_Community activists call on Putnam to condemn statement, white supremacists _
Jacksonville, FL – On Wednesday, May 17, Adam Putnam, Florida Commissioner of Agriculture and Republican candidate for governor of Florida, spoke in Jacksonville Beach at a campaign event. Just a few feet outside, his official campaign tour bus was pictured with “Convict the #Jax5” written in large white lettering on the back, directly below Putnam's name.
Jacksonville, FL – The University of North Florida chapter of Students for a Democratic Society (SDS) hosted a panel discussion, April 25, titled “Civil Rights in the Era of the Jax5.” The Jax5 are the five anti-war activists who were brutalized by police and arrested on April 7 in Jacksonville’s Hemming Park.
_Fight Back News Service is circulating the following statement from People’s Opposition to War, Imperialism, and Racism (POWIR) _
On April 7, 2017 five anti-war activists were brutalized and unjustly arrested in a violent attack by the Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office (JSO) during a peaceful demonstration against the war in Syria. POWIR stands unequivocally in solidarity with the five who were targets of state repression: Dave Schneider, Connell Crooms, Willie Wilder, Kristina Kittles, and Tom Beckham.
Jacksonville, FL – On Friday, April 7, a Peace for Syria demonstration was brutally disrupted by the Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office (JSO) in downtown Jacksonville. Community members and activists have wondered about a connection between Jacksonville Sheriff Mike Williams and Gary Snow, the right-wing counter protester seen in several videos harassing and assaulting the five activists, now known as the Jax5, who were beaten and arrested by JSO despite committing no crime. Gary Snow was not interfered with in any way and was filmed sitting on a Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office car after the event.
Jacksonville, FL – Five protesters were finally released on bail from Jacksonville jail on Saturday evening, April 8. The protesters were arrested and several were beaten at a “No War in Syria” rally held on April 7, where police allowed a right-wing provocateur with a Trump flag to enter the protest and physically assault speakers and organizers of the rally.
![Enter a descriptive sentence about the photo here.](https://i.snap.as/jTCwlidw.jpg "Enter a descriptive sentence about the photo here. \\"Convict the #Jax5\\" written on official Adam Putnam for Florida Governor campaign bus. \(Facebook\)")
