News and Views from the People's Struggle
On the evening of Tuesday, September 23, a webinar was held by the Anti-War Action Network (AWAN) to educate about the motive behind the recent attacks that Donald Trump has unleashed against Venezuela.
New York City – This Thursday, September 25, lucky people are gathering in Manhattan for a historic evening to recognize the global struggle for peace and liberation.
Two high-profile speakers from Venezuela will present their political views: Venezuelan Foreign Minister Yvan Gil and Blanca Eekhart, president of the Simon Bolivar Institute for Peace and Solidarity Among Peoples. Both will be attending a meeting at the United Nations that week, as well as the Riverside event.
Fight Back News Service is circulating the following statement from the Anti-War Action Network (AWAN).
The Anti-War Action Network (AWAN) calls on all cities nationally to mark another year of genocide and resistance!
AWAN calls on all anti-war, anti-imperialist organizations around the country for a week of action from September 22-26th. During this year's UN General Assembly High-level Week, Palestine will take center stage due to the genocide and starvation in Gaza. A free Palestine will be the main focus both inside the UN, outside on the streets, and at protests across the country! That week Netanyahu will come to the U.S. to try to justify his efforts to steal Gaza and the ongoing genocide. There will be protests in NYC, but we need protests across the country to demand that we hold war criminals accountable! Arrest Netanyahu! End aid to Israel! End the siege of Gaza!
Resistance is justified when people are occupied!
End all U.S. aid to Israel!
End the siege of Gaza!
Minneapolis, MN – On August 21, the Anti-War Action Network (AWAN) held a nationwide webinar on the topic of combatting political repression targeted against the anti-war movement.
Meredith Aby, a member of AWAN’s steering committee, introduced the webinar stating, “The Trump administration, by targeting our movement, is trying to create a chilling effect in this country, trying to increase their own power, and trying to punish anyone who challenges the Trump administration.” Aby went on to point out that “Our activists have been targeted for marching in the street, for car marshaling, for being at public meetings and chanting. What we need to do is defend this right to dissent. Dissent is not a crime!”
Portland, OR – On Wednesday, August 20, 40 Portlanders came together at the intersection of 37th Avenue and Hawthorne Boulevard to denounce Israel’s renewed offensive in Gaza. The invasion plan, which began with indiscriminate aerial bombardment on August 13, is set to displace 1 million Palestinians southwards, and is another step in Israel’s plan to ethnically cleanse all of Gaza.
Tucson, AZ – The members of the Tucson Anti War Committee (TAWC) answered the call from Anti War Action Network (AWAN) for emergency protests against Israel’s invasion of Gaza City. On short notice, TAWC organized a “stand out” on August 19, during rush hour at a large intersection near the University of Arizona. Over a dozen people showed up, including a couple who lived nearby and saw the flyer in Reddit and decided to walk over and join the call for hands off Gaza City!
By Trent Fast and Cedar Larson
New York, NY – On the weekend of July 25-27, the Anti-War Action Network sent members from the Minnesota Anti-War Committee, Women Against Military Madness, Detroit Anti-War Committee, Tucson Anti-War, and Seattle Against War to the first ever People’s Summit for Korea in New York City.
Minneapolis, MN – On June 26, the Anti-War Action Network (AWAN), a national network of anti-war and anti-imperialist grassroots organizations, hosted its first ever Pride webinar, tackling the important subject of pinkwashing.
San Jose, CA – On Sunday, June 22, the day after the U.S. bombed three nuclear facilities in Iran, about 150 people gathered at the Dr. MLK, Jr Library in downtown San Jose in protest.
Iranian flags, Palestinian flags and signs reading, “No war with Iran!” were held by protesters as they chanted, “Stop bombing Iran!” “U.S. out of the Middle East” and “U.S. out of Iran!” accompanied by many supportive car honks.
San Jose, CA – On March 28, community members gathered at the Arab American Cultural Center in San Jose for an evening of education and discussion on Land Day, the Palestinian day commemorating the 1976 deaths of six Palestinian protesters who were marching against Zionist seizure of Palestinian land.
St. Paul, MN – On February 15, Anti War Action Network (AWAN) held its founding conference at the Wilder Foundation building in the heart of Saint Paul, Minnesota. AWAN is a nationwide, grassroots, volunteer-based organization comprised of anti-war, student and Palestine solidarity groups and activists from across the U.S. – many of whom participated in national days of action during the upsurge in Palestine solidarity to stop the U.S./Israel genocide in Gaza.
Grand Rapids, MI – On October 7, roughly 80 people in more than 25 cars drove from Grand Rapids, Michigan to protest at Woodward Zeeland, an engineering firm with locations worldwide which has been connected to the genocide in Gaza.
After the U.S.-funded attacks on Lebanon and Palestine, and the escalation of the genocide, organizers led by Palestine Solidarity Grand Rapids (PSGR) launched a campaign targeting local war-profiteers that culminated in the rally and die-in outside of Woodward Zeeland.
Portland, OR – On September 21, the Anti-War Action Network presented a webinar on divestment campaigns for Palestine and the anti-war movement. The event featured speakers from New Orleans Stop Helping Israel’s Ports, Minneapolis Anti-War Committee, San Jose Against War, and UW Milwaukee SDS.
Chicago, IL – On August 19, over 20,000 people marched on the opening day of the Democratic National Convention, demanding an end to U.S. aid to Israel and an end to the genocide in Gaza. The march was the result of over a year of work by the Coalition to March on the DNC. Marchers came within sight and sound of the Democratic National Convention, putting heat on United States government as it facilitates a genocide.
Hatem Abudayyeh, the national chair of the U.S. Palestinian Community Network, told the crowd, “Black liberation, immigrant rights, reproductive rights, women's rights, workers’ rights, the right to strike, the right to unionize. The rank-and-file workers are here, the Black community members are here, the documented and undocumented immigrants are here, how powerful this is to be together here, all of us.”
San Jose, CA – On Monday, June 24, over two dozen protesters gathered in Sunnyvale to protest against weapons manufacturer Northrop Grumman and to demand that the war industry be shut down. The protest was called by San Jose Against War as part of Anti War Action Network’s national Week Against Weapons.
New Orleans, LA – On the afternoon of June 26, attendees of the International Association of Campus Law Enforcement Administrators (IACLEA) conference at the Sheraton Hotel encountered a crowd of pro-Palestine protesters.
Minneapolis, MN – On Tuesday, June 25, around 100 people gathered as the Minnesota Peace Action Coalition led a protest of the Honeywell Aerospace Building in Northeast Minneapolis. Cars honked in support and many people who were just passing by brought bulk packs of cold bottled water for the protesters unprompted, just to show their support on the sunny day.
Minneapolis, MN – On May 15, over 1000 people marched in the Free Palestine Coalition’s march for the 76th anniversary of Al Nakba, “the catastrophe” in Arabic. Protesters started at U.S. Senator Amy Klobuchar’s office demanding an end to U.S. aid to apartheid Israel and calling on her to stop her support for the ongoing second Nakba, the U.S.-backed Israeli genocide currently occurring in Gaza.