Face down reactionaries with ‘blue lives matter’ confederate flags

Jacksonville, FL – The Jacksonville downtown Art Walk celebration on August 2 brought out several political organizations including TakeEmDownJax, the Jacksonville Community Action Committee (JCAC) and Veterans for Peace. The groups petitioned and leafleted for the causes of removing confederate names and statues from public view and for community control of the police via the formation of a Jacksonville Police Accountability Council. Around 50 local organizers showed up and were met by two groups in opposition, who were confederate flag supporters and self-proclaimed ‘patriots.’

Jacksonville, FL – Almost two dozen members of the Jacksonville Community Action Committee (JCAC) spoke at the city council meeting July 25 in favor of police accountability.

Jacksonville, FL – Around 30 community members gathered in Bruce Park, in Jacksonville, to speak out against police crimes, for community control of the police, and a Jacksonville Police Accountability Council (JPAC).

_#WalkingWhileBlack is not a crime _

Jacksonville, FL – On June 20, Devonte Shipman, a young African American in Jacksonville, was stopped and harassed by police officers for simply walking across the street. Claiming to have seen him illegally cross the street, Officer J.S Bolen of the Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office (JSO) harassed and badgered Shipman, even threatening him with jail time. Shipman recorded the encounter with his cellphone, a clip that went viral and made national and international news.

Jacksonville, FL – Around 50 people rallied for trans rights at Memorial Park in Jacksonville, June 24. Organized by the Coalition for Consent, Jacksonville Transgender Action Committee along with other groups, protesters rallied to demand an end to attacks on the trans community, especially oppressed nationality trans women.

Jacksonville, FL – Four of the five activists beaten and arrested by police at an April anti-war protest spoke out at a press conference, June 5, held outside the Duval County Courthouse. Dubbed the 'Jax5' by supporters, the activists discussed the favorable outcome of their cases and announced a campaign for community control of the police in Jacksonville. It marked the first public statement by the Jax5 since their arrest nearly two months earlier.

Jacksonville, FL – Around 30 members of the Northside Coalition and the Jacksonville Progressive Coalition (JPC) rallied in downtown Jacksonville, June 1, for community control of the police. Northside Coalition leader Ben Frazier spoke on why we need more police accountability in the city of Jacksonville.

Jacksonville, FL – Activists in Jacksonville Florida have a lot to celebrate after the Florida Times Union reported June 1 that the state attorney was dropping the remaining charges on the #Jax5.

_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 – Millions of people flocked to Washington D.C. for billionaire real estate mogul Donald Trump's inauguration – but not in support of the new president. Instead, working people from across the U.S. marched against Trump's anti-worker, racist and misogynistic agenda. Crowd analysts believe more than three times as many people converged on the U.S. capitol to protest Trump than to support him. A day later, on Jan. 21, an estimated 5 million women and men took part in a Women's March nationwide, making it the largest single day of protest in U.S. history by some counts.