Minneapolis, MN – More than 200 students gathered at the University of Minnesota (UMN), Nov. 12, to show solidarity with student protesters at the University of Missouri. The rally, organized by the UMN Black Student Union, consisted of speakers representing a number of different student and community groups, including Whose Diversity?, Students for Justice in Palestine, and APIs for Equity and Diversity.
Tampa, FL – Over 100 University of South Florida (USF) students and faculty members gathered on the steps of the Martin Luther King Plaza, Nov. 12, linking arms and holding a banner that declared “USF stands with Mizzou.”
Columbia, MO – On Nov. 9, both the president and chancellor of the University of Missouri announced their resignation after mass protests by the student body against racism on campus. The announcement came after about 30 African American players on the school's football team threatened to strike and not play Saturday's game if University President Tim Wolfe did not resign. Had the football strike taken place and the team not played, the school would have suffered a $1 million fine for breaking its contract with Arrowhead Stadium in Kansas City.
On Nov. 9, University of Missouri President Timothy Wolfe resigned, under intense pressure from Black student protesters and activists at the University of Missouri, Columbia campus. Black students formed the organization, Concerned Students 1950, demanding University President Wolfe step down over his mishandling of racist incidents on campus as well as calling for an increase in Black student enrollment and Black faculty representation at the predominantly white university. Jonathan Butler, an African American graduate student even went on hunger strike, demanding President Wolfe resign. The student uprising and struggled tipped to a boiling point and got national attention when the Black Missouri football players threatened to strike, not playing another game until President Wolfe stepped down. Such a strike would have cost the university at least $1 million dollars in fines as well as a loss in other revenue, negatively affecting their bottom line.
Los Angeles, CA – Braving wind and rain, activists and immigrants stood in front of the Metropolitan Detention Center on Nov 2. They were there to demand an end to the detention of Central American children who are currently locked up in multiple facilities across the country.
Minneapolis, MN – More than 20 immigrant rights protesters marched into Wells Fargo Bank on Nicollet Avenue and Lake Street on Nov. 7. They held signs inside the bank then presented their demands to a regional bank manager. They demanded that Wells Fargo divest all money from the Corrections Corporation of America (CCA) and GEO Group.