News and Views from the People's Struggle
St. Paul, MN – On January 26, 50 Palestine solidarity activists rallied at the weekly Women Against Military Madness (WAMM) Justice for Palestine bannering to celebrate the passage of a strong ceasefire resolution by Minneapolis city council. They vowed to campaign for public support by the Saint Paul city council for a ceasefire and an end to U.S. aid to Israel.
Denver, CO – On Monday, January 22, at 11 a.m., roughly 100 pro-Palestine protesters rallied on the Auraria campus before taking to the streets and halting business as usual.
The activists stopped at the intersection of Colfax Avenue and Speer Boulevard, occupying the block and remaining there for over an hour and a half. This disruption of one of the busiest junctions in Denver caused traffic delays throughout the entire city and marked an escalation in the militancy of the actions taken by pro-Palestinian organizers.
Milwaukee, WI – Vice President Kamala Harris visited Big Bend, Wisconsin on January 22, on the 51st anniversary of the Roe v. Wade decision, for a stop on her “Reproductive Freedom Tour.” Pro-Palestine and pro-choice activists held an action to fight back against the hypocrisy.
The Biden-Harris administration has refused all calls for cutting aid to Israel to stop the genocide in Palestine and continues to bomb Yemen, and Wisconsin does not have full and free access to abortion.
Minneapolis, MN – With hundreds of Palestine supporters packing the city council’s meeting room and the hallway outside for the third time in recent weeks, on January 25 the Minneapolis city council voted to pass a Palestine resolution that’s more progressive than most others around the country.
Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey, who opposed the resolution, attended the city council meeting to make an impassioned plea to council members to reject the resolution and instead pass a watered-down substitute resolution brought forward at the last minute by Councilmember Linea Palmisano.
Chicago, IL – Over 300 supporters of the movements for Black and Palestinian liberation showed up to the Wednesday, January 24, Chicago city council meeting.
Organizers spoke in favor of a resolution put forth by Rossana Rodríguez Sanchez and Daniel La Spata calling for a ceasefire in Palestine, and against a Fraternal Order of Police-backed decision to send even the most severe cases of police misconduct to arbitration where they could be handled with no public oversight.
Allendale, MI – Pro-Palestine groups demonstrated the campus of Grand Valley State University on Friday, January 19.
About 50 students and community members gathered around GVSU’s Cook Carillon Clocktower for the “All Out for Palestine'' rally. Undeterred by cold and snowy weather, demonstrators stood in solidarity with the Palestinian resistance and condemned the United States’ strikes on Yemen.
Before the rally, a sign-making event was organized by students in GVSU’s Calder Arts Center. Attendees of the rally grasped the signs they had made, waved Palestinian flags and held banner reading “Free free Palestine” and “No war on Yemen, victory to Palestine!”
Students for Justice in Palestine (SJP), in collaboration with GVSU’s Students for a Democratic Society (SDS), Ferris State SDS and Palestine Solidarity Grand Rapids, organized the rally.
Members of the campus community were drawn towards the clocktower after hearing chants such as “Money for schools, not for war; U.S. out of Yemeni shores” and “Palestine is our demand, no peace on stolen land.” Many students on their way to classes expressed solidarity by raising their fists and vocalizing their support of the effort.
“Even as I speak, children and families are being systematically wiped out by weapons paid for by the Michigan government; Yemen is being bombed by U.S. and British forces,” stated a member of Grand Valley’s SJP. “The U.S. war machine holds no sympathy for those who are suffering.”
A series of short speeches by members of GVSU SDS and SJP called upon the Grand Valley President Philomena Mantella and GVSU faculty to agree to a statement that recognizes the liberation and self-determination of the Palestinian people. In October 2023, Mantella turned a blind eye towards genocide by releasing a statement that condemned the Palestinian resistance.
“We call upon GVSU, President Mantella, our faculty, Michigan as a whole and the world to support the Gazan people in whatever way we can and to free Palestine now,” said Grand Valley’s SDS president.
Demonstrators then weaved their way throughout campus, passing administration offices, dorm buildings and GVSU’s Starbucks location. While students marched, people driving through campus honked their car horns in a display of support. Students again took turns chanting, denouncing the U.S. war machine and expressing solidarity with oppressed peoples across the globe.
#AllendaleMI #AntiWarMovement #International #Palestine #StudentMovement #SDS #SJP
Minneapolis, MN – With hundreds of Palestine supporters packing the meeting room and the hallway outside, on January 23 the Minneapolis City Council’s Committee of the Whole voted 9-3 (with one abstention) to pass a Palestine ceasefire resolution.
The next step January 25, for a full council for a final vote.
New Orleans, LA – On January 16, a group of students and other activists gathered in freezing temperatures outside the federal building to rally against the recent U.S./UK intervention in Yemen.
Islam Elrabieey, an Egyptian speaker representing NOLA Freedom Forums, painted a picture of Gaza, describing “men sleeping on concrete, women and children with the luxury of a tent to protect against wind.”
Austin, TX – On Friday, January 19 around 35 students and community members gathered off Speedway corridor at the University of Texas at Austin. As the crowd chanted, “Yemen, Yemen stand your ground, turn another ship around!” and “Gaza, Gaza you will rise, you have Yemen by your side!” several students passing by stopped to join in the chants and listen to speeches.
Tampa, FL – On Tuesday, January 16, Tampa Bay Students for a Democratic Society (SDS) rallied in front of the University of South Florida’s library as part of SDS’s National Day of Action for Yemen.
Around 20 community members and students gathered demanding an end to U.S. attacks on Yemen and an end to U.S. aid to Israel. The protest came in response to the January 12 U.S.-British missile strikes on Yemen.