So after a nice break over the holidays we’re back with our first post of the new year. Seeing as we’re only about a week away from the glorious dawning of Post Racial Americaâ„¢ I thought I’d present this material that reminds us how we’re all getting screwed here in this wilderness called North America and that many times the depth of penetration depends on class rather than race. Because black folk are so heavily represented among the working classes and underclasses, this “classism” effects us disproportionately.

Class War: The Attack on Working People is an audio book of a speech by Noam Chomsky. If you’re not familiar with Chomsky, he is an MIT professor of linguistics, a lecturer, and activist.

From Wikipedia:
His far-reaching criticisms of US foreign policy and the legitimacy of US power have made him a controversial figure: largely shunned by the mainstream media in the United States, he is frequently sought out for his views by publications and news outlets worldwide.

You can read more about him here

What I like about Chomsky is that he calmly and deliberately reveals the reality of the political/economic system we live in and what change really entails. He brings into focus the Matrix like facade that has been so cleverly crafted by the media, the school system and the politicians. Here is an excerpt from one of his speeches. The title says it all. This and other speeches by Chomsky can be found online at vendors like Audible and Amazon.

fyi: hit the little speaker icon next to the name to play the track without leaving the page.
Class War: The Attack on Working People

I had the pleasure of working with Kelly Harris a number of years ago when she was the editor of a student magazine on our campus. Uhuru was a twice yearly magazine of African American culture. Published by Black United Students, it allowed students of color to express themselves through poetry, and prose. Getting the magazine out on time each semester was pretty challenging and I was impressed with Kelly’s talent, perseverance and consciousness.

Kelly has generously agreed to contribute a couple of her poems to our site. We’re also fortunate to get an audio poem so we can hear it straight from the source. We’re hoping she might become a regular member of the collective. There’s no particular theme for these poems but they should whet your whistle for more. Don’t forget to check the bio for more info about Kelly.

— dcrosby

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