Cleveland, OH – Organizers of the main protests set for the Republican National Convention met today, June 23, with Cleveland city officials, including high-level representatives of the mayor’s office, public safety and others, to press their demand for permits to march on the Republican National Convention. The meeting followed a ruling in federal court this morning which undercut the city’s attempt to curtail the right to protest at the RNC.
Chicago, IL – About 1000 protesters converged on Chicago City Hall, June 22. The Chicago Alliance Against Racist and Political Repression (CAARPR) was there to demand an elected, civilian police accountability council (CPAC). The Chicago Teachers Union (CTU) raised their demand for progressive revenue to fund the public schools, but also supported the demand for community control of the police. The CPAC rally also included Black Lives Matter, the Pilsen Alliance, U.S. Palestinian Community Network (USPCN), and AnakBayan, the Filipino patriotic youth organization.
Minneapolis, MN – Members of the Minnesota Nurses Association (MNA) were on picket lines in force today, June, 20, as more than 4800 nurses began the second day of their seven-day unfair labor practices strike at five Allina Hospitals. A key issue is Allina’s demand that nurses take a big hit on health care benefits.
Houston, TX – On June 17 over 200 activists and community leaders protested Donald Trump in River Oaks, a wealthy area. Trump was holding a campaign fundraiser at the home of the right-wing lawyer Tony Buzbee. Supporters who attended the fundraiser paid $5000 dollars to have their photo taken with Trump, and as much as $250,000 to spend an evening with the Republican nominee.
Minneapolis, MN – About 40 organizations from across the U.S. have decided to back the large protest organized the Coalition to Stop Trump and March on the RNC that will take place on July 18, the first day of the Republican National Convention. The protest will put forward the slogans, “Dump Trump, Say No to the Republican Agenda. Stand against Racist, Anti-immigrant and Anti-Muslim Attacks. We demand Peace, Justice and Equality.”
Minneapolis, MN – 4800 members of the Minnesota Nurses Association (MNA) from five Allina Hospitals in the Twin Cities Metro Area walked off the job today, June 19 , beginning a seven-day strike. Allina management is insisting that the nurses settle for a new contract that would change their health care plan to the same ‘corporate plan’ that non-contract employees have. This would dramatically increase their out of pocket expenses to receive the same health care that the nurses provide for the community at Allina Hospitals every day.
Minneapolis, MN – Nearly 5000 nurses, members of the Minnesota Nurses Association (MNA), went on strike this morning, June 19, at Twin Cites metro area Allina hospitals. At issue is an attempt by Allina to take away the nurses’ health care plan. The strike will last seven days. Workers from a spectrum of the Twin Cities labor movement are joining nurses on the picket lines.
Washington DC – China’s Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Lu Kang condemned President Obama’s June 15 White House meeting with the Dalai Lama, stating “Tibetan affairs fall entirely within China's domestic affairs which brook no foreign interference. The 14th Dalai Lama is not a pure religious figure, but a political exile that has long been engaged in anti-China separatist campaigns under the cloak of religion. The so-called ‘middle path’ he peddles boils down to ‘independence of Tibet.’ The meeting between the U.S. leader and the Dalai Lama in whatever form goes against the U.S. commitment of recognizing Tibet as part of China, and not supporting ‘Tibetan independence’ nor activities that attempt to split up China.”
Los Angeles, CA – On June 11, community members and Centro CSO (Community Service Organization) activists gathered at Boyle Heights Mariachi Plaza, supporting Deferred Action for undocumented immigrants. Demanding the Supreme Court continue the Deferred Action programs, people from the neighborhood came out to make and send their own messages to the Supreme Court.
Fight Back News Service is circulating the following June 14 statement from the Rasmea Defense Committee.
Over 100 people from all over the Midwest gathered in Detroit to support Rasmea Odeh as she, her attorneys, and the prosecution appeared before Judge Gershwin Drain for a status conference on Monday, June 13, 2016.
Tampa activists plan to rally here in support of long-time Palestinian American leader Rasmea Odeh, on Monday, June 13, 5:30 p.m. at 56th and Fowler Avenue. The rally coincides with Odeh’s same-day court appearance in Detroit, Michigan, where she is challenging a trumped-up immigration charge.
New York, NY – 45 activists and community organizers gathered at 19 W 44 th Street, the office of G4S Security Solutions, June 10, to stand in support for Rasmea Odeh, a Palestinian American leader who is facing jail and deportation on a trumped-up immigration charge. G4S provides security services to Israeli prisons, where countless Palestinians prisoners have been held without due process, persecuted and tortured.
San Jose, CA – On June 10, members and supporters of the South Bay Committee Against Political Repression (SBCAPR), passed out flyers and held signs in support of Rasmea Odeh, whose case is being returned to the lower court for a hearing in Detroit on Monday, June 13. The action was in front of the City of San Jose and San Jose State University Martin Luther King, Jr. Library. They joined supporters of the Friday Peace Vigil who hold a regular anti-war protest every Friday at the MLK library.
Minneapolis, MN – The Minnesota Nurses Association (MNA) announced June 8 that it had delivered the legally required ten-day notice for a strike at Twin Cites metro area Allina hospitals. About 5000 nurses at Abbott Northwestern, Phillips Eye Institute, Mercy, United and Unity hospitals could walk off their jobs June 19 for a seven-day strike if there is no progress toward a contract settlement.
Minneapolis, MN – About 5000 nurses represented by the Minnesota Nurses Association (MNA) voted overwhelmingly to reject the latest offer by Allina Health, June 6, and authorize the negotiating team to call a strike in the coming weeks.
Tallahassee, FL – Tallahassee students rallied in front of the First District Court of Appeals, June 7, to protest Michael Dunn’s appeal hearing. Dunn was convicted of murder in 2014 for the shooting of the unarmed Black teenager Jordan Davis in Jacksonville.
Fort Lauderdale, FL – Two dozen activists gathered together on the evening of June 4 to commemorate 68 years since the tragic event in Palestine known as al Nakba, or the Catastrophe. The Nakba is the name given to the forced relocation of hundreds of thousands of Palestinians in 1948 from their homeland. The Israeli settlers forced Palestinians into occupied zones, crowded prisons, and refugee camps in other countries. The Palestinians have since been denied their right to return back to their homeland, let alone their homes.
Chicago, IL – Alderman Edward M. Burke has introduced an ordinance to expand Chicago’s hate crime ordinance to include any offense against police officers or firefighters. “It is the goal of this ordinance to give prosecutors and judges every tool to punish those who interfere with, or threaten or physically assault, our public safety personnel,” Alderman Burke said in a June 6 news release.
Chicago, IL – Leaders of the Coalition to Stop Trump and March on the RNC, which is organizing a major protest on July 18, the first day of the Republican National Convention (RNC), is condemning the City of Cleveland’s May 25 announcement of restrictive regulations and a “parade route” that’s designed to curtail protests at the Republican National Convention.
