Lansing, MI – Upwards of 10,000 union workers and their supporters rallied outside the Michigan State Capitol today, Dec. 11, chanting, “Kill the bill!” People of all ages rallied, from Vietnam Vets to high school students. The United Auto Workers, Michigan Teachers Union, government workers with AFSCME and AFGE, construction, fire fighters and other unions joined together to oppose so-called ‘right to work’ bills.

Michigan Republicans caught Democratic legislators sleeping on the job, and launched a surprise campaign, speeding the ‘right to work’ bills through the House. The vote by Michigan legislators to hamper government unions passed 58 votes to 51. A second bill affecting the private sector, like auto plants, passed 58-52. It allows workers to opt out of paying dues to the union, while benefiting from a union contract. It is a step by Republican politicians aimed at destroying unions altogether.

Now the bills go to Governor Rick Snyder, who promised to sign them, reversing his earlier position. Snyder, a Republican, campaigned for governor presenting himself as “the Nerd”, but once in office ran a far-right agenda benefiting the wealthy and corporations. When the bill passed the House, demonstrators chanted, “Don’t sign it!” both inside and outside the Michigan capitol building.

The governor called out riot police, including riot-clad horses. Former Congressman Mark Schauer of Michigan and other union members were pepper sprayed by police as they attempted to negotiate a path to move away from the capitol building. Then around noon, union rank and file members knocked down a large tent belonging to a handful of anti-union types. The union members reportedly told the misnamed Americans for Progress that today was the union members’ day to protest and chased the corporate toadies away after a few scuffles. Police moved in to try to protect the corporate funded anti-union activists, but arrived too late.

Unions mobilized broadly across Michigan for today’s protest, including unions arriving from the state’s Upper Peninsula. Labor activists also came from Wisconsin, Illinois, Indiana and Ohio in solidarity. The union leaders’ message is “strong unions mean a better life for all working people.” In states with ‘right to work’ laws, wages and benefits are amongst the lowest in the country. The battle is going to heat up again prior to Governor Snyder signing the bills into law. Jesse Jackson arrived in the afternoon and, using the people’s mic, called for a one-day general strike.

#LansingMI #StateRepression #rightToWork #GovernorRickSnyder #antiunionBusting

St. Paul, MN – The case of Mick Kelly, whose lawyers filed the first lawsuit resulting from police violence at the 2008 Republican National Convention on his behalf, was resolved in a settlement conference at the U.S. Courthouse here.

In a widely publicized incident, police, standing only feet away, shot Kelly in his belly with a high velocity marking projectile. Kelly was at the demonstration organized by the Anti-War Committee on the fourth day of the RNC, Sept. 4, 2008.

“This is a partial victory,” states Kelly. “Before, during and afterwards, the authorities attempted to quash dissent at the Republican National Convention. The settlement in this case indicates the police did something wrong. We had every right to speak out against U.S. wars at the Republican National Convention.”

Mick Kelly, one of the main organizers of the massive march and rally on the first day of the Republican National Convention, earlier prevailed in a separate lawsuit against the city of Saint Paul after his arrest for leafleting at a June 2008 Obama rally. He is also one of the Twin Cities anti-war and international solidarity activists whose home was raided by the FBI on Sept. 24, 2010.

While the exact dollar amount of the settlement is undisclosed, Kelly states that he intends to make a $5000 donation to the Committee to Stop FBI Repression – the organization that is defending the anti-war activists whose homes were raided on Sept. 24, 2010 and others served with subpoenas by the Chicago U.S. Attorney.

Kelly agreed to settle when the judge overseeing the case ruled against Kelly’s moves to subpoena a police infiltrator in the anti-war movement who went by the name of ‘Karen Sullivan.’ Officer Sullivan joined the Anti-War Committee in the months prior to the RNC and was present at the protest where the shooting took place. “We hoped to find out more about how Karen Sullivan, who helped target activists for FBI raids, was involved in the repression that took place at the RNC,” said Kelly.

#SaintPaulMN #AntiwarMovement #InJusticeSystem #ProtestRNC2008 #StateRepression #RepublicanNationalConvention2008 #AntiWarCommittee #lawsuit #MickKelly #KarenSullivan #2008RepublicanNationalConventionRNC #RNC2008 #infiltration

Chicago, IL – On May 25, the Committee Against Political Repression brought together 30 supporters of Carlos Montes to denounce the raid by the FBI and Los Angeles Sheriff. Gathering in front of the Federal Building in Chicago, despite a thunder storm, the press conference and rally included a number of speakers.

The first speaker was Jesus Guillen of the Moratorium on Deportations Campaign, the group that led the May 1st immigrant rights march in Chicago this year. Guillen said of Montes and the 23 anti-war activists subpoenaed by the grand jury in Chicago, “We cannot stay quiet; we have to demand the return of all property taken from Montes; that all charges have to be dropped against him and against all those who have been subpoenaed for fighting for justice in the U.S. and abroad.”

Alejandro Molina spoke next from the Boricua Human Rights Network, a human rights organization of Puerto Ricans in the U.S. and their supporters. “Under Obama’s administration, there have been more attacks on dissidents and more deportations than under Bush. Also under President Obama, the parole for Puerto Rican political prisoner Oscar Lopez Rivera has been denied.”

Magda Castaneda of the Comité Anti-Militarización (CAMi) an anti-war group from the Chicano and Latino community in Chicago, quoted Martin Luther King, “An injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere.” Emma Lozano of Sin Fronteras, a leading organization in the immigrant rights movement also spoke. She demanded that the charges against Montes be dropped, and also that President Obama stop breaking apart the families of immigrant workers. Mark Clements of the Campaign to End the Death Penalty wrapped up the press conference. One of the innocent victims of Chicago Police torturer Jon Burge, Clements spent 17 years in prison after a confession was tortured out of him. Clements has been at every rally for the 23 anti-war activists targeted by the grand jury and U.S. Attorney Pat Fitzgerald, and called for the resistance to continue.

When the thunderstorm finally subsided, the crowd picketed and chanted, “One, two three four – FBI broke down the door. Five, six, seven, eight – Fight back before it’s too late.”

Video of Chicago press conference against raid of the home of Carlos Montes

#ChicagoIL #ImmigrantRights #InJusticeSystem #StateRepression #ChicanoLatino #EmmaLozano #CarlosMontes #SinFronteras #CommitteeToStopFBIRepression #MoratoriumOnDeportationsCampaign #ComitéAntiMilitarización #BoriquaHumanRightsNetwork

Lucha y Resiste esta circulando el siguiente comunicado del Comite por los derechos de inmigrantes en Minnesota (MIRAc) denunciando la redada en la casa de Carlos Montes. Pedimos que otras organizaciones tambien manden mensajes de apoyo al stopfbi.net.

MIRAc denuncia fuertemente la redada el 17 de mayo a las 5:00 a.m. por el equipo SWAT del departamento del sheriff de Los Angeles y miembros del FBI en la casa de Carlos Montes, líder del movimiento inmigrante en Los Angeles. Carlos es un activista chicano, un lider del Southern California Immigration Coalition y de Latinos Contra la Guerra. Carlos es un lider del movimiento inmigrate bien conocido y respetado al nivel nacional.

El equipo SWAT rompió la puerta de la casa de Carlos y entró con armas de fuego automáticas mientras Carlos dormía. El equipo del Sheriff y el FBI saqueo su casa, tomaron su computadora, teléfonos celulares y cientos de documentos, fotos, discos y recuerdos de sus actividades políticas actuales en el movimiento pro-inmigrante y el movimiento por los derechos civiles de los chicanos. También tomaron cientos de documentos históricos de su involucramiento en el movimiento chicano por los últimos 44 años.

Este ataque contra Carlos Montes es parte de la campaña del FBI en contra de 23 activistas por la paz y la justicia que hasta ahora está tomando lugar en el medio oriente del país. El nombre de Carlos Montes estaba en la citación legal que dejaron en la oficina del Comité Anti-Guerra en Minneapolis durante la redada el 24 de septiembre pasado, y durante la redada de su casa los agentes del FBI intentaron cuestionarle sobre este caso.

Carlos Montes ha dedicado toda su vida a la lucha por los derechos de los inmigrantes, por el derecho a la educación y en contra de la guerra. Él no ha hecho ninguna cosa mala. Este es un ataque no sólo en contra de Carlos sino que en contra del movimiento Chicano por la igualdad y el movimiento para los derechos de los inmigrantes.

Alto a los ataques contra el movimiento Chicano y el movimiento por los derechos de los inmigrantes

• Exigimos un alto a los cargos contra Carlos Montes.
• Exigimos se le regrese toda la propiedad personal que tomaron de su casa.
• Recomendamos que tod@s llamen al Abogado General Estadounidense Eric Holder 202-353-1555 para exigir ‘manos fuera de Carlos Montes’ y otros activistas del movimiento pro-inmigrante y del movimiento anti-guerra.

#MinneapolisMN #ImmigrantRights #StateRepression #FBI #MIRAc #CarlosMontes #MinnesotaImmigrantRightsActionCommittee #PoliticalRepression

Fight Back News is circulating the following statement from the Minnesota Immigrant Rights Action Committee (MIRAc) on the brutal raid conducted at the home of Carlos Montes. We urge other organizations to send messages of support to stopfbi.net

MIRAc strongly condemns the raid on May 17 at 5:00 a.m. by the SWAT Team of the Los Angeles Sheriff’s Department and members of the FBI on the home of immigrant rights leader Carlos Montes in Los Angeles. Carlos is a long-time Chicano activist, a leader in the Southern California Immigration Coalition and in Latinos Against War. Carlos is a nationally-known and widely respected leader of the immigrant rights movement.

The SWAT Team smashed Carlos’s front door and rushed in with automatic weapons as Carlos slept. The team of Sheriffs and FBI proceeded to ransack his house, taking his computer, cell phones and hundreds of documents, photos, diskettes and mementos of his current political activities in the pro-immigrant rights and Chicano civil rights movement. Also taken were hundreds of historical documents related to Carlos Montes’ involvement in the Chicano movement for the past 44 years.

This attack on Carlos Montes is part of the campaign of FBI harassment taking place against the 23 peace and justice activists which has until now been centered in the Midwest. Carlos Montes’ name was listed on the subpoena left in the office of the Twin Cities Anti-War Committee last September 24, and FBI agents tried to question him about the case during the raid.

Carlos Montes has dedicated his life to struggling for immigrant rights, for education rights, and against war. He has done nothing wrong. This is an attack on him and an attack on the Chicano movement for equality and the immigrant rights movement as a whole.

Stop the Attacks on the Chicano and Immigrants Rights Movement!

• We demand all charges be dropped against Carlos Montes.
• We call for the immediate return of all his property.
• We encourage everyone to call US Attorney General Eric Holder (202) 353-1555 and demand Hands Off Carlos Montes and other immigrant rights & anti-war activists.

#MinneapolisMN #ImmigrantRights #StateRepression #FBI #MIRAc #CarlosMontes #MinnesotaImmigrantRightsActionCommittee

The press conference exposed the role of an undercover cop, going by the name of “Karen Sullivan,” who entered the anti war movement shortly before the 2008 Republican National Convention.

To date, 23 international solidarity and anti-war activists have been subpoenaed to appear in front of a grand jury in Chicago. Protests are being planned in cities across the U.S. for Jan. 25, the date that Palestine solidarity activists have been called to appear in front of the Grand Jury.

Statement by Jess Sundin at Jan 12 Press Conference

We are here today to express outrage that our democratic rights have been violated by a government operation of spying, infiltration and disruption of our anti-war movement, which was carried out over the course of at least two and half years.

In April 2008, law enforcement officer Karen Sullivan, joined the Anti-War Committee. In 2008, we were involved in organizing the anti-war marches on the first and last days of the Republican National Convention in St. Paul. At that time, there was a massive security operation here which included the infiltration of the RNC Welcoming Committee. We now have it confirmed that in this same time period, we too became the subject of government investigation. The difference is that our spy made herself comfortable and decided to stay awhile, posing as a fellow anti-war activist and pretending to befriend us.

For two and a half years, Officer Sullivan participated, sometimes even serving as chairperson, in weekly AWC meetings where everyone present has a say in the decisions the committee makes. Officer Sullivan had a key to this office, a key which was later used by the FBI on September 24th, to enter and search our office, seizing our computers, financial records and other materials. For the last year or so, she assisted with the bookkeeping, and had unimpeded access to our financial records. On several occasions, Officer Sullivan gave public speeches on behalf of the AWC, including on Colombia and Palestine. Some of these speeches can be found on our website to this day. My point here is that Officer Sullivan had full-access to all the work of the Anti-War Committee – to our membership lists, our finances, our decision-making and anything else she wanted to know about us.

Even after two and a half years of this full access, there are no charges against anyone. Instead, nearly two dozen people are being dragged through an intimidating grand jury process, a fishing expedition. If there were truly criminal activity happening here, Agent Sullivan would have known all about it. The only crimes committed here were the abuses of our rights carried out by Karen Sullivan herself.

Unfortunately, Officer Sullivan took a special interest in the Anti-War Committee’s coalition work. She represented our committee at meetings of the Iraq Peace Action Coalition and the Coalition for Palestinian Rights. She also represented us in national venues – the Latin America Solidarity Coalition, at the School of the Americas Watch protests, and at the US Social Forum in Detroit last summer. About a year ago, she also joined Freedom Road Socialist Organization, which is talked about by the government in this case, in a manner reminiscent of the McCarthy era political witch hunts.

The government has no right to spy on the Anti-War Committee, or the many organizations we work with. Officer Sullivan’s actions reflect only the latest example of FBI surveillance of progressive movements in this country. These kinds of actions were described in the October 2010 Inspector General report, which documents efforts to spy on peace movement groups like the Anti-War Committee.

These actions make a mockery of our democratic rights, as outlined in the Constitution – the rights to freedom of speech, freedom of dissent, and freedom of association. Officer Sullivan went beyond simple surveillance, to become an active participant in the work of the AWC, to the point of disrupting it.

When I speak of disruption, I am referring to an August 2009 solidarity delegation to Palestine. This delegation was a fact-finding mission, where participants were to witness the conditions for Palestinians living under US-backed occupation, and to express our solidarity in a person-to-person way. Officer Sullivan made public her plans to join this delegation, she helped to promote it and fundraise for it here in our community. At the same time, she was secretly working to sabotage the trip entirely. Through her work, reports were passed onto Israeli authorities, who then barred entry to the two Minneapolis women traveling with Karen Sullivan. Her action, on behalf of the US government, deprived these women of their rights to travel, association and dissent. The government was wrong to disrupt our important and legal work against US aid to Israel.

It has become apparent to us that this delegation, and some of the fundraising work done to support it, is of great concern to the US attorney’s office in Chicago. In order to help fund the travel of the three women from Minneapolis – including Officer Sullivan – and to send a token symbol of solidarity to the Palestinian people, a series of fundraisers were organized. We were very open about our work to support the Union of Palestinian Women’s Committees, which is an NGO registered with the Palestinian Authority, and which is not illegal under Israeli or international law.

The Union of Palestinian Women’s Committees works for women’s equality. Their activities include support for women refugees and women political prisoners, and providing basic social services for women, including several child care centers. These women are right to be working for justice in Palestine, and there is no reason we should be criminalized for supporting them. However, that is exactly what has happened.

On September 24th, federal agents burst into our homes and turned our lives upside down. The community, fellow activists, co-workers, friends and family have all rallied around us. In fact, people we never met, from across the country have stood by us, to defend our right to engage in anti-war and international solidarity activism.

But one person disappeared entirely – a person we thought was a fellow activist and who had claimed to be our friend: Karen Sullivan. This woman not only worked with us in the Anti-War Committee and other groups, she involved herself in our personal lives. Getting to know our children, joining in birthday celebrations, paying visits on our families when someone’s sick.

In conversations with the US Attorney’s office in Chicago, it has become clear that everything we thought we knew about Karen Sullivan was a lie. She was never a friend, or a person of conscience helping us to work for peace with justice.

Instead she was a law enforcement officer, working to surveil us, our friends and our organizations. She was working to disrupt our political organizing. This is more than a story of personal betrayal, but one of political repression. It sickens me that on the word of this liar, the government came into our homes, seized our property, and launched a grand jury witch hunt that has snared not only those that knew Karen Sullivan, but now so many other good people from here to Chicago. On the word of this liar, the FBI has questioned our colleagues across the country – from North Carolina, Wisconsin, Arizona and California.

Rather than crumble under this pressure, our movement is responding with strength and unity. We will stand together behind every woman and man that Patrick Fitzgerald tries to haul before his grand jury. On January 25th, when nine Palestinians and Palestine solidarity activists are called before the grand jury in Chicago, people will be protesting at Federal Buildings and FBI offices across the country.

We, the anti-war and international solidarity activists being targeted by Fitzgerald, have the support of every progressive movement in this country – from trade unionists to the immigrants’ rights movement, from students to people of faith, and everyone in between. Opposing war is no crime. International solidarity is not a crime. We are not alone, we have done nothing wrong and we will not be afraid.

#MinneapolisMN #AntiwarMovement #InJusticeSystem #StateRepression #FederalBureauOfInvestigationFBI #September24FBIRaids

Detroit, MI – As part of nationwide protest actions September 27 and 28, in Detroit today a broad array of activists and community members denounced the FBI raids and harassment against members of the Freedom Road Socialist Organization and Students for a Democratic Society at a protest rally at the McNamara Federal Building.

Hoisting placards such as “Stop FBI Raids,” “Freedom to Dissent,” and “FBI Terror Must Stop,” dozens of protesters came out in solidarity with those attacked and invaded by the FBI.

“The FBI they got it wrong. They thought they'd scare us off. They thought we wouldn't want to fight the system when we saw what they were doing to the Freedom Road, SDS and others. They thought maybe they could pick us apart, pull us away and have us all say, 'well they're just troublemakers we're not going to defend them.' Well, every progressive group in this country is coming out against the FBI, against its terror, against the agents that raided homes in Chicago and even stole kids' toys,” said Martha Grevatt, a UAW member and organizer with the Bail Out The People Movement, at the Detroit protest.

In the early morning hours of September 24 fully armed FBI swat teams invaded the homes of FRSO, SDS, the Minneapolis Anti-War Committee and other progressive activists in Minneapolis, Chicago and Grand Rapids, Michigan stealing boxes of personal and organizational effects and seizing computers, cell phones and other items. FBI agents also “visited” activists' homes or called activists in California, Milwaukee, Michigan and North Carolina in an attempt to intimidate them. No activists have been arrested yet but at least 11 thus far have been served with subpoenas notifying them to appear before grand juries in October.

The government is accusing the invaded organizations of “material support for terrorism” but representatives of SDS and FRSO categorically deny this and say the FBI is engaging in another witch hunt and fishing expedition in an effort to fracture and divide the international progressive movement.

Demonstrations, press conferences and other protest actions are erupting across the United States from coast to coast since the raids and over 30 were held on September 28 and 29 alone. Activists are also using many communication mediums including videos, blogs, and email appeals to help defend those attacked by the FBI.

The demands of protesters are: Stop the repression against anti-war and international solidarity activists; Immediately return all confiscated materials: computers, cell phones, papers, documents, etc.; and End the grand jury proceedings against anti-war activists.

“The FBI is doing this to intimidate us but it's backfiring because people all over the country are coming together to say 'no to this witch hunt, no we're not going back to McCarthyism.' We know COINTELPRO is still alive and we fought it for decades and we're going to fight it now. We're going to stand up to the FBI's oppression and we're 'gonna push them back,” said Grevatt.

‘FBI off our backs: Enough attacks!’

At the Detroit protest as the crowd chanted, “FBI off our backs: Enough attacks,” “Solidarity is not a crime: From Colombia to Palestine,” and other slogans, Mr. Dawud Walid, Executive Director of the Michigan chapter of the Council on American Islamic Relations (CAIR), spoke to this reporter.

“I’m here to defend the 1st amendent and for the freedom of speech and of association. The recent raids that took place on peace activists are basically amoun