From a_indabronx at fastmail.fm Thu Jun 2 01:04:56 2016 From: a_indabronx at fastmail.fm (a_indabronx) Date: Wed, 01 Jun 2016 18:04:56 -0700 Subject: [OccupyCU] =?utf-8?q?Defend_Raqqa_=E2=80=93_Drive_U=2ES=2E/NATO_I?= =?utf-8?q?mperialists_Out_of_Syria_and_Iraq!?= Message-ID: <1464829496.3080550.625395425.652FA024@webmail.messagingengine.com> Imperialist Offensive Threatens Slaughter Defend Raqqa – Drive U.S./NATO Imperialists Out of Syria and Iraq! http://www.internationalist.org/defendraqqadriveoutimperialists1605.html A new stage has opened in the fighting in Syria and Iraq with the launching of offensives against the Islamic State (I.S.) by U.S. imperialism and its allies. On May 24 the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), a military front dominated by the Kurdish People’s Protection Units (YPG), announced the beginning of a drive on the de facto capital of the I.S. in Raqqa. They are participating in a military operation under direct U.S. command. Already U.S. commandos have been sighted carrying out operational activities at the front. Moreover, three days before the offensive was announced, the head of the U.S. Central Command, Gen. Joseph Votel, flew secretly to the area for an on-site inspection of preparations. Dropping leaflets calling on the population to flee the city, the imperialists are preparing a slaughter. Amid the all-sided communalist/sectarian civil war raging in Syria, internationalist communists (Trotskyists) call to defend Raqqa against the U.S.-led attack and the Kurdish and Arab forces serving as ground troops for the imperialists. In Iraq, the Shiite sectarian regime has launched an attack on the I.S. stronghold of Falluja, while U.S. and Kurdish forces threaten Mosul. We call to drive the imperialists out of the region and to defeat them by international workers action. From susanroseparenti at gmail.com Mon Jun 27 00:56:51 2016 From: susanroseparenti at gmail.com (Susan Parenti) Date: Sun, 26 Jun 2016 19:56:51 -0500 Subject: [OccupyCU] for South American participants: lend a mattress, a pillow to sleep on--for July? Message-ID: Hi friends---In a few days 25 people from South and Central America and other countries will be coming to Champaign-Urbana to participate in a one month educational session called, *Construct Your Humanism! *This session is the joint work of School for Designing a Society and Patch Adams and the Gesundheit Institute. While primarily attended by people in health care, there will also be participants from the other caring professions (education, governance, parenting, small business, etc). We need a few more beds/mattresses and pillows for the participants---would any of you have something along those lines to spare for July? We'll pick them up and return them in good shape. And we'll be posting information about ways to take part in this exciting 4 week session. Please let me know if you have a bed/mattress (preferably a single) and/or pillow to spare. -- *Susan Parenti* *Educational Coordinator * *The School for Designing a Society *www.designingasociety.net *Like us on Facebook !* -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: -------------- next part -------------- A non-text attachment was scrubbed... Name: SDaS.poster2016.alt2.pdf Type: application/pdf Size: 300641 bytes Desc: not available URL: From briandolinar at gmail.com Mon Jun 27 19:42:55 2016 From: briandolinar at gmail.com (Brian Dolinar) Date: Mon, 27 Jun 2016 14:42:55 -0500 Subject: [OccupyCU] In Memory, Honor, and Love of Gene Vanderport by Belden Fields Message-ID: This reflection on the life of longtime labor activist and revolutionary Gene Vanderport written by Belden Fields for the Public i. BD http://publici.ucimc.org/in-memory-honor-and-love-of-gene-vanderport/ It is difficult to write about an untimely death of someone whom one has known for almost half a century. Gene was my student, my comrade, and my friend since the late 1960s. Only a couple of years after my arrival to teach political science at the U of I in 1965, a young, bright eyed, highly intelligent and articulate student showed up in one of my classes. It was Gene. He was living in the Danvillle Collective and driving in to take his classes. The Collective was a group of politically radical young people who were living together at a time when such communes existed all over the country. Gene was a very committed democratic socialist, a socialist in the mold of Gene Debs. He and I shared that ideology. While Gene was radical in his politics, he stood out as being more culturally conservative than many of his radical peers in both his dress and his aversion to drugs. Gene was very interested in the idea and practice of worker control over the work place. So, one day he came to me and proposed an independent study course in which he would go to Yugoslavia and observe and interview people who were actually working in factories in which workers were in control. This made Yugoslavia unique among the communist countries of Eastern Europe. I thought this was very gutsy for someone of his age who had never been out of the country before. I agree to it and it turned out to be a wonderful, broadening experience for Gene. It reinforced his conviction that workers did not just need to be objects in a factory production line as portrayed in Charlie Chaplin’s Modern Times. Instead, they had the knowledge, experience, and commitment to run their own enterprises. He became a proponent of both producer and consumer cooperatives that are not uncommon today. Gene was one of those great student protesters of the 1960s. He opposed the war in Vietnam and the treatment accorded to Cuba by the US government. But he was never just negative. He always envisioned, and fought for, a democratic socialist future in the States. After graduating from the University of Illinois, Gene took a job at the Veterans Administration Hospital in his native Danville. There he became active in the union and rose to its leadership. He was so successful in that role that he was called to the Washington office of the union and sent all over the country as an organizer. Anyone who knows anything about unions knows that the job of a traveling organizer takes an enormous toll on a person’s mind and body. So, after a number of years doing that, Gene looked for a position that involved less travel, but also that permitted him to live in a community in which one could develop roots. He looked back home. He took a position as the Director of the Illinois Education Association in this area. This permitted him to be close to his widowed mother who lived in a house in the woods near Danville. They called it the Green Cocoon. While back here, Gene, along with others, including myself, created the group Socialist Forum. Gene and I also served as coordinators of the Living Wage Association of Champaign, which was successful in getting living wage policies adopted in the city of Urbana and Champaign County. Gene was also active in the Labor Coalition at the U of I. We, and Gene’s wonderful wife, Germaine Light, were also were also very active in the Central Illinois Jobs with Justice Coalition. We engaged in many strike and lock-out support actions together. Gene was arrested in a sit-in supporting the Staley (now Tate and Lyle) workers in Decatur. That arrest became a badge of honor for him. Gene and I were very close. He used to call me Dad. And, since I had no other sons, he became kind of a son to me. He would always listen to what I had to say, and sometimes he would do what I suggested. But Gene was his own agent, a cooperative comrade in fights for social justice. The labor movement lost a staunch fighter for workers’ rights. I have lost a “son” a student, comrade, and friend over a span of over 50 years. Gene, his wife Germaine, my wife Jane, and I, liked to go to the Gene Debs dinners in Terre Haute. Debs was hero to us, a democratic socialist who had to run for the American presidency from a jail cell because of his opposition to U.S. entry into the First World War. Nevertheless, Debs got almost a million votes. I am so glad that Gene Vanderport lived to see Bernie Sanders gain so many backers as an avowed socialist. We never thought we would see the day that this would happen, that the idea of socialism would no longer be taboo in American politics. So my son, one more thing that I would advise you to do. Tell Gene Debs all about it up there. Tell him how so many young people supported this socialist. Make his day in eternity. Love, peace, and justice be with both of you. Till we meet again. Belden (Dad) -- Brian Dolinar, Ph.D. briandolinar.com -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: -------------- next part -------------- A non-text attachment was scrubbed... Name: Gene fist.jpg Type: image/jpeg Size: 122850 bytes Desc: not available URL: From jjincu at gmail.com Tue Jun 28 05:15:02 2016 From: jjincu at gmail.com (James Kilgore) Date: Tue, 28 Jun 2016 00:15:02 -0500 Subject: [OccupyCU] [Announce] In Memory, Honor, and Love of Gene Vanderport by Belden Fields In-Reply-To: References: Message-ID: Beautiful piece, Belden. Thanks so much for sharing this history and your personal connections with Gene. In solidarity, James James Kilgore Research Scholar Center for African Studies University of Illinois (Urbana-Champaign) Author of *Understanding Mass Incarceration: A People's Guide to the Key Civil Rights Struggle of Our Time* On Mon, Jun 27, 2016 at 2:42 PM, Brian Dolinar wrote: > This reflection on the life of longtime labor activist and revolutionary > Gene Vanderport written by Belden Fields for the Public i. > > BD > > http://publici.ucimc.org/in-memory-honor-and-love-of-gene-vanderport/ > > > It is difficult to write about an untimely death of someone whom one has > known for almost half a century. Gene was my student, my comrade, and my > friend since the late 1960s. Only a couple of years after my arrival to > teach political science at the U of I in 1965, a young, bright eyed, highly > intelligent and articulate student showed up in one of my classes. It was > Gene. He was living in the Danvillle Collective and driving in to take his > classes. The Collective was a group of politically radical young people who > were living together at a time when such communes existed all over the > country. Gene was a very committed democratic socialist, a socialist in the > mold of Gene Debs. He and I shared that ideology. While Gene was radical in > his politics, he stood out as being more culturally conservative than many > of his radical peers in both his dress and his aversion to drugs. > > Gene was very interested in the idea and practice of worker control over > the work place. So, one day he came to me and proposed an independent study > course in which he would go to Yugoslavia and observe and interview people > who were actually working in factories in which workers were in control. > This made Yugoslavia unique among the communist countries of Eastern > Europe. I thought this was very gutsy for someone of his age who had never > been out of the country before. I agree to it and it turned out to be a > wonderful, broadening experience for Gene. It reinforced his conviction > that workers did not just need to be objects in a factory production line > as portrayed in Charlie Chaplin’s Modern Times. Instead, they had the > knowledge, experience, and commitment to run their own enterprises. He > became a proponent of both producer and consumer cooperatives that are not > uncommon today. > > Gene was one of those great student protesters of the 1960s. He opposed > the war in Vietnam and the treatment accorded to Cuba by the US government. > But he was never just negative. He always envisioned, and fought for, a > democratic socialist future in the States. > > After graduating from the University of Illinois, Gene took a job at the > Veterans Administration Hospital in his native Danville. There he became > active in the union and rose to its leadership. He was so successful in > that role that he was called to the Washington office of the union and sent > all over the country as an organizer. Anyone who knows anything about > unions knows that the job of a traveling organizer takes an enormous toll > on a person’s mind and body. So, after a number of years doing that, Gene > looked for a position that involved less travel, but also that permitted > him to live in a community in which one could develop roots. He looked back > home. He took a position as the Director of the Illinois Education > Association in this area. This permitted him to be close to his widowed > mother who lived in a house in the woods near Danville. They called it the > Green Cocoon. > > While back here, Gene, along with others, including myself, created the > group Socialist Forum. Gene and I also served as coordinators of the Living > Wage Association of Champaign, which was successful in getting living wage > policies adopted in the city of Urbana and Champaign County. Gene was also > active in the Labor Coalition at the U of I. We, and Gene’s wonderful wife, > Germaine Light, were also were also very active in the Central Illinois > Jobs with Justice Coalition. We engaged in many strike and lock-out support > actions together. Gene was arrested in a sit-in supporting the Staley (now > Tate and Lyle) workers in Decatur. That arrest became a badge of honor for > him. > > Gene and I were very close. He used to call me Dad. And, since I had no > other sons, he became kind of a son to me. He would always listen to what I > had to say, and sometimes he would do what I suggested. But Gene was his > own agent, a cooperative comrade in fights for social justice. The labor > movement lost a staunch fighter for workers’ rights. > > I have lost a “son” a student, comrade, and friend over a span of over 50 > years. Gene, his wife Germaine, my wife Jane, and I, liked to go to the > Gene Debs dinners in Terre Haute. Debs was hero to us, a democratic > socialist who had to run for the American presidency from a jail cell > because of his opposition to U.S. entry into the First World War. > Nevertheless, Debs got almost a million votes. I am so glad that Gene > Vanderport lived to see Bernie Sanders gain so many backers as an avowed > socialist. We never thought we would see the day that this would happen, > that the idea of socialism would no longer be taboo in American politics. > > So my son, one more thing that I would advise you to do. Tell Gene Debs > all about it up there. Tell him how so many young people supported this > socialist. Make his day in eternity. > > Love, peace, and justice be with both of you. Till we meet again. > > Belden (Dad) > -- > Brian Dolinar, Ph.D. > briandolinar.com > > _______________________________________________ > Announce mailing list > Announce at lists.chambana.net > https://lists.chambana.net/mailman/listinfo/announce-communitycourtwatch > > -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From sandra.ahten at gmail.com Tue Jun 28 12:26:14 2016 From: sandra.ahten at gmail.com (Sandra Ahten) Date: Tue, 28 Jun 2016 07:26:14 -0500 Subject: [OccupyCU] [Announce] In Memory, Honor, and Love of Gene Vanderport by Belden Fields In-Reply-To: References: Message-ID: As per Beldon and I discussion, this was read on WEFT last night on CU Progressive News. Thanks for taking the time to write it Beldon. It is a beautiful tribute. Sandra Sandra Ahten On Tue, Jun 28, 2016 at 12:15 AM, James Kilgore wrote: > Beautiful piece, Belden. Thanks so much for sharing this history and your > personal connections with Gene. > > In solidarity, > James > > James Kilgore > Research Scholar > Center for African Studies > University of Illinois (Urbana-Champaign) > Author of *Understanding Mass Incarceration: A People's Guide to the Key > Civil Rights Struggle of Our Time* > > > > On Mon, Jun 27, 2016 at 2:42 PM, Brian Dolinar > wrote: > >> This reflection on the life of longtime labor activist and revolutionary >> Gene Vanderport written by Belden Fields for the Public i. >> >> BD >> >> http://publici.ucimc.org/in-memory-honor-and-love-of-gene-vanderport/ >> >> >> It is difficult to write about an untimely death of someone whom one has >> known for almost half a century. Gene was my student, my comrade, and my >> friend since the late 1960s. Only a couple of years after my arrival to >> teach political science at the U of I in 1965, a young, bright eyed, highly >> intelligent and articulate student showed up in one of my classes. It was >> Gene. He was living in the Danvillle Collective and driving in to take his >> classes. The Collective was a group of politically radical young people who >> were living together at a time when such communes existed all over the >> country. Gene was a very committed democratic socialist, a socialist in the >> mold of Gene Debs. He and I shared that ideology. While Gene was radical in >> his politics, he stood out as being more culturally conservative than many >> of his radical peers in both his dress and his aversion to drugs. >> >> Gene was very interested in the idea and practice of worker control over >> the work place. So, one day he came to me and proposed an independent study >> course in which he would go to Yugoslavia and observe and interview people >> who were actually working in factories in which workers were in control. >> This made Yugoslavia unique among the communist countries of Eastern >> Europe. I thought this was very gutsy for someone of his age who had never >> been out of the country before. I agree to it and it turned out to be a >> wonderful, broadening experience for Gene. It reinforced his conviction >> that workers did not just need to be objects in a factory production line >> as portrayed in Charlie Chaplin’s Modern Times. Instead, they had the >> knowledge, experience, and commitment to run their own enterprises. He >> became a proponent of both producer and consumer cooperatives that are not >> uncommon today. >> >> Gene was one of those great student protesters of the 1960s. He opposed >> the war in Vietnam and the treatment accorded to Cuba by the US government. >> But he was never just negative. He always envisioned, and fought for, a >> democratic socialist future in the States. >> >> After graduating from the University of Illinois, Gene took a job at the >> Veterans Administration Hospital in his native Danville. There he became >> active in the union and rose to its leadership. He was so successful in >> that role that he was called to the Washington office of the union and sent >> all over the country as an organizer. Anyone who knows anything about >> unions knows that the job of a traveling organizer takes an enormous toll >> on a person’s mind and body. So, after a number of years doing that, Gene >> looked for a position that involved less travel, but also that permitted >> him to live in a community in which one could develop roots. He looked back >> home. He took a position as the Director of the Illinois Education >> Association in this area. This permitted him to be close to his widowed >> mother who lived in a house in the woods near Danville. They called it the >> Green Cocoon. >> >> While back here, Gene, along with others, including myself, created the >> group Socialist Forum. Gene and I also served as coordinators of the Living >> Wage Association of Champaign, which was successful in getting living wage >> policies adopted in the city of Urbana and Champaign County. Gene was also >> active in the Labor Coalition at the U of I. We, and Gene’s wonderful wife, >> Germaine Light, were also were also very active in the Central Illinois >> Jobs with Justice Coalition. We engaged in many strike and lock-out support >> actions together. Gene was arrested in a sit-in supporting the Staley (now >> Tate and Lyle) workers in Decatur. That arrest became a badge of honor for >> him. >> >> Gene and I were very close. He used to call me Dad. And, since I had no >> other sons, he became kind of a son to me. He would always listen to what I >> had to say, and sometimes he would do what I suggested. But Gene was his >> own agent, a cooperative comrade in fights for social justice. The labor >> movement lost a staunch fighter for workers’ rights. >> >> I have lost a “son” a student, comrade, and friend over a span of over 50 >> years. Gene, his wife Germaine, my wife Jane, and I, liked to go to the >> Gene Debs dinners in Terre Haute. Debs was hero to us, a democratic >> socialist who had to run for the American presidency from a jail cell >> because of his opposition to U.S. entry into the First World War. >> Nevertheless, Debs got almost a million votes. I am so glad that Gene >> Vanderport lived to see Bernie Sanders gain so many backers as an avowed >> socialist. We never thought we would see the day that this would happen, >> that the idea of socialism would no longer be taboo in American politics. >> >> So my son, one more thing that I would advise you to do. Tell Gene Debs >> all about it up there. Tell him how so many young people supported this >> socialist. Make his day in eternity. >> >> Love, peace, and justice be with both of you. Till we meet again. >> >> Belden (Dad) >> -- >> Brian Dolinar, Ph.D. >> briandolinar.com >> >> _______________________________________________ >> Announce mailing list >> Announce at lists.chambana.net >> https://lists.chambana.net/mailman/listinfo/announce-communitycourtwatch >> >> > > _______________________________________________ > Announce mailing list > Announce at lists.chambana.net > https://lists.chambana.net/mailman/listinfo/announce-communitycourtwatch > > -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From gwoodiii3 at gmail.com Tue Jun 28 17:54:12 2016 From: gwoodiii3 at gmail.com (Gus Wood) Date: Tue, 28 Jun 2016 12:54:12 -0500 Subject: [OccupyCU] [Announce] In Memory, Honor, and Love of Gene Vanderport by Belden Fields In-Reply-To: References: Message-ID: Powerful article, Belden. Thanks so much for this. Gus On Jun 28, 2016 7:27 AM, "Sandra Ahten" wrote: > As per Beldon and I discussion, this was read on WEFT last night on CU > Progressive News. Thanks for taking the time to write it Beldon. It is a > beautiful tribute. > > Sandra > > Sandra Ahten > > > > > On Tue, Jun 28, 2016 at 12:15 AM, James Kilgore wrote: > >> Beautiful piece, Belden. Thanks so much for sharing this history and your >> personal connections with Gene. >> >> In solidarity, >> James >> >> James Kilgore >> Research Scholar >> Center for African Studies >> University of Illinois (Urbana-Champaign) >> Author of *Understanding Mass Incarceration: A People's Guide to the Key >> Civil Rights Struggle of Our Time* >> >> >> >> On Mon, Jun 27, 2016 at 2:42 PM, Brian Dolinar >> wrote: >> >>> This reflection on the life of longtime labor activist and revolutionary >>> Gene Vanderport written by Belden Fields for the Public i. >>> >>> BD >>> >>> http://publici.ucimc.org/in-memory-honor-and-love-of-gene-vanderport/ >>> >>> >>> It is difficult to write about an untimely death of someone whom one has >>> known for almost half a century. Gene was my student, my comrade, and my >>> friend since the late 1960s. Only a couple of years after my arrival to >>> teach political science at the U of I in 1965, a young, bright eyed, highly >>> intelligent and articulate student showed up in one of my classes. It was >>> Gene. He was living in the Danvillle Collective and driving in to take his >>> classes. The Collective was a group of politically radical young people who >>> were living together at a time when such communes existed all over the >>> country. Gene was a very committed democratic socialist, a socialist in the >>> mold of Gene Debs. He and I shared that ideology. While Gene was radical in >>> his politics, he stood out as being more culturally conservative than many >>> of his radical peers in both his dress and his aversion to drugs. >>> >>> Gene was very interested in the idea and practice of worker control over >>> the work place. So, one day he came to me and proposed an independent study >>> course in which he would go to Yugoslavia and observe and interview people >>> who were actually working in factories in which workers were in control. >>> This made Yugoslavia unique among the communist countries of Eastern >>> Europe. I thought this was very gutsy for someone of his age who had never >>> been out of the country before. I agree to it and it turned out to be a >>> wonderful, broadening experience for Gene. It reinforced his conviction >>> that workers did not just need to be objects in a factory production line >>> as portrayed in Charlie Chaplin’s Modern Times. Instead, they had the >>> knowledge, experience, and commitment to run their own enterprises. He >>> became a proponent of both producer and consumer cooperatives that are not >>> uncommon today. >>> >>> Gene was one of those great student protesters of the 1960s. He opposed >>> the war in Vietnam and the treatment accorded to Cuba by the US government. >>> But he was never just negative. He always envisioned, and fought for, a >>> democratic socialist future in the States. >>> >>> After graduating from the University of Illinois, Gene took a job at the >>> Veterans Administration Hospital in his native Danville. There he became >>> active in the union and rose to its leadership. He was so successful in >>> that role that he was called to the Washington office of the union and sent >>> all over the country as an organizer. Anyone who knows anything about >>> unions knows that the job of a traveling organizer takes an enormous toll >>> on a person’s mind and body. So, after a number of years doing that, Gene >>> looked for a position that involved less travel, but also that permitted >>> him to live in a community in which one could develop roots. He looked back >>> home. He took a position as the Director of the Illinois Education >>> Association in this area. This permitted him to be close to his widowed >>> mother who lived in a house in the woods near Danville. They called it the >>> Green Cocoon. >>> >>> While back here, Gene, along with others, including myself, created the >>> group Socialist Forum. Gene and I also served as coordinators of the Living >>> Wage Association of Champaign, which was successful in getting living wage >>> policies adopted in the city of Urbana and Champaign County. Gene was also >>> active in the Labor Coalition at the U of I. We, and Gene’s wonderful wife, >>> Germaine Light, were also were also very active in the Central Illinois >>> Jobs with Justice Coalition. We engaged in many strike and lock-out support >>> actions together. Gene was arrested in a sit-in supporting the Staley (now >>> Tate and Lyle) workers in Decatur. That arrest became a badge of honor for >>> him. >>> >>> Gene and I were very close. He used to call me Dad. And, since I had no >>> other sons, he became kind of a son to me. He would always listen to what I >>> had to say, and sometimes he would do what I suggested. But Gene was his >>> own agent, a cooperative comrade in fights for social justice. The labor >>> movement lost a staunch fighter for workers’ rights. >>> >>> I have lost a “son” a student, comrade, and friend over a span of over >>> 50 years. Gene, his wife Germaine, my wife Jane, and I, liked to go to the >>> Gene Debs dinners in Terre Haute. Debs was hero to us, a democratic >>> socialist who had to run for the American presidency from a jail cell >>> because of his opposition to U.S. entry into the First World War. >>> Nevertheless, Debs got almost a million votes. I am so glad that Gene >>> Vanderport lived to see Bernie Sanders gain so many backers as an avowed >>> socialist. We never thought we would see the day that this would happen, >>> that the idea of socialism would no longer be taboo in American politics. >>> >>> So my son, one more thing that I would advise you to do. Tell Gene Debs >>> all about it up there. Tell him how so many young people supported this >>> socialist. Make his day in eternity. >>> >>> Love, peace, and justice be with both of you. Till we meet again. >>> >>> Belden (Dad) >>> -- >>> Brian Dolinar, Ph.D. >>> briandolinar.com >>> >>> _______________________________________________ >>> Announce mailing list >>> Announce at lists.chambana.net >>> https://lists.chambana.net/mailman/listinfo/announce-communitycourtwatch >>> >>> >> >> _______________________________________________ >> Announce mailing list >> Announce at lists.chambana.net >> https://lists.chambana.net/mailman/listinfo/announce-communitycourtwatch >> >> > > _______________________________________________ > Announce mailing list > Announce at lists.chambana.net > https://lists.chambana.net/mailman/listinfo/announce-communitycourtwatch > > -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: