Washington, DC – On Monday, April 13, a man was found hanging from a tree behind the 4th District Police Station in Washington, DC. Metropolitan Police Department (MPD) officers unceremoniously cut him down from the tree and carted him away.

Despite the alarming and suspicious nature of the case, no news station reported on it, and the police made no public statement. The only sources of information were videos posted to social media by community members showing the man's body hanging from a tree as officers scrambled to stop people from filming or taking pictures.

As alarm grew in the Black community in response to the videos of a possible lynching victim, concerned individuals began visiting and calling the police station looking for answers, including a journalist from the Washington Informer, the Neighborhood Commissioner, and the Councilwoman of Ward 4, Janeese Lewis George. The police refused to provide answers, saying only that they deemed it a suicide, without explaining why.

For three days, the police ignored the community and remained silent. On Thursday, April 16, the DC Alliance Against Racist and Political Repression (DCAARPR) was notified about what appeared to be a police lynching of a Black man, though details were limited due to MPD stonewalling.

Within a few hours, DCAARPR took to social media and announced an emergency rally outside of 4th Disctict Police Station to demand answers. The post immediately went viral, given the horrific nature of the case and people's desire to fight back. Within an hour of the social media post, MPD finally was forced to make a public statement.

In their statement, they went out of their way to point out that the victim was a 19-year-old Latino man, not a Black man, in hopes of dulling people's anger and undercutting DCAARPR's planned rally. Despite their attempt to divide the community, a massive crowd of Black, brown and white people showed up at the police station the next day to give them hell.

During the rally, Kristen Bonner of DCAARPR spoke, stating, “MPD is telling us this is a suicide. We have reason not to believe them. We have reason not to trust them. They have not done anything for our communities that says they are protecting us – that says they are keeping us safe. If anything, they are the purveyors of violence and terror and racism in our communities, and to that we say shame!”

Tamira Benitez, 4B-05 Advisory Neighborhood Commissioner also spoke, “Three days have passed and we have no information. No email, no text, no phone call [from MPD]. When you go in person to get information, it’s like a burden to them.”

Benitez continued, “So we don’t need people like these, getting a shit ton of money out of our $22-plus billion budget to treat us like we’re nothing. As an ANC Commissioner, I don’t need to be friends with MPD to get the information I need to get.”

Merawi Gerima of DCAARPR stated, “If they say it's a suicide, we say show us the evidence. If their policies prohibit that, we say their policies are not good enough and that's why we're out here, because their policies allow them to kill us with impunity. Our policy is community control of the police so that we can hold them accountable in situations like this.”

When protesters realized that the Fourth District was also the precinct home of officer Jason Bagshaw, a known killer cop, they confronted him, chanting “It is right to rebel, Jason Bagshaw burn in hell!”

The demonstrators eventually took Georgia Avenue, one of the busiest streets in DC, in the middle of the city's notorious rush hour and marched for nearly a mile, attracting Black and brown people from the neighborhood to join them in chanting “Indict, convict, send these killer cops to jail, the whole damn system is guilty as hell!” and demanding community control of the police.

At the close of the rally, community members committed themselves to the struggle for community control of the police – on the journey towards transforming DC into a city where everyone can get their needs met.

#WashingtonDC #DC #InJusticeSystem #DCAARPR #NAARPR

Washington, DC – On the evening of April 15, Tax Day, about 20 protesters gathered outside the IRS headquarters as part of the Anti-War Action Network’s (AWAN) call for a national day of action. Temperatures soared upwards of 90 degrees, but the protesters were undeterred, opening the action with chants of “Money for jobs and education! Not for wars and occupation!” and “Not another missile, not another rocket! All these wars are just for profit!”

“The U.S. government takes not millions, not billions, but trillions of our hard earned tax dollars each year to use on their wars, especially now in Iran” said Katie Sayour of the Anti-War Committee DMV, the emcee for the event, “but we’re out here today to demand our money be used the way we want it to be used – for healthcare, jobs, schools, and for the working people!”

Once everyone rallied together, the group took the streets and began marching to Lafayette Square, just outside the perimeter of the White House. Calls of “Donald Trump, you’re a liar! We demand a real ceasefire!” echoed off the stone walls of the buildings lining the streets. The protesters observed community members on the sidewalks and began to chant “Off of the sidewalks into the streets! We want peace, we want peace!” resulting in several people joining in on the march. Once the protesters reached Lafayette Square, the emcee invited speakers from several organizations.

“We have to kick out the feet of imperialism wherever we go,” said Kristen Bonner, an organizer with the DC Alliance Against Racism and Political Repression (DCAARPR). “We are bonded together by our shared struggle.”

“Our taxes are going to police cars, they’re going to police who spend ten to twelve hours a day terrorizing Black and Brown people in our city,” emphasized Merawi Gerima, organizer with the DC Against the Trump Agenda (DCATA) coalition. “They use it for bombing places like Iran. Do we want our money spent bombing innocent people in another country? No!”

Anti-War Committee DMV will be mobilizing again on Saturday, April 18 in defense of Yousof Aziz, an Iranian anti-war activist who was kidnapped by ICE from his home in Maryland.

#WashingtonDC #DC #AntiWarMovement #Iran #TaxDay #AntiWarActionNetwork #AntiWarCommitteeDMV

Washington, DC – On Saturday, March 28, hundreds gathered in Washington DC’s Anacostia neighborhood before noon to join a contingent for the No Kings protest demanding “No Trump, no war, no ICE.” The contingent began with a rally at the Anacostia Metro station before marching to join the large protest.

As rallygoers poured out of the Metro and spilled into onto the sidewalks, organizers began to lead chants of “No ICE, no KKK, no racist USA,” and “Chinga la migra” (Fuck ICE). After this, contingent organizers began the march with chants of “No justice, no peace! Off the sidewalk, into the streets!”

Amber-Jane Jones, a member of the Freedom Road Socialist Organization, said, “People all around the world are being hurt or killed by the U.S.’ imperialist policies – whether it’s in Venezuela, Cuba, or Iran. We joined this contingent to state clearly that it is the duty of all U.S. progressives to stand with the working and oppressed people of the world against the U.S. empire.”

After the rally, the contingent resumed its march together across the Frederick Douglass bridge, where protesters spotted known killer cop Jason Bagshaw patrolling the crowd. Bagshaw shot and killed 23-year-old Lazarus Wilson back in 2023 while off duty. No sooner was he pointed out by the people than leaders of the contingent launched into chants of “Shame! Shame on Jason Bagshaw” and “Indict, convict, send Bagshaw to jail! The whole damn system is guilty as hell!” while residents swarmed him with cameras and phones.

“Protesting Bagshaw is absolutely part of protesting Donald Trump,” said Merawi Gerima of the DC Alliance Against Racist and Political Repression (DCAARPR), “it’s Trump’s policies that enable someone like Bagshaw to stay on the force and terrorize our communities, and so it is absolutely our duty to fight to see him put behind bars where he belongs!”

The march continued on to Fort McNair, the current residence of Trump advisor Stephen Miller, with chants of “Stephen Miller is his name! Separating families is his game!”

“He’s a white supremacist,” Katie Sayour, co-chair of the DC Against The Trump Agenda (DCATA) coalition said of Miller. “And we feel this administration’s white supremacist policies particularly hard in DC, where Black people like Phillip Brown and Justin Nelson are being shot at – and in the case of Julian Bailey, killed – by federal agents, and where these national guard thugs hang out to intimidate us every day.”

The contingent was organized by the DC Against The Trump Agenda (DCATA) and Families Not Feds (FNF) coalitions, joined by a list of progressive organizations, such as the Freedom Road Socialist Organization – DC (FRSO DC), the DC Alliance Against Racist and Political Repression (DCAARPR), 50501DC, and the Anti-War Committee DMV (AWC-DMV).

DCATA and FNF plan to continue their resistance to the Trump agenda in DC’s local elections through their upcoming “People’s Ballot.”

#WashingtonDC #DC #NoKings #PeoplesStruggles #DCATA #ImmigrantRights #AntiWarMovement

Washington, D.C. – On Sunday, March 22, activists from around the DMV [DC, Maryland and Virginia area] embraced the unseasonable 85-degree F spring heat and gathered in front of the State Department with signs that read “No U.S. war on Venezuela” and “Freedom for Maduro now.”

“In five days, the U.S. intends to put Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro on trial in a kangaroo court,” said a member of the Anti-War Committee DMV, “Trump thinks he can get away with kidnapping foreign presidents just to get his way, we’re here to show him we won’t let that happen!”

While the group initially gathered in front of the State Department, a quick decision was made to march down to the White House, to meet the large crowds of people that were there on a hot and sunny Sunday. The gathered their things and sprang into action. Chants of “We want peace, you say how! Freedom for Maduro now!” and “From Venezuela to the Philippines! Stop the U.S war machine!” boomed from the speaker system as the group made their way onto Constitution Avenue.

As they passed by the parks, DC residents who were there began to join in, whether chanting along or moving to the rhythm. This prompted calls of “Let’s tell them what the people need! Out of the park, into the streets!” from the marchers, at which point some observers even began to get up and join the march.

When they arrived at the White House, the group stationed themselves directly in front of Lafayette Park. This caught the attention of several National Guard troops nearby; the crowd turned their attention to them with chants of “Troops go home!” which several passersby responded to by joining in with fervor.

DC Against the Trump Agenda leader Merawi Gerima told the crowd, “I grew up here in DC, as a native Washingtonian, and we know firsthand what it feels like to be occupied with these National Guard troops,” said Gerima, “that’s why we fight for an end to occupation of Venezuela, a free Maduro; we also fight for an end to occupation of Iran, an end to sanctions on Cuba, and an end to U.S. occupation everywhere.”

The action was a joint effort of AWC-DMV, Anakbayan DC, International League of Peoples Struggles (ILPS), Freedom Road Socialist Organization DC (FRSO DC), DCATA, and the DC Alliance Against Racist and Political Repression (DCAARPR).

The DCAARPR representative stated, “The greatest weapon in the hands of the people is our unity and unity is the greatest fear of our enemies! When we fight together, we win together!”

#WashigtonDC #DC #Venezuela #Maduro #International #AntiWarMovement #DCAARPR #DCATA

This angelversary event marked the third anniversary of US Park Police and Metropolitan Police Department’s (MPD) murder of Martin’s beloved son, Dalaneo “Debo” Martin.

Dalaneo Martin was only 17 years old at the time of his death and was asleep in his car while police deliberated for over 30 minutes plotting on how to apprehend him, before breaking into the car and firing six shots into his back, killing him. His mother and the community have been fighting non-stop for justice and accountability since his death.

Friends, family, and community members took over the streets of DC, including a central bridge, to demand justice for Dalaneo Martin and other victims of federal and local police crimes, such as Phillip Brown and Julian Bailey.

Phillip Brown is a Black man who was shot at by Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) during a traffic stop in October 2025. The bullets passed through his shirt collar, nearly killing him. After the incident, MPD covered up for HSI by omitting the shooting in the police report. Julian Bailey was another Black man who was murdered by US Marshals in early February in Northeast DC. These three cases all occurred within a mile of each other in a predominantly Black neighborhood.

The protest march route stopped at points connected to each shooting. The protesters marched over the Lorraine H. Whitlock Bridge and blocked major roads while commemorating the life of Dalaneo Martin and so many others whose lives were cut short due to police violence.

An organizer with DCAARPR spoke on their upcoming campaign for implementing CPAC, a Civilian Police Accountability Council, in DC, stating, “Dalaneo Martin and Julian Bailey should be alive today. Phillip Brown should never have had to deal with corrupt police officers and a near death experience. In a world where we, the people, have actual power over the police, all police officers involved in these cases would face the people’s justice. The only people who stand to lose from CPAC are the racist, crooked, and killer cops that terrorize our city.”

Terra Martin spoke to the crowd and connected the cases of Phillip Brown and Julian Bailey to her son’s case. Residents of the neighborhood left their homes to join the march and shouted alongside the demonstrators. Many cars that were both blocked off and drove by the march honked in solidarity with the chants of “Indict, convict, send this killer cops to jail!”

Once the protesters reached the point where Dalaneo Martin was asleep in his car before being attacked, Terra Martin played the audio recording of MPD and Park Police plotting to murder her son. She stated, “[The police] were right here, making all types of jokes. Not talking about how to safely take my son out the car or wake him up. They were making jokes like he did not exist, or like he was an animal.”

The final stop of the march was the home Dalaneo Martin had crashed into after the still anonymous Park Police agent shot him in the back and killed him. It was an emotional scene as Dalaneo Martin’s friends and family spoke about missing him and how important he was to the River Terrace community.

The march came to an end and protesters started to disperse, ensuring that people were leaving in groups and were accounted for, as the police were out in droves monitoring them. Not long after, DCAARPR organizers alongside Terra Martin were packing away supplies in a nearby parking lot, when she received a call from her daughter stating federal and local police had jumped out on her, her children, and her partner as they were parked at a nearby 7-Eleven.

Organizers quickly reacted and formulated a plan. They arrived at the scene and found a horde of MPD, FBI, and U.S. Secret Service surrounding Martin’s daughter’s car. The police had demanded she and her boyfriend get out of their car, and even searched the babies for weapons. The organizers started recording from multiple angles while yelling at the police to “get a real job!” One officer brutally shoved one of the organizers, while another officer snatched a phone out of an organizer’s hands.

The police quickly became overwhelmed by the pressure of people power, and ended up backing down, issuing no charges or even a ticket, and leaving within minutes. In victory, protesters shouted, “Long live Debo Martin!” and “Fuck the police!” It became clear to everyone that the police had singled out the car leaving from the protest and followed them to the 7-Eleven in order to charge them with anything, in an act of targeted political repression. In the end, the people drove out the reactionary police, defended their community, and exemplified the power of unity and organization.

#WashingtonDC #DC #InjusticeSystem #PoliceCrimes #OppressedNationalities

Washington, D.C. – On March 8, over 30 people took to the streets of Washington, D.C. for an International Women’s Day march.

The crowd gathered at Malcolm X Park to stand up for immigrant women, women affected by police violence and war, and for working women struggling for their rights around the world.

The rally was organized by DC Against the Trump Agenda, a coalition of organizations from across the DMV, and co-sponsored by Families Not Feds Coalition, and the newly launched Anti-War Committee DMV, and other groups in the DC area.

One of the emcees from the Freedom Road Socialist Organization DC, Kristen Bonner, kicked the rally off, stating to the crowd, “Whether it’s in Venezuela, Cuba, Palestine, the Philippines, or Iran, women are under attack in these countries because the United States is there bombing them, destabilizing them, and trying to hold these countries back. To that we say shame,” to which the crowd echoed “Shame!” in unity.

Bonner continued, “Without the labor of women, this country, or any country for that matter, would not function. We demand an end to violence in all forms against women, and full reproductive rights so we can determine our futures for ourselves!”

Several other speakers put forward the demands for working-class women, Black women, immigrant women, queer women and the LGBTQ community, and women affected by war and U.S. imperialism.

One of these speakers included the mother of Phillip Brown, a Black man who barely escaped being shot to death in his car when Homeland Security agents occupying DC shot into his vehicle. The shooting was covered up by Metropolitan Police Department officers, the chief of police, and the mayor. The U.S. Attorney’s office declined to charge the HSI agents because “no one was hit by the bullets.” His mother spoke on the ways that police violence particularly impacts women and families and reiterated the need for Black and brown women to stand together in the fight for justice.

Terra Martin, a member of the DC Alliance Against Racist and Political Repression, also spoke at the rally, saying “Across the country women, especially Black and brown mothers, are fighting battles many never see. We are fighting systems that judge us by our culture instead of our love. We fight systems that separate families instead of supporting them. Too often, mothers are punished for being poor.”

Rally participants then marched through the park and onto the streets of DC, making their way down the crowded U Street Corridor in spite of police officers making the planned march route difficult to proceed. The route was specifically chosen to disrupt the city’s plans to impose a youth curfew zone on the U Street Corridor, targeting Black youth.

Onlookers from nearby establishments and apartments cheered the group.

Several onlookers even joined the march, which concluded at the history Florida Avenue and 7th Street NW corner, where DC’s anti-gentrification “Don’t Mute DC” movement was born. There, as DC’s “Go-Go” music played in the background, other community members joined in with their support during the closing speeches

A speaker for Anti-War Committee DMV concluded the event stating, “They oppress women here, they oppress women all over the world. But what they don’t realize is that that is our greatest weapon – that commonality that we are all being oppressed by the same enemy, the U.S. war machine – and now we can all come together to fight that shared enemy.”

#WashingtonDC #DC #InternationalWomensDay #WomensMovement #LGBTQ

Washington, D.C. – On February 18, a diverse crowd gathered at Pershing Park for a Black and Filipino Unity Rally. Nearby, police cars and Secret Service vehicles loudly zipped around the area, preparing for the incoming visit by Trump’s so-called Board of Peace.

Chanting “From DC to the Philippines, stop the U.S. war machine,” the group marched to DC City Hall for the first leg of the demonstration. At city hall, protesters demanded an end to local government collaboration with federal immigration enforcement agencies. The group shouted, “City Council, do your job! Do your job!” and “The people united will never be defeated!”

An organizer with Bayan DMV spoke and stated, “The Filipino communities have been an integral part of the DMV for generations. This city has served as a landing place for Filipinos forced to leave their homeland, a land rich with natural resources and vibrant in its people, but polluted, exploited and impoverished by over a century of U.S. imperialism.”

The march ended at the White House where the group demanded an end to the militarization of Black and brown communities in the U.S. and the Philippines.

February, known as Black History Month, is also International Filipino Solidarity Month. To celebrate this shared month, organizers in the DC Alliance Against Racist and Political Repression and the International Coalition for Human Rights in the Philippines joined with Bayan DMV and others to organize a week of action to highlight and continue the 120-plus year history of Black and Filipino people’s shared struggle against US Imperialism.

The week of action began with a teach-in at Sankofa Cafe in Northwest DC, where attendees learned about the Black struggle for self-determination in the South, and Filipino people’s twin struggle for independence from Spain and the United States.

Later in the week, the group screened the film Revolution Selfie: The Red Battalion by Steven De Castro. The film was selected because it provides viewers with a direct perspective into the revolutionary armed struggles waged by the New People’s Army (NPA) against the U.S.-backed Marcos regime. The film shows one of the world’s first same-sex marriages, which occurred in 2005 between two soldiers of the NPA.

#WashingtonDC #DC #Philippines #Bayan #ICHRP #DCAARPR #International #OppressedNationalities

Washington, D.C. – On Tuesday, February 24, a group of organizers and activists from Freedom Road Socialist Organization – DC (FRSO DC) and the DC Alliance Against Racist and Political Repression (DCAARPR) gathered in downtown DC within earshot of the U.S. Capitol building to protest Trump’s State of the Union address.

With a single mic in hand and the capitol framed in the background, the group denounced Trump’s racist policies including attacks on immigrants, workers, Black people, LGBTQ people, and countries like Venezuela, Cuba and Iran.

The Metropolitan Police Department (MPD) had all of the roads within a few miles of the capitol blocked off, but the group was stationed right up to the barricades. They were met with droves of police, the press, supporters from the public, and one increasingly irate man who continuously screamed, “I love ICE!” His cries were deafened by the sound of the people chanting, “Chinga la migra!”

The program started right before and continued through Trump’s State of the Union address.

Merawi Gerima, a DC native, and organizer with DCAARPR, stated, “We are here tonight because Trump is in that rotunda tonight lying to the American people about all the things he’s doing. He’s claimed to be the bringer of peace to the world, he’s claimed to be bringing jobs to the United States, he’s claiming to be bringing peace to the streets of DC, and we know that’s a lie!”

Gerima continued, “It is our duty, and it is our right, to do everything in our power to make this country ungovernable. To make it impossible for them to continue to exploit us, and kill us, and brutalize us and everyone else around the planet. To [make it impossible] to crack open these countries for their profits. We have every right and every duty to stop that from happening, and that’s exactly what we’re doing right here in Washington, DC”

Christina Murdoch, a member of Freedom Road Socialist Organization, spoke on the Trump administration’s attacks against the LGBTQ community, explaining a backwards policy they are trying to institute with the Federal Bureau of Prisons.

Murdoch stated, “The new policy aims to strip the over 2200 trans people currently held in federal prisons of their access to medically necessary healthcare. They would be subjected to constant misgendering by staff and have all of their gender-affirming items such as binders, bras, and makeup confiscated. First off, fuck you Donald Trump. If you think for a moment that any of us are going to stand by and let you do this to anyone in our beloved trans community, you are wrong.”

#DC #WashingtonDC #FRSO #DCAARPR #Trump #Featured

Washington, DC – On Friday, February 6, DC organizations joined the call from the Legalization for All network for a National Day of Action in solidarity with the ongoing struggle against ICE terror in Minneapolis and across the country.

Around 50 community members, organizers and activists were out in the street demanding “ICE out!” “Justice for all victims of ICE terror!” and “Legalization for all!” with temperatures well below freezing. Protesters faced down federal and local police. The people were not deterred and protested right up to the barricades of ICE headquarters.

The National Day of Action fell one month after the cold-blooded murder of community observer Renee Good. The DC Alliance Against Racist and Political Repression (DCAARPR), alongside Families Not Feds (FNF), Movimiento Migrante DC, Youth Demand Action, 50501DC, Freedom Road Socialist Organization – DC, and DC Against the Trump Agenda Coalition, hosted the action outside ICE headquarters in Southwest DC.

A member of DCAARPR told the crowd, “This is an ICE Out rally; we want to, and need to kick ICE out of our city, but we also need to keep ICE out. Just a few minutes from here, there is a plan to build another ICE headquarters. It is no coincidence that this is happening in Southeast, a historically Black and brown section of the city.”

He also discussed the case of Phillip Brown, a Black man, who was shot at by a Homeland Security Investigation (HSI) officer, and barely escaped with his life. There is concrete evidence that the Metropolitan Police Department (MPD) covered up for HIS.

A member of Anakbayan DC stated, “Renee Good is another victim of a corrupt, unjust system that treats human beings as disposable. It is a system that has been upheld by both parties and several administrations with our taxpayer dollars. Her murder is a reminder that the government does not care about us.”

Many of the participating organizations have been on the ground in DC leading mass mobilizations against ICE and, more broadly, the racist and reactionary Trump.

The protest finished with a speech by Cameron McLaren, an organizer with Freedom Road Socialist Organization – DC., who stated, “We are fighting for a system where no human is illegal, and that starts with legalizing everyone. Legalization for all! We have a collective duty in this moment to stand together, to unite all who can be united, and to fight for a future that belongs to all of us.”

#WashingtonDC #DC #ImmigrantRights #ICE #L4A #ReneeGood #KillerICE #DCAARPR #FNF #MMDC #YDA #FRSO

Nelson stated, “People died this year. All 67 people onboard Flight 5342 – Flight Attendants, pilots, and passengers. Families are still grieving. Flight Attendants and our flying partners across the country are still carrying the trauma of watching colleagues and passengers lost in a collision that never should have happened. And now the U.S. House has passed a provision that would roll back safety protections that could prevent another disaster.

“Who is even asking for this? The NTSB and Chair Homendy are still investigating the tragic collision, and Section 373 of the NDAA is not only reckless and indefensible, but also a direct undermining of the NTSB’s safety guidance.

“Air travel is the safest mode of transportation because we investigate and adapt in the wake of tragedy. The safety protections currently in place following the January 29 crash are crucial, and lawmakers must fix the NDAA immediately. Families have suffered enough. We have the power and responsibility to ensure a tragedy like this never happens again. The Senate must reject this provision now.”

#WashingtonDC #DC #Labor @AFACWA #FlightAttendants

Washington, D.C. – On Thursday evening, October 17, a group of activists disrupted Mayor Muriel Bowser at a speaking event in which she sought to control the narrative regarding her coordination with the Trump administration and federal immigration authorities.

Families Not Feds, a campaign led by Colectivo Familias Migrantes DC, called the direct action to hold Bowser accountable for conceding to Trump and stop ICE kidnapping operations. DC Against the Trump Agenda (DCATA), Metro DSA, and the Sunrise movement DC supported the action.

The event, hosted by the Ward 5 Leadership Council and sponsored by Amalgamated Bank, billed itself as a “dialogue” with the mayor, and sought to address the mayor’s response to the Trump occupation of DC and her cooperation with federal immigration authorities.

After an opening prayer, the mayor took center stage and began her comments, which consisted of a glowing report of her policies in 2025. Once she began to praise Trump’s military takeover of DC for causing historically low crime rates in the city, the first disrupter stood up and confronted her.

“Why would you say that, without addressing the fact that more than 20 people have been kidnapped by ICE in the last 48 hours alone?” As MPD and Bowser’s personal security rushed to grab the disrupter, he continued “You’ve sold out the Black community to developers for decades and now you’re selling out the immigrant community to Trump!”

One by one, the protesters planted in the crowd interrupted and did not allow Bowser to spew any more rhetoric trying to rationalize her capitulation to Trump.

“Bowser! What do you have to say for yourself! Over 20 people have been detained over the last two days, and you’ve been meeting with the racist white supremacist Stephen Miller, the chief of staff for the Trump administration!” said another demonstrator who was pushed out of the room onto an enclosed porch that is a part of the library. “A video game is a better mayor than you!” alluding to Bowser from the Mario Bros. video game.

Another disruptor came to the microphone to ask Bowser why she had lied about her continuing collaboration with ICE. This caused the mayor to go into a bizarre state of frustration, in which she repeated the phrase “I don’t lie” 17 times in a row.

“You know you what you need to do, is actually say what you’re going to do instead of having a discussion!” said another third disruptor, as security officers grabbed her and began to push her out of the room. “You’re a liar!” to which the mayor defaulted back with “I don’t lie” seven more times, for a total of 24 that evening.

After being removed from the event, the protesters began chanting outside on the sidewalk. “Bowser Bowser you’re a traitor! This term is your last as mayor!” and “Move Bowser, get out the way!” Their chants continued to disrupt the event. The sounds of their booming chants could be heard inside the venue so loudly that the mayor had to cut her speech and speed through the Q&A section.

Outside, police used brutal and illegal tactics to try to get the protesters to stop chanting, including shoving protesters from a public sidewalk and putting up police tape to block access. At one point, they violently arrested a Black community member who was curious about the demonstration and simply asked why they were pushing people off a public sidewalk.

Even after the event concluded and Bowser’s security detail walked her to her car, protesters chanted even louder. “Bowser and Trump, sitting in a tree, attacking and deporting immigrants in DC!”

This direct action was just the most recent step in the Families Not Feds Campaign which is bringing mass pressure down onto the shoulders of Bowser and any other elected official who are collaborating with the racist and reactionary Trump agenda in DC. Already, the pressure campaign seems to be bearing fruit, as the day after Bowser’s event was shut down, City Council Member Robert White released a public letter demanding transparency from the mayor on her coordination with ICE.

Mayor Bowser and her police were caught off guard by the collective action of the people, and organizations like DCATA plan to bring the fight forward to the federal level as they look to mobilize in collaboration with 50501 for the No Kings march this weekend.

Follow @dcagainsttrump on Instagram for more updates on their organizing to fight back against the Trump ordered federal occupation of DC.

#WashingtonDC #DC #ImmigrantRights #DCATA #ICE #Trump #CFMDC

Washington, D.C. — On Friday, September 5, over 30 activists and community members assembled in Washington, D.C. 's Navy Yard neighborhood for a “mass cop watch” organized by the DC Against Trump Agenda (DCAT) coalition.

This cop watch is just one of many actions that the coalition has organized in weeks since President Trump declared that he would be federalizing DC’s Metropolitan Police Department (MPD) and deploying the National Guard to the city.

“This is an occupation,” said Kristen Bonner, organizer for the DC Alliance Against Racist and Political Repression (DCAARPR). “We are seeing heavily armed soldiers on our streets, our buses, and our trains. Sometimes as many as a dozen on a single block.”

“We’re out here tonight to stand between the people and the armed thugs that Trump has brought into our city,” Bonner continued. “Cop watch is exactly what it sounds like. We know these cops and guards are just looking for an opportunity to harass and attack our people, so we’re here to keep eyes on them and make sure these things won’t go down unseen.”

When asked why Navy Yard was chosen as the location of tonight’s cop watch, Terra Martin, community activist and mother of 17-year-old Dalaneo Martin, who was murdered by U.S. Park Police in 2023 said, “It’s gentrification. They want to lock up our children instead of acknowledging the root problem is that there’s nothing for them to do. You have all this classy, but they not welcome here. They want them just across the street, in the projects.”

The event began with a rally, with the co emcees for DCAT alternating chants of “DCAT! Fight back!” and “Fuck the police! Fuck the troops!” This was followed by speakers from coalition organizations and community members.

A member of Anakbayan DC connected the struggle against Trump’s occupation in DC to the historic struggle against martial law in the Philippines, saying, “It is impossible to look at the violent and excessive show of force by law enforcement and not see the parallels between this historic moment of occupation in D.C. and martial law in the Philippines. Just like during martial law, we now have roaming unidentified gangs grabbing people off the street, ripping people from their homes, their workplaces, their schools all without due process and under the guise of public safety.”

The crowd then broke off into groups and headed off to patrol the streets in several directions.

The crowd linked back up at the end of the night in front of five federal troops sitting on the street corner, who took out phones to record the sounds of the protesters. The crowd responded with chants of “Lazy racist crooked troops! Get a fucking real job!” and “Troops go home!”

DCAT has plans to stage further actions against the Trump occupation. Merawi Gerima, an organizer for DCAT declared, “We’re out to stop Trump’s racist occupation of our city. We’re going to fight until every one of his lapdogs is off our streets and the people of DC have real control over how they’re policed.”

#WashingtonDC #DC #InJusticeSystem #ImmigrantRights #Trump #DCAT #DCAARPR

La Comisión Afroamericana de la Organización Socialista Camino de la Libertad condena la ocupación de Washington D.C. por parte de Trump, quien desplegó a la Guardia Nacional y a la policía federal en las calles de DC. Durante la conferencia de prensa del lunes en la que anunció su decisión, Trump invocó la Sección 740 de la Ley de Autonomía de D.C., que permite al gobierno federal tomar control directo de la Policía Metropolitana de DC. En su conferencia, Trump habló de darle a la policía de DC el poder de hacer “ lo que se les diera la gana”

Washington DC, una ciudad en el borde superior del Cinturón Negro, tiene una gran población negra, con la comunidad negra representando el 43% de la ciudad según el censo anterior. La gente de DC ha sido víctima durante mucho tiempo de la falta de autonomía en sus propios asuntos democráticos y de la falta de representación democrática negra en el Congreso. Las demandas sobre la estadidad de DC han sido planteadas y apoyadas por diversos sectores del Movimiento de Liberación Negra, con legislación como la HR 51 estancadas en el Congreso durante años.

La Comisión Afroamericana de la OSCL ve esta ocupación como una escalada en la agenda de terror policial de Trump y una herramienta flagrante de opresión nacional. Si en 2020, los ataques de Trump contra los manifestantes de Las Vidas Negras Importan en DC para una sesión de fotos fue un ensayo general de cómo se vería el terror policial desatado, este podría ser potencialmente el acto de apertura. Esta no es la amenaza del terror policial abierto. Este es el impulso de Trump hacia su implementación.

No podemos ignorar los otros ataques de Trump al Movimiento de Liberación Negra durante su presidencia de 2024. La orden ejecutiva de Trump contra la Ley de George Floyd busca expandir el estado policial y carcelero. Desde federalizar a la policía local para que sean agentes de ICE hasta ocupar Los Ángeles con tropas de la Guardia Nacional, el gobierno de Trump está avanzando en su agenda rápidamente, y esta es otra provocación extrema. La ocupación de Washington DC debe verse como un ataque directo al Movimiento de Liberación Negra y a lo que se ganó con sacrificio y lucha. Estos ataques continuarán y se extenderán a otras ciudades, y la gente tendrá que defenderse. Trump entiende el poder que tiene nuestro movimiento y está haciendo todo lo posible para evitar nuestro avance.

En este momento en Texas, el gobernador derechista Greg Abbott y su legislatura de derecha buscan eliminar más distritos congresionales negros con una manipulación racista de los distritos electorales, un plan de ataque que estados como Florida, junto con Alabama, buscan imitar.

Desde los intentos de implementar aún más impunidad policial en DC, hasta eliminar la representación política negra en Texas, estos ataques están todos conectados, y nosotros nos oponemos a ellos. La Comisión Afroamericana de la OSCL continúa apoyando la demanda del control comunitario de la policía y vemos las acciones de Trump como opuestas directamente a esas demandas, poniendo la vigilancia policial de las comunidades negras directamente bajo su control. Hacemos un llamado a todas las fuerzas del Movimiento de Liberación Negra para que se opongan a estos ataques contra los derechos democráticos de la comunidad negra. Debemos unir a todos los que puedan ser unidos contra la agenda supremacista blanca de Donald Trump.

¡Alto a la ocupación de DC!

¡Estadidad para DC ahora!

¡Derrotemos la agenda racista de Trump!

#OppressedNationalities #Trump #DC

Washington, DC – As the occupation enters its third week, on Wednesday afternoon, September 3, the DC Against Trump Coalition (DCAT) gathered in front of the Wilson Building, home to the mayor’s office and city council, to protest Mayor Muriel Bowser’s latest capitulation to the Trump administration.

Organized in less than 24 hours, DCAT mobilized 50 people to respond to an executive order signed by the mayor that will indefinitely allow local police forces to cooperate with federal law enforcement. This move represents the latest concession to the Trump administration, which ordered the National Guard into the city three weeks ago.

Protesters made their voices heard inside City Hall as they chanted, “We don’t need collaboration, end this racist occupation!” City Hall employees later confirmed that the crowd was heard loudly enough inside the building to disrupt meetings, and that Mayor Bowser was in the building.

“The DC Against Trump Coalition was built to fight back against Trump’s racist occupation of DC,” Merawi Gerima, emcee and member of the DC Alliance Against Racist and Political Repression, stated, “and now we see that also means fighting back against Mayor Bowser who is committed to rolling out the red carpet for him and his cronies.”

“DC police agencies are now hooking up with federal [law enforcement] agencies,” said Paige White, DCAARPR member and a leader of the DC Lawyers Against Trump Coalition, “and these federal agencies don’t actually know anything about policing. They don’t know anything about the Fourth Amendment, they don’t know anything about your Miranda Rights, and they certainly don’t want to protect them.”

Attendees were heard by police and politicians inside and outside the building, chanting, “Racist, coward, crooked, cops, get a fucking real job!” and “Bowser and Trump, sitting in a tree, attacking and terrorizing kids in DC!” before marching across the street to wave signs and chant as cars passed by.

“I get it from both sides. I am Black and an immigrant,” stated a protester who has become a regular figure at DCAT actions with a “Fuck ICE/Gestapo ICE 2025” banner mounted on poles. “I was scared at first, but then I realized I have to fight for my people who cannot. I will not be silent and allow the Trump occupation to do whatever it wants!”

DCAT’s next action is a Mass Cop Watch on Friday, September 5 at Navy Yard Metro at 7 p.m.

#WashingtonDC #DC #BlackLivesMatter #ImmigrantRights #Trump #InJusticeSystem #DCAT #DCAARPR #DCLAT

Washington, DC – On Saturday, August 30, the DC Alliance Against Trump Coalition (DCAT) hit the streets again, this time partnering with the Long Live GoGo Foundation to host a march and live GoGo concert on August 30, aimed at fighting the Trump directed occupation of DC.

Since Trump’s federalization of DC, starting on August 11, the presence of the Metropolitan Police Department (MPD), ICE, and National Guard troops has increased their assumed powers over the community with unlawful curfew zones, check points, and kidnappings of residents focused on the immigrant communities.

Saturday’s event, dubbed Defend the District, was a powerful and direct anti-Trump response from the DC community, declaring “End the occupation!”

The event kicked off with a rally, emceed by activist and founder of Long Live GoGo Justin “Yaddiya” Johnson, and included speeches from DCAT, Guns Down Friday, and community members.

The energy from the rally quickly spilled into the streets of 14th and U – the site of last week’s DCAT rally – as the ensemble march began. Chant leads from Freedom Road Socialist Organization the DC Alliance Against Racist and Political Repression (DCAARPR) took to the front of the line to lead chants of “Racist, coward, crooked cops, get a fucking real job!” intermixed with dancing and song-like chants of “Fuck Donald Trump” to which the crowd shouted back, “Fuck ICE!”

The march ended at Sylvan Theater at the National Mall where a GoGo musical performance welcomed activated protesters. Before reaching their destination, protesters shouted down National Guard troops and MPD, with chants of “Troops go home,” interspersed with “Fuck the police” and “Chinga la Migra!”

At Sylvan Theater, live GoGo music played between speeches from community speakers such as Jawanna Hardy, founder of Guns Down Friday, DC Councilmember Robert White and DCAARPR’s Merawi Gerima speaking on behalf of the DC Alliance Against Trump Coalition.

“If you were out here last Saturday you saw that we shut down that racist curfew zone on 14th and U,” said Gerima, “that’s the power of the people, and that’s the power that we want to bring into a focused energy against Trump’s racist agenda in DC!”

The DC Against Trump coalition, an ever-growing coalition of local organizations aimed at fighting the Trump agenda and takeover of DC, announced plans for a mass cop watch event on Friday, September 5, at 7 p.m., at Navy Yard in Southeast DC.

#WashingtonDC #DC #PeoplesStruggles #ImmigrantRights #Trump #DCAARPR #DCAT #LongLiveGoGoFoundation #GDF

Washington, D.C. — On April 30, over 30 Filipino and community activists gathered outside of the Embassy of the Philippines to celebrate International Workers Day and demand that the Philippine government stand up for Filipino workers in the US.

The action, which was one of many coordinated actions that day at Philippine consulates around the U.S., began with a small group of activists entering the embassy and attempting to deliver an open letter to Ambassador Jose Manuel Romualdez. When embassy staff refused to hear them out, the activists tried at the embassy annex across the street. Here, too, they were denied by staff, who shut the gate in their faces.

By this time a crowd of roughly 30 people had amassed outside the embassy, chanting “Romualdez! Do your job! Or! Step! Down!”

“The Philippine government has always bowed to the U.S.,” a member of Anakbayan DC, said in their speech. “The people in power have no problem ignoring the wellbeing of Filipinos if it means lining their pockets and making profit. The Filipino people are forced to migrate to the U.S. because of bureaucratic greed.”

A speaker from MIGRANTE noted, “Almost 10,000 Filipinos at this point leave the country to escape poverty and to make a living, however, we are here as proof that moving abroad is not the solution. Workers have no other choice than to stand together to unify their strength and change the system oppressing the ranks of our people. The oppressors built the chain, we will break it.”

This call for militant workers’ action was heard from other speakers as well. The speaker for the Justice for Jollibee Workers campaign said, “Just as workers before us fought for minimum wages, adequate hours, and occupational safety and health, we, even those non-workers, have a duty to continue the fight for workers’ rights everywhere, especially now when the new U.S. administration’s policies have a direct impact on workers.”

“We’ve witnessed firsthand the power of collective action,” they continued. “We must continue to educate and foster unity among our fellow workers to face the challenges ahead. We must take on the campaigns of our fellow workers, keep organizing more protests, keep speaking up, and keep calling out the matapobres or ruling class who continue to trample over our rights!”

In addition to general demands around migrant workers and other overseas Filipinos, the demonstrators made specific demands, that could be heard throughout the action and seen on signs including “Justice for Alma Bowman,” “Justice for Dhenmark and Jovi” and “Free Ligaya Jensen.”

#WashingtonDC #DC #ImmigrantRights #Labor #MIGRANTE #ILPS #Anakbayan #MayDay

Washington, DC — El viernes por la noche, 15 de noviembre, Anakbayan DC celebró su quinto aniversario con presentaciones culturales que incluyeron canciones, bailes, poesía, comida y más en la Universidad American.

Miembros de la comunidad, estudiantes y otras organizaciones, como Anakbayan del Condado de Montgomery, Movimiento Malaya DC, la Alianza de DC Contra la Represión Racista y Política, Occupation Free DC, entre otras más, también estuvieron presentes.

Armand Cuevas, un organizador con Anakbayan DC, comentó, “Anakbayan originalmente empezó en las Filipinas y el capítulo local de DC empezó en 2019, entonces tuvimos una noche cultural el 15 de noviembre para celebrar cinco años de excitando, organizando y movilizando nuestras comunidades locales. Esperamos muchos más años de unir a la juventud filipina y sus aliados locales, luchando contra el descuido del estado y el saqueo en las Filipinas, y poniendo fin al imperialismo estadounidense a través de nuestro trabajo aquí dentro la panza de la bestia.”

Anakbayan USA es una organización nacional de jóvenes y estudiantes filipinos luchando por la democracia nacional en las Filipinas. Los organizadores del evento declararon los tres aspectos que el Movimiento Democratico Nacional busca combatir en Filipinas son el feudalismo, el imperialismo y el capitalismo burocrático. Adicionalmente, un organizador de Anakbayan DC habló brevemente sobre su experiencia asistiendo un viaje de exposición donde viajaron a las Filipinas, se integraron a varias comunidades, y aprendieron de los organizadores en el terreno.

Cuevas declaró, “Anakbayan DC es una organización local de base anti-imperialista luchando por la democracia nacional en las Filipinas con una perspectiva socialista. Queremos ver una Filipinas justa y libre de intervención extranjera con un gobierno que sea realmente para el pueblo.”

#WashingtonDC #DC #International #Philippines #Anakbayan

Washington, DC – On Tuesday evening, November 5, over 200 community members, activists, and organizers flooded the streets outside of the White House, at Black Lives Matter Plaza in DC, to hold a protest of the election outcome. Slogans for the protest included “No matter who wins, the people lose!” and “No votes for genocide.”

The rally began with several chants, including some led by a member of the Palestinian Youth Movement, with calls of “Free, free Palestine,” and “Harris or Trump, you will see, genocide’s your legacy!”

Representatives from organizations spoke about their specific areas of struggle. They were followed by several personal narratives from community members’ related to the protest’s demands, including speeches on police crimes, student repression, immigrants’ rights, reproductive and LGBTQ rights, and the genocide in Palestine.

“We understand that this election is a referendum on genocide,” said Jon Abraham, a member of the FRSO DC, “We will not betray the Palestinian liberation struggle by voting for the genocider Kamala Harris, and especially not by voting for her racist and reactionary opponent, Donald Trump.”

“No matter who wins tonight, queer people lose,” said the speaker on LGBTQ rights, “That’s why our only option is to join together and struggle for something better!”

“Through Democratic and Republican administrations alike, police budgets for D.C. and other major cities are in the hundreds of millions,” said by a member of DCAARPR. Speaking on police brutality, “We pay for their jobs, and we pay for their sins. The people deserve a voice and protection outside of the state.”

The rally was organized by a coalition of organizations, led by The DC Alliance Against Racist & Political Repression (DCAARPR) and Freedom Road Socialist Organization DC (FRSO DC). It was co-sponsored by the Palestinian Youth Movement, the International League of People’s Struggles Baltimore-DMV and Pan-African Community Action. The coalition also plans to protest Trump’s inauguration on January 20.

#WashingtonDC #DC #PeoplesStruggles #Trump

“Rim of the Pacific is the largest military exercise held anywhere in the world and takes place every two years in U.S.-occupied Hawai'i,” said Katie Comfort, a member of the International Women's Alliance's Global Secretariat and representative for the Cancel RIMPAC campaign. “Organizers in Hawai'i have been mobilizing against RIMPAC for decades, drawing attention to the environmental degradation, violence against women, and overall negative impact on the people living on the islands.”

“Today is an important and significant day to hold this press conference, as RIMPAC's opening banquet is kicking off tonight in San Diego with the heads of U.S. and foreign militaries,” continued Comfort.

Organizers from both Hawai'i and San Diego spoke about the disastrous effects these exercises have on both areas. Rose Elovitz, a member of Jewish Voice for Peace Hawai'i, spoke about the effects RIMPAC has on Hawai'i and its people, saying, “The rate of sex trafficking – which disproportionately affects native Hawaiian women and girls – rises 30% during RIMPAC. The use of navy sonar has been proved to confuse and harm whales, leading to mass die-offs and beachings. The wellbeing of people, land and water are not a concern to the U.S. military agenda.”

From the other coast, members of the Resist NATO coalition spoke about their efforts to fight back against the upcoming 2024 NATO Summit.

Speaking for the Resist NATO coalition, BAYAN USA and Anakbayan Montgomery County member Gabby Rivera said, “Since its creation in DC in 1949, NATO has served as the armed wing of U.S.-led imperialism. This upcoming NATO summit on July 9 through 11 marks the 75th anniversary of the signing of the North Atlantic Treaty in DC — and with it the founding of NATO.”

Rivera continued, “Here they will introduce major policies such as new sanctions, military budgets, mass surveillance and cyberwar initiatives. None of these will be in the interests of the international working class and oppressed, but rather the imperialist leaders with the US at their head.”

In addition to the Cancel RIMPAC Campaign and the Resist NATO Coalition, the press conference also featured speakers from the International League of Peoples' Struggle, Malaya San Diego, Jewish Voice for Palestine Hawai'i, the African National Women's Organization, the Palestinian Youth Movement, Pan-African Community Action, and BAYAN USA.

This press conference is one of a variety of actions in San Diego and Hawai'i, all of which lead up to a people's summit and mobilizations against RIMPAC in San Diego on June 29 and June 30, respectively. Next week, the Resist NATO coalition will also hold a people's summit on July 6 and a march on July 7 to protest NATO's 75th anniversary summit in DC.

#WashingtonDC #DC #AntiWarMovement #International #MiddleEast #Palestine #NATO #IWA #BAYAN #ILPS #JVP #Malaya #PYM #PACA #ANWO

Washington, DC – On the morning of Saturday, June 18, thousands of people poured into the streets in front of the United States Capitol to participate in the Poor People’s Campaign (PPC) political action. They are demanding justice and redressal for millions of people in the United States facing poverty and deplorable living conditions under U.S. capitalism.

“54 years ago my father launched the Poor People’s Campaign to revolutionize the economic landscape of our nation. Unfortunately, Dr. King did not live long enough to see it come to fruition. However, on June 19, 1968, my mother Coretta Scott King was here in the nation’s capital to deliver a very powerful message on poverty,” said Reverend Dr. Bernice A. King, “She made the appeal that poverty is not only a longstanding evil of this nation, but an actual act of violence against the dignity, livelihood and humanity of its citizens.”

Before the COVID-19 pandemic, hundreds of thousands died from curable diseases each year, due to poor access to health care. The pandemic only exacerbated these conditions, especially for African-Americans, Native Americans, Chicanos, Mexicanos and Latinos and other oppressed nationalities. Over a million people have died. It is why so many people from different cross sections of society – those in health care, peace activists, socialist organizations, and labor organizers, joined in coalition with the PPC to denounce the conditions capitalism puts workers and their families in, especially during the course of the COVID-19 pandemic.

“Such is the time now for a mass moral meeting in the streets,” said Dr. Reverend Barber of the PPC. “We can’t be silent anymore.” He added, “This is a movement until children are protected, until sick folk are healed, until low-wage workers are paid, until immigrants are treated fairly, until affordable housing is provided, until the atmosphere, the land, and the water are protected.”

The PPC has also announced another mass mobilization in Washington, DC scheduled for September 2022. The PPC plans to join 5000 poor and working class people and religious leaders with 100 economists in a “nonviolent moral direction action.”

The rally took place commemorated the 50-plus years since Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. founded the PPC in 1967, shortly before his assassination in 1968.

#WashingtonDC #DC #PoorPeoplesMovements #PoorPeoplesCampaign