Fight Back! News

News and Views from the People's Struggle

AnaheimCA

By Rain Mendoza

Anaheim, California vigil for those killed in Israel's genocide in Gaza.  | Staff/Fight Back! News

Anaheim, CA – On June 22, over 50 community members and activists gathered at Twila Reid Park for a vigil honoring Palestinian martyrs who have been killed during the ongoing genocide. The vigil was organized by the Palestinian American Women’s Association.

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By David Pulido

Anaheim demands boycott of Zionist Sadaf products. | Fight Back! News/staff

Anaheim, CA – “You join the heroes who stood up and said, ‘War? Not in our name! Death? Not in our name! Money toward genocide? Not in our name!’” declared Kareem Youssef, member of the US Palestinian Community Network (USPCN), to a crowd of over 20 protesters in front of a Super King Market on March 3.

The action was part of the larger “Boycott Sadaf” campaign, whose goal is to remove Sadaf Food products from grocery stores. Sadaf Foods is a Zionist company that sources its products in occupied Palestine and tries to normalize the state of Israel.

Activists took the parking lot chanting, “Super King, hear our voice! Zionist food is not a choice!” and “Not another nickel, not another dime! No more money for Israel’s crimes!”

They were confronted by security guards who tried to intimidate them into moving out of the parking lot, but Youssef and others asserted their right to protest Super King market for shelving Sadaf Food products. As seven police SUVs and one motorcycle officer poured into the lot, another organizer from USPCN said he had spoken with the manager of Super King before staging this action, and the manager sent him to customer service. “How ridiculous! They want us to go through a bureaucracy when we tell them to stop funding genocide, when we tell them that you’re profiting off of the stolen food while our people are starving in Gaza, while children are starving! And instead, they call the cops on us. Shame on Super King! Shame on Sadaf! Boycott Sadaf!”

Diana Terreros, member of Community Service Organization Orange County (CSO OC) and Freedom Road Socialist Organization, stated that “CSO stands in unequivocal solidarity with the Palestinian resistance against the occupation of Israel, who is committing a genocide and has been dispossessing Palestinians for 75 years.” She also spoke on the recent victory of the Boycott Sadaf campaign in Garden Grove, where an action forced Harvest Fresh market to deshelve its Sadaf products just 30 minutes into the rally. Terreros stated, “We will keep fighting against these Zionist corporations! Our struggles as Chicanos and Palestinians may be different, but we are united against the common enemy of U.S. imperialism, and together we can win.”

Even as the police tried to violate protesters’ First Amendment rights, activists urged customers to boycott Super King until the manager made a contractual agreement to deshelve its Sadaf Food products. Some customers even joined the ranks of activists, taking up signs and shouting back at police and security. The police were forced to stand and watch.

Palestinian flags waved in the lot as Youssef closed the boycott action by warning, “We will be checking on different stores seeking Sadaf across Southern California until every single one of these Southern California stores removes Sadaf Foods from their shelves! Because this is what we can do to make an impact and to address Zionism ourselves, and show them that people power, just us, is enough to cost Sadaf millions!”

The boycott was organized by USPCN, and it included activists from Free Democratic Movement for Palestine, Al-Awda: The Palestine Right to Return Coalition, the Palestinian American Women’s Association, Community Service Organization Orange County, and Freedom Road Socialist Organization (FRSO).

#AnaheimCA #International #AntiWarMovement #MiddleEast #Palestine #BDS #USPCN #AlAwda #PAWA #CSOOC #FRSO

By Emma Gottfried

Anaheim, California protest demands justice for Abigail Lopez.  | Fight Back! News/staff

Anaheim, CA – Chants of “Anaheim PD has blood on their hands!” filled the streets of Anaheim on Wednesday, December 6, as over 30 family members and community members rallied in front of the Anaheim Police Department. They spoke on the tragic murder of Abigail Lopez by Anaheim PD.

Rain Mendoza, the rally emcee and member of Orange County CSO, recounted the event, stating, “On October 29, Anaheim PD gunned down Abigail Lopez and murdered her in cold blood. She was 20 years old. These cops kill us with impunity, and we get no justice. They are never held accountable for their crimes against the people!”

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By Diana Terreros

Crowd wearing Palestinian flags, seated and standing, listen as a speaker talks up front.

Anaheim, CA – On Sunday, November 26, close to 200 people gathered at a vigil organized by the Palestinian American Women’s Association and co-sponsored by over 15 organizations to mourn the 20,000 Palestinians who have been martyred since October 7. In some cases, entire bloodlines have been wiped out and more than a million have been displaced from their homes.

Candles were lit and flowers were laid out to honor the martyrs whose names were displayed on a banner. Many spoke about the personal impact the occupation of Palestine and genocide being conducted by Israel has had on their families. One speaker was present during the Nakba of 1948.

Shaheen Nassar, a community organizer with the Council on American-Islamic Relations stated, “Unfortunately, I’ve lost family in almost every major bombing campaign of the Gaza strip, including more recently my eight-year-old relative who was killed in one of the bombing campaigns. And inshallah, we will vindicate all our martyrs with the dismantlement of the apartheid system.”

The role of the United States in the genocide of Palestinians was also highlighted throughout the vigil.

Ayah Shiadah, program manager at the Arab American Civic Council, declared that “the U.S.-made weapons of destruction used in this conflict must not continue to bring death and despair to the people of Gaza and Palestine. We must hold accountable those who have aided in this endless occupation and rampant genocide.”

A speaker from the Palestinian Youth Movement spoke about the millions that capitalists and politicians make by spilling Palestinian blood and asserted “we will continue to disrupt the flow of profit for those who get richer with every single weapon or technology they send to Israel. For every business deal they make with Israel.”

In the past week, protests and die-ins have taken place at malls and defense companies to demand an end to U.S. aid to Israel, including a protest that shut down a Lockheed Martin subsidiary in Minnesota and a protest held in Los Angeles at a Raytheon facility.

Palestinian youth ranging from eight to 12 years old also spoke at the vigil, reading poems and leading chants of “Free, free, free Palestine!” and “Not another nickel, not another dime, no more money for Israel’s crimes!”

Dr. Melina Abdullah, director of Black Lives Matter Grassroots and co-founder of Black Lives Matter Los Angeles, spoke about the long history of solidarity between Palestinians and Africans and African Americans, stating, “I am coming to you standing on the shoulders of my African ancestors who since 1948 have stood in solidarity with the Palestinian people. See, Black people have always understood that our struggle here, our struggle worldwide mirrors in so many ways the struggle of Palestinian people.”

David Pulido, co-founder of Community Service Organization Orange County, spoke about what the Palestinian resistance means for Chicanos and other oppressed nationalities. “For the people, Operation Al-Aqsa Flood means that it is right to struggle against your oppressor. It means that the only path to liberation is to recognize your enemy and struggle against him.”

Pulido ended his speech with a statement of solidarity: “The resistance of the Palestinian people inspires me and we in CSO OC stand in unconditional solidarity with the Palestinian liberation movement. While the particulars of our struggles as Chicanos and Palestinians are different, our main enemy is the same: U.S. imperialism.”

The mass demonstrations that have taken place across the country were highlighted throughout the vigil as a sign and a reason that the tide is turning against Israel. Kareem Youssef of the US Palestinian Community Network encouraged attendees to keep up the fight. “We must continue to organize and fight against Israel, the United States, and all who support genocide. We are on the right side of history. We are the ones teaching civility. We have defeated Israel these past 50 days and we must do whatever it takes again and again and again until one day Zionism is but a thing of the past and Palestinians have finally won their liberation from the river to the sea.”

#AnaheimCA #FreePalestine

By Diana Terreros

Anaheim, CA – On Sunday, October 8, chants of “When people are occupied, resistance is justified!” and “From the river to the sea, Palestine will be free!” filled the streets of Anaheim as over 200 people gathered along a busy street. The people rallied in support of the recent Al-Aqsa Flood operation by the Palestinian resistance against Zionist occupation.

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By Redacción

Anaheim, CA – Cientos marcharon hacia la sede de la policía de Anaheim el 29 de julio para protestar contra los asesinatos policiales de jóvenes chicanos. Los manifestantes enfrentaron a la policía con cantos, gritos y pancartas que denuncian estos asesinatos brutales y racistas. El Departamento de Policía de Anaheim (APD) ha llevado a cabo una ola de asesinatos de este año, mucho más que en años anteriores. Dos personas han sido asesinadas en la última semana. Los manifestantes se encontraron con una fuerte presencia de la policía militarizada que incluía policía a caballos, helicópteros, vehículos blindados y policías francotiradores. La familia de César Ray Cruz, asesinado por la APD en 2009, levantó una pancarta pidiendo justicia y un cartel con las fotos de otros nueve hombres asesinados por la APD.

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By staff

Protest against police killings in Anaheim.

Anaheim, CA – Hundreds marched on the Anaheim Police Headquarters, July 29, to protest police killings of young Chicano men. The protesters confronted the police with chants, shouts and banners denouncing these brutal and racist killings. The Anaheim Police Department (APD) has carried out a rash of killings this year, far more than previous years. Two people have been killed in the past week.

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By staff

Protest against police killing in Anaheim, CA

Anaheim, CA – Manuel Diaz, a 25-year old Chicano, was shot in the back and in the head by Anaheim police in the afternoon of July 21. The police killing took place in a Chicano working-class community, where most people live in apartments and where families know, get along with and hear each other. Diaz was murdered while standing in his front lawn. The police have given no reason or probable cause for attempting to stop him.

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