News and Views from the People's Struggle
Charleston, SC – Over 100 people gathered in Charleston, South Carolina, on Sunday, January 4 for an emergency protest against U.S. military aggression in Venezuela. Protesters condemned Washington’s attempts to destabilize the Venezuelan government through sanctions, military posturing and political interference and demanded the release of President Nicolás Maduro and First Lady Cilia Flores.
Brooklyn, NY – In the early morning of January 4, over 200 people gathered across the street from the Metropolitan Detention Center, where the kidnapped President Maduro of Venezuela and his wife, Cilia Flores, were being held.
The picket spanned over half a block as bundled-up protesters marched for hours in support of President Maduro and Venezuela. Chants rang through the crowd, such as, “Not another penny, not another dollar! We won’t pay for your death and slaughter!’
Minneapolis, MN – On January 3, 400 people rallied and marched to demand an end to U.S. intervention in Venezuela. The Minnesota Peace Action Coalition (MPAC) organized the emergency protest after reports of overnight bombings in Caracas and the capture of Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro and his wife Cilia Flores by U.S. special operations forces.
The action began with a rally, where protesters gathered on a cold afternoon near a busy Minneapolis intersection, waving Venezuelan flags and chanting “No war on Venezuela,” “No blood for oil” and “Free President Maduro!”
Denver, CO – On January 3, around 200 people gathered at the Colorado State Capitol building to protest attacks on Venezuela by the United States. In the dark of the night, Caracas was hit with a barrage of aerial strikes that claimed the lives of an unknown number of Venezuelan citizens, while U.S. armed forces kidnapped President Nicolás Maduro and his wife.
Fight Back News Service is circulating the following statement from the International League of Peoples’ Struggle.
The International League of Peoples’ Struggle vehemently condemns the blatant invasion of Venezuela by US military forces that bombed military and civilian targets and culminated in the illegal capture of Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro. This act is the latest in a months-long campaign by the Trump regime to blockade and wage war on the Venezuelan people in order to seize their sovereign land and resources and enact regime change in Venezuela that will bow to US economic interest.
New York, NY — On Saturday, January 3, New Yorkers gathered in Times Square for an emergency protest against the United States’ military aggression against Venezuela.
In the early morning of January 3, the U.S. launched a large-scale attack against Venezuela’s capital, Caracas, and the states of Miranda, Aragua and La Guaira. This attack is the culmination of weeks of escalating aggression from the U.S. military in the area. The Trump administration has also announced that it has captured Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro and his wife and has stated its intent to subject Maduro to a criminal trial in New York City.
Indianapolis, IN – About 60 people gathered Saturday afternoon, January 3, at Monument Circle in downtown Indianapolis to protest the U.S. military attack on Venezuela and the kidnapping of Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro.
The Freedom Road Socialist Organization condemns the brazen and unlawful U.S. military assault on Venezuela and the kidnapping of President Maduro. This is an act of war under the ridiculous pretense of “fighting drug trafficking.” A look at “friends of the U.S.” in the region, and their activities, proves this has nothing to do with drugs. It is about oil. And it's about beating Maduro’s government and the people of Venezuela into submission for the insatiable greed of Trump and his Wall Street gang of backers.
Denver, CO – On December 21, protesters gathered at the Cherry Creek Financial House in Denver for a noise rally to protest at the new headquarters of Palantir. The tech and AI surveillance company has plans to move into the new Cherry Creek location after months of community organizing have made their downtown headquarters untenable.
Caracas, Venezuela – Del 9 al 11 de diciembre, miembros de la Organización Socialista Camino de la Libertad (OSCL) participaron en una delegación de solidaridad a Venezuela, junto con miembros de la Red de Acción Anti-Guerra, la Alianza Nacional En Contra De La Represión Racista y Política, el Partido Mundo Obrero y el Centro Harriet Tubman. Estuvieron presentes para asistir a la Asamblea Internacional de los Pueblos por la Soberanía y la Paz, organizada por el Instituto Simón Bolívar para la Paz y la Solidaridad entre los Pueblos.
Chicago, IL – Over 60 protesters gathered on the frigid morning of Friday, December 19 outside of the Illinois State Board of Investment (ISBI) quarterly meeting. Protesters demanded the board divest from all corporations complicit in Israel’s genocide and occupation against the Palestinian people, and that State Treasurer Michael Frerichs (ISBI’s vice chair) divest from Israel Bonds.
This action marked the one-year anniversary of protests targeting ISBI and Frerichs co-led by Anti-War Committee Chicago (AWC-Chicago) and BDS-Chicago—a project of the U.S. Palestinian Community Network (USPCN). In the last 12 months, the campaign has grown into a network of over 55 organizations throughout Illinois.
Caracas, Venezuela – On December 17, the Constituent Assembly of the Venezuelan Working Class welcomed international delegates to share in their historic achievement of integrating the trade union movement into the national plan of resistance and advancing the cause of the working class in the national democratic Bolivarian Revolution.
Dallas, TX – On December 20, 30 activists and community members from across the area gathered for the first annual holiday fundraiser and social event, Red Christmas.
The continued escalation by the United States towards Venezuela loomed large in the background and was a central point of discussion. The event brought together organizers, families and supporters for an evening of music, food, games and political discussion, celebrating struggle and solidarity during the holiday season.
Red Christmas honored the many freedom fighters in Dallas and across North Texas organizing against capitalism, ICE terror and U.S. imperialism in Venezuela and around the world.
La Organización Socialista Camino de la Libertad condena enérgicamente la incautación ilegal de un petrolero por parte del gobierno de Trump en las costas de Venezuela. Trump ha violado otra ley internacional al hacer que las fuerzas estadounidenses se apoderen de un barco comercial indefenso. Como petróleo nacionalizado, pertenece al pueblo de Venezuela. Denunciamos el uso de la violencia por parte de los imperialistas estadounidenses para robar lo que quieren. En este caso, parece piratería de la Guardia Costera de los Estados Unidos.
Chicago, IL – On December 20, over 175 people gathered in the Chicago Teachers Union Hall to stand in solidarity with Gustavo Petro and the people of Colombia as their country faces an intensification of U.S. aggression.
Petro has had his visa revoked by the Trump administration, and the country is seeing attacks in the form of sanctions, tariffs and military threats. These attacks have been because of his un-fearful stance against U.S. imperialism, from calling out the U.S./Israel’s genocide in Gaza to defending the sovereignty of Latin American nations. Petro is a popular and progressive internationalist.
![Worker - President Nicolas Maduro and Maria Griman, spokeswoman of the National Commission of Council of Productive Workers. | Central Bolivariana Socialista de Trabajadores \[CBST\]](https://i.snap.as/dhhWaQda.png "Worker - President Nicolas Maduro and Maria Griman, spokeswoman of the National Commission of Council of Productive Workers. | Central Bolivariana Socialista de Trabajadores [CBST]")
Caracas, Venezuela – Dozens of Venezuelan trade unions representing public and private sectors ranging from national oil company workers to educators to motorcycle taxistas joined together in the Constituent Congress of the Working Class on December 15-17 in Caracas. They gathered as the culmination of over 22,000 assemblies of workers throughout the country involving nearly 67,000 elected delegates from October to December.
Minneapolis, MN – After a year of community pressure, Minneapolis cut funding for its contract with Zencity, an Israeli tech company whose surveillance technology emerged from Israel’s military intelligence center, Unit 8200, notorious for development of surveillance and phone hacking technology.
The U.S. has pledged the largest ever arms sale to Taiwan, worth $11.1 billion. This destabilizing and dangerous move represents an attempt to block the inevitable reunification between the People’s Republic of China with the province of Taiwan. Once again, the U.S. is willing to sink resources for wars across the globe while things at home continue to deteriorate.
Minneapolis, MN – On December 20, about 50 people protested in Peavey Plaza outside of Orchestra Hall in downtown Minneapolis to show solidarity with Palestine, despite the 13-degree temperature outside.
The central focus of the protest was to call attention to the fact that there can be no real peace on earth during the holidays while Bethlehem, a Palestinian city in the West Bank and the birthplace of Jesus, along with the rest of Palestine continues to be under attack by Israel. MN Peace Action Coalition (MPAC) holds an annual holiday-themed protest and this year’s protest was organized to be at the plaza in conjunction with the ending of the Minnesota Orchestra’s performance of The Nutcracker.
Andrew Josefchak, an organizer with the MN Anti-War Committee explained, “We’re all out here today because after two years of ongoing genocide in Gaza, Israel has not stopped its massacres. Despite a ceasefire agreement, the bombs keep falling. 379 Palestinians have been killed and almost a thousand injured since that ceasefire went into effect, according to the UN. The same UN that just approved a deal that effectively aims to turn Gaza into a U.S. colony presided over by Donald Trump. Israeli settlers are becoming more and more brazen and violent in the West Bank, destroying homes and farms, while Israeli police raid Bethlehem.”
Josefchak’s speech reflected on the movement’s victories for this year, “The fact is that Israel’s situation, and the fight for Palestinian liberation, have fundamentally been transformed. Never again will Israel be seen by anyone with a brain as the so-called ‘only democracy in the Middle East.’ It will never again even be seen as a normal country. People around the world now are aware of what Israel really is, which is an apartheid state, a Jim Crow state, a state that lives off of the blood of Palestinians who are massacred for their land or exploited for their labor.”
Many families leaving the performance thanked the protesters for being there and gave peace signs as they left Orchestra Hall to go to their cars. The protest also had singing throughout the program led by members of the Ceasefire Choir, which called for Palestinian liberation to the tunes of traditional Christmas carols.
San Jose, CA – On December 14, San Jose Against War gathered dozens of people to commemorate International Human Rights Day. The U.S. has been a primary facilitator of human rights violations, including selling weapons to Israel, bombing fisherpeople off the coast of Venezuela, and a host of sanctions imposed on countries striving for national sovereignty.