Category Archives: Section

Hold the Pepperoni

Striking meatpackers at Tyson Foods have called for a national boycott of Tyson-made pizza toppings – particularly at Tyson’s biggest pepperoni customers, Pizza Hut and KRAFT FOODS, makers of DiGiorno. Tyson, best known for its chicken processing, is muscling into … Continue reading

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Food Democracy

Today, in an era of globalization, the movement and trade of food has intensified tremendously. People, products, and ideas cross national boundaries with increasing quantity and speed. Individuals live, work, and raise families in countries different than their homeland. When … Continue reading

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Poem: Untitled

On North Prospect Avenue Disembodied flags floating above Prospect What prospects are there for those facing them? What do they mean? Looming, warning, “How dare you forget” – they say I didn’t forget And hey, that’s my flag, too. “Bought … Continue reading

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IMC Capital Campaign for a Permanent Home

The Urbana Champaign Independent Media Center recently kicked off its Capital Campaign to raise funds to purchase a permanent home for its independent media and arts programs. Since its founding in the fall of 2000, the UCIMC has outgrown our … Continue reading

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The Neoliberal Noose Hanging Nicaragua

Managua, March 10, 2003 I sat and watched Claudia, a small pregnant woman of about twenty with two children at home. After asking how and why she had refused a large bribe from her former employer, Yu Jin, I realized … Continue reading

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Wartime Reflections from Spain

One thing that I remember of the Spanish people, when I was here 15 years ago as a young American study abroad student, was their attention to political matters. I never was part of one, but they seemed to have … Continue reading

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View from Guatelamala

As the war in Iraq progresses, I feel the need to share with you, my friends and family, a little bit about what it feels like to live outside of the US during this frightening time. Here in Guatemala, there … Continue reading

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VVAW Should Not be Forgotten

As a son of a veteran, I have seen the effects of war on a soldier by witnessing flashbacks and listening to my father’s horror stories from ’Nam. In a sense, I had to live through Vietnam with him as … Continue reading

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Honor the Warrior, Not the War

Vietnam Veterans Against the War (VVAW) always organizes under the above slogan, during Memorial Day or Veterans Day events in cities like Chicago, or through participation in national and international demonstrations such as this past February 15 and the veteran-organized … Continue reading

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A Development Distaster: The Pak Mun Dan In Thailand

For the past half-decade Thailand’s Pak Mun Dam has been recognized by environmental and human rights groups as a posterchild of insensitive, inequitable, top-down development strategy. Despite civil society’s criticism, however, thousands of local villagers still squat in a makeshift, … Continue reading

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The World Summit in Johannesburg: Notes from the Field

On the drive from the Johannesburg airport to the wealthy white suburb of Sandton – host to the 2002 World Summit on Sustainable Development, the largest international conference ever – colorful billboards cajole Summit delegates to taste and enjoy the … Continue reading

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Letter from Guatemala, August 24, 2002

Dear Friends and Family, It has been a while since I have had the chance to write. A lot has been going on down here and with me personally and I haven’t had much opportunity to sit at a computer … Continue reading

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Chuck D Takes on MTV

(originally published by the Ashville Global Report) Chuck D, front man of the Hip-hop group Public Enemy, is once again at odds with the mainstream music world, this time over song lyrics that MTV finds objectionable. So what is the … Continue reading

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Santa Claus Conquers Longshoremen

The mainstream media have buried the biggest labor story in decades, far bigger than the Reagan Administration’s decision to fire the air traffic controllers. The Bush Administration has used the 1947 Taft-Hartley Act, not to break a strike, but to … Continue reading

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Dear School Principal

Dear School Principal: In an attempt to balance the extremely patriotic event that had been planned for 9-11-02 for our students, my class worked on a unit about the people of Afghanistan and Iraq. We looked at library books and … Continue reading

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Monthly Art Exhibitions Coming to the IMC

One of the most beneficial and interesting aspects of a place like the Independent Media Center is that it exists in a constant state of evolution . It is always adapting to meet the needs and desires of the community … Continue reading

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Labor’s Days Explained

SYMBOLIC “HOLIDAYS” Not usually considered a union-friendly society, the United States recently celebrated its 109th annual Labor Day. In recent years Labor Day is mostly a matter of picnics and barbecues, but it could be more. We had our own … Continue reading

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A Review of Civil Liberties One Year After 9/11

As the failed hunt for Osama Bin Laden gives way to preparations for the invasion of Iraq, and as the passing of a year of mourning gives way to commercial exploitation and political opportunism, many Americans are beginning to realize … Continue reading

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April Brings Shower of Local Arts

April is a busy time for artists and art enthusiasts in Champaign and Urbana. The Octopus-sponsored Art Walk will take place the weekend of April 19 and 20. This is an opportunity for local artists, galleries, and businesses to be … Continue reading

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The Ogoni Struggle in Nigeria

Nigeria was a colony of Great Britain from the turn of the twentieth century until 1960. It is about 1/3 larger than the state of Texas, but is by far the most populous country in Africa with over 120 million … Continue reading

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