Transcripts For CSPAN Direct Action And Protest 20160101

Dan here is how the evening will work. I will give you a brief overview of how the evening will work, a few minutes on the theory of direct action and questions to think about, then i will turn it over to the panelists. Each of the five has been asked to speak for more not more than 12 minutes. I will give the meantime check toward the end give them a time check toward the and. We are going to talk about and the larger movement, what works, what doesnt, the concerns raised in the movement and those on the outside, and similar questions. Panelists will focus on personal stories, specifics, this is what happened on this occasion, this is what we learned from it, this is why it worked or did not work. The focus tonight is not primarily on the issue that led to the direct action, so for tonight we are more interested in resistance, rather than why the war was that. We are interested in the demonstrations that black lives have. Although the title does not say about othertalk kind of direct action. I thought it could involve property, not people. After panelists speak, we will through the floor open to people in the audience and we very much want audience dissipation. You do not have to participation. You do not have to pretend to ask a question, you can make a comment. Will also limit the people in the audience and people can have up to two minutes, but not more, for a question or comment. We will collect several questions and comments and then go to the audience for responses and each palace will have panelist will have not more than two minutes to respond. They can choose to focus on just one. Let me pose to questions to view about tonight as we stories and remarks. Why engage in direct action . Why is direct action the way that we should approach something . I do not mean what moved people to act in the first place, but why choose direct action and why and what it hopes to accomplish . I will suggest three reasons to take direct action, recognizing that there are others that recognize action includes a mix of reasons. You can do it as an act of moral conscious. The war is awful, i cannot participate, i refuse to be drafted. I will not do it. That is what this is about, that is all there is to it. You can do it as a way to bring public attention to something. The media will not cover this, but if we mount a large demonstration, if dozens of people are arrested they will have no choice but to cover it and it will bring publicity to the issue and help raise awareness. And third, people do it as a way to exchange conditions. I do not care if the media covers it, nobody is writing the buses in till riding the buses until they are integrated and we will not ride them until we win. That is a third and separate purpose. What form should direct action take . We can do it in a variety of ways and it is partly determined by the goal of the action. If the goal is to get Media Attention and in my experience, these days, most of direct action is intended for that purpose, then the action is usually planned by organizers, they notify police, negotiate terms of the arrest and how it will operate. , the moreal rule people arrested, the more Media Attention so organizers want to get a lot of people arrested, that is what you are trying to do. How many people can we get arrested. And for, if you are taking that approach, there is maybe tendency to be more likely to include people who have a level of privilege, class privilege or race privilege, or they do not have a fixed work situation. Because it is easier for them to pay the cost in those situations. Emphasize those for those of you getting worked up already. That is a good thing. [applause] [laughter] dan if the aim of the direct action is to disrupt the normal functioning of society in ways that matter to people with power and to sustain it until people with power have to give in, then you have a different equation. And in that case, the aim of protesters could be not to get arrested so you can continue the disruption for as long as possible. Recently, especially young quasianarchist groups have specialized in demonstration were thousands of able suddenly of people suddenly cut her gate and they do not know what theyre going to do, they are blocked in wonder direction and they flow into another. Sometimes there are two or three different groups that rejoin later. If it is done properly, you hope nobody gets arrested. You had a successful action in some way. Those are two different ways of thinking about it. Mostgenerally speaking, direct action we will hear about will probably be in public, but that is not inevitably the case. We were talking before this in the fbi breaking office in 1971, where people ,roke in, stole all the files went through them and released political files, which was a lot of files. Those people were never caught. They told their story to the media long after the event was over and the statute of limitations had expired. They did not want to because. The aim was caught. The aim was not to become. I will now turn it over to the panelists and we will take them in the order on this sheet, this is the order we are sitting at the table. If you do not have a sheet, we will get copies and pass them out. I will say the name of the person. Be randy. Peaker will randy to tell the truth, i do not know it direct action is. I have not studied theories of i didjust, if you will what i thought made sense to me. It made sense to me strategically and ethically. Defined, i loosely think, i spent most of my adult life engaged in direct action. Some of that is in the program you have and i will try not to repeat. I think many of us when we first get involved in direct action of any kind, there is a moment or issue that gets us involved. That moment for me was 1966 and the issue was the u. S. War in and on the it non. I went gradually but steadily tom quiet, peaceful protests out and out resistance and noncooperation and a very public way. I turned in the draft card, finally got arrested by the fbi and i spent 22 months in federal prison as a result. Foundbsequent years i that was something that i liked to do and i could do and it was a helpful thing to do, so this was not just enacted participant active participant, but i spent far more time organizing them. Trying to stop Nuclear Plants being built in the 1970s, or stopping the construction in seabrook, that Nuclear Power plant in New Hampshire in the late 1970s. A number of things like that. With mytarted early to see that war was so horrendous in so many ways, you are creating poverty, abuse, killing itself. So many ways. We not only, i do not want to give my body to the war, or been, so betsy and i have tax resisters ever since 1976 and have had Bank Accounts seized and our wages levied and taken in 1991,e seized and sold out from under us. We had hundreds of supporters, which was an amazing thing. Most of the 1990s, i spent organizing two Major National campaigns. One of them for nuclear disarmament, the other for the abolition of privately financed bigmoney political campaigns. Respite,ew years of recuperating from my exertions, i got involved in trying to stop a Nuclear Power plant here in vermont, which has been stopped. [applause] randy other people here have been involved in that. People,i am one of many including some here tonight, hit is involved who is involved in thinking about who does what is the role of direct action in stopping this huge pipeline that wants to destroy major pieces of land through towns all throughout massachusetts, to unneeded gased to profits for those corporations that want to build it. That is another issue and i think that people will talk about that in the discussion portion. I will share some observations and conclusions maybe. Learned fromi have the activity i just described. First, direct action is not the same as civil disobedience. Is involved,ience direct action can be a number of things, not just stopping things , which is a primary activity and i have been involved in a host of things. ,ut it can be in Creative Arts banners on hanging buildings, sculptures, street theater, you name it. Directct action with action, it is usually a key element for change, but it is rarely in my estimation able to pull off fundamental change. It is at best the element, the key elements, part of a wider and broader strategy for other things from neighborhood organizing, public education, initiating discussion. Dan said and vanessa said, there is a risk in direct action, especially when it involves civil disobedience, but the risk is always greater for people of color, women, for working class poor people, then it is for people like myself who privileged, male people. That is the way it is and it needs to be recognized. I want to also say that courage and passion are contagious. They are contagious. When people step out with courage, compassion, and taking risk inspires other people. It is key to building a movement. Some number of people always end up doing that and it spreads and it inspires. I want to mention some people have told many of us, why do you riskingisking arrest, time off from work, disrupting family life, for a direct action even when you know it will not do any good . You cannot fight city hall, it does not matter and so forth. I want to say that i have heard that many times. And i want to say that for me, passion, canrage, ever be said to be futile. Simply because we do not know which ripples grow out from what we do. In my life, and had a dramatic story, i was giving a speech at a conference, giving a talk. And i was talking about the fact i was arrested by the fbi and i was certainly on my way to federal prison for draft resistance and unbeknown to me there was a guy in the audience who happen to be dan ellsberg who later revealed to the public a topsecret pentagon paper, which most historians have said played a Critical Role in stopping the war. I did not know he was there, i did not know that he would hear something i said, he has written about this, what could any of us do more than what we are already doing, if we are willing . Study secret at the corporation had to be revealed to the public showing decades, of lies to the public and press about the war in vietnam. Infaced a possible 115 years prison. Nothing is futile. Another story, when i was in federal prison, a number of us, some of the older comics hotheads, weed us protest. Organize a a strike for better conditions. Finally, i went on my personal strike. Weeks later we had the first strike in 40 years. Guess who let it led it . You got it. The chicanos and the mexicans. You thought maybe this failed. But you never know down the road what these ripples are that go out. There are other examples i could give. I want to say over others is a key feature and should be a part of the direct action. We win when we get enough people not joining us, but at least , supporting us to pressure and force decisionmakers to change things. We always have to think what we do, how it will affect other people and will they run from us or will they join us. Finally, i want to say open and active nonviolence is also absolutely key. People are afraid of violence, most people are afraid of that. There is a reason if we want to win over others these filings. Violence. Not to use i also think that for me personally, it is both an ethical and a spiritual question. It is the way i want to read other people, even my socalled enemies, opponents. It coincides with my values and allows me to feel good about actions i do and to keep on doing it over the long haul. So the last thing is there is something called the law of ends and means. I regard it as a fundamental, universal law, which is we get not what we want, we get what we do. It is like chickens always come home to roost. What goes around, comes around. If we use violence somehow, somewhere, it will trigger counterviolence, and that is the sad tragic story of our country and the world. So i think that is one reason why we need to think about how we do things, not just what we do and what impact it has on others. Thank you. Mr. Clawson thank you very much. Our next speaker is paki. Ms. Wieland i want to note what i see is direct action, and that is any number of things. It is sometimes sitting in, marching, sometimes walking, just standing. And i remember once talking with one of my sisters in black lives matter, one of our black sisters, and i said, what do you want from me . She said, sometimes i want you to stand with me because your whiteness will protect me, or sometimes i want you to walk behind me. That is one of the keys, the person who seems to have at least privilege suffering the most, has to be , the voice we finally trust. When i think about direct action, think about the different actions i participate in, i realize one of the things that keeps me going is a sense of community i have. So what i have done tonight is i could talk to you not for 12 minutes i could talk to you for about 12 years about the power of community, but do not worry, i am not. We will do Something Better than that. I have brought along in my Little Sisters and raging grannies are here, and we are going to sing a song, because this is one of the things our community of raging grannies does, we sing. And we are passing out song sheets for you to join us in singing this song, because we are not doing a concert. We are doing one song. We thought, what is the best song to do right now right here . And the one that won the contest was the one about the pipeline that randy just talked about. So, diane, do you want to hit it . And please join in. If you are not singing, remember, pete seeger said that is just another way of doing harmony. [laughter] o, give us a home where the gas lines cant roam where pipelines are banned and our children can stand free of harm no pipelines for us across the states we will make a great fuss we will keep them we will shout mother earth comes first for us there are so many ways to make power these days from the wind and the sun dont you see . Lets stop hydrofracking and send them packing let trees be where they should be no pipelines to keep earth healthy and whole we have come here to say no fracking, no way mother earth [applause] ms. Wieland so not only was that a nice song, a wonderful rendition by the western mass gaggle, but you in singing that have become part of the community. I know some of us are in the community that opposes the pipeline, but any way we can emphasize our connections is a good thing. So thanks for singing along. That was just a couple of my minutes. So im paying attention. What i wanted to do was really spend a little time looking at how i came to this. My own story is that i grew up in new orleans. I was born in 1943. And some of your grandparents were born about that. Then. I was born in new orleans in 1943 in the apartheid south. It was an amazingly horrific time. And i did not know it because with the color of this skin, i was very privileged. But i had another dimension of my life, and that was with my parents, who were extraordinarily already quite advanced alcoholics. So where did i turn and where did i find support . And where i found support was in the church, in nuns and priests, who were strong people, who were caring people, who provided those early seeds of my appreciation of community. And not only were they nurturing and caring, but they were also the people who were aware of the Racial Injustice that was happening. And so it was through them that i learned about what was happening in the various dimensions of racism that you have all read about and know about and was actually there when we took the signs down, because in those days, believe it or not, we were working for integration. And we have come some way from that. But it was a step. And if i talk to my other friends, particularly white southerners who have also learned about how not only do the people of color suffer, but we did, because we bought a lie, and it has taken many years to undo those lies. That is just the early seeds. Since then, what i have come to realize is that we are in this world in a place of confluence, where all of our contexts matter. And it is so important, as i look at some of the students here and some of the not so students, and i realized that each of us is really located, is really embedded in where we came from in our own history, in our own stories. And in knowing those histories and knowing those stories we are informed to really participate in this present in much we find in which we find ourselves. And this is quite an extraordinary time in which we find ourselves. When randy and vanessa were talking about the press, once upon a time when we did activities, when we did action, i was remembering the part of the womens pentagon action, that that actually made the washington post. Today, we have got people at ferc, at the federal Energy Regulatory commission, right now, protesting, fasting, and i ensure you have read all about it, in even the daily New Hampshire gazette. We do not have a press that covers anything of substance. I will tell you a little story, something that happened last week. Down in washington, and on last tuesday, the day after labor day, there was a man who was speaking at the American Enterprise institute, aei. One of our friends dubbed it the american empire incorporated, which sounds like a good aei name. Anyway, dick cheney, whom some of you may remember, was giving the talk, and god knows what they were paying him, but he was giving a talk. And one of the young people a number of friends tried to get in, but only one person got in a young intern with code pink, who got on to the front row, and during mr. Cheneys speech she stood up with a banner that said arrest dick cheney he is a war criminal wow, that is pretty amazing. There was a man who was upset about this and went over to her and started pulling the banner away from her. And she did not let it go. And finally, he actually fell over, trying to take it away from her. Later in the day, and she was nicely escorted out, no arrests or anything. She was sitting down with us, talking about it, and she got a call from the press, who wanted to know, what was her workout exercise . [laughter] i mean, how irrelevant can you possibly be . That that was their question, not why were you here, how did you get in, what did you really want to do . How do you plan to hold this man who has committed innumerable war crimes not be held being held accountable by anybody . But the 21yearold young intern god bless her, her, huh . If we do not tell the stories, they do not get out. Im looking around at friends who have radio programs on our local lowpower Community Radio stations and know that that is where you are going to get your news, because you are not going to get it from forget fox but even abc and nbc, the big networks, youre just not going to get it. These are the pieces of news that we have to keep alive so that students today will know that it is not simply a question of, what is your exercise regimen . That is one of the pieces. The other i want to bring up, the issue for me of what i could call personalism, that i get distracted by numbers and statistics, how big is a pipeline, how many feet, how many millimeters. Im just not a mathematician. Isbut if my friend says this a really bad thing, and i want you to learn about it, and i want you to come and stand with me, ill do that. And i had the good fortune recently to be offered that kind father roy, who is the man who started the school of the americas watch. Thewe happened to be at same house one day. Tomorrowby the way, im going to the embassy, because theyre doing terrible there. To women theyve imprisoned women who had withrriages, charging them aggravated homicide and sending them to jail for 40 years. Withyou come and protest me . Randygod, its like with or any of my friends here. If you said this is a protest even jeff, if he said, would you come and do this protest with me . Would you come to the state house, because i trust you and i know you and i know what youre doing . Ill be there, if i possibly can. When black lives matter says were doing something, would you us . And stand with ill be there. And thats, i think, what were stand with oneo another, to sing in community, to be in community, and to keep moving, to keep shifting things. Are familiar with that Martin Luther king jr. Quote, the arc of the universe but it bends towards justice. Has everybody heard that . Well, i want you to know the that sentence, because the complete sentiment. This is a neutral arc. It only bends towards justice when we put our weight on it. So stay awake. Keep putting your weight on the arc. Justice. Owards and we will have the world that we know is possible. Thanks. [applause] so one very minor personal footnote before i turn the mic karen. My brother and i differ politics andin our a demonstration of that will be 6foot5 guy who tried to pull the banner away from fact myk was in brother. [laughter] our next speaker is karen gladden, talking about springfield, no one leaves, and a group that fights foreclosures. My name is karen gladden. And im a member of springfield leaves, an organization that helps people in their housing struggles. In 2006, tragedy struck my was killed in son an automobile accident. My mothers later, passed away. I became distraught and spiraled into depression. My depression over these events me. Umed and i was unable to return to work. Up all my shortterm disability and borrowed from my currenturance to stay with my mortgage. I had exhausted all my disability savings and access to, i had began to fall behind on my mortgage. I immediately contacted the bank to try to work out some type of arrangement to modify my loan to keep my home. Me inefused to work with any capacity to save my home and was to my only option sell my home. After years of fighting for my i foundmy own, springfield no one leaves. Alone, that i was not that there were hundreds of families in my city in some stage of foreclosure and that i had rights. Interactions with springfield no one leaves, i learned many things, particularly how the banks minorities, women and lowincome and working class people with their supreme and predatory lending policies, making housing for profit and not for people. The more involved i became with springfield no one leaves, the i saw the injustices that were happening in my community to families by the banks and the underlying systems that were happen. This to people were being evicted who could afford to pay a fair rent. Or have recovered from the could nowrisis and afford to buy back their homes at the current market value. Saw the banks just having no humility or compassion and putting children, elderly and ultimately families out on the streets. Making more and more homes instead ofy city, making money by accepting rent or working with families to let in their homes, they were ruining our neighborhoods community. In march of this year, it was announce at one of our meetings of our families had received a 48hour notice of eviction by a judge. The banks were moving to put a streets. T into the that family included a child, her disabled grandparents and her parents. Through my education with iringfield no one leaves, knew that this family, if evicted by the banks, would not a sheltere to go to and would be out living in the streets. A judge isntby proof that you are homeless. Arehave to show that you living in a car or on the streets. Not okay that i was with this and was going to do everything i possibly could to in their home. Y eviction blockade training facilitated by luke in springfield no one leaves to see what role i could play in keeping this family in their home. During this training, all roles could play in the blockade were laid out on the table, including the practice of disobedience. Even though i had never participated in civil before, i decided then and there that i believed movement that i was going to block the doors comrades, alfreda, emily, rose, and chris turner, of the owners of the home, and risk arrest. In our training, luke made sure to discuss and inform us of how andexperience was policed being arrested, how it could dir differ from one another, even though we were all going to be the same exact act of civil disobedience. We could be treated differently of the color of our skin, our gender and other disparities. It clear some of us could be held longer than others on the same reasons. I was not shocked by this information. As a black woman, were still facing the same disparities we had in the Civil Rights Movement during the 60s and 70s. And here we are in the year 2015. Of color, i was completely on the risks that i was taking by practicing civil disobedience. I didnt care. The thought of seeing a little twoyearold baby out living in overrode any fear or doubt that could possibly cloud my mind. Thought of another vacant home and another family pushed and madethe street homeless kept me from being scared or nervous. Ready. The first eviction blockade in march was called off due to a technical error by the bank that was caught by the judge when the for a stayd a motion of execution. April, the bank again served a family with a 72hour notice of eviction. After thousands of phone calls on behalf of the family, the off thein called eviction. Finally, in may, the family was again served with another 48hour notice of eviction. Calls to negotiate with the bank, another alternative to the scheduled eviction, the family was told that there was no alternatives to that they were going follow through with the scheduled eviction. The morning of the blockade, i woke up and i was angry and motivated to do what i felt was inht to keep the family their home. I knew that i had been properly been made aware of what i could possibly be facing that day. I didnt care that i was at a agher risk because i was black woman. I didnt care about the conditions i would face in the jail cell once i was processed. I was consumed on making sure family was not made inhumane and greedy banks. He gathered at the home at 7 30 morning as the eviction was scheduled for 9 00 a. M. That morning. Around 8 30 in the morning, the banks attorney kept driving streets forth along the and taking pictures with his the protesters gathered, who were quietly talking amongst each other and some coffee. As he passed the home we were defending. At 8 50 a. M. , the sheriff showed thet the home, handed family a notice, and promptly left the premises. The family met with springfield no one leaves organizers and they reviewed the paperwork that handed the had family. It was then announced that the filed attorney had foolish motion, stating that our which hadntest, even begun when the motion was handed to the family, was impeding the bank and that they felt their safety was at risk. Were unable to carry out scheduled lockout of the family. The court motion was asking a judge to allow the bank to violate state eviction laws by allowing the bank to carry out the family of without any notice to the family any date and time of their convenience. The family was to appear at a Court Hearing scheduled at 2 00 p. M. That afternoon to respond to the allegations made. Springfieldnd some no one leaves organizers left to against this foolish motion. The team prepared to practice civil disobedience stayed behind to defend it in case the bank showed up to carry out the scheduled eviction. That day, we were successful in theirg another family in home. With a another child roof over her head. We successfully kept an elderly disabled couple from being pushed out into the street. Day, bute battle that the war against the bank is ongoing and will continue until recognized that housing should not be for profit. A human right. [applause] and our last speaker is rose smith, also from springfield no one leaves. My name is rose. Member ofn a springfield no one leaves since when freddie mac foreclosed on my home. And i am still in my home. Still fighting to keep my home. And i will continue to fight even when a judge tells me that need to leave. [applause] so through my journey with springfield no one leaves, ive now become a community organizer. And i am on staff. In this movement so much 68,000 families in the state of massachusetts have lost their homes. 68,000 families are not eligible shelter because massachusetts has a law that states if you are a former you are evicted by the bank, youre not eligible for shelter. So we have thousands of families that are out in the street, which we believe is not correct. In the city of springfield, we over 1300 vacant homes. Theres no reason for anybody in homeless. To be there are plenty of vacant homes. Theres plenty of different we canbuildings that occupy and take over. My direct action that i have participated in is ive part of a national oflition that is made up fannie mae and freddie mac fighters. Really hardushing to get policy change. 60 of the mortgages in this owned byre backed or fannie mae and freddie mac and overseen by the fhsa, the Housing Finance agency, which is overseen by the federal government. So we believe that theres three demands that we want them to do. One is principle reduction. Families,llions of due to the housing bubble, that are underwater on their mortgages and will never have in their home. Theyll never have retirement. Bank believe that the should reduce the principal to thaturrent market value so people are out of the risk of losing their homes and falling into foreclosures. We also believe that you should be allowed to rent after foreclosure. Why make another home vacant and make your neighbors Property Values decrease, if you can afford to stay in the house . The banks have a practice of continue tothat we feel shame and another way of doing that is by evicting the family from the home forcibly. I have participated in civil disobedience in washington, where we shut down washington avenue, in front of the fannie mae offices. There, we moved and drove to virginia to the freddie and we protested out there. We drove to maryland andhe thenhead of the fhfa we held a protest and a pizza party in front of his home. Calling for the firing of evidence demark as he was not willing to push the fhfa to push fannie and freddie to work with the family. Since all of our direct actions mae and freddie mac, we have gotten significant changes. Fannie mae and freddie mac used to have an arms length deal meant that myself, i was not allowed to buy back my home. Come andre going to buy my home, you had to sign an length deal that you would not rent to me or anybody in my no contact with me, and that was the only way that you would be able to sign and that home. 2014, we have of gotten that policy changed. Process ofm in the buying back my home. [applause] fhfa have also gotten the to fund a National Trust for affordable housing. So which now contains millions of dollars to be able and maintain affordable housing. Theyow our push is that implement the use of it and not just let it sit in a bank account. Are also actively lobbying in nofault house for a eviction protection bill that former homeowners and makes the banks accept rent, unless theyre going to sell to toomeowner that is going occupy the property. So if they move to sell it to an have to accept your rent and they cannot nofault evict you, which means evicting you for no cause. Thepringfield, we passed strongest ordinance in the state, which included mandatory mediation. When mandatory mediation is implemented, it has a 98 that the bank and the homeowner can work out a deal that the homeowner will be in their home. Along with that, if the bank to mediate with the family, they will be charged a fine, up to 105 days, during the right to cure it creates sustainable income for the city of springfield to be able to maintain these vacant properties. It also requires the banks to 10,000 security bond on any home they move the foreclose on, so that if that home does become vacant, the upkeep of the property is taken off of the city and the taxpayers. Sued us. Course, so now we are, again, in boston bill that is clarifyn act to municipal authority, which will municipalities like springfield to be able to control and implement these to protect our cities and neighborhoods. Bit about me. Im a mother of two young children. Day, i have to be very careful if i want to maintain an active participant with my because ifeducation, i dont have a clean quarry, i able to chaperon field trips for my children. Classeso my childrens and i do talks on native i am partulture, as indian. And i do speak the language and i do all the nice speed work and all that stuff. Am always in my kids schools doing presentation on real native american culture. And ive taught dances to the children. Weve done all their socials. So when i choose to risk arrest, wont behe risk that i able to participate in my childs education the way i always have. So its always its a risk that i believe in, as much as i believe in participating in my childs education. I believe that everybody has a housing in this country. And i believe that it is a human right. For profit. Be [applause] weve had some terrific presentations. Now its time for audience comments, questions, so on. I think its best that people simply line up at the mic and ask their questions or make your comments. So dont be shy. Be the first begin by giving your name. My name is mary. Haves some terms that been used that i would like case d, just in turn on the mic. Its on. Its on. Name is mary. Terms. Res just a few i really enjoyed the presentations. And theres just a few terms id not clarified, because im here. Rybody could you clarify what a cory is, who fannie mae and freddie are . I know theyre not your relatives. To collect four questions or comments first, so hold on to that thought. Next . My direct action at this point is mainly limited to talking. But i do remember, to be to more state your name. Oh. Marin. Is stan so i do remember, in the 1980s, there was a movement right at this college. It was against apartheid in south africa. And its hard to visualize now 5,000 people, as many as 5,000, that attended studentllies from the body. And they say, in numbers, strength. And if you want to accomplish apartheid was put out of business in south africa, speak. I mean it ended that part of it. Then there were other problems. Anyway, apartheid ended. And i dont say it wasnt that action, but there were actions all over the world. So relating that to today, i think that i dont know what Eleanor Roosevelt would say if be aere here, but it would good idea to try to put an end to the high tuitions that people paying here in the college, you know. When i look at how much people went to college and lived debt,four years on that as much as that debt. Very gooduld be a thing to get started here, petitions, actions, that,trations, and all against the high tuition and the exorbitant exploitation that the students here are going through. And one more thing is organizing the student athletes. Theyre one of the most exploited people in the colleges. Players, women athletes, men athletes. They get concussions and everything else. Get injuries that last for life. And what do they get out of it . Their scholarship and they dont even play anymore. Thank you. [applause] name. Rt with your remember . My name is telen. Have the privilege of being the chair of the resistance studies here, which a new initiative where we are studying resistance in different forms. Im an activist and scholar at the same time. Ask about, in my direct action has a defining quality that we are to solve the problems ourselves. Going through legislators. Were not trying others to solve us. Problems for so that could be legal or that be civil disobedience. So in that understanding, for me aboutst, it is truly people power. So my question is, if you would an understanding of it. Thank you. Good evening. And this will be the last first round. Good evening. My name is jim cutler. Im from ashefield. Im a local antipipeline activist. But my history also includes antiwar,nd antinuclear, antinuclear arms. Ive seen is that indeed it is about numbers. It is about people. So my question tonight is, how panel see nonviolent pullt action as a way to in people of different political persuasions . Every one of you at that table fighting against basically the high minority positions of power, who are resources, whether its lives, from us, from the people. Do you see nonviolent direct cutting across political boundaries, color boundaries, wealth boundaries, to bring us together more as people who are facing this onslaught across the board against us and putting us position of defensiveness and loss . You. Thank you. So give the panelists a chance to respond. Up to twoist can take minutes. And maybe well start in the okay. E order, if thats so rose . And panelists can choose the to speak,if you want up to two minutes. Rose . Okay. Cory. Is a background check that includes credit criminal, basically its a complete background check gone through the police system. And then reports back to agency has asked for it. And fannie and freddie are giant basically mortgage guarantors. Theyre the reason why small brookshire or whatever, they back the loans, so that people can get mortgage loans. The entities behind the scenes. Most of the time, people think though your statement says u. S. Bank, a lot of the times, the u. S. Bank is just your servicer, and its fannie mae or freddie mac that own the actual note until you pay your mortgage off. Me quickly remind you of the questions. And this is going to be very brief. Ill remind you. Ill pass the mic down the table. The first one has in some sense been answered, so ill skip to the next three, which were about direct actions around tuitions and for student athletes. That a defining the quality of direct action, that trying to solve problems for themselves and what that,elists think about agree or disagree with that. And the third, to what extent or ways is direct action the way to pull people in, to cut across political boundaries mobilizing action . Okay. Morenk those were comments, stan, than questions, because i certainly dont have any answers for that. Appreciate the comments and encourage students and folks university and every institution of Higher Learning organize and well support them. Issues that were raised about the direct action i think its really a multifaceted thing. It certainly is it certainly can be, and weve and particularly in europe probably among the folks in mexico, where people have really taken over as part of their direct action. Think here, we havent evolved to that. Naming the problems. And i think maybe there are places where people have taken over. They thatainly springfield no one leaves i certainly think that springfield no one leaves is one of the places we could support people taking over. How many hundreds of empty homes springfield, and how many people who need homes . I think thats a Perfect Place todo it ourselves and not wait for the mayor of springfield or the city council to do something. That would be an excellent action to get involved in. I think the other thing, though, is that jims question or amments about building movement, i dont know if we get everybody right away. I mean, if we think about the vietnam war and how long it took masse it really became a even so mean, well just use that as one example. Part of ands i dont like to use the word itucation because i think has kind of a pejorative whentation, but i think people know what is happening to rivers,onwealth, to our to our land, to the place that love, that if theyre not awakened to it, we just need to it and doingabout something, just bringing it home, because i cant imagine living anywhere out here who has learned about what that pipeline will do that wouldnt be up in arms and wanting to do it. Thing to stop stan, i too have long thought warm my heartould and i would be prepared to help if there wereould uprising,loan tuition which has happened in other countries. As the father of a daughter who paying off her college loan now, 10, 15 years out of and she doesnt have as so many others, i think its just outrageous. If i meant to while nonviolent direct action can be key in any movement or campaign to its ultimate success, in most cases doesntnow of, it succeed without being embedded multipronged strategy that includes other things besides nonviolent direct action. Thats what i meant by it. But i agree with you that the direct action means that instead of hoping somebody else or appealing to somebody else to do something us, we take some action ourselves. Jim, i dontto know how you broaden the weve struggled with that in so many campaigns and movements ive been a part of. I think part of it, in addition to what paki said, we as what we do affects most of the people we know most, who are closest to us. Know people who are other than us, who are different dont have we connections of some kind, of and affection and inmunity, then were burning isolation, even if the issue seems to us to be one that everybody, quote, should be about. So i think its a question of personal contact and Building Community across lines. About the student loans, if could give me some money to pay those off, that would be great. Im with that. In terms of direct actions, i think that black lives matter empoweredtely like several people of color and bit ofinto a little mainstream media, which i think has been really significant and important. But also, with that, its a moment. , not a so we need to really talk about intersectionality. About women. Lk i didnt talk about trans women talk. Those issues need to be addressed. Marginalized people need to be leading our movements. We need to consciously be having these conversations. Just a speemp is going to a speech is going to happen, a direct action is going happen and solve everything. Its something we continuously need to work on. So. Question of that power,ed about people its springfield no one leaves, because it is a foreclosure have a sword and shield model that we use. Sword, which is our people power, our direct uprising anddirect the Community Coming together to defend the homes. Have our shield, which we believe every good offense needs a defense. With our direct actions, we try to develop laws and push for more laws to protect homeowners. And we use the direct actions to follow through in keeping those building up those protections for the people. Former president bill clintons First Campaign trip for Hillary Clinton in 2016 will be in New Hampshire, for a series of grassroots organizing monday, january 4. The former president is expected to discuss how his wife will make a difference across the country. Well bring that to you live on at 5 15beginning eastern on cspan. G. O. P. Tuesday, pauldential candidate rand pall will hold a town meeting. That will be live, starting at 6 our companionn network, cspan 2. Cspanseekend on cities tour, along with our well exable partners, ploiexplore the history and lity of oakland, california. Well visit the oldest, in black talk with Blanch Richardson about the stores history and its importance to a source ofy as information and a Meeting Place during the civil rights the history of marcus inkstore is that it started dr. Ray andarents, julian richardson. Offer thisse was to resource to the community, feeling that black people needed place to go where they could from other black people, mostly. So it was a service they were providing to the community but also to the community at large, more other cultures know about black people, the better it is for everybody as well. On American History t. V. , take a trip to oaklands and learnneighborhood about the history of the chinese in the east bay area. Wong, author of yellow journalist shares history of and his experience as a chinese american growing up in the chinatown neighborhood. In april of 1906, a huge andresake on the san fault destroyed records at San Francisco city hall. Birth and death records. Here was an opportunity for in the bay area, San Francisco and oakland to say, hey and deathrecords records, whether they were there in San Francisco or not, are no existent. Maybe we can come up with some and schemesme plans to tell the government that we born in San Francisco. The entire scheme that allowed chinese living in the United States to say that they were born here in the that they hadand children in china and they would like to sponsor those children in china and family in china to come to the United States. Of chinese came during the post1906 earthquake period, including my father. Cspanseekend, watch cities tour to oakland, beginning saturday at noon 2s book t. V. Pan and sunday afternoon at 2 00 on American History t. V. On cspan 3. The cspan cities tour, working with our able affiliates and cities across the countries. Former Clinton Administration Navy Secretary Richard Danzig keynote address at the 2015 usenix security symposium. Theffered thoughts on nature of cybersecurity and cyberthreats. Offered suggestions for how governments and private industry can improve their approach to cybersecurity challenges. Good morning. This by memory. I try to introduce the speaker. The case of richard, its impossible. So i have my cheat sheet here try to keep it very short. Formerard danzig was a secretary of the navy and a consultant to u. S. Intelligence defense agencies. And a member of currently a member of the defense policy board. The president s intelligence the homelandd and security secretaries advisory council. All. S not hes been a trustee of the wreath college and the rand theoration, a director of center for a new american director of a saffron hill ventures, a European Investment firm. In addition, he has recently been a director of the National Semiconductor corporation, and of the Human Genome Sciences listed on the nasdaq. And theres a few more things i think well be here for a while. Year, wrote a very influential, very thoughtprovoking report, which is one of the reasons we invited keynote speech. And i can tell