It Did Happen Here - podcast cover

It Did Happen Here

Celina Flores, Mic Crenshaw, and Erin Yankeitdidhappenherepodcast.wordpress.com
It Did Happen Here is an independently produced podcast about anti-fascist struggles that took place in Portland, Oregon following the 1988 murder of Ethiopian immigrant Mulugeta Seraw by racist skinheads. This is the story of how disparate groups used a diversity of tactics to fight neo-nazi violence and right wing organizing in the Rose City in the 1980s and 90s.
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Episodes

IDHH Presents: Fight the Power, Do No Harm: The Story of the Black Cross Healthcare Collective

The Black Cross Healthcare Collective formed after the WTO protests of 1999, seeing a need for medical care that specifically served people who were attending direct actions, demonstrations and political protests. In the early 2000s they pioneered community-supported trials to find a way to treat pepper spray exposure. These trials resulted in an antidote that has been used in street protests internationally. Produced by Jodi Darby, Honna Veerkamp and Erin Yanke.

Apr 29, 20241 hr 13 min

IDHH Episode 01 (repost)

In the late 1980s, Portland was a known haven for racist skinheads. They roamed the core of Portland unhindered.

Apr 18, 202231 min

IDHH Bonus 6: no. NOT EVER.

Kate Boyd and Cristien Storm of the Seattle-based collaborative group If You Don’t They Will discuss “no. NOT EVER”, an interactive, immersive presentation of cultural resistance to white nationalism practiced by Western rural and suburban groups throughout the 80s and 90s.

May 28, 202122 min

IDHH Bonus 5: More Fighters

In this episode we hear from antiracist street fighters: Iran, Jackson, Pan and Tom. The four veterans recount their experiences fighting Portland neo Nazis, how it affected them and where we should direct our energy to continue the fight.

May 14, 202134 min

IDHH Bonus 4: The Holocaust Denier

This episode features hosts Mic Crenshaw and Celina Flores as well as Coalition for Human Dignity activists Steve Wasserstrom, Jonathan Mozzochi and Abby Layton. In this special bonus episode we look at how the meticulous collection of data mined for opposition research contributed to a world-famous trial to debunk fascist Holocaust denier David Irving.

Apr 23, 202116 min

IDHH Bonus 3.5: IDHH at the library part 2

The Multnomah County Library sponsored this event, hosted by Enrique Rivera , with the IDHH podcast producers Celina Flores, Mic Crenshaw and Erin Yanke.They play clips of the podcast, talk about their favorite moments in the process of making the podcast, storytelling, book recommendations, and much more.

Apr 17, 20211 hr 32 min

IDHH Bonus 3: Racist Recruitment through YouTube

In this bonus episode, we hear from Coalition for Human Dignity veteran Devin Burghart, now Executive Director of left wing think tank Institute for Research and Education on Human Rights. Burghart talks about the role of YouTube personalitiesin the effective radicalization of white nationalists, especially younger viewers.

Apr 09, 202111 min

IDHH Bonus 2.5: IDHH at the Library

Scot Nakagawa and Eric Ward talk together at "It Did Happen Here: Nothing is Final", recorded March 4, 2021 at an event sponsored by the Multnomah County Library.

Apr 02, 20211 hr 20 min

IDHH Bonus 2: Cultural Organizing with Maximum Rocknroll

How did Anti-Racist Action create a national network without a central dedicated office, staff or phone number? In this episode It Did Happen Here talks to Martin Sprouse, longtime associate and staff member of Maximum Rocknroll about the role of the long-running punk rock zine as a cultural organizing tool for many groups, including ARA.

Mar 27, 202116 min

IDHH Bonus 1.5: IDHH at the OHS

Join IDHH producers Mic Crenshaw Celina Flores and Erin Yanke along with IDHH interviewee China for a discussion of the historical fight against fascism in the Pacific Northwest at the Oregon Historical Society.

Mar 20, 20211 hr 25 min

IDHH Bonus 1: The Minneapolis Baldies and ARA, Part 2

It Did Happen Here returns to the Midwest for deeper conversations with veterans of the Minneapolis Baldies and Skinheads of Chicago (SHOC) about what it means to be a Black, Brown or Indigenous person in a predominantly white movement, a woman in a male-dominated movement, how we direct our anti-racism as middle-aged activists, with deep discussion on how experiences with a violent youth have shaped political and personal philosophies.

Mar 12, 202140 min

IDHH 11: Nothing is Final

In our final episode....In our final episode of the podcast we hear about the end of Portland Anti Racist Action, the consequences of being a SHARP, and other reflections by the punks; we also hear words of wisdom offered in hindsight, with love from the now-middle aged activists.

Jan 29, 202122 min

IDHH 10: Less Booted, More Suited

In this episode we look at the Coalition For Human Dignity’s move to Seattle, the merger with the Northwest Coalition Against Malicious Harassment and financial collapse. We hear reflections on the good, the bad and the ugly, with advice on moving forward today.

Jan 22, 202135 min

IDHH 9: The Story of Jon Bair

On December 31, 1992 SHARPs and neo-Nazis met up on icy streets with fatal results. Episode 9 tells the story of the New Year’s Eve that changed the life of one SHARP member and shifted the balance of the struggle to take Portland’s streets back from racist skinheads.

Jan 15, 202122 min

IDHH 8: Sharper Times

In this episode, we hear from the young anti-racist skinheads who physically confronted local racist boneheads, who took direct action to kick nazi scum out of the Rose City.

Jan 08, 202136 min

IDHH 7: A Research Capacity

In this episode, we offer another example of the Coalition for Human Dignity's dedication to using a diversity of tactics in the fight to drive white nationalists out of Portland. We learn the secrets of the surveillance wing of the Coalition for Human Dignity in a behind the scenes visit to the Shop, where activists carefully compiled and painstakingly processed information on local and regional white nationalist groups.

Jan 01, 202144 min

IDHH 6: House Defense

With the police unwilling to help people under threat of fascist attack, Portland activists mobilized their own self-defense projects. This episode focuses on the household defenses that were organized by the Coalition for Human Dignity as they sought to reclaim the city from neo nazis.

Dec 18, 202028 min

IDHH 4: The Minneapolis Baldies and the ARA

This episode brings us to mid 80s Minneapolis to tell the story a small group of friends–including our host and producer Mic Crenshaw–founded first the anti-fascist skinhead crew Minneapolis Baldies and went on to help launch Anti Racist Action. ARA was a national organization that engaged in violence and direct confrontation against Neo-Nazi elements within scenes and cities and planted the seeds of today’s Antifa movement.

Dec 04, 202034 min

IDHH 3: Building Community Defense

At the end of 1988 racist skinheads flexed power on the streets and in the show spaces of Portland. This episode is about Portlanders who came together in response to neo-nazi violence after the 1988 murder of Mulugeta Seraw and formed the Coalition for Human Dignity.

Nov 27, 202038 min

IDHH 2: The Murder of Mulugeta Seraw

Late one night in November 1988 racist skinheads attacked a group of Ethiopian immigrants in the working class Kerns neighborhood of Southeast Portland. 28-year-old Mulugeta Seraw died from wounds inflicted by his three assailants. His attackers were all young men, ages 19, 23 and 24: a punk rocker, a homecoming king with substance use issues and a street kid; and all members of East Side White Pride, a racist neo-nazi crew.

Nov 20, 202019 min

IDHH 1: Setting the Scene

In the late 1980s, Portland was a known haven for racist skinheads. They roamed the core of Portland unhindered. In this episode we hear from the punks in the late 1980s Portland punk scene, a place fraught with violence and conflict. We also hear about the recruiting and radicalization of Portland's skinheads by right wing and white nationalist organizers.

Nov 13, 202031 min

IDHH: Trailer

It Did Happen Here is a history of the unlikely collaboration between groups of immigrants, civil rights activists, militant youth and queer organizers in the late 80s and early 90s in in Portland, Oregon who successfully fought neo nazi violence and right wing organizing.

Nov 11, 20203 min
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