In Episode 26 [11] of the CounterVortex podcast [12], Bill Weinberg notes contradictions and complexities in two world crises depicted in polarized terms by left, right and center alike. The indigenous Tatar people of Crimea, their autonomy and rights abrogated by the illegal Russian occupation, have been drawn into an alliance [13] with Ukraine's ultra-nationalist Right Sector based on their mutual opposition to Putin's annexation of the peninsula. Ukrainian anarchists are meanwhile facing repression [14] for their opposition to Right Sector. Putin, who is cracking down [15] on Russian anarchists who oppose his own ultra-nationalist imperial agenda, has just sent a detachment [16] of Cossack mercenaries to Venezuela to serve as a Praetorian Guard for the embattled Nicolás Maduro. In addition to being opposed by the right-wing pretender Juan Guaidó, Maduro faces a challenge from an independent left [17] that rejects his undemocratic rule as well as US imperial designs on Venezuela. Indigenous peoples such as the Pemón of the Orinoco Basin are also mounting resistance [18] to extractive designs on their territory—regardless of who holds power in Caracas. Can anarchists and the independent left in Ukraine, Russia and Venezuela unite with indigenous peoples such as the Tatars and Pemón to defend freedom and autonomy, and repudiate reactionaries and imperialists on all sides? Listen on SoundCloud [11], [11] and support our podcast via Patreon [19].
Erratum: Hugo Chávez came to power in Venezuela in 1999, not "about 12 years ago."
Music: Banish Misfortune by Julian Kytasty [21]
Production by Chris Rywalt [22]
We ask listeners to donate just $1 per episode via Patreon [19]. A total of $30 per episode would cover our costs for engineering and producing. We are currently up to $19.
