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Category: Austin

The First Amendment Hasn’t Stopped Police From Harassing Copwatchers
In this March 27, 2016 photograph, two members of the Peaceful Streets Project film a police officer in the Rundberg area of Austin, Texas. (Facebook / Peaceful Streets Project)
April 23, 2016
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The First Amendment Hasn’t Stopped Police From Harassing Copwatchers

Posted in Austin, Journalism, and Truthout

At a protest in downtown Denver, on April 29, 2015, a police officer stole Jessica Benn’s smartphone.

Benn had been filming her husband, Jesse, from the safety of the sidewalk as police arrested him. That was enough for her to be targeted and to have her property illegally seized.

“An officer just stepped up to me and grabbed it right out of my hand,” she told Truthout. “Right behind him was an officer in SWAT gear who then took me and pushed me up against a bus with a baton across my neck and held me there.”

Benn grew increasingly alarmed as the officer ignored her questions.

“It was very chaotic, people were yelling and getting arrested all around us, and the nature of the arrests were very violent. So at that point I was concerned about my safety and I told this officer that I was pregnant and could he please not hurt my stomach.”

Read moreThe First Amendment Hasn’t Stopped Police From Harassing Copwatchers
‘Orange Sunshine’: Tune In, Turn On With 100 Million Hits Of LSD (#SXSW)
1969: Ron Bevan, a core member of The Brotherhood Of Eternal Love, during a drug-buying trip to Afghanistan. (Orange Sunshine)
April 19, 2016
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‘Orange Sunshine’: Tune In, Turn On With 100 Million Hits Of LSD (#SXSW)

Posted in Journalism, and SXSW

LSD is back in the news, as scientists begin to study this intriguing substance again.

After spending years banished to the realms of forbidden science, a study published in March from The Proceedings of the National Academy Of Sciences USA used neural imaging to examine the areas of the brain activated by the psychedelic drug. David Nuitt, a lead researcher, told Nature that he thinks LSD has potential to treat addiction and depression.

In the 1960s and 1970s, scientists and psychotherapists were fascinated by the therapeutic potential of psychedelics like LSD and psilocybin (the active ingredient in hallucinogenic mushrooms), even as everyday Americans experienced their effects firsthand by the thousands. A politically-motivated surge in the war on drugs sent both research and psychedelic culture underground.

“Orange Sunshine,” which premiered at SXSW in March, tells the story of The Brotherhood Of Eternal Love, the hippie surfer cult that fueled America’s LSD boom. In the name of helping the country “turn on,” they created and distributed millions of hits of acid to celebrities and festival-goers alike.

Read more‘Orange Sunshine’: Tune In, Turn On With 100 Million Hits Of LSD (#SXSW)
In ‘Ovarian Psycos,’ Women Use Bikes To Claim Space & The Streets (#SXSW)
The Ovarian Psycos ride their bikes through East L.A. (Ovarian Psycos documentary)
April 18, 2016
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In ‘Ovarian Psycos,’ Women Use Bikes To Claim Space & The Streets (#SXSW)

Posted in Creative Commons, Journalism, and SXSW

There’s a particular liberation found on two wheels, gliding through a night time city street.

That feeling becomes simultaneously even more liberating and powerful in a group of cyclists, reasserting our right to take up space normally dominated by cars.

But cycling culture is notoriously sexist — just ask almost any woman who has tried to purchase a bike or get repairs at a shop, and group rides are often male-dominated and unwelcoming to women and the gender-nonconforming.

The Ovarian Psycos are a women-of-color cycling crew from East Los Angeles and the Boyle Heights neighborhood. Beyond simply spreading the joy of the ride to more people, their work is directly situated in a historic tradition of feminist and Xicana activism.

“Ovarian Psycos,” a documentary from directors Joanna Sokolowski and Kate Trumbull-LaValle that premiered this year at SXSW, brings the crew’s politics and passion to the screen, where it can hopefully inspire other women like them to take up more space on the streets and in their everyday lives.

Read moreIn ‘Ovarian Psycos,’ Women Use Bikes To Claim Space & The Streets (#SXSW)
As Cannabis Becomes Big Business, Who’s Getting Smoked?
Activists hold an inflatable marijuana joint that reads "Obama, Deschedule Cannabis Now!" during the #Reschedule420 rally on Apr. 2, 2016 at the White House. (Flickr / Stephen Melkisethian)
April 14, 2016
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As Cannabis Becomes Big Business, Who’s Getting Smoked?

Posted in Journalism, MintPress News, and SXSW

Hundreds of people marched to the White House early this month to show their support for less restrictive federal marijuana regulations and nationwide legalization.

In an act of peaceful protest, many at the event organized by DCMJ, a local legalization group, smoked marijuana, puffed on vaporizers containing hash oil, or consumed cannabis edibles. Although the activists at the April 3 rally were prepared to risk arrest, CNN reported just two citations.

Although possession of up to 2 ounces of pot has been decriminalized within Washington, D.C., smoking marijuana could be considered an act of civil disobedience because public consumption remains prohibited.

As the group staged their 4:20 “smoke in,” they briefly inflated a 51-foot inflatable joint emblazoned with a clear message: “Obama, deschedule cannabis now.”

Read moreAs Cannabis Becomes Big Business, Who’s Getting Smoked?
SXStreetcrash: A Tribute to David Bowie In The Streets At SXSW (Photo Gallery)
March 17, 2016. SXstreetcrash: The Man Who Fell To Earth. A drunken spaceman lays on the ground of 6th street, Austin's downtown club district. (Kit O'Connell)
April 11, 2016
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SXStreetcrash: A Tribute to David Bowie In The Streets At SXSW (Photo Gallery)

Posted in Journalism, and SXSW

2016 marked the 7th “SXStreetcrash,” an interactive, guerrilla performance event held in the center of 6th Street, Austin’s downtown nightclub district, during the massive SXSW Music festival. It’s hosted every year by Crash Alchemy, a local arts collective.

This year’s SXStreetcrash was a tribute to David Bowie, in honor of his recent passing. For the first time, the local chapter of the Decentralized Dance Party joined in, providing sound through their synchronized boomboxes. The DDP is a movement that originated in Canada which believes in promoting world peace through partying, and they use a portable FM transmitter to create a dance floor in the streets.

The idea of the Streetcrash is that the participants, including many community volunteers, gather ahead of time to create characters for the performance and practice a set of dance moves. Then, the group filters out into the 6th Street crowds, acting strangely and attracting as much attention as possible before, suddenly, coming together in a grand performance that “crashes the party.”

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Push Your Politicians: A Few More Words From Wendy Davis (SXSW)
Wendy holds a microphone while speaking at a NARAL event on Aug. 15, 2013. (Flickr / Al Garman)
March 24, 2016
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Push Your Politicians: A Few More Words From Wendy Davis (SXSW)

Posted in Journalism, and SXSW

“There shouldn’t be tension between the party and the needs of people. That’s what party is supposed to represent. I think people are more than within their rights push their politicians even if it makes them uncomfortable, to do their jobs and to not shy away from protecting women’s access to abortions, among a host of other issues as well.” — Wendy Davis

Read morePush Your Politicians: A Few More Words From Wendy Davis (SXSW)