Jacksonville, FL – Protesters from the Jacksonville Progressive Coalition stood outside of a local Staples retail store, Feb. 8, demanding that the U.S. Postal Service (USPS) stop using non-union labor at Staples. In order to cut costs, the Postal Service recently opened up mail centers at participating Staples stores around the nation as part of a test program. Instead of employing union postal workers with good pay and benefits, these new centers are staffed by underpaid, non-union retail workers.
Jacksonville, FL – About 15 protesters assembled outside of the Duval County Courthouse, Feb. 6, as jurors heard opening statements in the first degree murder trial of Michael Dunn, the racist killer of 17-year-old African American youth Jordan Davis. Members of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference (SCLC), the Jacksonville Progressive Coalition and the New Jim Crow Movement held signs and spoke to people at the courthouse to demand “Justice for Jordan Davis.”
Jacksonville, FL – Over 35 protesters gathered here outside of the Duval County Courthouse, Feb. 4, for the first day of jury selection in the trial of Michael Dunn, the racist killer of 17-year-old African American youth Jordan Davis. Holding signs and chanting together, the crowd demanded “Justice for Jordan” and the conviction of Dunn.
Demand 'Free Marissa now!' and 'Justice for Jordan Davis'
Jacksonville, FL – 40 progressive activists marched together in the city's annual Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. parade on Jan. 20. These activists commemorated King's legacy by demanding freedom for Marissa Alexander, the 33-year-old African American mother whose conviction for resisting domestic abuse was recently overturned, and justice for Jordan Davis, a 17-year-old African American youth murdered in 2012 by a white vigilante in Jacksonville.
Jacksonville, FL – On Jan. 3, UPS abruptly discontinued its seasonal golf cart delivery program in Florida, after a worker filed a grievance on management for breaking state statutes. UPS management continued assigning normal golf cart delivery assignments to workers after Dec. 31, which violated state regulations on golf carts and placed its workforce at risk.
Jacksonville, FL – Many UPS customers woke up on Christmas morning with a few packages missing under the tree. On Dec. 25, UPS management admitted that they failed to deliver many packages to expectant customers due to a surge of late holiday orders. FedEx customers reported similar delays in package delivery.
Jacksonville, FL – With more than 50 activists and community members present, the Duval County School Board voted unanimously, Dec. 16, to change the name of Nathan Bedford Forrest High School. The historic vote by the school board comes at the end of a six-month campaign by the Jacksonville Progressive Coalition (JPC) and other forces to drop the local high school's racist namesake.
Jacksonville, FL – By Florida standards, the 30-degree morning on Black Friday, Nov. 29 was a chilly day, but that could not stop 15 local workers from protesting at a Walmart Supercenter.
Jacksonville, FL – About 30 residents of Jacksonville rallied and spoke out at a Duval County School Board meeting on Nov. 5 in favor of changing the name of Nathan Bedford Forrest High. Nathan Bedford Forrest was the first Imperial Grand Wizard of the Ku Klux Klan and members of the Jacksonville Progressive Coalition (JPC) have been gathering community support to change the name of the local high school named after this monster for some time.
Jacksonville, FL – Protesters from across Florida gathered in front of the Duval County Courthouse on October 31 for the first status hearing in the retrial of Marissa Alexander, the 33 year old African American mother who fired a warning shot to fend off her abusive husband.
Jacksonville, FL – More than 20 war veterans and community allies from the North Florida area gathered outside of Jacksonville's Naval Air Station (NAS) to protest a new drone operations base run by the Pentagon. The protest, organized by Occupy Jacksonville and Vietnam Veterans Against the War (VVAW), drew supporters from as far away as Gainesville and Pensacola.
Jacksonville, FL – The Civil War may have ended in 1865, but people in Jacksonville continue to struggle against the remains of the racist Confederate States of America in 2013. With more than 157,000 petitions signed and growing mass pressure on the Duval County School Board, community activists are waging a campaign to rename Nathan Bedford Forrest High School.
Jacksonville, FL – On Oct. 13, 40 people held a “Rally for Peace in Syria” at Saint Ephrem Syriac Catholic Church in Jacksonville. The peace rally drew members of the church congregation, anti-war activists and members of Jacksonville's large Syrian-American and Arab-American community. Friends of the Syrian American Forum organized the rally.
Jacksonville, FL – On Sept. 26, a Florida appeals court ordered a new trial for Marissa Alexander, the African American mother given a 20-year prison sentence for firing a warning shot to fend off her abusive husband. The announcement comes after more than a year of protests across the country that raised the demand, “Free Marissa now!”
Jacksonville, FL – Over 60 protesters stormed U.S. Senator Bill Nelson’s Jacksonville office on Sept. 12, demanding that the senator renounce his support for President Barack Obama’s proposed military strike on Syria. Nelson says he will vote yes for a U.S. war on Syria.
Jacksonville, FL – More than 130 protesters, including more than 70 Syrian Americans, gathered in Jacksonville's Memorial Park and marched on Congressman Ander Crenshaw's office to demand “Hands off Syria” on Sept. 7. Organized by Jacksonville Against the War on Syria (JAWS), the protest demanded that Crenshaw and Congresswoman Corrine Brown vote no on authorization for President Barack Obama's proposed military strike on Syria.
Jacksonville, FL – More than 70 Syrian Americans and their allies in rallied in Jacksonville's downtown Hemming Plaza on Aug. 29 to oppose U.S. intervention in Syria. The rally was part of the “Hands Off Syria Day,” which was a national day of action called by the Syrian American Forum in response to the growing threat of U.S. intervention in the Syrian Arab Republic.
Demands: ‘Justice for Trayvon’ and resignation of state attorney
Jacksonville, FL – Even the summer afternoon rain couldn’t stop more than 25 activists from meeting in downtown Jacksonville’s Hemming Plaza, July 22, to begin a five-day walk to Sanford, Florida. Activists took the first steps in the “Walk for Dignity – Enough is Enough” event, demanding justice for Trayvon Martin and the resignation of State Attorney Angela Corey, who prosecuted the George Zimmerman case.
Jacksonville, FL – When the nearly all white jury returned with a not guilty verdict in the George Zimmerman trial, people all around the U.S. were outraged. Outside the courtroom in Sanford, Florida some 200 protesters gathered up and issued a united call for nationwide protests, which was answered in the coming days by activists across the country.
Jacksonville, FL – With their fists and their voices raised, more than 450 people took to the streets of downtown Jacksonville on July 20 to protest the acquittal of George Zimmerman and demand justice for Trayvon Martin.
