By Eloise Schell and staff

Chicago, IL – On Monday, September 28, about 60 activists gathered outside the Bilandic Building to protest at the quarterly Illinois State Board of Investment (ISBI) meeting. Protesters, some of whom traveled from as far as central Illinois, called on the ISBI vice-chair, Illinois State Treasurer Michael Frerichs, to divest from Israel Bonds, and called for ISBI to continue divestment from companies complicit in the Israeli genocide of Palestinians and ICE attacks on immigrants. 

Minneapolis, MN – The Minnesota Anti-War Committee (AWC) and other organizations took part in an international “Purge Palantir” week of action September 26 to October 1. Led by the American Friends Service Committee, the week of action sought to pressure public institutions, universities, state pension investment entities, and hospital systems to end contracts with Palantir.

Activist groups and human rights organizations from the U.S., UK, Australia, South and Central America, and beyond organized to disrupt business as usual for Palantir Technologies.

Jacksonville, FL – On Wednesday, September 23, the Jacksonville Palestine Solidarity Network (JPSN) held their second class in a series of free educational sessions, inspired by the popular education that arose in the First Intifada in opposition to Israel outlawing all Palestinian educational institutions. The second class was held as an introduction to Palestine titled “Life Under Occupation: Finding Hope Through Resistance.”

New York, NY – On Friday September 24, thousands of protesters took to the streets of New York City as Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu arrived to address the 81st United Nations General Assembly.

Protesters gathered around the United Nations and throughout Manhattan to oppose Netanyahu’s presence in New York and demand his arrest for crimes committed by Israel against Palestinians.

Bozeman, MT – After months of working on pressuring Montana State University to divest from companies directly tied to the genocide in Gaza, the Students Against Genocide campaign has moved to putting pressure on the city of Bozeman as well, packing a September 22 city commission meeting.

Both the city and university have funded a technology district called the Innovation Campus, which houses tenants that specialize in technology marketed to the U.S. Defense Department. The city of Bozeman entered a contract in 2022 to reimburse the infrastructure costs to the developer of the land. Now, after three buildings have been built, the city must take out bonds to pay back this developer.

Tucson, AZ – Nearly 30 community members joined the Tucson Anti-War Committee (TAWC) on September 19 to protest 200 days of U.S. war on Iran outside of Howmet Aerospace, held as part of the Anti-War Action Network’s (AWAN) nationwide call to action.

TAWC connected the war to their local campaign to demand that Howmet Aerospace cut their contract providing parts for Lockheed Martin’s F-35 jet program, which allows them to profit from genocide and war.

Salt Lake City, UT- On Friday, September 18, dozens of anti-war activists and community members gathered in front of the Wallace F. Bennett Federal building to protest 200 days of the U.S. war on Iran in response to a call to action from the Anti-War Action Network.

A broad coalition of anti-war and community groups organized the protest, which drew in a wide range of participants, ranging from organizers and students to anti-war military veterans and families with young children.

New York, NY – On September 18, members of the Students for a Democratic Society at NYU held a speakout as part of a national week of action to oppose the “Protect Economic and Academic Freedom Act” (HR 4795), which was recently passed by the U.S. House of Representatives. If the bill becomes law, it will strip federal funding from universities that divest from the state of Israel.

Minneapolis, MN – On Tuesday, September 15, protesters gathered at Loring Park to mark the 44th anniversary of the Sabra and Shatila massacre, when thousands of Palestinians and Lebanese were slaughtered by far-right Lebanese militias with the assistance and supervision of the Israeli military.

Milwaukee, WI – On September 17, a small yet spirited group of community members gathered for a banner drop to mark 200 days of war on Iran.

Organized by the Milwaukee Anti-war Committee (MAC), this banner drop was in response to the National Week of Action by the Anti-War Action Network (AWAN), with more than 15 protests coordinated across the country. The AWAN demands include an end to the war on Iran, an end to U.S. aid to Israel, and an investment in human needs, not war.

Portland, OR – On September 9, ICE beat a Portland area Palestinian who was resisting deportation to the genocide in Palestine. ICE attempted to place Tareq Zakarneh on a deportation flight. When he resisted, ICE put him in a WRAP restraint device and beat him so badly his tooth was broken.

Jacksonville, FL – On Tuesday, August 8, community members of the Jacksonville Palestine Solidarity Network (JPSN) mobilized to Jacksonville City Council to demand the Police and Fire Pension Fund Board of Trustees not reinvest into TEVA Pharmaceuticals and divest its investment portfolios from Israel and Israeli companies.

TEVA Pharmaceuticals is a predatory company that helped fuel the fentanyl crisis, and it functions as an economic and societal pillar of the genocidal, war-mongering state of Israel. Despite the Jacksonville’s Police and Fire Pension Fund (PFPF) being in a 45% underfunded state of crisis, it currently has $200 million invested in Israeli bonds with $2 million invested into TEVA Pharmaceutical junk bonds specifically, one of which is up for renewal on October 1, less than a month away.

Pittsburgh, PA – In a partial victory for students, Carnegie Mellon University dropped its case against eight students charged with discrimination and harassment. The students were charged after painting a series of anti-Zionist messages on the university’s designated “free speech fence.”

Philadelphia, PA – On Wednesday evening, August 26, over 80 protesters gathered outside the entrance of the Pennsylvania Convention Center to protest the war profiteers attending the Defense Industrial Base Accelerator, a convention centered around building the U.S. industrial base for greater war production.

It is not surprising that Philadelphia would be chosen to host such a convention. There has recently been a bipartisan push at local and national levels to bolster the position of the defense industry in Philadelphia.

St. Paul, MN – Amid a nationwide wave of outrage against Flock automatic license plate readers, community members packed city council chambers on August 26 for a public hearing on police surveillance technology and data privacy. Dozens of community members testified to their opposition to the city’s use of the artificial intelligence (AI)-powered cameras made by Flock and Axon, as well as autonomous drones manufactured by Skydio.

Fight Back News Service is circulating the following statement from the Utah Anti-War Committee.

On Tuesday, August 25th, members of Utah Anti-War Committee met with Salt Lake District 1 Council member Jiro Johnson.

We demanded that Johnson formally and publicly condemn the Raytheon AST weapons facility located in his district in West Valley City. Raytheon makes bombs and guided missiles for the Israeli and U.S. military. These weapons are used in well-documented war crimes in Iran and Palestine.

San José, CA – On August 20, the second day of the fall semester, Students for a Democratic Society (SDS) led a protest on the San José State University Campus. SDS has been leading a “No Tech for Genocide” campaign for several years, demanding that university administration cut all ties with weapons manufacturer Lockheed Martin. San José State University has maintained ties with Lockheed for decades, including hosting specific engineering master’s programs tailored to send students straight to working as weapons designers.

Tucson, AZ – On August 20, members of the Tucson Anti-War Committee (TAWC) hosted a call-in event to tell war profiteer Howmet Aerospace that companies that profit from endless wars and genocide are not welcome in their community.

Jacksonville, FL – On Saturday, August 15, community members and leaders of Jacksonville Palestine Solidarity Network (JPSN) rallied to demand an end to the U.S.-Israeli continued murder of Palestinian journalists.

The event was just five days after the anniversary of the martyrdom of Anas Al-Sharif, an award-winning frontline Palestinian journalist. Al-Sharif was murdered by a targeted airstrike on August 10, 2025, by the Israeli occupation forces.