough to convice Krantz.

According to one source, when asked about her thoughts on the mass famine during world war II Krantz claimed it was the Indian lords faults and not the British who were exporting wheat from India to feed British soldiers. Then at one point they followed up with claiming the Indians were Nazis and it was the right thing to do.

Most of the crowd in the restaurant was made up of First Nation, east Indian and African people all survivors of colonization. Their voice was not enough to make her reconsider. When asked by Stephanie Dünx  if Krantz felt food was political, Krantz answered with a firm no. Krantz continued to state they knew history and was well traveled and they were just making food. They claimed that having lived in a colony they knew the locals did not have a problem with colonization. An impression I find interesting since [art of the narrative of how she became focused on British colonial food is how English people in Hong Kong longed for their traditional; British foods that were so hard to get in Hong Kong.

The room began to demand that Krantz, as an act of good faith, remove the word plantation from the name of one of her cocktails. Krantz response was that if she did that she would have to redo her entire menu. When the crowd demanded she change it immediately, at least on the glass menu written in dry erase marker, Krantz called it silly and refused. The crowd began to chant for Krantz to take it down and even offered to help her. After much resistance Krantz, in a tantrum, decided to erase the whole board. Excessive but there was even a cocktail called a Lloyd's of London, named after the insurance company that provided coverage for slave ships. As Krantz was having a hissy fit one member of the group told her she was being a brat. Krantz denied this and proceeded to spray the board.

With this simple act the group finally dispersed and reconvened with the picket outside. After so much struggle against white supremacy surely everyone was hungry. It was then proposed that some of the group go to the local African owned Ethiopian restaurant on Killingworth, Enat Kitchen. It is not enough to shut down colonizers but one may want to also support local business owned by people of color.

I personally was pleased to see the group dominated and lead by people of color and Europeans participating not taking up space but also supporting. This was a very last minute event and many people showed up. Colonialism is very important whether European-Amerikkkans want to admit it or not. It has caused so much pain that it has carried on to younger generations. The economic and emotional price of colonialism is still being paid for today by the victims. Even England just last year tried to build a prison in Jamaica to keep British convicts of Jamaican descent. Fortunately leader Portia Simpson-Miller, former prime minister of Jamaica quickly shut that down and demanded reparations.

Krantz is certainly entitled and can be grabby. They are very confused and unwilling to listen. They were under the impression that the issue was food and the time period. Krantz as a shaky understanding of history and colonialism and lacks empathy. Krantz values her pride over integrity and that could be harmful to art, and when your art is food it can be toxic.

Krantz may not ever change but the people of color, survivors of colonialism will. Some were strangers to each other and some have never been part of an action much less and organization. After today we may see new comrades come from this adversity. Krantz will stay strong to her belief but she can not deny that people hurt by British Colonialism have told her the truth and meaning of what she is doing.

As for the Europeans brothers and sisters that stood by us today I invite you to meet the MBAC on Thursday the 24th of March 2016 and learn how to be a better white accomplice through the works of late political prisoner and organizer Marilyn Buck. The event will be at Mother Foucault's at 7pm.

Palante, Siempre Palante!

 

Camarada Rojava and their Amazing Democratic Confederacy Machine

The struggle of the Kurds has been a long one and difficult one, yet the Kurds are still on this earth. The Kurds have not only maintained their language and culture but have made radical adjustments to their society. Using the best of old customs and new ideas, the Kurds have created an inclusive and free society for everyone in Kurdistan. Everyone, even non Kurds are part of the direct democratic decision making. No one fourteen and over  is excluded based on ethnicity, gender or religion,

The zine A Mountain River Has Many Bends does not create the illusion that the Rojava Confederation is in any way a Utopia. In fact it makes it clear that what is happening in Rojava is the creation of a stateless anti capitalist community with 2.5 million citizens surrounded by civil war and imperialist authoritative secular forces seeking to crush and conquer the land and people. The economy is dedicated to defense and security while at the same time putting people and planet before profits.

The Rojava Confederation operates as a Democratic Confederacy. Abdullah Ocalan, the president of the PKK, founded the ideology. It is a radical system that is consensus oriented, multicultural, anti monopolistic.

My best understanding of how this system works is by examining how people in the region manage their defence forces and economy. Unlike in the USA, the people as a whole have control over how common land and security forces are managed.

The Economy has three categories. One category is the common land, property that is managed and cared for by the people but can be handed over to individuals for specific use.

In that case the land and or infrastructure falls another category, private property. The land and infrastructure is owned by the individual and they can use it for anything they wish as long as it does not harm the environment or the community. Land can not be bought or sold so as to prevent any one group or individual gain a monopoly on land. An ny industry is owned and operated by the workers. According to the zine, only about one third of the industry is fully under this category for the time being. The economy as it is may not be permanently run as it does currently. Adjustments are made to support the defense effort and the reclaiming of Rojava from IS forces.

The defense and security forces of Rojava are elected. For example, the security forces, or Asayish, are elected and administered by a People's Council in each other the three governing zones, or cantons. Each Asayish is organized in a pleuritic way much like other committees but is not represented in the People's Council. Bothe external defense groups and Asayish elect their own officers but both are submissive to the People’s Council. Military and security bodies have to abide by the decisions of the counsels. If the a committee of a specific area wants unarmed security personnel then the Sayashi of must operate unarmed in specific area. The people make the rules and policies themselves without a centralized bureaucratic system.  That would make anyone feel warm and fuzzy all over.

Something that document points out, is the fetishisastion of the the YPJ, Yekineyen Parastina Jin or Women’s Protection Unit in English. The women of the YPJ are not amazons or some sort of mythical creatures. They are flesh and blood humans fighting for their loved ones and for the future of humanity. There have been many anti-capitalistic stainless revolutions but many have been patriarchal and excluded women or harassed them from history. Too often, when they are remembered, armed women are treated like a fluke or an object. Fortunately, feminism has become significant part of the Rojava Plan. Without feminism we can not do away with authoritarianism and capitalism. Without feminism, not only do traditional gender roles remain the norm, but so do restrictive and oppressive systems.

Rojava is not Occupy Portland, or some music/art festival and every one is just hanging out having a good time talking about anarchy. In Rojava there this beautiful little sprout that is finally able to break through ground and is struggling to grow its roots out so that it become a great tree that will feed and shade us all. The Kurds, Arabs, Asyrians and other peoples have been working hard to preserve this tree. If the rest of the world would turn to this region and help nurture this tree then together we can not only bring down capitalism but also set something beautiful and better in its place.

You can learn more by buying the book A Small Key Can Open a Large Door. You can order it online yourself or, if you are in Portland, Oregon, have it ordered for you at In Other Words Feminist Book Store and Community Center

Death to capitalism, down with imperialism, long live Rojava. Palante, Siempre Palante!