Don't Believe The Hype of Mainstream Media’s Anti-Russian Campaign

In this episode of By Any Means Necessary, hosts Sean Blackmon and Jacquie Luqman discuss the censorship of anti-imperialist voices as a result of Russia’s special military operation in Ukraine and our appreciation for our supporters and listeners and their support after By Any Means Necessary was taken off of Spreaker and all podcast platforms.

In the second segment, Sean and Jacquie are joined by Dr. Adrienne Pine, retired Associate Professor of Anthropology at American University and co-editor of the book Asylum for Sale: Profit and Protest in the Migration Industry to discuss the legacy of indigenous and environmental activist Berta Caceres on her birthday, the anniversary of her assassination, her role in pushing Honduran politics to become more progressive under the presidency of Manuel Zelaya, the struggle for justice for Berta in both the legal arena as well as the broader system that she was fighting against, and the role Washington played in supporting Berta’s assassination and in proppping up the presidency of Juan Orlando Hernandez.

In the third segment, Sean and Jacquie are joined by Nate Wallace, co-host of Red Spin Sports to discuss the targeting of Washington Capitals player Alexander Ovechkin by the mainstream media and sponsorships over his Russian nationality and support of Russian President Vladimir Putin, the double standard applied to Ovechkin and other Russian athletes in forcing them to speak out against Russia and Putin despite other athletes not being held to such a standard, the resignation of former Baylor University football coach Art Briles from his position as offensive coordinator for Grambling State University and his history of complicity in the sexual assault scandals of the Baylor football team, how this saga relates to the corruption of the NCAA, and the cancelling of the start of the Major League Baseball season caused by the lockout initiated by league owners.

Later in the show, Sean and Jacquie are joined by Kamau Franklin, organizer with Community Movement Builders in Atlanta and co-founder of Black Power Media to discuss ten years since the killing of Trayvon Martin by George Zimmerman and the evolution of Jim Crow white supremacist violence to become more “friendly” and “acceptable” through vigilante violence and the legal focus on property relations, how the oppression of women and patriarchy is deeply embedded in the capitalist system and the commodification of social relations, and the corporate media’s campaign to stoke hatred for Russians and manufacture consent for conflict with Russia over Ukraine.