Washington, D.C. – El martes, 24 de febrero, un grupo de organizadores y activistas de la Organización Socialista Camino de la Libertad – DC (OSCL – DC) y de la Alianza de DC Contra la Represión Racista y Política (DCAARPR) se unieron en el centro de DC al alcance del oído del Capitolio de EE.UU. para protestar el discurso de Trump en el Estado de la Unión.

Con un micrófono en la mano y el capitolio detrás, el grupo denunció la política racista de Trump, incluidos los ataques contra inmigrantes, trabajadores, personas negras, personas LGBTQ, y países como Venezuela, Cuba e Irán.

El Departamento de Policía Metropolitana (MPD) había bloqueado todas las calles en un radio de unas pocas millas del capitolio, pero el grupo se estacionó cerca de las barricadas. Se encontraron con un gran despliegue de policías, la prensa, simpatizantes del público y un hombre cada vez más enojado que continuaba gritando, “¡Yo amo ICE!”. Sus gritos fueron acallados por el sonido de la gente que coreaba, “¡Chinga la migra!”.

El programa empezó antes y continuó durante el discurso de Trump en el Estado de la Unión.

Merawi Gerima, un nativo de DC y organizador de DCAARPR, dijo, “Estamos aquí esta noche porque Trump está en esa rotunda mintiéndole al pueblo estadounidense sobre todas las cosas que está haciendo. Ha dicho que es el portador de la paz al mundo, ha dicho que está trayendo empleos a los Estados Unidos, ha dicho que está trayendo paz a las calles de DC, ¡y sabemos que eso es mentira!”.

Gerima continuó, “Es nuestro deber, y nuestro derecho, hacer todo lo que esté a nuestro alcance para hacer este país ingobernable. Hacerlo imposible para que continúen explotándonos, matándonos y brutalizándonos a nosotros y a todos los demás en el planeta. Hacerlo imposible para que destruyan otros países en busca de ganancias. Tenemos todo el derecho y el deber de ponerle un alto a eso, y eso es exactamente lo que estamos haciendo aquí en Washington, DC”.

Christina Murdoch, miembro de la Organización Socialista Camino de la Libertad, habló sobre los ataques de la administración de Trump contra la comunidad LGBTQ, explicando la política reaccionaria que quieren implementar en la Oficina Federal de Prisiones.

Murdoch dijo, “La nueva política busca quitarle a más de 2200 personas trans que se encuentran actualmente en prisiones federales su acceso a atención médica necesaria. Serían sometidas a una constante invalidación de su identidad de género por parte del personal y les confiscarían todos sus artículos de afirmación de género, como carpetas de pecho, brasieres y maquillaje. Primero que nada, chíngate Donald Trump. Si crees por un momento que nos vamos a quedar quietos mientras le haces esto a cualquier miembro de nuestra querida comunidad trans, estás equivocado”.

#WashingtonDC #AntiWarMovement #Iran #DCATA #DCAARPR #PYM #FRSO #OSCL

Washington, D.C. – On February 28, DC residents awoke to the news that the Trump administration had begun a bombing campaign on Iran overnight. Within hours, the DC Against the Trump Agenda Coalition (DCATA) made the call for people of conscience in the DMV area to join in protest at the White House.

DCATA had been preparing for a US strike against Iran for weeks, connecting organizations in advance to mobilize within 24 hours of a strike. 32 organizations demanded, “No war with Iran!” with DCATA at the helm. A few hundred people started gathering towards Lafayette Square, as close as you can get to the White House due to the barricades, at the start of the rally. Protesters were carrying Iranian and Palestinian flags, as well as signs reading, “No bombs on Iran!” and “U.S. out of Iran!”

The organizers of the rally began their program on the bed of a pickup truck with emcees from DCATA and Palestinian Youth Movement DMV.

Merawi Gerima, a member of the DC Alliance Against Racist and Political Repression (DCAARPR) and DCATA, started the protest stating, “Unity of action, not of ideas! That’s exactly how we’re gonna stop the United States from pulling us into another war.”

The emcee from PYM DMV stated, “They’re sending Americans to die on behalf of the rich. Americans have made it clear that they do not want another war!”

Elizabeth Paige White, a movement lawyer with the DC Lawyers Against the Trump Agenda (DCLATA) told the crowd, “Donald Trump’s lawlessness has extended to every single resident here. I’m in court every single day defending people who were wrongfully – illegally – arrested, searched, shot at, and almost killed in this city because of these illegal police gangs, these feds riding around with MPD, violating our rights day in and day out. Why do we expect [Trump] to do differently around this country and around the world?”

Earlier that day, 50501DC and others organized a March for Democracy that started on the National Mall. As the DCATA program continued, over 1000 people from the March For Democracy joined the No War on Iran protest. At this point, organizers knew they had to march. As the truck carrying the lead emcees started moving, droves of MPD flooded the streets, and tried their hardest to impede the march. Quickly thinking, organizers stripped the truck of its audio equipment and proceeded on foot, leading the people to the Department of State building to condemn Trump and Marco Rubio’s attacks.

A member of the Freedom Road Socialist Organization – DC also spoke during the march, “I think it’s very ironic that Trump billed himself as the ‘anti-war’ president, and here we are, one year into his regime, and where do we stand? We see that he is funding Netanyahu and funding genocide in Palestine. We see that he has kidnapped the president of Venezuela. He has now created war with Iran. He is threatening war with the greater Middle East. He’s threatening war with China. This president doesn’t know the meaning of anti-war – all he knows is war!”

Thousands of people marched down the streets of DC protesting attacks on Iran, Palestine, Cuba and Venezuela, as well as immigrants and Black people in the U.S. MPD continuously tried to thwart the march by blocking their path at every turn; however, the people stood firm, and marched right through them. The march ended at the Department of State building, and the program closed out with a few more speakers.

#WashingtonDC #AntiWarMovement #Iran #DCATA #DCAARPR #PYM #FRSO #Feature

Chicago, IL – On Saturday, January 3, around 2000 people gathered downtown in Chicago’s Federal Plaza to join an emergency rally denouncing the U.S. empire’s latest series of military aggression against the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela.

This rally was one of many emergency responses called by the Anti-War Action Network (AWAN) after the United States government conducted bomb strikes across several Venezuelan territories: the capital Caracas, Aragua, La Guaira and Miranda. U.S. President Donald Trump announced on Truth Social that the invasion concluded with the kidnapping of the democratically-elected president Nicolás Maduro and First Lady Cilia Flores.

This latest escalation was preceded by months of the U.S. military targeting and striking boats in the Caribbean waters off the coast of Venezuela, and the illegal seizure of two Venezuelan oil tankers. Organizers from an array of anti-war and anti-imperialists organizations joined forces to condemn the strikes and kidnapping as the violation of Venezuela's sovereignty. Protestors in the Saturday night rally chanted “Hands off Venezuela!”

Hands off Venezuela!

“These actions do not represent the people of the U.S. We want an end to forever wars. We absolutely demand it!” stated Jae Franklin of the Anti-War Committee Chicago. Franklin was one of the anti-war activists on a solidarity delegation to Venezuela recently.

Franklin recollected and reassured who the Venezuelan people are, stating, “The people there are strong, they are determined, and they refuse to back down from their enemies like Trump and his administration!”

The rally had speeches from Anti-War Committee Chicago (AWC), Alma de Izote, United States Palestinian Community Network (USPCN), Palestinian Youth Movement (PYM), and 25th ward alderperson Byron Sicho-Lopez. These speakers represented different areas of the people’s movement, drawing the parallels between the struggle for national liberation in Latin America, Palestine, and the liberation of the nationally oppressed in the U.S.

The rally then moved to march from Federal Plaza to Trump Tower. The crowd for the protest stretched across several city blocks. The march paused at the midpoint of a busy city shopping center when Nesreen, an organizer from the USPCN, made an impassioned call to people on the sidewalks to join the march.

The march route ended at the Trump Tower where the crowd gathered on the streets of Michigan Avenue to hear from Joe Isobaker of Freedom Road Socialist Organization (FRSO) and David Borris of Chicago Area Peace Action.

Chicago was among the 75 cities in the U.S. to rally in solidarity with Venezuela and denounce another U.S. forever-war. The protest’s turnout was one of the largest that the city has seen in recent months, many seeing this show of solidarity as a display of revolutionary optimism at a time where the U.S. erratically grows more desperate to maintain their imperial control of the developing world. Activists and organizers vow to continue their support for the Bolivarian Republic and demand the release of President Nicolas Maduro and Cilia Flores, who is being held captive at the Metropolitan Detention Center in Brooklyn.

Secretary of State Marco Rubio announced that the U.S. will work on a team to enforce an existing “oil quarantine” in Venezuela, and preparations for a military occupation are on the way. Venezuela’s Vice President Delcy Rodríguez, who was sworn in as acting president in Maduro’s absence, has vowed to defend the sovereignty of the country.

#ChicagoIL #IL #AntiWarMovement #Venezuela #AWAN #USPCN #AWCChicago #PYM

Washington, DC – Early in the morning on Sunday, November 2, Kristen Bonner, Merawi Gerima, Terra Martin and Christina Murdoch – four community activists and members of the DC Alliance Against Racist and Political Repression (DCAARPR) – were released from MPD custody on the heels of wrongful arrests for using First Amendment rights.

Initial statements from the officers maintained that the activists would be held until Monday, but sustained community support both on site and by phone and social media successfully pressured the cops into freeing all four organizers.

The arrests began around 11 p.m. on Saturday night, when activists from the DC Alliance mobilized to the Navy Yard neighborhood in Southeast DC, to support local Black youth being harassed by MPD and federal officers. Tensions in this particular area had been high since the day before, when federal troops were caught on video attacking community members in the local park. They rose to fever pitch on Saturday, when MPD and Mayor Muriel Bowser released a mandate on an 11 p.m. curfew for youth in the area.

Members of the DC Alliance brought megaphones and cameras in accordance with their First Amendment rights to support the community members and deter police from making any wrongful arrests.

Around 11:15 p.m., police began handcuffing DC Alliance member Merawi Gerima, stating that he had broken the noise ordinance by using his megaphone, even though that charge necessitates warnings before making an arrest. As Alliance member Kristen Bonner went to turn off the “whistle” setting on Gerima’s megaphone, another officer handcuffed them. A third officer then pointed at Terra Martin, who was not holding a megaphone or making noise, but was then arrested with no explanation.

Alliance member Christina Murdoch questioned an officer on the scene on why the other three activists were being arrested, specifically citing that the organizers being arrested were Black; to which he replied by nodding at another officer and having her arrested as well.

After the activists were taken away, community members mobilized to the First District Police Station where they were told the organizers would be held. Officers on site at the station, however, told the crowd that the organizers would be taken to a different location. Staff at the new location revealed that information to be false, and organizers intensified their presence at the original First District precinct location.

This was coupled with using social media to promote a phone zap campaign, which was supported by national organizations such as 50501and the National Alliance Against Racist and Political Repression, as well as local organizations like the DC Against the Trump Agenda Coalition (DCATA), Palestinian Youth Movement DMV, and others.

Around 5 a.m., after conversations with attorneys and pressure from organizers on site and over the phones, all four organizers were released back to the community. Additionally, charges that had been levied against the activists – including a felony “Obstruction of Justice” charge – were dropped. The activists reunited with the crowd to joint chants of “Fuck the police! Fuck ICE!” and “1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8 , 9, 10, 11, fuck 12!”

“There’s 20,000 MPD officers and 700,000 residents in DC,” said Kristen Bonner, “We outnumber them 20 to 1. When we fight back, we win, and when it’s all of us fighting together, there’s nothing they can do to stop us!”

Three of the activists are still facing misdemeanor disorderly conduct charges, while Murdoch faces a misdemeanor resisting arrest charge. All four activists are scheduled for a court appearance on Wednesday, November 19, where organizers and community members have already made plans to pack the courtroom.

“At the end of the day, we were out there to defend Black youth,” said Merawi Gerima, “it doesn’t really matter what bullshit charges they come up with. We keep us safe, we defend our own, and what we’re doing is working, so – fuck the police!”

“We’re gonna continue to take the fight to them,” said Bonner, “We’re not scared of any type of repression they may put on us…the community has our back the same way we have their back, and we’re gonna keep fighting!”

#WashingtonDC #InJusticeSystem #NAARPR #DCAARPR #DCATA #PYM

Garland, TX – A coalition of DFW Anti War Committee, Palestinian Youth Movement and Freedom Road Socialist Organization rallied outside the REPKON USA facility off of Glenbrook Drive, on October 10. Settled in a relatively quiet suburb outside of Dallas next to a high school football stadium, the REPKON facility spans 38 acres and is responsible for the production of the Mk-80 and BLU-109 “bunker buster” bombs, the vast majority of the munitions dropped on families and refugee camps in Gaza along with other theatres of war around the globe.

Formerly part of General Dynamics, the facility was sold to REPKON’s defense holdings in 2025. The facility itself is no stranger to public pressure, with groups having held multiple teach-ins, community canvases, rallies and direct actions there since 2023 while it was still owned by General Dynamics.

Reacting to the impact of this facility, Siham Saadeh with Code Pink Dallas and the DFW Anti-War Committee said, “For many of us across DFW, learning that a bomb body plant, disguised as an aerospace defense site, sits blocks from a high school field was like a blow to the gut. It is shocking, ominous and unbearable. Communities across the world, especially in Gaza, live under the real-world consequences of these weapons every single day. And yet, we’re transforming that shock into action. Our resistance to this bomb manufacturer is a gesture of solidarity and a powerful statement: we refuse to be complicit.”

In light of the recent ceasefire agreement, a member of the DFW Anti War Committee stated, “Whether they fall in Gaza, in Yemen, in Venezuela, or in our own backyards, we will not rest until this factory becomes a site of creation rather than destruction. Regardless of any platitudes or promises of temporary peace, the time for change is now, and the time for change is always!”

The energy was high leading into the evening, with a wide range of speakers from Code Pink, Jewish Voice for Peace, and other groups sympathetic to the liberation of Palestinians delivering obituaries of those martyred by the bombs manufactured in Garland. Their voices echoed across the field, with chants of “We demand an arms embargo.”

As the sun set, demonstrators made their way to the corner of Glenbrook Drive and Walnut Street to hold a vigil honoring the memory of those who have lost their lives at the hands of the Israeli occupation forces. Demonstrators were met with an overwhelmingly positive community response, with many locals expressing their support for bringing awareness to REPKON’s involvement with the Palestinian genocide.

One DAWC member, who grew up in Garland, shared their thoughts, “When learning about the bomb factory, I felt shocked and then I felt sick. When thinking about how the place I grew up plays a key role in tearing families apart and killing children, I feel a pit of dread in my stomach. Knowing every bomb that kills a mother, father, son and daughter in Palestine passes through Garland at some point, makes me feel sadness and grief. As community members in Garland, we have power to say this is not what our city is about and is not something we want here. We need to say it loud!”

Not everyone was in support, however. As the evening progressed, a local biker presenting a tattered American flag stood by the vigil. As speakers shared the stories of those martyred by REPKON’s bombs, the counter-demonstrator stationed himself in the median of Glenbrook Drive, displaying the flag for commuters to see. According to many attendees at the scene, he was holding it backwards.

#GarlandTX #TX #AntiWarMovement #Palestine #DFWAWC #PYM #FRSO #WeaponsIndustry

Chicago, IL – On October 2, 60 protesters disrupted Union Station to take a militant stand against the U.S./Israeli genocide of Palestinians. Momentum was high after the illegal kidnappings of 497 activists of the Global Sumud Freedom Flotilla from 44 countries. This is the first time since 2009 that a boat has made it into Palestinian waters and broken Israel’s siege of Gaza.

The emergency action was led by Students for Justice in Palestine-Chicago (SJP Chicago) and successfully disrupted traffic as well as people trying to leave and enter the Amtrak station.

Escalating for Gaza

Protesters gathered on a corner across from Union Station. A member of SJP set the tone, chanting defiantly, “Gaza must have food and water! We won’t pay for Gaza’s slaughter!” As momentum built up, members of the Palestinian Youth Movement (PYM), New Students for a Democratic Society at UIC (New SDS at UIC) and more took to the streets.

As the march proceeded, protesters rushed inside of Union Station. They progressed downstairs as the racist Chicago Police Department (CPD) attempted to isolate and intimidate young activists. Rather than freeze and look away, protesters surrounded said officers chanting, “Back up, back up, we want freedom, all these racist ass cops we don’t need em need em!” and “Move cops get out the way, we know your Israeli trained!” leaving officers no choice but to stand idle and concede to their demands. Protesters continued, rushing to the lower level and catching people there by surprise.

Protesters gathered at the center of the station as Jinan Chehade, from American Muslims for Palestine (AMP), expressed the urgency of the situation in Gaza, stating, “We are here today to make some noise! Over the last 24 hours, 500 activists from 44 countries have been kidnapped by the Israeli military for delivering baby formula and medicine to Gaza. The global Sumud Flotilla showed us that Israel is not invincible. That the siege can be broken and will be broken.”

The final vessel made it through to Palestinian waters despite the seizure of 44 boats. This is the first time a boat has entered Palestinian waters since 2009. Chehade continued, “This just shows, two years later, that our movement is strong, it is not weak, we are strong, we get louder every single day! They are calling this week the global crossing to Gaza, from Naples, to Rome, to Italy, to Malaysia, to Chile, these people have taken to the streets to protest against Israel.”

Chehade concluded, “Finally I want to end by saying this showed us that even though Israel has U.S. backing and billions of dollars it is not invincible, their navy is not invincible. Let a thousand flotillas sail next time, while a thousand conflicts still happen, we will keep sailing, we will keep marching, we will keep screaming, until we break the siege on Gaza.”

As protesters continued further into the station, attempting to reach the railroads, CPD proceeded to continue grabbing protesters, brutalizing them, smashing megaphones, threatening arrests and stealing megaphone batteries in the process. Through this hectic confrontation, it was clear the police were caught completely off guard by the youth.

Protesters proceeded outside, marching in downtown Chicago, chanting and creating a spectacle of green smoke that gained support from onlookers. The march ultimately landed in front of the Israeli consulate. Protesters gave full energy as Farah Chalisa, an international human rights lawyer for a U.S. Freedom Flotilla member, spoke, along with a member of the Malcom X Grassroots movement.

#ChicagoIL #IL #AntiWarMovement #Palestine #PYM #SDS #AMP #SJP #MXGM #StudentMovement #Feature

New Orleans, LA – On September 21, around 70 people rallied and marched in response to recent attacks on the Gaza strip and also in support of Palestinian activist Mahmoud Khalil. Demands included “Hands off Gaza City!” “Hands off Mahmoud Khalil!” and “Arrest Netanyahu!”

As protesters gathered to hear speeches, chants of “Resistance is justified when Palestine is occupied!” and “Palestine is our demand, no peace on stolen land!” kept the crowd energized and unified under the banner of Palestinian liberation. Speakers expressed indignation at recent news reports about the IDF’s genocidal incursion into Gaza City.

“My uncle lives in a tent in Khan Younis, he says he can hear the bombing get louder in Gaza City. It’s worse than normal. That was two weeks ago, and now tanks are rolling into the city. It’s time to wake up!” said Leila Abu Orf, a member of the Palestinian Youth Movement in New Orleans.

Israel increased the scale of the genocide by targeting civilian infrastructure, destroying 20 high rise city blocks in the past two weeks. Although states like Canada, Britain and Australia debate recognition of an independent Palestinian state, people took to the streets to demand concrete measures to end the genocide now.

Agitated protesters cried, “Hands off Mahmoud now!” responding to the doubled-down efforts to deport Palestinian activist Mahmoud Khalil.

“They've been trying to repress our movement for so long, and they're continuing to try and repress our movement and the people at large. When they send ICE agents to arrest Mahmoud Khalil or anybody else that stands in solidarity with Palestine, we fight back!” shouted Shreyas Vasudevan, an organizer with New Orleans Stop Helping Israel’s Ports (NOSHIP).

Mahmoud Khalil, a fighter for Palestinian liberation who took on an important role in the Columbia University Popular University for Gaza encampment, recently faced a ruling by a Louisiana immigration judge that he must be deported to Algeria or Syria. Khalil was freed from an immigration prison on June 20 after months of organizing around his case.

“NOSHIP calls for the arrest and prosecution of the puppet prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, who has been warmly invited to the White House. Several hours ago, Netanyahu publicly threatened every country on Earth that was recognizing Palestine with American military violence,” said Charlie Schully, an organizer in NOSHIP. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, an international war criminal and helmsman of the Palestinian genocide, is set to speak at the United Nations Assembly in New York City. Calls for his arrest are widespread across the United States and the world.

Activists directed the crowd to take the movement to a new level by organizing to fight back and play an active role in Palestinian liberation.

“The Palestinian resistance is winning in the streets, the tunnels, on land and on the seas! We must support them as they kick this crumbling empire on its way down, and we say that is a very good thing!” said Serena Sojic-Borne of the Freedom Road Socialist Organization.

#NewOrleansLA #LA #AntiWarMovement #Palestine #NOSHIP #PYM #FRSO

Washington, DC – Before organizers from the DC Against Trump Coalition (DCAT) even finished setting up for their August 23 rally at 14th and U Streets in Northwest Washington DC, community members began spontaneously chanting “Fuck Trump!”

Anti-Trump sentiment has been sky-high in Washington, DC since August 11, when Trump issued an executive order sweeping away the city’s home rule powers, federalizing the Metropolitan Police Department and flooding the city with federal law enforcement and National Guard troops.

To capture that sentiment and turn it into action against Trump’s racist occupation, DCAT called a rally at the city’s “curfew zone,” a location where law enforcement targets Black minors found after 8 p.m.

The rally, organized over five days, brought out a multi-national crowd of close to 500 people from all over the city and mainly featured Black and brown speakers from the community who were fed up with Trump’s attacks on Black people and immigrants. A tenant organizer with Stomp Out Slumlords made it plain, shouting “I’m mad about a lot of things. It ain’t just Trump, it’s Mayor Bowser too! And Congress ain’t shit either, cuz all of them scared of Trump.”

The DCAT Coalition formed rapidly in the two weeks since Trump’s executive order, bringing together a dozen organizations such as the DC Alliance Against Racist and Political Repression, Colectivo De Familias Migrantes DC, Palestinian Youth Movement and Metro DC Democratic Socialists of America.

Following examples set by cities like Chicago and Grand Rapids, DCAT’s expressed goal is to pull together the broadest coalition possible of organizations from across the DC metropolitan area, all united to defeat Trump’s racist occupation of DC. A tenant organizer called on churches and pro-immigrant organizations to unite with the movement, saying “the history of Christianity is the history of the persecution of people who stood for something.”

Eventually, the rally flowed into a march down the U Street Corridor, one of the busiest nightlife destinations in the city. Protesters blocked both sides of the street as they chanted “Fuck the police” and “Chinga la migra!” The energy was electric, feeling more like a New Orleans second line than a rally as vent was given to all the pent up anger Washingtonians have been feeling towards Trump. Other sectors of the movement have done a good job of reminding people to be joyful, but this rally showed the importance of linking joy with the righteous rage people have towards Trump and his ruling-class cronies.

As the marchers jammed up the street and flowed past dozens of helpless MPD officers, people in all the establishments on either side of the street began chanting along and running to join the march. “Fuck Donald Trump!” rang out like a unanimous agreement between hundreds of people who for the most part did not know each other but were united in their hatred of Trump’s racist agenda.

At the end of the march route, the crowd dispersed into a mass Cop Watch. Groups of people patrolled the entire corridor, filming and berating the police as they went. One group of officers was caught terrorizing an innocent man. They had a dog searching his car when the cop watchers noticed them and began filming. Seeing the Cop Watchers, the officers covered their faces, let the man go, and fled the scene, as they often do.

DCAT plans to build on their momentum in order to grow the coalition and the resistance against Trump’s occupation. Kristen Bonner, co-chair of the DC Alliance Against Racist and Political Repression stated, “We are building the broadest coalition possible. You don’t have to be Black to fight for Black people, and you don’t have to be from DC to fight for DC! If you want to stand up to Trump and his racist police dogs, we want to stand with you!”

#WashingtonDC #InJusticeSystem #Trump #NationalGuard #DCAARPR #NAARPR #DCAT #PYM #Feature

Chicago, IL – 100 Chicagoans braved pouring rain in Daley Plaza on Tuesday, August 12, for an emergency protest for Gaza. The Chicago Coalition for Justice in Palestine  (CJP) called the protest in response to the Zionist entity’s assassination on Sunday of Al Jazeera crew members Anas al-Sharif, Mohammed Qraiqea, Mohammed al-Khaldi, Ibrahim al-Thaher and Mohamed Nofal. 

Protesters continued demanding an end to the genocide in Gaza, as well as a call-out against the Western press that has refused to support their Palestinian colleagues or report on the mass murder of 270 journalists in Gaza since October 2023.

After a rally, the protesters went from Daley Plaza to the front of the CBS News building across the street. They confronted the news corporation during its nightly broadcast for its silence and complicity in the genocide.

Nashwa Bawab with the Palestine Youth Movement (PYM) is a media worker. She asked, “How often do these news stations cover the genocide in Gaza? How often do you hear them talking about the murders of journalists, doctors, healthcare workers, civilians?”

“The occupation and the U.S. believe that if they silence journalists, that they can silence Gaza – that if they murder the reporters and the camera crew, that the world would forget their war crimes,” said Nadiah Alyafai, an organizer with the US Palestinian Community Network (USPCN). “We will keep their stories alive, we must live to tell their stories.”

Alyafai led chants including, “We will honor all our martyrs! All our journalists and doctors!” 

The chant included doctors because doctors and hospitals in Gaza have been a consistent target of the genocide. The Al Jazeera crew was murdered by an Israeli drone that struck the media tent, which was located near the Al-Shifa Medical Complex. 

Protesters set up a memorial in front of the window of the main CBS newsroom on Dearborn Street to make the protest visible and audible to everyone watching the nightly CBS broadcast.

In response, CBS closed its windows to hide the protest.



“These are editorial decisions that are being made from the bottom to the top,” Bawab said. “Where are all the journalists crying out for their fellow colleagues?” 

“What does that mean about the state of journalism today? It means it doesn’t exist anymore. It means our newspapers, magazines, news stations, are just PR agencies for genocide,” she added before calling on journalists and laypersons alike not to be silent about Gaza.

After the rally, protesters solemnly placed flowers on a memorial stand set up for the journalists. Muslim protesters called an evening salat.

The organizers thanked everyone for coming out and reminded them that the next CJP protest would be on Saturday, August 16 at 3:30 p.m. The location for Saturday's protest and information about future weekly protests in Chicago will be announced on USPCN social media.

#ChicagoIL #IL #AntiWarMovement #Palestine #USPCN #PYM

Dallas, TX – Palestinian Youth Movement called an emergency picket, August 12, at the Dallas Morning News headquarters downtown followed by a vigil for journalists and media members targeted by the Israeli military.

The picket was supported by the DFW Anti War Committee, Code Pink, Freedom Road Socialist Organization and the Party for Socialism and Liberation. By the middle of the afternoon a significant crowd had already gathered on the sidewalk, chanting “Dallas media you can’t hide, we charge you with genocide.”

Dallas Morning News is owned by Hearst Communications, whose investment wing for venture and startup capital only just recently closed its Tel Aviv office in August 2025.

By the end of the afternoon more supporters began to gather across the street outside Main Street Garden. By 6 p.m. the crowd had relocated to the park to hold a vigil and evening prayers in memory of journalists and media staff murdered by the Israeli government, including Anas al Sharif and the staff of Al Jazeera slain by the IDF the week prior.

Dr. Nouran Sharaf, who had spoken with Anas al Sharif and returned from Gaza herself after working in Al Shifa hospital, stated, “Their cameras confronted Israel’s propaganda and lies. Their words became weapons. Their courage was so threatening to their oppressor that the only way to defeat them was to permanently silence them. But let us remember that they were more than just journalists. They embodied the people of Gaza with their strength and resilience. They will forever remain witnesses that history could not erase and voices that could not be controlled.”

She continued with a reading of Anas al Sharif’s final will, urging the world to never allow itself to be silenced or to stop speaking against the Zionist’s apartheid regime, stating, “Be bridges toward the liberation of the land and its people, until the sun of dignity and freedom rises over our stolen homeland.”

Sam Judy, local journalist and founder of the online Dallas Nomad stated, “What constitutes resistance? When the entire Al Jazeera crew is exterminated because of their inability to control the narrative, it becomes resistance just living and preserving the truth.”

Judy concluded, “You have to keep in mind that these folks did not report before this siege. These folks started during the siege. So imagine having a job like this as demanding as it is, that has as much responsibility laden with it, and you are in your early 20s, and you are in a genocide, dodging air strikes much of your day – these are some of the best human beings that have ever been created.”

A banner was laid out where community members wrote the names of slain journalists and media staff targeted by Israel. The list was read aloud, their names numbering nearly 400 in the last 25 years alone.

The evening ended with a solemn Salat al Gha’ib, n prayer for those in Gaza who have died so far with no one to pray for them.

#DallasTX #TX #AntiWarMovement #Palestine #PYM #DAWC

Chicago, IL – On August 4, a crowd packed Pilsen Community Books for a teach-in led by Educators for Palestine. Organizations from across Chicago presented their campaigns for immediate divestment from Israel. The teach-in was aimed at Chicago teachers, who have 1.8% of their pension funds invested in companies listed in the boycott, divest, sanction (BDS) list.

Members of Educators for Palestine shared that the Chicago Teachers’ Pension Fund (CTPF) invests $132 million in weapons manufacturers, $46 million in tech and software, and $20 million in oil and gas companies. CTPF also holds $1.6 million in Israel Bonds that provide Israel with unrestricted funding to use for military expenditures and settlements. They urged educators to attend CTPF meetings and demand immediate divestment. Some attended the CTPF meeting downtown the next morning to bring the demand to board members.

From a moral and financial standpoint, it’s clear that investing in Israel Bonds is the wrong decision. Noura Ebrahim, a leader of BDS – Chicago, a project of the US Palestinian Community Network (USPCN), explained why it’s also a bad financial investment.

“Israel is actively committing a genocide in Gaza, its economy is in freefall, its credit rating has been downgraded significantly, and it faces growing global isolation,” Ebrahim said while teaching attendees about the statewide Divest Illinois From Genocide campaign, which is co led by BDS Chicago and the Anti-War Committee Chicago (AWC). The campaign calls on State Treasurer Michael Frerichs to divest from Israel Bonds and the Illinois State Board of Investments (ISBI) to divest from companies complicit in the genocide and occupation of Palestine.

“As Illinois taxpayers, and as educators, and as community members, we should not be forced to have our money tied to genocide,” Ebrahim concluded while urging people to rally at the next quarterly ISBI meeting on September 19.

Attendees learned about the campaign to boycott Teva, the world’s largest generic pharmaceutical company. Teva is a major factor in the genocide, as it provides millions of dollars in tax revenue that boosts Israel’s economy and funds the Israeli Defense Forces (IDF).

Presenters urged listeners to call their pharmacies and say they refuse to take Teva medication if there is another option. Healthcare professionals are required to record this refusal in patients’ charts and abide by it to the best of their ability. They also recommended switching to an independent pharmacy, which typically has more control over what brands it carries.

The final presentation was from Mask off Maersk, a campaign demanding an end to the shipping and manufacturing of weapons for Israel. Maersk is the world’s second-largest logistics company, and some of those profits can be attributed to the destruction of Gaza.

Members of the Palestinian Youth Movement (PYM) explained that Maersk has transported millions of pounds of military cargo into Israel from the U.S., including the F-35 fighter jets which drop bombs on Gaza. They encouraged people to research and disrupt the supply chain of arms to Israel.

Each presentation had a different focus, but one clear message rang through every speaker – the people of Illinois do not want their money tied to genocide. The event ended with breakout groups, with members of each organization answering additional questions regarding their campaign and ways to get involved.

To support the campaign to divest Illinois from genocide, sign-on here as an indi