Duluth, MN – On June 1, between 300 and 400 people from across the state protested the Minnesota DFL State Convention at the Duluth Entertainment Convention Center (the DECC).
It was a show of broad geographic support for ending the U.S. support for Israel’s genocidal military campaign in Gaza, and against the stances of DFL (the name of the Democratic Party in Minnesota) politicians like U.S. Senator Amy Klobuchar and Governor Tim Walz, who have shown strong support for Israel.
St Paul, MN – On May 21, the Minnesota State Board of Investments (SBI) held its second quarterly meeting of 2024. The meeting began with an extensive discussion on “ethical investments” related to green energy and combating the ongoing climate crisis. What was not brought up by board of investors was how much Minnesota annually invests in companies and shareholdings connected with the ongoing genocide in Palestine.
Minneapolis, MN – On May 15, over 1000 people marched in the Free Palestine Coalition’s march for the 76th anniversary of Al Nakba, “the catastrophe” in Arabic. Protesters started at U.S. Senator Amy Klobuchar’s office demanding an end to U.S. aid to apartheid Israel and calling on her to stop her support for the ongoing second Nakba, the U.S.-backed Israeli genocide currently occurring in Gaza.
Minneapolis, MN – On May 1, over 500 people took to the streets on International Workers Day to march for immigrant and workers’ rights. The rally and march was organized by a coalition initiated by the Minnesota Immigrant Rights Action Committee (MIRAC) and MN Workers United (MWU).
Each year, International Workers Day is celebrated around the world with a call for solidarity with all workers and for union rights. International Workers Day has its origin in the fight for an eight-hour workday in the United States, where there were massive strikes and sharp confrontations in May of 1886.
St Paul, MN – Over 400 anti-war activists attended a three day conference organized by the United National Antiwar Coalition (UNAC) from April 5-7. The conference was held in Saint Paul with the theme “Decolonization and the Fight against Imperialism.”
Maple Grove, MN – On April 6, the Free Palestine Coalition held a rally and march of 100 people outside the Arbor Lakes shopping mall in Maple Grove to protest the upcoming installment of BAE Systems in the Twin Cities. Protesters wanted to highlight the role of BAE Systems in the deaths of tens of thousands of Palestinians in Gaza since October 7. BAE Systems makes the F-15, F-16 and F-35 fighter jets that Israel uses in their attacks on Gaza.
Minneapolis – On March 30, around 2500 protesters gathered along Lake Street where it crosses a narrow isthmus between Lake of the Isles and Bde Maka Ska in the Chain of Lakes. Organized by the local Free Palestine Coalition, the action marked Land Day, which commemorates the Palestinian struggle against Israeli occupation and land theft.
St. Paul, MN – On Saturday, March 23, the Twin Cities Gaza Ceasefire Pilgrimage, on a 22-mile walking journey, made a stop at the Minnesota governor’s residence. There, they joined a vigil organized by the Twin Cities-based Free Palestine Coalition for a rally and die-in in front of Governor Tim Walz’s home.
Saint Paul, MN – On Friday, March 15 at the Saint Paul RiverCentre, the Free Palestine Coalition led a protest of hundreds inside and outside of the Humphrey-Mondale Dinner, the largest annual Democratic-Farmer-Labor Party (the name of the Democratic Party in Minnesota) fundraiser.
St. Paul, MN – On March 9, the Minnesota's Free Palestine Coalition organized a march to celebrate and stand in solidarity with Palestinian women on the day after International Women’s Day. The speakers and chanters were primarily Palestinian women, all of whom made connections between women’s liberation and an end to the Israeli genocide, occupation and apartheid.
4000 people attended the march, which took the streets and disrupted business as usual in Saint Paul’s Midway neighborhood. Demonstrators stopped to chant in front of a police precinct and marched past a highway exit, blocking traffic.
St. Paul, MN – The Saint Paul city council unanimously passed a ceasefire resolution at their meeting on March 6. Councilmember Cheniqua Johnson introduced the ceasefire resolution in front of a packed chamber. The resolution calls for an immediate and permanent ceasefire, an end to unconditional U.S. aid to Israel, the release of the thousands of Palestinian prisoners, and facilitation of the delivery of humanitarian aid to Gaza.
Minneapolis, MN – On March 6, the Minnesota Anti-War Committee organized a protest outside the First Avenue nightclub, where pro-Israel musical act Matisyahu was performing.
Matisyahu is the stage name of Matthew Paul Miller, a white American reggae musician, best known for his 2005 hit King Without a Crown. Miller is known for his extreme pro-Israel and anti-Palestinian political views. In a 2012 interview, he said, “There was never a country called Palestine.” In 2015, Miller performed for the American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC), the notorious pro-Israel lobbying group. He has also performed for Friends of the IDF, which fundraises for Israel’s military occupation forces.
St. Paul – On February 29, dozens of Palestine solidarity protesters packed into the Minnesota State Board of Investment (SBI)’s first quarterly meeting of the year to demand divestment from apartheid Israel.
St. Paul, MN – On February 28, the Minnesota Anti-War Committee organized a protest at the Eastcliff Mansion, where Governor Tim Walz currently resides. On the eve of the Minnesota State Board of Investment (SBI) meeting, a crowd of over 100 people rallied to demand that the Minnesota governor, also the chair of the SBI, divest from apartheid Israel and weapons manufacturers.
Columbia Heights, MN – On Monday, February 26, the city council of Columbia Heights voted 4-1 to pass a resolution calling for an end to Israel's genocidal campaign in Gaza. The Columbia Heights community packed the room, as it did at a previous city council meeting to provide public comment and encourage the council to vote in favor of the resolution.
St. Paul, MN – On February 25, over 1000 people carrying Palestinian flags and signs lined both sides of the Lake Street/Marshall Avenue Bridge over the Mississippi River and then marched to Governor Tim Walz’ Eastcliff Mansion residence to demand that the Minnesota State Board of Investments (SBI) divest from Israeli weapons manufacturers, banks and bonds, and other entities complicit in Israel’s apartheid system in Palestine. Research done by the MN Anti-War Committee (AWC) shows that the MN SBI invests more than $3 billion this way.
St. Paul, MN – On February 21, the Free Palestine Coalition organized their Saint Paul supporters to pack the Saint Paul city council meeting for the third week in a row to show support for their passage of a ceasefire resolution.
When Palestine solidarity activists tried to speak during the public comment section they were told that their comments were not on topic and that they had to stop talking.
St. Paul, MN – On February 18, 1000 protesters marched in Saint Paul’s upscale Summit Hill neighborhood to protest Israel’s assault on the city of Rafah, the last zone of relative safety for Palestinians in Gaza.
The action was organized by the Free Palestine Coalition which comprises dozens of Twin Cities progressive and solidarity organizations.
Minneapolis, MN – On Thursday, February 15, the University of Minnesota chapter of Students for a Democratic Society, in collaboration with the Freedom Road Socialist Organization, held a panel in Nicholson Hall on the UMN campus discussing Marxist-Leninist perspectives on Palestinian liberation. Thirty people, both students and community members, were in attendance.
St. Paul, MN – 200 people packed the Saint Paul city council meeting on February 7 to send a message to the city council that the residents of Saint Paul want them to take a stand against genocide.
Their signs stressed the importance of Saint Paul having a ceasefire resolution. The signs read, “Take a stand against genocide” and “Palestine is a local issue!” All of the signs also demanded, “Pass a ceasefire resolution now!”