Rebel Girl: December 6, 2017: The state stumbles in the first J20 trial, sweeping raids against anti-capitalists in Germany, anti-fascists at the University of Connecticut take up the alt-right on their so-called “free speech,” and we end our first season with heartfelt gratitude on this episode of…

The Hotwire.

A weekly anarchist news show brought to you by The Ex-Worker.

With me, the Rebel Girl.

Welcome to the last Hotwire of 2017, and thank you so much for tuning in for our first season.

We’ll be back with our second season in February of next year. This week we have all the same kinds of news we normally bring you—antifascist organizing in Michigan, updates on political prisoners, calls to action for the new year; but we also pan back and take a look at the whole last year of resistance, and run down the list of other great podcasts and websites where you can get rebel news and anarchist perspectives on current events. Please please please, let us know what you thought about this season. Did we leave anything out that you would’ve liked to hear more about? Is there some way our show can better serve anarchist organizing in your region? Get in touch with us at podcast[AT]CrimethInc[DOT]com and let us know how we can improve our show.

A full transcript of this episode with shownotes and useful links can be found at our website, CrimethInc.com/podcast. You can subscribe to The Hotwire on iTunes or wherever you get your podcasts, just search for The Ex-Worker. You can listen to us through the anarchist podcast network Channel Zero, or on your radio’s dial in Tacoma, Washington, every Wednesday at 9 AM on KUPS 90.1 FM; and in Eugene, Oregon every Sunday at 11 AM on KEPW 97.3 FM. Believe it or not, every Hotwire is radio ready, so feel free to put The Hotwire on your local airwaves.

HEADLINES

And now for the headlines…

The night of November 16, vandals paid a special visit to the house of Jean-Yves Lavoie, the President of ‘Junex,’ a major fossil fuels company that is seeking to extract oil and natural gas in remote areas of so-called Canada.

The vandals sent an anonymous communiqué to Montreal Counter Info, part of which reads, “His dream of becoming rich through the destruction of territory will not come to pass. Collective efforts of earth defense – blockades, support camps, demos, education campaigns – as well as all the autonomous initiatives put forward by a multitude of indigenous and non-indigenous groups will be much more powerful than the work of Mr. Lavoie and Junex can accomplish in one life.”

People from dozens of indigenous communities in southern Mexico are currently staging a week-long caravan across the state of Oaxaca. They have expressed solidarity with the disappeared 43 of Ayotzinapa, as well as calling for an end to the criminalization of social protest, but the primary focus is opposition to megaprojects like mines and hydroelectric dams, which dispossess indigenous people from their lands, pollute the air and water, and rupture the social fabric of those who are not uprooted. The protest caravan is taking place while communities are holding assemblies against a planned military base on communal land in Oaxaca.

In Cordoba, Argentina, 200 people marched after the police murder of Rafael Nahuel, an indigenous Mapuche resister.

For the past few months, refugees on the Greek island of Lesbos have been organizing and agitating to demand free movement from the Moria refugee camp on Lesbos to the mainland of Greece. At the end of November, after a fascist mob attacked refugees occupying a public park, refugees, members of the anti-authoritarian movement, and non-parliamentary leftists occupied the SYRIZA party headquarters on the island. And just on Monday, police cracked down against a second occupation of the same public square by refugees. In addition to freedom of movement, the refugees are demanding the immediate release of Hesam Shaeri Hesari, an imprisoned member of the refugee protesters. Follow the hashtag #OpenTheIsland on twitter for more info as it develops.

In Medford, Oregon, anarchists inspired by the Olympia blockade sabotaged railways and disrupted traffic. In their communiqué they stated, “Sabotage is fun and easy.” Sadly, the Olympia blockade was evicted last Wednesday, which we have more about later this episode in the Repression Roundup.

In New York City, dozens marched against police and rape on Thursday, in response to two cops being accused of raping a teenager in Brooklyn in September. Anarchists carried banners that read, “All cops are bastards, and some are rapists,” and “let’s smash the rapist cop state.” The survivor of the assault in Brooklyn hasn’t attended any of the latest marches, but has expressed her support and gratitude over social media.

In Riverside, Ohio, a cop accidentally tasered another cop. As anarchists we can’t support all police actions, but this one seems okay with us. There were, in fact, bad people on both sides.

ANTI-FASCISM WORLDWIDE

With less than a day’s notice, anti-fascists in Washington DC outnumbered and drowned out an alt-right rally at the White House on Sunday with barely 20 fascists in attendance. Richard Spencer and Mike Enoch were there, notably along with Tony Hovater, the neo-Nazi recently depicted in the New York Times as just a regular guy who likes pasta. But make no mistake, far from exposing the supposed “banality of evil,” or whatever the New York Times claims it was trying to do with that story, Hovater was emboldened to show up Sunday and was celebrated by other fascists there.

That is dangerous, because where fascists gather, violence follows, no matter how much they claim to be abiding by peaceful free speech. In Murfreesboro they assaulted an interracial couple, in Gainesville they shot at a demonstrator, and in Charlottesville they killed Heather Heyer and injured dozens more.

This is why last week, students at the University of Michigan organized a week of activity to HASHTAG #StopSpencer from speaking there. This included teach-ins about contemporary fascist movements, debunking “free speech,” support for a rally of unionized non-tenured faculty, and on last Thursday, a student strike! The whole university didn’t shut down, but some professors did cancel class. And when anti-fascist students found out that one of the schools’ deans sent a castigating letter to professors who cancelled their classes, over 60 people occupied his office until he left for the day. With the dean’s office to themselves, the student rebels joined together in song, posted anti-fascist signs on the office windows, and ordered pizza!

Michigan students expect the university to approve Richard Spencer to speak, so stay tuned to ItsGoingDown.org for possible upcoming anti-fascist mobilizing there.

Maybe Michigan students can take a lesson from those at the University of Connecticut, who, on Tuesday, November 28, shut down a speech by alt-lite troll Lucian Wintrich. Wintrich was slated to give a speech entitled, “It’s Okay To Be White,” a reference to a neo-Nazi meme popularized on 4chan. Wintrich was flanked by Sal Cipolla, a Proud Boys member who attended the neo-Nazi Unite the Right rally in Charlottesville. Not long into the presentation, two people briefly approached the podium; and one of them nabbed the printed out speech from under Wintrich’s nose. I guess they just thought this was the free speech the alt-right can’t seem to shut up about. He immediately ran after them and can be seen on video assaulting the person who’d taken his papers, pulling their neck and hair. Here at the Hotwire, we don’t really understand Wintrich’s overreaction. Hasn’t the alt-right been shouting “free speech” all year long?

In any case, police quickly intervened and escorted Wintrich into the men’s bathroom in the front lobby. An angry crowd had amassed outside the lobby, protesting the platform that the university had provided to fascists. When they saw police whisking Wintrich away, folks broke the lobby’s windows, threw in a smoke bomb which triggered the fire alarm, and unarrested someone nabbed by police. Wintrich caught a “breach of peace” charge for his assault, but predictably, after the successful, people-powered shutdown, the Dean of Students expressed disappointment not in the white nationalist, misogynist speaker who assaulted someone, but in the students who disrupted his disgusting message.

In our shownotes, we have an ever-useful anarchist FAQ on free speech for fascists, which cuts right through the liberal hand-wringing that universities often employ to excuse fascist speakers.

Over the weekend in Hanover, Germany, a couple thousand anti-fascists demonstrated outside a meeting of the far-right Alternative for Deutschland party, who won seats in parliament in the recent German elections. Anti-fascists chanted, “Solidarity is our alternative.” Police used water cannons against the demonstrators and made arrests.

In Melbourne, Australia, scuffles broke out when nationalist attendees of a Milo Yiannopolous event attacked anti-fascist and anti-racist demonstrators.

On Monday, the Muslim Ban was ultimately approved in the Supreme Court, demonstrating, one, that we can’t count on the institutions of the state to preserve anyone’s freedom, and two, only direct action can prevent them from imposing total oppression and control. In our shownotes at crimethinc.com/podcast, we have stickers and posters you can use to make visible solidarity with migrants and opposition to all borders. Also, we recommend episode 3 of Sub.media’s excellent webseries Trouble, which is all about defiance to borders, both from migrants themselves and those in solidarity.

Just days before the Muslim ban approval, liberal Trump opponents celebrated former National Security Adviser Michael Flynn’s cooperation with FBI investigations into the Trump campaign. It’s hard to be too upset about any misfortune suffered by the president and his ilk, but let us remember: this is also about re-legitimizing the FBI and the repressive forces of the state—which exist chiefly to crack down on dissidents, the poor, immigrants, and people of color.

Just this last week, the FBI Director told congress “we are investigating a number of what we would call anarchist-extremist [groups], where we have properly predicated subjects of people who are motivated to commit violent criminal activity on kind of an antifa ideology.”

This comes on the heels of at least two federal grand jury subpoenas being served to anti-racist activists and victims of the car attack at the Unite the Right rally in Charlottesville in August. On ItsGoingDown.org you can find a useful article about these subpoenas and what to do if you are served one. You can also contact VAresistsgrandjury@protonmail.com to find out more.

REPRESSION ROUNDUP

Rebel Girl: In this week’s repression roundup…

The prosecution continues to call witnesses in the first trial of the J20 inauguration protest case. The defense’s most compelling cross-examination this past week was of the commander responsible for ordering, overseeing and coordinating police operations regarding protests on January 20. This was the guy in charge of the mass arrest that day. Despite well-documented police protocol that requires them to issue dispersal orders before mass-arrests, the commander admitted that no attempt at such warnings were made. Even more damning, the commander admitted that convictions of those arrested meant that his police were less likely to lose millions of dollars in a civil suit for the illegal mass-arrest, as has happened before in DC.

Then, things just got creepy when the commander was questioned about his personal bias. It turns out this guy has been written up on multiple occasions for homophobic, transphobic, and anti-semitic “jokes.” Go figure that he would have extra determination in arresting an entire anti-fascist march.

For ongoing, detailed trial coverage, we highly recommend Unicorn Riot’s Twitter feed, at Twitter.com/UR_Ninja.

Also check out the latest #J20 Podcast Update #3, available from It’s Going Down. What happens in this trial could be a bellwether for what happens to the other 190 defendants, not to mention resistance movements as a whole. That’s why support is so crucial at this moment. The Trump administration wants to set a precedent with this case so they can argue that anyone wearing black in vicinity of a broken window is participating in a conspiracy and deserves to spend the rest of his or her life in prison. Their goal is to criminalize protest itself. The prosecution has based their case on claiming that basic elements of large protests are evidence of a “conspiracy to riot” and commit acts of vandalism. As evidence, they are citing normal protest activities such as preparing for the possibility of arrest, the presence of street medics and legal observers in case of police or fascist violence, and even sharing information about public plans to assemble. The outcome of this case could have disastrous consequences on all dissent in the United States.

At CrimethInc.com, you can find a new text with seven easy things you can do to support the J20 defendants, including a fundraiser, easy-to-share videos and memes for social media, and specific tips for if you live in DC. Stay tuned to @defendj20 on Twitter for details on when to pack the courtroom and show support at the end of trial.

While the sweeping court case against the J20 resisters is taking place in DC, sweeping repression against G20 resisters ramped up on Tuesday in Germany. Police raided more than 20 buildings across the country, including apartments and social centers, and they opened 75 new cases. At the police’s press conference, they claimed to be opening 3000 more cases in relation to July’s demonstrations against the G20. The commission in charge of the operation is dubbed “Black Block,” indicating a similar kind of demonization of protesters in the G20 cases as we’ve seen in the J20 case. Solidarity actions took place in Kiel, Flensburg, Stuttgart, Hamburg, and Gottingen.

In our shownotes, we have a link to the CrimethInc. report on the historic G20 protests this past summer in Germany, and we have links to stories with more information on the raids.

As we go to press, Greek anarchist prisoners Pola Roupa and Nikos Maziotis are going on day 25 of hunger strike. In a communication from Maziotis, he states that after the prison denied he and Pola phone communication with their son, he, “destroyed the lights in the corridor and caused damage in the cells by breaking plumbing, sinks and basins.” Maziotis went on, “WE WILL NOT BACK DOWN, WE WILL NOT GIVE UP UNTIL OUR DEMANDS ARE SATISFIED. WE WILL CONTINUE THE HUNGER STRIKE UNTIL THE END.”

We wish victory to Nikos and Pola against the cruel, inhumane conditions they are facing. Stay tuned to InsurrectionNewsWorldwide.com for updates on their health and their hunger strike.

The hunt against anarchists in Brazil continues with Operation Érebo. On November 30, police raided more houses in Porto Alegre, confiscating items and destroying personal belongings.

In a statement, anarchists from Porto Alegre declared, “We remain strong, determined and still during these persecutions, certain that the love of freedom cries stronger. The shows of support and solidarity are not lacking and the different positions of anarchism have remained firm in their rejection of authority and with their arms extended to their comrades. It strengthens us. Spread the news. Arms extended to our comrades, clenched fists for our enemies! Let us live anarchy!”

Supporters of Ramsey Orta, the copwatcher who filmed Eric Garner’s asphyxiation by police, have renewed their call for support. Ramsey is the victim of targeted police harassment and trumped up charges after exposing the NYPD. Last month Ramsey was placed in solitary confinement, and supporters are requesting folks send him letters and books. We have his address in this episode’s shownotes at crimethinc.com/podcast.

Black Liberation Movement prisoner Herman Bell is up for parole in February, and your support letters are needed by December 15. He has been to the parole board seven times, and has been denied seven times. At this next appearance, supporters are hoping that 70-year-old Bell will have a better chance of being seriously considered to leave prison. Details for how you can help can be found in our shownotes, or at FreeHermanBell.org.

It is with a heavy heart that we inform you that last Wednesday, police in Olympia, Washington evicted the anti-fracking blockade on the train tracks to the port. Police also destroyed a nearby homeless encampment that had nothing to do with the blockade. In the American tradition of the government betraying every deal they ever made with the first nations of Turtle Island, the raid came on the same morning that the Olympia Stand Indigenous Caucus was scheduled to meet with City Council and the Port of Olympia. The Olympia Stand aka the Olympia Commune aka the Olympia Blockade aka, “the greatest thing that ever happened in this sad rainy town,” lasted just under two weeks, but in that short time they completely transformed daily life for those who visited and lived in the camp. Just listen to this interview with an Olympia communard in Hotwire #14:

Olympia Communard: The thing that has been most exciting to me about this blockade, and that I was surprised by, that I wasn’t expecting, is the social relations that I’ve been experiencing as a result of this conflictual, liberated territory. It’s felt really exhilarating. I’ve been through a few different aspects of when the commune happens—when there’s some sort of occupation—and I think this is the first time that I’ve been to multiple General Assemblies in a row that I haven’t left just frustrated with the level of dealing with the peace police. Just feeling like there’s really good conversations being had. For example, “what would a victory look like?” Or, “how do we extend these new ways of interacting with each other beyond the blockade.” Because presumably, unfortunately, the blockade won’t last forever, but we are experimenting with there’s food, there’s heat. People are getting basic needs met in ways that often don’t happen, and interacting with each other in ways that don’t often happen, and how do we carry that outside of the blockade? How do we continue interacting with each other in these liberatory ways outside of the blockade and after the blockade.

Rebel Girl: Indeed, and now that it is after the blockade, we’d like to reiterate that the worlds we build and the relationships we foster are just as important as the resistance we put up to authority and capital.

LOOKING BACK, LOOKING FORWARD

This is actually a useful lens for looking at how far we’ve come along in the last year. We’d like to take this moment to remember the 36 people who died a year ago, on December 2, when a fire trapped people inside the Ghost Ship, a DIY space in Oakland, California. Alt-right trolls exploited this tragedy to advocate targeting and shutting down other autonomous spaces and social centers across the country.

Not long after, the last encampments at Standing Rock were evicted in the dead of winter. For much of the year, we’ve been on the defensive: reacting to the Trump agenda, like the Muslim Ban; fighting back fascism in the streets; organizing support around unprecedented repression. But in the last few months, anarchists and other rebels have sprung into action in ways that open up examples of the kind of world we’re fighting for, one based in mutual aid, solidarity, and direct action. In Olympia, rebels transformed daily life by occupying the tracks to defy fracking, colonialism, and boredom. In Chicago, squatters at the IRL building showed that political squats are not only possible in North America, but also a powerful way to bring people together over shared conflict with the police and gentrification. After the devastation of Hurricane Maria in Puerto Rico, people disillusioned with government have established mutual aid centers across the island. In Pittsburgh, anarchist students took over the landmark Cathedral of Learning in what was as much a protest against the administration as it was a middle finger to the demand-driven model of reformist university occupations. And our first season of the Hotwire began with the widespread solidarity rallies after Charlottesville, which in Chapel Hill, North Carolina evolved into a weeklong commune against the confederate monument in town.

Occupations aren’t the only kind of spaces that communicate anarchist values. Infoshops, DIY collective spaces, and regular gatherings are also places where we can form the bonds we need to fight oppression and weather repression, which is why for January 20, 2018, CrimethInc, It’s Going Down, Sub.media and other anarchist collectives have called for a day of activity to expand our networks and strengthen our spaces. We’ll quote at length from the call, “we’re calling for people to gather in anarchist and autonomous spaces on the week of January 20, 2018 in order to reconnect to the roots from which our movements draw strength, discuss the path ahead, and gather resources for prisoners, relief efforts, and ongoing struggles. Autonomous spaces include infoshops, community centers, and bookstores. But an autonomous space can also be a public place you make a habit of gathering in or a territory you share and defend. The advantage of open spaces is that they offer a way for people who are freshly curious about our movements to plug in, pick up literature, and begin fostering relationships.”

The call proposes anti-cop block parties, fundraisers for the J20 defendants, screenings of Sub.media’s show Trouble, letter writing nights for political prisoners, and plenty of other ideas for ways to come together to dream and scheme. Go to CrimethInc.com to read the full call.

Just as occupations aren’t the only kind of spaces that communicate anarchist visions, they’re not the only kind of conflict that can demonstrate that resistance to authority is possible.

So before we wrap up our first season of the Hotwire, we want to salute everybody who set the tone of resistance on day one of the Trump presidency, as well as everyone who flooded airports a few weeks later in defiance of the Muslim Ban. We’d like to offer our utmost gratitude to everyone who hit the streets this year against fascism, especially those who shut down Milo Yiannopolous’ speech in Berkeley, and every single person who showed up in Charlottesville to finally put a stop to the increasing legitimacy of the alt-right, albeit at a very high cost. Thank you to the rebels in St. Louis and everywhere else that rose up against racist police impunity; thank you to the statue-topplers and everybody who took action against confederate monuments and other legacies of white supremacy; thank you to the brave undocumented dreamers who stormed parades and lawmakers’ offices; thank you to the inspiring prison rebels at Vaughn, Holman, McCormick, and other prisons who remind us that incarceration is not the end of struggle, just a different battleground. Thanks to the tree-sitters in the Mattole and Willamette Forests, and to everyone fighting pipelines and extraction from Anishinaabe land in so-called Wisconsin to Mi’kmaq land in so-called Quebec.

Thank you, thank you, thank you to every single person who stood up, in whatever way they saw fit, to any kind of authority and domination this year. Even if it was just by adding your voice to legitimize and dignify resistance. Because while liberals and the alt-right maintain that speech and action are two different things; this is a false dichotomy: speech is action, and action is speech. It’s not enough to just believe in something, you have to fight for it. And it’s not enough to just fight against Trump, or to just fight against fascism for that matter. We have to suggest ways out of a society driven by profit, power, and privilege, the values that make Trump’s presidency and fascism possible.

It’s been a long, hard fought year. And with the changing of the calendar, let’s regather our strength, celebrate our victories, and remember our fallen. Here’s to a new year, and a whole new world!

ANARCHIST MEDIA ROUNDUP

Rebel Girl: Before we announce upcoming events, we wanted to give you an overview of other sources you can get anarchist news and media from until The Hotwire returns in February. Searching the name of any of these collectives online should easily turn up their websites, but we also have them linked in our shownotes at crimethinc.com/podcast.

Our main source for stories is the website ItsGoingDown.org. It’s the best source for anarchist news about a variety of struggles in North America. We’re particularly fond of their podcast, the IGDcast, and their semi-regular column Bloc Party. They issue sporadic round-ups called “All the News You Didn’t Even Know was Going Down,” which usually has some good anarchist commentary on mainstream politics, such as the Republican tax plan and other items of Trump’s agenda.

For those who want to satisfy their weekly podcast fix, subscribe to The Final Straw, an excellent, interview-based anarchist podcast that we can’t recommend highly enough. The hosts have also spun-off with another show, Error #451, which covers technology and digital security for activists.

If you prefer video, go to Sub.media for the excellent documentary webseries Trouble, regular video-ninja reports about resistance from all over the world, and the irreverent, foul-mouthed humor of the Stimulator. Unicorn Riot is another great source for video, although they’ve been doing a lot of quality researched based journalism lately, not to mention the regular Twitter updates from the J20 trial in DC.

The Earth First! Newswire is our go-to source for land-based struggles, along with news about the devastation being wrought by industrial capitalism. Insurrection News Worldwide has updates on anarchist prisoners and insurrectionary direct action from across the world, in multiple languages! The calendars from New York City Anarchist Black Cross and PrisonBooks.info are a useful way to keep up with political prisoner support. And last but not least, stay tuned to CrimethInc.com for all kinds of anarchist analysis, first-hand reports, and resources.

Stay informed so that you can stay rebel into the New Year, and we’ll be back with you in February.

NEXT WEEK’S NEWS

We’ll close out this Hotwire with next week’s news, our list of events that you can plug into in real life.

The New Orleans Anarchist Bookfair is this Saturday, December 9 from 11 AM to 5 PM at Clouet Gardens, near the corner of Clouet Street and Royal.

Also on December 9, in Mexico City, there is a day of boxing matches to benefit anarchist prisoner Fernando Bárcenas. Fernando is serving time for torching a Coca-Cola sponsored Christmas tree during a demonstration in 2013, and the money raised will go to establishing an autonomous library inside his prison. The sparring in solidarity with Fernando begins at 10 AM at #20 Calle Godard, two blocks from La Raza metro station in Mexico City.

On December 16 in Union Square, San Francisco, an anti-fascist, anti-racist counter-protest is happening in response to a March Against Sanctuary Cities. Unsurprisingly, neo-Nazis and other fash are exploiting the recently Steinle verdict to recruit. The counter-protest starts at noon.

New York City Anarchist Black Cross has issued an international call for New Year’s Eve noise demonstrations outside of prisons, jails, and detention centers. We’ll quote from it at length,

“This is a call for a raucous night of strong solidarity with those imprisoned by the state on one of the noisiest nights of the year. On New Year’s Eve gather your crew, collective, community, organization, or just yourself and come together to raise a racket and remind those on the inside that they are not alone.

Internationally, noise demonstrations outside of prisons are a way to remember those who are held captive by the state and a way to show solidarity with imprisoned comrades and loved ones. We come together to break the loneliness and isolation.

We know that prison is beyond reform and must be completely abolished. It is a mechanism of repression used by the state to maintain a social order rooted in white supremacy, patriarchy, and heteronormativity. To come together outside of the sites of repression is to also stand in defiance of what they represent.

The logic of the state and capital—of punishment and imprisonment, must be replaced by a rejection of oppression and exploitation. This call is one step in that direction.”

The call continues, “Wherever you are, meet on New Year’s Eve at the prisons, jails, and detention centers, be loud in solidarity with those imprisoned and to push forward the idea of a world free from domination. We send this call in solidarity with those defying state repression of large scale dissent: from the J20 defendants in Washington, DC to those in Hamburg facing trial following the G20, as well as those in the spaces between. We want a world without walls and borders. We will fight together until everyone is free!”

Stay tuned to ItsGoingDown.org for further details on New Year’s Eve noise demos near you—or just do the anarchist thing and make one happen yourself.

Cascadia Forest Defenders in Oregon have been fighting the logging of the Willamette National Forest. Check out the recent episode of the anarchist podcast The Final Straw with an interview about the forest occupation and re-contextualizing forest defense in a time of climate change. You can go to –forestdefensenow.wordpress.com to donate and find out more about how to get involved.

Defenders of the Ancient Mattole Forest in Northern California are hosting a training camp in early January. It’s still in the preliminary planning stages, but if you want to help make it happen e-mail contactefhum@gmail.com.

The 2018 Certain Days: Freedom for Political Prisoners calendar is now available! Your group use the calendar as a way to fundraise for your organization. Single issues are available from LeftWingBooks.net and AK Press. They’re also looking for websites and publications to review the calendar, just get in touch at info@certaindays.org

The Popular Organizing for Defense, Education and Revolution, or PODER Conference, is coming up on December 30. It’s a free, one-day opportunity for revolutionaries in California’s San Gabriel Valley and Inland Empire to meet, discuss and build relationships. The conference is multi-tendency, though all participating organizations are loosely bound by a commitment to the abolition of class society. For more info, visit poderconference.org.

In Lansing, Michigan from January 19 to the 21, the organization Solidarity and Defense is hosting a community self-defense conference. What does community self-defense mean?

Here’s what they have to say, “We think it means people uniting regardless of race, religion, gender, sexuality, or background to fight against government and fascist attacks on our communities. It means people showing up to stand against fascists and racists who are trying to organize and attack us. It means neighbors coming together to physically try to stop ICE raids that disorient and break up immigrant communities. It means folks resisting evictions by blockading dumpsters and cops. It is our hopes that this conference will be one small step to further the fight against fascism, the state, and all forms of domination. It is through this collective struggle that we can begin to build the world that we want.”

The conference includes food, childcare, and housing! We have a link where you can find out more in our shownotes.

The Animal Rights Gathering 2018 will take place on January 20 in Baltimore, Maryland. The Animal Rights Gathering seeks to carve out a space for intersectional, feminist, and anti-capitalist politics in the animal rights movement as a whole. You can find out more at argathering2018.wordpress.com.

Also for January 20, It’s Going Down, CrimethInc., Sub.media, and Channel Zero have issued a call to expand our networks and strengthen our spaces. The call proposes anti-cop block parties, fundraisers for the J20 defendants, screenings of Sub.media’s show Trouble, letter writing nights for political prisoners, and plenty of other ideas for ways to come together to dream and scheme. Go to CrimethInc.com to read the full call.

And that’s it for our first season of The Hotwire. As always thanks to Underground Reverie for the music, and a big THANK YOU to all our listeners. We do this for you, so please send us feedback about how The Hotwire can better serve your organizing. Reach us at podcast[AT]CrimethInc[DOT]com. Every Hotwire episode is radio-ready, so if you want to replay part or all of this show, just go for it! And don’t forget to check out all the links, mailing addresses, and useful notes we customized for this episode at CrimethInc.com/podcast. Remember, we’ll be back in February of 2018. But until then…

Stay informed. Stay rebel. Unplug and get into trouble before it’s too late.