Voices from the Editorial Collective 

By Bill Fletcher, Jr. 

It is a matter of moral and political necessity that the planet’s progressive citizens speak out unambiguously against the U.S. aggression perpetrated against Iran and the danger of an Iran-U.S. war. The murder of Iranian Major General Qasem Soleimani was, at best, a reckless act by a desperate president, completely panicked about his impeachment. At worst, it was a declaration of war against a sovereign country which could lead to a much larger regional conflict.

By Nnimmo Bassey

Watching a video of a cyclist offering water to a koala on a highway in Australia, then helping it up a tree on the side of the highway was so touching. The animal turned around and waved back as the man turned to leave. Other photos of people helping scared animals have been posted on social media, and they all indicate the basic human instinct of love for all species, human and non-human.

A Poem

By Nnimmo Bassey

1. Nigeria

If there is egwu eke
There must be a drummer
Or the flutist
Where there is a dance there must be a song
Who is the musician to whose beats
The python is dancing?

The crocodile please
My gapping jaws and fearsome teeth
Never mean I smile
No matter how hard my stinking efforts with
Dirt-crusted teeth
Who says the crocodile smiles or is this a search for flesh to rip?

By Bill Fletcher, Jr.

December 20th marks the 30th anniversary of the U.S. invasion of Panama. Dubbed “Operation Just Cause,” the stated aim of the invasion was to unseat and capture Panamanian dictator Manuel Noriega. Noriega, a longtime operative for the U.S. Central Intelligence Agency, had become an embarrassment for the United States government in what was a moment of transition into a post-Cold War world. President George H.W. Bush decided to take steps.           

By T. D. Harper-Shipman

African governments and societies that want equitable and ecologically-sound futures should stop owning development.

When I say that African governments and societies must stop owning development, there is a double-entendre here. What does it mean to own development? By “development,” I mean the contrived economic and political processes that are unfolding across the continent and the alterations they are making in African societies and eco-systems. 

By Michael A. Gomez 

In late August 1619, some 20 Africans disembarked at Point Comfort, or what is now Fort Monroe in Hampton, Virginia. Having been seized by the White Lion, an English privateer (flying under the Dutch flag) from the São João Bautista, a Portuguese slave ship en route to Mexico from what is now Angola, they were joined days later by a second group of Africans. The second group was taken from the same Portuguese slaver, aboard the English pirate ship the Treasurer.

Voices from the Editorial Collective

By Bill Fletcher, Jr.

It’s amazing the way that the news cycle operates. A story can emerge that has great significance. Then, poof, it vanishes. This just about summarizes a story that emerged in September in the aftermath of Hurricane Dorian’s devastation of the Bahamas. The story is a simple one:  The Trump Administration denied Temporary Protective Status to victims of the hurricane.

By John Munro

His laughter is one place to begin. 

As anyone with the good fortune of having had a conversation with Jack O’Dell knows, humor was at times his way into political critique, at others a culmination of it.

By Bill Fletcher, Jr. 

I met Jack O’Dell and his wife Jane Power shortly after moving to Washington, D.C. in 1990. I had heard of him over the years and read several pieces by him. Particularly in light of Jack’s role with the Rev. Jesse Jackson and the Rainbow Coalition, I was especially interested in knowing how he, as an open leftist, chose to navigate the terrain. What I was not anticipating, when I met Jack, was that it was the beginning of a friendship that would last until his final days. 

By James Early

What is it about the racial constitution of Brazil that poor people of African descent would, under any circumstances, vote for a fascist? 

A simple direct political question of why poor Brazilians of African descent would, under any circumstances, vote for a fascist invariably leads to extended discussion, debate and opinion. Facts and reliable statistical data do not readily yield hard answers nor automatic insight.