News and Views from the People's Struggle
On November 27, Lebanon and the U.S.-backed apartheid government of Israel enacted a ceasefire. Hezbollah, a powerful army in the Middle East fighting to free Palestine, fought Israel to a standstill. The Lebanese Army is already reporting that Israeli occupation forces have breached the terms of the ceasefire multiple times in the last two days.
Denver, CO – On Friday, November 29, approximately 200 people gathered at James N. Manley Park in Denver for a rally and march in recognition of International Day of Solidarity with the Palestinian People.
International Day of Solidarity with the Palestinian People is an annual UN-recognized observance that calls for sovereignty for the Palestinians as well as freedom from Israeli occupation. In the U.S., this there were protests against the U.S. government’s continued support of the Israeli occupation and its crimes against Palestine, especially the ongoing genocide in Gaza where over 40,000 people have been massacred.
After listening to speeches from organizations leading the march, protesters took to the streets and marched around the Cherry Creek Shopping Center.
Due to Black Friday, the Cherry Creek shopping center was busier than usual. While protesters were marching outside, several dozen activists started a disruption inside the mall with chanting, signs and Palestine flags. Many shoppers joined in the chanting and some even joined the march as it left the mall and joined the larger demonstration outside. Once outside, the march continued back to the park, stopping along the way for more speeches.
“Students have a long history of fighting alongside those resisting oppression,” said Lucia Feast, an organizer with Students for a Democratic Society, “We have fought with those resisting the Vietnam War, and demanded divestment from apartheid South Africa. Today we continue this liberation struggle by standing with Palestine!”
The message from protesters was clear: there will be no business as usual while the United States continues to aid the genocidal Israeli occupation.
#DenverCO #CO #AntiWarMovement #Palestine #StudentMovement #SDS
Tampa, FL – On Monday, November 25, a group of students and community members held a rally to demand free speech on campus. The University of South Florida’s (USF) administration continues to deny students the right to free speech and assembly, with police saying they cannot hold events or even leaflet.
On November 18, news media reported the Biden administration authorized sending long-range ATACMS missiles to Ukraine to be used in the U.S. proxy war against Russia. This is an especially dangerous escalation by the Biden administration, because it simultaneously authorizes U.S.-sponsored missile strikes into pre-2014 Russian territory. This is something the Biden administration had stated was a red line for Russia.
Minneapolis, MN – On November 20, the Minnesota Peace Action Coalition (MPAC) held an emergency response rally to protest the United States escalation of the Russia/Ukrainian war. The protest focused on the United States’ deployment of Army Tactical Missile Systems (ATACMS) to Ukraine for use in expanding the ongoing U.S. proxy war with Russia.
Minneapolis, MN – On November 22, over 100 union educators attended an informational event about Palestine, “Being an Educator in a Time of War and Genocide.” They braved a cold Friday night to attend, as well as attacks from backward groups outside their union, including smears from Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey.
Columbia Heights, MN – On Saturday, November 23, over 100 protesters gathered along Columbia Heights’s busy Central Avenue to protest U.S. support for Israel’s slaughter of Palestinian and Lebanese civilians. The protest called for solidarity with the resistance in Lebanon and Palestine, an end to U.S. aid and weapons shipments to Israel, and for the state of Minnesota to divest from Israel.
New Orleans, LA – Protesters gathered twice at New Orleans Municipal Court during the week of November 18, as six activists who were arrested during the student-led Popular University for Gaza encampment attended their first days of trial.
They all face misdemeanor charges, ranging from trespassing to battery on an officer. The activists were all arrested by Tulane University Police Department in the first hours of the Encampment, which was held for two nights in April and May this year.
Tallahassee, FL – On Wednesday, November 19, students at Florida State University came face to face with the horrors of Zionism when they went to class. Outside FSU’s largest classroom building, 15 members of Students for a Democratic Society (SDS) from Tallahassee and Jacksonville laid on the ground, standing in for the corpses of Palestinians murdered by Israeli forces. They held signs documenting the names and stories of martyred civilians, while speakers condemned FSU’s partnership with arms manufacturers which supply t state of Israel.
Austin, TX – On Wednesday, November 20, a group of around 40 pro-Palestine students and community members rallied to demand that the University of Texas (UT) divest from the Israeli occupation of Palestine. The rally was held outside the UT Systems Building in downtown Austin, where the UT board of regents quarterly meeting was taking place.