Chanting “Forward together, not one step back!” a crowd of approximately 10,000 people, predominantly women, rallied and marched through downtown Asheville as part of a national day of action following the inauguration of the billionaire misogynist and bigot Donald Trump.

Speakers from Our VOICE, Tranzmission, Planned Parenthood and others told of the need to resist attempts from the new far-right administration to roll back progress on issues of women's health and services, abortion rights and LGBTQ rights.

Many present spoke to the importance of keeping the pressure on and building a broad mass movement to oppose and defeat the Trump agenda.

#AshevilleNC #LGBTQ #US #PeoplesStruggles #Elections #DonaldTrump #WomensMarch

Demonstrators gathered at the Vance Monument, a towering stone structure in the style of an obelisk and Asheville's central gathering point. This structure is a monument to Civil War governor and slave owner Zebulon Vance. Trump's election to the presidency surprised and horrified many who had been put off by his anti-woman and anti-immigrant rhetoric.

Pro-Trump demonstrators arrived at the monument early, and aside from some ignorant remarks, made no trouble. They were quickly overwhelmed by the anti-Trump crowd which took over the monument area in short order with large numbers.

Reacting to Trump’s videoed statement where he indicated that he liked to used his celebrity status to assault women, to “grab them by the pussy” one protester carried a sign that read “This pussy grabs back.” Other signs in a similar theme were evident throughout the crowd.

Speakers included a slam poet named Michael, a woman named Laura Krueger who discussed marking safe people with safety pins so that if persons were intimidated a safety-pin-marked individual could be found for help. A statement from Freedom Road Socialist Organization was read to the crowd, and Sarah Graham spoke on the necessity of worker organization and the threat posed to worker organizations by the rabidly anti-worker Mike Pence.

Sarah Graham stated, “Working and oppressed people need power and control of the economy to remake the economy so that it works in our interest. The interest of the people who actually produce the wealth that drives the economy.”

The protesters then marched to the federal building. While marching the demonstrators chanted slogans such as “We reject the president elect,” and “Say it loud, say it clear, immigrants are welcome here.” After several minutes on the federal building steps the demonstration moved back to the Vance monument.

#AshevilleNC #US #PeoplesStruggles #Elections #2016Elections #DumpTrump

Asheville NC – Over 300 people came out here, Nov. 10, to stand in solidarity with Muslims, women, African Americans, immigrants, and LGBTQ members of the community. People shared moving stories about their fears and the need to preemptively organize against the raciest Trump regime.

The vigil ended with chants of “We reject the president elect!” Activists are gearing up for protests Nov. 11, at 5 p.m. and Nov. 12 at 1 p.m. at the Vance Monument in downtown.

#AshevilleNC #Elections #DonaldTrump

Asheville, NC – With just a few days notice, 1000 protesters filled the streets on Aug. 12 to protest Republican nominee Donald Trump. “We wanted to make it clear that his bigotry and lies are not welcome in area code 828,” said community member Ken Hurley. “I am just appalled that this racist ass is considered a viable electoral option.”

A diverse group of people came out to shut down Trump's hate message. Families brought their toddlers, immigrant rights activists sang songs and danced in the street, while anti-war students led chants “No Trump, no KKK, no racist USA!” and workers took the time after work to let Trump know “Not in my town.”

Ernesto Toceo, a local construction worker, said he came out because Trump is a “dangerous racist. He is attacking my whole community. He does not understand that immigrants built this nation. We are why this country is great.” Toceo said he had to show Trump that he is not afraid to stand up and fight. “I am not a criminal and I will not be treated like one.”

Other people were more weary. “Being a small black woman, I was really nervous to come out today,” said Kim Cicotte. “I wasn't sure if I would be safe with all of his [Trump's] racist supporters coming out.” Ultimately Cicotte said she decided it was more important to show that there is a strong movement that will not stand for Trump's lies and hate. “I came with my community – I figure there is power in numbers.”

Some protesters were accosted by Trump supporters as they were escorted out of the civic center where Trump was speaking. One man was grabbed by the throat and punched, while another protester was slapped in the face.

“Donald Trump stands for the worst kind of extreme right politics,” Josh Sykes, an anti-war activist said. “His inflammatory speeches work like a lightening rod to draw in every bigot and racist around. The only course of action that makes sense in the face of this is to bring vocal and progressive opposition wherever he goes. Hope is in the struggle and change is in the streets.”

That is just what Asheville did. The community came out in full force to let Trump know that his reactionary message will not be tolerated in this southern town.

#AshevilleNC #Elections #DonaldTrump #DumpTrump

Asheville NC – Dozens of people came out to protest Governor Pat McCory’s bigotry law HB2, May 14. They gathered at Memorial Stadium and marched to a Town Mountain Mansion where McCory meets for an annual open house in Asheville.

“HB2 is one of the most asinine laws we have seen in this country since the Jim Crow,” remarked community activist Tiffany Wilkins. Not only does it criminalize trans people who use the restroom of their gender, it also broadly forbids any discrimination claims to be made at the state level and puts a cap on minimum wage at the state’s unlivable $7.25 per hour.

Over 50 people gathered outside of the mansion carrying signs and chanting things such as, “No hate in our state!” and “When civil rights are under attack, what do we do? Stand up fight back!”

Meanwhile a dozen more protesters went inside to confront McCory and the local county commissioners about the hate law, many wearing shirts saying “This is what trans look like.” Gabe, a local transgendered high schooler at Asheville High came personally to tell McCory how sacred he is and hard it is for him being forced legally to use the woman’s restroom.

McCory quickly left, leaving his Republican county commissioner to take the heat about the oppressive law. Mike Fryar, a Buncombe County commissioner “assured” protesters he understood their outrage, because he too experienced oppression from being bald. When an activist from the crowd challenged him that he would never be asked to not eat in a restaurant or refused service for his baldness he responded, “I think that if we just stop talking about the issue people won’t find it one.”

An activist from Black Lives Matter said to this, “You are asking me not to take part in the democratic process of the United States and to just be silent?”

But if Pat McCory thinks he can silence the people he has another thing coming. Citizens are outraged. “In one fell swoop they back tracked us 40 years of progress,” local teacher Melissa Buchanan said. But people are not just sitting back watching. Protests with hundreds of participants have spread like wildfire across North Carolina, from the Raleigh, to Charlotte, and even little towns like Hendersonville, people are standing up for civil rights saying, ‘This is not us!’”

Governor Pat McCory and his republican henchmen shoved HB2 down the throats of the people of North Carolina. Hundreds of protesters have been arrested. Most recently over 50 were arrested staging sit-ins at Raleigh’s capitol building and for refusing to leave House Speaker Tim Moore’s office.

This bill criminalizes and further marginalizes the trans community, it take away what fragile protection they had previously under the law. The Federal Department of Justice has declared that HB2 violates the Civil Rights Act and has given the North Carolina state government an ultimatum: change course or lose federal funding to the state’s public institutions.

We need to keep organizing and fight for equality. It was not about water fountains then and it is not about bathrooms now.

#AshevilleNC #transgender #HB2 #GovernorPatMcCory

Asheville, NC – Over 100 people marched to protest the police murder of Eric Garner, an African American man killed by a white cop in New York. A grand jury failed to indict NYPD officer Daniel Pantaleo, despite a graphic video showing the police officer choke-holding Garner from behind. The large crowd in Asheville marched from the Buncombe County Courthouse to the center of downtown to rally and stage a die in against police brutality on Dec. 6. Despite the rain, protesters, led by students, chanted, “Hands up, don’t shoot!” and “We are unstoppable, another world is possible!”

Social Work students from Western Carolina University in conjunction with Political Science students from the University of North Carolina-Asheville will host a candle light vigil to remember Eric Garner and other victims of state-sanctioned violence. The vigil will be in downtown Asheville on Dec. 7, from 5:30 -7:30 p.m.

The event is at https://www.facebook.com/events/1515007828783170/

#AshevilleNC #PoliceBrutality #EricGarner

Asheville, NC – Over 200 people gathered downtown here, Nov. 25 in front of the Vance Monument to protest the grand jury decision not to indict Darren Wilson for the murder of Michael Brown.

One banner read, “Hold cops accountable! Solidarity with Ferguson!” Protesters held signs that read “Black lives matter” and “Jail all killer cops.”

Several people attending the rally got up to the megaphone to express solidarity. One woman said, “I came out tonight to rally against injustice. People make it a crime issue. People take a tragedy and make racist remarks and talk about looting and destroying property. When you have no voice, you resort to all means. I’m a mother. I’m a Black woman. My kids walk out the door and I have to know every minute of their whereabouts. It’s scary.”

The crowd chanted “No justice, no peace!” and “Darren Wilson, you can’t hide. We charge you with homicide!” while drums beat in the background. The evening ended with organizers lighting candles and reading names of unarmed African American people killed by police.

#AshevilleNC #Ferguson #MikeBrown

Asheville, NC – Western Carolinians for Peace and Justice in the Middle East rallied at the Vance Monument downtown here, Aug. 9, to protest Israeli attacks on Gaza and the West Bank.

Standing with a large banner that read “Stop arming Israel,” lively debate broke out among people passing by. Several people stopped to disagree, saying that they think the U.S. should arm Israel because there is “right to of self-defense” in the face of the Palestinian resistance firing rockets. Organizers pointed out that Israel’s brutal attacks on Gaza cannot be seen as self-defense since they are attempting to maintain an illegal occupation in Palestine and an occupying power cannot claim that it is defending itself.

The group recently hosted Electronic Intifada co-founder and author Ali Abunimah to speak about the movement for justice in Palestine. They have also organized several actions over the last year aimed at boycotting SodaStream, a company operating in an illegal Israeli settlement in the occupied West Bank.

#AshevilleNC #AntiwarMovement #Gaza #Palestine #WesternCaroliniansForPeaceAndJusticeInTheMiddleEast #MiddleEast

Asheville, NC – Two-dozen workers gathered in downtown Asheville for a rally on May 1 to celebrate International Workers Day. Community members and workers brought red flags and signs such as, “Thou shalt not steal. Stop wage theft now!” The Asheville May 1st Coalition organized the rally, bringing together organizers from Freedom Road Socialist Organization, Party for Socialism and Liberation, Women Organizing to Resist and Defend, Veterans For Peace, Industrial Workers of the World, Asheville Homeless Network and Just Economics.

“We want to educate people not only about the history of May Day and organizing but about the current efforts groups here are working on to improve life in Asheville for the working class. Unfortunately, we still lack the basics in Asheville, like the right to organize our workplaces without fear of retribution,” said Bella Jackson, an event organizer. “We lack a minimum wage standard that meets basic needs and our public transit does not yet adequately get people to and from their jobs,” she added.

John Spitzberg, past president of the Asheville Veterans for Peace also spoke, “There can be no peace so long as hunger and want are found among millions of working people while the 1% have all the good things of life. Between these two classes, a struggle must go on until the workers of the world organize as a class.” He urged activists to come to the National Veterans for Peace Convention being held July 23-24th in Asheville.

The next day, union supporters rallied again to picket outside a local Asheville newspaper, the Mountain Xpress. Workers and reporters are organizing with Communications Workers of America to form a union. They hope to improve their working conditions and protect their rights on the job. Picketers demanded the paper rehire senior news reporter David Forbes and photographer Max Cooper, who were both fired for union activity.

Reporter David Forbes, respected by workers for the coverage of the Sitel Union Organizing efforts commented in a blog managed by the workers, “Too often the belief in Asheville and elsewhere is that the people who make a city work are powerless, that we can lose our livelihoods due to asking basic questions or a boss’s bad mood. We often hear that’s ‘just the way it is’ and we shouldn’t hope for better. This is a lie. We have rights, and we have power. Things can change.”

Picketers held signs, “Xpress workers deserve better!” and “Xpress needs a union!” Organizers with the local IBEW also came out in solidarity, holding “Union yes!” signs.

The workers leaflet read, “Asheville weekly newspaper Mountain Xpress is supposed to serve the community and grassroots activism, but the actions of its top management show a determination to bust a union and ignore employees’ rights.”

Mountain Xpress is facing several unfair labor practice charges as a result of their retaliation against the workers trying to form a union.

#AshevilleNC #internationalWorkersDay #May1 #SITEL #MountainXPress

Asheville, NC – Amidst the backdrop of continuing congressional inaction on immigration reform, over 100 community members gathered at Saint Lawrence Basilica and marched to the courthouse, demanding an end to deportations and full legalization for all families. The Asheville chapter of Coalición de Organizaciones Latino-Americanas (COLA) joined over 80 cities taking part in a National Day of Action to End Deportations on April 5, organized by the National Day Laborer Organizing Network (NDLON).

With patience worn thin from discarded political promises, the marchers chanted “Hey Obama, don't deport my mama!” Protesters held signs that said “Liberation not deportation” and “ICE out of our communities,” with the hashtags #Not1More and #2Million2Many. Several speakers relayed their experiences dealing with the deportation of family members.

“More than 1000 people are being deported every day and President Obama has the authority and the power – he can definitely do what’s right,” said Bruno Hinojosa, a member of COLA. Speakers explained that, despite promises to take action on behalf of immigrants, President Obama has instead functioned as deporter-in-chief.

#AshevilleNC #ImmigrationAndCustomsEnforcementICE #immigrationRights #legalizationForAll #borderRepression #NoMasDeportaciones

Asheville, NC – Over 50 people rallied in downtown here, Aug. 31, to protest the looming military intervention in Syria. Protesters chanted “No justice, no peace, U.S. out of the Middle East!” and held banners and signs demanding “Hands off Syria!”

A number of groups participated in the rally, including Asheville Veterans for Peace, Occupy Asheville, Party for Socialism and Liberation, Blue Ridge Liberty Project and Freedom Road Socialist Organization. A member of the Veterans for Peace chapter in Asheville spoke at the rally, “Veterans from across the world are at this time standing tall saying ‘No more war!’” and urged people passing by to join the protest.

Josh Sykes said of the protest, “U.S. military intervention would not be for the good of the Syrian people and the majority of people recognize that and are taking to the streets. Syria is not threatening nor poses a threat to Americans. This is another clear example of the U.S. lying about needing to intervene on humanitarian grounds in order to maintain control in the Middle East.” Protesters announced they would continue to rally “as long as the war drums keep beating against Syria.”

#AshevilleNC #AntiwarMovement #Syria #USImperialism #chemicalWeapons #destroyers

Asheville, NC – On Aug. 8, protesters gathered in downtown here, to rally for an end to the attacks against women and against abortion restrictions in North Carolina. The event was organized by WORD (Women Organized to Resist and Defend).

Protesters chanted, “When women's rights are under attack, what do we do? Stand up fight back!” referencing the latest abortion restrictions in North Carolina that were first snuck into an Anti-Sharia Law bill, then ultimately added to a Motorcycle Safety Bill.

Emily Parker, an organizer with WORD, spoke saying, “The war on women is apparent. Right now in North Carolina you cannot receive an abortion procedure. Although it is not technically illegal, there are no clinics for one to go to. Femcare in Asheville is being pushed around by right-wing bullies who don't want women to have the right to choose.”

Protesters rallied in support of Femcare, the only abortion provider in western North Carolina which was recently shut down for nearly 24 health and safety violations. This was a clear politically-motivated attack against women. Several protesters noted that the violations don't seem to be serious and that it was very suspicious that they should be inspected and closed right after this bill was passed.

“Femcare has been safely serving this city since 1985. Their staff is nothing but kind and helpful. Their facilities are nothing but safe and sanitary. Femcare has never had an infection since it has opened. Thanks to the new restrictive abortion bill, they are being forced to temporarily shut their doors even though they would've been the last remaining clinic in the state. The North Carolina government says these new laws will ensure women's safety but in reality they are causing women physical harm and hardship,” Parker said.

Protesters marched through downtown Asheville carrying signs that read “End the war on women,” and “We won't go back, we'll fight back!”

#AshevilleNC #PeoplesStruggles #abortion #NorthCarolina #feminism #WomensRights #AbortionBan #Rally #WomensLiberation

Asheville, NC – 10,000 people gathered in front of the Buncombe County Courthouse, overflowing into the streets in Downtown Asheville for Mountain Moral Monday, Aug. 5.

Speakers addressed the egregious statewide attacks on women, immigrants, teachers, students and workers. Many protesters had signs addressing voter suppression, in particular HB 589, which is being called “the worst voter suppression bill in the country.”

Protesters blasted Senator Tom Apodaca, who represents several counties in western North Carolina, and who recently said that the Voters Rights Act is “a headache.”

The NAACP’s Reverend William Barber responded to these comments saying, “He used the same language that the white segregationists of 1877 used when the federal troops were pulled out of the south. They said now that the power and protections have been removed we can do what we want. So they passed a bill to eliminate early voting and same day registration – to suppress the right to vote, and to allow vigilante citizens to go into any precinct and challenge people’s right to vote. They passed a bill that allows more money to be put into elections, where people can buy those who are elected. You can tell Senator Apodaca he ain’t seen a headache until you’ve seen us fight to protect the right to vote. If you think we’re going to allow any group, you must be out of your dog-gone-mind!”

Reverend Jasmine Beach-Ferrara, director of the Asheville-based Campaign for Southern Equality spoke, “We have within us the courage and strength not just to stand up to unjust, unconstitutional and immoral laws like Amendment One and the recent voter ID bill, but also to change these laws. One things that history has made clear is that people change, laws change and our nation changes but it never ever happens on its own. It happens because people like us stand up and say ‘Forward together!’” The crowd enthusiastically replied, “Not one step back!”

Beginning in April the North Carolina NAACP organized thousands to protest every Monday at the state capitol in Raleigh to fight the Tea Party agenda being rammed through the state legislature.

Over 900 people were arrested during the protests before the North Carolina legislature ended their session on July 27. There are now plans to take these protests to all 13 North Carolina districts.

#AshevilleNC #RepublicanAgenda #voterSuppression #AmendmentOne #MoralMonday

Asheville, NC – 100 people joined the National Day of Action in Downtown Asheville to demand justice for Trayvon Martin, July 20.

Protesters marched to the Buncombe county courthouse behind a banner reading, “Open season, no justice” and chanting, “No justice, no peace!”

Organizers encouraged everyone to join a discussion on July 29 at 6:00 p.m. at Firestorm Cafe & Books. The event, titled, “ Trayvon Martin and the Endurance of Structural Racism,” will be led by Kathryn Liss from the YWCA Asheville Stand Against Racism and George Friday from the Bill of Rights Defense Committee.

#AshevilleNC #OppressedNationalities #AntiRacism #TrayvonMartin #GeorgeZimmerman #InjusticeSystem