Minneapolis, MN – On January 23, protesters marched in freezing temperatures to bring attention to the Biden administration’s inhumane immigration policies. The march, organized by the Minnesota Immigrant Rights Action Committee (MIRAC), took place in a neighborhood with many immigrant families and received significant support from onlookers as protesters chanted about closing the camps, abolishing ICE, and supporting legalization for all. The protesters demanded that Biden and the Democratic-controlled Congress take immediate action to reverse all Trump-era anti-immigrant policies and act on their campaign promises to support immigrant families.
Minneapolis MN – Trails of frozen breath rose above hundreds of workers, January 19, as they chanted and picketed in subzero temperatures in front of county buildings throughout Hennepin County, the most populous county in Minnesota. The picketers are members of AFSCME Local 34 and AFSCME Local 2822 and work as library workers, social service workers and more. Earlier that morning the union members filed notice to go on strike February 2.
Minneapolis, MN – More than 50 people gathered here to honor Mel Reeves, a community leader who died January 6 at age 64. Organized by Families Supporting Families Against Police Violence, the event was a space for those who worked alongside him in community to share memories of a man who put in decades of work in struggles against racism and police violence, economic injustice and war and militarism. Reeves was a father and grandfather, and a journalist for the Black newspaper, the Minnesota Spokesman-Recorder.
Minneapolis, MN – On December 16, around 2500 hundred clerical, technical and healthcare workers at the University of Minnesota reached a tentative agreement on a new contract. The workers are members of the American Federation of State County and Municipal Employees (AFSCME) Locals 3800, 3801, 3260 and 3937 and have been working with an expired contract since July 1. The agreement is for a one-year contract, which means even as this long round of negotiations and contract campaign actions wraps up, the locals are already gearing up to begin bargaining their next contract.
Minneapolis, MN – On December 13, over 3500 Hennepin County clerical and social service workers who are members AFSCME Locals 34 and 2822 rejected the county’s “last best and final” contract offer and authorized a strike across both locals. The two locals represent the largest blocks of organized workers in the Hennepin County system.
Minneapolis, MN – Despite a 12-inch snowfall, more than 60 people marched in recognition of International Human Rights Day in Midtown Minneapolis, shutting down a major business thoroughfare on December 11.
Minneapolis, MN – On November 15, over 50 people gathered in North Minneapolis to honor the six-year struggle for justice for Jamar Clark, who was killed in 2015 by the Minneapolis Police Department. After Clark’s murder, the community came together and held an 18-day occupation at the Minneapolis 4th Precinct police station; the action was dubbed the #4thPrecinctShutdown. The Twin Cities Coalition for Justice for Jamar (TCC4J) combined different circles of organizations and communities in the initial fight for “no grand jury,” releasing any footage, and an independent investigation.
Minneapolis, MN – On November 14, about 30 people gathered at Mayday Plaza on a cold day with signs and banners to demand asylum for Haitian immigrants. The action was planned by the Minnesota Immigrant Rights Action Committee (MIRAC) to demand legalization for all, this time with a focus on the recent blatant abuses of Haitian immigrants at the hands of Border Patrol agents on horseback at the Texas border as well as the recent upsurge in deportations of Haitian immigrants under Biden. It was endorsed by the Anti-War Committee (AWC), the Haiti Justice Committee of Minnesota, and Filipinx for Immigrant Rights & Racial Justice Minnesota (FIRM). Protesters held banners and signs demanding, “Legalization for all!” “No militarized border!” “Asylum for Haitians” and “End abuse of Haitian migrants.” The group chanted and waved to cars that honked in support as they drove by.
Minneapolis, MN – On election day, November 2, voters in Minneapolis rejected a much-publicized and heavily-financed ballot initiative about policing, 56% to 44%. On the ballot, it was called “Question 2.”
Minneapolis, MN – On October 23, the Twin Cities District of Freedom Road Socialist Organization held an educational event at the University of Minnesota titled “No New Cold War Against China!” The event was part of a yearly celebration of the October socialist revolutions which occurred in Russia (1917) and China (1949). The event's speakers were Autumn Lake of the Anti-War Committee, Mick Kelly of Freedom Road Socialist Organization and Danny Haiphong of the Black Agenda Report and Friends of Socialist China.
Minneapolis, MN – On October 20 people rallied in the rain to protest the Iron Dome Supplemental Appropriations Act, a proposed bill which would earmark another $1 billion in U.S. military aid to Israel on top of the $3.8 billion already allocated. The protest of over 20 people targeted Minnesota Senator Amy Klobuchar because the bill is coming to the U.S. Senate. The Anti-War Committee, the initiator of the protest, applauded the nine members of Congress, including Minnesota’s own Ilhan Omar, who voted against this extra $1 billion in funding.
Minneapolis, MN – On the weekend of Oct. 16-17, almost 170 students convened at the University of Minnesota for the 15th National Convention of National Students for a Democratic Society. It was the first time SDS organizers had gathered together physically since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Minneapolis, MN – On Saturday evening, October 16, 300 people marched through Uptown Minneapolis to the home of the city attorney, to demand that he drop the charges against the 646-plus protesters arrested on November 4, 2020, and to demand community control over police in Minneapolis. The November arrests targeted some of the more than 1000 students, teachers, union members and activists who took to the streets in Minneapolis to demand police accountability and speak out against Trump’s attempts to steal the election. Last year’s march was part of a national day of protest initiated by the National Alliance Against Racist and Political Repression.
Minneapolis, MN – In the early evening of October 13, a group of about 15 people gathered on the corner of Lake Street and Bloomington Avenue in South Minneapolis and held banners that read: “Legalization for all” and “No militarized border.” The action was organized by the Minnesota Immigrant Rights Action Committee (MIRAC).
Minneapolis, MN – A coalition of Twin Cities peace and anti-war organizations held an anti-war protest October 9 to mark 20 years since the U.S. invasion of Afghanistan. The protest, held at Mayday Plaza in Minneapolis, also called for an end all forms of U.S. aggression.
Minneapolis, MN – On October 8, about a dozen members of the University of Minnesota Students for a Democratic Society disrupted a meeting of the UMN Board of Regents to demand the implementation of a Campus Civilian Police Accountability Council (Campus CPAC).
Minneapolis, MN – The Women’s March organized a rally and march as a part the National Day of Action on October 2 to protest the anti-abortion law passed in Texas in June. Up to 10,000 people of all genders gathered at the Minneapolis Sculpture Garden holding signs and banners expressing their outrage over the Texas law SB 8.
