Interview with Luiza Bezerra of the Brazilian Workers Central (CTB) union federation
On October 28, Brazilians will vote in the second round of their presidential election. The first round on October 7 sent shock waves around the world as extreme right-wing pro-military dictatorship candidate Jair Bolsonaro won 46% of the vote and leads polls heading into the second round of voting, where he will face Fernando Haddad of the Workers Party (PT). Brazil is a vast country which has the second largest economy in the Americas, behind only the U.S. economy. Brazil only emerged 33 years ago from a right-wing military dictatorship. Bolsonaro comes from the military and has openly called for returning Brazil to military rule. Unions and the left in Brazil face a potentially grim situation if Bolsonaro wins, since he calls for repression against trade unionists and leftists as well as promoting attacks on Black people, LGBTQ people and women.
Opposition to attempt at glorifying war crimes against Palestinians
Minneapolis, MN – Dozens of protesters gathered in front of Folwell Hall at the University of Minnesota, October, 18, to protest Student Supporting Israel’s event that hosted former Israeli Defense Force (IDF) soldiers. The MN Anti-War Committee (AWC) organized the protest
Fight Back News Service is circulating the following Oct. 17 statement from the National Democratic Front of the Philippines, Southern Mindanao Region (SMR).
On October 12, Turkish authorities announced that video and audio recordings confirmed that the brutal torture and murder of Washington Pos t journalist Jamal Kashoggi took place inside the Saudi embassy building in Istanbul. Kashoggi, a U.S. resident and Saudi citizen, disappeared almost two weeks ago after visiting the embassy to obtain paperwork to marry his fiancé.
New York, NY – Several dozen protesters gathered in Herald Square on October 7 to mark the invasion of Afghanistan and protest the other wars the U.S. waging abroad. The war on Afghanistan has lasted 17 years.
Fight Back News Service is circulating the following statement from the Labor Party of Turkey (EMEP)YEP is the proof of a plan to make the public pay for the crisis
Fight Back! interviewed Jose Maria Sison, the founding Chairman of the Communist Party of the Philippines, August 18, in Utrecht, the Netherlands. The interview was conducted by Fight Back! editor Mick Kelly, who is also responsible for the international work of Freedom Road Socialist Organization (FRSO).
On Sunday, October 7, at 3 p.m., various anti-war and international solidarity organizations will be gathering to mark of the 17th anniversary of the invasion of Afghanistan.
New York, NY – Nearly 2000 people gathered at Riverside Church in New York City, Sept. 26 to hear Cuban President Miguel Díaz-Canel Bermudez. The event, titled “Cuba Speaks for Itself!”, was organized by the September 25th Welcoming Committee, consisting of various New York and New Jersey solidarity organizations.
Fight Back News Service is circulating the following presentation by Luis G. Jalandoni, Senior Adviser, Negotiating Panel, of the National Democratic Front of the Philippines (NDFP), to the International People’s Tribunal on the Philippines, which was held in Brussels, September 18-19, 2018.
Milwaukee, WI – Venezuela has been in the news lately. For the first time in decades, the threat of war between the United States and a Latin American country hangs over our hemisphere.
San José, CA – On Sept. 17, President Trump announced that tariffs of 10% will be slapped on $200 billion of Chinese goods starting Sept. 24. These tariffs will rise to 25% at the beginning of 2019. Trump also said that he would put tariffs on another $267 billion dollars of imports from China if China responds to his tariffs. Along with the tariffs on $50 billion of Chinese imports already in place, this would mean steep tariffs on virtually all of the $500 billion in goods that the United States buys from China.
New York, NY – Over 200 people gathered in New York City on Sept. 16 to protest against the U.S.-backed President Rodrigo Duterte’s government of the Philippines. The action was to bring attention to the extrajudicial killings in the Philippines, the crackdown and murders of opposition leaders, poverty, and the martial law that is currently in place.
Minneapolis, MN – On Sept. 13. Minneapolis peace groups held a protest to “send an urgent anti-war message” in response to the Trump administration’s threats to conduct new airstrikes in Syria and to plots of a military coup in Venezuela.
Chicago, IL – A piece was published at Jacobin recently by Alex de Jong. He’s a representative of a Trotskyite Fourth International journal in the Netherlands. Normally, I wouldn’t waste time responding to anything written by anyone affiliated with the Fourth International, but Jacobin has a wide readership among young leftists today. Therefore, this is first an objection to Jacobin running such trash.
Washington DC – The Colombian political prisoner Anyaibe Rojas Valderrama, also known as Sonia, was finally released from her 17-year prison sentence on August 18.
