Sunday, September 19, 2010

David Rovics Plays Song for Cindy Sheehan at Camp Casey

Camp Casey was the name given to the encampment of anti-war protesters outside the Prairie Chapel Ranch in Crawford, Texas during US President George W. Bush's five-week summer vacation there in 2005, named after Iraq War casualty US Army Specialist Casey Sheehan. A panoramic photograph of Camp Casey on August 18, 2005It was founded by Cindy Sheehan after she failed to get a second meeting with President Bush for an explanation of the cause for which her son, Casey, died. Having been turned away, she pitched a tent by the side of the road and announced her intention to stay, day and night, for the full five weeks or until such a meeting is granted. She has also promised that, if she is not granted a second meeting, she will return to Crawford each time Bush visits there in the future.Other members of Gold Star Families for Peace and other anti-Iraq War activists joined them, camped in public land, such as ditches by the road.
David Rovics - Song for Cindy Sheehan
Lyrics
Casey was a good boy
He treated people well
And his momma loved him
Anyone could tell
She'd send him off to school
Pack his lunch with care
When he came back home she hugged him
With her fingers in his hair
Cindy, she loved Casey
And when all is said and done
She is every mother
And he was every mother's son

When Casey was a little older
He spent his time each week
In that church in Vacaville
In the service of the meek
In the service of his city
In the service of the lord
With his momma in the pews
All the time they could afford
And if their love alone could save us
Then the world would be one
She is every mother
And he was every mother's son

People thought the priesthood
Was where he'd someday be
So some folks were surprised
When he joined the army
The recruiter told him
He wouldn't have to fight
Cindy hoped this was the case
And prayed for him every night
That was before they sent him
To the desert with a gun
She is every mother
And he was every mother's son

His truck had no armor
And when it came under fire
It and half the soldiers in it
Became a funeral pyre
Cindy, she was sleeping
The moment Casey died
And she knew she'd never see him
Standing by her side
There was no consolation
No safe place she could run
She is every mother
And he was every mother's son

The president, he told her
He died for a noble cause
But Cindy's wondering
Exactly what that was
Since they never found the weapons
And now that Casey's gone
It seems that oil is the game
And Casey was the pawn
Cindy's got some questions
And so does everyone
Because she is every mother
And he was every mother's son

This is a zgraphix production.
Produced by Jeff Zavala.
http://zgraphix.org

Wednesday, September 15, 2010

Powwow in the Schools - Indigenous Cultures Institute

San Marcos is a sacred site that thousands of Native Americans called home, long before the Spanish Europeans arrived here. ;The descendants of these ancient Native people still live here todayand they call themselves Hispanics.

Sunday, September 12, 2010

Charlie Lockwood Plays Ana Fintazarek on the Oud

A groovy rendition of Ana Fintazarek presented on the moon by Charlie Lockwood. Pictures and video of his trip to Egypt are also included!

This is a zgraphix production.
Produced by Jeff Zavala.
http://zgraphix.org

Thursday, September 9, 2010

WikiLeaks, Backlash, and the Future of Open-Source Journalism

WikiLeaks' recent posting of more than 90,000 documents detailing the war in Afghanistan was perhaps the most important such disclosure since the Pentagon Papers. The Afghan War Logs, combined with leaked footage of U.S. personnel killing civilians and reporters in Iraq, has made WikiLeaks an important source for unfiltered information on the U.S.'s ongoing wars. Backlash to the leaks has been swift, with top administration of...ficials implying that WikiLeaks founders have "blood on their hands."

Join University of Texas journalism professor Robert Jensen, Texas Observer managing editor and former AP war correspondent Chris Tomlinson, and members of the newly revived Austin Indymedia for a discussion on the importance of the WikiLeaks documents, backlash, and open-source journalism.

This event is sponsored by MonkeyWrench Books, Austin Indymedia and CodePink.

www.wikileaks.org
www.austin.indymedia.org

This is a Zgraphix production.
Produced by Jeff Zavala.
http://zgraphix.org

Powwow, Aztec, & Taino Dance Traditions - Indigenous Cultures Institute - Celebrating Culture

San Marcos sacred springs reawaken when over one hundred Native American powwow dancers and participants arrive for the much anticipated 1st Annual Sacred Springs Powwow & Indian Market, held on Saturday, May 1, 2010, from 10:00 AM until 7:00 PM at Aquarena Center, 921 Aquarena Springs Drive, San Marcos, Texas. The event is sponsored by a local Native American nonprofit organization, Indigenous Cultures Institute, with support from Hays County, the City of San Marcos, San Marcos Arts Commission, Texas State University, and CenturyLink.

The Sacred Springs area is one of the oldest inhabited sites in North America and Native people believe its one of three creation sites where we originated, says Dr. Mario Garza, board chair of the institute. Over the next several years, this event held in honor of our ancestors will bring together hundreds of Native people not only from the United States, but from all of the Americas. Garza refers to the institutes plans for a heritage festival to be added to the powwow slated for 2011.

Activities will begin at 10:00 AM with a blessing at the Sacred Springs. The powwow will feature Keetoowah Cherokee champion dancer David Hoskins as Head Man Dancer, Comanche renowned traditional singer Lance Tahchawwickah as Head Southern singer, and Texas-famed Eagle Point as the Northern Drum.

A major Indian Market will be held in conjunction with the powwow, offering the largest gathering of Native American arts, crafts, and food vendors ever assembled in San Marcos. Food booths will offer the ever popular Native fry bread tacos, healthy buffalo burgers, roasted corn, turkey legs, chicken shish kabobs, and a variety of sweets like kettle corn, funnel cake, and snow cones. Arts and crafts will include a large selection ranging from Southwest jewelry, pottery, moccasins, Native dolls, stone oil lamps, breast plates and other relic replicas, to fine art paintings, weavings, and sculptures.

At 5:00 PM, Dallas Aztec dance company Cuicani In Xochitl will make a special guest appearance in honor of this first powwow. Famous for their dynamic and physically demanding dance movements and their spectacular regalia, this dance group guarantees a dazzling finale to the indigenous festivities.

Indigenous Cultures Institute organized the local Native community to provide education and information about Native Americans, particularly from this area, southern Texas, and northern Mexico. Their first major event in San Marcos, Songs of the Seven Directions, was held at the Aquarena Centers Earth Day Celebration in April 2009. They have since produced several Native functions including Eagle and Condor dance exhibition, Hispanics Indigenous Identity lecture series, Tracing Indigenous Ancestry genealogy workshop, and the Seven Directions Art Exhibit celebrating Native American culture.

This video also includes clips from the Taino Ceremonial Dance by the Puerto Rican Folkloric Dance Company http://www.prfdance.org/

Please visit http://indigenouscultures.org to learn more.

This is a zgraphix production. Produced by Jeff Zavala. http://zgraphix.org

Monday, September 6, 2010

US Policy in Iraq: A Human Catastrophe, talk by Dr. Dahlia Wasfi

Dr. Dahlia Wasfi was born in the United States to an American Jewish mother and an Iraqi Muslim father. She lived in Iraq as a child, returning to the U.S. at age 5. She earned her medical degree from the University of Pennsylvania in 1997. Dr. Wasfi has made two trips to Iraq to visit her extended family since the 2003 "Shock and Awe" invasion, including a three month stay in Basrah in the spring of 2006.

She has brought her ...eyewitness account of life under occupation to 22 United States; Capitol Hill in D.C.; Toronto and Vancouver, Canada; Madrid, Spain in 2007; and the 3rd International Iraq Conference in Berlin, Germany, in March 2008. Her talk in Austin will cover the devastating effects of the 1991 Gulf War, the economic sanctions, and the 2003 invasion and occupation.

For more on Dr. Wasfi, including her writings, visit: http://www.liberatethis.com/upcomingtalks.html

Sponsored by Texas Labor Against the War and CodePink Austin

This is a Zgraphix production.
Produced by Jeff Zavala.
http://zgraphix.org

Friday, September 3, 2010

Live Middle Eastern Music

Patty on the drum and Charlie on the Oud play Middle Eastern music at lake travis on Aug. 29, 2010 as a tribute to the people of the Middle East.

To learn more about the music & culture of the Middle East please visit: http://ucsbmeeincairo.blogspot.com/

This is a zgraphix production.
Produced by Jeff Zavala.
http://zgraphix.org