Voice of the People: Radio By and For the 99%

Our Word of the Week is “May Day Strong.” This is in reference to the coalition of groups in 400 locations around the United States who organized opposition to the billionaires, to ICE, to fascism while celebrating that ordinary people had created the 8-hour workday, which struggle is the origin of International Workers’ Day on May 1st. On today’s show we hear from events around Missoula on May Day, with one special visit to North Carolina. First we will hear speakers and music at the May Day Rally at the University of Montana campus. Then we hear later in the day as a flying picket visits the office of US Senator Tim Sheehy, a Lowes store and an Enterprise Rent-a-Car facility; all to protest their support or complicity with the Immigration Control and Enforcement Agency better known as ICE. Then we hear from a few of the speakers at a celebration potluck and barbecue where discussions on group alignments, more singing, and an ICE agent pinata rounded out the day. Then we hear a short interview of the President of the North Carolina AFL-CIO on the amazing success of North Carolina teachers closing down the largest school districts on May Day and holding a giant march in the capital.

Soundman Jim and Mark discuss our Word of the Week: “May Day.” This is of course in reference to the International Workers’ Day on May 1st. We will look at the anarchist roots of the May Day holiday in the fight in the US for the eight-hour workday. Then we look at the modern May Day events in the US sponsored by the coalition May Day Strong, including events in Missoula. Then we will look at the state of the US labor federation, the AFL-CIO. And at the latest attack by the Trump Administration on organized labor. We then move to the elections in Hungary and to the US/Israeli war on Iran. Then finally we will hear from Lucas Moody as he gives us his regular Missoula City Council Report. maydaystrong.org

Lucas Moody joins Soundman Jim and Mark exploring our Word of the Week: “War.” This is of course in reference to the US-Israeli War on Iran. First, we will look at the state of the war: President Trump’s War Speech on April 1st, the lead-up and aftermath of that speech, the current and projected economic effects of the war, and the open letter to Americans from Iran’s President. Then we cover some labor news and the plans for general strike organizing for May Day 2026. Then finally we will hear from Lucas as he gives us his regular Missoula City CouncilReport.

Our Word of the Week is “US Imperialism in Latin America.” We will play a recording of the March 12th presentation by Maria Bustos and Paul Haber in the first installment of the 2026 Socialist Speakers Series held at the Elks Lodge in Missoula. Lastly, we will hear from Lucas Moody as he gives us his Missoula City Council Report.

Sue Kirchmyer, Soundman Jim and Mark tackle this episode on “Conflict.” This is in reference to two major conflicts that we will cover in this show: the US-Israeli War on Iran; and the class conflict between the working and owning classes. First, we will look at and critique the main reasons claimed by the US to wage war on Iran, and then look at the more likely reasons. Then we look at recent class conflicts in Montana, California and Hawai’i, Minnesota, US students, Argentina and India. Lastly, we will hear from Lucas Moody as he gives us his Missoula City Council Report.

Soundman Jim and Mark explore our Word of the Week: “Iran.” We first have the briefest of looks at Islam, Iran’s chief but by no means only religion. Then we will hear an excerpt of an interview of former United Kingdom diplomat of that region, Alastair Crooke. Then we will hear another excerpt of an interview of Satereh Sadeqi, assistant professor at Tehran University who witnessed the January riots in Iran. Then we will hear from journalist Jeremy Scahill who will give us a current overview of what is going on. Lastly, we will hear from Lucas Moody as he gives us his Missoula City Council Watch Report.

Linda Gillison, Soundman Jim and Mark take on our Word of the Week: “Teamsters Union - Minneapolis 1934.” As a follow up to our coverage of the January 23rd Minnesota General Strike against ICE, we will learn about an earlier resistance movement in Minneapolis, the seminal 1934 Teamsters Union Rebellion, and its parallels with January 23rd. Then we will look at the partial victory over ICE in Minnesota. Then we will hear two stories about ICE’s terrible damage to two rural communities: Willmar, Minnesota and Froid, Montana; and how these communities are responding. And then we will hear Brendan Work read his opinion piece “Overwhelmed? Flood the Zone Right Back” published in the Missoulian on January 27th. Finally we will hear from Lucas Moody and his Missoula City Council Report.

This week Lucas Moody joins Soundman Jim and Mark. Our Word of the Week is “ICE.” First, we look at the history of this federal agency, then at its long history of abuse. Then we will hear from organizers on the ground to hear how Minnesota’s January 23rd General Strike fared. Then we will hear from speakers at a Missoula rally in solidarity with the Minnesota January 23rd activities and what is planned for Missoula. Finally we hear from Lucas on a new feature of Voice of the People: The Missoula City Council Report.

Our Word of the Week is Venezuela. First, we hear from University of Montana research professor Richard Drake about the history of the Monroe doctrine. Then we hear an interview of two current supporters of the Venezuelan Bolivarian Revolution about recent events, but also about the status of the revolutionary process.

Voice of the People: Radio by and for the 99% - Linda Gillison, Soundman Jim and Mark explore our Word of the Week: “Alignment.” We talk about what that word means in the context of social movements, including the one’s we are covering in this show. And so we look at the long-term success of Minnesotans For a Fair Economy who uses long-term alignment among disparate social movement groups as a way to build power. Then we turn to Montana’s own Transparent Election Initiative and how one national group sees its potential for change. We hear from one worker on strike in the ongoing struggle against Starbucks. Then we look at the prospects of a general strike in 2028. We hear from Sarah McClain who reads her opinion piece on the legacy of the recently deceased Dick Cheney. We finish up with the Julian Assange lawsuit in Sweden against the Nobel Prize committee’s granting of the Peace Prize.

With guest host Lucas Moody, Soundman Jim and Mark. Our Word of the Week is “Anti-War.” First, we look at how President Trump’s “peace plan” in the Ukraine-Russia war is faring. Then we look at how international workers are building a ‘People’s Embargo’ for Palestine and against Israeli genocide. After that, we look at the genocide occurring in the Sudan. Lastly, we look at the Trump Administration’s murder on the high seas off the coast of Venezuela, and how the US Uniform Code of Military Justice requires military personnel to not obey unlawful orders, such as these extrajudicial killings.

Our Word of the Week is “Socialism.” For our entire show we will listen to a panel presentation on our word of the week, recorded on November 6th at the Elks Lodge in Missoula. This panel presentation is titled “Imagining a Post Capitalist World” and is part of the Western Montana chapter of the Democratic Socialists of America 2025 Socialism Speaker Series.

Our Word of the Week is “Artificial Intelligence Data Centers.” We will take a deep dive into AI, their data centers, the possible impacts on Montana and why it has created so much opposition. Then we will hear the press conference of the Missoula’s Travois Village Tenants Union and why they organized. Lastly we will inspect the saber-rattling and murder by the Trump Administration over Venezuela. Hosts this week are Sue Kirchmyer, Soundman Jim and Mark.

We open and close this show with a reading of just a few dozen of the names of thousands of children killed in Gaza by Israel's genocide. Our Word of the Week is “Platform” and is connected to today’s show which features a press conference by four Western Montana Democratic Socialists of America (DSA) candidates and their platform for the Missoula City Council. We will look at two national polls that show widespread support for democratic socialism in the US. Finally, we look at the latest disturbing step toward authoritarianism of the Trump Administration. Co-hosted by Soundman Jim, Linda Gillison and Mark.

Our Word of the Week is “Police.” The following aretwo lectures on the topic of police and bail abolition sponsored by the Western Montana Democratic Socialists of America. These lectures were presented on September 15, 2025 in Missoula by Kristian Williams and Riley Pavelich.

Today’s show features an interview with Brandon Bryant, Missoula native and resident whom we have featured on this show in the past. He will talk about his recent altercation with the Missoula Police. Our word of the Week is “assassination,” as we discuss the assassination of Charlie Kirk and the responses to it. We then look at the Trump Administration’s DOGE efforts at the Social Security Administration and its results so far. We have a follow-up story about the U.S. Border Patrol agents arresting two firefighters working on the fire line on the Olympic Peninsula. We explore the truly historic events happening around the Shanghai Cooperation Organization’s annual meeting in Tianjin, China that has profound implications for the US empire. And finally, we have a follow-up to this spring’s general strike in Panama, where the workers emerged victorious over the Panamanian government and the Chiquita Brands corporation.

With Sue Kirchmyer, Soundman Jim and Mark today’s show features an interview of Lawrence Abbott of Move to Amend about their effort to amend the United States Constitution to end corporate personhood and state that money is not speech. Our word of the Week is “labor.” We look at the Trump Administration’s attack on the workers of the EPA. We look at U.S. Border Patrol agents arresting two firefighters working on the fire line on the Olympic Peninsula. We look at the inhuman prison conditions at the Northwest ICE Processing Center in Tacoma, suffered by a farmworker union organizer. And finally, we look at how the flight attendants at Canada Air defied both the company and the government – and won.

Mark hosts today’s show which features interviews of 8 participants in the 2025 Democratic Socialists of America biennial national convention held in Chicago on August 8th through the 10th. The Democratic Socialists of America, or DSA, is the largest socialist organization in the US for over 100 years with nearly 100,000 members in over 200 chapters in 48 states.

Sue Kirchmyer, Soundman Jim and Mark take a dive into our word of the week: “immigration.” We will hear from immigration attorney Randal Caudle about the state of legal affairs around immigration and how it is affecting immigrant communities. We will explore some history of US policy on immigration. We will also look at the current Trump efforts and how his budget bill greatly expands the reach of ICE. And we will conclude with some things that citizens can do.

On this week's Voice of the People our featured presentation is a speech given by Montana House Representative Zooey Zephyr titled “Building Socialism at the State Level.” Our word of the week is “gerrymandering" and we will hear an exclusive report of a trial in North Carolina challenging the state’s voting districts by our own Linda Gillison. We will then look at two ICE arrests in Montana and what people might want to do to oppose ICE activity in Montana.

Hosted by Soundman Jim and Mark, our word of the week is “Pay Attention,” because very major historical events are happening right now that working class Montanans need to be paying attention to. One major event is the Democratic primary election victory of a Muslim immigrant democratic socialist for mayor of New York City. Another major event is the US and Israeli attack on Iran, which we will explore with Professor Richard Drake. Then we will look at President Trump’s Big Budget Bill now before Congress, that has profound implications for the working class in Montana and the US. Finally, we remember US Representative Pat Williams and how he stood up for the working class.

Soundman Jim, Linda Gillison and Mark explore our word of the week: ICE, as in the US Immigration and Customs Enforcement agency. We will look closely at the recent events in Los Angeles surrounding ICE, as well as the event in Spokane, Washington. We will also hear from several of the participants of the Spokane ICE protest. And then we hear from Robbie Liben who reads his opinion piece on “The Lessons of Vietnam at 50.”

Our word of the week is “General Strike,” which we describe and pull up stories on some general strikes from this year. We then hear from Rose, a leader of Missoula Resists, who are organizing to oppose some of the Trump agenda. We then discuss an opinion piece I wrote on how to organize a general strike here in Montana. We finish with discussing a horrifying practice by the nation’s largest health insurance company, United Health. Co-hosted by Sue Kirchmyer, Soundman Jim and Mark.

Our word of the week is “Missoula Unions,” in reference to the panel discussion of union members held on May Day, sponsored by the Western Montana chapter of the Democratic Socialists of America, that we will play in its entirety. We will follow up the panel discussion recording with the thoughts and analysis of our Voice of the People hosts, Linda Gillison, Soundman Jim and Mark.

Sue Kirchmyer, Soundman Jim and Mark host this week's show. Our word of the week is “Oligarchy,” in reference to the recent speaking tour of Bernie Sanders, Alexandria Ocasio Cortez, and Sara Nelson called “Fighting the Oligarchy.” We will listen to all three speeches given In Missoula at the end of that tour for most of our show today. We will follow up those speeches with thoughts and analysis of our Voice of the People hosts, all of whom attended.

Soundman Jim and Mark host this show where our word of the week is “Hands Off,” in regard to the massive nationwide protests on April 5th. We will hear from speakers and participants of the Missoula event held at the Missoula County Courthouse. We will also hear from the Montanans for Palestine rally that immediately followed the rally at the Courthouse.

Our word of the week is “Medicaid,” the publicly funded heathcare insurance. We will hear from a rally in Missoula on March 18th in front of US Senator Steve Daine’s office called “No Medicaid Cuts.” Then we hear from our intrepid Soundman Jim who will share some of what he learned in Japan. Then we continue our series of roundtable discussions about the prospects of revolution in this time of the failing empire and oligarchy with Celia Winkler and Sarah McClain.

The word of the Week is Affordable Housing. And so we listen in on the Maple Street Flats Tenants Association as they outline their struggles in their affordable housing. Then we hear from the Executive Director of the Missoula Housing Authority, the landlord of the Maple Street Flats, who responds to the tenants concerns. The last half of the show is a new feature of Voice of the People. Featuring Dave Jones and John Wolverton, it is the first of a series of discussions on our current situation and how we can respond meaningfully and effectively to it.

Linda Gillison and Mark host today's show. Our word of the week is “Missoula City Council.” After providing some introduction about Missoula, for the rest of the show we will listen to a panel presentation from January 30th by Missoula City Councillors Kristen Jordan and Daniel Carlino, entitled “Socialism in Missoula,” sponsored by the Western Montana Democratic Socialists of America.

Our word of the week is “Empire” and in the last half of the show we will hear University of Montana history professor Richard Drake share his views on the current state of the US Empire. Before that, we will look at organized workers taking strike action at Starbucks, Amazon, and the healthcare workers at the Providence hospitals in Oregon. Plus, we look at the actions of the Swedish Dockworkers Union voting to block Israeli military shipments at their docks. And we hear from Western Montana DSA organizer Robbie Liben and his opinion piece on the healthcare insurance system in the US.

Linda Gillison, Soundman Jim and Mark host the show this week. Our word of the week is “H-1B Visa” and how they are affecting workers in the computer and software industries. We will then take a look at the war of words in the Trump camp over these same H-1B visas. Then we turn to H-2B visas, what the outgoing Biden Administration is doing with them and how it affects US truckers. Next, we hear DSA organizer Robbie Liben read his opinion piece on the assassination of the United Healthcare CEO and the health insurance industry. Then we look at the recent massive increase in the number of unhoused. We look at the late Jimmy Carter’s record on labor issues in his one-term as President. Finally, we discuss the failed mega-merger of grocery giants Albertsons and Kroger.

Linda Gillison, Soundman Jim and Mark explore our word of the week: “Libertarianism.” We will also take a look at what the so-called libertarian President of Argentina is doing to his nation in his first year in office. Then we discuss why the Democrats lost big time and what they could do about it. We then read the actual manifesto of Luigi Mangione and what his action may portend. Following that the Montana Supreme Court issues an important ruling on the rights of trans kids. And then we look at the deep and dark situation in Syria and the US role in funding Al-Qaeda.

Soundman Jim and Mark are joined by Sandy Burch and Chris Austin to discuss our word of the week: “Democratic Socialism.” We will discuss what it is and answer what critics say about democratic socialism. We then discuss with Sandy and Chris about their work in Montana with the Democratic Socialists of America. Finally we begin to look at the Russian missile, Oreshnik, which many commentators regard as changing military history from here on out.

Soundman Jim and Mark explore our word of the week: “Sitdown Strike.” And Jim will read an excerpt from Jeremy Brecher’s book Strike! about the first sitdown strikes by rubber workers in Akron, Ohio in 1936. And we check in on the progress made on the United Autoworkers plan to prepare unions for a 2028 general strike. We also take a look at the end of the Boeing strike. Finally, we discuss some reasons why the Democratic Party lost the elections so handily.

Linda Gillison and Mark explore our word of the week: “Fascism.” We look to the scholarship of Robert O. Paxton about what that slippery term fascism is and is not, and under what conditions it thrives. And its applicability to Donald Trump. Following that, we end our show with a featured interview of Professor Nancy MacLean who will speak to us about the current Christian nationalist movement in the US.  

Our word of the week is “Liberal Democracy.” To explore our word of the week, we first hear from Maria Bustos as she explains why the Trump-like self-described “anarcho-capitalist” Javier Millei was elected Argentina’s President late last year. Then we look at why the US Democratic Party’s pro-union electoral strategy is failing, and some reasons why many workers support Donald Trump for US President. We end the show with an update from the east coast longshore strikes.

Soundman Jim and Mark explore our word of the week: “Iran”, its history, political economy and culture. Then we cover the escalating war in the Middle East, its connection to Iran, and the escalating war against free speech in the US. We feature an interview by Dialogue Work with Col (ret.) Larry Wilkerson, and an editorial by DSA organizer Brian Myers.

Linda Gillison, Soundman Jim and Mark explore our word of the week “Money;" we look at what money is and isn’t, where it comes from, and why it can address the crises we face as a society. We then look at the Machinists strike against Boeing. Next we look at the deepening housing crisis in Montana. Then we discuss what the implications are with Israel’s exploding pagers.

Joining Soundman Jim and Mark is Linda Gillison. Our word of the week is “The American Worker”, as we look at how working people and their organizations are faring in the US and specifically Montana. We then listen to a video produced last year of interviews of working class Trump supporters at a rally in Erie, Pennsylvania that may surprise some of our listeners. Finally, we look at the worker situation at Boeing and the state of rail workers in both Canada and the US.

Our word of the week is another one of our latest series: the Rojava Social Revolution. This is the second part of our look at what Noam Chomsky said is a revolution that offers “a compelling alternative vision for reviving politics as a collective force for worthy and necessary social transformation.” Soundman Jim and Mark then take a look at the unsuccessful attempts by Montana’s Republican Secretary of State, Christi Jacobsen, to derail three citizen initiatives. Finally we go deep into the Venezuelan national elections and the accusations of fraud by the US government and others that we read about in the corporate news media.

Soundman Jim, Sue Kirchmyer and Mark learn about our word of the week which is another one of our latest series: the Rojava Social Revolution. This is the first part of our look at what Noam Chomsky said is a revolution that offers “a compelling alternative vision for reviving politics as a collective force for worthy and necessary social transformation.” We then take a careful look at the Israeli assassinations of Hamas and Hezbollah leaders, including the chief spokesman of the Hamas peace negotiators, hearing from Michael Hudson and Jill Stein on the issue. And finally we hear from Western Montana DSA organizer Sarah McClain who reads her opinion piece “Home of the Brave.”

Our word of the week is another one in our latest series: the 2011 Tunisian Nonviolent Revolution. We then hear an interview of Jeremy Rathbun, a Vice President of the Vermont State Labor Council, AFL-CIO, on its troubles with the national AFL-CIO. We then have an obituary of an inspiring leader of the revived organizing labor movement, Jane McAlevey. We then take a quick peek at possible labor strife at Boeing. And we finish off with a conversation about politics, here and abroad.

Our word of the week is another one of our latest series: the Swedish Social Revolution. We take a look at the sorry state of labor rights in the world, including the US. Then we look at the “most intense US naval combat since World War 2 in the Red Sea in direct opposition to the genocide in Gaza. We then hear Missoula Councilor Kristin Jordan read her published opinion piece on the way forward for the unhoused. We then look at the national elections in the United Kingdom, Mexico and France. And last, but not least, we talk about the national elections in the US.

Our word of the week is a big one, Nonviolent Social Revolution. We rebroadcast the Evolutionary Activist podcast of February 26, 2020 by Patricia Pearce called Nonviolence and Possibilities in Times of Polarization – an interview with George Lakey. We then deconstruct the myth of the so-called massacre in Beijing’s Tienanmen Square on June 4th, 1989. Following that we look at President Biden’s authorizing Ukraine to use US weapons to attack Russia, and how Israel is using bots and fake social media accounts to influence Congress. Then we look at updates for local stories that include: the outcome of the Montanans for Palestine “No Preference” campaign in Montana’s Democratic Presidential Primary race, the Eagle Watch Estates Tenants struggle, and the latest effort by the Missoula City Council to address the issue of the unhoused.

We hear from tenants of the Eagle Watch Estates apartment complex in Missoula who have organized to get their issues resolved by an unresponsive landlord. That follows our Word of the Week, the “CIO Organizng Method,” and how the method may also explain why the United Autoworkers Unions lost the election at the Mercedes-Benz plant in Alabama. On today’s show we also feature Robbie Liben and his opinion piece on the campaign in Montana for voting “no preference” in support of Palestinians in Gaza in the Democratic Presidential Primary election. And that follows how billionaire oligarchs are behind some of the repression on university campuses; and by the story of the union graduate student worker strikes in response to the repression on some University of California campuses.

Our word of the week is a novel one, “3 1/2%” and what that means (% of a population persistently engaged in nonviolent resistance to succeed). We will hear speeches from the April 14th Palestine solidarity rally held in Bozeman, Montana. Then we will hear from Bozemanite Rylee Dunn on the Montana “Vote No Preference” campaign. We will look closer at the protests on the University campuses all across the world, specifically at Columbia University, opposing Israeli genocide in Gaza. We will catch up to the labor situation at Daimler Truck in the South, and the prospects of a United Autoworkers Union victory at the Mercedes-Benz plant in Alabama.

Our word of the week is “manufacturing consent,” a fundamental understanding we carry in this show. We also look at the organizing victory of the United Auto Workers Union (UAW) at the southern Volkswagen manufacturing plant in Chattanooga, Tennessee, and a potential strike at more southern plants by the UAW. Then we focus in on the repression of free speech on campuses across the nation with a specific look at Columbia University’s attempt to silence opposition to Israel’s genocide in Gaza. Then we look at remarkable revelations by some in the US foreign policy establishment that a peace agreement was close at hand just weeks after Russia invaded Ukraine. Finally, we again skewer the best-seller White Rage by reading from a labor leader’s presentation of the facts about the rural white working class.

Sue Kirchmyer, Soundman Jim and Mark announce 2 new union recognition requests in Missoula: from the DFTBA Workers Union and the University of Montana Graduate Employees Union. We hear from Collette Berg, Taylor Lennox and Ethan Shafron, 3 members of the U of M Graduate Employees Union, in our interview of the week. A brief update on the Boeing situation will precede an editorial by Tony Davis on the decision facing the major airplane manufacturer. We read from an article about Faye Guenther of UFCW Local 3000 who is leading a major reform effort of her union. And we read a review about another book that wrongly blames the rural, white working class for the rise of Donald Trump.

Soundman Jim and Mark host this episode. Our word of the week is “economics.” We will hear a lecture by University of Montana Professor Clint Walker on “Taking the Pulse of Democracy Under Putin.” We will cover the recent closures of two Missoula County wood products industry operations. And we will cover the ongoing economic saga of one of the world’s major airplane manufacturers, Boeing. And lastly we will cover an apology and critique by economist Angus Deaton for the sorry state of his chosen profession.

Friend of the Show Alan Noonan joins Soundman Jim and Mark looking at our word of the week: “merger.” We will listen to the speeches and to some of the participants in last month’s Palestine support rally in Missoula, followed by an editorial by Robbie Liben. And we have our resident former Boeing engineer, soundman Jim Gillan, who will lead us in discussion about that troubled company and how its merger with McDonnell-Douglas has brought it to this point. We also have an update on the status of the Postal Service’s proposed closure of Missoula’s regional mail processing work, the proposed merger of grocery giants Albertsons and Kroger, a summary of notable worker organizing and struggles across the US, and a look at the illegal but successful teachers’ strike wave in Massachusetts.