Between The Lines - "Hands Off Appalachia" Protesters Target Swiss Bank UBS for Role in Financing Mountaintop Removal Coal Mining (Week Ending Dec. 13, 2013)

Award-winning Investigative Journalist Robert Parry (1949-2018)

Award-winning investigative journalist and founder/editor of ConsortiumNews.com, Robert Parry has passed away. His ground-breaking work uncovering Reagan-era dirty wars in Central America and many other illegal and immoral policies conducted by successive administrations and U.S. intelligence agencies, stands as an inspiration to all in journalists working in the public interest.

Robert had been a regular guest on our Between The Lines and Counterpoint radio shows -- and many other progressive outlets across the U.S. over four decades.

His penetrating analysis of U.S. foreign policy and international conflicts will be sorely missed, and not easily replaced. His son Nat Parry writes a tribute to his father: Robert Parry’s Legacy and the Future of Consortiumnews.

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The Resistance Starts Now!

Between The Lines' coverage and resource compilation of the Resistance Movement

"The man who predicted Trump presidential win now says Trump impeachment could happen," AM Joy with Joy Reid, MSNBC, Jan. 21, 2018
"Sketchy Kazakh money finds its way into Trump dealings," The Rachel Maddow Show, MSNBC, Jan. 15, 2018
"Red flags seen in many Trump real estate deals," The Rachel Maddow Show, MSNBC, Jan. 15, 2018
"Secret Money: How Trump Made Millions Selling Condos To Unknown Buyers," BuzzFeed, Jan. 12, 2018
"The Scandals of Donald Trump: Presidential Edition," The Atlantic, May 15, 2017
"Here's what we know so far about Team Trump's ties to Russian interests," Washington Post's ongoing compilation
"What Comey Was Investigating, Explained," The Moscow Project, Center for American Progress

"Donald Trump's Financial Ties to Russian Oligarchs and Mobsters Detailed In Explosive New Documentary from the Netherlands," Dutch TV documentary, Alternet.org, May 12, 2017
Ongoing compilation of Trump's creeping authoritarianism," MotherJones.com
Full resource list ...

SPECIAL REPORT: "The Resistance - Women's March 2018 - Hartford, Connecticut" Jan. 20, 2018

Selected speeches from the Women's March in Hartford, Connecticut 2018, recorded and produced by Scott Harris

SPECIAL REPORT: "No Fracking Waste in CT!" Jan. 14, 2018

Jen Siskind Jennifer Siskind, local coordinator for Food and Water Watch, describes the campaign to stop fracking waste in Connecticut, which so far has led to fracking waste bans in 34 towns around the state. Interviewed by Richard Hill on Mic Check, WPKN Radio, Bridgeport, CT

SPECIAL REPORT: "Resistance Round Table: The Unraveling Continues..." Jan. 13, 2018

Lindsay Kanaly The panel discusses Trump's long history of racism and the Republican voter suppression juggernaut confronting Democrats leading up to the 2018 elections. Special guest: Lindsay Kanaly, a lead organizer of the Women's Marches planned for Jan. 20, 2018. Panel: Scott Harris, Ruthanne Baumgartner and Richard Hill on Resistance Roundtable, WPKN Radio, Bridgeport, CT.

SPECIAL REPORT: "Capitalism to the ash heap?" Richard Wolff, Jan. 2, 2018

Richard Wolff, Economics professor Richard Wolff declares U.S. capitalism to be beyond repair and suggests the need for a radical alternative. Interviewed by Richard Hill

SPECIAL REPORT: Maryn McKenna, author of "Big Chicken", Dec. 7, 2017

Maryn McKenna, investigative journalist and author of Big Chicken, talks about the widespread use and dangers of antibiotics in commercial poultry, beef and fruit production. Interview by Bill Duesing, Richard Hill and Guy Beardsly on WPKN's Organic Farm Stand.

SPECIAL REPORT: Nina Turner's address, Working Families Party Awards Banquet, Dec. 14, 2017

Nina Turner, president of Our Revolution, talks about the fight ahead for progressives as she receives the Working Families Organization Award for Exceptional Leadership Towards Advancing Progress. The event was held in Meriden, CT. Produced by Richard Hill.

SPECIAL REPORT: Mic Check, Dec. 12, 2017

Working Families Party of CT talks strategy and issues for 2018.
Lindsay Farrell, executive director of the Working Families Party of Connecticut, discusses the state's electoral landscape and lays out the issues and strategies that could lead to progressive victories in 2018. Interviewed by Richard Hill.

SPECIAL REPORT: Resistance Roundtable, Dec. 9, 2017

Disturbing developments in the Trump/Republican Agenda
Focus on the tax bill, destruction of our public lands, North Korea and Trump's private CIA. Panel: Scott Harris, Ruthanne Baumgartner and Richard Hill. Special guest: Jo Macallero of Rise and Resist.

SPECIAL REPORT: On Tyranny - one year later, Nov. 28, 2017

Professor Timothy Snyder, author of the highly acclaimed resistance manual On Tyranny, discusses his book and offers a fresh assessment of the state of our beleaguered republic. Timothy Snyder, history professor at Yale, is introduced by Stanley Heller, administrator of Promoting Enduring Peace, a Connecticut-based organization that sponsored this event at the United Church Parish House in New Haven on Nov. 28. A brief interview with Snyder conducted by WPKN radio producer, Richard Hill, follows his talk.

SPECIAL REPORT: Mic Check, Nov. 12, 2017

Lynne Ide, director of program and policy with the Universal Health Care Foundation of Connecticut, talks about the current state of health care coverage in Connecticut. Interviewed by Richard Hill, WPKN radio producer

SPECIAL REPORT: Resistance Roundtable, Nov. 11, 2017

Focus on the Republican tax plan, the just-released autopsy on the Democratic Party, and Internet censorship by Google, Facebook and Youtube. Including an interview with Hilary Grant, a lead organizer with Action Together Connecticut, who discusses the local results of the recent election, with hosts Richard Hill, Scott Harris and Ruth Baumgartner WPKN producers

SPECIAL REPORT: Rainy Day Radio, Nov. 7, 2017

Two leaders from Redneck Revolt, an anti-racist, anti-capitalist movement, talk about their work organizing with white working class people in Suffolk County, New York. Interviewed by Richard Hill, WPKN radio producer

SPECIAL REPORT: Rainy Day Radio, Nov. 7, 2017

Bruce Gagnon, coordinator for the Global Network Against Weapons and Nuclear Power in Space, describes the extent of -- and motives underlying -- the vast US network of military bases around the globe. Interviewed by Richard Hill, WPKN radio producer

SPECIAL REPORT: Resisting U.S. JeJu Island military base in South Korea, Oct. 24, 2017

Joyakol, South Korean peace activist and singer, discusses the crisis on the Korean peninsula and focuses on the resistance to the U.S. huge military base being constructed on Jeju Island. The event was sponsored by the Greater New Haven Peace Council and this audio was recorded by Richard Hill, WPKN producer.
Joyakol discusses Americans' biggest misconceptions about the conflict between North and South Korea and the U.S., Interview by Richard Hill, WPKN producer.

SPECIAL REPORT: John Allen, Out in New Haven

John Allen, founding director of the New Haven Pride Center, Connecticut, talks about his new LGBTQ television show, Out in New Haven, which presents a range of political and cultural issues to the community. Interviewed by Richard Hill on WPKN's Rainy Day Tuesday, Jan. 2, 2018.

2017 Gandhi Peace Awards

Promoting Enduring Peace presented its Gandhi Peace Award jointly to renowned consumer advocate Ralph Nader and BDS founder Omar Barghouti on April 23, 2017.

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THANK YOU TO EVERYONE...

who helped make our 25th anniversary with Jeremy Scahill a success!

For those who missed the event, or were there and really wanted to fully absorb its import, here it is in video

Jeremy Scahill keynote speech, part 1 from PROUDEYEMEDIA on Vimeo.

Jeremy Scahill keynote speech, part 2 from PROUDEYEMEDIA on Vimeo.

Between The Lines on Stitcher

Between The Lines Presentation at the Left Forum 2016

"How Do We Build A Mass Movement to Reverse Runaway Inequality?" with Les Leopold, author of "Runaway Inequality: An Activist's Guide to Economic Justice,"May 22, 2016, John Jay College of Criminal Justice, The City University of New York, 860 11th Ave. (Between 58th and 59th), New York City. Between The Lines' Scott Harris and Richard Hill moderated this workshop. Listen to the audio/slideshows and more from this workshop.

Listen to audio of the plenary sessions from the weekend.

JEREMY SCAHILL: Oscar-nominated documentary filmmaker "Dirty Wars"

Listen to the full interview (30:33) with Jeremy Scahill, an award-winning investigative journalist with the Nation Magazine, correspondent for Democracy Now! and author of the bestselling book, "Blackwater: The Rise of the World's Most Powerful Mercenary Army," about America's outsourcing of its military. In an exclusive interview with Counterpoint's Scott Harris on Sept. 16, 2013, Scahill talks about his latest book, "Dirty Wars, The World is a Battlefield," also made into a documentary film under the same title, and was nominated Dec. 5, 2013 for an Academy Award in the Best Documentary Feature category.

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Direct Action Protest Hits Swiss Bank UBS for Role in Financing Mountaintop Removal Coal Mining

RealAudio MP3

Posted Dec. 4, 2013

Interviews with "Hands Off Appalachia" and “Capitalism Versus the Climate” protesters targeting Swiss Bank UBS headquarters, recorded and produced by Melinda Tuhus

An activist group from the southern coal fields calling itself “Hands Off Appalachia,” and a Connecticut-based group named “Capitalism Versus the Climate,” carried out two protest actions in Stamford, Conn. on Nov. 25, targeting the U.S. headquarters of Swiss banking giant UBS. The groups say the bank was targeted because it is a major financer of mountaintop removal coal mining.

Mountaintop removal coal mining is a mineral extraction method in which the tops of mountain ridges are literally blown off with explosives in order to mine the coal seams beneath. The earth and rock rubble is dumped into the valleys below, and thus far, more than 2,000 miles of streams have been buried through this process. The mining method has also been linked to increased rates of cancer, birth defects and cardiovascular disease.

In the early morning hours of Nov. 25, four activists scaled a construction crane outside the bank and hung a large banner which read, “UBS Stop Funding MTN TOP Removal.” Between The Lines’ Melinda Tuhus later accompanied a small group of protesters inside UBS corporate headquarters, where two activists chained themselves to a railing, over which they hung a second banner. In all, 14 protesters were arrested and charged with first- and second-degree criminal trespass, second-degree breach of peace and conspiracy. The activists were later released on bail and are to appear in court in January. In Melinda Tuhus’ report on the protest we hear first from Hands Off Appalachia member Ricki Draper of Knoxville, Tenn.

RICKI DRAPER: We just dropped a banner that says "UBS stop funding mountaintop removal." And we are here, and we're going to stay locked in by our necks with U-locks. And we're here to demand that UBS stop funding mountaintop removal, because it's killing communities in Appalachia.

DUSTIN STEELE: I'm Dustin Steele, originally from Mingo County, W.V. UBS funds companies like Arch, who is presently trying to destroy Blair Mountain and also Patriot, who has just succeeded in stealing people's pensions and health benefits, so we're here at least for one day to hold them accountable for the damaging practices that they fund. They're the silent partner, the people who get no pressure, but without the money UBS facilitates, mountaintop removal would not be possible. And we gotta make sure that banks like UBS know that people of Appalachia won't stand for this.

BETWEEN THE LINES: On the sidewalk outside UBS headquarters, Hands Off Appalachia spokesperson Tyler Cannon further explained what's at stake and why his group targeted UBS.

TYLER CANNON: We're taking action here today to demand that UBS withdraws all contributions to all organizations that support or practice MTR. For over two years, this campaign has worked with a UBS executive, and we finally achieved that last week. Unfortunately, they gave us the same response they've continuously given us, which is to continue to refer to their inadequate policies surrounding MTR. In communities around MTR mines, like the one I was raised in, there are increased rates of heart disease, respiratory disease, developmental diseases, over 50 percent greater likelihood of having a deadly cancer, and the life expectancy is 24 years below the national average, and if that doesn't qualify as a human rights violation, then I'm not really sure what does. So we're here to demand that this be stopped.

BETWEEN THE LINES: So they're up there, and I was talking to them before I got kicked out, but it seems extreme. They are locked in so tightly with those U-locks, I can't imagine how they're going to get them out of there without hurting them, or burning them or whatever it is they're going to do. So, do you think taking that kind of action – which seems fairly extreme – is really justified?

TYLER CANNON: These actions are what people call extreme and radical, but what is extreme and radical is detonating up to 1,100 feet of a mountain and then filling the valley below with the remnants, which they deem "overburden." They commodify the earth and destroy it. And they destroy the air, the water, the people and any hope of prosperity for these communities. And the idea that an extractive industry, an extractive culture, can be made into one that is sustainable, is foolish. Clean coal is a lie. So we've been driven to these lengths. The validity of our demands has not been recognized by neither the state nor corporate giants like UBS or Alpha or Peabody or Patriot.

BETWEEN THE LINES: Does UBS fund all those companies you just mentioned, or did you just mention them because they're involved in MTR?

TYLER CANNON: UBS funds these industries through a really twisted corporate buffer, and if you research further into this corporate buffer through stock holdings and the like, you'll see the intersectionality between all extractive industries. For example, one of the top shareholders in UBS is Vanguard. Vanguard is also the number two shareholder in ExxonMobil. So if you're telling me that what's happening here is extreme, I think what's happening in the economy is extreme. What's happening to poor people in rural areas, in urban areas, I think that is extreme.

BETWEEN THE LINES: Unfortunately, a lot of people didn't see what happened here, but what is the message – you're coming from the coal fields – what is the message that you want to give people in Connecticut, most of whom, I'm sure, have never heard of MTR?

TYLER CANNON: There is no desegregation of civil liberties on behalf of the people who are having them taken away alone. It needs to be an act of solidarity from the privileged to the underprivileged. We need people all across the nation – not just in Connecticut, from coast to coast – to stand for clean air and clean water and space for a clean life.

This report on the Nov. 25 Stamford protest against Swiss banking giant UBS for their role in financing mountaintop removal coal mining was produced by Between The Lines’ Melinda Tuhus. For more information on opposition to mountaintop removal coal mining and the groups that organized this direct action, visit handsoffappalachia.com.