News and Views from the People's Struggle
To mark the birthday of the outstanding Vietnamese communist Ho Chi Minh, Fight Back News Service is circulating has 1960 article “The Path Which Led Me To Leninism.” The Path Which Led Me To Leninism
Appleton, WI – On May 16, a dozen community members gathered outside the Outagamie County Government Center in Appleton on short notice. Their purpose? To demand accountability from County Board Member Tim Hermes, who recently made transphobic comments during a May 9 county board meeting. When confronted about the comments, Hermes deflected by saying he was “simply asking questions.”
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Denver, CO – A dozen concerned residents rallied Saturday, May 13, to demand justice in the case of a police shooting that wounded seven last summer. As bars were letting out in Lower Downtown on the night of July 17, 2022, three DPD officers attempted to stop 21-year-old Jordan Waddy who they suspected of being involved in an altercation earlier that evening.
Fight Back! News is circulating the following call to action from Students for a Democratic Society
Fight Back News Service is circulating the Labor Party of Turkey (EMEP) statement on the presidential and parliamentary elections held on May 14.
Denver, CO – After a nearly two year campaign, the Denver chapter of Students for a Democratic Society won a significant milestone in their campaign to demilitarize the campus police. After four months of work plagued with delays and obfuscation by campus administrators, SDS fought to successfully get a resolution passed that takes the power from the Auraria Campus Police from being able to obtain military weapons from the 1033 program – a federal program designed to transfer surplus military equipment from the U.S. Department of Defense to local law enforcement.
Event relocated to CAIR-MN space
Minneapolis, MN – The Minnesota chapter of the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR-Minnesota) joins the Anti-War Committee and Twin Cities Coalition 4 Justice 4 Jamar Clark in condemning the University of Minnesota for canceling an event with Nkosi Zwelivelile Mandela, grandson of the late Nobel laureate Nelson Mandela, due to threats received.
Kaufman, TX – On May 13, a rally was held at the Kaufman County Courthouse in remembrance of Aaron Martinez a man who was viciously murdered by his neighbor Trevor McEuen in Forney, Texas.
Brooklyn, NY – Several hundred gathered on Saturday, May 13 in Bay Ridge, commonly known as “Little Palestine,” to commemorate the 75th anniversary of the Nakba.
Minneapolis, MN – Roughly 70 University of Minnesota students, faculty, staff and community members rallied together on May 11 outside McNamara Alumni Center, where the governing Board of Regents met to discuss finance and operations amidst brutal budget cuts and job-cutting measures.
Fight Back News Service is circulating the following statement from La Frontera Nos Cruzó.
Tampa, FL – On May 6, Tampa Bay Community Action Committee (TBCAC) held a vigil with the family of Jonas Joseph and supporters for the third-year anniversary of his death. Joseph was 26 when he was killed by the Tampa Police Department on April 28, 2020 after four officers fired 125 shots at him, 62 hitting him. Vigil attendees wore shirts with Joseph's face, brought Haitian flags, candles, rosaries and signs to honor him and uplift the demands of the family.
Minneapolis, MN – A major online fundraising event featuring Frank Chapman – of the FRSO Central Committee and Executive Director of National Alliance Against Racist and Political Repression – will take place on the evening of May 25. The event, which will also feature Labor Commission Chair Cherrene Horazuk and Standing Committee member Fern Figueroa is part of the $130,000 fund drive that will help FRSO expand its national office and put more full-time organizers in the field.
Fight Back News Service is circulating the following article from the journal of the Communist party of the Philippines, Ang Bayan (“The People”).
Minneapolis, MN – The Freedom Road Socialist Organization Spring Fund Drive hit the $35,000 mark May 11, with more money coming in daily. The fund drive aims at raising $130,000, allowing for an expansion of our national office, more publications and putting more full-time organizers in the field.
Milwaukee, WI – Over 20 people gathered at Zao MKE Church to attend the “No to NATO!” teach-in hosted by the Milwaukee Anti-War Committee on May 6. In response to the ongoing war in Ukraine, the Milwaukee Anti-war Committee (MAC) held this event to challenge the pro-NATO narrative pushed in the U.S. Presented by MAC member Stephanie Spalatin and her mother Mira Spalatin, attendees learned about some of the crimes NATO has committed both in the present in Ukraine and in the past in places like the former Yugoslavia, as well as a general framing of NATO as an offensive and not defensive apparatus of U.S. and European Union. imperialism.
GOP wants more cops in schools and communities, and less police oversight
Milwaukee, WI – Earlier this month, Wisconsin Republicans introduced a proposal regarding the shared revenue – LRB-2938: Local Government Funding. This proposal increases Milwaukee’s city and county shared revenue if they agree to do the following: reinstate police officers in Milwaukee Public Schools, preserve current staffing levels, at the minimum, of police officers, fund the police pension through an increase in the sales tax, eliminate the policy creation power of the Fire and Police Commission (FPC), and require representatives from the police association to serve on the FPC.
Minneapolis, MN – On Saturday, April 29, over 100 activists from mass movements around the Twin Cities area came together at the office of the Minneapolis Federation of Teachers and Education Support Professionals Local 59 to celebrate International Workers Day, and another year in struggle across the movements in the streets, and the movement for socialism. The location was fitting for such an event because the Teachers and Educators in Minneapolis Public Schools spent more than three weeks on strike only one year ago. The room was packed and boisterous. The speeches were lively. The night closed with a performance of The Internationale, which started with a cello and violin duo, then the entire crowd joining in for the singing of the historic song.
Denver, CO – On May 1, about 300 rank-and-file union members, activists and members of the community came together at the Colorado State Capitol to celebrate International Workers Day, or May Day. This worker holiday originated in the United States, and commemorates the Haymarket Affair of 1886, where protesters fighting for an eight-hour workday were attacked and killed by police.
Arlington, TX – In the evening hours of Thursday, April 27, Jennifer Rose Miller unexpectedly departed this world at the age of 30. Her friends, family and comrades are devastated by the news, knowing her to be incomparably kind, loving and unwavering in her commitment both to the struggle and to little Xavier, her beaming soon-to-be-seven-year-old son who she leaves behind. The center of her life was her son, her pride and joy. She often had to arrange childcare for him to allow her to lead marches. She is also survived by her younger brother, parents and many other family members who loved her so much. Jennifer's life was cut far too short, but it was a full and a poignant one.
