Black Agenda Radio - 02.04.19

Welcome to the radio magazine that brings you news, commentary and analysis from a Black Left perspective. I’m Glen Ford, along with my co-host Nellie Bailey. Coming up: The U.S. goes all-out for regime change in Venezuela; A new book challenges the dominant discourse on AIDS; And, what’s taking Bernie Sanders so long to declare himself a candidate for the Democratic presidential nomination?

Black activists in Chicago are determined to defeat many members of that city’s  50-person Board of Aldermen, only one of whom supports community control of the police. Last month, Frank Chapman, co-chair of the Chicago Alliance Against Racist and Political Repression, predicted that by the end of January the movement would recruit at least 70 candidates who are pledged to support creation of a Civilian Police Accountability Commission. We spoke with Chapman again, this week.

The Trump administration has seized billions of dollars in Venezuela’s holdings in the United States, and signed the money over to a Venezuelan opposition politician named Juan Guaido, who named himself president of the country, last week. The U.S. is attempting to cripple Venezuela’s economy in order to overthrow the socialist government that has repeatedly won free and fair elections over the past twenty years. Joe Emersberger has written frequently on the U.S. campaign for regime in Venezuela.

The Democrats already have a sizeable number of declared presidential candidates. However, Bernie Sanders, the man who almost beat Hillary Clinton in the 2016 primaries, and who polls show is the most popular politician in the country, has yet to declare his candidacy. We spoke with Danny Haiphong, who writes a weekly column for Black Agenda Report.

Darius Bost is a professor of Ethic Studies at the School for Cultural and Social Transformation at the University of Utah. His most recent book was featured in the BAR Books Forum. It’s titled  “Evidence of Being: The Black Gay Cultural Renaissance and the Politics of Violence.” Professor Bost says he wants to challenge the dominant queer theoretical discourse, that says the AIDS crisis is over.