Further victims of our nation's imperialism

August 1

GUEST: Ellie Bernstein, human rights activist and film producer whose credits include “Closing the Open Door – The Fight for Higher Education,” “Waiting for Mercy- The Case Against Mohammed Hossain and Yassin Aref," and “We Are Still Standing: Stories of Women in Black,” will talk about her latest documentary, “The ISIS Trial” which will be showing Friday, Aug 9 (7 pm) at the Unitarian Universalist Congregation of the Catskills, 320 Sawkill Rd, Kingston.

FBI Entrapment and Targeting of Muslims

This story is compelling. At a recent movie showing, the audience discussed racism, FBI entrapment, and empire. Almost all the victims of the FBI stings are poor, uneducated, and Black. They are also young Muslims looking for a father figure. Father figures get paid especially well for their skills in leading vulnerable teenagers to the bait. In the documentary The Isis Trial, the provocateur was paid over $119,000.

The long term effect on Muslim communities is incalculable. Teens face 35 years in prison for bragging about joining ISIS and playing paintball. The trials were tainted by endless videos showing Muslim atrocities. Some of the teenagers were tried for murder, simply because the provocateur was able to convince them to travel to LA to buy a fake passport.

In years to come, this will be part of the shame of US racism, FBI abuse and yes, empire. By provoking wars in Somalia, millions of its citizens are on the move and desperate. Some end up in the "land of the free," only to end up as further victims of our nation's imperialism.