Fight Back! News

News and Views from the People's Struggle

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Fight Back News Service is circulating the following statement from the Communist Party of the Philippines.

The Communist Party of the Philippines and the Filipino people express the strongest outrage at the inhuman treatment and acts of humiliation against political prisoner Tomas Dominado. Dominado, who is 74 years old, has long been known as a revolutionary activist and fighter in the Panay island. He has served as consultant of the National Democratic Front of the Philippines in peace negotiations.

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San Jose event demands freedom for Leonard Peltier.

San Jose, CA – About 20 community members gathered at the San Jose Peace and Justice Center, December 10, International Human Rights Day, to honor Leonard Peltier, American Indian Movement leader and political prisoner of almost 50 years.

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Palestine supporters pack Minneapolis city council meeting. | Staff/Fight Back! News

Minneapolis, MN – On December 3 and 5, activists from the Free Palestine Coalition and Students for a Democratic Society came together at the Public Service Center while the Minneapolis city council voted on a proposed resolution to stand in solidarity with the protesters arrested during the occupation of Morrill Hall – renamed Halimy Hall – at the University of Minnesota.

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Fight Back News Service is circulating the following December 9 statement from the MN Anti-War Committee.

The government of Syria led by President Bashar al-Assad has collapsed. This upheaval has major implications for the struggle against U.S. imperialism and Israeli aggression in the region. Regardless of who leads Syria, the Anti-War Committee remains opposed to interference in Syria by the United States, Israel, and their imperialist allies.

Israel has occupied and illegally settled Syria’s Golan Heights since 1967, and is already using Syria’s instability to expand its so-called “buffer zone,” while continuing its bombing raids in Syria. Israel seeks to pressure Syria into accepting the theft of the Golan Heights and normalizing relations. It also may have its eye on expanding its occupation in Syria for future Zionist settlement.

As part of its support for Israel, the United States has been working to weaken and destabilize Syria for years. The U.S. has openly backed certain factions in Syria since at least 2012, with the now-declassified “Timber Sycamore” weapons smuggling operation led by the CIA, and the “Syrian Train and Equip” program led by the Pentagon. The U.S. has economically sanctioned Syria since 1979 when it first labeled the country as a “state sponsor of terrorism.” In 2020, brutal new U.S. sanctions devastated Syria’s financial, energy and construction sectors, severely limiting access to electricity and basic humanitarian goods for millions of Syrians, while harming reconstruction efforts. And since 2015, the U.S. military has directly had boots on the ground in Syria, notably occupying Syria’s oil fields.

Some are celebrating what they see as the fall of a repressive tyrant. Others are mourning the collapse of a bulwark of resistance to Israel, with Syria providing a crucial supply line for resistance groups in neighboring Lebanon as well as Gaza. In any case, we know Israel sees Assad’s downfall as a victory, and is already eagerly taking advantage of the situation with an unchecked onslaught of attacks on Syria.

Ultimately, it’s not yet clear what political forces will shape the new Syria. From our perspective of international solidarity against Israel’s expanding genocide in the Levant, we hope any new government that emerges is able to resist U.S./Israeli attacks, and continues Syria’s support for the resistance in Lebanon and Palestine.

We encourage our followers to remain committed to the principles of anti-imperialism, sovereignty and independence for all nations, and steadfast, united opposition to the U.S.-backed Zionist project.

#International #Syria #AntiWarMovement #Palestine #MNAWC

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Simon Trinidad.

Fight Back! is circulating this timely statement from the Committee to Free Simon Trinidad.

Call President Biden at 202-456-1111 and ask him to “Free Simon Trinidad!” Call between 11am-3pm Eastern, from Tuesday, December 10 to Thursday, December12.

Leave your message to “Free Simon Trinidad!” on the White House comment line. Now is the time to call before President Biden leaves the White House in January 2024.

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Police arresting a group of pro-Palestine protesters.

Madison, WI – In a show of student power, nearly 50 protesters marched into the UW board of regents meeting Thursday, December 5, to put Palestine and divestment on the Finance Committee agenda.

This latest militant action comes after a large-scale administration failure to uphold the Madison and Milwaukee encampment agreements on disclosure and divestment from apartheid Israel.

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LAPD attacks protest outside the Hall of Justice. | Whittier Pride Official

Los Angeles, CA – On December 3, when newly-elected pro-police Nathan Hochman was sworn into office at the Hall of Justice as district attorney, members of Black Lives Matter-LA, Centro CSO and other LA activists arrived to protest Hochman’s agenda.

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Fight Back News Service is circulating the following statement from the National Democratic Front of the Philippines (NDFP). Freedom Road Socialist Organization was one of the conference participants.

The National Democratic Front of the Philippines (NDFP) has successfully convened its third international theoretical conference from November 29-30 in Amsterdam, the Netherlands on the topic of National Liberation from Imperialism.

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A vigil with portraits on the ground with candles around them.

San Jose, CA – On the evening of Saturday, November 23, around 30 community members gathered at Saint James Park to honor members of the trans community who are no longer with us, as well as the Palestinians who have been martyred over the past year. The action was organized by the San Jose People’s Pride coalition.

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Oakland, CA – Oakland has long been a cornerstone of the country’s revolutionary people’s movements, from the founding of the Black Panther Party to the enduring fight for justice against systemic racism and police violence. On the evening of November 19, at the 510 Firehouse Projects, this legacy was revisited as Freedom Road Socialist Organization (FRSO) Oakland, in collaboration with East Side Cultural Center’s Community Archival Resource Project (CARP), hosted a film screening centered around some of these historical moments.

Roughly 25 community members came together to watch two films that spotlight the city’s pivotal role in the fight for liberation: Agnès Varda’s Black Panthers 1968 and Shola Lynch’s Free Angela Davis and All Political Prisoners. The films offered not only a window into the past but a mirror reflecting the struggles and solidarity still needed in Oakland today.

Agnès Varda’s Black Panthers 1968 is an on-the-ground documentary capturing the resiliency of the Black Panther Party as they rallied to free Huey Newton, co-founder of the movement. Filmed in Oakland at the height of the Panthers’ activism, the film is a testament to their ability to unite working-class people and oppressed communities against police violence and systemic injustice. Varda’s work doesn’t just document history; it brings to life the defiant hope of the movement and its roots in the city’s streets.

The second film, Free Angela Davis and All Political Prisoners, is an account of Angela Davis’s trial and the international movement to secure her release. Davis, a scholar, communist and activist, was charged with crimes related to a 1970 courthouse shootout. Lynch’s documentary recounts the global solidarity campaign that demanded her freedom, framing it as both a personal and collective story of resistance. It’s a powerful reminder of what can be accomplished when movements cross borders and people stand united against oppression.

FRSO Oakland members led the program, situating these stories in Oakland’s broader revolutionary history. They reminded attendees of the Black Panther Party’s core mission – building unity between oppressed nationalities and working-class people to fight systemic inequality. They also illuminated the government’s counterattacks, particularly through COINTELPRO, the FBI’s covert program that sought to dismantle revolutionary movements.

The discussion didn’t stop with history. Participants connected the lessons of the films to ongoing struggles in Oakland, particularly the work of the newly formed Oakland Alliance Against Racism and Political Repression (OAARPR). This group, a local chapter of the national NAARPR which emerged from the fight to free Angela Davis, works alongside families of police violence victims and pushes for community control of the police.

In this context, the group also critiqued the failures of Oakland’s Community Police Review Agency, highlighting its ineffectiveness as a key example of the city's ongoing systemic issues with police corruption and violence. This discussion tied the historical and contemporary struggles together, underscoring the urgent need for real change.

Adding a tangible connection to the past, CARP displayed a collection of artifacts that captured the spirit of the Black Panthers and the Free Angela Davis campaigns. Old political pins reading “Free Angela Davis and all political prisoners” and “Black Panther Party: All power to the people” sat alongside the Panthers’ iconic “Ten-Point Program”, photo books, and pamphlets from the 1980s. These materials bridged generations, underscoring the enduring relevance of these struggles.

The films and discussions drove home a powerful message: the fight for justice is as urgent today as ever. In a city shaped by revolutionary victories and ongoing battles, the event called on everyone to organize, educate and resist with renewed purpose.

Oakland's legacy as a beacon for liberation movements lives on – not just in history books but in the work unfolding right now. From the Black Panther Party’s bold defiance to today’s campaigns for police accountability, the message resonated loud and clear, the struggle continues, and our commitment must match its urgency.

#OaklandCA #CA #OppressedNationalities #AfricanAmerican #BlackPanthers #NAARPR #FRSO #CARP