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Anirvan Chatterjee

@chatterjee.net
1.6K followers 1.6K following 2.5K posts

Techie, public historian, and activist from Berkeley, California. I curate the monthly Berkeley South Asian radical history walking tour — now celebrating its 12th year. Pronouns: he/him/ও/সে www.chatterjee.net

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Reposted by Anirvan Chatterjee
COYOTE @coyotemedia.org · 29/09/2026
Beatrice Dong, co-founder of Berkeley’s Eastwind Books and a longtime Asian American activist, passed away last month. We asked community members to reflect on her life, legacy and the movements she helped build — and what her work meant to them. www.coyotemedia.org/beatrice-don...
coyotemedia.org
What Beatrice Dong Taught Us About Being Asian American
Bay Area community members remember “fierce and generous” Beatrice Dong, the co-founder of Berkeley’s Eastwind Books and lifelong activist for racial solidarity.
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Reposted by Anirvan Chatterjee
Aaron Reichlin-Melnick @reichlinmelnick.bsky.social · 28/09/2026
"The Indian Question" now joins "The Jewish Question" as a shorthand for a dream of ethnic cleansing. As with the mass purge of Haitians, Christopher Rufo again seeks to play a central role in this descent into ethnonationalist fascism.
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Anirvan Chatterjee @chatterjee.net · 26/09/2026
"Nevada election officials said Thursday that 185 voters in the state who the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) identified as noncitizens were all, in fact, citizens — the latest snafu in the department’s attempts to uncover illegal voters across the country."
democracydocket.com
DHS noncitizen voter claims unravel in Nevada as state confirms flagged voters are citizens
Nevada election officials said Thursday that 185 voters in the state who the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) identified as noncitizens were all, in fact, citizens.
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Anirvan Chatterjee @chatterjee.net · 26/09/2026
We just had a couple of last-minute spots open up for the Berkeley South Asian Radical History Walking Tour this Sunday. Know anyone who might be interested? www.berkeleysouthasian.org
berkeleysouthasian.org
Berkeley South Asian Radical History Walking Tour
Discover the secret histories of South Asian Americans in Berkeley and San Francisco, California. As seen in National Geographic and NPR.
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Anirvan Chatterjee @chatterjee.net · 26/09/2026
"I’m an anti-fascist. I haven’t really ever called myself antifa, but that’s just because I am not a big anti-person…I like to be pro-something instead of anti-something. I am radically pro-hospitality."
thenation.com
A Message From Prairieland Prisoner Autumn Hill: “Don’t Be Afraid”
I talked to the political prisoner about the politics of love, her case, surviving as a trans woman in a men’s prison, and how she makes it through the day.
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Anirvan Chatterjee @chatterjee.net · 25/09/2026
"The decision Friday marks a significant loss to voters — particularly naturalized citizens, who have been disproportionately falsely flagged as ineligible voters when states have fed their registration lists into SAVE." www.democracydocket.com/news-alerts/...
democracydocket.com
Supreme Court revives DHS use of flawed immigration database for voter purges
The decision lets the administration move forward with a key provision of President Trump’s first anti-voting executive order.
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Anirvan Chatterjee @chatterjee.net · 25/09/2026
"what sets the Khalsa Community Center apart is that they also have a therapist on staff who not only speaks Punjabi but is from a Sikh cultural background. In mainstream health care systems, companies offer translation services in Punjabi, but that is not as effective…"
indiacurrents.com
Fresno Community Center Provides Mental Health Care For Seniors, In Punjabi
The Khalsa Community Center in Fresno offers culturally rooted programs and Punjabi therapy to combat senior isolation.
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Anirvan Chatterjee @chatterjee.net · 25/09/2026
Honest question: when do customized "video podcasts" just become YouTube shows? (via: @404media.co) www.404media.co/behind-the-b...
404media.co
Behind the Blog: Did you notice?
This week, we discuss some small changes, an AI song, and internet soup.
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Anirvan Chatterjee @chatterjee.net · 25/09/2026
"…transit systems are not undergoing a slow post-pandemic recovery that will, eventually, get them back to the ridership numbers and patterns they had in 2019…the passenger these systems are gaining looks more like a weekend user going for entertainment, not a weekday passenger commuting to work."
changinglanesnewsletter.com
The Death of the Peak
We’re treating good news as an crisis
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Anirvan Chatterjee @chatterjee.net · 24/09/2026
"As the climate scientist Wally Broecker memorably put it, 'The climate system is an angry beast and we are poking it with sticks.' Poke it with one or two fewer sticks, and it’s still likely to get pretty angry. It might also get very angry. We actually don’t know for sure."
nytimes.com
https://www.nytimes.com/2026/09/22/opinion/climate-temperature-extreme.html
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Anirvan Chatterjee @chatterjee.net · 24/09/2026
"The deals also vary widely in size and scope…Uganda will only take African nationals…Several countries, including the Central African Republic and Eswatini, have agreed to take violent criminals, but others such as Ghana…only permit nonviolent offenders."
washingtonpost.com
How Trump turned a refugee bureau into a $410 million deportation operation
Inside the secret deals powering the president’s push to deport migrants to countries not their own.
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Anirvan Chatterjee @chatterjee.net · 24/09/2026
Despite the suspect timing, this list feels genuinely useful americankahani.com/lead-stories...
americankahani.com
Do's and Don'ts for Indian Americans: What a Viral Post Reveals About Cultural Friction Between Americans and Indian Immigrants - American Kahani
Do's and Don'ts for Indian Americans: What a Viral Post Reveals About Cultural Friction Between Americans and Indian Immigrants
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Anirvan Chatterjee @chatterjee.net · 23/09/2026
This was a fascinating deep dive into another qanon-ish conspiracy theory slate.com/news-and-pol...
slate.com
It’s the Cruelest Conspiracy on the Internet. Donald Trump Has Taken It Up. After a Dark Year, I Found the Truth.
An internet conspiracy theory was killing people even before the president posted about it. I found the man who started it. He’s nothing like you’d expect.
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Anirvan Chatterjee @chatterjee.net · 23/09/2026
“The number of white nationalist, hate and anti-government extremist groups in the US has dropped not because of their declining influence, but because many of their proponents feel their beliefs have become normalized in government and mainstream society…”
theguardian.com
Number of US white nationalist groups falls as extremist views go mainstream
Slight drop in hate groups does not signify declining influence, Southern Poverty Law Center report says
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Anirvan Chatterjee @chatterjee.net · 23/09/2026
"A two-hour daily time limit and a block on Meta’s apps between midnight and 6am leaves little room for young activists to organize rapid response efforts. Being unable to see likes on a post will make it difficult to gauge the effectiveness of their campaigns." www.techdirt.com/2026/09/22/h...
techdirt.com
How the Meta Settlement Silences Youth Activism
Since its integration into our digital world, social media has played a pivotal role in youth organizing and social mobilization. Yet, people’s access to these platfor…
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Reposted by Anirvan Chatterjee
Anirvan Chatterjee @chatterjee.net · 21/09/2026
Hello Bay Area! Come join me next Sunday, September 27 for the Berkeley South Asian Radical History Walking Tour We’ll be sharing stories of immigrant freedom fighters, Desi feminists, and more—a totally different take on Bay Area history  Details and registration at www.berkeleysouthasian.org
berkeleysouthasian.org
Berkeley South Asian Radical History Walking Tour
Discover the secret histories of South Asian Americans in Berkeley and San Francisco, California. As seen in National Geographic and NPR.
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Anirvan Chatterjee @chatterjee.net · 21/09/2026
"Marquardt is hardly the only county official who has resisted certifying election results in recent years. In neighboring Nevada, Washoe County Commissioner Jeanne Herman has voted against certifying every election since 2020, including her own reelection." www.democracydocket.com/news-alerts/...
democracydocket.com
How rogue counties could help Trump and throw the midterms into chaos after Election Day
Since 2020, certification has increasingly become a tool for fringe local officials to delay results, force state intervention and cast doubt on votes they are legally required to finalize.
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Anirvan Chatterjee @chatterjee.net · 21/09/2026
"A non-native English speaker who writes their own essay but then runs it through Grammarly, the writing software with AI-powered editing features, might be more likely to get in trouble than a student who let ChatGPT do all the work and then ran the essay through a humanizer."
theatlantic.com
The Pangram Backlash Unfolding on College Campuses
Professors are tearing their hair out over AI detectors.
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Reposted by Anirvan Chatterjee
Hyperlexic @hyperlexic.bsky.social · 21/09/2026
this tour is amazing - if you’re at all interested in either Berkeley or the history of South Asians in America, I strongly recommend it!
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Reposted by Anirvan Chatterjee
Daniel Jacobius Morgan @jacobius.bsky.social · 21/09/2026
Bay Area friends- I highly recommend this!
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Anirvan Chatterjee @chatterjee.net · 21/09/2026
Hello Bay Area! Come join me next Sunday, September 27 for the Berkeley South Asian Radical History Walking Tour We’ll be sharing stories of immigrant freedom fighters, Desi feminists, and more—a totally different take on Bay Area history  Details and registration at www.berkeleysouthasian.org
berkeleysouthasian.org
Berkeley South Asian Radical History Walking Tour
Discover the secret histories of South Asian Americans in Berkeley and San Francisco, California. As seen in National Geographic and NPR.
12519
Reposted by Anirvan Chatterjee
Eric Topol @erictopol.bsky.social · 20/09/2026
The irony of it all Yesterday, @NEJM posted a new essay suggesting that the US government attacks on biomedical science will subside. www.nejm.org/doi/full/10.... On the same day, it was announced the President wants control of NIH funding
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Reposted by Anirvan Chatterjee
Prisonculture @prisonculture.bsky.social · 20/09/2026
If you are an organizer and have been wanting to get more skilled at conflict transformation, our next Communiversity session on Saturday 9/26 might be of interest. We Are Each Other’s Harvest: Strengthening the Relationships that Sustain Our Movements is facilitated by Adaku Utah
interruptingcriminalization.com
Communiversity Catalog: Abolition, Incarceration, and the Rule of Law — Interrupting Criminalization
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Anirvan Chatterjee @chatterjee.net · 20/09/2026
Where’s all the Desi “Best of the Best” discourse? Bluesky is no 2010s Twitter
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Anirvan Chatterjee @chatterjee.net · 17/09/2026
“…Tony Thorne, director of the slang and new language archive at King’s College London, said it was ‘very much Finnegans Wake and Flann O’Brien – there’s an Irish surrealist quality to all this … it’s mixing poetic language, technical language and standard metaphor.’”
theguardian.com
AI models chatting in ‘surreal’ dialect mixing poetic language and tech bro jargon
Experts air concern over AI lingo redolent of James Joyce’s prose that is creating barriers to monitoring and oversight
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Anirvan Chatterjee @chatterjee.net · 16/09/2026
The author must have loved writing this line: Hitler had a very poor view of Indian “nationalists. As could be predicted for a Nazi, he did not believe in independence for India or indeed for any colonised peoples” (Kavitha Rao, “Spies, Lies, and Allies: the Extraordinary Lives of Chatto and Roy”)
“Hitler had a very poor view of Indian nationalists. As could be predicted for a Nazi, he did not believe in independence for India or indeed for any colonised peoples. As early as 1925, in Mein Kampf, Hitler had disdainfully called the Indian revolutionaries in Berlin mountebanks…”
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Anirvan Chatterjee @chatterjee.net · 15/09/2026
"Another 2012 study of twins, in which one was exposed to the solvent TCE, a metal degreaser, and the other was not, showed inflated Parkinson’s disease risk of 500% for the former. A more recent study showed that vets exposed to drinking water contaminated by TCE…faced a 70% increased risk."
ucsf.edu
Parkinson’s Rates Are Surging. Is Exposure to Poisons to Blame?
The upsurge in Parkinson's cases has been described as reaching pandemic levels. Caroline Tanner, MD, PhD, discusses her research, which explains why cases are rising, and what we can do to reduce…
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Reposted by Anirvan Chatterjee
Anirvan Chatterjee @chatterjee.net · 11/09/2026
Today is the 25th anniversary of the 9/11 attacks. What happened was horrific. And then came a second wave: Muslim, Arab, South Asian, and Sikh Americans were targeted for how they looked, dressed, or prayed. I put together this website to share just a few of those stories… post911.org
post911.org
What happened the week after 9/11?
Documenting hundreds of hate incidents against Muslim, Arab, South Asian, and Sikh Americans in the week after September 11, 2001.
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Anirvan Chatterjee @chatterjee.net · 14/09/2026
"EFF’s investigation found cops across dozens of jurisdictions writing 'LMAO,' 'LOL,' 'Hehe,' 'Haha,' 'idk,' 'blah,' 'TBD,' and 'robbery I don’t remember the case number leave me alone' in Flock’s 'reason' box for searches."
404media.co
Cops Search Thousands of Flock Cameras for Reasons of ‘LMAO,’ ‘IDK,’ ‘Hehe,’ and ‘asdfg’
The EFF found cops writing “idiot,” “WEIRD KID,” "blah," "leave me alone," and button mashing in Flock's 'reason' box.
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Anirvan Chatterjee @chatterjee.net · 14/09/2026
This is why public transit is such an important climate solution in places like the Bay Area, where transportation emissions are so high www.bart.gov/news/article...
bart.gov
BART reports 69% reduction in greenhouse gas emissions over past decade | Bay Area Rapid Transit
Create your own customized schedule
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Anirvan Chatterjee @chatterjee.net · 11/09/2026
Today is the 25th anniversary of the 9/11 attacks. What happened was horrific. And then came a second wave: Muslim, Arab, South Asian, and Sikh Americans were targeted for how they looked, dressed, or prayed. I put together this website to share just a few of those stories… post911.org
post911.org
What happened the week after 9/11?
Documenting hundreds of hate incidents against Muslim, Arab, South Asian, and Sikh Americans in the week after September 11, 2001.
284
Reposted by Anirvan Chatterjee
Anil Dash @anildash.com · 09/09/2026
In just the first week after the 9/11 attacks, 645 separate acts of hate against members of South Asian communities in America were documented. This site captures those stories, from across the country: post911.org and also compiles the narratives into a groundbreaking report.
post911.org
What happened the week after 9/11?
Documenting hundreds of hate incidents against Muslim, Arab, South Asian, and Sikh Americans in the week after September 11, 2001.
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Anirvan Chatterjee @chatterjee.net · 10/09/2026
“But now a nonpartisan network of former military and civilian leaders is warning that hundreds of thousands of overseas voters could be disenfranchised if a new USPS rule based on the president’s order is allowed to stand.”
democracydocket.com
Thousands of overseas voters could be disenfranchised by Trump mail voting rule, advocates warn
The fate of the USPS rule currently hangs in the balance before the 1st Circuit Court of Appeals and the U.S. Supreme Court.
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Anirvan Chatterjee @chatterjee.net · 10/09/2026
Yowsers! I had no idea de-guardrailed LLMs as a service was even a thing
wired.com
I Let an AI Agent Hack All My Gadgets—and I’d Do It Again
After I removed the safety guardrails from a powerful open-source model, it found vulnerabilities in my household devices and hacked into a PC. But it also told me how to make everything a lot more…
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Anirvan Chatterjee @chatterjee.net · 09/09/2026
“In Houston, police officers are likewise instructed to “be as vague as permissible” about why they are using Flock because the searches they run on Flock’s surveillance system could be obtained via public records requests.”
eff.org
Cops Play Hide and Seek About Using Spy Tech to Avoid Scrutiny and Bad PR
Law enforcement agencies across the country are increasingly relying on spying technologies—automated license plate readers (ALPR), cell-site simulators, and facial recognition, to name a…
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Anirvan Chatterjee @chatterjee.net · 09/09/2026
Whether it’s the US or India, the xenophobia’s the same. A 66-yr-old Indian man from West Bengal has spent months in detention after police falsely claimed he was an illegal Bangladeshi.
altnews.in
Jalil Akhtar: Valid Indian documents, cleared SIR in 2002 & 2026, yet arrested as a ‘Bangladeshi’
On the intervening night of June 19 and 20, Jalil Akhtar, an elderly Muslim man, from West Bengal’s Bagroi village in Karandighi block of Uttar Dinajpur district, was woken up from sleep and picked…
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Anirvan Chatterjee @chatterjee.net · 08/09/2026
“LG smart TVs continuously sweep home networks, map secondary devices, and log microphone audio while appearing to be turned off, according to a new 135-minute-long video published by Gamers Nexus”
notebookcheck.net
LG smart TVs caught logging audio with screen off and snooping on local devices
An investigation by Gamers Nexus found LG smart TVs sweep local networks to map phones and nearby devices. Tests also showed the sets can capture microphone audio with the screen off — they then…
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Anirvan Chatterjee @chatterjee.net · 07/09/2026
“This newfound cultural cachet prompted Nasser to rebrand several product…‘It brought us new customers that were looking for the Dubai hype,’ Nasser said. The lesson, it seems, is that the Dubai label can add perceived value to any Arab product.”
thenation.com
What’s Behind the Dubai-ification of America’s Yemeni Cafes?
Over the years, Yemeni cafes have become beloved establishments for students and coffee lovers alike. But, recently they have undergone a conspicuous aesthetic makeover.
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Anirvan Chatterjee @chatterjee.net · 07/09/2026
“Industry interests offer these resources to teachers for free or for cheap, according to the report. The materials tend to highlight the necessity of plastics while downplaying their significant downsides to human health and the environment.”
wired.com
Plastics Companies Are Writing Lesson Plans. What Could Go Wrong?
The science curriculum the industry is offering to schools casts plastics as safe, recyclable, and a source of good jobs. Critics say it’s propaganda.
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Anirvan Chatterjee @chatterjee.net · 03/09/2026
“Then in January 2025, someone who knew I was into conspiracy theories sent me a video making a factual, historical case that hell isn’t real. I watched it, and the house of cards fell for me. That led to a few months of a really deep depression, an identity collapse.”
theguardian.com
Four Maga defectors on what led them to walk away: ‘I’d been addicted to fear and rage’
Ex-Maga supporters unpack their role in bolstering Trump’s platform and share what brought them to the Leaving Maga non-profit support network
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Reposted by Anirvan Chatterjee
Ethan Mollick @emollick.bsky.social · 31/08/2026
An account from am economist who was not worried about AI but now is worried because of the Hugging Face Incident I think it is very hard to ignore the fact that cybersecurity will become a very big issue very quickly and we can only hope AI defense beats offense joshuagans.substack.com/p/its-worse
joshuagans.substack.com
It’s worse
The Hugging Face incident is bad, really bad
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Anirvan Chatterjee @chatterjee.net · 29/08/2026
"Chief executive Chazz Clevinger said he could not share how the 20,000 comments to the air board were generated or how constituents were identified and contacted. Agency insiders said the onslaught of emails almost certainly influenced the air board’s decision to reject the proposed rules"
latimes.com
California lawmakers crack down on AI used in public comment
Senate Bill 1159 will make it easier for public agencies to protect themselves from the rising use of artificial intelligence for civic engagement.
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Anirvan Chatterjee @chatterjee.net · 28/08/2026
Its particular politics aside, The Daily Planet was what got me first interested in following local politics www.berkeleyside.org/2026/08/28/b...
berkeleyside.org
The Berkeley Daily Planet has written its last headline
The former newspaper has been online-only since 2010. Owner Becky O'Malley says health issues now make it too difficult to publish.
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Anirvan Chatterjee @chatterjee.net · 27/08/2026
“When a middle manager at a tobacco company refuses to smoke cigarettes, or a technology CEO sends his children to screenfree schools, or an employee in the meatpacking industry turns vegetarian, many people understand these choices to be the result not only of hypocrisy but also of insider insight”
theatlantic.com
Why Do Rich Kids Love Socialism?
Having money isn’t at odds with wanting a fairer economic system.
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Anirvan Chatterjee @chatterjee.net · 26/08/2026
"But the more detailed information required to submit an application, which normally arrives in the grant application portal by February, never appeared. In July, the original link announcing the grant vanished. 'I was kind of surprised,' Dr. Mitra said. 'Initially I thought it was just a mistake.'"
nytimes.com
https://www.nytimes.com/2026/08/26/well/parents-disabilities-center-funding-cut-trump.html
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Anirvan Chatterjee @chatterjee.net · 26/08/2026
"Richard exited the backroom and began running in between pews until he was cornered in front of the altar…Richard’s legs dangled and kicked in the air; Richard attempted to grab, grasp and claw onto anything he could in an attempt to remain inside."
leftcoastrightwatch.org
TWO-MAN HATE RALLY FAILS TO FIND SOLACE IN MOSQUE, CHURCH, STARBUCKS | Left Coast Right Watch
In L.A., Eoin Richard tried to hold a copycat islamophbic rally to Jake Lang’s in Minneapolis. Less than five racists showed and he got covered in paint
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Anirvan Chatterjee @chatterjee.net · 26/08/2026
"Although AHEAD Forum seeks to present itself as a freshly-minted, neutral-sounding American non-profit, the mask often slips. A website under its name, and linked to Rajanna’s NY address, explicitly describes itself as working on a nine-front effort to help world leaders understand the RSS…"
wearesavera.org
Fibs, Fronts & Fixers: The Hidden Machinery Behind Mohan Bhagwat’s Visit - Savera
A Savera Report | Part One Fibs, Fronts & Fixers The Hidden Machinery Behind Mohan Bhagwat’s US Visit “RSS works only in Bharat. But it is possible that we will be able to connect you to some…
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Anirvan Chatterjee @chatterjee.net · 26/08/2026
"Mullin along with Rep Judy Chu (D-CA) and Jesus Chuy Garcia (D-IL) have introduced the National Archives Protection Act that would prevent the closure of any NARA facilities without congressional approval." asamnews.com/2026/08/24/c...
asamnews.com
Community rallies to stop closure of National Archives facility – AsAmNews
Dozens gathered outside National Archives near San Francisco urging federal officials to keep the Bay Area facility open... warn more closures may follow.
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Anirvan Chatterjee @chatterjee.net · 26/08/2026
"The amount of gas-fired power in development for data centers in the US has nearly doubled in less than a year…The findings illustrate just how heavily tech companies are relying on building private fossil fuel plants to power data centers—and how fast…energy demand has grown."
wired.com
Data Centers Are Driving an Alarming Gas Power Expansion in the US
There’s no clearer sign of the data center boom than rampant gas projects that have been proposed or that are already under construction.
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Anirvan Chatterjee @chatterjee.net · 26/08/2026
"…speaking with awe and respect to a room full of people who have led transitions from dictators to democracies, and brought strength and power to peoples’ movements across the hemisphere…What terrifies our opponents most is that our ideas are truly popular and we refuse to give up."
thenation.com
Pramila Jayapal at the PanAmerican Congress
The Trump administration’s “Donroe” Doctrine promotes a flawed and failed policy of US intervention in the hemisphere.
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