actions?

It is my assessment that the actions of Workshops4Gaza (W4G), Lisa Hofmann-Kuroda, & their supporters in the last few months have largely vindicated Casey Goonan's October statement warning prisoners & prisoner support circles to avoid them.

The statement can be found here: https://types.mataroa.blog/blog/w4g-lhk/

What follows is an analysis of Workshops4Gaza's political practice. It is not, & does not seek to be, a comprehensive overview of everything said & done by any of the individuals or “sides” in the dispute surrounding the statement.

Workshops4Gaza's response tactics

As far as I have seen, the public responses Workshops4Gaza has shared to Casey's statement largely ignore the claims made in the paragraph beginning “Behavior I have noticed from Lisa includes.” This seems to me to be intentional, an effort to shift the terms of discourse onto terrain where they feel more comfortable using the following methods:

1) delegitimizing the source of the critique (“shooting the messenger”)
2) misrepresenting the criticism, then disputing the misrepresentation (“straw man fallacy”)

The responses Workshops4Gaza have been circulating most recently focus most of their criticism on 2 white radicals who supported Casey's statement, Eric King & Josh Davidson. No mention is made by name of the New York City Anarchist Black Cross, Chicago Anarchist Black Cross, NorCal Resist, & Pushing Down the Walls, all of which also publicly identified themselves as posting the statement.

If W4G indeed is attempting to consolidate prisoner support groups within u.s.-occupied territory—particularly “Towards a united, anti-imperialist front” as one of the statements in their defense begins—it is important for them to not appear openly hostile towards the broader prison support milieu, which within the u.s. is largely operated by anarchists. The ends of cooptation are better served by framing specific individuals & their isolated acts as problematic, at least until the aspiring managers feel powerful enough to finalize their acquisition.

In truth, Workshops4Gaza has never professed anarchist politics because they are not anarchists. In fact, they don't claim any political stance of opposition to nation-states in general (rather than specific nation-states such as the u.s., israel, & their allies). By avoiding being clear about their own politics while attempting to associate themselves with people imprisoned for escalating beyond the activist status quo, they “pose as the vanguard of social movements in order to manipulate them, rather than trying to engage with them honestly.”

“The work”

Workshops4Gaza's main public organizing efforts have consisted of paid Zoom classes & book sales, with some proceeds going to charity efforts in Gaza. In recent months they have taken on call-in campaigns for political prisoners as well. Between these efforts, retweeting already-popular commentary from larger accounts, & posting “💯💯” in the replies of people they think are important for their brand, Lisa Hofmann-Kuroda & their allies (or is it minions?) in W4G seem to lead busy lives.

Workshops4Gaza's Twitter/X routine has recently been supplemented with weeks of retweets of propaganda in defense of the colonial nation-state of iran, in the midst of a widespread uprising against that government. While there has been some pushback from anarchists expressing surprise at this “turn,” I want more people to seriously consider that they are being systematically deceived. Imperialist-run social media platforms are not safe spaces where you can assume people or organizations are telling the truth, any more than imperialist-run offline spaces are. There should be further & deeper consideration of just what kind of people & incentives are produced by the centuries-old cultures dominating the human world at present, as well as how those cultures continue to reproduce themselves among their professed critics & opponents.

There is a direct connection between defending a state's oppressive actions because that state does (supposedly) good things & has powerful enemies, & defending an individual or collective's oppressive actions because the individual/collective does (supposedly) good things & has powerful enemies. W4G has embodied this connection: their initial response to Casey's statement, published on Substack, opened with a list of their organizational accomplishments. This is a “red flag” response that many people who find themselves insubordinating activist hierarchies will recognize, & is incidental—not central—to the core of the concerns raised in Casey Goonan's statement, just like Trump's threats to bomb iran are incidental—not central—to the core of the concerns raised by those who launched petrol bombs & bullets at iranian police stations & institutions. The u.s. is attempting to coopt those attacks towards its own objectives, much like Workshops4Gaza is attempting to coopt political & politicized prisoners of the u.s. regime towards its own.

As for the (supposedly) good things that make criticism of W4G from below such a grave offense: selling books through well-established channels isn't radical, revolutionary, or otherwise interesting. Neither is donating to NGOs or individuals in Gaza with the resources to appeal to colonizer sympathies. Conducting classes on Zoom, a platform whose masters ensure it lends itself to police collaboration & years ago declared their alliegiance to the u.s. government, is in fact facilitating the collection of intelligence, whether or not this is being done “intentionally.” Demanding full receipts from strangers, with legal names & payment information to be stored online, in order to access said classes is in fact facilitating the collection of intelligence, whether or not this is being done “intentionally.” Call-in campaigns might make a meaningful difference in the lives of some people held captive, but they're no substitute for tearing down the walls.

Clarity on colonialism & imperialism

Lisa H-K is a colonizer, from dominant ethnic backgrounds in two colonial empires (the u.s. & japan), with an advanced degree & award-winning career in the literary field. Eric King & Josh Davidson, as white people, are also colonizers. Casey Goonan, also white, also a colonizer. The anglophone u.s. left, including its aspiring anti-imperialist & anti-colonial sections, is a colonial project, largely populated by people who believe in the legitimacy of nation-states, the economy, & eurocentric societies. This remains trues even when such leftists vehemently take issue with the particular expressions these institutions have taken in their lives. While they believe themselves to be in “the resistance”, anglophone leftists, including left-critical anarchists, are limited in the scope of their aspiration along lines quote similar to those of the Democratic Party liberals they simultaneously harangue & seek to recruit.

These individuals & entities also uphold the colonial practice of using pandemics as a weapon of oppression with their disinterest in masking or taking other precautions regarding COVID-19, despite being aware of its continued spread. They all marginalize & refuse to integrate Black critique of the “radical” status quo, despite being aware of anti-Blackness. They are all participating in the failure of the left, according to its own standards & aspirations.

Links & resources

- 10 Anarchist Theses on Palestine Solidarity in the United States | https://haters.noblogs.org/post/2023/10/26/10-anarchist-theses-on-pales…
- Against the Organizations – Informal Coordination | https://pugetsoundanarchists.org/against-the-organizations-informal-coo…
- Dimanche Aprèm: a site critical of appelism | https://dimanche.pm/english.html
- Updates & analysis from iran in the last few weeks | https://anarchistnews.org/tags/iran
- why do anti-police activists continue to use pro-police software like Zoom? | https://www.indybay.org/newsitems/2024/11/01/18870415.php

Comments

anonymous (not verified) Mon, 01/19/2026 - 17:33

please please let these maoist entryist rich east coast counter-insurgent colonizer wreckers masquerading as abolitionists join the chat so they can be defenestrated beyond comprehension by the full fury of anews comment section

anonymous (not verified) Tue, 01/20/2026 - 08:42

feel like this article could have been longer but ...
another thing I commented on another thread
Workshops4Gaza stripped all anarchist references in their new platforms for Michael Kimble like @freemichaelkimble on IG... No references to any of his projects, "Anarchy Live", regular contributions to anarchist zine "Fire Ant", just a neutered generalized political pawn subject ripe for maoist entryism and cooptation.

anonymous (not verified) Wed, 01/21/2026 - 08:16

In reply to by anonymous (not verified)

michael's IG doesn't list him as an anarchist because his legal counsel recommended avoiding references to anarchism on his public page bc of where he currently is in his case

anonymous (not verified) Wed, 01/21/2026 - 09:02

In reply to by anonymous (not verified)

So his legal counsel is complicit in erasing his politics, then.

Obviously there are reasons they'd recommend that, but we know there are people who refuse to silence these parts of who they are when facing what Michael Kimble has faced for most of his life, so we know it's not the only way. We know there are contexts where minimizing one's politics in order to appear more deserving of leniency to the state is *not* a recommended course of action. The fact that the u.s. left isn't one of them only underscores the points made at the end of the article.

anonymous (not verified) Wed, 01/21/2026 - 13:10

In reply to by anonymous (not verified)

W4G doesn't run the Michael Kimble IG account. W4G is hosting a fundraiser screening of the Alabama Solution for him on Jan 30th, but they do not manage that account.

anonymous (not verified) Fri, 01/30/2026 - 09:29

In reply to by anonymous (not verified)

Yes, this could've been a lot longer. Some directions for expansion could have been:

- Breaking down the statements put out in W4G's defense in more detail
- Analyzing W4G's response as an example of DARVO
- Examining the activist culture clash between prison support crews & academic progressives
- Going through Casey's claims to show how they were borne out or at least remain feasible (but are also kinda vague)
- Pulling out revealing aspects of W4G's retaliation like the pro-prison harassment
- Zooming in on the “fedjacketing” claim
- Zooming in on the theft accusation

x (not verified) Tue, 01/20/2026 - 11:45

This beef is disruptive and harmful to our movement. This claim amongst the many others that have been lobbed from both sides do nothing to meaningfully contribute to furthering any solidarity with our comrades inside prison and instead readily discourage it and put them in further harms way. This analysis is shallow and frankly stupid and I hope that people keep that in mind as this situation continues to degrade the meager resources we have. Principled radicals, no matter the ideology, know how to and do handle conflict off line and with integrity. Whoever wrote this, clearly does not.

anonymous (not verified) Tue, 01/20/2026 - 11:58

In reply to by x (not verified)

what is this "our movement" talk? whose movement? isn't that the issue? how many times have anarchists swallowed shit to work with people who later denounce us, betray us, kill us? 

sure, do conflict stuff offline, but it's ok for folks to know that there is controversy so the can figure out what to do about it on their own. 

x (not verified) Tue, 01/20/2026 - 12:18

In reply to by anonymous (not verified)

This a hysterical and silly response. The idea that the stakes of this extremely ego based petty beef are this grand is not just stupid it's dangerous. If you give a fuck about Casey or any other prisoner as well as yes, OUR MOVEMENT, to support them you will move this offline or even better just get over it and do the work needed to make this irrelevant. This is childlike cowardice and any serious person should completely disregard this. The ways that this beef has endangered multiple people inside far outweigh any perceived risks that were the basis of this stupid conflict. If you're trying to get some kind of weird revenge for historical political slights or (lol) murder (?) this way you're cosplaying. Shut the fuck up for the good our comrades inside, our movements, and even your own.

anonymous (not verified) Tue, 01/20/2026 - 17:25

In reply to by x (not verified)

The insults thrown in your comments (about intelligence, maturity, & seriousness) pretty much exemplify the underlying pattern to be posed. This humanist moralism that pretends to speak universally.

anonymous (not verified) Tue, 01/20/2026 - 13:34

In reply to by anonymous (not verified)

i agree. it's healthy to expose festering opportunists like w4g to the air.

not a huge fan of this specific letter but that's besides the point.

p.s. the person reading this is a KKKOLONIZER

anonymous (not verified) Tue, 01/20/2026 - 13:41

I appreciate the reasons why conflict resolution is best handled offline and this beef should end, but your both sides is skirting clear critiques and demarcations that need to be drawn from those not like us who actually are perpetuating harm and endangering our imprisoned comrades. I’m glad to hear it finally pointed out what W4G and other masked maoists are doing - attempting to hijack prisoner support teams and coalitions in competition/exclusion of others, through weirdass tankie instagram business marketing tactics and all too familiar scene manipulations, such as intervening to exacerbate two unrelated local conflicts as proxy wars - to side with the snitches and cop callers!

anonymous (not verified) Wed, 01/21/2026 - 08:26

In reply to by anonymous (not verified)

“your both sides is skirting clear critiques and demarcations that need to be drawn from those not like us who actually are perpetuating harm and endangering our imprisoned comrades.”

Who is “us”? You don't think unmasked white anarchists are harming & endangering imprisoned comrades?

anonymous (not verified) Wed, 01/21/2026 - 09:00

In reply to by anonymous (not verified)

this is part of the question. when we do prisoner support, are we supporting the causes and actions they took as part of their beliefs? or are we supporting them in getting out of prison/getting an easier sentence?

usually, those are in conflict, because, you know,  WE'RE ANARCHISTS. 

everyone has to make their own decisions, but acting like support is an easy, follow the rules thing is manipulative, simplistic, and again, not anarchist. 

tl/dr: solidarity means attack

 

anonymous (not verified) Tue, 01/20/2026 - 14:37

https://www.indybay.org/newsitems/2026/01/18/18883077.php#18883102

Restating what was written in “The work”:

Workshops4Gaza mostly runs paid Zoom classes & sells books, with some of the money going to charity efforts in Gaza. They've recently started doing call-in campaigns for political prisoners. Beyond that, there's a lot of clout chasing behavior on Twitter/X.

Recently they've spent a lot of energy online defending the iranian government, which is carrying out massacres to repress an anti-colonial uprising. This shouldn't be a surprise, because their response to Casey Goonan's statement already revealed how they are deceptive & dishonest in favor of their preferred version of oppression.

Both the online & offline left are full of people like this. If more people living under colonial capitalism considered just how much we're affected by these hierarchies, maybe we would be better able to defend ourselves against groups like Workshops4Gaza.

W4G defends oppressive actions because they believe the entity being criticized (like themselves, or iran) does “good work.” There is a long history of activist oppression being defended on terms like this, & more of us should learn to recognize & resist it when it's happening.

W4G's “good work” is actually standard liberal activism with “anti-imperialist” branding. Plus, they collect a lot of information on people who participate in that work when it is entirely unnecessary to do so. They are putting information in a form that makes it easier for enemies to exploit. It's not radical & it's not revolutionary, even if some of it helps some people.

[Note, not in original comment: Indybay took down Casey's statement after a couple weeks in response to demands to do so, presumably from W4G & their supporters. Indybay has a longer record of political censorship of left/radical content as well.]

anonymous (not verified) Sat, 01/31/2026 - 01:39

In reply to by anonymous (not verified)

In what universe are the rioters backed by Western and Zionist imterests part of an "anti-colonial uprising?" That could not be more backwards. The IR is one of the most significant events in the history of anti-colonialism. How would you even begjn to claim otherwise? Anews hasbara on full display.

anonymous (not verified) Tue, 02/03/2026 - 05:38

In reply to by anonymous (not verified)

Iran is an empire where persian people culturally & economically dominate a range of colonized peoples such as kurds, lors, baloch, azerbaijanis, Black people (many brought by the slave trade), & others. It was so for centuries before 1979 & remained so after, because "revolution" dethroned the shah but did not change the fundamental colonial structure or remove iran from global imperialism. Iran was not decolonized. Its conflicts with other (white, euro) empires do not change these things.

anonymous (not verified) Mon, 01/26/2026 - 11:16

I wanna see more critiques like this that take on a global and critical lens... This kinda stuff makes me question my core and also shakes things up and sharpens my own critique. Instead of getting lost in liberal nonsense or losing sight of what radical really means.

Fave line: There is a direct connection between defending a state's oppressive actions because that state does (supposedly) good things & has powerful enemies, & defending an individual or collective's oppressive actions because the individual/collective does (supposedly) good things & has powerful enemies.

Agree on the left in the u.s. largely believing in the legitimacy of nation states, which always seems to tie into a lack of understanding of the violence of the founding of the u.s., failing to see its continuation of Black chattel slavery and a missing historical understanding of anti-Blackness...

Pointing out the circumstances that are incidental to the critiques was also helpful. I sometimes fail to see the logical fallacies highlighted, which make it hard to understand what's really being said or to identify when people are deflecting.

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