Fight Back! News

News and Views from the People's Struggle

NewOrleansLA

By Serena Sojic-Borne

Activist shouts into microphone as crowd gathers around them. One protestor waves a trans pride flag. One carries a sign that says “Stop the attack on Black people.”

New Orleans, LA – On July 15, at least 13 New Orleanian activists will join thousands to march on the Republican National Convention in Milwaukee. This baker’s dozen is a group of leaders and organizers from Black liberation, labor, student and gender liberation movements.

“We are the phantom that haunts them in their sleep”

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By staff

Pro-Palestine protesters hear speeches at Lafayette Square. | Toni Jones/Fight Back! News

New Orleans, LA – On Saturday, June 29, nearly 100 community members gathered in Lafayette Square to show support for Palestine, and to put pressure on local lawmakers to pass a ceasefire resolution.

Leading up to the rally, the city’s local Palestinian coalition hosted cultural and political events from morning to evening. The day started with a cultural exchange and bazaar in Harvey. Bazaar participants then drove in a motorcade to Lafayette Square. At the Square, speakers from many local groups and one politician addressed the crowd. English and Arabic chants, such as “Free, free Palestine,” rang off the walls of the many federal and local government buildings in the area.

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By Shreyas Vasudevan

Protesters picket outside the International Association of Campus Law Enforcement Administrators in New Orleans . | Elizabeth Hinkle/Fight Back! News

New Orleans, LA – On the afternoon of June 26, attendees of the International Association of Campus Law Enforcement Administrators (IACLEA) conference at the Sheraton Hotel encountered a crowd of pro-Palestine protesters.

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By Lucas Harrell

New Orleans protesters stand in front of Audubon Place holding anti-Trump and anti-GOP signs and flags.  | Staff/Fight Back! News

New Orleans, LA – On June 24, Donald Trump arrived in New Orleans for a fundraising dinner as protesters disrupted the event with a rally. The protest was organized by the Queer and Trans Community Action Project (QTCAP) and New Orleans for Community Control of the Police (NOCOP). They chanted and demonstrated the opinions of the working-class queer and Black people of New Orleans, with additional speakers in solidarity to the Palestinian liberation movement.

The dinner, hosted by shipyard CEO Donald Bollinger and real estate magnate Joe Canizaro, cost $3300 per ticket for one person, with an additional approximate $22,000 for an opportunity to take photos with Trump. Bollinger and Canizaro are two of the most generous donors to the Republican Party in Louisiana.

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By Blu DiMarco

Crowd supporting pro-Palestine protesters in front of Criminal District Court

New Orleans, LA- On Friday, May 31, dozens of community members rallied in front of the Criminal District Court in New Orleans to defend those arrested at the Tulane and Loyola Popular University for participation in the Gaza encampment.

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By Lucas Harrell

Mandeville residents carry a giant Pride flag across the street.  | Fight Back! News/Naomi Retherford

Mandeville, LA – In a groundbreaking advance for the Louisiana LGBTQ rights movement, a Pride parade has premiered in Mandeville for the first time on June 1. Organized by Queer Northshore, over 500 people signed up to participate in the historic march called “PRIDE Northshore 2024.” The parade’s slogan was, “Y’all Means All.”

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By staff

Healthcare workers pose after delivering letter to dean.  | Fight Back! News/staff

Fight Back News Service is circulating the following statement from representatives of New Orleans Healthcare Workers for Palestine. The letter was delivered to Tulane University President Michael Fitts and Medical School Dean Lee Hamm. Healthcare Workers for Palestine is a network of healthcare workers and professionals standing against the U.S.-funded and enabled genocide of the Palestinian people.

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By Naomi Retherford

Pro-Palestine protesters hold Nakba banner displaying Palestinian victims of Israeli attacks.

New Orleans, LA – On May 18, over 200 protesters gathered at the steps across from Jackson Square Park in the city’s French Quarter, joining the Nakba week of action, called by the National Anti-War Network.

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By Carson Cruse

Pro-Palestine students and alumni destroy awards and diplomas.  | Fight Back! News/staff

New Orleans, LA – On May 7, Tulane and Loyola Students for a Democratic Society held a rally where students and alumni to destroyed awards and degrees they received from the pro-genocide institutions.

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By staff

 NOCOP member Jasmine Groves speaks on Ronald Green's murder in front of the federal building. Groves's late mother, Kim Groves, was murdered by NOPD killer cop Len Davis in 1994.  | Fight Back! News/staff

New Orleans, LA – On Friday, May 10, a small crowd gathered in front of the Federal Building downtown to demand justice for Ronald Greene, a 49-year-old Black man killed by Louisiana State Police on May 10, 2019, just outside Monroe, Louisiana. The rally was hosted by New Orleans for Community Oversight of Police (NOCOP).

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By staff

Protester arrested for supporting encampment

Fight Back News Service is circulating the following statement from Tulane and Loyola SDS.

At approximately 3:00 am, when students were sleeping and supporters who had gathered to ensure their safety were resting, a militarized coalition consisting of TUPD, NOPD, and Louisiana State Police (LSP) violently disassembled the peaceful encampment. With no dispersal warning, over 100 officers put the safety of students and community members at great risk by brutally arresting 14 unarmed individuals, including 3 bystanders, using riot gear, assault rifles, and armored vehicles. Louisiana State Police specifically targeted student organizers, resulting in two injured students being taken to the hospital.

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By Quest Riggs

New Orleans May Day marchers take to the downtown streets.  | Fight Back! News/staff

New Orleans, LA – On May 1, immigrants and workers celebrated International Workers Day with a fiery march on New Orleans City Hall. They were led by the banners of Unión Migrante, an immigrant rights organization that hosts the annual May Day march to uplift the struggle of undocumented workers. They waved signs and beat drums while marching during busy downtown rush-hour traffic, loudly chanting in support of worker power.

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By Serena Sojic-Borne

Riot police surround encampment at Tulane.  | Fight Back! News/staff

New Orleans, LA – Around 2 a.m., May 1, police raided an encampment for Palestine. On Monday, Students for a Democratic Society at Tulane and Loyola organized the camp at Tulane University. Protesters demand that Tulane end all aid to Israel.

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By staff

Pro-Palestine encampment at Gibson Hall on the Tulane campus. | Fight Back! News/staff

New Orleans, LA – On Monday, April 29, around 5 p.m., Students for a Democratic Society at Loyola and Tulane universities held a joint rally and march which gathered over 300 people. Students, university staff and community allies marched on both Tulane and Loyola’s campuses. The protesters paused on a sidewalk in front of Tulane’s admissions building and Gibson Hall, the oldest structure. Suddenly, the students took to the lawn in front of the building to set up their camping site.

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By staff

Drummer plays to crowd of pro-Palestine protesters.  | Photo credit: Johari/Dillard for Palestine

New Orleans, LA – On Friday, April 26, around noon, Students for a Democratic Society at Loyola University New Orleans and Tulane University held a joint walk out that led to a rally of over 150 people gathered in the front of the two universities. After a few speakers, a group of student organizers took the street and other students, faculty and community members followed. The rally turned into a street occupation. “Whose streets? Our streets!” and “Whose school? Our school!” participants chanted.

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By Carson Cruse

Protesters in Baton Rouge gather with mock body bags in protest against reactionary republican agenda. | Fight Back! News/staff

Baton Rouge, LA – On April 22, over 50 students and community organizers rallied on the steps of the Louisiana State Capitol demanding an end to the GOP’s reactionary agenda. The protesters then took to the streets and marched to Governor Jeff Landry’s mansion for a rally. This action served to unite the people against the Republicans and bring the people to the march on the Republican National Convention this summer in Milwaukee.

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By staff

Protestors hold signs while gathered outside of building.

New Orleans, LA - On April 15, activists and community members in New Orleans gathered in an emergency rally at the Harol Boggs Federal Building to voice their support for Iran’s calculated and warranted retaliation against Israel’s illegal attack on the Iranian embassy and officials in Damascus, Syria. The protesters further highlighted the need to oppose any U.S. military involvement in the region that could result from Iran’s retaliation.

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By staff

New Orleans residents at town hall meeting on police accountability at Treme Rec Center. | Fight Back! News/staff

New Orleans, LA – On Tuesday, April 9, around 100 community members filed into the gymnasium of the Treme Recreational Center for a People’s Town Hall on Policing. The town hall meeting, hosted by New Orleans for Community Oversight of the Police (NOCOP), interviewed New Orleans Police Department Superintendent Anne Kirkpatrick. The superintendent is the local equivalent of a chief of police. Community members spent the town hall voicing their anger with police crimes, abuses of power, civil rights violations, and lack of transparency.

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By Lucas Harrell

Workers and supporters take to the streets against anti-labor attacks. | Fight Back! News/staff

New Orleans, LA – Workers took to the streets on April 6, successfully blocking traffic throughout the heart of the central business district and French Quarter as they chanted for the rights of unionized public sector workers and all workers’ rights.

The rally began in Lafayette Square, when speakers from local unions such as New Orleans City Workers Organizing Committee (NOCWOC), Starbucks Workers United (SBWU), Fair Trade Musicians, United Teachers of New Orleans (UTNO) and New Orleans Workers’ Center for Racial Justice (NOWCRJ) emphasized the importance of organizing in the context of the political repression faced in Louisiana.

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By Naomi Retherford

Protesters march through the French Quarter holding banner against Louisiana Governor Jeff Landry. | Fight Back! News/staff

New Orleans, LA – On March 31, over 200 LGBTQ folks and allies gathered in Washington Square Park near the French Quarter. Just an hour before the annual Gay Easter Parade, the crowd came together to hear opening remarks from organizations.

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