The Final Straw Radio

Ed, co-founder of SASSI (Southerners Against Surveillance Systems & Infrastructure), speaks to The Final Straw Radio about the proliferation of surveillance infrastructure in the South (and more broadly in United States). We speak about topics such as the increasing cooperation between the state and corporate surveillance companies, the desire of these companies to extract ever-increasing amounts of data from the public, the way the state uses private databases to sidestep traditional warrant processes, some of the specific technologies that cities in the south have contracts with and their efficacy. We also touch on how folks at SASSI investigate these topics, and what can be done to help with this effort and ways to think about individual and community safety. https://www.sassisouth.org/ https://www.muckrock.com/ Also of interest to listeners may be our prior episode, Pushing Back On Flock Cameras with Kate Bertash, which Ed references during the chat. The following links provide more information about topics we briefly touch on in the chat. https://www.404media.co/were-suing-ice-for-its-2-million-spyware-contract/ https://www.404media.co/home-depot-and-lowes-share-data-from-hundreds-of-ai-cameras-with-cops/ https://arstechnica.com/gadgets/2025/10/ring-cameras-are-about-to-get-increasingly-chummy-with-law-enforcement/ https://www.eff.org/deeplinks/2025/10/flocks-gunshot-detection-microphones-will-start-listening-human-voices https://www.eff.org/deeplinks/2022/11/rise-police-advertiser . ... . .. Featured Track: Push by Liquid Liquid from Discography (1981-1984)

This week, the show has two segments. Pittsburgh Anarchist Book Fair First up, you'll hear a brief interview with M, an organizer of the first Pittsburgh anarchist book fair, happening October 24-26 across a few venues in the Steel City A list of events (still being updated): https://pizz.ation.ist/ Facebook event: https://www.facebook.com/events/1327126225660995 As is anarchist book fair tradition, everything will be free. We're renting a few spaces, and expecting a few other costs. Sharing that info here so folks can get a sense of what that looks like. If you/others are inclined and able to support, would be grateful for that. Attached is an image of the break down as of today, and below is a link we'll update live time as to what costs look like. https://pad.riseup.net/p/r.ca0a70f3bd595bb58b9daab4e6d9a576 You can buy a beautiful book fair shirt (design by the illustrious N.O. Bonzo), or simply donate. Venmo: @pghbookfair. (If you'd like a shirt, indicate size in the note - S-3XL; if yr just donating, any emoji or strange note is fine!) Feel free to message for other ways to donate. "Gen Z" Uprising In Nepal Then, an interview that I conducted with Anarcho, a member of the Black Book Distro collective out of Kathmandu, Nepal, about the protests and aftermath of the September 2025 "Gen Z" anti-corruption protests that ousted the prime minister, released prisoners and left the parliament in smoldering ruins. Because we don't follow a strict chronology of events, we're including a few articles linked in our show notes for further study. We worked heavily off the interview with members of the Black Book Distro and CrimethInc, which is among those in our show notes. https://www.anarchistcommunism.org/2025/09/13/nepal-a-grassroots-uprising/ https://organisemagazine.org.uk/2025/09/09/nepal-communications-international/ http://www.srilankaguardian.org/2009/12/anarchism-in-nepal-2006-2009.html https://www.gofundme.com/f/black-book-distro-anarchist-library-in-nepal https://kathmandupost.com/columns/2025/09/15/welcome-to-the-eros-effect-gen-z https://open.spotify.com/episode/464iPIxwdVLT3BVLoepsKj https://crimethinc.com/2025/09/22/nepali-anarchists-on-the-toppling-of-the-government-an-interview-with-black-book-distro . ... . .. Featured Track: Go Anarchist Go! by Rai Ko Ris from Ungovernable Mountains

A conversation with Tariq D. Khan, author of The Republic Shall Be Kept Clean: How Settler Colonial Violence Shaped Antileft Repression, out from University of Illinois Press in 2023. In this conversation we talk about the connections between the anti-Indigenous motivations of the genocidal frontier wars in the US and the inward turn to heretical movements pushing for freedom for the laboring classes through the great upheavals of the period known as the Nadir, between the end of post-Civil War Reconstruction and the 1920's. We talk about the roots of anti-Leftist violence of the various Red Scares and intersections with the institutions and psychology of white supremacy settler colonialism as well as the importance of resistance and education. We hope you enjoy, and thank you for supporting this project! A couple of podcasts we like (that have patreons where you get extra goodies) that have with related episodes: The Empire Never Ended on the American Legion (pt 1) The State Between US on Americanism . ... . .. Featured Track: Written In Red by UNWOMAN (written by Voltairine DeCleyre)

This week, an interview with members of Signals Rising, who provide education and support around radio technologies including meshtastic networks as alternative communications or in disaster relief scenarios. Check out their website for resources and ways to get in touch A couple of fun Software Defined Radio (SDR) toys: https://flipperzero.one/ https://github.com/sharebrained/portapack-hackrf

This week, we're featuring two segments. First up, Moira Meltzer-Cohen, an lawyer with the National Lawyers Guild, speaks about the recent declarations of war by the Trump administration on anteefah, what has changed legally, what they might be telegraphing and smart ways to move forward in this tense atmosphere. Check out our recent chat with Mo about Knowing your Rights and Risks with the police, linked in our show notes, or learn more about their work at NLG.ORG Transcript PDF (Unimposed) Zine (Imposed PDF) Then, A speaks briefly about supporting mutual aid efforts in Gaza. For more information, check out the recommended article on ItsGoingDown.org and some links in our show notes . ... . .. Featured Track: Sleep Now In The Fire (instrumental) by Rage Against The Machine from The Battle of Los Angeles

This week, Ian talks with Cartoonist Aaron Losty about his new graphic novel, The Hanging, out now from Strangers Publishing. Among other topics, they discuss formative works, collaboration, and making genre comics for a small press audience. In the back half, they talk about Aaron's experience as a co-founder of Cartoonist Cooperative, the state of the organization three years after its inception, decision-making processes, and recent campaigns. Apologies for the audio quality of the interview. Transcript PDF (Unimposed) Zine (Imposed PDF) Aaron Losty Bluesky: @aaronlosty.bsky.social Instagram: @aaronlosty Patreon: patreon.com/aaronlosty Website: aaronlosty.com Cartoonist Cooperative Bluesky: @cartoonist.coop email: hello@cartoonistcoop Instagram: @cartoonistcoop Mastodon.art: @cartoonist.coop Tumblr: @cartoonistcoop Website: cartoonist.coop YouTube: @cartoonistcoop Strangers Publishing Bluesky: @Strangers.bsky.social Instagram: @strangers_publishing Website: strangerspublishing.com Then we share a portion of an interview from September of 2024 about the case of the H5, 5 people who were facing criminal criminal charges of human trafficking for providing humanitarian aid to refugees crossing the Polish and Belarusian border through the ancient Bieloweza forest. In this interview, we spoke with a member of Szpilla anti-repression collective. The members of the H5 case were acquitted this month in a legal victory, though the state might renew it's accusation. Meanwhile, with fly-overs by Russian drones and planes in Estonia and Poland, we see an increasing militarization of the border from states on both sides. Episode 1 on the Green Border Episode 2 on the Green Border

This week, we spoke with Nolan Huber of the Atlanta Community Press Collective about recent developments in the case of 61 people facing RICO indictments and other charges in relation to the movement to Stop Cop City, an urban police training center built in south Atlanta's Weelaunee forest. For the hour we talk about the case, last week's dismissal of racketeering and arson indictments and other recent victories for the Defend The Forest movement. You can hear past interviews in our archives by clicking the tag for Stop Cop City and see ACPC's coverage of the case and other local topics at ATLPressCollective.com. You can learn more about A City In The Forest, the film Nolan's working on, at https://levomel.com/acitf or following @ACityInTheForest on Instagram. We also brought up support for Jack Mazurek, more info can be found at FreeJack.Co Transcript PDF (Unimposed) Zine (Imposed PDF) Also, if you haven't checked out Outlaw Podcast, they had a recent interview with NLG lawyer Xavier de Janon & defendant Peatmoss on the Stop Cop City RICO 61. Check out this and past episodes of this great, anti-repression podcast. Here are some notes for following up from this episode: Follow Fire Ant Movement Defense on Instagram @fireantmovementdefense for updates and info on showing up to support in person in Atlanta. Watch the live stream of the hearings on Youtube via Atlanta Community Press Collective: https://www.youtube.com/ The hearings begin at 9:30am ET and go through the afternoon. PHONE ZAP: With an important motion hearing for 4 #stopcopcity defendants approaching on September 8th, call & email to demand Georgia AG Chris Carr drop ALL charges! 404-458-3600 FAX: 404-657-8733 EMAIL: AGCarr@law.ga.gov Pre-Trial Motion Press Release Donate to support the RICO 61 . ... . .. Featured Track: My Favorite Mutiny (instrumental) by The Coup from My Favorite Mutiny (Single)

This week, we're featuring an interview with Shannon, one half of the mutual aid project operating in Washington DC known as Remora House. For the hour we talk about Remora House, the impact on houseless and non-citizen communities has been impacted by the Trump Administration's crack down and sending in of troops to DC and some ideas on strengthening the resistance as the feds and national guard are deployed into our neighborhoods to break up our communities and our resolve Remora House Transcript Remora House PDF (Unimposed) Remora House Zine (Imposed PDF) Links from Shannon: Remora House Linktree: https://linktr.ee/remorahousedc Migrant Solidarity Mutual Aid (MSMA): https://www.dcmigrantmutualaid.org/ Critical Exposure: https://criticalexposure.org/ Black Swan Academy: https://www.blackswanacademy.org FTP Mutual Aid: https://linktr.ee/FeedThePeopleMutualAid Food Not Bombs DC: https://linktr.ee/foodnotbombsdc Ward 2 Mutual Aid: https://linktr.ee/w2ma Links from Sima Lee: MXGM DC: https://freethelandmxgm.org/washingtondc-chapter/ DC Alliance Against Racist & Political Repression: https://www.dcaarpr.org/ 411 Collective: https://linktr.ee/411collective Pan African Community Action: https://www.pacapower.org/ Peace House DC: http://www.peacehousedc.org/ Then you'll hear Parias of Athens from the June 2025 episode of B(A)DNews podcast. It's a chat with participants in a project called Research Critique about the distraction of the Greek public from media coverage of the deadly Tempi train disaster by a heavy dose of culture war discourse about lawlessness on University campuses and social decay. The rail accident was caused by negligence and understaffing under the neoliberal New Democracy regime, killing 57 and injuring nearly 200 and led to heated demonstrations for months more than a year to follow. You can hear the full interview by finding B(A)D News #92 on the website a-radio-network.org or in our shownotes. Announcement Update on T. Hoxha Hunger Strike In a brief update to last week's announcement of Casey Goonan's solidarity hunger strike with T. Hoxha in the UK of the Filton24. Casey has ended their participation after 12 days, but as T. Hoxha continues, she has been joined by the anarchist prisoner we spoke to a few episodes ago, Malik Muhammad (currently held in the Oregon prison system). As of Sunday September 7th, Casey is on their 11th day of hunger strike and T. Hoxha is on her 28th against the conditions of her confinement. You can read more and find how you can offer support at https://calla.substack.com/p/international-hunger-strike-grows . ... . .. Featured Track: March On la Migra by Guerrillaton from Made in Mexico

Tomas Rothaus, an influential author and activist from Argentina, shares his journey through the anti-globalization movement. He discusses the challenges of mass mobilizations, the importance of mentorship in anarchism, and the evolving dynamics between younger and older activists. Rothaus reflects on the complexities of coalition-building and the ethical dilemmas faced by activists. With a passion for social justice, he emphasizes the need for solidarity and strategic balance in the ongoing fight against capitalism.