Category Archives: Autonomy

Anarchist, Autonomy, Communism, General, Germany, Guerrilla, History, Kersplebedeb, PM Press, Transcribed, zine

“From Hash Rebels to Urban Guerrillas” with Gabriel Kuhn

book cover of "From Hash Rebels to Urban Guerrillas" with the words "TFSR 2-2-25 | The 2nd of June Movement (with Gabriel Kuhn)"
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Today we’re sharing an interview recorded this week with Gabriel Kuhn speaking about the West German urban guerrilla group the 2nd of June Movement, the book he co-edited on this subject entitled From Hash Rebels to Urban Guerrillas: A Documentary History of the 2nd of June Movement (from PM Press and Kersplebedb), the milieu from which it arose, how it compared to other groups at the time like the Red Army Faction, and some of the legacy of their critiques and interventions on radical politics in the autonomen movement and beyond.

For the hour we speak about the context from which the 2nd of June Movement grew (alongside the Red Army Faction, Revolutionary Cells and others) in the 1970’s, their goals and actions, the timing of the book and the legacy that these groups left to German society and the autonomous movements that continued.

• Our prior interview with Gabriel on Liberating Sapmi
• Gabriel’s blog: https://lefttwothree.org/
• A blog collecting documents of this period: http://germanguerilla.com/

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Featured Track:

Continue reading “From Hash Rebels to Urban Guerrillas” with Gabriel Kuhn →
Anarchist, Autonomy, Greece, Prisons, repression, Transcribed, zine

The Ampelokipoi Case, Repression and Anti-Repression in Greece

Flyer showing prisoners out of their cells, rioting in a prison with the words "Up until the demolition of the last prison, we organize the material, moral, political support of imprisoned revolutionaries - Tameio - contact http://tameio.org/ __ tameio@espiv.net | TFSR 1-26-25 - The Ampelokipoi Case, Repression & Anti-Repression in Greece"
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This week, we are sharing an interview with a member of the Solidarity Fund for Imprisoned and Persecuted Revolutionaries, or Tameio. We talk about the case of the explosion in an apartment in the Athens district of Ampelokipi from late October of 2024 which left comrade Kyriakos Xymitiris dead and left Marianna badly injured, after which there have been arrests of four other comrades (so far), including Nikos Romanos. Some supporters of those arrested believes the case is the New Democracy government distracting from their economic collapse by increasing repression and the spectre of terrorism

We also speak about the anti-repression landscape that Tameio participates in, the end of asylum protections against police on university campuses and difficulties faced by the anti-authoritarian and anarchist movements in Greece today.

Continue reading The Ampelokipoi Case, Repression and Anti-Repression in Greece →
Anarchist, Autonomy, Environment, General, Indigenous, Mexico, Political Prisoner, repression

The Political Repression and Resistance of Eloxochitlán de Flores Magón

a photo of seven people standing in a field with masks over their faces, fists raised and a banner with a picture of Ricardo Flores Magón reading "Freedom For The Prisoners of Eloxochitlán de Flores Magón", standing before a bonfire with a forest behind them, plus "TFSR 1-4-26 | The Political Repression and Resistance of Eloxochitlán de Flores Magón"
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This week, we’re sharing an interview we just conducted with Madeleine Wattenbarger and Axel Hernández of the Cooperativa de Periodismo in Mexico and Ambar Ruiz of Radio Zapote about the case of autonomous resistance and repression in the Mazateca community of Eloxochitlán de Flores Magón in Oaxaca, Mexico, so named for being the birthplace of the Cipriano Ricardo Flores Magón, revolutionary Mexican anarchist who was murdered by medical neglect by the US prison system in 1922 (check out our 2022 episode on the history).

We talk about the rise to economic and political power of the family of Manuel Zepeda and his daughter Elena, their weaponization of the judiciary against community defenders resisting a hijacking in 2014 of the traditional community assembly and the years of organizing by Mazateca women whose loved ones face long prison sentences. We also speak about the case of Miguel Peralta, a Mazateca anarchist challenging his 5 decade sentence related to this case, as well as the recent murder by medical neglect while in prison of militant anarcho-punk Yorch Esquivel at the hands of the Mexican state at the behest of UNAM.

Media mentioned:

Groups to follow:

  • Mazatecas Por Libertad (facebook)
  • Presos Politicos de Eloxochitlan de Flores Magon (facebook)

Further reading:

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Featured track:

  • De Cara A La Pared by Lhasa from La Llorona
Africa, Anarchist, Anarchist Media, Author, Autonomy, Colonization, General, History, Philosophy, Racism, Transcribed, UK, zine

Mutt on the (Incomplete) Black Autonomy Reader

a collage featuring photos of Black folks studying, playing, farming and organizing
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This week, you’ll hear my conversation with Mutt, editor of a new and incomplete Black Autonomy Reader, contributor to Muntjac Magazine, Organise! Magazine and Seditionist Distro. We speak about Black Anarchism, intellectual property, community self-defense in response to the racist riots that spread around the UK in August of 2024 as well as other topics. And keep an ear out for an interview on the ItsGoingDown podcast with Mutt as well.

A benefit for Anti-Raids network.

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Featured Track:

  • No Agreement by Fela Kuti and Africa 70 from No Agreement
Continue reading Mutt on the (Incomplete) Black Autonomy Reader →
activism, Arizona, Autonomy, California, Frontera, General, Health, Immigration, Mexico, Mutual Aid, New Mexico, Police, Politics, Racism, Texas, Transcribed, United States, zine

No More Deaths / No Más Muertes on the Mexico / US Frontier

a photo water jugs left in the desert with kind notes scrawled on them
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This week, I spoke with two members of No More Deaths, a 20 year old humanitarian organization operating in the borderlands between Mexico and the USA. We talked about the organization, the work it does, how the border has changed, the political legacy of the Republicans and Democrats in the current situation for immigrants, deaths at the border and ways to get involved in supporting people on the move. Here’s a chat from 2017 we did with NMD as well.

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Featured Track:

  • La Frontera by Lhasa from The Living Road
Continue reading No More Deaths / No Más Muertes on the Mexico / US Frontier →
activism, Asheville, Autonomy, Capitalism, Colonization, community, Education, Farming, Food Sovereignty, Gentrification, Mutual Aid, North Carolina, Racism, Transcribed, U.S. South, United States, zine

Asheville’s Southside Community Farm

"Support Southside Community Farm." faeturing a hand holding daisies and the logo SCF logo featuring a hand holding leafy greens
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This week, we’re sharing a recent interview with Chloe Moore, a steward, farmer and educator at the Southside Community Farm, in the historically Black neighborhood of Southside in Asheville, NC. The farm has been serving the neighborhood and the region with free and inexpensive, fresh produce for a decade, providing educational opportunities, grocery deliveries, an herb garden and a BIPOC farmers market. The farm sits on land owned by the public Housing Authority of the City of Asheville (HACA) and there is currently a threat that HACA will destroy the farm. For the hour we talk about the work of the farm, the legacy of a community farm in the wake of government policies that destroy Black communities, and ways that community members can support the SCF and help it thrive.

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Featured Track:

  • Rise Above by Ibeyi from Spell 31
Continue reading Asheville’s Southside Community Farm →
activism, Alabama, Autonomia, Autonomy, Bologna, General, Italy, Prison Strike, Prisons, Protest, Transcribed, United States, zine

Don Bosco Park Defense in Bologna + Bernard Jemison on Conditions and Resistance in AL Prisons

This week, two segments plus Sean Swain

Don Bosco Park Defense in Bologna

An image of park occupation in Don Bosco in Bologna, Italy with tree sits and a shack, buildings in the background. Also a photo of Bernard Jemison. "TFSR 5-5-24 | Don Bosco Park Defense in Bologna, Italy + Bernard Jemison on Conditions in Holman and other Alabama Prisons"
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First up, an interview submitted by audio comrades in Italy about the struggle against the cementization of the city of Bologna and the defense of Don Bosco park from the expansion of a university, highways… the whole urban landscape without the input of the residents so the city can move a school rather than renovate it. This struggle, including the occupation and defense of the park, represents an innovation in urban struggles in Italy which consciously takes inspiration from the struggle to Stop Cop City in so-called Atlanta and the activities of the park defenders has forced the left-leaning municipal government and mayor to temporarily suspend the cutting of trees. [00:02:04 – 00:27:10]

Bernard Jemison on Conditions and Resistance in AL Prisons

Then, you’ll hear Bernard Jemison, an incarcerated activist held in Holman prison in Alabama talking about conditions inside the ADOC recent calls for prisoner strikes in the state by the Free Alabama Movement and their outside supporters, as well as his views on the demands being made. [00:27:57 – 01:05:10]

The demands that we mention are the following:

  1. BILL TO REPEAL THE HABITUAL OFFENDER ACT ON THE TABLE
  2. CIVIL CLASS ACTION LITIGATION FOR PAROLE ALREADY FILED. EVERYONE NEEDS TO SIGN UP.
  3. PAROLE BILL ON THE TABLE
  4. WE NEED TO ABOLISH LWOP AND CREATE AN AVENUE FOR JUVENILE OFFENDERS.
  5. NO MORE NITROGEN GAS EXECUTIONS..
  6. STOP SELLING OUR ORGANS.

A few articles on the subjects worth reading include:

Social media accounts Bernard thinks are doing a good job covering these issues:

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Featured Track:

  • On Point (instrumental) by House of Pain
Continue reading Don Bosco Park Defense in Bologna + Bernard Jemison on Conditions and Resistance in AL Prisons →
Anarchist, Anarchist Media, Author, Autonomy, Capitalism, Colonialism, History, Indigenous, media, Mexico, Neoliberalism, Transcribed, United States, war, Zapatista, zine

Crime, Corruption, and Community Based Liberation in the U.S./Mexico Neoliberal Military Political Economy

Book cover of the "Weapons, Drugs and Money" featuring a snake eating it's own tail, ringed by bullets encircling a US flag made of lines of cocaine and razors with a dead eagle clutching an assault rifle
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This week, you’ll hear our chat with Simón Sedillo, author of Weapons, Drugs & Money: Crime, Corruption, and Community Based Liberation in the U.S./Mexico Neoliberal Military Political Economy. Simón talks a little about his early days in media near the start of the Indymedia world, his documentary that became the news website El Enemigo Común (which translates to “the common enemy”) which covered grassroots, indigenous led movements in southern so-called Mexico, and about his book with a focus on intervention and integration from capitalist and military powers in the US, multinational banking and big pharma and the violence against and resilience of indigenous communities under that nation-state.

Check out the website https://www.weaponsdrugsandmoney.org/ for more info on how to order a copy, and the chapters are being posted and translated into castellano at https://elenemigocomun.net/ , where you can find two decades + of really interesting content. Simón suggests people follow Avispa Mídia https://avispa.org/ as a project following in the legacy of El Enemigo Común.

A big thanks to Mitchell Verter for the suggestion.

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Featured Track:

  • Get It Together (Buck Wild Instrumental) by Beastie Boys from Get It Together
Continue reading Crime, Corruption, and Community Based Liberation in the U.S./Mexico Neoliberal Military Political Economy →
AK Press, Anarchist, Author, Autonomy, Capitalism, community, General, Gentrification, Housing, Transcribed, United States, zine

Andrew Lee on Defying Displacement

"TFSR 2-11-2 | Andrew Lee on Defying Displacement" plus the book cover for Defying Displacement
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We’re sharing a recent chat with Andrew Lee (instagram / tiktok), author of the book Defying Displacement: Urban Recomposition and Social War, released by AK Press on February 6th 2024. Andrew and I talk about gentrification, speculation and financialization of houses, the destruction of communities by racial capitalism and the state, and some methods used to fight back and stay put. Andrew shouts out Decolonize Philly as a project to pay attention to.

Housecleaning

Weekly, we work to bring you and our wider audience, including over the radio waves, conversations that you won’t hear many other places. And we operate at a minimal cost, paying for transcription, printing, mailing, web hosting to make sure that information is easier translatable and accessible, including to our comrades behind bars. The most regular way that we fund that is from the patreon.

Our patreon is currently below supporting our monthly operating costs of around $500, so we’re asking folks on the fence of supporting this project who have a patreon account to kick in and help at $3 or more a month. If you don’t have a patreon, we do have a liberapay you can psuedonymously kick us money from or set up a recurring payment from paypal and we also can take money via venmo or stripe.

If you haven’t supported us before or haven’t for a while now and can afford to, we’d really appreciate the help. And if you’re already supporting us or have in the past in various ways, thank you.

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Featured Track:

  • Doin It (instrumental) by LL Cool J
Continue reading Andrew Lee on Defying Displacement →
activism, Autonomy, Colonialism, History, Political Prisoner, Prisons, Racism, repression, Rojava, Transcribed, Turkey, zine

Reflections on 2023 Turkish Elections, Post-Earthquake Bakur and the Kurdish Movement

"TFSR 8/20/2023 - Reflections on 2023 Turkish Elections, Post-Earthquake Bakur & the Kurdish Movement" pasted under a photo of people working through earthquake rubble in Kurdistan with a rainbow appearing across the sky above"
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The following is an interview we conducted with Katka and Hazel, who both live in the UK and were recently back from Bakur, the portion of Kurdistan within the borders of Turkey. For 2 hours the guests speak about the political violence from Erdogan’s ruling AKP, suppression of the Kurdish movement, electoral strategies, democratic confederalism, political prisoners and the F-Type prisons in Turkey, the earthquakes from earlier in the year, widespread corruption and other topics. We hope you enjoy this conversation,. A transcript of this interview will be available in the near future. You can reach the guests at BakurDelegationUK at riseup dot net

A few links related to the chat:

Announcements

ACABookfair Audios Available Soon

f you missed the ACABookfair or any of the workshops, we’ve got a happy surprise for you. Give a gander in the next week to ACABookfair.noblogs.org for the media page that will soon be populated with audio recordings of some of the presentation events on various topics. More likely than not, some of those will end up in future episodes of The Final Straw, fyi.

Latest BAD News Out Now!

Also, the latest episode of Bad News from the A-Radio Network is also now up at their website, but also linked in our show notes. You’ll hear from contributing members of the A-Radio Network sharing perspectives at the 2023 St-Imier gathering in Switzerland on the importance of the audio medium like radio and podcasts to the building of anarchist movement. You can also find links in the show notes for this episode to the live broadcast throughout the weekend by Radio RIA and some video of presentations and audios of presentations in German, Spanish, French, Italian and English. Maybe even one or two in Esperanto for you spicey types.

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Featured Tracks:

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Continue reading Reflections on 2023 Turkish Elections, Post-Earthquake Bakur and the Kurdish Movement →