#network sovereignty

[indigenousandnativewaysofbeing]

Synthesis Report

Technology, simply defined, is information with a goal and a way to be reproduced. Writing is technology. So are telephone polls, hammers, knives, and AI. Technology has often been cited as the driving force of the United States empire. And for Western ways of living, technology has been seen as a gift to foreign regions. For the purposes of this essay, I will connect concepts of racism that have led to what we consider today as objective technology– that is, tech that is unbiased and bears science-backed ideas of truth. And thus, we will discover how the intersection of tribal sovereignty, (un)naturalized algorithms, and colorblind ideology all help us understand how technology has historically been used as a tool to boost colonial motives. Let’s first look at tribal sovereignty, what it means, and how it works in our modern world.

Tribal sovereignty, as defined by Marisa Elena Duarte, is the right for Indigenous and Native tribes to self-govern. But because white leaders have a penchant for manifest destiny, the Indigenous peoples of what is now known as “America” are forced into difficult situations like losing land and access to the internet. To understand how to move forward, Duarte asks us in her book “Network Sovereignty” to look at Indigenous spiritual practices and appreciation of the land in contrast to how colonial technology is developed under racist guidelines. She lists these considerations for the digital generation: colonial technologies have historically been weaponized against Native and Indigenous peoples, digital technology can support Native youth, and awareness of digital technology’s ability to limit traditional Native notions of grace and peace.

On that note, the “Natives in Tech” conference, which was held in 2020, has provided that there are big movements created by Indigenous and Native tribes to cut out third-party vendors and big tech companies and is moving forward with creating a network of Native software engineers. These software engineers move within the parameters of the sacred land connection integral to Indigenous ways of living. These movements teach us that it is possible to create systems of technology that fully encapsulate non-white and non-western existences and that doing so actually makes the spread of information found in the complexities of globalization.

Ever since the birth of search engines and the internet at large, we've been told that algorithms tell us more about ourselves than they do about the people who make them. What our screens show us is a product of what we’ve searched previously and what we’ve clicked on the most. The reality is algorithms are not naturalized. Algorithms are, actually, highly simplified systems based on the coder’s bias. Safiya Umoja Noble, author of “Algorithms of Oppression,” contends they currently “[do] not provide appropriate social, historical, and contextual meaning to already overracialized and hypersexualized people who materially suffer along multiple axes” (36). A big hint for why this is such an issue comes from the lack of Black, Indigenous, and People of Color employed in Silicon Valley. In “Silicon Valley Pretends That Algorithmic Bias Is Accidental,” Amber Hamilton discusses the tech culture, which has a history of racist and sexist hiring discrimination.

What’s more, Hamilton continues, is that tech companies, like Google, have a habit of dissuading employees from holding political discussions in the workplace. Yet again, we see an example of how easy it is for white tech to reflect white interests. We return, again, to the overarching idea that white tech seeks white power. Even if these instances seem unintentional, they tell us a story. The colorblind ideology that ensues, as Ruha Benjamin says in “Race After Technology,” “are sold as morally superior because they purport to rise above human bias” (38). It is almost impossible to challenge tech as we are brought to believe it's an entity all of its own, totally void of its creator's morality. MIT's data scientists work hard to construct robots without gender, class, or race. While the robots indeed were “servants” and “workers,” MIT scientists referred to them as “friends and children, addressing them in “class-avoidant” terms (Benjamin 42). Programmers felt so uncomfortable inputting the varying histories of racism, transphobia, and misogyny that they just let them out altogether. Unfortunately, acting as if these things didn’t exist doesn’t make technology better. It only makes it worse. So how do tribal sovereignty, naturalized algorithms, and colorblind ideology all tie together?

Colonial tech is so focused on reaching the biggest audience it can that there really is no space for them to care about the repercussions of their product. And if they are legitimately concerned, it's generally in favor of discriminating against Black, Indigenous, and People of Color. Decolonizing tech looks like creating tech according to accurate histories and with values that empower people. It doesn’t look like plowing through sacred land. It doesn’t look like perpetuating racism or claiming racism doesn’t exist. Tech has the power to be something more. Tech has the power to create better lives not just for white people but for Black, Indigenous, and People of Color.

[geeknik]

What will you do if the Internet goes down?

The prospect of a widespread internet disruption is a genuine concern in our increasingly digital world. Our reliance on the internet for communication, commerce, and information access makes us vulnerable to the consequences of a prolonged outage. The centralization of our digital infrastructure, with a few tech giants controlling a significant portion of the cloud, exacerbates this vulnerability. A disruption to these services would have a ripple effect, impacting businesses, supply chains, and individuals alike.

However, crises often breed opportunities. Could an internet outage catalyze the rise of decentralized, community-driven networks? We've seen glimpses of this resilience in mesh networks used during protests and the proliferation of open-source tools promoting digital freedom. Could such initiatives not only survive but flourish in a landscape devoid of the traditional internet? Personal resilience starts with individual preparedness. Backing up data, utilizing offline knowledge repositories, and adopting secure communication protocols are not just good practices; they're essential for digital sovereignty. Preparing for an internet outage isn't about fear; it's about empowering ourselves with self-sufficiency.

Financial autonomy is equally crucial. Recognizing that banks are susceptible to disruption, exploring alternatives like cryptocurrency (in cold storage) and localized trade becomes prudent. In essence, while we prepare for potential digital turbulence, let's ground ourselves with analog foundations. Community networks, contingency plans, and an adaptable mindset are our anchors. Our goal shouldn't be merely to endure a digital blackout; it should be to cultivate a resilient lifestyle that thrives regardless of our online connectivity.

Counter-cultures are not just about opposing the status quo; they're about resilience and adaptability. Our responses to restrictions can foster the emergence of more robust, diverse systems that align with our inherent need for freedom and privacy. As we navigate the delicate balance between convenience and sovereignty, let's remember to look beyond our screens. Our neighbors, local communities, and the independence of thought are pillars that cannot be gated or switched off.

[medicaldoctordana]

wanted a little writing practice on something short and sweet and ended up with a commentary on post-9/11 politics in the x-files universe why am I like this

[freehawaii]

FREE HAWAI`I TV THE FREE HAWAI`I BROADCASTING NETWORK   "WILL THIS DESTROY FOOD SOVEREIGNTY IN HAWAI`I?"

Think The Poisoning Of Drinking Water At Red Hill Is Bad? You Ainʻt Seen Anything Yet. What If Those Same Poisons Contaminated Hawai`iʻs Agricultural Lands?

Watch This To See Where Itʻs Already Happening & Poisoning Food.

[itsfarmerphil]

W17D4: Do you realize how important people are? Don't isolate!

Here we go into another day. Do you realize the importance of investing in others? You realize how important people are right? Beyond faith, hope, and love which will last forever the only other thing that will remain are the souls of people. Don’t isolate and leave yourself out of the opportunity to speak truth, life, and love into the lives of others. Be the light, shining for the glory of God…

[reasonsforhope]

"In a historic move Friday [November 8, 2024], Sacramento State announced its new Native American College, a first of its kind in the California State university system. 

The college, a co-curricular institution housed at Sacramento State, will support Native-based education with a focus on leadership and career building. It will offer a diverse range of programs that integrate "tribal values, traditions and community engagement," according to a press release. 

This marks Sacramento State's second ethnic-based institution. The university launched the the nation's first Black Honors college earlier this year. 

The announcement was made at the California State Capitol by President Luke Wood and Dr. Annette Reed, an enrolled member and citizen of the Tolowa Dee-ni' Nation, who will be the first dean of the Native American College. 

Reed said students will have access to faculty mentors, advisors, outreach coordinators and more who have the expertise to work closely with Native American students and can support them holistically. 

She hopes this historic initiative will address low enrollment of Native students pursuing higher education across the state and in the country. Native American students face significant barriers to enrolling in higher education, such as financial constraints, feelings of isolation, historical trauma and lack of culturally relevant curriculum. 

"And so I'm hoping this impacts the students where they go through as a cohort. They can create networks, they can be able to have more of a support system going through and beginning together and hopefully graduating at the end together," Reed said.

Reed recalled taking her first class on Native American studies in 1980. She would later on serve as the director of Native American studies at Sacramento State and chair of the Department of Ethnic Studies. For her, advocating for Native American education was a natural top priority. 

"People always ask me, 'What is Native American studies?' It is history. It is looking at culture. It's looking at teaching sovereignty, federal Indian law. It's teaching social work, art. It's teaching about Native cultural expression, it can be literature," Reed said. 

The Native American College will introduce two new courses, according to Reed, which will be focused on Native American leadership. 

"It means that maybe some of the ones that start in Fall 2025 will end up here at the Capitol. Maybe they'll end up being the future senators or assembly people or the future of people in business. They might be leading our nation as tribal chairs, they might be going into the medical field," Reed said. "But whatever field they go into, leadership is really key." 

Students who want to be in the Native American College can apply after being accepted into the university's general application process. All students will be required to minor in Native American Studies, with an emphasis on Native American leadership."

-via ABC 10, November 8, 2024

[zvaigzdelasas]

Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammed Shia al-Sudani on Friday said he would set up a dialogue to discuss the removal of the U.S. military presence in his country after an American strike killed an Iraqi militia leader in Baghdad on Thursday. In an address, al-Sudani said the agreement under which American troops are based in Iraq states the equal sovereignty of both countries, which was violated by the U.S. strike.

“We have repeatedly emphasized that in the event of a violation or transgression by any Iraqi party, or if Iraqi law is violated, the Iraqi government is the only party that has the right to follow up on the merits of these violations,” al-Sudani said in remarks shared by his office. “We affirm our firm and principled position in ending the existence of the international coalition after the justifications for its existence have ended,” he added. The prime minister said he was in the process of setting up a bilateral dialogue with the U.S. to discuss the removal of some 2,500 American troops in his country.

“It is a commitment that the government will not back down from, and will not neglect anything that would complete national sovereignty over the land, sky, and waters of Iraq,” he said.[...]

The U.S. strike on Thursday killed Mushtaq Taleb al-Saidi, the leader of an Iranian-backed militia group Harakat Hezbollah al-Nujaba (HHN), after landing near a security headquarters in Baghdad. HHN is part of the Popular Mobilization Forces, a network of [primarily Shi'ite] militias in Iraq.[...]

Al-Sudani, [...] Friday condemned the U.S. for the strike and said the Popular Mobilization Forces are “an official presence affiliated with the state.”

5 Jan 24

[batboyblog]

I just saw someone call "vote blue people" fascists today on this godforsaken website. They also rambled about Jews Zionists a little too much and repeated some blatant blood libel points so like, I shouldn't take anything they say seriously but.

Is that what we've come to? People voting for Democrats, the party that wants to destroy the world and its people the least... Fascists? Is there no winning with these damn people? What the hell is considered acceptable to them anymore?

hm, I mean I think there are a number of different types of these people. I think there are people who grew up in Republican households and took on all the anti-Democrat baggage and their leftism is rebellion against mommy and daddy but not very deep.

I think there are people influenced by the silly idea that the worse things get the better it is for the Communist Revolution thats totally about to happen any day now we swear, Karl Marx the once and future King will rise from his sleep to lead Britain in its hour of greatest need or whatever.

I think the media are really failing, because they love an idea of "balance" but like when it comes to say Republican criminality there isn't balance? there's no Democratic counter point? so they have to under cover Republican scandal and also lean into an unthinking narrative that whatever Republicans do is somehow Democrats fault? in some way "why didn't Democrats stop them?" well because thats not how it works? why did Republicans do it in the first place? why wasn't the public aware thats what Republicans would do if elected?

I think the antisemitism is a big factor this time around as you mentioned the raving about Zionists or whatever, putting all issues on the back burner to somehow "punish" Democrats for the fact a war broke out in a foreign country on the other side of the world when a Democrat happened to President.

which leads me to the final part, propaganda. When Trump was President he recognized Israel's annexation of two areas, East Jerusalem which has long been talked about as the site for a Palestinian capital, and the Golan Heights a legal part of Syria. This is the first time an American President (or any world leader) had recognized land occupied by Israel in the 1967 Six-Day War as a PART of Israel, rather than occupied. Trump went further and put forward a plan drafted by Israel and right wing American Israel hawks which would have reduced Palestine to a bunch of little islands of sovereignty cut off from each other by land annexed to Israel. A Palestine of bridges and tunnels. And Netanyahu claimed, and I believe him, that Trump said he could go ahead and annex that land even if the Palestinians said no to the deal (which they did)

do you remember the big protests then? no? none? you don't recall any of this? strange... because there are big bot networks boosting content about this conflict, making sure it makes it into your timeline, making sure you tie it to somehow be Democrats fault and that its the most important thing in the world and showing how upset you are by it is the single most important thing imaginable. All day, every day.

As far as Palestine goes, there are two options. The Party that believes in a two state answer, and the party that doesn't. Trump already signed off on annexation once, when he's back in office, now, after October 7th? ooof. Any one who's serious and not cooked knows which is the better choice.

[27moremoons]

Resistance News Network:

At least 181 ballistic missiles were launched from Iran towards the zionist entity, resulting in dozens of direct impacts, including IOF military bases in the occupied Naqab, and the sounding of sirens over 1,864 times across occupied Palestine. Zionist air defenses appear to have failed miserably to confront the attack.

Preliminary statement issued by the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps:

In response to the assassination of Martyr Ismail Haniyeh, Martyr Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah, and Martyr General Abbas Nilforoushan, we have begun striking important military targets in the occupied Palestinian territories with dozens of rockets.

If the zionist regime responds to the operation, it will face violent attacks.

Iran's Mission to the United Nations:

Iran’s legal, rational, and legitimate response to the terrorist acts of the zionist regime—which involved targeting Iranian nationals and interests and infringing upon the national sovereignty of the Islamic Republic of Iran—has been duly carried out. Should the zionist regime dare to respond or commit further acts of malevolence, a subsequent and crushing response will ensue. Regional states and the zionists’ supporters are advised to part ways with the regime.

Hamas:

In the Name of Allah, the most Gracious, the most Merciful

We bless the Iranian missile launches that came in response to the zionist aggression against the Palestinian and Lebanese peoples.

The Islamic Resistance Movement - Hamas blesses the heroic missile launches carried out by the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps in Iran, targeting vast areas of our occupied lands. This comes as a response to the ongoing crimes of the occupation against the peoples of the region and as vengeance for the blood of our heroic martyrs: the martyr fighter Ismail Haniyeh, the martyr His Eminence Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah, and the martyr General Abbas Nilforoushan.

We affirm that this honorable Iranian response is a strong message to the zionist enemy and its fascist government, aimed at deterring them and curbing their terrorism. Their crimes, arrogance, and violations of international laws and humanitarian norms have exceeded all limits.

We express our pride in our brothers in the Islamic Republic of Iran and our appreciation for their stance against the unchecked zionist arrogance and their alignment with the values of justice, the Palestinian people's struggle, the Lebanese people, as well as the supreme interests of the Islamic Nation, which are represented in ending the occupation and deterring the fascist zionist enemy.

We call on all countries, peoples, parties, and all forces of our Arab and Islamic Nations to stand united and confront the zionist crimes and the expansionist zionist expansionist project, which targets everyone. We urge them to work by all means to liberate our land and sanctities from the filth of the fascist occupation.

The Islamic Resistance Movement - Hamas

Tuesday, 28 Rabi' al-Awwal 1446 AH

Corresponding to: October 1, 2024

[indigenousandnativewaysofbeing]

Image: Andrew Melrose -- Westward the Star of Empire Takes Its Way-- Near Council Bluffs Iowa, 1867

When recounting the 2009 Bresnan Communications, Inc.'s effort to secure federal funds for effective broadband connectivity across Montana’s country and tribal lands, she reveals that the 70 million dollar bid needed to cover the vast rural areas of Montana was denied (118). Such a setback, Duarte writes, is due to disunity on the part of stakeholders, resulting in “resounding effects around future access” (118). “It can take years to rebuild trust among potential partners. Tribes partnering with regional infrastructure teams must be clear about sovereign rights to taxation of infrastructure and services, obtaining rights-of-way, tribal environmental standards, conduct of non-tribal personnel, expectations around investment in workforce training, and other practices for solidifying sound business practices” (Duarte 118). All of this becomes exceptionally clear when one recounts the history of telecommunications on the stolen land, which is now globally recognized as “America.” In chapter 6, Duarte analyzes the famous John Gast painting titled “American Progress,” noting that the otherworldly and angelic imagery of a giant woman caped in white carrying a book in one hand and stretching “the slender wires of the telegraph,” in the other signifies Manifest Destiny as settlers leisurely enjoy the fruits of their labor (111). “Depicted in the lower left corner, Indians flee westward under a dark cloud, trailed by the telegraph and railroad” (Duarte 112). Insofar as assumptions about Native and Indigenous ways of thinking and being and analysis involving zero-sum agonism concerning the techno-scientific world, Duarte says it best in chapter 7 “On the one hand, it is important to accommodate the skills and aptitudes of the digital generation of Native youth. On the other hand, it is likewise important to keep teaching future generations about the limitations of digital devices and methods and remind them of the grace and peace that can be achieved through traditional non-digital practices” (127).

Duarte ME. Network Sovereignty : Building the Internet Across Indian Country. University of Washington; 2017.

[probablyasocialecologist]

The main effort in a process of planetary degrowth must be made by the countries of the industrialized North (North America, Europe, and Japan) responsible for the historical accumulation of carbon dioxide since the Industrial Revolution. They are also the areas of the world where the level of consumption, particularly among the privileged classes, is clearly unsustainable and wasteful. The “underdeveloped” countries of the Global South (Asia, Africa, and Latin America) where basic needs are very far from being satisfied will need a process of “development,” including building railroads, water and sewage systems, public transport, and other infrastructures. But there is no reason why this cannot be accomplished through a productive system that is environmentally friendly and based on renewable energies. These countries will need to grow great amounts of food to nourish their hungry populations, but this can be much better achieved—as the peasant movements organized worldwide in the Vía Campesina network have been arguing for years—by a peasant biological agriculture based on family units, cooperatives, or collectivist farms. This would replace the destructive and antisocial methods of industrialized agribusiness, based on the intensive use of pesticides, chemicals, and genetically modified organisms. Presently, the capitalist economy of countries in the Global South is rooted in the production of goods for their privileged classes—cars, airplanes, and luxury goods—and commodities exported to the world market: soya beans, meat, and oil. A process of ecological transition in the South, as argued by ecosocialists, would reduce or suppress this kind of production, and aim instead at food sovereignty and the development of basic services such as health care and education, which need, above all, human labor, rather than more commodities.

Michael Löwy, Nine Theses on Ecosocialist Degrowth

[ausetkmt]

After 14 years of tireless work and community support, Detroit is celebrating a major victory! The city’s first Black-led and community-owned grocery store, the Detroit People’s Food Co-op (DPFC), is opening its doors on May 1st, 2024. This marks a historic moment in Detroit’s fight for food justice and economic empowerment.

“This is the result of a diverse community coming together to create a solution for everyone in Detroit,” said Lanay Gilbert-Williams, president of the DPFC board. “There’s no other business in the city with over 2,500 owners from across the city and state.”

More Than Just a Grocery Store

The DPFC is more than just a place to buy groceries. It’s a beacon of hope and a symbol of Detroit’s resilience. Built on cooperative principles, the store offers affordable, locally sourced, and culturally relevant food options to residents. It also aims to stimulate economic growth within the North End neighborhood and beyond.

The DPFC is located inside the Detroit Food Commons, which will officially open its doors on May 18th. This new center is a testament to the collective power of community and taking control of the food system. Anyone 21 or older living in Michigan can become a member-owner, although membership isn’t required to shop.

Fresh, Local, and Inclusive

Situated in Detroit’s North End, the DPFC offers a wide selection of products, including fresh produce sourced directly from local farmers whenever possible.

“We’re excited to welcome our community into a welcoming and inclusive environment centered on fresh, locally grown produce from Detroit’s own farmers,” said Akil Talley, DPFC’s general manager. “We’re confident we have the best prepared foods department in Michigan, and we can’t wait to open our doors!”

A Hub for Education and Empowerment

The second floor of the Detroit Food Commons, managed by the Detroit Black Community Food Sovereignty Network, will serve as a center for educational workshops, community events, and health and wellness initiatives. It will also feature four commercial kitchens and a rentable hall.

The DPFC is part of a larger movement for Black food sovereignty and economic empowerment in Detroit. They partner with local businesses, urban farms, and community organizations to build a more resilient and sustainable food system that benefits everyone in the city.

Join the Celebration!

“On opening day, I want everyone in Detroit to walk through our doors and feel like this is their store,” said Talley.

The DPFC opens for business on May 1st, 2024, at 11:00 AM. Regular hours are 8:00 AM to 8:00 PM daily.

The grand opening celebration and ribbon cutting for the Detroit Food Commons will be held on Saturday, May 18th, 2024, starting at 11:00 AM. The entire community is invited to celebrate this new era for Black food sovereignty in Detroit

[milfstalin]

There is much concern that Elon Musk’s Starlink intends to provide satellite internet coverage to the United States following the failure of its Red Sea “Operation Prosperity Guardian” alliance to curb Yemen’s pro-Palestinian front.

This conversation has gained traction since the company’s announcement on 18 September that it would launch services in Yemen after months of informal contracts with the Saudi-backed government in Aden. The timing of this announcement raised eyebrows, especially as it coincided with Israel’s terrorist attacks in Lebanon, involving exploding pagers and walkie-talkies.

[...]

The announcement that Yemen would be the first country in West Asia to have full access to its services surprised many – particularly because the US embassy in Yemen was quick to praise the move as an “achievement” that could unlock new opportunities.

[...]

The rival Sanaa government, under which most of Yemen’s population lives, was quick to warn that the Starlink project may threaten Yemen and its national security. Mohammed al-Bukhaiti, a member of Ansarallah’s political bureau, criticized the US embassy’s stance, which he says:

"Confirms the relationship between the launch of Starlink and the war launched by America on Yemen, which threatens to expand the conflict to the orbits of outer space for the first time in history."

[...]

In March, the Financial Times reported that the US and UK faced intelligence shortfalls in their Red Sea campaign, particularly around the capabilities of the Ansarallah-aligned forces’ arsenal. This intelligence gap underlined the west’s need for a reliable spy network, and Starlink’s role in this context raises serious questions.

A Reuters report revealed that SpaceX had signed secret contracts with the US Department of Defense aimed at developing a spy satellite system capable of detecting global threats in real-time.

[...]

Another concerning aspect is the involvement of Israel. Israel’s spy satellites, OFEK-13 and OFEK-14, are reportedly linked to Starlink’s satellite network. SpaceX, as a third party, may provide critical guidance and intelligence to these satellites, further enhancing Tel Aviv’s surveillance capabilities in the region. This connection between Starlink and Israeli intelligence efforts has heightened fears in Yemen that the satellite network will be used to undermine the country’s security and sovereignty.

Currently, Starlink services are available primarily in Yemeni areas controlled by the Saudi and UAE-led coalition, although roaming packages allow temporary access in other regions. This has prompted concerns about data security, privacy, and the spread of misinformation, as unrestricted satellite internet bypasses local government control.

[...]

Moreover, cybersecurity risks are particularly troubling, as the network might be exploited for dangerous purposes, including facilitating terrorist activities like bombings. The presence of a global satellite internet service that bypasses local regulations raises concerns about its potential to disrupt local internet infrastructure.

Starlink could also introduce unfair competition to local provider Yemen Net, further marginalizing the national telecom provider and hindering local development efforts.

[...]

Dr Youssef al-Hadri, a right-wing political affairs researcher, shared his views with The Cradle on the recent events in Lebanon and the ongoing electronic warfare involving the US and its allies. According to Hadri, intelligence agencies operating in areas under the control of the Sanaa government face challenges in detecting the locations of missiles, drones, and military manufacturing sites.

This shortfall became even more apparent after a major intelligence operation exposed a long-running spy cell in Yemen, with activities spanning across multiple sectors.

From the risk of espionage to the undermining of local telecom providers, the implications of Starlink’s operations extend far beyond providing internet access – they could become a vehicle for foreign influence and control.

[...]

3 Oct 2024

[brightlotusmoon]

X missed a deadline imposed by Supreme Court Justice Alexandre de Moraes to name a legal representative in Brazil, triggering the suspension. It marks an escalation in the monthslong feud between Musk and de Moraes over free speech, far-right accounts and misinformation.

To block X, Brazil’s telecommunications regulator, Anatel, told internet service providers to suspend users’ access to the social media platform. As of Saturday at midnight local time, major operators began doing so.

De Moraes had warned Musk on Wednesday night that X could be blocked in Brazil if he failed to comply with his order to name a representative, and established a 24-hour deadline. The company hasn’t had a representative in the country since earlier this month.

“Elon Musk showed his total disrespect for Brazilian sovereignty and, in particular, for the judiciary, setting himself up as a true supranational entity and immune to the laws of each country,” de Moraes wrote in his decision on Friday.

The justice said the platform will stay suspended until it complies with his orders, and also set a daily fine of 50,000 reais ($8,900) for people or companies using VPNs to access it.

In a later ruling, he backtracked on his initial decision to establish a 5-day deadline for internet service providers themselves — and not just the telecommunications regulator — to block access to X, as well as his directive for app stores to remove virtual private networks, or VPNs.

The dispute also led to the freezing this week of the bank accounts in Brazil of Musk's satellite internet provider Starlink.

[cognitivejustice]

Pictured is Dragonfly Farm on the Navajo Nation, where IndigeHub is working with Crescive Soil to provide soil health and slide training to create compost for organic input. Photograph: Courtesy Bleu Adams

Given adequate funding, she hopes IndigeHub can build a network of food hubs across the Navajo Nation.

The hubs seek to produce, store and distribute food to the one-quarter of Native Americans experiencing food insecurity

In addition to the Navajo Nation, grassroots food hubs are also emerging in places like Arizona. The Star School, serving primarily Native American students near Flagstaff, is developing a food hub with a local food store and growing produce in a greenhouse and garden. Further to the south-west, the Nalwoodi Denzhone Community nonprofit operates a food pantry, a local food store, a community kitchen, and a regenerative farm and mobile chicken tractor on the San Carlos Apache Reservation.

“If we can build these hubs, we can fill those gaps in the food system,” said Adams.

Hill agreed, saying the food hub model is a step toward food security and food sovereignty long denied to Hopi people. “If we don’t have access to and control over the food system, our seeds, and food production,” she said, “we become extremely vulnerable”.

[thehoundera]

. . . Foucault’s analysis of power might just as easily be understood as offering an analysis of freedom, insofar as entire social worlds exist as subjugating fields that are reliant upon our freedom to acquiesce to them. This, as Andrew Johnson puts it, is to foreground the question of how and why “society colludes, effectively policing itself.” Why, if power can only be exercised over free subjects, do we freely allow ourselves to be judged according to norms, to have our actions channelled toward certain behaviors?

This problem, of “why people freely bind themselves to power,” looks analogous to the thorny problem of voluntary slavery that so vexed modern philosophical and theological articulations of freedom. In suggesting that “the relationship between power and freedom’s refusal to submit cannot, therefore, be separated,” Foucault argues that the “problem of power is not that of voluntary servitude (how could we seek to be slaves?).” This seemingly easy dismissal of the problem belies the indeterminacy of being always already thrown into an agonistic interaction between “the recalcitrance of the will and the intransigence of freedom.” This is to say, our capacity for freedom is always already a renunciation of freedom insofar as we freely bind ourselves to power. But in so binding ourselves we are never truly enslaved since power is itself productive of freedoms since power never fully determines. In part due to this, voluntary servitude animates Foucault’s account even in its dismissal, since power effectively forms the complex web through which freedoms are articulated.

For example, in the context of “mechanisms of power” that subjugate individuals, Foucault states that critique is the “art of voluntary inservitude.” In the context of a heterodox account of the Kantian Enlightenment, Foucault argues that the order of things is constituted by man, rather than God or a sovereign state; second, and relatedly, that there is a limit to knowledge that is imposed by us. Taken together, Foucault demonstrates that humanity comes into being through this analytic of finitude. With man taking the place of God, Foucault follows Kant’s position against the rationalist tradition that articulates a relationship between man and the laws of the world, knowledge of which is limited by our position within “the great table of beings,” since those limits are also understood to be “decreed or imposed by man.” However, as far as Foucault is concerned, whilst Kant’s project of finitude is the condition of possibility for man taking the place of God, that project requires completion such that all forms of sovereignty are abandoned, including the epistemic and normative sovereignty at work in Kant’s claims to universal validity. In Society Must Be Defended, he further describes the move towards normalization against “a juridical rule derived from sovereignty but a discourse about a natural rule, or in other words a norm.” Law as the expression of sovereign power is thus submerged and internalized within modernity’s “code of normalization.”

It is in this context that critique becomes the art of voluntary inservitude precisely because the possibility of challenging mechanisms of power cannot call upon an external sovereign. Kant has already shown us that critique must be self-justifying. Here, Foucault tells us that we cannot appeal to that which lies outside of us because we are immersed in networks of power that provide the conditions of our subjectivation and in turn the conditions of critique—so in effect, there must be nothing outside to which we can appeal. The question of freedom that is exercised through its renunciation is found in the suturing of the domain of power:

[The] carceral network does not cast the unassimilable into a confused hell; there is no outside . . . . In this panoptic society of which incarceration is the omnipresent armature, the delinquent is not outside the law; he is, from the very outset, in the law, at the very heart of the law.

The subject is embedded within this interplay of critique and subjugation. But as such, the racial slave “marks-off” the domain of the social even where the slave cannot be exteriorized either spatially or temporally. For example, in The Subject and Power, Foucault states that

Where the determining factors are exhaustive, there is no relationship of power: slavery is not a power relationship when a man is in chains, only when he has some possible mobility, even a chance of escape.

Foucault expands on this point in an interview “The Ethics of the Concern of the Self as a Practice of Freedom”: 

power relations are possible only insofar as the subjects are free. If one of them were completely at the other’s disposal and became his thing, an object on which he could wreak boundless and limitless violence, there wouldn’t be any relations of power. Even . . . when it can truly be claimed that one side has “total power” over the other, a power can be exercised over the other only insofar as the other still has the option of killing himself, of leaping out the window, or of killing the other person . . . if there were no possibility of resistance (of violent resistance, flight, deception, strategies capable of reversing the situation), there would be no power relations at all.

Here slavery is articulated as the nexus of total incapacity and a totalized power that necessarily exists outside of the domain of power itself. Slavery is here moved outside both death and even suicide (which is to say that the slave’s suicide cannot recuperate the biopolitical). This articulation of slavery as total incapacity appears close, then, to Saidiya Hartman’s articulation of slavery in terms of the “fungibility of the commodity [that] makes the captive body an abstract and empty vessel.” It is in defining slavery as complete domination that must have been surpassed for entry into the domain of power that both servitude and inservitude cannot collapse into slavery. Since “slavery is not a power relationship,” for Foucault, we are subjugated insofar as we are not slaves. Servitude cannot also be slavery since our insertion into civil society—even where we are subjugated—requires us to always possibly operate against mechanisms of power in its critique. So, racial slavery is the conduit through which Foucault’s carceral world becomes possible through its necessary voiding. In order to be a subject, one cannot be or have possibly been, a slave. 

Thus racial slavery becomes the unthinkable conceptual armature that Foucault depends upon for the coherence of freedom across the board, marking out both the domain of freedom and subjectivity through the slave’s fungibility. Civil society—even where this is articulated through complex networks of policing and normalization—relies on the spectral presence of racial slavery as impossibility for the subject of power. In the process of emptying-out the world of slavery, Foucault therefore not only buries the mass of Atlantic systems of contracts, trade, and people, but draws upon that buried slavery to enact the limits of the possible domain of the human world. It is the marked evasion of racial slavery that comes to be constitutive insofar as racial slaves necessarily exceed the world they are called upon to demarcate.