Weekly-Roundup: June 2

Your weekly-roundup of domestic and international news.

International News

Liberation News

The U.S., the West, and Israel

As the world reckons with the International Criminal Court (ICC) arrest warrants, one United States Senator said the quiet part aloud. During a senate hearing, Sen Lindsey Graham (R-SC) stated that "...if they do this [prosecute] to Israel, we're next…" Fascists in the imperial core are worried about the implications of what this trial will do to their dominance and global order. Graham fully understands what is at stake in this case because if the ICC can successfully prosecute Israel for its crimes, nothing is stopping the court from coming for the United States’ record of similar crimes. He and others in the West should be concerned because it is time for the unipolar world to fall and a multipolar world to rise. The global majority wants to end the old colonial order and its modern settler states. Anti-imperialists must remain steadfast in their faith in seeing the fall of these empires and the destruction they've been able to enact.

U.S. Imperialism & Military

U.S. Pier in Gaza

This past week, the floating pier the United States military built under the guise of sending 'aid' to Gaza broke apart and drifted away. Months after the Israeli Occupation Forces (IOF) began their siege on Gaza, and after the amounting internal and external pressure, the U.S. military declared they would build a pier to provide aid to displaced people in Palestine. Unfortunately, the U.S. military believes citizens will fall for this spectacle, attempting to hide their true intentions. Why should people believe the red, white, and blue are going to provide care when Palestinians told us they dropped expired food? In the belly of the beast, we should not praise or support this pier. Opposing the construction is important to understanding how the U.S. utilizes 'aid' as a tool to stake a presence in a region. This pier is nothing more than an opportunity for the military to have a larger role in the area, like a satellite base, outside of their colonial child, Israel. The pier allows them to have boots on the ground via aid. Nonetheless, boots are still on the ground.   

Hip Hop and U.S. Foreign Policy

In the United States, hip-hop and rap music have long been a genre that challenges the status quo and pushes back against the police and military state. The music genre has spread worldwide, and people from other countries have used the style to speak their minds. However, there are other uses for the music or artists. In the past decade, the American military has embraced hip-hop to help push U.S. foreign policy initiatives. Next Level is an international exchange program created and funded by the U.S. Department of State to assist with moving the department's policies abroad. To improve its image in countries it destabilized for capitalist interests, the U.S. sent envoys of hip-hop artists to build relationships and promote the ideals of "democracy" and "dissent." 

Next Level is not the first time the U.S. settler-colonial state has used Black music and artists to push imperialist goals. During the Cold War, the genre jazz and artists like Louis Armstrong and Duke Ellington were also employed to help the country's image. Even during the War on Terror, the genre was weaponized by the state as a ploy. Muslim-American hip hop artists were 'ambassadors' who led workshops and, more importantly, were there to show Muslims in Africa, the Middle East, and Asia that the U.S. treats American Muslims' well' amid islamophobic attacks happening throughout the country. As Next Level celebrates its tenth anniversary, Secretary of State Anthony Blinken sent off another envoy to spread American ideals and repair the country's image worldwide. The artists that participate in this exchange program may not even be aware of how the state is using them, but that does not negate the role they are playing in assisting imperialist gains. 

Elections 2024

This year is set to be the largest election cycle in history, with over 50 countries going to the polls. The results of this year's election will be monumental to the future of the world. 

South Africa; May 29

On May 29, South Africans went to the polls and cast their votes for their new government. For the first time since the fall of apartheid, the African National Congress (ANC) will no longer have a majority control of the government. The ANC is the political party of Nelson Mandela and has maintained a majority stake in the government since the 90s. Results of this election show that the party will now have to form a coalition with other parties if they want to get legislation passed. Many international relationships may also change because of the results.

South Africa has become the leader of the charge of genocide against Israel and its attack on Palestine. Through its history of settler-colonialism, South Africa has drawn similarity to the Palestinian plight. In the country, there are three major opposition parties, the centrist Democratic Alliance (DA), the Marxist-Leninist Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF), and a new populist party called M.K. However, South Africa's role in the International Court of Justice (ICJ) case could change depending on the alliance the ANC forms. Centrist party Democratic Alliance, which won 21% of the vote, has taken the centrist approach to the conflict. The DA, founded by white liberals in the 1950s as an 'opposition'  to the apartheid National Party, merely supports a two-state solution. However, a two-state solution is not a solution but a concession that normalizes Israeli settler's presence in Palestine and reinforces Zionism. The DA has been trying to shake its rich white minority image. However, with the party’s history of not being a strong opposition to topple the apartheid system, it is no surprise the party cannot take a strong stance against a mirror to its settler-colonial history. 

Another international relationship that may change is the country's ties with Russia. Russia and South Africa have strong ties because of the role the Soviet Union played in assisting Mandela and the resistance in their physical and economic struggle against the white ruling class. The U.S. and other Western countries are likely hoping the results will bring a shift away from Moscow. The U.S., in particular, has criticized South Africa in the past for not immediately condemning Russia's action in eastern Ukraine, accusing them of selling arms to the state and for conducting military drills with the country and China (which they are allowed to do and do not need the U.S. or West permission). South Africa continues its 'non-aligned' stance in the NATO-started Ukraine-Russia war. Western countries do not appreciate the non-alignment because they want to leverage further condemnation and sanctions against Moscow. 

South Africa is also part of BRICS (Brazil, Russia, India, China, South Africa). This coalition has yet to show its full strength, but the U.S. and Western countries are worried about a shift in the global order that has given them unfettered dominance, specifically the U.S., over the rest of the world. What comes of this election has yet to be fully known, but we should pay attention to any domestic or foreign policy changes. 

European Union (E.U.) Elections; June 6-9

This week, the European Union (E.U.), a supranational political and economic union composed of 27 member states, will be holding their election from June 6-9th. As a supranational entity, the E.U. has authority and powers over its member states beyond borders or individual governments. What's at stake is the makeup of the European Parliament for the next five years, but more importantly, the future of Europe and its relationship with the world. Leading up to the election, a recent analysis asserts that it's not just Boomers moving further to the right, but so are Millennials and Gen Z voters. 

A total of 720 Members of the European Parliament (MEP), basically legislators, will be elected in June. The number of MEPs per country is proportional to the state's population. Germany, the most populous country in the E.U., will receive 96 MEPs. However, unlike the United States, European elections are not between two parties, but multiple parties vying for votes. Next week, voters will vote for a party, particularly an organization, on their national level. Once the MEPs have been elected, they typically join one of the transnational parties in the European Parliament. As many European countries see a shift to the right, these E.U. elections will likely present the same trends. 

From the Belly of the Beast

COVID & Pandemic

H5N1 Concerns

Although many people have moved on from COVID-19, the virus continues to spread, disable and kill. As the COVID-19 virus continues to spread, another virus titled H5N1, or bird flu, is potentially gearing up to cause another pandemic. Last week, an agriculture worker was reported to be infected with the H5N1 virus while working with sick cows in Michigan. This case was the second infection in Michigan and the third human case of the virus. In each case, the person was working with infected cows on a farm. This new case is concerning because the worker's symptoms are upper respiratory. Upper respiratory symptoms make it easier for a virus to spread from saliva and nasal droplets than pink-eye symptoms, which the first worker in Texas experienced. The Biden administration and CDC are trying to play a balancing game, where they do not alarm the public about a virus with a 50% mortality rate, and pretend they have everything handled. It is known that even a mild case of COVID-19 can devastate a person's immunity, making them more susceptible to getting sick and having a harder time fighting it off. The bird flu poses a great threat to the public that does not mask, and has had repeated infections of COVID-19. If the bird flu eventually spreads person-to-person, the mortality rate is likely to be higher because much of the public does not have the immunity to fight it off. We need to follow the developments of this virus and continue to mask. Even if you stopped masking, there is nothing wrong with starting it up again. 

America's Far-Right

Convention of States Action (COSA)

Although the organization has yet to gather its 20th state, advocates are laying down legal arguments for individual states to use their military power to stop immigration, which they call an "invasion." During their Crossroads podcast episode titled 'Crisis at the Border: Do States have the Authority to Protect Themselves,' guest speaker and member of COSA's legal board, Rob Natelson, argued that states have authority under the Constitution to use "defensive war." Natelson argues that states have the power to use their national guard, or state guards to 'defend' themselves against immigrants. Natelson is laying down the legal framework for states like Texas to take military action against people fleeing conflict. The show's host, Mark Meckler, even argued that these forces could enter Mexico to handle the cartel. The conversation about the border and what authority or rights the individual states or federal government are not over, and conservatives are laying the legal groundwork to engage physically.