Chicago, IL – You know people are having fun at a political event when community activist Jeanette Taylor, a candidate for city council, gets the room to sing along to Chaka Khan’s I’m Every Woman! The feeling continued when Christel Williams, a candidate for a principal office in the Chicago Teachers Union, led the singing of Ella’s Song.
Minneapolis, MN – The following speech was given by Freedom Road Socialist Organization Twin Cites District Organizer Jess Sundin at a Minneapolis International Women’s Day rally, which was held on March 9.
Kapolei, HI – United Steelworkers (USW) members employed by Par Hawaii Refining, LLC, in Kapolei, a subsidiary of Houston-based Par Pacific Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:PARR), overwhelmingly rejected the company’s contract proposal.
Fight Back News Service is circulating the following March 8 statement from MAKIBAKA (the Patriotic Movement of New Women), a revolutionary women’s group in the Philippines.
Milwaukee, WI – Workers at Milwaukee's Stone Creek Coffee unveiled a petition drive, March 4, to support a several months’ long organizing drive at retail shops and production facilities. These young cafe baristas, cooks, bakers, warehouse workers and truck drivers have signed up in ever-growing numbers to be represented by Teamsters Local 344, the Sales and Service Industry union that represents UPS workers as well as Coke, Pepsi and bakery and linen companies in southeastern Wisconsin.
Jacksonville, FL – On February 19 the University of North Florida Students for a Democratic Society (UNF SDS) held a rally speaking out against Trump’s Declaration of a National Emergency to fund his racist, xenophobic border wall. About 30 students attended despite the chilly rain. Several speakers addressed the protesters about the importance of organizing on campus and opposing Trump's backwards policies.
New York, NY – On February 23, approximately 300 New Yorkers took Wall Street in the Financial District to protest attempts at a U.S.-led coup against the popular and democratically-elected Venezuelan president, Nicolas Maduro.
Dallas, TX – On February 22, protesters gathered at Dealey Plaza to demand an end to U.S. interference in Venezuela. The protest was called by the Dallas Peace and Justice Center and Veterans for Peace Chapter 106.
Dallas, TX – On February 25, the North Texas Action Committee held a vigil for Trayvon Martin in downtown Dallas. Several speakers discussed the lasting impact of the Martin case as well as other murders of African Americans, nationally and in the Dallas area. “We can't let their stories disappear. We have to continue to say their names,” said NTAC president Syd Loving.
Denver, CO – Some 30 anti-war activists gathered on the 16th Street Mall in downtown Denver for a demonstration and informational picket, called by the Denver Peace Council, to protest the Trump administration’s plans for a coup d’état in Venezuela. This action was part of the international day of action of February 23, called by a broad coalition of peace groups worldwide.
Fight Back! interviews Erik Anderson, a member of the International Department of the Central Committee of the Communist Party in Sweden and an elected city council member in his hometown of Gislaved.
Miami, FL – Over 50 protesters gathered in front of the Trump National Doral Golf Course to boldly demonstrate against U.S. war plans targeting Venezuela. Protesters displayed banners and signs demanding the U.S. government end its sanctions against the Venezuelan people, calling for peace, and denouncing the attempted coup against Venezuela’s democratically-elected government.
San Salvador, El Salvador – Hundreds of Salvadorans rallied February 21 at the Salvador del Mundo Plaza to express solidarity with the Venezuelan Bolivarian revolution and with the government of Nicolás Maduro. At the rally, which was called by Cuba solidarity committees in El Salvador, people carried Venezuelan and Cuban flags and signs showing opposing U.S. military intervention in Venezuela. Venezuela is facing the imminent threat of U.S. military intervention as part of an attempted coup orchestrated by the Trump administration to impose a pro-imperialist leader in the oil rich country. Due to the bloody history of U.S. military intervention in many Latin American countries, movements throughout the Americas are standing up in solidarity with Venezuela as they vow to resist U.S. imperialist intervention.
Oshkosh, WI – On February 18, a group of Oshkosh activists and members of United Action Oshkosh (UAO) rallied in protest against Trump’s declaration of a National Emergency last week. Chants of “Legalization for all!” and “No papers, no fear, refugees are welcome here!” rang out in the streets alongside Opera House Square.
Minneapolis, MN – Twin Cities area peace and anti-war groups are organizing a Minneapolis protest on Saturday, February 23 as part of a day of local actions around the U.S. and around the world opposing U.S. intervention in Venezuela.
Chicago, IL – Solidarity matters. Teachers and paraprofessionals at the Chicago International Charter Schools hit the picket lines at 6:00 a.m. on February 5 and stayed out until they had won what they needed at 3:15 a.m. on February 17. What they need was smaller class sizes for their students, adequate staffing for special education students, maternity leave for educators and a wage scale close enough to the Chicago Public School teachers to bring some measure of stability to the classroom.
San José, CA – On Sunday, February 17, more than 400 people filled the San Jose Buddhist Church gym for the 39th annual Day of Remembrance event. Across the country, Japanese American communities commemorate the anniversary of Executive Order 9066, which led to the incarceration of more than 100,000 Americans of Japanese descent during World War II. The San Jose event was organized by NOC, the Nihonmachi [Japantown] Organizing Committee.
La Crosse, WI. – The thermometer read zero on the afternoon of February 15, but that didn’t prevent upwards of 100 people from coming out and showing their support for the local Muslims.
Washington, D.C. – Progressive organizations around the country are taking a stand against Trump’s declaration of a State of Emergency, which would divert federal funds towards building a wall on the border with Mexico.