By Steve Halpern
In the past few months, the Israeli government has murdered over 34,000 Palestinians and about half of that number were children. Students at Columbia University protested this genocide and the administration at the school ordered their arrest. After this incident students at about 200 universities joined this protest and erected tent encampments.
On May 4, 1970, students at Kent State University were protesting the war against Vietnam. The National Guard opened fire with live ammunition and murdered four students. Students across the country shut down universities protesting these murders.
On May 15, 1970, students at Jackson State University were protesting the invasion of Cambodia during the war against Vietnam. City and state police fired on the demonstrators and murdered two students.
On August 29, 1970, 20,000 to 30,000 Chicanos participated in the National Chicano Moratorium. They were protesting the disproportionate number of Chicano deaths in the war against Vietnam. The police attacked the demonstration and chased the demonstrators.
Ruben Salazar was born in Juarez, Mexico and worked his way up to become a columnist for the Los Angeles Times. He also had a program on the KMEX radio station. He became a prominent voice who documented the systemic racism the Chicano community was routinely exposed to.
A sheriff entered a bar where Salazar retreated from the police officers who attacked the demonstration. That sheriff murdered Salazar with a teargas canister. Two other Chicanos were murdered by the police on that day.
A school, a library, and a U.S. postage stamp were all named for the memory of Ruben Salazar.
On December 9, 1981, police officers arrested Mumia Abu Jamal on charges of murdering police officer Daniel Faulkner. For over 40 years Mumia has maintained his innocence on that charge and has won international support demanding his freedom.
Mumia routinely reported on the police violence directed against the Black community in Philadelphia. Because his reporting was controversial, he needed to supplement his income by driving a taxi. It was while he was driving a taxi that he was charged with murder.
In the genocide against the Palestinian people in the Gaza Strip, the Israeli Defense Force murdered over 100 journalists. Those journalists were reporting the unimaginable horror the Palestinian people are experiencing today.
Over the years I’ve listened to people who question why the so-called news media is so slanted in this country. These few paragraphs illustrate how the news media, and the universities find ways to suppress the reporting of relevant news.
However, today those who oppose the genocide against Palestinians are finding ways to uncover the news the power brokers are determined not to report.
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