Feb 2, 2021
On January 15, in Tallahassee, FL, the FBI arrested Daniel Baker, a local leftist, veteran, and a former combat medic with the YPG, on trumped-up charges meant to silence dissent and criminalize community armed defense. FBI agents bullrushed Dan's apartment, guns drawn, broken open the front door, and threw a flash bang grenade before making the arrest. Dan, who has been described by various news outlets as being involved in some insidious "Florida Cspitol plot" and having connections with a "Marxist guerilla organization" has been charged by the federal government, denied bail on the grounds that he's a flight risk, and held in solitary confinement in a segretated housing unit because authorities fear he will "radicalize" other prisoners. Allegations surrounding Dan's arrest stem from flimsy, circumstantial evidence, derived almost entirely from social media posts Dan allegedly made, some fliers Dan allegedly printed off and distributed in the community calling for folks to arm themselves against a possible white supremacist coup, and a few pithy memes he allegedly reposted on the internet. Should Dan be convicted, he could face up to 5 years in prison and over $250,000 in fines.
But who is Dan Baker, really?
Today, we set the record straight.
In this edition of Coffee with Comrades, I am joined by Eric, Dan's friend and former roommate, and our mutual comrade, Jack, to discuss the allegations, the anti-repression work surrounding Dan's case, the DeSantis administration's anti-protest bill, and a whole lot more. I want to preface by saying I think this is an immensely vital case of vindictive, opportunistic repression against the left, the opening salvo of the repression that is sure to come from Biden's neoliberal administration which has made no pretense of being friendly with the left. But this moment can prove instructive to folks interested in doing the hard work of defending their communities from the horrors of white supremacist and fascist violence by understanding how the state will crackdown on those of us who choose to stand up for our neighbors and take proactive measures to ensure our communities can continue to survive in spite of the crises engendered by capitalism and the state.
You can write to Dan at the following address:
Daniel Baker
Reg. No. 25765-509
FDC Tallahassee,
501 Capital Circle NE
Tallahassee, FL 32301
If you wanna help Dan:
- Follow @GuerillaGalleryTLH to stay up to date with Dan's case on Instagram
- Venmo or PayPal @echampagneart
- Circulate this flier as widely as you can
- Read Jacobin's coverage of Dan's case