what’s shakin’

The Republic of Kinaneistan

During the same week that Barack Obama stopped at Fort Drum in Northern New York to announce that he was starting to bring U.S. troops home from Afghanistan, a Syracuse man began packing his bags for a journey into the country that is the setting for the longest war in U.S. history.

Local peace activist Ed Kinane will be leaving July 15 for a monthlong visit to Afghanistan as part of a delegation from a group known as Voices for Creative Nonviolence. This trip will be the third delegation the group has sent to Afghanistan, and Kinane is the first from Syracuse to participate.

Chicago-based religious peace activist Kathy Kelly founded Voices in 2005.

Kelly is currently crossing the Mediterranean on a ship named The Audacity of Hope, part of a flotilla challenging the Israeli blockade of Gaza.

Kinane, 66, is a lifelong Syracusan who has been arrested numerous times for civil disobedience, including a recent Good Friday protest against the deployment of Drone unmanned aircraft from Hancock Field. He is no stranger to war zones, and has served a number of tours of duty as an international observer in private peacekeeping efforts, including stints with Peace Brigades International in Central America and Sri Lanka.

When the war against Iraq began in March 2003, Kinane was on the ground in Baghdad with Voices in the Wilderness, a precursor to Voices for Creative Nonviolence. Voices in the Wilderness folded in 2005 after refusing to pay fines imposed by a federal judge for bringing humanitarian aid into Iraq while that country was under United Nations-sponsored economic sanctions.

Asked if he considered this trip to Afghanistan particularly dangerous, Kinane was uncertain. “I guess it’s comparable to other things I’ve experienced,” he said. “I was on the ground in Baghdad during shock and awe {the military’s term for the bombing campaign that opened the war against Saddam Hussein}. That was pretty dicey. I’m not worried, but I acknowledge that there is some risk. My life is not determined by just seeking safety.”

His objective is to come to understand what life during wartime has been like for Afghans and to bring that message with him when he returns to Syracuse in August. “I’m particularly interested in meeting people who have been victims of ‘Drone terrorism,’” he said, adding that he has already received a number of offers from peace groups around the country to speak upon his return. Kinane and his partner, Ann Tiffany, have been leaders in local protests against the drone aircraft, including weekly protests at the Regional Market on Saturday mornings.

“I want to spread the word when I get back. I want to raise my own consciousness. I have this idea that people working for peace need to be more familiar with what war is. Going to Afghanistan is a way to understand more about what we are struggling against, and to get enhanced creds to write and speak.”

Obama, in his June 23 visit with units that have been heavily deployed to Afghanistan and Iraq, said he was ordering 10,000 troops home this year, and an additional 23,000 to come home next year, bringing total troop levels back to where they were when he took office. What did Kinane think of the message Obama brought to the troops at Fort Drum?

A fierce opponent of the Afghan war, Kinane voiced optimism. “I hope this is the beginning of a major withdrawal,” he said.

“This is no way to conduct diplomacy. We have no business there; we are just spreading misery.”

Once on the ground in Kabul, Kinane will be part of a seven-person group from all over the United States. He knows one of the people in the group, an activist from Virginia with whom he was arrested at the Supreme Court several years back for protesting the U.S. detention facility at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba. During the 2008 campaign, then candidate Obama had promised to close Guantanamo but his administration was unable to persuade Congress to move the prisoners to bases in the United States. Currently 171 prisoners remain at the facility.

Kinane knows little of his itinerary in Kabul, and is uncertain whether the security situation there will allow him to go out into the countryside. The group has an open-ended agenda, and he said they will rely heavily for guidance on a Singaporeborn doctor nicknamed Hakim who serves as mentor to the Afghan Youth Peace Volunteers, a peace group based in Bamyan, Afghanistan.

“Voices is a pretty improvisational group.

We operate by the seat of our pants.” Ed Kinane plans to return to Syracuse on Aug. 16.

—Ed Griffin-Nolan

More Jazz to Come

From Syracuse legends, to upcoming stars to international buzz-worthy acts, this year’s annual Northeast Jazz & Wine Festival, set for July 29 to 31, will bring local and international acts together for three days on three stages, right in the heart of the city, at Clinton Square. Now embarking on its 10th year, the festival, formally called Jazz in the Square, is taking a step in a new direction with new partner La Liga, the Spanish Action League.

During a press conference Tuesday, June 28, at Jazz Central, 441 E. Washington St., festival executive director Larry Luttinger announced the acts, the return of Palm Bay International (wine provider of the event), new sponsors and new partnerships.

“This is the only festival of its kind east of the Rockies,” Luttinger explained, “an urban festival with jazz and wine and now representing every corner of the world.”

Acts will come from near and far including local favorites Atlas, celebrating a major milestone with a 30th anniversary R’n’B Dance Party on Friday, July 29 at 7 and 9:30 p.m. The group, originally called the Atlas Linen Company, has opened for such acts as Michael McDonald, Earth, Wind & Fire, Chaka Khan, Tower of Power, James Cotton and more.

Grammy-nominated alto saxophonist Antonio Hart will perform on Saturday, July 30 at 6:30 p.m. backed by a trio led by local pianist, 20-year-old Noah Kellman. The young bandleader is a graduate of Manlius Pebble Hill School and a Dave Brubeck Fellow, now in his junior year at SUNY Purchase.

“Antonio is an incredible musician and a great person,” Kellman said about working with him through the CNY Jazz scholastic program back in 2007. “Larry approached me about getting involved in the show somehow, so I’ll be leading the back-up group.

It’s a great opportunity.”

Also appearing on Saturday, Texas-based jazz and blues singer Dee Dee Williams as well as Jackiem Joyner, another Syracuse faithful. Joyner is a graduate of Fowler High School and the winner of Smooth Jazz News’ Debut Artist of the Year in 2007. “Jackiem often credits the Syracuse School District’s music program for helping him get where he is today,” Luttinger said.

La Liga is providing talent for World Jazz Sunday, beginning at 1 p.m. on July 31 on the Main Stage. Internationally recognized headliner 33 DC out of Puerto Rico is already drumming up a buzz as far-reaching as New York City, according to Luttinger. “It’s rare for this group to appear in the Northeast. They’ve got a huge outreach.”

Other acts of the weekend include The J Project, E.S.P., The SOHO Trio, Dave Hanlon’s Cookbook, Jeff Stockham’s Jazz Police and AudioInflux. All events are free.

—Jessica Novak