Yes, Dr. King was a Revolutionary

Wildstyle Paschall joins the show in advance of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Day to reclaim the real legacy of Dr. King by situating his organizing, leadership, diplomatic moves, and theories in their proper context.

The Naptown Breakdown begins with Saturday's emergency demonstration in solidarity with Renee Nicole Good and all those killed by ICE and the State. The Indianapolis demonstration was one of hundreds across the country and, at the protest, one speaker asked where our "city" "leaders" are and what they plan to do about ICE's reign of terror. The people forced Hogsett to respond, as reported in Mirror Indy on January 9. Hogsett refused to take any responsibility and said it is "somebody else's decision." He ended by saying "people are frightened and I'm aware of that." But as our co-hosts Dani Abdullah and Derek Ford note, the people are not afraid, which is why so many took to the streets on January 8. Perhaps it won't be Hogsett's decision after all: it will be the people's decision.

The guest in the main segment is Wildstyle Paschall, a community advocate, skater, and Indiana historian with whom the PSL and groups at the Indy Liberation Center have been honored to struggle alongside for years. Paschall and Abdullah chop it up about the real history of Dr. MLK Jr. They show in detail how, as Lenin put it:

"During the lifetime of great revolutionaries, the oppressing classes constantly hounded them, received their theories with the most savage malice, the most furious hatred and the most unscrupulous campaigns of lies and slander. After their death, attempts are made to convert them into harmless icons, to canonize them, so to say, and to hallow their names to a certain extent for the 'consolation' of the oppressed classes and with the object of duping the latter, while at the same time robbing the revolutionary theory of its substance, blunting its revolutionary edge and vulgarizing it."

This week's Circle City Shout Out goes to all of the donors and sustainers for PSL Indianapolis, the Liberation Center, and our fellow member-organizations there. We just launched a fund drive to help cover the costs of our recent move and increasing costs in general, so please give what you can, become a sustainer, and ask a friend to become one. We don't accept foundation or government grants. The only way we can maintain our political independence is by relying on our people, and we thank you for showing out so far!

A few of the events mentioned at the end of the episode include:

• Wed., Jan 14, 6 pm @ Indy Liberation Center: "New Year's Resolution: Let's Build a New System!" An info session hosted by the PSL.
• Sat., Jan 17, 9:30 am @ Indy Liberation Center: "Circle City Sangha Mindfulness Meetup."
• Sat., Jan 17 @ 2 pm @ Indy Liberation Center: "Reading Capital: A Collective Study (Session 3)."

Show Notes:

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