Naptown People’s Radio

The Rights of the Earth and Bring Shaka Home!

Helping thread together the many struggles facing the people and planet today, FTF KD joins this week's episode. He lets us know about a new podcast, "In the YO!," he's releasing soon (that will also be coming to you from the Indy Liberation Center).
China stands tall while Trump walks away with scraps. This week's Naptown Breakdown begins with Trump's recent visit with Chinese President Xi Jinping and the re-assertion of independence by the masses in Mali (and the broader Alliance of Sahel States) after numerous foreign-backed terrorist attacks. Closer to home, while the Indianapolis Office of Public Health and Safety is under the microscope, Co-hosts Dani Abdullah and Derek Ford recall how it was just two years ago that someone walked into the Liberation Center looking for help launching the Community Food Access Coalition. Although CFAC was enacted in 2021 by legislation as a grassroots-led group, until 2024 it operated as a way for Julie Burns to get grant funding for her own foundation. WIth the Liberation Center serving as a hub to form CFAC in May, the people formed CFAC on their own and forced the city to recognize it just months later.
Kristopher Nelson, aka FTF KD, who brought us up to speed on the reality of Data Centers during Season 1, is back. The many struggles Nelson's been involved in since moving to Indianapolis have pushed him to advocate for the rights of and to the Earth. Toward that end, he and J Hefe are launching a new podcast through the Liberation Center's studio. Learn more about the project's origins, goals, and how they align with those of the Center—and stay tuned for the first episode to drop!
In our latest installment of Dispatches from Behind the Wire, Shaka A. Shakur gives a brief overview of his case and current situation. The reality is that Shaka's served over 20 years of a 60-year plus sentence for an incident in which only an inanimate object was "injured." It's time to bring him home. Repeat. It's time to bring Shaka home!
Our Circle City Shout Out is back after a few weeks and it goes to Nasreen Kahn. Nasreen is a Martindale-Brightwood resident and an immigrant artist whose collaborative effort, Botanical Bodies, is currently on display at the Fonseca-Du Bois Gallery at the Liberation Center.
Show Notes:
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Why Are We Building a New, Genuine Communist Party?

Our 50th episode features two PSL organizers, one who founded the Indianapolis branch and another who joined two years ago.
As we worked out ideas for our 50th episode, we realized we hadn't spoken much about the organization behind the podcast: the Indianapolis branch of the Party for Socialism and Liberation. On this week's episode, hear co-host Derek Ford dialogue with Sam James, who co-founded the Indianapolis branch in 2018, and Honesty Gleaves, who joined in 2024. James gives insight into their decision to join the Party and the struggle that made them realize it was the right political home for them
While telling listeners about how she found out about the PSL, why she decided to join, how she became a member, the struggles she's led and supported over the last two years, Honesty and Derek examine some of the reasons why the Party is perhaps the most difficult kind of organization to build—and why it is absolutely necessary to serve as a vessel for eliminating capitalist imperialism, white supremacy, national chauvinism, and the forms of bigotry it promotes and reinforces.
If you're interested in learning more about the PSL, join us for our next public info session on Friday, May 22 from 6-8 pm at the Indianapolis Liberation Center. You can also apply to join now!
Events:Class 2: The Artist Must Take SidesExtras Needed for Movie Exposing Indiana Court CorruptionMay Mindfulness Meetups with Circle City SanghaReading with Comrades: Comrade of the Revolution: Selected Speeches of Fidel Castro (pt. 1)Sign the Petition: Justice for Jamar and Lamonte Thomas!
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What We Mean by "The System" and Why it Matters

This week we hear from Haki Shakur, National Spokesperson for the Provisional Government of the Republic of Afrika, on the state of the struggle for New Afrikan independence.
Before we get to the Naptown Breakdown, co-host Dani Abdullah makes plain why we at the Indy Liberation Center always keep the fight for Black Liberation center-stage and work to move it forward. We mean something specific when we refer to "the system:" it is an interlocking network of capitalist imperialism, national chauvinism, and national oppression/white supremacy.
Co-host Derek Ford starts the Naptown Breakdown with the latest major progressive development on the international stage: China breaking the US Naval Blockade on the Strait of Hormuz and refusal to recognize any US sanctions on Iranian oil. 
As the City-County Council imposes a stricter curfew for youth, stoking fears of a “violent summer,” Dani and Derek contend that, based on recent events, the IMPD needs to diminish their presence and we should prepare for a summer of police terror and lies.
Haki Shakur, National Spokesperson for the Provisional Government of the Republic of New Afrika and the August 3rd Collective, as well as a leading member of the New Afrikan Freedom Campaign and the Shaka Shakur Freedom Campaign, discusses his involvement in the struggle, why all Political Prisoners--but especially Black/New Afrikan Political Prisoners--must be central to liberation struggles, the origins of the New Afrikan nation and identity, and the ultimate goal: statehood. Throughout, Haki addresses common misconceptions about the broad-based movement that is increasingly attracting the younger generations.
Show Notes:
New Afrikan Freedom CampaignShaka Shakur Freedom CampaignHaki Shakur (X, FB, IG)
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The Resurgence of International Workers' Day in the U.S.

In our final segment in our May Day series, co-hosts Dani Abdullah and Derek Ford ask: How and why did May Day (or International Workers' Day), which originated in the U.S. in the late 19th century, only reappear in popular U.S. consciousness 20 years ago?
But first, the Naptown Breakdown follows up on several stories we've covered. The first is the IDOC settlement of roughly $1.2 million to 31 inmates who were forced to live in dark, dank cells with covered windows and no lights. Some of the cells had live wires hanging from the ceiling, resulting in electric shocks. The ACLU of Indiana filed the lawsuit around five years ago. Next, we pay tribute to two of our previous guests, Veronika Williams and Keanda Young who, at an April 2 press conference at the Indianapolis Liberation Center, broke the real story about the March 7 downtown robbery. Since then, the media has covered news of IMPD terror and brutality with at least a little bit of skepticism. Finally, we remind our listeners about who exactly VOP Osili is, the sexist regime he upheld, and his support for data centers.
Our main segment features an in-depth lesson and conversation on the history of May Day and the reasons for its resurgence in the U.S. exactly 20 years ago. We travel from the Chicago Haymarket Affair to the Founding Congress of the Second International all the way to the Sensenbrenner Bill.
Show Notes:
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The Recent, Hidden History of Labor Struggles in the Region

As we prepare for May Day 2026, producer Dakota Fronterhouse joins the show to discuss a recent incident in which several of his fundamental rights were defended by his union. First, co-hosts Dani and Derek turn to recent regional labor struggles, and particularly the historic 2011 battle in Madison, Wisconsin. During the early months of that year, workers occupied the Capitol Rotunda and took to the streets for 29 consecutive days to protest anti-union legislation. Along the way, they debunk some common myths about unions.
Derek interviews Dakota about his experience in the International Alliance of Theatrical Stage Employees Union. After working for several days on the floor of Lucas Oil Stadium, Dakota was questioned about his political affiliation. A union representative came to his defense almost immediately.
Next, Dani and Derek discuss just how expansive the concept of "worker" was for Marx and is for us. Contrary to the mythology that "Marx only cared about white male industrial workers," they show how, even in his book, Capital, Marx's concept of the working class includes those with or without jobs, with or without waged work, incarcerated or "free," etc.
Finally, this week's Circle City Shout Out goes to Danny Ortiz. We had Danny on the show a few episodes in which he let us know about the medical neglect taking place at Miami Correctional Facility, also known as the Speedway Slammer.
It takes guts, it takes revolutionary optimism, to speak up against the cops but even more so when you are behind enemy lines. He didn’t just speak about his own struggles–his enforced inability to get out of his bed for months, the cancelled visits–but about the other inmates, including the ICE inmates. He told us they banded together and that they were the ones who looked out for each other. Not only has he made a difference for listeners by raising our consciousness but there is now a lift in the facility.
A few days ago we received this word from Danny’s close friend, the last one to visit him: "Danny a/k/a Jose Ortiz and I want to thank everybody for calling/and or emailing the IDOC regarding the broken Hoyer Lifts as the problem has now been rectified as a new Lift came in this week at Miami for the medical unit inmates."
There are still so many changes that need to be made towards the treatment of our brothers and sisters behind enemy lines, but Danny has shown us an amazing example of what it can looks like, what it takes to be a revolutionary. And for our listeners, never forget that small acts like making calls and emailing can result in victories that are both small and significant.
Shout out to Danny Ortiz!

Elkhart Community Outraged after Cops Kill 17-Year-Old

Kayla Cowels, an organizer in Elkhart, Indiana joins the show this week to discuss the Feb. 8 killing of 17-year-old Bryan Ramirez Gomez, who died after cops Nicholas Ragsdale and Thomas Breneman shot him in a park.
Prompted by the April 8 nationwide day of action against the U.S. war on Iran, Dani Abdullah opens up our Naptown Breakdown by asking her co-host Derek Ford why, with all of the issues we face in this city, it's still necessary to keep up the fight to end the war. Their discussion brings out several reasons why we must keep the global situation in mind in our analysis and actions. They also cover the long-standing epidemic of fires in Indiana State Prison that have killed several inmates and are finally getting media attention before touching on Joe Hogsett's attempt to put the final nail in the coffin on Indianapolis' public schools.
For our main segment, Dani speaks with Kayla Cowels. A mutual and direct aid organizer in the Elkhart area and a PSL member, Kayla are other comrades are working closely with the family to get justice for Bryan Ramirez Gomez. That justice includes countering the Elkhart police department's lies and attempts to slander Gomez. Kayla speaks about who Bryan really was, describing his compassionate nature and outgoing personality, before addressing ways that listeners can help in the struggle.
Dani gives the Circle City Shout out to Haki Kweli Shakur, an organizer, historian, and revolutionary leader in the New Afrikan Independence Movement. In addition to serving as the National Spokesperson for the Provisional Government of the Republic of New Afrika and for the August 3rd Collective, Haki is playing an active role in building the New Afrikan Freedom Campaign, a new initiative that is increasingly attracting younger people to the struggle for liberation.
Support Justice for Bryan:
Petition for an Independent Investigation for Bryan Axel Ramirez-GomezFamily GoFundMeVolunteer Signup FormVolunteer Contact: J4B.LLB@gmail.com
Show Notes:
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Free Lamonte Thomas Now! Justice for Jamar Thomas!

We're honored to have Veronika Williams and Keanda Young, loved ones of Jamar and Lamonte Thomas, join Naptown People's Radio this week to debunk the IMPD's lies and correct the media's narratives about the March 7 shooting downtown.
Our Naptown Breakdown covers IMPD Patrol Officer Gary Francis Hadden's assault on Noah Leininger, one of the organizers of the anti-ICE protest over the weekend. After an unknown man grabbed Leininger "rudely and insolently" before stealing his microphone, he saw it was a cop. Hadden told Leininger to give his badge number (H8306) and doubled-down when nearby City-County Councilor Jesse Brown asked him to do the same. As an organizer with a decade of experience in the city, Leininger told the cops “I'm sure this is not going to go anywhere. I have I have no faith in this, resulting in any discipline for this guy, but sure, I’ll try.” Hadden tried telling Leininger he needed a permit for the assembly, which wasn’t true. Nor was the demonstration blocking any points of ingress or egress for passersby and the roads were open for pedestrians. It was clearly the topic of the protest that triggered Hadden and his blue line.
There's good reason to keep in the streets against ICE. On April 27, ICE confirmed Tuan Van Bui, a 55-year-old immigrant, died the at the Miami Correctional Facility in Indiana. According to an ABC News analysis of ICE data, this marks the 46th documented death of an immigrant detainee held in federal custody during the first 14 months of the second Trump presidency. We emphasize documented because we have heard from previous show guest Josi "Danny" Ortiz that he has seen his fellow inmates of whatever status rolled out as he was told it was "natural causes."
Our main segment features Stephen Lane, of the Indiana Black Librarians Network and PSL Indianapolis, interviewing Veronika Williams and Keanda Young about the story the police tried to bury and the media made no efforts to contest. The enlightening interview occurred just after the press conference organized by the Thomas family and the Indianapolis Liberation Center on April 2, which was the first time the media heard the truth. Veronika and Keandra came tot he Center to get the truth out there because after the shooting on March 7, one of their loved ones is dead, another is in police custody, and the still-unidentified white man who shot and killed Jamar Thomas is walking the streets as a free man.
The IMPD's narrative is simple: Jamar and Lamonte allegedly tried to rob a man with a gun. The shooter, still unidentified, claimed self-defense. And as a result, Jamar is dead, and Lamonte is locked up. In this interview, Lane dives into the remarkable discrepancies in the IMPD's accounts. We learn their "eyewitnesses" were friends of the shooter (although he met them as early as that night) while Veronika and Keandra affirm that the IMPD made no attempt to get any testimony from the Thomas family. Together, they reveal the numerous reasons why the IMPD's narrative, which the media has up until now parroted, is 100 percent false. Jamar and Lamonte Thomas engaged in an act of bravery against a drunk man brandishing a weapon in downtown Indianapolis at 2:00 am and threatening to "kill whoever." Jamar died a hero, Lamonte remains locked up as a hero, and the real criminal and his conspirators (the IMPD) continue walking the streets with guns and arms. 
Dani gives this week's Circle City Shout Out goes to Sammy Penaloza, the featured artist this month in the Fonseca-Du Bois Art Gallery powered by Arte Mexicano en Indiana. Sammy was born in LA but has called Naptown his home since 2006. He has been painting since childhood and has had his work featured at the Harrison Center. During a time of turmoil within the world as a whole, Sammy’s work challenges us to stay in touch with our humanity–to feel—to confront the things that are hard to put into words and experience them intensely. Come by the Center anytime during open hours to spend time with this beautiful yet demanding body of work.
As always, before wrapping up we mention some upcoming events at the Indy Liberation Center. We encourage you to sign up for our weekly newsletter not only to stay updated but in case we or another member-group have to mobilize our people for another emergency actions, demonstrations, or other interventions.
Events:
The Whispering Shelf and Indy Hope Packages Team UpFinal Meeting: Collective Study of Paulo Freire's Pedagogy of the OppressedCircle City Sangha Mindfulness MeetupEmancipatory Motions: Yoga for LiberationIntern with the Liberation Center this Summer!
Show Notes:
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Dr. Meleeka Clary Keeps Up the Fight Against Court Corruption

Director, clinical psychologist, actress, model, paralegal, and activist Dr. Meleeka Clary joins the show this week to discuss her 16-year long battle against her ex-husband and the Indiana courts.
Our Naptown Breakdown starts with two encouraging updates. First we hear a message from Shaka A. Shakur that he sent after finally receiving a copy of his book, Manifestations of Thought: When the Dragon Comes (1804 Books). Up next is an update from our phone zap for Jose “Danny” Ortiz, who alerted us to ongoing medical neglect at Miami "Correctional" Facility. We received confirmation that an Ombudsman is going to Miami prison to investigate the situation. However, we need to keep the pressure on so be sure to keep calling, emailing, and sharing the phone zap. Finally, co-hosts Dani Abdullah and Derek Ford discuss another incident of the IMPD lying and highlight a press conference by the family of Lamonte and Lamar Johnson hosted by the Indy Liberation Center on April 2.
For our main segment, Dr. Clary speaks on what compelled her to write, direct, and act in her award-winning film, "Three Corners of Deception," which is partially based on her own experience and available for streaming on Prime. For over 16 years, her ex-husband, Attorney Michael Gosh, has conspired with various judges to stalk, attack, and bankrupt Dr. Clary. This entire time, she has fought vigorously. In 2024, ANSWER Indiana and other member-groups of the Indy Liberation Center joined her struggle. Dr. Clary is now going on the offensive, and she and Derek discuss how Gosh and his latest collaborator, Attorney Jane G. Cotton, illegally and absurdly used a copyrighted image of Dr. Clary against her. As the interview was recorded before her March 27 court date, toward the end of the show we receive an update based on one of our organizers who attended the hearing with Dr. Clary.
This week's Circle City Shout Out goes to the Quills Coffee Shop workers who recently unionized their shop on 941 N. Meridian St. Baristas are now  part of Service Employees International Union branch 32BJ SEIU. Quills' workers remind us of what people can do when we come together and organize.
Events:
Phone Zap: End Medical Neglect at Miami CFFirst Friday: Exploring the Extremes with Sammy PenazolaCircle City Sangha Mindfulness MeetupPedagogy of the Oppressed: Collective Study Meeting 3Sunday Yoga for LiberationSummer ’26: Intern with the Indianapolis Liberation Center
Show Notes:
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Revolutionary Women and Medical Crisis at "Miami Correctional Facility"

Our third episode celebrating Women's History Month feature includes co-hosts Dani Abdullah and Derek Ford discuss more of their women revolutionary heroes and an urgent segment of "Dispatches from Behind the Wire" where we hear from an inmate at Miami Correctional Facility about the horrendous and routine medical neglect he and his fellow inmates–including ICE detainees–face on a daily basis.
First, our Naptown Breakdown pinpoints two ways the state is preparing for possible social and political unrest. Gov. Mike Braun signed HB 1343, enabling him to command a police force that answers directly to him through our National Guard. Starting July 1, Braun can use these forces without the consent of local elected officials. The state of Indiana does not need even one more cop, especially here in Indianapolis with our regular increases to the police budget. This will give more money to the cops who tailed 17-year-old Trevion Taylor, a Black youth, and his friends after they left an anti-ICE protest at Warren Central School. They pulled the car over and immediately threatened to kill him. Out of the 11 cops involved, only one is under "internal investigation" for aggressively yelling "I will kill you!" at Taylor. As of the last reporting, the cop remains protected behind the shield of anonymity. Further, the officers involved have 809 uses of force incidents per the IMPD. We know that thanks not to the IMPD’s intentionally misnamed transparency portal but through MaskOff12.com.
Dani and Derek dive deeper into the prison boom in Indiana that's flying under the radar of the mainstream press. When they broke ground in late 2023 on the New Northwest Correctional Facility, the budget already skyrocketed from $600,000 to $1.27 billion. DOC officials said it would replace the current Northwest Correctional Facility and the notorious Indiana State Prison just under 20 miles away in Michigan City. Now, DOC officials are walking that statement back. According to the Indianapolis Capital Chronicle, they intend to keep ISP fully operational for an indefinite period of time. That means they intend to lock even more of our neighbors for longer periods of time. The IDOC website makes perfectly clear, writing their "population numbers will go back up" and their "releases are decreasing."
For the main segment, Dani and Derek share more of the women revolutionaries who inspire them the most. This week, Dani picked Nguyễn Thị Bình, who fought as a leader and diplomat during the French colonial occupation and later joined the National Liberation front (or Viet Cong), rising to join the Central Committee and to serve as Vice-Chairperson of the South Vietnamese Women's Liberation Association. Once the Vietnamese won the war, she was part of the delegation to the Paris Peace Conference and is the sole woman who signed the 1973 Peace Accords officially declaring the Vietnamese triumph over U.S. imperialism. She is still politically active today.
Inspired by Haki Kweli Shakur, a New Afrikan organizer, historian, and fellow-member of the Shaka Shakur Freedom Campaign, Derek picked Queen Mother Audley Moore. Her life, which spanned from 1898 to 1997, witnessed a century of the Black (and later, New Afrikan) Liberation struggle in the U.S., and played a pivotal role in linking the earlier phase of the Black struggle in the 1920s-30s to the next iteration in the 1960s-1970s. Derek discusses the basics and social conditions of her political development, from her attraction Marcus Garvey's Universal Negro Improvement Association and her long membership in the Communist Party USA, which she joined after the International Communist Movement adopted the "Black Belt Thesis" in 1928. Within two years, she was one of the most important members of the CPUSA's Upper Harlem Branch, a role she used to forefront the struggles of Black people and women. She built personal and political relationships with Claudia Jones and other leading Black women. However, as this progressive trend within the Party grew the Party leadership started downplaying the Black Belt Thesis, eventually liquidating the line altogether. She left in 1950 and the exact reasons remain unknown. After all, this was long after the Party retreated from their revolutionary line on Black and women's liberation.
Dani and Derek discuss her key role in determining the designation of "New Afrikans." As one former escort to Queen Mother recalled, she would often say: "Chinese are from China, Germans from Germany," but there is no "Black country," so our territorial basis for our nation is Afrika, but one formed throughout a particular social development. They also touch on the many ways she expressed her feminism, from her presence and command to her belief that the new nation should include polygamy and the right of men to marry multiple women. development. Finally, they touch on how the CP's political form of organization continued to inform her organizing efforts throughout her life.
Stay with us for an urgent segment of "Dispatches from Behind the Wire," where we speak directly with Jose "Danny" Ortiz who details the inhumane medical neglect he and his fellow inmates continue suffering at the Miami "Correctional" Facility's medical ward. The Hoyt lifts have been down since December 2025. The first time Ortiz got out of his bed was for a visit in March where several guards had to help him into a wheel chair. Around 10 inmates have been impacted by this situation, which deprives them of attending church, interacting with fellow inmates, accessing the law library, participating in educational programs, and more. His fellow inmates are forced to lie in their own urine and fecal discharge for days.
Meanwhile, the ICE detainees don't have access to toilets at all. The guards told them not to interact with the detainees, but in a minor yet significant act of solidarity they let them use their restrooms as they please. Their attempts to divide inmates are failing but this does nothing to alleviate the intense suffering of callous "Correctional Officers," and prison administrators.
We can change this! See the show notes for a phone and email-zap campaign to ensure our people behind bars are treated with dignity and respect! This is a longstanding and easily-correctable issue. We won a minor victory after discovering an inmate subjected to similar treatment at the same prison in May 2025. 
Events:Phone/Email Zap: End Medical Neglect at Miami Correctional Facility!Pedagogy of the Oppressed Reading Group (pt. 2)Sunday Liberation Center YogaSummer ’26: Intern with the Indianapolis Liberation Center
Show Notes:
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Women Revolutionaries to Inspire a New Generation

In our second episode celebrating Women’s History Month, co-hosts Dani Abdullah and Derek Ford bring one of the women revolutionaries they study and admire to the table, women who made significant contributions to the anti-imperialist struggle through united fronts, in the theoretical and practical terrains. They didn’t share their choices with each other, so what results is a spontaneous and authentic dialogue that is informative, relevant, and at times amusing. As Dani says, this episode of Naptown People’s Radio hopes to inspire a new struggle of women in America and across the world and heighten their consciousness of the need for a militant, unified campaign around the burning demands of the day.
First, however, our Naptown Breakdown starts with the massive $4 billion data center approved by the Metropolitan Development Commission on March 18. Our hosts note how even a quick scan of media coverage on data centers in Indianapolis shows widespread opposition and zero support from the people. The Sabey Corporation’s petition to build a massive center in Decatur Township—a proposal that the Decatur Township Civic League rejected last month with a vote of 95 opposed and two in favor—passed narrowly with the support of Indy Economic Development Inc., an entity tied to the city government and chaired by Mayor Joe Hogsett. The only remaining procedural obstacle concerns the precise economic incentives Hogsett and his economic development gang will offer Sabey; what kind of obstacle the people will pose remains an open question.
The escalating U.S. war on Iran hit home on March 12 when a service member from Indiana was killed during a refueling mission to support operations against Iran. Seth Koval of Mooresville is among the hundreds of U.S. service members killed and thousands wounded as the war enters its third week. To defend its sovereignty, in the first week Iran destroyed 150 missile launch platforms, 23 Patriot Air Defense Systems, 36 aircraft and helicopters, and almost 50 percent of the U.S.’s weapons stockpiles. At the time of recording, the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC) shot down a U.S. Air Force F-35 stealth fighter jet operating in Iranian airspace. Iran’s military also struck down over 100 drones since the latest attack began and the U.S. is set to deploy thousands more “boots on the ground” in an unpopular and illegal war that is directly against the interests of the people of the U.S.
The contemporary moment in which the U.S. no longer maintains unipolar dominance over the world order is similar to the era in which our two featured revolutionaries organized. In the main segment, Derek leads a discussion about Naptown’s own Shirley Graham before Dani turns to one of Graham’s contemporaries, Trinidadian-born Claudia Jones. The two concentrate on Shirley Graham’s influence on her second husband, W.E.B. Du Bois (particularly her role in correcting his early support for Japanese colonialism in China and Korea) and position Graham as a mother who helped shepherd the next generation of New Afrikan/Black revolutionaries in the U.S.
Shirley Graham and Claudia Jones were not only good friends but close comrades in the Communist Party. Across this part of the segment, Dani highlights Jones’ theoretical work, including her theory of “super-exploitation” of Black women workers, and its political implications. Dani and Derek show the key distinctions between Jones’ politics and contemporary “politics” of intersectionality before discussing her comradely political critiques of the CPUSA during its later years when it abandoned the struggle for Black liberation in the U.S. Throughout the segment, our co-hosts highlight how Graham and Jones can help inform today’s efforts to organize a revolutionary socialist and anti-imperialist movement.
Finally, the Indy Liberation Store (which is part of and helps support the Indy Liberation Center) is honored to be among the 37 bookstores featured in the 2026 Indy Indie Book Crawl between March 18 – 22. Listen to the end to hear about this weekend’s extended Store hours and special programming at the Indianapolis Liberation Center.
Events:
Indy Liberation Store: Indie Indy Book Crawl Extended HoursPedagogy of the Oppressed: Study Group IPatriarchy, War, and Homelessness: Indy Hope Packages AssemblyPoetry as Protest Open Mic NightLiberation Forum: War is a Women’s Issue at Home and AbroadSummer ’26: Intern with the Indianapolis Liberation Center
Show Notes:
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Beyond Mutual Aid with Rissa Wilson

Our first episode in celebration of Women's History Month features social worker and Indy Hope Packages coordinator Rissa Wilson.
After co-hosts Dani Abudllah and Derek Ford provide a quick history of the socialist origins of Women's History Month, Rissa and Dani provide an overview of Indy Hope Packages before getting into the finer details. They discuss how they took inspiration from the Black Panther Party's community outreach program, the distinction between mutual aid and direct political-aid," and their 10-Point Program and how it guides their work. Because Hope Packages was born after the successful defeat of a local anti-homeless ordinance in fall 2020, the two also provide updates on Indiana Senate Bill 285. The Bill, which became a law on March 5, criminalizes homelessness and gives the cops free reign to fine, arrest, and harass our homeless neighbors.
Indy Hope Packages and other organizations are fighting back. One way for young people to get involved is to intern at the Indianapolis Liberation Center this summer. Applications are open and will be considered on a rolling basis. Apply today!
"The Breakfast for Children program. We are running it in a socialistic manner. People came and took our program, saw it in a socialistic fashion not even knowing it was socialism. People are gonna take our program and tell us to go on to a higher level... Not theory and theory alone, but theory and practice. The two go together." - Fred Hampton on the Black Panther Party's community programming.
Show Notes:
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What's Iran's Real Crime? Indy Hits the Streets

On this special episode, co-hosts Dani Abdullah and Derek Ford provide the broader context necessary for understanding why progressives must take a firm anti-war stance and support Iran's right to self-determination. And after several months Shaka A. Shakur is back for another segment of "Dispatches from Behind the Wire" to remind us to defend oppressed nations in the u.s. and urges us to learn from the people of Minneapolis.
On the heels of the latest U.S. acts of war against Iran, one of which included the illegal assassination of Ayatollah Ali Hosseini Khamenei, the people of Indianapolis mobilized emergency demonstrations days apart. Both were part of nationwide coordinated days of action across the country to demand an end to U.S. aggression against Iran and to defend Iran's right to self-determination and national sovereignty.
Given Iran's political, military, and economic strength, as well as their historical record of defying attempts at foreign intervention, the prospects for a regional or even larger-scale war are real and dangerous. At the same time, both Democratic and Republican parties not only support but have engaged in acts of war against the Iranian people. As recent as 2024, the Biden administration agreed with, if not supported, Israel's illegal bombing of the Iranian Consulate in Syria, which killed dozens of Iranians. In 2021, Biden's administration dropped bombs on Iranian military advisers in Syria. The only matter up for debate concerns the means to overthrow the legitimate government Iran and replace it with one subservient to U.S. interests.
Abdullah and Ford discuss the reasons why, ever since the 1979 Iranian Revolution, the U.S. political establishment has maintained a consensus that it must be reversed. They also cover the contradictory character of the revolution and the current Iranian government, covering both its progressive and reactionary character and history. Along the way, they bring to light unknown and downplayed acts of solidarity between Iran and oppressed nations across the world and here in the u.s.
We are excited to hear from our comrade Shaka A. Shakur, who returns for our "Dispatches from Behind the Wire" segment after several months spent on lockdown at River North Correctional Facility. Shaka calls for education about and organizing against the new $1.2 billion prison under construction in Westville, Indiana, the site of the world's second Super-Maximum Security Prison. Shaka and Derek discuss the relationship between mass incarceration, imperialism, and ICE terror. Finally, Shaka provides talking points to help bring everyday people outraged at the Trump regime into the struggle, thereby creating the broader mass movement required to achieve the social transformation we need.
If you support Indy's only independent, anti-war, and socialist podcast, please like, leave a comment, share, and donate to help build the struggle!
Show Notes:
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