The Ex-Worker
This episode offers an audio version of “”, published on December 12th. It traces the activities of the movement to Stop Cop City and defend the Weelaunee Forest from June through December 2023, including accounts of the campaign for an Atlanta voter’s referendum on Cop City, the Sixth Week of Action, the relationship between clandestine direct action and public organizing, local Black organizing against the project, the Block Cop City march in November, and potential strategic pathways forward. Tune in for an in-depth evaluation of the latest phase in one of the most critical social...
info_outline #104: Living in an Earthquake—The Fight against Cop City Confronts Unprecedented RepressionThe Ex-Worker
At first, it appeared to be an ordinary forest defense campaign aimed at discouraging Atlanta city government from pouring money into an unpopular police training facility. But over the past two years, the fight against Cop City has escalated into one of the fiercest struggles of the Biden era, pitting a wide range of courageous people against a united front of politicians, prosecutors, and police. In their desperate efforts to deflect popular resistance and force through the project, police and prosecutors have pressed trumped-up domestic terrorism charges against almost every defendant...
info_outline #103: The Return of the Ultraliberal Right in ArgentinaThe Ex-Worker
A so-called “” has just been elected president in Argentina. What does this mean for anarchists and the prospects for revolutionary change in South America? Spoiler alert: it’s not looking good. In this episode, we share an account from analyzing the recent rise to power of Javier Milei, an extreme neoliberal economist, in the context of the global turn towards fascist and reactionary populist leaders like Trump and Bolsonaro. You’ll get an in-depth look at the history of center-left rule, military dictatorship, and neoliberal austerity that resulting in the powerful popular uprising...
info_outline #102: How They Stopped Work at RaytheonThe Ex-Worker
On November 13, 2023, demonstrators in southern California blockaded a facility of Raytheon, a defense contractor, in solidarity with the Palestinians on the receiving end of the bombs that it produces. They managed to block the facility for more than seven hours, supported by waves of hundreds of activists joining the action, and succeeded in shutting down operations for the day. This episode offers an audio version of , published on November 15th. Participants summarize how the action was organized and unfolded, police responses, the background of direct actions against the war machine and...
info_outline #101: Shutting Down the Port of TacomaThe Ex-Worker
On November 6, 2023, several hundred people showed up at the Port of Tacoma in Washington State to block access to a shipping vessel that was scheduled to deliver equipment to the Israeli military. This episode shares an account and analysis of the action published on November 10th as “.” Participants review the history of port blockades in the Puget Sound, share their experience at the protest, and seek to offer inspiration for continued transoceanic solidarity. {November 23, 2023} -------SHOW NOTES------ Table of Contents: Introduction {0:36} Escalating Resistance {1:41} Drawing...
info_outline #100: In Memory of Dmitry PetrovThe Ex-Worker
On April 19, 2023, a Russian anarchist named Dmitry Petrov was killed in battle near Bakhmut, Ukraine. In this episode, we offer as an uncompromising anarchist fighter who participated in an unbelievable amount of radical activity around the region. His extraordinary life spanned anarchist organizing as a teenager in Moscow; environmental defense, radical unionism, and refugee solidarity activism; years of underground direct action against police, military, and profiteers from gentrification; participating in the Maidan protests in Ukraine, uprising against dictatorship in Belarus, and the...
info_outline #99: Strategizing for Palestinian SolidarityThe Ex-Worker
As the Israeli bombardment of Gaza intensifies, with over 10,000 deaths recorded to date, it is more urgent than ever for people everywhere to take decisive action to stop the war machine. In this episode, we share the strategic reflections of based in the US on Palestinian solidarity. The authors propose a shift from making demands to taking direct action, relying not on appealing to the consciences of politicians but on concretely interrupting the functioning of the businesses and agencies that are enabling the slaughter. After offering historical context to Israeli settler colonialism and...
info_outline #98: From the Galilee to Gaza—A Voice From PalestineThe Ex-Worker
As the Israeli military escalates its slaughter of Palestinians in Gaza and societies around the world fracture and clash over the conflict, we want to amplify anti-authoritarian voices from within the territory to share their experiences and analysis. In this short but moving account, we present the perspective of a Palestinian living in the north of Palestine, who speaks about different aspects of life under colonization and about the struggle for liberation through grassroots organizing and solidarity. {November 1, 2023} -------SHOW NOTES------ Table of Contents: Introduction...
info_outline #97: Understanding the RICO Charges in AtlantaThe Ex-Worker
Prosecutors in Georgia have charged activists protesting against a planned police militarization facility known as "Cop City" with violating the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations (RICO) Act. Georgia Attorney General Chris Carr has indicted 61 people on RICO charges. In this episode, we explore the ramifications of this more or less unprecedented stage of repression. {Oct 6, 2023} -------SHOW NOTES------ This episode is an audio version of the September 5th article “.” For more information, check out this video recording of an online seminar organized by the National...
info_outline #96: The Forest In The City: Two Years Of Forest Defense In Atlanta, GeorgiaThe Ex-Worker
This episode continues the Ex-Worker Podcast’s coverage of the movement to Stop Cop City and defend the Weelaunee Forest in Atlanta, Georgia. In this episode, we present an audio version of , originally published February 22, 2023, which continues the chronology of the movement whose origins we reported in episodes and . In this eloquent and nuanced narrative, you’ll hear a detailed account of the movement’s second year, from the frenzy of activity in spring 2022 through the third and fourth weeks of action, waves of backlash and repression, and the , up to the eve of the March 2023...
info_outlineThe killing of George Floyd by Minneapolis police has sparked a nationwide rebellion against the police and global solidarity efforts. One of the most striking developments is the announcement on Sunday, June 7 by a majority of Minneapolis City Council members that they intend to dismantle the city’s police department. In Episode 77 of the Ex-Worker—the first in a series covering the Minneapolis uprising and its national and global implications—we return to the question of abolishing the police. The episode kicks off with our reflections from these unprecedented first two weeks of rebellion, then shares an essay exploring the question we’re all asking: What Will it Take to Stop the Police From Killing? Next, we share an anonymous report on the siege of the Third Precinct in Minneapolis, analyzing how a diverse “compositional” crowd was able to defeat the police. An anarchist from Minneapolis who attended the rally where the City Council declared their intention to end the police department shares their take on the background and context leading to the announcement and how abolitionist organizers, rioters, artists, and others joined forces to make abolition imaginable. We conclude with our thoughts about how the struggle against police might unfold beyond Minneapolis in the months to come. Stay tuned for more episodes soon on the Minneapolis uprising, June 11th, and prisoner struggles, international solidarity with the rebellions, and more!
{June 10th, 2020}
-------SHOW NOTES------
- Table of Contents:
- Introduction {0:01}
- Essay: What Will it Take to Stop the Police From Killing? {10:49}
- Analysis: The Siege of the Third Precinct in Minneapolis {30:57}
- PSA: Staying Safe at Street Actions {53:50}
- Interview: A Minneapolis Anarchist on the City’s Plan to Dismantle the Police {55:55}
- The Path Forward to Abolish the Police {1:08:45}
- Conclusion {1:17:44}
- This episode draws on the essay “What Will It Take to Stop the Police From Killing?” and the account and analysis “The Siege of the Third Precinct in Minneapolis.” We also played a PSA on Staying Safe at Street Actions from the Channel Zero Network.
- If you want to actually watch the Third Precinct as it succumbs to the wrath of the people, there’s no better source than the Unicorn Riot livestream (Day 3, Thursday evening, from about 1:14:30 onwards).
- The Ex-Worker Podcast first tackled the question of abolishing the police in Episode Five, “Still Not Lovin’ the Police” and Episode , “Making Police Obsolete”, during our very first year as a show. Check them out and see what you think; is the analysis still relevant? What has changed since 2013 in our perception of the police and our movements challenging their power? We also covered previous anti-police uprisings in Ferguson, Baltimore, and beyond in Episode 27, “Anti-Police Riots in Ferguson”; Episode 32, “White Supremacy and Capitalism, From 1492 to Ferguson”; and Episode 40, “Struggles Against White Supremacy and Police Since Ferguson”.
- Check out The Uprise Daily, an exciting new audio project offering a daily rundown of protests and ongoing rebellion in response to police killings.
- Also check out the excellent coverage of the rebellions from other anarchist podcasts, including The Final Straw, featuring interviews with medics, abolitionists, mutual aid workers, and other participants; It’s Going Down’s podcast on Rebellion, Counter-Insurgency and Cracks within the Ruling Class as well as their This Is America podcast episode From Pandemic to Uprising; and also SoleCast, with reports from Denver, Minneapolis, Eugene, New York City, and Portland. Lots more to come!
- Check out this comprehensive list of bail funds for protestors across the country compiled by the Community Justice Exchange’s National Bail Fund Network.
- Prisoner birthdays and updates on prison struggles coming in our next episode about June 11th, the international day of solidarity for long-term anarchist prisoners!