Tallahassee, FL -The Tallahassee Community Action Committee (TCAC) hosted an online training and workshop, July 30, over Facebook Live on the topic of community control of police. The event was led by experienced anti-racism leaders who are active in the National Alliance Against Racist and Political Repression (NAARPR), and also founding members of their local organizations: TCAC and the group that inspired TCAC’s own founding, the Jacksonville Community Action Committee (JCAC).

Tampa, FL – On July 18, members of the Tampa community rallied to demand justice for Josiah Pinner and community control of the police. Josiah Pinner was a 15-year-old who was struck and killed by Hillsborough County Sheriff’s Office (HCSO) deputy Philip Montesi, who was going 21 miles per hour over the speed limit in a residential area. The rally was called by the Tampa Bay Community Action Committee (TBCAC).

Los Angeles, CA – Answering the National Alliance Against Racist and Political Repression’s call for a national protest against police crimes, Centro CSO held a rally at Los Cinco Puntos in Boyle Heights, July 18. At the action, Centro CSO pushed for Black and brown unity and demanded the end to the killings of Blacks, Chicanos and Latinos by the Los Angeles Police and LA Sheriff’s Departments.

Chicago, IL – About 500 people and at least 200 cars responded to the call from the Chicago Alliance Against Racist and Political Repression for a caravan on Chicago’s South Side, July 18. They drove through the 3rd, 6th and 17th Wards to call on the alderpersons there to support the movement for community control of police.

Demand Community Control of The Police

Fight Back News Service is circulating the following statement from the National Alliance Against Racist and Political Repression.

Tampa, FL – On the evening of July 3, 50 members of the community marched through downtown Tampa to demand that local State Attorney Andrew Warren drop charges on protesters arrested during the Justice for George Floyd movement. Many protesters from events over the past several weeks in Tampa face charges like unlawful assembly and inciting a riot, both of which have been commonly used by police across the country to repress activists. The organizers of the march and protest Tampa Bay Community Action Committee (TBCAC), Intersections of Tampa Advocates (ITA), and Tampa Bay Students for a Democratic Society (SDS). The groups had previously held a similar event after which 67 protesters had their cases dismissed. They say Warren should drop many more of the charges against protesters.

Minneapolis MN – The Twin Cities Coalition for Justice 4 Jamar (TCC4J) has come out against the city council’s proposed Community Safety and Violence Prevention charter amendment (2020-00668), that would rename the Minneapolis police department and would give the city council and mayor the power to anoint the head of the newly-named “Department of Community Safety and Violence Prevention.” The measure was heard in the online city council meeting June 26.

Heard on video saying ‘I can’t breathe’ before death

Tucson, AZ – On April 21, Tucson police officers responded to a call from the grandmother of Carlos Adrian Ingram-Lopez saying he was out of control. Within ten minutes upon arrival, Ingram-Lopez lay lifeless on their garage floor, naked, handcuffed and covered in layers of plastic police blankets. The autopsy report has ruled the manner of death as “undetermined” but that the cause of death as “sudden cardiac arrest in the setting of acute cocaine intoxication and physical restraint.” The autopsy also shared that it was reported that officers applied a spit hood.

Chicago, IL – When it comes to police reform, the powers that be in Chicago have been negligent in their response to the demands of the people of this city and this nation. People across the country are calling for systemic police reforms now. The resounding voice of the people in the streets is, “We will not accept this anymore!” In Chicago, we’re not new to this plaintive cry, unfortunately. We have the longest standing movement for community control of the police in the country, stretching back to the 1969 police murder of Fred Hampton of the Black Panther Party. Yet our city is lagging behind every other major city with respect to announcing much needed reform, including New York City and Minneapolis.

Green Bay, WI – Last week, it was announced that President Donald Trump would be visiting Marinette in the northern part of the state on June 25, and will hold a “town hall meeting” at a Green Bay airport at 7 p.m. The Coalition to March on the Democratic National Convention – a collection of over 50 organizations that’s planning a demonstration on the first day of the DNC in Milwaukee – has called for a protest of Trump’s visit.