The successful 1776 revolt against British rule in North America has been hailed almost universally as a great step forward for humanity. But the Africans then living in the colonies overwhelmingly sided with the British. Gerald Horne argues that in the prelude to 1776, the abolition of slavery seemed all but inevitable in London, delighting Africans as much as it outraged slaveholders, and sparking the colonial revolt. The so-called Revolutionary War was in part a counter-revolution, a conservative movement that the founding fathers fought in order to preserve their right to enslave others.
Abby Martin and Mike Prysner have filmed a new documentary titled “Afghanistan War Exposed: An Imperial Conspiracy”, that shows the totality of the US conflict in Afghanistan, from CIA covert action in the 1980s until today. They argue that the occupation of Afghanistan has become so normalized and mostly serves as background noise to Americans. It’s even referred to as the “Forever War,” accepted as just a constant reality. You can support the journalism of Mike and Abby Martin at patreon.com/EmpireFiles, and check out their work at YouTube.com/EmpireFiles. And check out an earlier documentary on Afghanistan by Abby and Mike titled “The Forever War: From the Killing Fields”. Mike Prysner, the documentary’s producer, and the co-host of the podcast Eyes Left, a military podcast hosted by two anti-war Army veterans of the Afghanistan and Iraq wars, joins the show.
Thursday’s weekly series “Criminal Injustice” is about the most egregious conduct of our courts and prosecutors and how justice is denied to so many people in this country. Paul Wright, the founder and executive director of the Human Rights Defense Center and editor of Prison Legal News (PLN), and Kevin Gosztola, a writer for Shadowproof.com and co-host of the podcast Unauthorized Disclosure, join the show.
A regular Thursday segment deals with the ongoing militarization of space. As the US continues to withdraw from international arms treaties, will the weaponization and militarization of space bring the world closer to catastrophe? John speaks with Prof. Karl Grossman, a full professor of journalism at the State University of New York, College at Old Westbury and the host of a nationally aired television program focused on environmental, energy, and space issues.
It’s Friday! So it’s time for the week’s worst and most misleading headlines. Brian and John speak with Steve Patt, an independent journalist whose critiques of the mainstream media have been a feature of his site Left I on the News and on twitter @leftiblog, and Sputnik producer Nicole Roussell.
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