hunger of the imperial body
Dear Beloved,
Four years under Trump’s regime is nothing compared to the last 10 months. The last 318 days have radicalized me in ways I could not imagine before October 7th.
It feels like dying. It feels like being reborn in fire.
I have experienced being digested within the belly of the beast as is the daily reality of living within the United States empire. I have read about American horrors, learned our blood-drenched history, but under the lens of propaganda.
It was easier when blame was laid solely at the feet of the Republican Party. It was easier when it could be attributed to old white men, dying off little by little anyway. It was easier when it was only about mobilizing for votes and educating people about civil government.
That was before the world’s first live-streamed genocide.
The Republican and Democratic Parties are two blood-stained of one imperial body. And the body is always hungry.
The empire will grow and expand to survive. The empire will take whatever form it has to so it can continue its mass killing and destruction. The empire is a living, ever-hungry structure of endless war.
What is the difference between these two photos?
There is a one-letter difference between RNC and DNC. There is a single month between the two conventions. The distance between Milwaukee and Chicago is less than a hundred miles, and party policies walk side by side down the path of destruction.
A Republican president stacked the Supreme Court but it is under a Democratic president that Roe v. Wade was dismantled. It is a Democratic governor that I see threatening communities’ funding if they don’t sweep homeless encampments; it’s Newsom’s photo I see personally throwing away someone’s belongings. It is a Democratic mayor who is chief architect of mass surveillance in New York City. It is a largely Democratic city council that votes down any attempts at combatting Seattle’s housing crisis, pushes out their constituents with threats of police violence, and hides in Zoom meetings. It is a Democratic governor who greenlit some of the worst state violence against Black Lives Matter protestors in 2020 in the very city George Floyd was murdered. It is the most liberal of universities banning masks entirely for the upcoming school year, mandating that students identify themselves when asked by an UC employee.
It is a Democratic administration side stepping Congress to send billions to Israel. It is Democrat and Republican both vying for AIPAC funding, pledging allegiance to a monstrous entity. It is the American empire responsible for the silent genocide in Congo, proxy wars across continents, coups against sovereignty, patenting seeds, destroying homes, poisoning waters, bombing hospitals, arresting peaceful protestors.
The parties point fingers at each other, fearmongering. Beware the immigrants, beware the rednecks, beware woke universities, beware Project 2025, beware rioters, beware trans people, beware anti-Zionists, beware brown bodies, beware birthing bodies. Beware of the enemy waiting behind the corner.
The enemy has always been right in front of us.
Our enemy creates extravagant, gaudy plays for us in the political theater while they tighten our chains. Our enemy kills our children and calls for our prayers. Our enemy enslaves us to debt and circumstance. Our enemy paints our neighbors in “other” and gleefully watches us fight each other. Our enemy converts us from people to consumers while it consumes our humanity.
Our enemy is the ruling/owning class. Our enemy is capitalism, it is colonialism. It is unchecked greed and depravity. It is the billionaires and their political pawns; it is this artificial state, corporations masquerading as a country. Our enemy is empire itself.
The imperial body of the United States will always be hungry. Its blood-stained hands will never cease its destruction as it gorges on flesh and bone.
We must starve it.
Mutual Aid for Celine and Sila from Gaza
Celine and Sila Salmah are two sisters living with their family in Gaza, loved and protected by their parents. Their family lived a happy life together before October 7th but have since been displaced by Israel. Celine has spent much of her life now living in an active warzone. Little Sila was born in a tent.
Thankfully, little Celine, baby Sila, and their dear parents are still alive. Their survival is a living miracle. However, Israel’s aggression only worsens and the designated “safe” zones keep getting smaller. They need to evacuate - soon. Celine and Sila’s parents need €70,000 to secure a better future for their daughters and thankfully, community and kindness have raised close to €67,000.
This family is so close to their goal. Please help this Celine and Sila today!