Chicago, IL – Maya Arcilla was angry as she opened the protest rally at the Federal Plaza in Chicago. A human rights activist from the Philippines, Jerome Succor Aba, had been held by the U.S. Customs and Border Patrol, and then subject to psychological torture during a 28-hour period inside the San Francisco airport.
Chicago, IL – “This is unacceptable – Jerusalem is our capital!” was the chant led by Muhammad Sankari of the U.S. Palestinian Community Network (USPCN), as over 500 people protested in the Federal Plaza in Chicago’s Loop, Dec. 7. An hour later, by the time the crowd arrived at the Israeli Consulate, the march had swelled to 2000 people – in a sea of Palestinian flags and keffiyehs, the traditional Palestinian scarves.
Chicago, IL – Today, Sept. 24, is the seventh anniversary of the 2010 FBI raids targeting 7 homes of anti-war, international solidarity and Palestinian-American activists. Subsequent grand jury subpoenas were served to nine additional activists in December of that same year.
Chicago, IL – Carlos Ramirez-Rosa is a member of the Chicago City Council who is well known to every progressive activist in Chicago. Brought to office in a 2015 wave of insurgent candidates opposing Mayor Rahm Emanuel’s pro-business agenda, the 28-year-old Rosa has become a fixture at labor rallies, protests against Trump’s attack on the undocumented Dreamers, as well as community meetings fighting gentrification.
Chicago, IL – El 18 de mayo en una manifestación en la ciudad de Chicago, Rasmea Odeh le dio la bienvenida al ex-prisionero político Oscar López Rivera. Oscar López duró 35 años en una prisión de los EE.UU. Fue encarcelado injustamente por haber luchador por la independencia de su patria Puerto Rico. Al igual que él, Rasmea Odeh también enfrenta represión y deportación por parte del gobierno de los EE.UU. debido a su activismo por la liberación de Palestina.
Chicago, IL – Rasmea Odeh embraces former political prisoner, Oscar López Rivera, at a rally in Chicago, on May 18. López Rivera spent 35 years in a U.S. prison. He was unjustly imprisoned for fighting for the independence of Puerto Rico, his homeland. Like him, Rasmea Odeh is up against repression – deportation by the U.S. government for her activism for a free Palestine.
Chicago, IL – La Alianza de Chicago contra la Represión Racista y Política llevó a las familias de 17 hombres condenados injustamente a reunirse con el Fiscal del Condado de Cook, Kim Foxx, en febrero. En la reunión, Foxx se comprometió a investigar cada uno de los casos y donde hay pruebas de inocencia, dijo que los liberaría.
Chicago, IL – The Chicago Alliance Against Racist and Political Repression led the families of 17 wrongfully-convicted men to meet with Cook County State’s Attorney Kim Foxx in February. In the meeting, Foxx committed to investigate each of the cases and where there is proof of innocence, she said she would release them.
Chicago, IL – For many years the Chicago Alliance Against Racist and Political Repression has campaigned to win freedom for the many victims of torture and other crimes by the Chicago police. This week, State’s Attorney Kim Foxx announced that she was dropping the case against two men, Robert Almodovar and William Negron, who had been framed by the notorious gang of Detective Reynoldo Guevara. Almodovar walked out of prison April 14, and we continue to demand freedom for Negron, who remains jailed on an unrelated case.
Chicago, IL – Sarah Chambers is one of the best-known rank-and-file leaders of the Chicago Teachers Union (CTU). A distinguished, award winning Special Education teacher at Maria Saucedo Academy, her name is a familiar one to politicians, and to the Board of the Chicago Public Schools (CPS). Photos of her leading protests to defend her students have appeared regularly in the Chicago media, and even in the New York Times.