Progressive Commentary Hour - 05.09.17

And inside look at events in Venezuela and the US efforts for regime change

Dr. Maria Paez Victor is a sociologist who sits on the Board of Governors for the Law Commission of Ontario at York University, an independent organization that researches and advocates law and reforms for Ontario citizens. She is also the Chair of the Canadian Latin American and Caribbean Policy Center. With over 20 years experience in national and international energy policy analysis and environmental health assessment, she has served as a policy adviser and consultant for the Ontarian and Canadian governments and taught the Sociology of Medicine at the University of Toronto.  Born in Venezuela, Maria was educated in Caracas, New York, Mexico City and received her masters the University of Kent in the UK and her doctorate in sociology at York University in Toronto. She has been a long time active member in Canada's Latin American community and an observer and commentator on events unfolding in Venezuela since Hugo Chavez came to office as well as a sharp critic of US policies towards that nation. She is the author of "Give Me Liberty or Death: The Life and Campaigns of Richard Vowell" about a small group of British and Irish expat legionnaires who joined Simon Bolivar's revolution to oust the Spanish empire. Her articles appear on Counterpunch and in many liberal Spanish media sites. 

 

The Islamophobic Administration -- The rise of a nationalist ideology behind government policies 

Faiza Patel [Fi-za long i] is the co-director of the Liberty and National Security Program at the Brennan Center at New York University's Law School where she is specializing on the growing Islamophobia and regressive surveillance of Muslims by the US government. She has testified before Congress and organized advocacy efforts against state laws that incite fear of Islam. She is a frequent commentator on national security and counterterrorism issues on major media such as the New York Times, The Economist, The Guardian, MSNBC and NPR and other outlets. Earlier Faiza was a senior policy official for the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons in the Haque and served as a law clerk at the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia. Born and raised in Pakistan, Faiza is a graduate of Harvard and received her law degree from NYU Law School.  She is a lead author of the recent Brennan report "The Islamophobic Administration" and the Trump administration's role in increasing and inciting a national hatred towards Muslims. The report can be found at BrennanCenter.org