Fight Back News Service is circulating the following paper by Mick Kelly, political secretary of Freedom Road Socialist Organization, that was presented in Amsterdam October 14 at International Theoretical Conference on Imperialism and War organized by the National Democratic Front of the Philippines (NDFP).
Comrades and friends,
On behalf of Freedom Road Socialist Organization, I would like to extend our thanks to the National Democratic Front of the Philippines and its member organizations for organizing this timely and important theoretical conference on imperialism and war. And we salute all of you in attendance today. We have much to gain by exchanging our respective views, seeking points of agreement to build unity, and putting proletarian internationalism into practice.
Tallahassee, FL – On October 18, more than 350 community members and students protested at Cascades Park, marking the second demonstration for Palestine’s liberation in Florida’s capital city since the Al-Aqsa Flood Operation on October 7.
New Orleans, LA- On October 15, around 250 protesters in New Orleans gathered at the Hale-Boggs Federal Building, waving Palestinian flags and signs in solidarity. With heavy downtown foot traffic surrounding them, they yelled chants like “Resistance is justified when people are occupied!”
Seattle, WA – On October 14, over 1000 people rallied in Westlake Park to show support for the liberation of the Palestinian people.
Since the successful offensive by the Palestinian Resistance only a week before, many organizations in Seattle and across the world have held massive demonstrations showing support for Palestine. Amid calls by the Israeli minister of defense for “total war on Gaza,” calling Gazans “human animals” and making plans to treat them as such, the Seattle community has been made it clear that they support the right for Gaza to defend itself.
Minneapolis, MN – On October 9, 500 people participated in an emergency rally outside the downtown office of Senator Amy Klobuchar to demand an immediate end to U.S. aid to Israel, following renewed Israeli military strikes on Gaza. The crowd included a sizable turnout from the Palestinian and Muslim communities. After the rally, protesters marched through downtown Minneapolis with a sea of Palestinian flags.
The Palestinian resistance is dealing a heavy blow to the Israeli apartheid state. The decades of oppression, humiliation and callous cruelty by the occupiers of Palestine are being answered in the only language oppressors truly understand.
FRSO Orlando condemns the increasing far-right activity seen across Central Florida, including the two recent neo-Nazi demonstrations. The two rallies, one at Walt Disney World and the other at Cranes Roost in Altamonte Springs, were put on by multiple white supremacist neo-Nazi organizations as part of a larger Labor Day mobilization. The plan was exposed by the Anti-Defamation League multiple days before Labor Day, allowing the Orlando community to spread information about ways to fight back.
We in the Freedom Road Socialist Organization stand in solidarity with the 150,000 members of the United Auto Workers union (UAW) as they fight for better conditions and prepare for a possible strike at the big three American car manufacturers – Ford, General Motors and Stellantis.
We in Freedom Road Socialist Organization stand with the 75,000 workers of the Writers Guild of America (WGA) and the 65,000 members of the Screen Actors Guild – American Federation of Television and Radio Artists (SAG-AFTRA) who are striking for not only higher wages and benefits but also against the threat posed by automation.
The Freedom Road Socialist Organization (FRSO) took another major step forward with the launching of an African American Commission and a Chicano/Latino plus other oppressed nationalities commission. Comrades from more than a dozen cities where the FRSO does organizing among African Americans, Chicanos, and other oppressed nationalities gathered to carry out a decision by the 9th Congress to establish these commissions.
Fight Back! is circulating the following July 9 statement and call for a solidarity rally by the Freedom Road Socialist Organization in Orlando, Florida.
Orlando, FL – On July 3, the Orlando District of Freedom Road Socialist Organization (FRSO) held a Political Program release discussion at a meeting attended by over 30 people representing other progressive forces in the area.
Freedom Road Socialist Organization condemns the cowardly October 29 murder of New People’s Army spokesperson Ka Oris (Jorge Madlos) by elements of the Armed Forces of the Philippines. Medical aid Eighfel Dela Peña (Ka Pika) was also killed in the ambush. Both were unarmed and had no opportunity to defend themselves. The killers are now lying to the media to cover up their crimes.
Freedom Road Socialist Organization condemns the cowardly October 29 murder of New People’s Army spokesperson Ka Oris (Jorge Madlos) by elements of the Armed Forces of the Philippines. Medical aid Eighfel Dela Peña (Ka Pika) was also killed in the ambush. Both were unarmed and had no opportunity to defend themselves. The killers are now lying to the media to cover up their crimes.
The working people of Cuba are mobilizing to defend the Cuban revolution and drive pro-U.S. reactionaries from the streets. The Cuban people are united in overcoming the costly U.S. economic embargo and subversion. Cubans steadfastly refuse to return to being a colony controlled by the U.S. Older Cubans remember when it was a playground for American millionaires and gangsters, with widespread poverty, abuse of workers and death an everyday part of life.
Minneapolis, MN – Freedom Road Socialist Organization’s Spring fundraising drive has brought in more than $40,000 as of May 1, International Workers Day. Given the rapid increase in FRSO membership, plans are being made to establish a national office with full-time staff.
Freedom Road Socialist Organization (FRSO) condemns the January 11 U.S. State Department designation of socialist Cuba as a “State Sponsor of Terrorism.” In the few days it has left to remain in power, the Trump administration is trying to implement every reactionary measure it can dream up, all the while calling good “evil” and evil “good.”
Members of the Freedom Road Socialist Organization answered the call from the Partido Socialista Unido Venezloano (PSUV) to participate in a virtual gathering to uphold proletarian internationalism in the face of U.S. imperialism. The virtual conference demonstrated a truly international character, as 61 different delegations of trade unionists and activists attended from all five continents. It is clear that workers and communist parties from around the world stand in solidarity against U.S. imperialism and the blockade against Venezuela.
The Portland District of the Freedom Road Socialist Organization condemns the extrajudicial police killing of Michael Reinoehl. The system that cops uphold claims to derive its legitimacy from “equality before the law.” Nothing could be further from the truth in Michael Reinoehl’s death by federal agents.
Why review a book that the Russian revolutionary V.I. Lenin began in 1901 and finished in 1902? The short answer is the book is just that good and it has endured the test of time, and the 150th anniversary of Lenin’s birth is a good occasion for it.
