Last night, I was channel surfing and stopped to watch #MSNBC’s @Lawrence on cable TV. O’Donnell, whom I had met years earlier when Lawrence was a guest on The McLaughlin Group program I was co-producing. On last night's show Lawrence was interviewing Aaron Sorkin and Sasha Baron Cohen about their award-winning film.
“Democracy is not something you believe in or a place to hang your hat, but it's something you do. You participate. If you stop doing it, democracy crumbles.” Abbot Howard Hoffman, better known as Abbie Hoffman was a political and social activist and co-founded the Youth International Party Aaron Sorkin: “I don’t need any more evidence than Jan 6 to agree with this.” #Chicago7
Just today decided to I watch the major motion picture on Netflix, " The Trial of the Chicago 7" ...it's a great film and relevant In this day and age, so I decided to do something rare, I recommend all who value democracy and peaceful demonstrations to watch this movie.
By the way, ironically, Hoffman is the furthest one on the left in the image above. I should clarify that I had a brief history with the late Yippie leader Abbie Hoffman. When I was a young producer at NBC News I was able to track Abbie down, while he was on the lamb, with the help of Jerry Rubin. I was able to secure an exclusive interview with him while he was hiding out in NY’s finger-lakes. the Democrats were holding their political convention at Madison Square Garden. Days later, he then turned himself into authorities, served his sentence, agreed to public service at Veritas rehabilitation center, when he decided to organize a Studio 54 fundraiser. Abbie invited me and I was able to interview Karen Black, Cher, Norman Mailer, Leroy Newman, and many other celebrities who were in attendance.
Years later while working at Univision I went to see Abbie in Southern California. The last time I spoke with him was at a comedy club. Years later he passed away. Hoffman was found dead on April 12, 1989, The cause of death was listed as an overdose from multiple phenobarbital tablets and liquor. He was 52 years young.
Hoffman was a member of a group of defendants that became known as the Chicago Seven originally the Chicago Eight, which included fellow Yippie Jerry Rubin, David Dellinger, Rennie Davis, John Froines, Lee Weiner, Tom Hayden, and Bobby Seale before his trial was severed from the others, who was charged by the United States federal government with conspiracy, crossing state lines with the intent to incite a riot, and other charges related to anti-Vietnam War and countercultural protests in Chicago, Illinois during the 1968 Democratic National Convention. The same year, Hoffman was arrested for wearing a shirt of the #American flag. In 2021 a twice-impeached #lameDuckDonald gold plated figure is seen at #CPAC wearing the #USA flag as boxer shorts.