Fight Back! News

News and Views from the People's Struggle

CJC

By Kay Lerohl

 Earth Day march in Minneapolis. | Fight Back! News/staff

Minneapolis, MN – On Sunday, April 21, a march of approximately 300 people from the Twin Cities metro area marched, blocking traffic for Earth Day.

The Climate Justice Committee (CJC) and Anti-War Committee (AWC) led the march. It drew attendees from the nearby Little Earth indigenous-preference housing complex, the surrounding East Phillips neighborhood, and Camp Nenookaasi, an encampment of the unhoused which has been forced by the city of Minneapolis to move many times.

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By Laci Gagliano

Protest at the home of Minnesota Pollution Control Agency Commissioner Katrina Kessler demands "Shut down Smith Foundry." | Fight Back! News/staff

Minneapolis, MN – The Climate Justice Committee (CJC) recently brought a taste of guerrilla theater to a local bureaucrat’s front lawn, March 3, to drive home a simple point: her wealthy, white neighborhood would never allow a major polluter like Smith Foundry to move in and disrupt their way of life.

And, as shown by the neighbors’ peeved reactions to our noisy presence and miniature factory replica on a quiet Sunday morning in pseudo-suburbia, their obsession with maintaining the status quo single-handedly proved the point.

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By Jasper Becker

Minnesota Pollution Control Agency, MPCA, confronted at a Minneapolis community meeting on Smith Foundry.  | Fight Back! News/staff

Minneapolis, MN – On the evening of February 7, residents of East Phillips confronted the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency (MPCA) at a community meeting and then held a press conference regarding the Smith Foundry.

East Phillips is a primarily oppressed nationality neighborhood and home to the Little Earth indigenous community. East Phillips has the highest rates of asthma in all of Minnesota, with many residents suffering from COPD among other respiratory health issues.

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By Tracy Molm

Rally to support Nenookaasi Ikwe Healing Camp. | Fight Back! News/Aaron Johnson

Minneapolis, MN – The city of Minneapolis announced their intent to close down Nenookaasi Ikwe Healing Camp in the East Phillips neighborhood of Minneapolis. Nenookaasi is an encampment of primarily indigenous people and has been a safe space for over three months.

Because of the steadfast support of local indigenous elders and other local volunteers, the camp has been home to up to 200 people. Because it provides a stable base, residents have been able to access government services, 74 people have gotten stable housing, and the camp has had zero overdose deaths.

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By Laci Gagliano

Minneapolis protest against environmental racism. | Fight Back! News/staff

Minneapolis, MN – On Friday, November 10, community members gathered outside Smith Foundry in the Minneapolis East Phillips neighborhood to demand accountability following the EPA’s discovery of many violations of the Clean Air Act and other pollution control standards.

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By staff

Fight Back News Service is circulating the following statement by the Climate Justice Committee of Minnesota.

The Climate Justice Committee (CJC) resolutely condemns the recent felony RICO indictments of 61 Stop Cop City activists in Atlanta, as well as the refusal by the Atlanta city government to count the 116,000 petition signatures to put Cop City on the ballot. These blatantly anti-democratic and criminal actions by the Georgia Attorney General, the Mayor of Atlanta, and Atlanta elections officials will not go unanswered.

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