(HKR-04-01-25) On a powerful episode of Hard Knock Radio, host Davey D sat down with Professor Butch Ware—hip hop artist, Green Party vice presidential candidate, human rights organizer, and gubernatorial hopeful—for a deep and wide-ranging conversation about culture, politics, resistance, and the dangerous crossroads we find ourselves in as a society.
“The War Is in the Culture”
Opening with a track from Slum Prophecy—Ware’s music collective—Davey D quickly steered the conversation toward the relationship between cultural expression and political struggle. For Ware, music isn’t just art—it’s how resistance lives. “I was introduced to spirituality, to resistance, to myself through hip hop,” he said. The beat, the drum, the lyricism—they are all modes of knowledge and memory, echoing West African griot traditions.
But Ware warned that these cultural pathways are under attack. What he calls an “epistemicide”—the killing of knowledge—is happening alongside a war on culture. “They’re trying to weaponize our culture back against us,” Ware explained, pointing to the industry’s prioritization of hedonism, misogyny, and consumption, while marginalizing voices that uplift and organize.
California Is No Safe Haven
Despite California’s reputation as a progressive stronghold, Ware emphasized that the state is not insulated from repression. He cited examples like UC campuses cracking down on student protests, ICE raids on college grounds, and universities buckling to donor pressure to abandon diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) language.
“No place is safe,” Ware warned. “And the liberal nature of California doesn’t protect it—it puts a target on its back.”
He highlighted that these attacks aren’t coming from one side of the aisle. “This is a bipartisan repression,” Ware said, referencing Democratic support for police crackdowns, surveillance, and anti-protest measures. “Malcolm told us: the liberal is the fox, and the conservative is the wolf. But both will eat you.”
Encampments, Resistance & the Power of Students
One of the most compelling segments came when the conversation turned to campus encampments. Ware described them not as fleeting protests, but as sustained organizing spaces that scare the establishment.
“Mobilizing around an issue is one thing. But organizing against systems? That’s when you become dangerous,” he said. From the anti-apartheid movement to Vietnam protests, student organizing has long been a spark for national change. That’s why, Ware argued, universities have responded with force.
The Limits of Liberalism and the Crisis of Comfort
Davey D raised an important tension: the public’s addiction to comfort. Ware agreed—and didn’t mince words. “That comfort, that silence—that’s what made Nazi Germany possible. That’s what’s enabling a genocide in Gaza right now.”
He was equally critical of Black political elites and moderates. “Many well-to-do Black folks have now drunk that neoliberal Kool-Aid,” Ware said. “And when you make the most vulnerable expendable, you’re next.”
A Green Party Path: Mutual Aid + Political Infrastructure
Ware acknowledged the skepticism around third-party politics. But he argued that political campaigns can be vehicles for long-term community power—not just votes.
“I’m not just trying to win an election,” he said. “We’re organizing mutual aid, direct action, survival programs—like the Panthers did. Electoral campaigns should serve community power, not the other way around.”
California, he emphasized, has the fifth-largest economy in the world. “We can do universal healthcare right here,” he said. “The resources exist. What we lack is political will and leadership that can’t be bought.”
Next Steps: Building the Movement
So what can people do?
- Join local mutual aid and direct action groups. Help protect your neighbors, distribute know-your-rights cards, feed people, and build solidarity.
- Get politically engaged beyond the parties. Don’t just wait for November—push for system-wide change year-round.
- Support independent media and resist disinformation. Ware emphasized the role of mainstream media in shaping passive citizens. “The same people who own the parties own the media,” he said.
Ware closed with urgency: “Make me Governor, and I will not comply with unconstitutional orders. We need people in power who are ready to resist. Not just talk about it.”
For more on Butch Ware’s campaign and organizing efforts, visit butchware4gov.org or follow him on Instagram, where he personally responds to messages.
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