On September 13, Secretary of State Antony Blinken held a press conference in which he accused the Russian media outlet RT of covertly disseminating Kremlin-produced content and messaging, not only in the US but also in Africa and other parts of the world. In particular he singled out African Stream, a PanAfrican media platform distributed via its website, AfricanStream.media, and on social media platforms. Shortly after Blinken’s press conference African Stream was banned by YouTube, Facebook, Instagram, and even TikTok, which is most likely under State Department pressure and in fear of losing their large US market.
Host Ann Garrioson spoke to Nigerian journalist, author, filmmaker and African Stream contributor David Hundeyin about the technology used to wage information warfare in Africa.
You can still find African Stream at their website AfricanStream.media on X, formerly Twitter, Rumble, Reddit, Patreon, and Telegram.
France has sent an aircraft carrier full of troops to the Ivory Coast to confront the newly formed Alliance of the Sahel States. Formed by Burkina Faso, Mali, and Niger, the Sahel Alliance recently kicked French troops out of their nations, stopped sending uranium to France for pennies on the dollar, left the French interest-dominated ECOWAS alliance of former French colonies, and is working on a joint passport. Block Report Radio’s JR Valrey interviewed the external officer of the Zimbabwe-Cuba Friendship Association, Obi Egbuna about this and other developments in the African world, as well as Cuba and Venezuela. You can find more from JR at Block Report Official.
***
On September 25, federal judge Benita Pearson in Youngstown, Ohio approved a $600 million settlement in the East Palestine Norfolk Southern train derailment. The settlement proposal does not cover healthcare and compensation for the residents to move out of their contaminated homes.
Pacifica’s Steve Zeltzer spoke to Jamie Rae Wallace, a retired SEIU 1199 member and one of the founders of the Unity Council for East Palestine Derailment, which has provided information about the effects of the derailment and exposed the collusion between the Biden Administration Norfolk Southern Railway, the EPA, and the Department of Transportation. The Biden Administration has refused to declare the site a superfund site or a mass casualty incident. Under the federal Stafford Act, residents are entitled to healthcare and funds to move out of their homes.
The Justice for East Palestine Residents and Workers Coalition has planned a rally on October 18th at Ohio’s EPA office to demand that President Biden implement the Stafford Act.
We thank all of Pacifica’s sister stations and affiliates who contribute to the production of this show. This program was produced by the Capitalism, Race, and Democracy collective, with contributions from Ann Garrison, JR Valrey, Steve Zeltzer, and Polina Vasiliev.
You can find this and all previous episodes at this website “capitalism race and democracy dot ORG”. Make sure you click the subscribe button. Follow us on X, formerly Twitter, @PacificaCRD.
Music:
Gil-Scott Heron, “The Prisoner”
