Black Agenda Radio for Week of July 20, 2015 | Black Agenda Report

Black Agenda Radio for Week of July 20, 2015

21 Jul 2015

🖨️ Print Article

Mumia “May Have Been Poisoned”

Six months after Mumia Abu Jamal nearly died from diabetic shock, the nation’s best known political prisoner’s underlying illness has yet to be diagnosed, said Dr. Johanna Fernandez, a professor of history at New York City’s Baruch College and member of Educators for Mumia. Abu Jamal’s maddeningly itching skin has turned a leathery black, and his output of commentaries and analysis for Prison Radio “has diminished significantly,” said Fernandez, who fears Mumia is suffering a “deeper, systemic problem” or “may have been poisoned.” Nevertheless, “Mumia is delighted and inspired by the movement against police violence that has emerged in the country,” and will continue to speak out “from the belly of the beast.” That’s why, she said, “over and over, the state has tried to silence and kill him.”

Obama’s Recent “Epiphanies” on U.S. Racism

President Obama’s recent discovery that “racism is part of the DNA of this country” was sparked by a need to reposition himself in the wake of the Charleston massacre and “the resistance that is growing among African people in this country,” said Omali Yeshitela, chairman of the Black Is Back Coalition for Social Justice, Peace and Reparations. The Coalition is gearing up for a national conference, in Philadelphia, August 22 and 23, with a focus on Black community control of police, a stance that Yeshitela believes “resonates with Black people” and can put the struggle firmly on the road to self-determination.

TPP is a Black Issue

“Any agreement that has a detrimental impact on workers anywhere, is a Black issue,” said Ajamu Baraka, veteran human rights activist and editor and columnist for Black Agenda Report. “We are the victims of this global capitalist economy, and so we have solidarity and responsibilities to people in other parts of the world,” Baraka told Solomon Comissiong, of Your World News. President Obama’s proposed Trans Pacific Partnership is “specifically a Black issue because one can’t understand the objective material conditions in places like Baltimore, Detroit, Gary, Indiana, and South Bend, Michigan, without connecting these conditions to the transformation of the U.S. economy” by deindustrialization – which will further intensify under TPP.

Black Agenda Radio on the Progressive Radio Network is hosted by Glen Ford and Nellie Bailey. A new edition of the program airs every Monday at 11:00am ET on PRN. Length: One hour.

listen

http://blackagendaradio.podbean.com/mf/web/wtvz7c/BAR_072015.mp3

More Stories

Becca Renk Foster
Nicaragua to Raise Its Voice for Palestine in Another Landmark Case at the ICJ
04 Aug 2026
Against the backdrop of Israel’s renewed attacks on Palestine, the World Court is set to hold public hearings in September on Nicaragua’s legal proceedings against Germany for aiding and abetting…
Black Agenda Radio with Margaret Kimberley
Black Agenda Report July 31, 2026
31 Jul 2026
In this week’s segment, we talk to Kshama Sawant, a socialist congressional candidate in Washington state, but we begin with a discussion of the Trump administration’s red scare and state repressio
Black Agenda Radio with Margaret Kimberley
Dr. CBS on Trump's Black/Red Scare
31 Jul 2026
The U.S. Department of State released "Cuba: The Capital of 21st Century Communism," which justifies the genocidal siege against that country while also attempting to criminalize leftist organizing.…
Black Agenda Radio with Margaret Kimberley
Kshama Sawant, Socialist Candidate for Congress
31 Jul 2026
Kshama Sawant is a former Seattle, Washington City Council Member best known for her role in raising the minimum wage to $21 per hour, the highest in the nation. She is now running for Congress in…
Margaret Kimberley, BAR Executive Editor and Senior Columnist
Venezuela, Memory, and the Long Arc of U.S. Imperialism
29 Jul 2026
Memories of a sovereign Venezuela collide with the reality that it is now a U.S. vassal state.