Groundings

Zellie Imani joins the Groundings Podcast and defines “harm reduction” - and how it shows up in the community organizing work of his organization, Black Lives Matter Paterson, in New Jersey. He dispels the mainstream misunderstanding of harm reduction as a voting practice, some of the major stigma they fight to keep people alive, and re-commits to the origins of harm reduction: a community practice in situations that manifest from contradictions of capitalism. Zellie provides listeners with lessons and experiences that can be learned from, and discusses the Paterson mutual aid and harm reduction model for how to practice community-rooted organizing to provide material support.  Learn more about and support BLM Paterson and their mutual aid work [Learn Here] Support the Groundings Podcast on Patreon [Support Here]

Dr. Orisanmi Burton discusses his book “Tip of the Spear”, defining counter-insurgency and describing the prisoner struggle in what he calls the “Long Attica Revolt.” The conversation highlights how prison reform has been used as a tactic to defang the radical demands of those captured at the same time pacifying non-politicized prisoners and the ways that political prisoners maneuver through co-optation. Tip of the Spear is a counter-narrative to the popular histories of the Attica Revolt, situating it in the Black Liberation struggle taking place inside and outside prison walls, before, during, and beyond Attica.  Purchase: Tip of the Spear [Purchase Here] Support the Groundings Podcast on Patreon [Support Here] Audio - Intro Audio: Elliot "L.D." Barkley delivers Attica demands: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VJ0gWUNTru8 Intro Audio: Muhammed Ali recites Attica Poem: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pSXKmvHxNCY  14:00 - Attica Demands 15:45 - “We have to be looking at praxis for demands…” C. 24:30 - “Kidnappings, Hijacking, WR, PLO, etc” https://roape.net/2023/11/10/walter-rodney-and-palestinian-liberation/ “When we exchange our currency for money from the developed countries the rate of exchange is always unfavourable because they set the terms. But when comrades in Latin America exchange kidnapped diplomats for prisoners the rate of exchange is good.” 29:00 - “The prison is a locus of fascism” / “disproportionality” 37:00 - Counter-insurgency definition - secure their loyalty C. 45 - Counter-insurgency is not scientific https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uIzaEgAbsg0&ab_channel=MillennialsAreKillingCapitalismLive%21 01:01:00 - Conspiracy