In the five months since the "Christmas Coup" at WBAI, the purge of dissident, leftist voices at the station has escalated, programming has shifted rightward, the rights of workers have been violated, and listeners have been subjected to race-, violence-and left-baiting. Specifically:

PURGING OF DISSIDENT LEFTISTS
Besides station manager Valerie Van Isler, 20 producers and staff members—all critics of Pacifica policy—have been fired, banned or removed from programs since December 22. This includes:
• The 13 mostly unpaid staff members of "Wake Up Call"—the popular morning forum for activist issues, especially those affecting communities of color
• The producers of "Building Bridges"—the area's only weekly report on labor issues
• The producers of "Al Lewis Live," which covered prison issues and other antiracist struggles
• The producers of the Wednesday edition of "Behind the News," which offered progressive news coverage of Asia
• A top-notch member of the news department. All these actions have violated either written Pacifica policies or union contract protections. Current station manager Utrice Leid has rejected or ignored grievances filed by the WBAI staff union and is seeking to remove unpaid staff from the bargaining unit in an attempt to crush the union. In addition, producers Mario Murillo of Friday "Wake Up Call" and Juan Gonzalez of "Democracy Now!" have resigned in protest.

RIGHT TURN IN PROGRAMMING
In violation of station due-process rules, four popular public affairs programs were cancelled after their producers were fired. The replacement programming has generally failed to cover the issues spotlighted by these programs. The morning show—which draws the largest audience—is increasingly mainstream; issues like police brutality, political prisoners, prison abuses, foster care and workers' rights—the signature of "Wake Up Call"—are now rarely discussed. "This is not to be the station of the left," Ms. Leid has told staff. Much more time is now devoted to "New Age," spiritual and self-help programs. When politics is covered, the change in perspective is noticeable. Recent morning show segments have included the Democratic Party's National Chair spouting party-line rhetoric unopposed; and a Sprint spokesperson praising cell phones and dismissing the growing data about health risks.

More disturbing, host Marjorie Moore has on three occasions featured, unopposed, Jim Marrs, who rails about world domination by secret societies of the Masons and the Rothschilds of the "Hebrew Race." Chip Berlet, coauthor of the book Right Wing Populism in America, calls Marrs "a purveyor of conspiracist narratives historically used to justify oppression against people of color, Jews, feminists, gays and the left." During the May fund drive, Ms. Moore gave Mr. Marrs four hours of airtime and raised thousands of dollars with his book, Rule by Secrecy.

CLIMATE OF FEAR AND TERROR
WBAI management has demonized, race-baited and lied about dissenters. Producers and listeners working to protect Pacifica's mission are accused of plotting to destroy the station, while management and their hirelings verbally and even physically threaten dissenting staff. Listeners who call in are hung up on, and those who visit the station uninvited are expelled.

The WBAI Local Advisory Board, which for 25 years has held public meetings at the station, is now banned from meeting there if listeners are present. When the board attempted to hold such a meeting on January 23, they were denied entrance, police were called, and 9 people were arrested, including two board members.

One of management's tools in this purge— like at other Pacifica stations—is the gag rule, imposed January 24. Any producer who discusses, or facilitates discussion of, station policy or personnel on the air can be immediately dismissed. This creates the absurdity that The New York Times, Newsweek, and even the New York City Council are all discussing vital public issues about free speech, labor rights and the future of community radio, but these topics are forbidden on WBAI.

Yet enforcement is one-sided: Supporters of management discuss station matters on air, lobbing personal insults at other producers, and suffer no consequences. But dissenters have their mikes turned off, are required to turn in tapes of their shows, are threatened with firing, or are actually fired and banned. The most famous incident: On March 6, as "Building Bridges'" Ken Nash aired criticism of management repression, Leid barged into the studio, ended Nash's interview with Rep. Major Owens, fired Nash, and ranted for 40 minutes about "lies."

ESCALATED ATTACK ON
"DEMOCRACY NOW!" AND AMY GOODMAN
Pacifica's four-year campaign to force Amy Goodman to either water down the program's politics or resign has intensified. Numerous managers and hosts have villified Goodman as a racist and a liar. Ms. Leid fired her from "Wake Up Call" and expelled her from staff meetings. During the May three-week fund drive, "Democracy Now!" was removed from the air for the first time ever, at WBAI and the L.A. station KPFK.

Management falsely accused Goodman of refusing to raise funds, even though she was doing so for other Pacifica stations. A massive outpouring of calls and emails, and a dismal showing in the fund drive in both cities, forced KPFK to reinstate the show on the last two days of its drive, and likely influenced WBAI's post-drive reinstatement of the program. The grievance by Goodman's union, AFTRA, against Pacifica management— charging harassment and attempted censorship—is pending, along with a newer charge against WBAI management for failing to intervene against threats by a co-host.

FALSE ALLEGATIONS OF RACISM AND VIOLENCE
Pacifica alleges that the movement to reclaim the network is driven by a few white producers and ex-producers who won't tolerate strong Black leadership, particularly by Black women. Aside from ignoring the reality that the two fired top managers at WBAI and nine fired staff members are people of color, this argument insults the intelligence of the many WBAI producers of color, as well as respected community organizations and individual listeners of color, who have supported and led this movement. This allegation also ignores the history of anti-racist activism by many white dissident producers and listeners.

Perhaps most insidious are the accusations of violence by dissidents. Ms. Leid banned Mimi Rosenberg and Ken Nash—people with long histories of nonviolent activism—claiming (weeks after the alleged event) that they assaulted her, yet she has never put forth any evidence, and eyewitnesses contradict her account.

On June 4, WBAI staff made on-air accusations of violence against nonviolent demonstrators who staged a four-minute protest inside the station and left without incident. The only violence occurred after the protest ended, when an Independent Media Center reporter, not affiliated with the protesters, entered the station to interview staff and was viciously assaulted by WBAI morning newsreader and management supporter Paul DeRienzo and suffered a broken finger and destroyed recorder. The reporter later filed assault charges against DeRienzo.

It is clear that the crisis at WBAI is far from over and that the struggle to save our station must continue, expand and grow stronger.