Massive rally begins honoring Fidel Castro

Massive rally begins honoring Fidel Castro
 

Military cadets hold pictures of Fidel Castro during a rally at the Revolution Plaza in Havana, Cuba, Tuesday, Nov. 29, 2016. Regional leaders and tens of thousands of Cubans filled Havana's Plaza of the Revolution Tuesday night for a service honoring Fidel Castro on the wide plaza where the Cuban leader delivered fiery speeches to mammoth crowds in the years after he seized power. Fidel Castro passed away Friday Nov. 25. He was 90.

  

HAVANA (AP) -- Regional leaders and tens of thousands of Cubans filled Havana's Plaza of the Revolution Tuesday night for a service honoring Fidel Castro on the wide plaza where the Cuban leader delivered fiery speeches to mammoth crowds in the years after he seized power.

The presidents of Mexico, Ecuador, Bolivia, Venezuela, Panama, South Africa and Zimbabwe, along with leaders of a host of smaller Caribbean nations, flew in to Havana to pay tribute to Castro, who died Friday night at 90.

South African President Jacob Zuma praised Cuba under Castro for its record on education and health care and its support for African independence struggles.

Castro will be remembered as "a great fighter for the idea that the poor have a right to live with dignity," Zuma told the crowd.

The rally began with black-and-white revolution-era footage of Castro and other guerrillas on a big screen and the playing of the Cuban national anthem. Castro's younger brother and successor, President Raul Castro, saluted.

Cuban state media reported that an urn containing Fidel Castro's ashes was being kept in a room at the Defense Ministry where Raul and top Communist Party officials paid tribute the previous evening.

During the day, lines stretched for hours outside the Plaza of the Revolution, the heart of government power. In Havana and across the island, people signed condolence books and an oath of loyalty to Castro's sweeping May 2000 proclamation of the Cuban revolution as an unending battle for socialism, nationalism and an outsize role for the island on the world stage.

"I feel a deep sadness, but immense pride in having had him near," said Ana Beatriz Perez, a 50-year-old medical researcher who was advancing in the slow-moving line with the help of crutches. "His physical departure gives us strength to continue advancing in his ideology. This isn't going away, because we are millions."

"His death is another revolution," said her husband, Fidel Diaz, who predicted that it will prompt many to "rediscover the ideas of the commander for the new generations."

Tribute sites were set up in hundreds of places across the island as the government urged Cubans to reaffirm their belief in a socialist, single-party system that in recent years has struggled to maintain the fervor that was widespread at the triumph of the 1959 revolution.

Many mourners came on their own accord, but thousands were sent in groups by the communist government, which still employs about 80 percent of the working people in Cuba despite the growth of the private sector under Raul.

Inside the memorial, thousands walked through three rooms with near-identical displays featuring the 1962 Alberto Korda photograph of the young Castro in the Sierra Maestra mountains, bouquets of white flowers and an array of Castro's medals against a black backdrop, framed by honor guards of soldiers and children in school uniforms. The ashes of the 90-year-old former president did not appear to be on display.

Signs read: "The Cuban Communist Party is the only legitimate heir of the legacy and authority of the commander in chief of the Cuban Revolution, comrade Fidel Castro."

"Goodbye commander. Your ideas remain here with us," 64-year-old retiree Etelbina Perez said between sobs, dabbing at her eyes with a brown handkerchief. "I feel great pain over his death. I owe my entire life to him. He brought me out of the mountains. I was able to study thanks to him."

The scene was played out on a smaller scale at countless places across the country.

After 10 years of leadership by Raul Castro, a relatively camera-shy and low-key successor, Cuba has found itself riveted once again by the words and images of the man who dominated the lives of generations. 

Since his death on Friday night, state-run newspapers, television and radio have run wall-to-wall tributes to Fidel Castro, broadcasting non-stop footage of his speeches, interviews and foreign trips, interspersed with adulatory remembrances by prominent Cubans.

White Nationalist Alt-Righter Claims 'Hail Trump' Comments Were 'Ironic' "Will Trump Make A Televised Press Statement About Hail?"

White Nationalist Alt-Righter Claims 'Hail Trump' Comments Were 'Ironic' "Will Trump Make A Televised Press Statement About Hail?"

 Donald Trump was 'Hailed' as the 2016 revised "Hitler" Chancellor for being selfish and being American....

Hitler was Germany Chancellor when great athletes, both German Olympic Athletes and American Olympic Athletes (Jessie Owens) despised Hitler for being selfish and being German...

Citizens of the State of California, admitted as the 31st U.S. state on September 9, 1850, admitted to the United States undivided as a free state, denying the expansion of slavery to the Pacific Coast, denying any attacks against immigrants, denying any civilian to claim superior race, deny any member of the military, or of a police or firefighting force to support racism, denying any person voted to an elected office to promote open racism or hidden racism... -citizens are considering leaving the United States in 2017- California no longer being the 31st U.S. state.   

U.S. registered voters, U.S. non registered voters, and U.S. immigrants and more are waiting to see if President-elect Trump will make a televised press statement to make things final once and for all what his view is about racism in America.

Many Trump voters claim that they are not racist... many Clinton voters make the same claim that they are not racist also.

Neither voter, Trump or Clinton, feels comfortable about Hail Trump... not unless they actually agree that Trump should behave just like Hitler now that Trump will be in the U.S. White House in 2017.

There is plenty of time for White Americans to end hating White Americans, plenty of time for White Americans to end hating Black Americans, plenty of time for Black Americans to end hating Black Americans...

Hate is so deep...both Trump and Clinton voters feel very comfortable hating one another- their personal public joy of hate...

And protesters against the president-elect Trump victory seem to be the only people having great common sense to consider the warning about a real possible Hail Trump in America.

Richard Spencer is in town for the largest white nationalist and Alt Right conference of the year in Washington, DC on November 18, 2016.

The white nationalist who said "Hail Trump" and "hail our people" during a conference in Washington D.C. on Saturday — and who received straight-armed Nazi-like salutes in response — told NBC News Monday that his comments were meant to be "cheeky," "exuberant" and "ironic."

The remarks from Richard Spencer, whose National Policy Institute was described by the Southern Poverty Law Center as one of the most influential purveyors of academic racism in the country, were published in a video by the Atlantic on Monday.

Spencer, 38, told NBC News that the conference was the "next step" for the "alt-right," a soft euphemism for the once-fringe network with ties to white nationalism that vaulted into the mainstream political scene with Donald Trump's chief strategist, Steve Bannon, and includes everyone from hardcore white supremacists and neo-Nazis to critics of so-called "political correctness."

 "We need to take this next step in terms of professionalization and in terms of being able to influence people," he told NBC News, adding that he is "very willing to criticize" Trump and say "things that he's not willing or able to say."

More from NBC News:
5 things to know about the alt-right
Breitbart's Steve Bannon leads the 'alt right' to the White House
For Trump, just another turbulent, free-wheeling weekend

In a statement, the Trump transition team said that the president-elect "has continued to denounce racism of any kind and he was elected because he will be a leader for every American. To think otherwise is a complete misrepresentation of the movement that united Americans from all backgrounds."

In the video, Spencer appeared to raise a glass after saying, "Hail Trump, hail our people, hail victory."

In response, some in the crowd, which had gathered at the Ronald Reagan Building and which the Atlantic estimated to be 200, saluted.

"There's an ironic exuberance to it all," Spencer claimed. "I think that's ... one of the things that makes the alt-right fun, is that we're willing to do things that are a bit cheeky."

At other points in his speech, Spencer used a term employed by the Nazis to attack the media — "Lügenpresse," German for lying press — to describe the mainstream media.

"It's not just that many are genuinely stupid," he said of reporters. "Indeed, one wonders if these people are people at all."

One tactic of Adolf Hitler's Nazi regime was to declare enemies inhuman.

At another point, Spencer said that to be "white is to be a striver, an explorer and a conqueror ... We don't gain anything from [other racial groups'] presence. They need us and not the other way around."

 

8 people arrested at White Lives Matter rally in Austin- "Black Lives Matter Was Not Developed To Hate White People": Many White People Are All together With Black People During Black Lives Matter Movement

8 people arrested at White Lives Matter rally in Austin- "Black Lives Matter Was Not Developed To Hate White People": Many White People Are All together With Black People During Black Lives Matter Movement

 Here is an article about a group for a person, a White person, called "White Lives Matter."

The news article is so important to read because anyone interested in understanding the group called "Black Lives Matter" need to learn that Black Lives Matter isn't created by Black peoples in order to hate White people.

A person doesn't have to be Black in order to support the Black Lives Matter group.

In fact, there are so many many large number of persons that are White Americans joining their own resources to support Black Lives Matter Movement there seems to be no stopping people standing and marching all together as a true united Black and White force in America.

However, anything about demanding more respect for positive Black activity in America nearly always exposes racism... and opposition to the Black race in America. 

It is a beautiful thing that White people as a whole are lovely. And it is equally a beautiful thing that Black people as a whole are lovely.

And the very same people that are hating Black Lives Matter because of a positive Black image...they have the same deep hatred against White people that don't agree with racism.

The White Lives Matter group demand equal treatment in America...

What's very interesting about the White Lives Matter making demands to be treated equally in America is that the supporters appear at a rally, out of no where, armed with weapons that look like machine guns...

The real question is... can White Lives Matter protesters do better than how they appear?

AUSTIN, Texas -- Eight people were arrested on Saturday when a small group of protesters calling themselves White Lives Matter were confronted by counter-demonstrators supporting Black Lives Matter at the Texas State Capitol near where Gov. Greg Abbott had earlier dedicated a monument recognizing the contribution of African-Americans to the state.

Texas Department of Public Safety spokesman Sgt. Victor Taylor said four of the arrests were for assault, two for evading arrest, one for disorderly conduct and one for “interference with public duty.” Two of those arrested were on Capitol grounds and the others on adjacent streets.

“Some protesters assaulted other protesters,” Taylor said. “We don’t know for sure which side they were on. A lot of them were co-mingled.”

Austin police and state troopers dressed in riot gear and some mounted on horseback had tried to keep the two groups separated.

The demonstration started Saturday morning during the unveiling of the Texas African American History monument, CBS affiliate KEYE reports.

While the memorial was being unveiled on the capitol lawn several dozen white lives matter members showed up to protest hate crime laws.

“Really what we are here today for is to protest against unequal application of hate crime laws,” said Scott Lacy.

Members of the white live matter group held signs that read “Hate crimes for one, hate crimes for all, equal justice under the law.”

Hundreds of counter protesters then showed up in opposition of that group. They chanted “Nazis get out, Nazis get out!”

Taylor said the confrontation did not affect the unveiling of the monument, which was in a different part of the grounds. A state helicopter circled overhead.

About two dozen individuals with the White Lives Matter group, some of whom were armed, demonstrated against what they called the unequal application of hate crimes laws, which they said are applied in a way that favors minorities. The group said it was a coincidence that its protest was held at about the same time as the ceremony for the monument.

White Lives Matter member and protest organizer Ken Reed said into a bullhorn that his group was concerned with “white people’s preservation.”

“You all are anti-white and anti-American,” he told the counter-protesters, according to the Austin American-Statesman.

The White Lives Matter group was shouted down by several hundred counter-protesters, who held up signs that said “Stand Against Hate” and “Black Lives Matter.”

One of them, Marie Catrett, said she came to stand up for the rights of minorities.

“I think they are full of hatred,” Catrett said about the White Lives Matter group. “They don’t represent our community or our values.”

During the unveiling ceremony, Abbott told a crowd in attendance that the monument honors African-Americans who helped grow Texas.

“The fact is African Americans have shaped this land that we are on today since long before it was even named the state of Texas. They fought for their own freedom. They fought for the freedom of Texas and the freedom of the United States of America,” Abbott said.

Trump names Priebus, Bannon to senior White House roles

Trump names Priebus, Bannon to senior White House roles
 

In this Wednesday, Nov. 9, 2016, photo, President-elect Donald Trump, left, stands with Republican National Committee Chairman Reince Priebus during an election night rally in New York. Trump on Sunday named Priebus as his White House chief of staff

  

WASHINGTON (AP) -- President-elect Donald Trump named Republican Party chief Reince Priebus as White House chief of staff and conservative media owner Stephen Bannon as his top presidential strategist, two men who represent opposite ends of the unsettled GOP.

In bringing Priebus and Bannon into the White House, Trump is making overtures to both traditional Republican circles and the party's anti-establishment wing, which helped fuel the businessman's political rise.

Priebus has deep ties to GOP congressional leaders, particularly House Speaker Paul Ryan. Bannon previously ran the Breitbart website, which was fiercely critical of Republican leadership, including Ryan.

Bannon was notably given top billing in the press release announcing the appointments, a curious arrangement giving that White House chief of staff is typically considered the most powerful West Wing job.

Under Bannon's tenure, the Brietbart site pushed a nationalist, anti-establishment agenda and became one of the leading outlets of the so-called alt-right - a movement often associated with white supremacy and a defense of "Western values."

Neither Priebus nor Bannon bring significant policy experience to their new White House roles. Chiefs of staff in particular play a significant role in policy making, serving as a liaison to Cabinet agencies and deciding what information makes it to the president's desk. They're often one of the last people in the room with the 

president as major decisions are made.

Together with Vice President-elect Mike Pence, the triumvirate will lead Trump's transition to the White House and help guide his presidency, Trump said in a statement.

"I am thrilled to have my very successful team continue with me in leading our country," Trump said. He called Priebus and Bannon "highly qualified leaders who worked well together on our campaign and led us to a historic victory.

Priebus called the appointment "an honor" and predicted the billionaire "will be a great president for all Americans."

The appointments came after a day in which Trump's tough-talking plan to rein in illegal immigration showed signs Sunday of cracking, with the president-elect backing off his vow to build a solid wall along the southern U.S. border and Ryan rejecting any "deportation force" targeting people living in the country illegally.

After Trump told CBS' "60 Minutes" that his border wall might look more like a fence in spots, the combative billionaire took to Twitter to settle some scores.

During a four-hour spree, Trump savaged the New York Times and gloated about the GOP stalwarts lining up to congratulate him, bragging that staunch critics and GOP rivals John Kasich, Mitt Romney and Jeb Bush had sent attaboys. Former presidents George W. and George H.W. Bush also had sent their "best wishes on the win. Very nice!" The New York Times, Trump wrote to his 14 million followers, is "dishonest" and "highly inaccurate."

As Trump revenge-tweeted, threats flew between power brokers, and protests across the country continued.

The president-elect retreated from the campaign promise that had inspired his supporters to chant "Build the wall!" at Trump's massive campaign rallies.

Would he accept a fence in some spots on the border? In an interview to be aired Sunday, Trump told "60 Minutes": "For certain areas, I would, but certain areas, a wall is more appropriate. There could be some fencing."

Excerpts of the interview were released in advance.

Trump also had vowed to immediately deport all 11 million people living in the country illegally. But in the interview, he said he's focusing first on ousting or incarcerating 2 million to 3 million "that are criminals and have criminal records, gang members, drug dealers." Trump emphasized that securing the border is his very first immigration priority.

On that, Ryan agreed. But on CNN's "State of the Union," Ryan rejected the kind of "mass deportations" Trump had championed during the campaign.

"We are not planning on erecting a deportation force," Ryan said.

More tension emerged Sunday when Trump's campaign manager, Kellyanne Conway, said Senate Democratic Leader Harry Reid should be careful in a "legal sense" about characterizing Trump as a sexual predator. When asked whether Trump was threatening to sue Reid, Conway said no.

But Adam Jentleson, Reid's deputy chief of staff, said Trump is "hiding behind his Twitter account and sending his staff on TV to threaten his critics."

Trump claims mandate; Clinton says give him 'chance to lead'

Trump claims mandate; Clinton says give him 'chance to lead'

Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton greets supporters after speaking at the New Yorker Hotel in New York, Wednesday, Nov. 9, 2016, where she conceded her defeat to Republican Donald Trump after the hard-fought presidential election.

  

WASHINGTON (AP) -- Emboldened Republicans claimed a mandate Wednesday for President-elect Donald Trump after his astonishing election triumph, and an emotional Hillary Clinton told crestfallen supporters the GOP victor deserved a "chance to lead." President Barack Obama pledged a smooth transition of power.

"We are now all rooting for his success in uniting and leading the country," the president said of the president-elect, the man who spent years questioning Obama's birthplace and challenging the legitimacy of his presidency. Obama, who had declared Trump unfit for the presidency, invited him to the White House Thursday.

Trump was uncharacteristically quiet in the aftermath of his triumph and made no public appearances Wednesday. He huddled with jubilant, sleep-deprived advisers at his eponymous skyscraper in Manhattan, beginning the daunting task of setting up an administration that will take power in just over two months. He also met with Vice President-elect Mike Pence and took calls from supporters, family and friends, according to spokeswoman Hope Hicks.

In Washington, Trump's scant transition team sprang into action, culling through personnel lists for top jobs and working through handover plans for government agencies. A person familiar with the transition operations said the personnel process was still in its early stages, but Trump's team was putting a premium on quickly filling key national security posts.

According to an organizational chart for the transition obtained by The Associated Press, Trump was relying on experienced hands to help form his administration. National security planning was being led by former Michigan Rep. Mike Rogers, who previously worked for the FBI. Domestic issues were being handled by Ken Blackwell, a former Cincinnati mayor and Ohio secretary of state.

Trump was expected to consider several loyal supporters for top jobs, including former New York Mayor Rudy Giuliani for attorney general or national security adviser and campaign finance chairman Steve Mnuchin for Treasury secretary. Former House Speaker Newt Gingrich and Tennessee Sen. Bob Corker were also expected to be under consideration for foreign policy posts.

After struggling for months with Trump's takeover of their party, Republican leaders embraced the businessman in victory. House Speaker Paul Ryan, who was lukewarm in his support throughout the campaign, praised him for pulling off "the most incredible political feat I have seen in my lifetime."

"He just earned a mandate," Ryan declared.

Indeed, Trump will take office in January with Congress fully in his party's control, giving him strength to try to pass his agenda and turn the Supreme Court in a conservative direction. Even Republicans were stunned by the scope of their electoral success, including many who had been privately predicting Trump's defeat.

Clinton's emotions were raw as she addressed a crowd of supporters, eyes wet with tears, who gathered in a New York ballroom. She said the crushing loss was "painful and it will be for a long time" and acknowledged that the nation was "more divided than we thought."

Still, Clinton was gracious in defeat, declaring that "Donald Trump is going to be our president. We owe him an open mind and the chance to lead."

With several million votes still to be counted, Clinton held a narrow lead in the nationwide popular vote. 

Most of the outstanding votes appeared to be in Democratic-leaning states, with the biggest chunk in California, a state Clinton overwhelmingly won. With almost 125 million votes counted, The Associated Press tally had Clinton with 47.7 percent and Trump with 47.5 percent.

Trump's sweep of the battleground states that decided the election was commanding. He carried Florida, Ohio and North Carolina, three of the election's biggest prizes, and snatched reliably Democratic Pennsylvania and Wisconsin away from Clinton.

Trump's support skewed older, male and overwhelmingly white. His supporters said they were deeply dissatisfied with the federal government and eager for change, according to exit polls conducted by Edison Research for The Associated Press and television networks.

If Trump makes good on his campaign promises, the nation stands on the brink of sweeping change in domestic and foreign policy. He's pledged to repeal Obama's signature health care law and pull out of the landmark nuclear accord with Iran. He's vowed to build a wall along the U.S.-Mexico border and temporarily ban immigration from nations with terror ties.

It's unclear whether Trump, a highly unusual candidate, will embrace many of the traditions of the presidency. 

He'll enter the White House owning his own private jet as well as a hotel just blocks away on Pennsylvania Avenue. He never allowed journalists to fly on his plane during the campaign, as is customary for White House nominees.

Issues of transparency bubbled up right from the start. On Wednesday evening, Trump aides said they would not bring the press corps to Washington with the president-elect for his meeting with Obama, breaking long-standing protocol.

Global stock markets and U.S. stock futures plunged early Wednesday on word of Trump's election, but later recovered. The Dow Jones industrial average rose 1.4 percent for the day in trading in New York.

World leaders congratulated Trump on his victory. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who had a contentious relationship with Obama, called the Republican a "true friend of Israel." British Prime Minister Theresa May said the U.S. and United Kingdom would remain "strong and close partners on trade, security and defense."

Russian President Vladimir Putin was among the first to reach out to the incoming American leader. Trump praised Putin throughout the campaign and advocated a closer relationship with Russia, despite Moscow's provocations in Ukraine and elsewhere.

U.S. intelligence agencies have accused Russia of hacking Democratic organizations during the campaign, actions Clinton's team saw as an indication that Putin was trying to meddle in the election. Trump notably did not accept the conclusions of intelligence officials.

Clergy join Dakota Access pipeline protesters for ceremony

Clergy join Dakota Access pipeline protesters for ceremony
 

Members of the clergy join protesters against the Dakota Access oil pipeline in southern North Dakota near Cannon Ball on Thursday, Nov. 3, 2016, to draw attention to the concerns of the Standing Rock Sioux and push elected officials to call for a halt to construction. The tribe says the $3.8 billion, four-state pipeline threatens its drinking water and cultural sites.

  

CANNON BALL, N.D. (AP) -- Hundreds of clergy of various faiths joined protests Thursday against the Dakota Access oil pipeline in southern North Dakota, singing hymns, marching and ceremonially burning a copy of a 600-year-old document.

The interfaith event was organized to draw attention to the concerns of the Standing Rock Sioux and push elected officials to call for a halt to construction of the $3.8 billion pipeline that's to carry North Dakota oil through South Dakota and Iowa to a shipping point in Illinois. The tribe believes the pipeline that will skirt its reservation threatens its drinking water and cultural sites.

The pipeline "is a textbook case of marginalizing minority communities in the drive to increase fossil fuel supplies," the Rev. Peter Morales, president of the Unitarian Universalist Association, said in a statement. Morales' group sent more than 30 clergy to the event.

More than 500 clergy from around the world gathered with protesters on Thursday at a campfire at the main protest camp to burn a copy of a religious document from the 1400s sanctioning the taking of land from indigenous peoples. About 200 people then sang hymns while they marched to a bridge that was the site of a recent clash between protesters and law officers. Some held signs that read, "Clergy for Standing Rock."

"It's amazing the spirituality going around this place," said Joe Gangone, who came with an Episcopalian church group from South Dakota's Rosebud Sioux Reservation.

The Rev. Tet Gallardo, a Unitarian Universalist minister from the Philippines, said she was "moved to come" to the gathering.

"Water is the subject of concern also in the Philippines," she said. "How can this happen to people who are so faithful to God?"

The group sang and prayed while gathered in a semicircle at the still-closed bridge while law officers monitored from vehicles at a barricade on the other side, from surrounding hillsides and from a helicopter flying overhead.

John Floberg, an Episcopalian minister from the Standing Rock Reservation who organized the event, called for "peaceful, prayerful, nonviolent and lawful activity here." There were no immediate confrontations between group members and authorities, and no arrests, Morton County sheriff's spokesman Rob Keller said.

Later Thursday, 14 protesters were arrested in the judicial wing of the Capitol in Bismarck. Highway Patrol Lt. Tom Iverson said the protesters, who were singing hymns, faced disorderly conduct charges for refusing to leave the building.

The demonstrators were singing hymns Thursday afternoon in the judicial wing of the Capitol. Highway Patrol Lt. Tom Iverson says they face disorderly conduct charges for refusing to leave when asked.

Their protest followed an interfaith day of prayer in the southern part of the state near the small town of Cannon Ball. Hundreds of clergy sang hymns and marched near the route of the pipeline.

Members of the Standing Rock Sioux have demonstrated against the pipeline for months, saying they fear it could harm drinking water and construction could damage sacred sites.

Opponents of the pipeline project have been camped near the route in southern North Dakota for months in an effort to stop construction. Clashes between protesters and police have resulted in more than 400 arrests since August.

The most recent incident came Wednesday, when law officers in riot gear used pepper spray to deter dozens of protesters who tried to cross a frigid stream to access property owned by the pipeline developer. Two people were arrested. About 140 people were arrested on the property last week in a law enforcement operation that cleared the encampment that protesters had established on the land.

Texas-based developer Energy Transfer Partners has said the 1,200-mile pipeline is largely complete outside of the area in south central North Dakota where it will go under Lake Oahe, a large Missouri River reservoir and the source of the tribe's drinking water. The federal government in September ordered a temporary halt to construction on Army Corps of Engineers land around and beneath the lake while the agency reviews its permitting of the project. There's no timetable for a decision.