On February 14, Students for a Democratic Society held our Valentine’s Day Rally outside Morrill Hall to demand immediate action from President Gabel and the University administration on students’ demands for increased abortion access on campus. In response to students exercising our right to protest, administration locked the doors to Morrill Hall and placed armed UMPD officers inside the entrance.

Administration's response to this demonstration calling for greater healthcare access for its community is reprehensible. By using UMPD's presence to try to intimidate us out of entering Morrill Hall to bring our demands directly to President Gabel, administration has made it clear where they stand. They would rather try to frighten students away from exercising our rights than fulfill the university's obligation to us. We have to organize and fight to demand that the administration follows through on its responsibility to students, campus workers, and community members, as well as its responsibility to the entire state of Minnesota.

We continue to demand that the university:

Open an abortion clinic on every UMN campus

Create and properly fund a reproductive resource center for students, staff, and faculty

Implement a reproductive health resource module for incoming students similar to those about sexual misconduct and drug and alcohol use

Cease participation in revenue-generating events in states with abortion bans

Students who are looking to join the fight for women's and reproductive rights on our campus are more than welcome to join SDS at our meetings and next actions to make administration hear the demands of students, and to make clear that we will not back down from protesting and fighting for abortion rights – especially not for admin’s scare-tactics.

Defend Women's and Reproductive Rights!

A Clinic on Every Campus!

Abortion Access Now!

#MinneapolisMN #StudentsForADemocraticSocietyUOfMN #reproductiveRights #AbortionRights

Since before the overturning of Roe v. Wade by the U.S. Supreme Court, Students for a Democratic Society has been organizing on campus to protect and expand women’s and reproductive rights. We have organized marches, rallies, call-ins and more to demand immediate action from the university administration, yet you so far have ignored our demands.

President Gabel, when Roe v. Wade was overturned, you made a statement outlining the resources available on campus, like we had called for, but you – as well as those of you on the board of regents – have on the whole remained unresponsive to the demands of students on this issue. The University of Minnesota has a responsibility to stand up for women’s and reproductive rights, and to use its resources to expand them on our campus and in the state.

The state of Minnesota only has 8 abortion clinics and has countless so-called “Crisis Pregnancy Centers” (which do not in fact provide access to resources and care, but manipulate people into not getting abortions, some even promote “abortion reversal” pills, which aren't based in science), with one just a light rail stop away from campus called “First Care Pregnancy Center”. This being said, it is imperative that an institution with the resources of the U of MN, one of the largest medical providers in the state, take action to expand access to these badly needed resources.

In order to protect and expand women’s and reproductive rights on our campus, we are demanding: the establishment of a Reproductive Rights Advocacy Center, which would be akin to the Aurora Center but provide support and resources for those seeking to access reproductive care such as abortions and STD testing; The creation of a reproductive health module for incoming freshman orientation; Boycotting by the University of big-ticket events in states with restrictive heartbeat bill abortion bans, in order to put greater pressure on states that are restricting these rights; and the establishing of an abortion clinic on every single University of Minnesota campus.

This issue and these demands resonate greatly with the students of this university, shown alone by the 10,000 people who joined us to protest the overturning of Roe last June, but also by the continued support students have shown of this campaign throughout the past semester. If you claim to care at all for the interests of students, campus workers, community members, and for reproductive justice at this university, then you have the duty to act immediately. We demand you, President Joan Gabel and the Board of Regents, meet with us to negotiate the implementation of our demands on campus.

Warmest Regards,

Students for a Democratic Society

sdsatumn@gmail.com

For students interested in hearing more about this campaign, follow us on instagram: @umnsds

#MinneapolisMN #UniversityOfMinnesota #StudentsForADemocraticSocietyUOfMN

Minneapolis, MN – On October 7, over 40 students and community members gathered at Morrill Hall at the University of Minnesota in Minneapolis to demand that the university administration take action to expand abortion access on campus. The crowd marched down Washington Avenue before arriving at Moos Tower, where the University of Minnesota medical school is located.

The action was organized by the UMN chapter of Students for a Democratic Society, who have been organizing around women and reproductive rights on the University of Minnesota campus, as well as the Twin Cities area more generally, since the overturn of Roe v. Wade earlier this year.

SDS presented several demands, including a newly updated reproductive health training module for incoming freshman, a well-funded center for reproductive health resources and an abortion clinic on every University of Minnesota campus, and for the university to cease business with states that ban abortion.

Sophomore Olivia Sepich, an SDS member, presented the demands and was the first to speak in front of Morrill Hall. She reminded attendants, “The most important thing we have is each other and the communities that we build.” Other speakers in the first half of the protest included Aarushi Sen representing Students for Climate Justice and Olivia Crull representing the new-formed Minnesota Abortion Action Coalition.

Speakers called attention to the barriers and fake “clinics” in place in the state of Minnesota that prevent people from seeking reliable healthcare. Olivia Crull, a member of Minnesota Abortion Action Coalition (MNAAC), raised that there are only eight abortion clinics in Minnesota, while there remain 90 crisis pregnancy centers, which are centers that attempt to dissuade patients from getting abortions and provide faulty resources like “abortion reversal pills.” These clinics receive funding from the state government, despite the fact that Governor Tim Walz, a Democrat, has repeatedly proclaimed his support for abortion rights, reflecting a contradiction between his words and his actions.

As the crowd chanted and marched down Washington Avenue to the attention of onlookers at the nearby Green Line stop, protesters gathered in front of Moos Tower to listen to the final speakers. Some people stopped their commute down the street to listen to representatives of different organizations, like Cherrene Horazuk of AFSCME 3800, the clerical workers’ union at UMN, and Siobhan Moore of SDS and Freedom Road Socialist Organization.

Sorcha Lona, another SDS member, closed out the protest by stressing the importance of more abortion clinics, and that restrictions to this access are a “shameful violation of bodily autonomy.” She continued, “We call on the administration of the University of Minnesota to do something about the scarcity of viable options for abortion. As an entity that holds so much power and influence throughout the state, the U has a responsibility to take care of its own community members.” With these statements, along with its unyielding community support, it is clear that SDS will make its presence known until their demands are met.

#MinneapolisMN #StudentsForADemocraticSocietyUOfMN #RoeVWade #AbortionRights

Minneapolis, MN – On October 8, about a dozen members of the University of Minnesota Students for a Democratic Society disrupted a meeting of the UMN Board of Regents to demand the implementation of a Campus Civilian Police Accountability Council (Campus CPAC).

“Students at the University of Minnesota deserve agency in regard to our so-called public safety,” said main speaker, Emma Hjelle, who also called for “a CPAC as a means to disarm, demilitarize and defund the University of Minnesota Police Department.”

As the protesters exited the meeting after Hjelle’s speech, they demanded a Campus CPAC by chanting “What do we want? Community control! When do we want it? Now!”

#MinneapolisMN #InJusticeSystem #PeoplesStruggles #PoliceBrutality #StudentsForADemocraticSocietyUOfMN #CivilianPoliceAccountabilityCommissionCPAC

Critics of the proposal from Students for a Democratic Society (SDS) point out that, despite repeated efforts and demands by students at large, the Campus Safety Committee had no mechanism for ensuring the cultural and racial representation of the university community members who have been historically harmed by police force.

The proposed committee was relegated only to a consultative role and did not: review UMPD officer misconduct, give its members the power to hire and fire UMPD officers, allow for general election of its members, or come from a framework that centers Black voices. The failed proposal contrasts with that of SDS, which calls for a Campus Civilian Accountability Council, or Campus CPAC, that has authoritative powers over the police force and representation across campus cultural and Black, Latino, indigenous and other oppressed nationality groups.

The proposal for the Campus Safety Committee even garnered concern from the Senate Professionals and Administrators Consultative committee, writing: “We are concerned that critical voices which may need to be heard have not been, while also creating a disconnect between the work of this group and the respective bodies of University Governance.”

The failed ‘campus safety’ proposal was another example of insufficient, bureaucratic university responses to the underlying systemic causes of George Floyd’s murder, among other victims of police terror. Additionally, this meeting was not advertised to the university community nor was there an ability for public viewers to ask questions or leave chat comments during the meeting’s YouTube live stream.

SDS Members and activists Fanta Diallo, Jae-Lah Lymon and Olivia Crull joined the meeting to point out the inadequacies before the proposal for the committee ultimately failed with only 80 out of the 269 voting members approving the amendment.

“You can’t say you are committed to dismantling institutionalized racism then lack any representation of BIPOC on your committee. We don’t want another powerless oversight committee,” stated Fanta Diallo.

“We are on the frontlines, we are mobilizing hundreds of students, protesting every week, listen to our voices, listen to Black voices,” said Jae-Lah Lymon.

“There is no ensured mechanism for this committee to not be an elected body of white students, “Olivia Crull stated. “We are concerned about the lack of consultation from undergraduate students on this proposal, specifically our requests as well as the request from MSA [Muslim Students Association] members who were not answered by authors of this proposal.”

This failed proposal is an example of how direct, community-driven change is needed to address systemic issues of UMN bureaucracy and its policing at large. SDS stands in support of the Campus CPAC and pushes for further consultation among university leaders for its establishment along with disarmament and defunding of the University of Minnesota Police Department.

#MinneapolisMN #StudentMovement #OppressedNationalities #PeoplesStruggles #AfricanAmerican #PoliceBrutality #UniversityOfMinnesota #StudentsForADemocraticSocietyUOfMN #UniversityOfMinnesotaPoliceDepartment

Minneapolis, MN – University of Minnesota AFSCME members confronted soon-to-be-inaugurated University of Minnesota President Joan Gabel at the September 13 Board of Regents meeting in the McNamara Alumni Center.

Steph Taylor, AFSCME 3800 vice-president, said, “We presented over 1000 petition signatures demanding that our contributions should be respected with a contract that includes real wage increases and moves people to the top of the pay scale faster, with no increases to health care costs.”

She added, “President Gabel has met with every employee group but refuses to meet with us while we are in negotiations. The fact is, this is the most important time to meet with us because what we are negotiating dictates our livelihoods – so we are putting ourselves on your agenda.”

Cherrene Horazuk, AFSCME 3800 president said, “The university likes to talk about equity and inclusion, but they refuse to recognize and reward the contributions of the predominantly female clerical workforce. When it comes time for budgeting, the Board of Regents seems content to leave frontline staff behind.”

Next week the university will be hosting inauguration activities and AFSCME will ensure visibility for the workers who do the behind- the-scenes work, every day, that makes the university run.

#MinneapolisMN #PeoplesStruggles #AFSCMELocal3800 #UniversityOfMinnesotaRegents #PublicSectorUnions #StudentsForADemocraticSocietyUOfMN

“We think that this is a perfect opportunity for the University to leverage themselves on a progressive course in society” and “nip in the bud any circumstances where police can murder people,” said SDS member Marty Branyon.

Several people spoke, including Loretta VanPelt from the Freedom Road Socialist Organization, Rahsaan Mahadeo from Differences Organized, and Olivia Crull from Students for a Democratic Society. Students chanted calling for the disarmament and dissolution of the UMPD.

The UMPD currently has 141 guns in its stockpile, 57 of which are assault rifles. This has led to about a 3:1 ratio of guns to police officers. They are also receiving an increase to their budget, while academic departments see cuts. The Minneapolis and Duluth campuses are also the only campuses in the state system with their own separate police department.

The department does not answer to city officials, instead they are under the control of the administration of the university. There is no system in place to hold them accountable to students or area residents.

SDS is offering alternatives to the handguns carried by UMPD officers, such presenting non-lethal options. However, they demand that assault weaponry be removed from use at protests against students.

The rally followed similar student movements around the country, like at the University of Michigan, and Stony Brook, New York.

#MinneapolisMN #PoliceBrutality #StudentsForADemocraticSocietyUOfMN #UMPD

St. Paul, MN – Pro-Trump supporters came to the MN state capitol, March 4, for their “March 4 Trump” rally, while protesters showed up to oppose the Trump regime and to shut down the rally. The counter protest was organized by the Students for a Democratic Society (SDS) at the University of Minnesota. They were joined by other citywide groups and Twin Cities residents to unite against the Trump rally under the slogan “Make Racists Afraid Again.”

According to the SDS press release, there “is no room for Trump's racism, sexism and xenophobia in the state. The Twin Cities stands together against hate.”

At the beginning rally, the anti-Trump protesters made their way to the second floor of the capitol and unfurled a banner reading “Ya’ll racist”. Minutes later the banner was the focus of a tug of war.

Enraged Trump supporters lunged into the crowd of protesters, shoving, kicking and throwing punches. Pro-Trump people had no regard for who they targeted. In a particular instance, while a white pro-Trump male had a protester in a tightly gripped chokehold, others jumped on some counter protesters. The counter-protester was let go of that hold when the pro-Trump was maced.

The counter-Trump protesters distracted people from the main pro-Trump rally with their loud and lively chanting, marching throughout the capitol and around the rally.

Pro-Trump people’s chants included “He’s your president,” was met with the returned chant of “Fuck white supremacy.”

Counter-Trump protesters marched around the main rally, which also caused many pro-Trumpers to always be on alert and fearing where they would be going next.

A Pro-Trump person holding a sign stating “Veterans before refugees,” and yelling this at the counter protesters was met with chants “You created refugees.”

The Saint Paul anti-Trump protesters were following the example of progressive activists in Chicago – when thousands of students mobilized at UIC on March 11, 2016, to disrupt a Trump rally, they successfully shut it down.

Here in Saint Paul, the March 4 Trump was effectively drowned out by the anti-Trump protesters who directly confronted the extreme right-wing elements who have been emboldened by Trump's presidency. Across the country, March 4 Trump rallies were confronted by many counter-Trump demonstrations.

#StPaulMN #ImmigrantRights #WomensMovement #US #PeoplesStruggles #StudentsForADemocraticSocietyUOfMN #Antiracism #DonaldTrump

St. Paul, MN -The organizers of a weekly peace vigil held every Wednesday in the Twin Cities of Minneapolis and Saint Paul issued a special call for people to join the vigil on the afternoon of Nov. 26, the afternoon before the Thanksgiving holiday.

The vigil, held on the Lake Street/Marshall Avenue bridge over the Mississippi River between Minneapolis and Saint Paul is a very visible anti-war statement, seen by thousands of people every week.

The organizers of the vigil often will use the weekly event to respond to new developments in U.S. wars and interventions around the world.

The call for participation in the vigil included the slogans: “Keep the Troops Home – No Boots on the Ground!” “No War for the Holidays – Stop Bombing Iraq & Syria” “End the War in Afghanistan – Don't Extend It.”

More than 30 people joined the vigil, despite the cold weather with the temperature hovering in the low 20s after a several-inch snow fall earlier in the day.

Several people who had never attended the event in the past came to hold anti-war signs.

A statement issued by organizers says in part, “On the evening before the Thanksgiving holiday, we will say to say no to the U.S. bombing of Iraq and Syria. A new chapter of U.S. war in the Middle East has been opened. Obama has announced that the U.S. will double the number of troops in Iraq, bringing the total to over 3,000.”

The statement goes on to say, “There are warnings that this new war could last for years to come.”

The event also addressed the news that the Obama administration has extended U.S. combat operations for another year in Afghanistan.

On Nov. 21, the New York Times reported that President Obama signed an order allowing U.S. combat operations in Afghanistan to continue into 2015 – a decision the administration planned to keep secret. The decision is “a move that ensures American troops will have a direct role in fighting in the war-ravaged country for at least another year,” the New York Times reported.

“We gather to speak out against the new chapters of war in Iraq and Syria, the extending of the war in Afghanistan, the spending of billions of dollars for war and intervention when people need housing and jobs,” says the statement by organizers.

The vigil was sponsored by the End War Committee of Women Against Military Madness and the Twin Cities Peace Campaign

The call for the Nov. 26 vigil was endorsed by Anti-War Committee, Coalition for Palestinian Rights, Mayday Books, Military Families Speak Out (Minnesota chapter), Minnesota Peace Action Coalition, People of Faith Peacemakers, St. Frances Cabrini Justice and Peace Coalition, St. Joan of Arc Church, Sacred Heart Church, St. Paul–Peace and Justice Committee, St. Paul Eastside Neighbors for Peace, Students for a Democratic Society (UMN), Veterans for Peace, Welfare Rights Committee and others.

#StPaulMN #AntiwarMovement #StudentsForADemocraticSocietyUOfMN #AntiWarCommittee

Minneapolis, MN – Women Against Military Madness (WAMM) gathered a crowd on Oct. 10 to protest a speech by former President Bill Clinton and his support for U.S. wars and military attacks in the Middle East. Protesters chanted, “No justice, no peace, U.S. out of the Middle East!”

The groups were also challenged Minnesota Governor Mark Dayton and Senator Franken for their pro-war and pro-Israel stances. Chants at the rally called for Dayton, Franken, and Clinton to sever their ties with Israel and to stop promoting U.S. wars and occupations.

Coleen Rowley of WAMM highlighted the fact that the U.S. entered its 13th continuous year of war in the Middle East. U.S. intervention in Iraq reaches back to 1990 and the first Gulf War under President George H. W. Bush. Then President Clinton pursued economic sanctions that killed over 500,000 thousands Iraqi children, according to the United Nations. Clinton also imposed a no-fly zone and militarily attacked Iraq. The U.S. is now again at war in Syria and Iraq.

Rowley continued, “We have wars abroad, a war on drugs, a war on terror and a war on activists. But what we really need, if anything, is a war on the insane kind of thinking that allows policies like this to continue.”

Members of Students for a Democratic Society, in Minneapolis for their ninth National Convention, joined the protest against former President Clinton and Governor Dayton. Students at the rally chanted, “Money for jobs and education, not for war and occupation!”

#MinneapolisMN #AntiwarMovement #WomenAgainstMilitaryMadness #StudentsForADemocraticSocietyUOfMN #MarkDayton #BillClinton

Minneapolis, MN – On one of the first warm spring afternoons here, over 50 people joined an anti-war protest on April 2 to demonstrate against the U.S. war on Libya.

The protest lined the sidewalks at one of the major intersections in Minneapolis with signs and banners against the newest U.S. war in the Middle East.

Protesters’ signs read, “U.S. hands off Libya,” “Foreclose the war, not people’s homes,” and “Say no to U.S. war against Libya.”

For over an hour participants chanted anti-war slogans and held signs as thousands of people went by in cars, buses and the light rail train.

Many people showed support for the anti-war message by waving, honking horns and joining the protest.

Two TV stations reported the event on evening newscasts.

A statement issued by organizers says in part, “Eight years after the start of the war in Iraq, the U.S. has launched a new war in the Middle East, this time against Libya. This is not a ‘humanitarian intervention.’ This is a war launched to try to control the oil resources of the region. The big powers intervene for their own economic interests, not for the interests of the people.”

The statement continues, “We need funds for jobs, education, the environment, housing and human needs, not a new war in the Middle East.”

Meredith Aby, of the Anti-War Committee, told the crowd, “This is not ‘change we can believe in.’ This is the Bush doctrine version 2.0. This was an unprovoked attack on the Libyan government because the U.S. wants a regime change. But Obama doesn’t have the right to decide for the Libyan people who their leader is or what they do with their oil. Those questions are for the Libyan people to answer and them alone.”

Aby, one of anti-war leaders raided by the FBI September 24, 2010, also urged participants to sign the pledge to resist Grand jury and FBI repression.

The Saturday protest was sponsored by Anti-War Committee, Emergency Committee to Stop U.S. War in Libya, Military Families Speak Out, Students for a Democratic Society (U of MN), Twin Cities Peace Campaign, Veterans for Peace, Women Against Military Madness and others.

#MinneapolisMN #AntiwarMovement #MilitaryFamiliesSpeakOut #AntiWarCommittee #WomenAgainstMilitaryMadness #TwinCitiesPeaceCampaign #VeteransForPeace #MeredithAby #Libya #EmergencyCommitteeToStopUSWarInLibya #StudentsForADemocraticSocietyUOfMN