BANGKOK, Thailand -- Coup leader Prayuth Chan-ocha ended his
five-year-long junta and took over the defense ministry when his new
government was sworn in on July 16, nearly four months after an
election to reaffirm him as prime minister.

President Trump's support during Prime Minister Prayuth's military-led
regime is expected to continue amid Thailand's increasing closeness
with neighboring China which supplies diplomatic, economic and
military support.

The U.S., a treaty ally, trains Thailand's military which remains
under Army Chief Gen. Apirat Kongsompong, son of a 1991 coup leader
former supreme commander Sunthorn Kongsompong.

"After the coup in Thailand, we severed a significant amount of
mil-to-mil [military-to-military] engagement," said Army Command Sgt.
Maj. Eric Curran. "We lost a lot of traction."

Some new Thai military captains have "no desire to come to the United
States. They want to go train in Russia and China.  That's one of the
impacts we notice on the ground level," he said according to Army
Times.

On Thursday at 7pm, Central Ohio Revolutionary Socialists, CORS, will have their first launch meeting. The event title is, “Revolution in our Lifetime: CORS Launch Meeting” and it will be held in St. Stephens Episcopal Church. CORS will host two launch meetings to discuss their points of unity, their code of conduct, and their membership requirements to let leftists in the city know about their revolutionary project.

I tell the students in my African American History Post-Emancipation class that the blinding of Sgt. Isaac Woodard is the police beating that time forgot. Woodard had been discharged from the United States Army in 1946. A decorated veteran, he left Camp Gordon in Augusta, Georgia, on his journey home. A short distance from Augusta, there was a rest stop, and Woodard asked if he had time to visit the restroom. He and the driver exchanged words, but he was allowed to go. In Batesburg, near Aiken, Georgia, the drive stopped, notified the police, and Woodward was put off the bus. Several police asked Woodard for his discharge papers, and then took him to an alley nearby and beat him. He was then arrested for disorderly conduct and put in jail. During the night, Lynwood Shull, the chief of police jammed Woodard in the eyes with the end of his nightstick, allegedly because he said yes, instead of yes sir.

In 2017, the year that Donald Trump was inaugurated, there was a 17% increase in hate crimes within the United States from the previous year. Due to the prejudiced rhetoric spoken by the new leader of the free world during his campaign, some accused him publicly of being responsible for the rise in these kinds of crime. President Trump has not had much to say on the matter.

However, the number of hate crimes within the demographics his campaign demonized (people from the Middle Eastern and Latin America, Muslims, and LGBTQ+ people) were particularly notable. As reported by Roll Call:

Most of the 7,175 cases in 2017 involved race-based bias, though there were at least 1,564 cases that involved bias against certain religions. People were targeted for their sexual orientation in 1,130 cases.

Sunday, July 21, 2-3pm
North CC, 2040 N Henderson Rd.
Just North UCC is welcoming a new family that is seeking asylum from Honduras. The family of four (which has chosen to remain anonymous for reasons of safety) fled Honduras after receiving death threats, crossed the border and went to Columbus. Now they need our support for legal counsel, applications fees and daily living expenses until they receive a legal work permit and a home.
Join us to welcome these new residents and friends!