When I was growing up in the 1980s - for those of us who were in bands - one of the coolest places to play was the all-ages spot called the Gilman Street Project. And you know what? The place has survived all this time; giving young people a safe and ‘clean’ place to play music, hang out and meet friends.
But the landlord has recently increased the rent so high that the future of this amazing resource is in immediate danger of being killed off. Do you want to make an immediate impact in the lives of young people? Donate to the Gilman Street Project! Today!!! I did…
www.924gilman.org
Action, audio events, capitalism, entertainment, news
concerts, entertainment, history, to-do
Culture jamming – imho – is best seen by the works created by the minds that are the Billboard Liberation Front. By subtlety modifying advertisements in the public space, these “culture jammers” express an opinion about how they feel about the public space being inundated with advertisements (so-called “a-political” advertisements). Letting advertisers take up massive amounts of space creates an environment where it becomes increasingly more impossible (read too expensive) for artistic and political voices to have a place in the public sphere to express themselves – freedom of speech is effectively taken away by the fact that in order to adequately speak you have to have millions of dollars.
Another point to remember is that advertising is NOT a-political; rather it is a HIGHLY political medium (capitalism is about as political as you can get, right?!).
So, culture jammers see our common public sphere being acquired by private, political interests and this acquisition is at the expense of cultural interests that reside outside of capital. I totally agree and love the idea of re-interpreting advertisements and putting them back out into the public. I can’t say I’m as good as the folks at BLF but, personally, I don’t really think it’s about “being good”. 
About the image. The public transportation train in the SF Bay ARea is called BART (Bay Area Rapid Transit) and their police force has committed some serious blunders in their time but most recently they went over the edge. One night on the train there was a ruckus and the police took some people aside for questioning and felt one (Oscar Grant) was being uncooperative. So one of the officers forced Oscar to the ground and while Oscar lay face down on the concrete, with his arm twisted behind him, the cop proceeded to shoot him in the back. Dead. This whole scene was caught on video from various sources and no where is it clear that Oscar was ever resisting nor was his behavior warranting the use of a taser (the weapon the cop says he was intending to go for). Anyway, it’s a really, really sad story of which BART has not really made any significant changes that people can see. I mean they haven’t shot anyone lately so I reckon that’s a good thing. But when I saw BART’s new “…and you’re there” advertisements the first thing that came to mind was the above image. Not a masterpiece but you get the point.
Here’s an older image of mine. One in which I received my very own cease-and-desist letter from those wonderfully wealthy corporate attorneys at BofA…
[original BART image; BART video; original BofA advert]
Activism, capitalism, entertainment, news, politics, the media
Activism, branding, consumerism, entertainment, funny signs, news
If you enjoyed Quentin Tarantino’s “Inglorious Basterds” then you should like the true, non-fiction story of Leopold Trepper. In the book The Great Game, Trepper tells the story of how he came to create and lead one of the most effective spy networks fighting against Nazi Germany. It’s an intriguing story that I’m surprised has never made it to the silver screen. I highly recommend reading the book!
Rest in Peace, Leopold Trepper. You are not forgotten! February 23, 1904 – January 19, 1982
Click below for The Great Game.
The Great Game: Memoirs of the Spy Hitler Couldn’t Silence
Activism, news, politics
Activism, anti-fascist, history, news
The local Bay Area micro- and Internet radio station Pirate Cat Radio (PCR) has inevitably gotten snagged by the FCC. The U.S. airwaves which are public and owned by the citizens of this country have been high-jacked by massive corporations who can afford astronomical licensing fees. These corporations continually hide behind the “just get a license” defense when sicking the FCC on SMALL stations like PCR. While I believe that there is reason to regulate the airwaves I do not believe that folks like PCR are the problem…nor should they be fined any amount for filling a much needed niche on the radio dial. Head over to www.piratecatradio.com and get your self a cool shirt while helping the station stay afloat.
Action, internet radio
internet broadcasting
Today the California Supreme Court acted in a cowardly manner in upholding Proposition 8 (the discriminatory legislation that denies same-sex couples equal marriage rights under the law). The kicker for me is that no where in the civil law that same-sex couples are fighting for does it mandate that religious groups be required to marry same-sex couples; only that they be able to legally marry. If your church doesn’t support same-sex marriage, good for you. But why does your church support unequal treatment for all human beings under State law? Shame on you! /rant
I spent the past two days with organizers of the recent “Day of Decision” and “One Struggle, One Fight” events that culminated today. Here’s a bit of audio from today’s rally. It’s the initial reaction from a large crowd at the steps of the San Francisco office of the Supreme Court. It then cuts to a couple (Sean Higgins and Robert Franco) who participated in the non-violent civil disobedience that over 100 people committed to as a protest…more to come!
CLICK TO LISTEN (c) Noah Chandler www.hellasolutions.com
Action, Activism, audio sample
My edition of this months Imagine 2050 podcast is now live. It covers some of the folks I met while working on the human rights hip-hop show last month in Tempe, Arizona.
Click HERE to listen.
Activism, podcast
I’m currently transferring the soundboard ‘tape’ I got from the “Stop the Circus. Stop Arpaio” hip-hop show I covered in Tempe, Arizona this week. I’m happy with the sound; it ain’t perfect but there are some very usable pieces to post. So, stay tuned as I’ll be posting some awesome sh*t from show for your listening pleasure. Sheriff Joe’s guys say he’s not concerned but Arizona’s young people showed a strong and positive force this week and I recommend that Joe start looking for a new job because the people coming up in AZ aren’t going to stand for his racist ways. Serious!
http://www.verbalkent.com/
http://www.myspace.com/wordsworth
http://www.myspace.com/onebelo
Action, Activism, audio events, entertainment
I’ve spent the past few days in and around Phoenix, Arizona working with a group called Campaign for a United America Hip-Hop Project. The group itself is based out of Chicago, IL but has been working here to connect with the vibrant, grassroots hip-hop scene. Why hip-hop? Well, it’s one of the largest voices of the youth and one that has consistantly spoke against authoritarian abuses of power. And while not always “political” it is most often a deeply personal expression. But then, as the popular saying goes, “the personal IS political.”
Anyways, I was documenting the organizing efforts of the young people in Phoenix as they organized a hip-hip concert in support of human rights and in opposition to the recent anti-immigrant violence from Sheriff Joe Arpaio (for more visit the Imagine2050 blog). It’s been a whirlwind ‘tour’ here and I look forward to going over my tape once I get back home tonight. Below is a link to a VERY rough little “promo” piece I threw together for the event. Check it!
Click HERE to listen.
Click HERE for original posting.
Maximum respect to all the folks I met out here! Seriously, you all give me a ton of hope!!!
Action, Activism, audio documentary, audio sample, concert recording, entertainment, podcast
It’s with a bit of hesitation that I share this link with you (even though it’s been out on the web for many years now). In 2003 I started a web site called “CalifOracle” in response to never-ending stories of corporate acquisitions and the de-humanizing of the world by capital interests (in this case the acquisition of the state of California by Oracle – Calif…Oracle). So, one of the stories I wrote was a satire (albeit DARK) of the issue of gays, lesbians and same-sex marriage. I most intentionally took a very disconnected, capitalist, de-humanized, and clearly homo-phobic tone. If you have the stomach for and/or enjoy dark humor head on over to the article “Sodomy Tax” over at www.califoracle.com. Note, overall the site is a bit of a mess as I haven’t touched it in years…enjoy? lol
update: woh, check this out. one step closer, yikes!
Activism, capitalism, funny stuff
When I was growing up in the 1980s - for those of us who were in bands - one of the coolest places to play was the all-ages spot called the Gilman Street Project. And you know what? The place has survived all this time; giving young people a safe and ‘clean’ place to play music, hang out and meet friends.
May be “Sarcastic Friday” would be a better title. However, yes, our Republican lead country and state has now hit a new low, a 
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