Fight Back! News

News and Views from the People's Struggle

Brad Sigal

By Brad Sigal

Minneapolis, MN – On April 7, four Latino and immigrant leaders spoke against political repression on a panel at the University of Minnesota. They spoke out in solidarity with the 23 anti-war activists facing FBI and grand jury repression and told their stories of solidarity in the face of repression.

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By Brad Sigal

_Unions, workers and immigrants will unite for International Workers Day _

Saint Paul, MN May 1st flyer

St. Paul, MN – On May 1 workers, unions and immigrants will march together to the capitol in Saint Paul to demand justice for workers, to defend workers’ freedom to organize and to demand legalization and full equality for immigrant workers. The march will be held on the 125th anniversary of International Workers Day, or May Day.

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By Brad Sigal

Cleaning workers protest firing of organizer inside Cub Foods store

Minneapolis, MN – On March 2, Mario Colloly Torres was fired from his retail cleaning job at Cub Foods. Torres is a leader in the campaign for justice for retail cleaning workers. The campaign is organized by the Center for Workers United in Struggle or Centro de Trabajadores Unidos en Lucha (CTUL) in Spanish. CTUL is organizing low paid, mostly immigrant workers at major retail stores such as Cub, Lunds & Byerly's, Target, and Supervalu to fight for better wages, working conditions, and the right to organize.

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By Brad Sigal

Union members pack the MN State Capitol in solidarity with Wisconsin workers

St. Paul, MN – Excitement was in the air in the Minnesota Capitol building, Feb. 22 as more than a thousand workers packed the capitol rotunda in an impressive display of solidarity with workers in Wisconsin.

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By Brad Sigal

AFSCME leader speaks at protest to "kill the bill", Feb. 19, 2011, Hudson, WI

Hudson, WI – Hundreds of workers protested Feb. 19 in this town on the border of Wisconsin and Minnesota to “kill the bill” that Wisconsin Governor Scott Walker is trying to ram through. That bill would destroy the state’s public sector unions and impose massive pay and benefit cuts on more than 100,000 workers.

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By Brad Sigal

Winona, MN – On Jan. 3, an FBI agent contacted Waziyatawin, a well-known Dakota activist and scholar. The agent from the FBI’s Mankato, Minnesota office wanted to question her about her beliefs and about the content of a speech she gave in Winona on Nov. 8, 2010. Waziyatawin said she declined to talk with the FBI agent about the presentation or her viewpoints and instead referred him to her attorney.

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By Brad Sigal

Constitution’s 14th Amendment made Black people citizens after U.S. Civil War

Protesters unfurl banner and confront anti-immigrant press conference.

Washington, D.C. – At a press conference January 5 at the National Press Club, the most extreme anti-immigrant politicians from around the U.S. gathered to announce their plan to attack the 14th Amendment of the U.S. Constitution. Their press conference was confronted by immigrant rights activists.

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By Brad Sigal

No More Deportations campaign presentation 12/19/2010 in NY Plaza on Lake Street

Minneapolis, MN – On Dec. 19 activists from the No More Deportations campaign brought their message to the New York Plaza shopping center on Lake Street in Minneapolis. In the Latino market, activists explained the campaign to weekend shoppers and signed up dozens of people on the petition to stop deportations in Hennepin County.

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By Brad Sigal

DREAMers on hunger strike at El Colegio in Minneapolis, 12/12/2010

Minneapolis, MN – On Dec. 10, seven students here started a hunger strike to demand that Congress pass the DREAM Act. The DREAM Act is a proposed law that would give some undocumented immigrant youth the possibility to gain legalization if they go to college or join the military.

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By Brad Sigal

Oaxaca, Mexico – El 22 de mayo, 70,000 maestros fueron a huelga en Oaxaca, México, ocupando el centro de la ciudad y una amplia zona a su alrededor. Oaxaca es uno de los estados más pobres de México y tiene más indígenas que los demás estados mexicanos. Los huelguistas tomaron el centro de la capital de Oaxaca, creando barricadas en toda la ciudad. Ellos exigieron aumento de salario para maestros, mejoramiento de facilidades escolares, y más fondos para cubrir las necesidades de los estudiantes. También exigieron un aumento del salario mínimo en Oaxaca.

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By Brad Sigal

Immigrant rights protesters demand MLB move the All-Star game out of Arizona

Protest against MLB owners meeting 8/12/10 in Minneapolis

Minneapolis, MN – Chanting “Move the game! Move the game!”, 100 immigrants and supporters confronted a meeting of Major League Baseball (MLB) Commissioner Bud Selig and team owners at a ritzy Minneapolis hotel on August 11, 2010. The protest was part of the national movement demanding that Major League Baseball move the 2011 All Star game out of Arizona unless the state repeals its recently passed anti-immigrant law, SB1070. Losing the All Star game would be a big blow to Arizona, resulting in an estimated $60 million loss of revenue. Thirty percent of MLB players are Latino, and many have spoken out against SB1070.

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By Brad Sigal

Protest vs Target funding of Emmer campaign, Aug. 5 in Mpls

Minneapolis, MN – The outpouring of online anger at Target turned to the streets on Aug. 5, as more than 50 people protested outside of Target’s store on Lake Street and Hiawatha Avenue in the heart of Minneapolis’s Latino community. Target is under fire for contributing $150,000 to MN Forward for television ads in support of Minnesota Republican governor candidate Tom Emmer, a man infamous for his extreme anti-immigrant, anti-gay and anti-minimum wage views.

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By Brad Sigal

Protest at State Capitol targets SB1070 and Minnesota’s copycat bill

Anh Pham speaks at July 29, 2010 rally in St. Paul against SB1070

Saint Paul, MN – On July 29, the day Arizona’s anti-immigrant law SB1070 took effect, 250 people rallied against it at the State Capitol in St. Paul, MN. This was one of many actions around the country on the national day of action. The rally aimed to keep pressure on for the full repeal of SB1070, and for the repeal of the federal 287g program that allows local police to carry out immigration laws. The rally was held at the state capitol to send a strong message to Minnesota legislators against Minnesota's SB1070 copycat bill, HF3830.

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By Brad Sigal

_Emmer’s campaign veers off the rails _

Roseville, MN – This may be seen as the week that Republican candidate for governor Tom Emmer’s campaign imploded. After making a statement on the campaign trail calling for restaurant workers who earn tips to get a wage cut so that restaurant owners can earn more money and then bizarrely stating that many tip-earning servers make over $100,000 a year, a firestorm erupted. Emmer spent the next week trying to backpedal and avoid the visceral anger from working-class Minnesotans at his out of touch, anti-worker views.

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By Brad Sigal

One of the BAM! campaign protests at Jimmy John's in Minneapolis

Minneapolis, MN – The immigrant rights movement scored a victory in Minnesota. Under pressure from a growing boycott and weekly protests, on July 14 the owner of nine local Jimmy John’s sandwich shops in Minneapolis and the western suburbs signed a public statement condemning Arizona’s anti-immigrant SB1070 law and calling for immigration reform.

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By Brad Sigal

Emmer dijo que ley anti-inmigrante SB1070 en Arizona es “maravillosa”

Protestan la presencia del candidato Tom Emmer en el desfile del Cinco de Mayo

San Pablo, MN – En el desfile del Cinco de Mayo en San Pablo, el candidato Republicano para el gobernador Tom Emmer recibió una reacción no esperada — rechazo. El rechazo fue debido a su apoyo por la nueva ley anti-inmigrante en Arizona, SB1070. En un programa de radio en MPR, Señor Emmer calificó la nueva ley como una cosa “maravillosa”. Muchas personas han comparado la ley SB1070 de Arizona con las leyes racistas que existían en el sur de los Estados Unidos en contra de los Afro-Americanos hasta las victorias del movimiento para los derechos civiles en los años 1960.

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By Brad Sigal

Protesters denounce SB1070 at May 1 march in Minneapolis

St. Paul, MN – On May 6, Rep. Steve Drazkowski (R-Wabasha) introduced a bill in the Minnesota House of Representatives that would bring Arizona's new racist anti-immigrant law SB 1070 to Minnesota. This comes on the heels of Minnesota Republican Gubernatorial candidate Tom Emmer saying he thinks Arizona's racist law is “wonderful”.

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By Brad Sigal

_Los participantes exigen legalización e igualdad, condenan a la ley racista y anti-inmigrante de Arizona _

Marcha en Minneapolis 1 de mayo por los derechos de los inmigrantes

Minneapolis, MN – El primero de mayo, casi 4,000 personas marcharon en las calles de Minneapolis a favor de los derechos de los inmigrantes y los derechos laborales. Una marcha empezó en el Parque Martin Luther King en el sur de Minneapolis hacia el centro. Mientras pasó la marcha por los barrios principalmente latinos y afroamericanos, más personas se unieron a la marcha en cada cuadra.

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By Brad Sigal

_Marchers demand legalization and equality, express outrage at Arizona's racist anti-immigrant law _

Minneapolis May Day march for immigrant rights

Minneapolis, MN – On May 1, about 4,000 people marched in the streets of Minneapolis for immigrant and workers rights. One march started from Martin Luther King Park in South Minneapolis and marched up Nicollet Avenue toward downtown. As the march passed through largely-Latino neighborhoods, more people joined the march on each block.

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By Brad Sigal

Minneapolis protest against Arizona's new anti-immigrant law

Minneapolis, MN – On April 26, 100 supporters of immigrant rights gathered at an emergency protest in downtown Minneapolis. They came together to voice outrage at the new anti-immigrant law passed in Arizona. Arizona's Governor Jan Brewer signed into law the most extreme anti-immigrant legislation in the country, (SB-1070) on April 23, provoking large protests in Arizona and outrage around the country.

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