Indianapolis, IN – On Sunday, March 15, braving forceful winds, around 20 Indiana residents from around the state gathered in downtown Indianapolis to demand that the United States end its criminal war on Iran and the entire Middle East.

The protest was organized by FRSO Indiana, SDS at Purdue, and SDS at Butler, who answered the national call to action by the Anti-War Action Network (AWAN).

Protesters opened the rally with chants “No justice, no peace, U.S. out of the Middle East,” “From Iran to Palestine, killing children is a crime,” “From Iran to the Philippines, stop the U.S. war machine” and “No blood for oil, U.S. out of foreign soil!” The crowd was highly energized, receiving supportive honks from passing cars and raised fists throughout the rally.

The U.S. war on Iran, waged alongside its partner in genocide, Israel, is now in its second week and shows no signs of letting up. The U.S. has repeatedly claimed that Iran is in disarray and on the brink of defeat, all while the Iranians have launched over 40 waves of coordinated missile attacks on strategic U.S. military assets and Israel. More than 2100 people have already been killed in Iran, and over 3 million people have been forcibly displaced from their homes.

“We do not want anyone, Iranian or American, dying for this cruel and senseless war,” said FRSO organizer Erica Schnieder.

Speakers denounced the criminal actions of Trump and Israel, calling out their hatred and abuse of women and disregard for humanity. The crowd held a moment of silence for the over 185 young schoolgirls killed in Minab on the first day of the war as attendees held signs with the names and faces of each person who lost their lives.

#IndianapolisIN #IN #AntiWarMovement #Iran

The bill, authored by State Senator Liz Brown of Fort Wayne, revives core portions of an immigration bill she previously refused to hear last year as chair of the Senate Judiciary Committee. This led to an open spat between Brown and Indiana Attorney General Todd Rokita, during which Rokita claimed Brown had held up the bill because she had an “illegal alien” in her family. Brown said these comments were false and filed an attorney misconduct grievance over Rokita’s comments, which ended up dismissed. Then, after the Indiana Senate voted to reject Trump’s gerrymandering scheme in December, Brown was replaced as chair of the committee by State Senator Cyndi Carrasco of Indianapolis.

The fractious Indiana Republicans are now fumbling for unity through this “improved” version of the bill, which is drawing praise from Rokita as properly forceful. Under the law, local governments at all levels would be legally required to comply with federal detainer requests, holding arrested immigrants for 48 hours past their usual release so they can be disappeared by the DHS. Local governments, public schools and universities as well, would be liable for civil penalties of $10,000 per violation of immigration enforcement.

Additionally, the Family and Social Services Administration and hospitals would be required to turn over reams of data about non-citizens who receive benefits from Medicaid, expanding the massive DHS surveillance dragnet. And even the private sector does not escape the crackdown. Employers face threats of temporary or even permanent suspension of their right to operate if found to be employing people deemed “illegal.”

Indiana has had a law on the books outlawing sanctuary cities since 2011, Senate Enrolled Act 590, but the attorney general has had considerable trouble enforcing this ban and is using this law to seek firmer enforcement mechanisms to ensure a clear path for DHS boots to march.

Senate Bill 76 stands to expedite the terror waged against immigrant communities across the U.S. to Indiana’s front door. With the terror comes repression, a futile attempt of Trump’s running dogs to silence any institution willing to fight back. While tightknit communities’ decades long established may lean on each other for support, recent immigrants and rural communities strewn across Indiana face a greater threat of serious harm if targeted.

However, it is doubtful that Rokita and Trump’s other henchmen in Indianapolis will have their way. Resistance to the immigration crackdown is growing across the state. Hundreds of people from all walks of life have hit the streets week after week all across the state since Renee Good was murdered in Minneapolis during “Operation Metro Surge.” Their message has been clear: ICE is not welcome in their streets.

In contrast to the bickering Republicans seething at one another over personal insults and failed legislation, the people of Indiana are finding unity in their common opposition to the murder and kidnapping of their neighbors and do not believe in any special “immunity” for federal immigration jackboots. Even in what some would write off as “Trump Country,” people are standing up to fight back because they know they can win.

If you want to get organized and join that fight in Indiana, you can reach out to FRSO Indiana at frsoindiana@gmail.com, on Instagram at @frso_indiana.

#IndianapolisIN #IN #ImmigrantRights #Opinion #Commentary #ICE #FRSO

Indianapolis, IN – Several hundred people gathered at Monument Circle in downtown Indianapolis last night, January 8, to express their collective rage, grief and resilience over ICE’s murder of Renee Nicole Good.

Chants of “IMPD, KKK, ICE they’re all the same” and “The people, united, will never be defeated” filled the air as protesters held signs demanding ICE leave their communities and comparing them to the Nazi Gestapo. The crowd was repeatedly cheered by passersby honking their horns as they drove the circle, and people walking by raising their fists in solidarity.

Renee Good was a legal observer of ICE’s latest batch of raids. When ICE saw her vehicle in their way, they surrounded it, shouting contradictory orders at Good both to drive away and leave the vehicle. One officer, Jonathan Ross, jumped in front of Good’s car, drew his weapon, and shot Good to death.

The crowd listened to speakers from Indianapolis Democratic Socialists of America (DSA), About Face: Veterans Against the War, Indianapolis Indivisible, and others. The speakers were totally united in their demand that the killer ICE agent Jonathan Ross face full legal repercussions for the murder he committed.

The crowd was extremely diverse, representing the near universal outrage at the blatant criminality of ICE and the DHS. Many people used signs they’d originally brought to No Kings protests last year, and they were shoulder to shoulder with attendees from the ACLU and Food Not Bombs, chanting “One solution, revolution” alongside the protest organizers.

At multiple points the Monument Circle sound system began its nightly broadcast of red, white and blue propaganda, including a full rendition of America the Beautiful blared at full volume, but the people’s anger and resolve was undimmed.

Speakers connected the brutality and lawlessness of ICE at home directly to that American imperialism has imposed overseas in places like Venezuela and Palestine. At the mention of Palestine, a “Free, free Palestine” chant started at the back of the crowd spontaneously and was soon being taken up by the entire group, including the speaker who began to help lead it.

After the speeches and chanting, the crowd took to the streets, marching and raising a righteous din as bystanders watched in open admiration from storefronts and shop windows. The march concluded at the State Capitol building with speakers reiterating their calls to get organized and fight back against the Trump regime’s racist campaign of terror.

#IndianapolisIN #IN #ImmigrantRights #ReneeGood #ICE #InJusticeSystem #KillerCops #KillerICE

Indianapolis, IN – About 60 people gathered Saturday afternoon, January 3, at Monument Circle in downtown Indianapolis to protest the U.S. military attack on Venezuela and the kidnapping of Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro.

Demonstrators chanted, “No war on Venezuela” and “Maduro, aguanta, el pueblo se levanta,” Spanish for “Maduro, hold on, the people are rising up.” Protesters held signs reading “No war for oil” and “Hands off Venezuela,” while passersby honked their horns and raised fists from their cars in support.

Organizers said the emergency protest was called in response to rapidly unfolding events in Venezuela earlier that morning. The United States bombed Venezuela and captured President Maduro during a large-scale military operation launched in the early hours of Saturday.

Reports from Caracas indicated that explosions began around 2 a.m. local time, with multiple military installations and numerous civilian buildings being bombed. The number of casualties remains unknown.

In an official statement, the Venezuelan government condemned the attack as a violation of the United Nations Charter and a threat to regional peace, announcing the activation of national defense plans and the deployment of armed forces. Venezuelan leaders also called for mass popular mobilizations of working people and trade unions. Authorities said they would bring formal complaints before international bodies, including the United Nations, over what they described as a criminal act of war committed by the Trump administration.

Speakers at the Indianapolis rally echoed those condemnations, denouncing the attack as an act of imperial aggression and warning that a U.S. war on Venezuela would be fought for corporate and oil interests at the expense of civilian lives. Several speakers emphasized solidarity with the Venezuelan people and the Bolivarian Revolution and called for an immediate end to the U.S. war on Venezuela, as well as the safe return of President Maduro.

Trump’s war on Venezuela, though carried out under the bogus pretense of drug trafficking, is being waged at the behest of the monopoly capitalist class that rules the United States. Trump could barely contain himself at the press conference announcing the military operation, pledging to occupy Venezuela and turn its oil over to Western energy corporations. By targeting Maduro, U.S. imperialism is attempting to decapitate the Bolivarian Revolution. In 2002, the United States backed a coup attempt against then-President Hugo Chávez, who was restored to power by the Venezuelan people within 47 hours.

The Bolivarian Revolution is an ongoing national democratic revolution that has been unfolding in Venezuela for over 25 years. Contrary to the claims of the Trump administration, Maduro and the Venezuelan government retain broad support among the working class, peasant farmers, the urban poor, and the workers and peasants in uniform who comprise the military. Despite U.S. sanctions that have placed severe strain on the Venezuelan economy, the country has stood firm in the face of imperialist aggression. As masses of working people in Venezuela mobilize to defend their independence, solidarity and anti-war demonstrations like the one in Indianapolis make clear that they are not alone.

#IndianapolisIN #IN #Antiwarmovement #venezuela

Indianapolis, IN — On October 9, striking Teamsters at Brulin Holding Company marked the eighth day of their unfair labor practice strike with a defiant rally outside the company’s Indianapolis facility.

Workers, fellow union members and community supporters filled the picket line with chants of “Hey hey, ho ho, Brulin’s greed has got to go!” and “Hey Nelly, hear our call – stop breaking federal law!” The latter was directed at Brulin’s head of human resources.

“I don’t know when this is going to end,” said Mark Caldwell, a Brulin Teamster who addressed the crowd. “All I know is that if you don’t stand for something, you’ll fall for anything.”

Brulin is a chemical manufacturer responsible for cleaning products used in most Kroger grocery stores in the area. During the pandemic, they saw massive profits as their workers labored to meet increased demand. But even as tens of millions of dollars in revenue flowed in, the workers did not have a raise in four years.

Teamsters Local 135 called an unfair labor practice strike at Brulin after the company broke the law at the bargaining table. Management put forward insulting counterproposals to the union’s demand for substantial raises, calling it their “last, best and final offer.” Further illegal conduct demonstrated their refusal to bargain in good faith, which led Local 135 to file an unfair labor practice, or ULP, with the National Labor Relations Board. Brulin Teamsters then voted unanimously to authorize a strike.

Despite management’s efforts to bring in replacement workers, the 12 Brulin Teamsters remain united and determined to win a fair contract. Not a single member has crossed the picket line. Everyone spends six to eight hours picketing the company’s three entrances, Monday through Saturday. Brulin is not open on Sundays.

“Brulin broke federal labor law,” said Teamsters Local 135 President Dustin Roach. “These workers are out on an unfair labor practice strike because the company refused to bargain in good faith. This could be over today if Brulin would just come back to the table and respect its workers.”

The rally drew strong community and political support, with Indiana State Representative Mitch Gore and Indianapolis City-County Councilor Jesse Brown joining the line to stand with workers. Both gave fiery speeches denouncing Brulin’s refusal to bargain in good faith and praising the courage of the striking workers.

Brulin workers continue to hold the line at 2920 Dr. Andrew J. Brown Avenue, calling for fair pay, respect and an end to the company’s illegal conduct at the bargaining table.

Teamsters Local 135 invites supporters in other unions and the community to show their support on the picket line, Monday through Friday from 5 a.m. to 5 p.m., and Saturday from 6 a.m. to 11 a.m.

#IndianapolisIN #IN #Labor #Teamsters #Strike #IBT135

Indianapolis, IN — Teamsters at Brulin Holding Company went out on strike in the early morning hours of October 1. The strike was called by Teamsters Local 135 in response to unfair labor practices committed by Brulin management during contract negotiations, which have dragged on for months.

With picket lines at all three company entrances, workers chanted, “What do we want? Fair contract! When do we want it? Now!” and “If we don’t get it, shut it down!” They also put up a giant Scabby the Rat inflatable at the front entrance on Dr. Andrew J. Brown Avenue.

Richard Dean, a manufacturer at Brulin for two years, described the reasons for the strike, “Instead of wanting to work with their employees, they’re only about their business. Brulin is choosing their own profits over making their employees’ lives easier.”

According to Teamsters Local 135, the company has refused to bargain in good faith, prompting the union to file an unfair labor practice charge with the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB).

Speaking on the company’s tactics, Dean continued, “How is that your last and best offer when it’s the first offer you’ve made? It makes me see they’re more corporate-oriented than caring about our families, which is what they say.”

Workers at Brulin have gone without a contractual pay increase for three years. The company, which manufactures cleaning chemicals and supplies, saw enormous profits during and after the pandemic – profits made possible only by the workers’ labor.

“They think we’re overpaid,” said Doug Johnson, who has worked in shipping and receiving at Brulin for almost 13 years. Johnson, who sits on the union’s bargaining committee, continued, “I think they ain’t loyal to their senior workers, and that’s what gets me. You’ve got people who have been here 16 or 17 years, and they’re always kicked to the back burner – when we apply for another position or even during layoffs. That ain’t the way you do people when they serve you for however many years. That’s not cool. You’ve got to respect your seniors.”

Ambulatory picketing at the gates in the early morning caused a line of cars to back up as striking Teamsters chanted, “What do we want? Fair contract! When do we want it? Now!”

Dustin Roach, president of Teamsters Local 135, stated, “Brulin thinks they can get away with starving out their workers for three years, but our members aren’t backing down. They are united, they are strong, and they will not accept anything less than the fair pay and respect they’ve earned. Brulin has bargained in bad faith, and that’s why Local 135 has filed an unfair labor practice charge with the NLRB. The time for games is over – it’s time for Brulin to do right by its workers.”

The strike deadline was set for September 30 at 11:59 p.m. After last-minute preparations that day, with Roach and Business Agent Jesse Mikesell meeting members at the facility, the union warned that Brulin’s refusal to change course left workers with no choice but to strike.

Shortly after the strike began, Indianapolis City-County Councilman Jesse Brown arrived to walk the picket line with Brulin Teamsters. Bringing coffee and snacks, he joined in the chants and ambulatory picketing of Brulin’s south entrance.

The union has called on the broader labor movement and community allies to join the workers on the picket line outside Brulin’s Indianapolis location at 2920 Dr. Andrew J. Brown Avenue.

#IndianapolisIN #IN #Labor #Teamsters #IBT135 #Strike #Feature

Indianapolis, IN – More than 60 members of Teamsters Local 135 rallied outside the UPS facility in Plainfield on Tuesday, August 19, as company UPS CEO Carol Tomé visited the site. The action put the company’s top executive face-to-face with UPS workers’ anger over rampant contract violations, illegal buyout schemes, and building closures that threaten job security and working conditions.

“Local 135 has a simple message for Carol Tomé,” said Dustin Roach, president of Teamsters Local 135. “We're done tolerating corporate games and illegal practices.”

The rally took place outside the UPS Plainfield hub, the largest in the Indianapolis metro area. Teamsters quickly raised a giant “greedy pig” inflatable, said to represent Tomé’s tenure as CEO, and carried signs reading “No way Tomé” and “UPS lies.”

Local 135 organized the rally in response to UPS’s pattern of ignoring the national contract, including violations of the 9.5-hour work protections for package drivers, excessive overtime, building closures and layoffs, heat safety violations and more. Members also singled out the company’s attempt to push an illegal buyout scheme as a direct attack on workers’ rights and livelihoods.

“UPS cannot claim to be a world-class company while engaging in blatant disregard for the contract it signed with its workers,” said Roach. “Our members deliver for this company every single day, and we will not stand by while management tears down the standards we've fought to secure.”

For several hours, workers gathered out front chanting, “Who are we? Teamsters!” and “Teamsters make the business run, Carol Tomé contributes none!” In addition to the main demonstration, smaller groups of workers with signs posted themselves at two other entrances to the facility, determined to confront the CEO wherever she might try to enter.

Shortly after noon, a black Cadillac Escalade carrying Tomé was spotted driving past the building’s entrances. Teamsters at the main rally site saw her filming the demonstration, greedy pig inflatable and all, with her phone as the SUV passed without entering. Rallygoers cheered, raised their fists and chanted, “Who’s got the power? We’ve got the power! What kind of power? Union power!”

About an hour later, Teamsters near the truck entrance gate reported the vehicle with Tomé finally entering the facility.

Her visit was brief. Teamsters at a little-used back gate reported her Escalade leaving the premises about 30 minutes later. Once again, she was confronted by workers chanting and carrying signs in protest.

The demonstration underscored both Local 135’s commitment to enforcing the contract and the larger fight by UPS Teamsters across the country to hold the company accountable. Workers at the rally emphasized that their stand in Plainfield is part of a national struggle to defend the contract gains secured in the historic 2023 Teamsters-UPS agreement.

“If UPS wants to move forward, they need to start respecting the contract and respecting the people who built this company into what it is today,” said Roach.

#IndianapolisIN #IN #Labor #UPS #Teamsters #IBT135 #Feature

“American Civil Liberties” resolution of the General Convention of the Episcopal Church.

RESOLUTION

Resolved, the House of Bishops concurring, That the 77th General Convention urge each congregation in The Episcopal Church to become a model for peacemaking in our society by encouraging its members to commit themselves to nonviolent and peaceable behavior in their relationships with others and to express concern about attacks on human rights, including attacks on the right to dissent from U.S. government policy; and be it further resolved:

That the General Convention express its concern through its Office of Government Relations that use of the Antiterrorism and Effective Death Penalty Act, the Patriot Act, and the Supreme Court decision in Holder vs. Humanitarian Law Project have a chilling effect on God's call to peacemaking and unduly impact the Arab, Palestinian and Muslim communities in the United States, and be it further resolved:

That the General Convention commend Episcopal congregations for their work in interfaith bridge building, including between Christian, Muslim, and Jewish communities.

EXPLANATION

American government surveillance and oppression of people who challenge United States policy has a long history, including FBI surveillance of civil rights movement leaders: Martin Luther King, Jr., in particular, and Puerto Rican independence advocates. Anthony D. Prince wrote in The People’s Tribune, “ the harassment intensified after King publically condemned the war in Vietnam, denouncing the U.S. involvement as irreconcilable with economic and social justice for American’s poor…his assassination came on the heels of an internal FBI report that labeled King a ‘direct threat to American security.’” The FBI’s surveillance program, which became known as COINTELPRO, targeted not only Martin Luther King, Jr. but also the Southern Christian Leadership Conference, the Black Panther Party, the American Indian Movement and many other individuals and organizations.

Since September 11, 2001, the Bush and Obama administrations have brought Palestinian, Arab, and Muslim activists before Grand Juries, including Dr. Abdelhaleem Ashqar, Dr. Sami al- Arian, and Ghassan Elashi of the Holy Land Foundation. Most recently on September 23, 2011, ten Muslim students who had been arrested for protesting Ambassador Michael Oren’s February 8, 2010 speech at the University of California at Irvine, were found guilty of misdemeanor charges and were sentenced to 56 hours of community service and three years’ probation, to be reduced to one year after the completion of the community service. In late July 2011, FBI training material that contained bigoted and inflammatory views on Muslims came to light.

In the fall of 2010, twenty-three anti-war and peace activists, including Colombian and Palestinian solidarity workers, have been subpoenaed by the FBI as part of what the United States government is calling an investigation into “material support” for groups the United States Department of State has declared “foreign terrorist organizations.”

The Antiterrorism and Effective Death Penalty Act of 1996 created this new category of prohibited activity, namely “material support.” Five years later, as one result of September 11, Congress approved the USA Patriot Act, which broadened the provisions of the Antiterrorism and Effective Death Penalty Act. Then in June 2010 the Supreme Court’s decision, “Holder vs. Humanitarian Law Project,” according to the

Center for Constitutional Rights “marks the first time that the Supreme Court has held that the First Amendment permits Congress to make pure speech advocating lawful, non-violent activity-human rights advocacy and peacemaking a crime.” In summary, the Center for Constitutional Rights contends that “these material support provisions violate the First Amendment as they criminalize activities like distribution of literature, engaging in political advocacy, participating in peace conferences, training in human rights advocacy, and donating cash and humanitarian assistance, even when this type of support is intended only to promote lawful and non-violent activities.” (1) In early October 2010, seventeen organizations and ninety-six individuals signed the “Chicago Faith Community Statement on FBI Raids and Grand Jury.” It reads in part:

“We are people of faith and conscience who condemn the recent FBI raids in Chicago as a violation of the Constitutional rights of the people and organizations raided. They are a dangerous step to further criminalize dissent. The FBI raids chisel away and bypass fundamental Constitutional rights by hauling activists before grand juries under the guise of national security. An overly broad definition of “material support for terrorism” in the June 2010 US Supreme Court ruling concerns us as people of faith who continue to be actively engaged in humanitarian work and peacemaking…we believe that peacemaking is a sacred commandment…we refuse to remain silent in the face of the latest efforts of the FBI to chill dissent against war by invading homes of peace activists and calling a grand jury with sweeping powers to manufacture fear. We denounce the use of fear and the far-reaching labeling of critical dissent as “terrorism” that tramples on not only our right, but our duty to dissent as people called to a moral standard of justice for all.”

For the original document see www.generalconvention.org/resolutions/download/146-1342045299

#IndianapolisIndiana #IndianapolisIN #September24FBIRaids #CommitteeToStopFBIRepression #TrinityEpiscopalChurch #AntiWar23

Republicans have passed a bill that fines any politician $1000 a day for not showing up. I don’t know if this applies, say, if the entire Democratic caucus all got the flu or some other nasty something. None the less, the pressure is a lot tougher, supposedly, for the politicians, which is leading some Democrats to say it is best to argue against the ‘right to work for less’ bill from the floor of the House – even though the Republicans have said they have the votes to pass the union-busting measure.

The right to work for less legislation would make it illegal for a union and a company to bargain in its contract that a person who works for the company must pay dues as a condition of employment. Think this sounds okay? A lot of people do and they are confused. No one really likes getting forced to do things. But this isn’t really about that. It is about attacking working people’s organizations. If you work at a union shop, you benefit from the collective fights and struggles of the sisters and brothers that have come before you. Being a free rider ain't cool. Remember, you don't get something for nothing.

Oddly, the Republicans push this as if it somehow works for people, yet the Economic Policy Institute has wasted their arguments, saying essentially there is no economic benefit to the state and workers tend to earn $1500/yr less as a result. Sounds familiar? This 1% solution is just a disgusting union busting strategy in play. It also runs counter to their entire rap about big government meddling in everything. So, why is it cool to meddle here? You probably know the answer.

Unions and allies from throughout the state have been mobilizing for the past two weeks with round the clock lobbying and ‘occupations’ in the State House. Stay tuned for the battle yet to come.

#IndianapolisIN #unionBusting #rightToWork

‘Right to work’ laws are common in the U.S. South. These laws destroy unions and undermine the rights of workers.

Another bill pending in the Indiana legislature would curtail the rights of public workers to engage in collective bargaining.

As in Wisconsin, Democrats have left the capitol and there are reports that they are now in neighboring states.

Business as usual at the Indiana state legislature has come to an end.

Across the U.S. big corporations and the politicians who represent them have launched an anti-union offensive that has sparked massive waves of worker resistance. Wisconsin is the center of this resistance, as tens of thousands of workers and students are demonstrating on a daily basis and have occupied the state capitol building in Madison.

#IndianapolisIN #CollectiveBargaining #rightToWork