Punk Rock Legend Patti Smith on her Life, Her Art, Her Singing and Speaking Out29 Apr 2010We bring you a Democracy Now special with the singer-songwriter, poet, artist, and punk rock legend, Patti Smith, on her life, her art and her singing and speaking out. “I do things that make people upset. My political views or my humanist views have caused me a lot of censorship, but I don’t have a problem with that,” Smith says. “What I would have more of a problem with is, if I had to look back on my life and say, ‘Yeah I compromised here’ and ‘yeah I did this so I could get that’ – once you start doing that it’s like a house of cards, it all falls apart.”
Attorney Uncovers Docs Implicating Vatican in Sexual Abuse Coverup29 Apr 2010We speak with St. Paul-based attorney, Jeff Anderson, who has filed hundreds of lawsuits alleging sexual abuse by priests and bishops since 1983. He filed a lawsuit last week against the Vatican in a Milwaukee court and wants the Church to release any files it has on sexual abuse cases involving priests. It was his discovery of previously undisclosed documents that fueled the latest wave of accusations leading all the way up to the Vatican. [Includes rush transcript]
Headlines for April 29, 201029 Apr 2010Gulf Coast Oil Spill Could Be 5 Times Initial Estimate, GOP Ends Filibuster of Financial Reform Bill, Justice Dept. Mulls Suit to Block Arizona Immigration Law, Obama: Immigration Reform Bill Could Be Delayed, U.S. Approves First Offshore Wind Farm, Israeli Troops Kill Unarmed Palestinian Protester in Gaza, Paramilitaries Kill 2 Human Rights Activists in Oaxaca, Reporter Subpoenaed to Reveal Sources for CIA Book, GOP Rep. Backs Deporting Children of Undocumented Immigrants, UC Berkeley Student Senate Fails to Override Veto of Israel Divestment Measure
After 3 Years in Pretrial Solitary Confinement, Fahad Hashmi Pleads Guilty on Eve of Terror Trial28 Apr 2010Syed Fahad Hashmi has been held in 23-hour-a-day solitary confinement for nearly three years. The government’s case rested on the testimony and actions of an old acquaintance of Hashmi’s who turned government informant after his own arrest. The 30-year-old American citizen’s trial was due to begin today in New York but on Tuesday Hashmi pleaded guilty to one count of material support to a foreign terrorist organization. In a Democracy Now! exclusive we speak with his brother and his former college advisor. [Includes rush transcript]
“Plunder: The Crime Of Our Time” – Danny Schechter Takes on Wall St. in New Film28 Apr 2010We speak with investigative journalist, filmmaker, and author Danny Schechter, ‘the News Dissector.’ His latest film features interviews with industry insiders to reveal how the financial crisis was built on a foundation of criminal activity. It’s called “Plunder: The Crime Of Our Time.” [Includes rush transcript]
Goldman Execs Grilled Over Role in Inflating Housing Bubble and Then Betting on Collapse28 Apr 2010Executives from the bailed-out Wall Street giant Goldman Sachs faced tough questioning on Tuesday at a Senate hearing on their role in the financial crisis. Current and former Goldman officials were grilled on their aggressive marketing of mortgage investments at the same time the firm was betting the investments would fail. We play highlights and speak with investigative journalist Greg Gordon of McClatchy Newspapers and former economist at the Senate Banking Committee, Rob Johnson. [Includes rush transcript]
After 3 Years in Pretrial Solitary Confinement, Fahad Hashmi Pleads Guilty on Eve of Terror Trial28 Apr 2010Syed Fahad Hashmi has been held in 23-hour-a-day solitary confinement for nearly three years. The government’s case rested on the testimony and actions of an old acquaintance of Hashmi’s who turned government informant after his own arrest. The 30-year-old American citizen’s trial was due to begin today in New York but on Tuesday Hashmi pleaded guilty to one count of material support to a foreign terrorist organization. In a Democracy Now! exclusive we speak with his brother and his former college advisor.
Goldman Execs Grilled Over Role in Inflating Housing Bubble and Then Betting on Collapse28 Apr 2010Executives from the bailed-out Wall Street giant Goldman Sachs faced tough questioning on Tuesday at a Senate hearing on their role in the financial crisis. Current and former Goldman officials were grilled on their aggressive marketing of mortgage investments at the same time the firm was betting the investments would fail. We play highlights and speak with investigative journalist Greg Gordon of McClatchy Newspapers and former economist at the Senate Banking Committee, Rob Johnson.
Immigration Advocates Rise Up in Anger Over Arizona Law28 Apr 2010“Public furor is mounting across the nation over Arizona’s new ‘show me your papers or go to jail’ immigration law,” writes Democracy Now! co-host Juan Gonzalez in his New York Daily News column. “Meanwhile, Attorney General Eric Holder said he may step in to challenge the new law, which permits police to stop residents merely on the “reasonable suspicion” that they are unlawfully in the country.”
Headlines for April 28, 201028 Apr 2010Goldman Execs Grilled at Senate Hearing, Senate Republicans Block Financial Reform Bill for Consecutive Day, U.S. Coast Guard Mulls “Controlled Burn” of Gulf Oil Slick, BP Opposed Drilling Safety Rules, Hashmi Pleads Guilty on Eve on Terror Trial, Gitmo Hearing Weighs Alleged Torture-Induced Confession, Group Urges U.S. to Probe Journalist Killings in Iraq, Justice Dept. Reviewing Arizona Immigration Law, Site of Mine Tragedy Had Highest Variety of Safety Violations in 2009, Oklahoma Senate Overrides Veto of Anti-Abortion Measures, Appeals Judge Orders University of Wyoming to Allow Ayers Speech, Malcom X Assassin Released on Parole, Obama: “Everything on Table” for Deficit Reduction
Rep. Grijalva Calls for Federal Non-Cooperation with Controversial AZ Immigration Bill27 Apr 2010Outrage is growing over the passage of a controversial new measure in Arizona that forces police officers to determine the immigration status of someone they suspect of being an undocumented immigrant. We speak with Rep. Raul Grijalva (D-AZ), who is urging federal non-cooperation with the new law and is calling for a targeted economic boycott of Arizona. We also speak with Sunita Patel, an attorney at the Center for Constitutional Rights, which is filing a lawsuit demanding records related to ICE’s little known “Secure Communities” program.
John Ross on “El Monstruo: Dread and Redemption in Mexico City”27 Apr 2010Independent reporter, activist and poet John Ross has been covering social movements in Mexico and Latin America for nearly fifty years. He is the author of ten books; his latest is El Monstruo: Dread and Redemption in Mexico City. Ross moved to Mexico City in the aftermath of the massive 8.1-magnitude earthquake in 1985 and has lived there ever since. [Includes rush transcript-partial]
“Avatar” Director James Cameron Follows Box Office Success with Advocacy for Indigenous Struggles27 Apr 2010On the heels of his record-setting Hollywood blockbuster Avatar, the film director James Cameron is taking on a new role as an activist, allying himself with indigenous struggles he says mirror the plot of his film. In Avatar, an indigenous species called the Na’vi resists the private military force of a powerful corporation bent on exploiting their planet’s valuable minerals. Democracy Now! producer Aaron Mat caught up with James Cameron to discuss Avatar, Cameron’s opposition to the Belo Monte in Brazil, last week’s peoples’ climate summit in Bolivia, and his reaction to seeing Avatar embraced by indigenous people worldwide, from the Amazon to the Occupied Territories. [includes rush transcript]
Headlines for April 27, 201027 Apr 2010GOP Blocks Advance of Financial Reform Bill, Goldman Faces New Allegations Ahead of Senate Testimony, US Extradites Noriega to France, Abbas Signs Order Barring Palestinians from Working in Israeli Settlements, Caldern Denounces Arizona Immigration Law, Study Claims Chernobyl Disaster Killed Nearly 1 Million, Oil Spill Grows in Gulf of Mexico, Terror Trial Begins for Jailed US Citizen Held in Lengthy Solitary Confinement, Appeals Court Upholds Wal-Mart Discrimination Suit
“The United Nations Is Beyond Reform…It Has to Be Reinvented” – Fmr. UN General Assembly President Miguel d’Escoto26 Apr 2010One of the higher-profile participants at the Cochabamba climate conference was the former president of the United Nations General Assembly, Father Miguel d’Escoto. A Roman Catholic priest from Nicaragua, d’Escoto served as foreign minister in Daniel Ortega’s government from 1979 to 1990. He joins us to talk about the failures of the UN, the importance of the Bolivia climate summit, why Latin America doesn’t need the United States, and much more. [includes rush transcript – partial]
Headlines for April 26, 201026 Apr 2010Rescue Effort Ends, Oil Leaking into Gulf, Arizona Governor Signs Immigrant Crackdown Bill, Graham Drops Support for Climate Bill, Thousands Hold Earth Day Rally in DC, Obama Honors Victims of W. Va. Mine Blast, Armed Man Arrested at NC Airport Shortly After Obama Departs, 72 Killed in Iraq Bombings, 3 Afghan Civilians Reportedly Killed in US Raid, NATO Leaders Hold Afghan War Talks, Clashes Follow Israeli Settler March in Palestinian Neighborhood, Israeli Troops Shoot Protesters in Gaza, 90,000 Japanese Protest US Base on Okinawa, Rallies Held Worldwide for Spanish Human Rights Judge, Dems to Hold Cloture Vote on Financial Reform Bill, Goldman Sachs Execs Bragged of Profiting from Housing Crash, 12 Killed in Southern Tornadoes, Jailed US Hikers in Poor Health in Iran
Bolivian President Evo Morales on President Obama: “I Can’t Believe a Black President Can Hold So Much Vengeance Against an Indian President”23 Apr 2010As the World Peoples’ Conference on Climate Change in Cochabamba closes, we speak to Bolivian President Evo Morales about the US decision to cut off climate aid to Bolivia; narcotrafficking; the tenth anniversary of the Water Wars in Cochabamba; the protest at the San Cristbal silver mine; and the contradiction between promoting the environment and extractive industries—oil/natural gas exploration, mining. On Thursday organizers of the people’s summit released an Agreement of the Peoples based on working group meetings. Key proposals include the establishment of an international tribunal to prosecute polluters, passage of a Universal Declaration of the Rights of Mother Earth, protection for climate migrants, and the full recognition of the UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples. [includes rush transcript – partial]
Headlines for April 23, 201023 Apr 2010Environmental Disaster Feared as La. Rig Sinks; 11 Missing Feared Dead, Inspection Found “Reckless Disregard” for Worker Safety at Massey Mine, Report: Massey Bars Miners from Attending Victims’ Funerals, Obama Urges Wall St. to Back Financial Reform, Greece Requests $56B EU/IMF Rescue, Vatican Sued for Alleged Cover-Up of Sexual Abuse, US Envoy Meets Israeli, Palestinian Leaders, Appeals Court Overturns Marine Conviction in 2006 Iraq Murder, US Proposes Sustainable Farming Fund, Pentagon Withdraws Invitation to Evangelist over Islam Remarks
New Senate Climate Bill Is “Slap in the Face to Everything that Earth Day Stands For”22 Apr 2010Today is the fortieth anniversary of Earth Day. In the years following the first Earth Day, the Nixon administration passed a series of major environmental legislation, including the Clean Air Act, the National Environmental Policy Act and the Clean Water Act. On Monday, Senators John Kerry, Joseph Lieberman and Lindsey Graham plan to introduce a climate bill that will eliminate the EPA’s authority under the Clean Air Act to regulate greenhouse gas emissions. We speak with Daphne Wysham, a fellow at the Institute for Policy Studies. [includes rush transcript]
Mesa 18: Dissident Groups Host Alternative Meeting Outside World Peoples’ Climate Summit22 Apr 2010A few blocks from the main entrance to the university where the peoples’ climate summit is taking place, hundreds of Bolivian and Latin American environmentalists have been crowding into a single hall to participate in discussions that they say were too controversial for the actual summit. Dubbed “mesa 18,” or “working group 18,” the discussions were focused on the environmental destruction inside Bolivia caused by development projects, mining, and oil and gas exploration promoted by the Morales government. On Wednesday afternoon, Anjali Kamat spoke to Moira Milln, an indigenous Mapuche activist from southern Argentina. [includes rush transcript]
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