Free Leonard Peltier! A Thanksgiving Message

Published: Nov. 29, 2019, 10:53 p.m.

On today's episode of Loud & Clear, Brian Becker and John Kiriakou are joined by Chase Iron Eyes, a member of the Lakota People's Law Project and a member of the Oglala Sioux Tribe, and by Jean Roach, of the Mnicoujou Lakota, a leading member of the International Leonard Peltier Defense Committee (ILPDC) and a survivor of the 1975 Oglala incident.

Leonard Peltier is a world renowned activist, author and long-time leader in the Native American movement. He’s also a political prisoner -- incarcerated for over 40 years as a result of a trial that his supporters say was a travesty of justice. Today the hosts discuss his case and the ongoing movement to win his freedom. Learn more about the movement to free Leonard Peltier at WhoIsLeonardPeltier.Info.

Coal miners and nearby residents have long suffered from illnesses and health problems due to the many byproducts of the mining. West Virginia is the second-highest coal producing state and the industry has long been a primary source of jobs in the region. Fracking for natural gas, another dangerous and harmful process, has increased in the area in recent years as well. What harms are done to residents and what alternatives are there? Creative activist and journalist Eleanor Goldfield, host of the podcast Act Out!, which airs on Free Speech TV, and whose work is at ArtKillingApathy.com, joins the show. Earlier in the month, she spent time in West Virginia reporting on how coal mining and fracking are affecting local residents.

Our friend and frequent guest Dan Kovalik is coming out with a new book. “No More War:
How the West Violates International Law by Using 'Humanitarian' Intervention to Advance Economic and Strategic Interests” comes out in April, but advance reviews are stellar.
Brian and John speak with Dan Kovalik, a human rights, labor lawyer, and author of many books.

This regular segment deals with the ongoing militarization of space. As the US continues to withdraw from international arms treaties, will the weaponization and militarization of space bring the world closer to catastrophe? Brian and John speak with Prof. Karl Grossman, a full professor of journalism at the State University of New York, College at Old Westbury and the host of a nationally aired television program focused on environmental, energy, and space issues, and with Bruce Gagnon, coordinator of the Global Network Against Weapons & Nuclear Power in Space and a contributor to Foreign Policy In Focus.