The Nazi groups waved swastikas, DeSantis flags, and chanted “Jews will not replace us,” a slogan popularized at the 2017 Unite the Right rally in Charlottesville, North Carolina. A notable attendee was Kent “Boneface” McLellan, a neo-Nazi who has reportedly traveled to Ukraine to serve with the Azov Battalion, showing how U.S. aid to Ukraine is being used to train and fuel the far-right movement of our own country. “The chickens coming home to roost,” as Malcolm X said.

While both mobilizations combined numbered less than 100 participants, and many traveled from out of state, neo-Nazis across the country are becoming more emboldened to hold public demonstrations and this must be analyzed. This increase in activity should be understood as the Republican Party openly embracing far-right political stances to mobilize their base, combined with the mainstreaming of racist and chauvinist politics by the media.

Organizations of all stripes are coming together against the rise of white supremacist terrorism, as seen following the murder of three Black people in Jacksonville. The people taking away reproductive rights and banning Black education are the same ones cozying up to white supremacists and neo-Nazi organizations.

We join with other organizations demanding that Governor DeSantis condemn these white supremacist mobilizations stoked by his policies and rhetoric. Governor DeSantis attacks teaching Black history in the legislature while white supremacists commit targeted attacks on Black people. This is national oppression in action.

The increasing activity of the far right extends beyond the DeSantis administration. The mainstreaming of far-right organizations and policies should be seen as a symptom of the decline of U.S. imperialism and power. The U.S. empire is in decline and our internal contradictions are sharpening. The time to join the fight is now! frso.org/join

#OrlandoFL #FRSO #FRSOOrlando #AntiFascism #Nazis #DeSantis

Orlando, FL – On Saturday, August 19, a panel of progressive organizations organized by Las Semillas was held at the Orange County Public Library. The purpose of this panel was for progressive organizations to network, present the work they are doing in their communities, and have a discussion about pressing political issues. All of these activities contribute to the goal of building a united front against the DeSantis administration and the deterioration of material conditions, especially for the working class of Central Florida. “Florida’s on fire in more ways than one, so we’re glad to be in concert with anyone trying to put the pieces together,” stated the social media post promoting the event.

The topics discussed at the panel ranged from economic and food justice to combating the assault on trans rights and how to move beyond 2024. One of the highlights of the panel involved a discussion on the current anti-trans legislation in the U.S. and contrasting it to the recently passed Family Code in Cuba. From the content of the laws, expanding the legal protections in Cuba, to the process of the actual drafting of the legislation, where thousands of meetings were held to discuss the thoughts of the Cuban people, Cuba is showing what a true democracy means for the people.

The organizations present were Las Semillas, March for Our Lives Pine Hills, Freedom Road Socialist Organization Orlando, The Umbrella Brigade, The All-African People’s Revolutionary Party, Black Men Build Orlando, FL Student Power, Orlando DSA, and Ladies In Full Effect (L.I.F.E.).

The next panel hosted by Las Semillas will be in October. As part of this panel series, the location changes neighborhoods for each event, allowing different voices and organizations to be highlighted. Seven Charlestin, an organizer with Las Semillas, stated, We’re in a political moment across the globe right now, and if we don’t fight back we risk incorrigible damage to our planet and our civil liberties.”

Follow Las Semillas at @las_semillas_20 on Instagram for more information.

#OrlandoFL #ImmigrantRights #WomensMovement #LGBTQ #Antiracism #Antifascism #GovernorRonDesantis #AbortionRights

Orlando, FL – On August 10, an emergency rally was held in Orlando to address Governor Ron DeSantis’ recent dismissal of State Attorney Monique Worrell.

The attacks came as an affirmation by the DeSantis camp that they are an enemy of oppressed nationalities, the working class, women and LGBTQ people.

At the rally, the charges against the Tampa 5 were discussed by Anna Eskamani as a part of DeSantis’s attacks on education and African Americans. Progressive forces attending the rally understand the need to develop a strong united front against DeSantis and his clique of reactionaries. When democratic rights are under attack, the people are becoming ready to organize and fight back.

#OrlandoFL #ImmigrantRights #LGBTQ #Antiracism #Antifascism #GovernorRonDesantis #AbortionRights

Baton Rouge, LA – On July 24, protesters from across Louisiana gathered outside Jones Creek Library in East Baton Rouge Parish. They chanted and waved signs, voicing their opposition to Louisiana Superintendent of Education Cade Brumley’s meeting with Moms for Liberty, a far-right national organization identified as an extremist group by the Southern Poverty Law Center.

The demonstrators marched around the library and received supportive honking from passing highway traffic. They chanted “Ban hate, not books!” and “Defend trans youth!”

Moms for Liberty was founded in Florida and was initially focused on supporting Governor Ron DeSantis’ in efforts against COVID 19 regulations. They have since spread across the country, taking advantage of pre-existing wealthy Republican funding infrastructure. They have shifted their goals to promoting censorship in schools, advocating for “Don’t say gay” bills and against “critical race theory.”

Moms for Liberty faced national condemnation earlier this summer, when one of its chapters used a quote from Adolph Hitler in its inaugural statement.

The protesters denounced Superintendent Brumley for meeting with the reactionary group. “When we look at the power, the control and the influence this individual has on our education system, even sharing beliefs with a group like this becomes very dangerous for the people who live here. My hope is that groups that spout and spew and condone hateful rhetoric in their speech don’t have an ear when it comes to our education system,” said Pearl Ricks of the Reproductive Justice Action Collective.

The demonstrators then sat in the meeting, which Moms for Liberty hosted. Protesters held signs and submitted questions for the superintendent, but the hosts discarded their questions.

After answering a series of preselected questions, the chair attempted to close the meeting. One demonstrator tried to ask the superintendent if he would field more questions from his concerned constituents. Brumley then abruptly rushed out of the room to get to his car.

Some protesters attempted to engage him as he walked to his car. They told him how disappointed they were with his conduct in the meeting. Activists said they will continue to pressure him to represent all Louisiana students, regardless of the “culture war” politics sweeping the country.

#BatonRougeLA #Antiracism #Antifascism #GovernorRonDesantis

Tampa, FL – Hundreds came out to protest the right-wing, billionaire-funded “student group” Turning Point USA summit, July 23. The Turning Point summit featured a gaggle of reactionary, racist and chauvinistic speakers, not the least of whom was Donald Trump, looking to build momentum for a possible second presidential run.

Shouts of “shame!” echoed through downtown as speaker Laura Rodriguez from Tampa Bay Community Action Committee spoke about the conference’s police protection, stating, “They’re paying cops to protect those racists and bigots in our city.”

Rodriguez continued, “This city is in a housing crisis whether the mayor wants to accept it or not. Tampa is the fourth worst city in the nation for rent affordability.”

Who these cops protect couldn’t have been clearer than when the protest moved to the convention center where the hatefest was taking place. The bigots attacked, shoved, pushed down and assaulted protesters as cops looked on in tacit approval, intervening only when it looked like the reactionaries were in danger.

As David Jones of TBCAC described, “We sat there and watched them protect those conservatives while they were attacking us, because whose side are they on? Not ours.” The reactionaries attacked protesters as young as 11. After a tense standoff, protesters returned downtown.

The Tampa community took to the streets to let these hatemongers know that they and their brand of bigotry were not welcome. This event took place in the context of not just the repeal of Roe v. Wade, but also other state level attacks on women, African Americans, and LGBTQ folks, with Florida’s ban on abortion at 15 weeks, whitewashing the history of U.S.'s oppression and slavery, as well mandating LGBT discrimination in the education system with the “Don't Say Gay” bill.

It is no accident that this event took place in Florida – both of these bills have been the pet projects of Trump ally and potential successor, Governor Ron DeSantis, who was also in attendance. The virulent national agenda of those at the conference was to further roll back political and workers' rights, continue environmental devastation, enable attacks on women and LGBTQ folks, and suppress national liberation movements.

Speakers from a wide range of community groups attacked the agenda and attendees of the conference. Harrison Lundy, local activist and organizer with Democratic Socialists of America, said, “They get billions in dark money to keep poor people poor, to keep houseless people houseless, and keep birthing people from their autonomy, and so they’re scared to see us out here.”

The protest was hosted by Women’s Voices of Southwest Florida and Tampa Bay Community Action Committee, with speakers from Students for a Democratic Society, Democratic Socialists of America, and Freedom Road Socialist Organization. The same coalition of workers, oppressed nationalities, immigrants, LGBTQ folks and women, that united to deliver Donald Trump a crushing defeat in the 2020 election came out today, and is what is needed to continue the struggle to defeat the agenda of groups like TPUSA.

#TampaFL #ImmigrantRights #StudentMovement #InJusticeSystem #Labor #OppressedNationalities #WomensMovement #US #Antifascism #DonaldTrump #TurningPointUSATPUSA #TampaBayCommunityActionCommitteeTBCAC #AbortionRights