Tallahassee, FL – On Thursday, September 17, FAMU Students for a Democratic Society (SDS) held a rally and vigil honoring the life of Pierre Damas Bel, a 20-year-old Haitian immigrant in Ohio who took his own life after being forced by ICE to wear an ankle monitor. Nearly 50 students gathered in front of Lee Hall to demand an end to the terror from ICE that Haitian immigrants are facing and to demand that Florida A&M University’s administration revoke the 287(g) agreement that puts students' lives at risk.

This protest comes after the recent attacks on Haitians after the revocation of their Temporary Protected Status on July 2 by the Trump administration, putting the lives of over 350,000 Haitian immigrants in jeopardy. Bel, a neuroscience student at Ohio State, was one of many Haitians fitted with an ankle monitor that tracked his every move and created the perception that he was a criminal. It also stopped him from being able to participate in his daily activities that brought him joy, like soccer and ROTC, because he was not allowed to participate in them while wearing the monitor.

Florida A&M University is the only HBCU in the entire country to have signed a 287(g) agreement. This agreement requires the FAMU Police Department to have a number of officers participate in a task force to perform immigration enforcement or work collaboratively with ICE agents. In response, FAMU SDS launched its inaugural campaign to end the agreement.

Other groups in attendance included the Haitian Cultural Club, FAMU Dream Defenders, Tallahassee Immigrant Rights Alliance, Voices Poetry Group, Tallahassee SDS, and the Tallahassee Alliance Against Racist and Political Repression.

Protesters pointed to the connection between 287(g) and the revoking of TPS status for Haitian immigrants. They also expressed concerns regarding immigration enforcement.

Jayla Jones, vice president of FAMU SDS, stated, “It is embarrassing to be an HBCU that was built upon generations of Black struggle and resistance fall into the trap of hunting its own people. Students should not have to worry about being profiled or surveilled, or potentially dying at the hands of ICE. This is where we come to learn, share our cultures, and be Black and proud. We must not be complacent within this system. ICE is not welcome here.”

A common sentiment among students is outrage about the legal ability of ICE to racially profile and discriminate against immigrant communities. The court decision by the Supreme Court, in Kristi Noem, Secretary of Homeland Security et al. v. Pedro Vasquez Perdomo, et al., allows ICE to detain people based on perceptions that individuals may be immigrants, such as skin color or language. Black Americans have been repeatedly racially profiled and detained by ICE, and that danger has now intensified as Haitian immigrants face more hatred from the GOP.

Considering ICE's long history of mistakenly identifying U.S. citizens for deportations and detention, uprooting the lives of thousands of people, and leaving devastating impacts on individuals who face these unlawful arrests, many students are fearful of what may happen to them.

SDS member Ora Brodie commented, “This could be you, we’re all Black. When ICE comes on this campus, they’re already racially profiling. They don’t care that we’re Black Americans. They just want to kill us or put us in jail.”

FAMU SDS is fighting to revoke the university’s 287(g) agreement and protect their HBCU from ICE and Trump’s attacks. To join, attend a weekly meeting every Thursday at 6pm on the first floor of the Coleman Library. To keep up with what SDS is doing, visit @famusdsofficial on Instagram.

#TallahasseeFL #FL #StudentMovement #ImmigrantRights #TPS #PierreDamasBel #FAMU #287g

Tallahassee, FL – On September 22, Tallahassee Students for a Democratic Society (SDS) rallied at the Integration Statue and then marched to Wescott Fountain to protest the unjust firing of Tally SDS Vice President Mariana Guimaraes from the FSU Victim Advocate Program for her role in SDS’s anti-rape culture campaign and her public advocacy for a survivor.

Guimaraes called out this decision, asking, “When an advocate says publicly, clearly, and with conviction that the systems we have are failing, that we need better for students, and they are terminated without a real reason, what message does that send to survivors?”

Speakers from other community organizations spoke in support of Guimaraes and discussed the extent of rape culture on campus and administration’s repression of student activists, including conduct charges for flyering to raise student awareness of a rapist FSU left unpunished.

Protesters chanted, “Don’t punish flyers, punish crimes! Student safety every time!” and “Expel abusers clear the halls, answer when a victim calls!”

Once the students arrived at Westcott, they were told they could not stand on the main steps because they had to make room for an event letting out of a nearby building, where FSU was hosting far-right former UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson. Despite following those orders and making room for those exiting, they were told again to move because the fountain was reserved for pictures. Protesters continued to confront admin, including Brandon Bowden, an FSU administrator who has been placed in charge of the Title IX process at FSU and has refused countless survivors justice. Protesters joined together in chants calling out admin and the role it plays in upholding rape culture.

Tally SDS president JJ Glueck spoke on admin’s attempt to move the protest saying, “Admin claimed that we couldn’t protest by Westcott because Boris Johnson’s speaking event would be letting out in the same area. We knew this was a flagrant violation of our right to gather and make our voices heard. They tried to argue with us, but we stood our ground and held the protest in front of the administrative building like we planned to.”

The protest continued late into the evening, until admin said that SDS had to leave because they couldn’t be protesting on campus after sunset. Nevertheless, the crowd kept chanting for an additional ten minutes before moving across the street and kept the energy going.

Guimaraes’ firing and the attempt to move the protest by admin are yet more actions by FSU to stifle the student movement and repress SDS during its anti-rape culture campaign. The campaign arose in response to the failings of the Title IX process at FSU and the refusal to expel rapists unless serious physical bruising or injury is present. As FSU admin refuses to hold rapists on their campus accountable, SDS will continue this fight until survivors get justice and there is an end to rape culture on campus.

#TallahasseeFL #FL #StudentMovement #WomensMovement #TitleIX #PeoplesStruggles #SDS

Tallahassee, FL – On September 17, Tallahassee Students for a Democratic Society gathered at Landis Fountain to demand an end to “Flock Safety” in the city. Around 30 students gathered holding signs against Flock mass surveillance, and speakers discussed the harmful effects of Flock on our community. Student slogans included “What do we want? Privacy! When do we want it? Now!” and “No justice, no peace! No racist police!”

On August 31, Governor Ron DeSantis announced the removal of LPRs (License Plate Readers) on state roads, with a 30-day deadline. County and city governments, such as Tallahassee, have followed up on this move in an atmosphere of opposition to Flock surveillance, with Tallahassee City Commission voting to suspend ALPRs (Flock and Motorola cameras) on September 9.

However, the city commission rejected a vote to cover these cameras, which would prevent them from recording. Leon County voted on September 15 to remove all ALPR cameras within 30 days.

These removals and suspensions have so far not included cameras in neighborhoods and campuses. The frequent misreports from ALRPs and their constant recording have been met with backlash, but the state campaign for mass surveillance has not ended.

Amy Farnum-Patronis, the senior director of university communications at FSU, reported vaguely to FSView that, “in light of current ongoing conversations on this topic and in the interest of being as transparent as possible, we can confirm that the core of FSU's campus does not contain Flock devices.”

The Tallahassee Police Department wants people to think they can regulate Flock. They claim to have “have implemented policies governing the professional and appropriate use of ALPR technology.”

Flock, a private company for mass surveillance, wrote in its own February 2026 Terms of Service that the company has “irrevocable, perpetual, worldwide license to (a) use and disclose Customer Data to provide the Flock Services.” Customer data, defined as whatever Flock cameras record, can be shared by Flock to local and federal agencies around the country for “investigative purposes,” even if TPD opts out of data sharing. Flock has frequently used this data to aid the ICE terror campaign.

As residents of Tallahassee know, our city has been a center for ICE deportations in Florida. On May 29, one of the largest ICE roundups in Florida occurred in Gaines Street, Tallahassee, detaining more than 100 construction workers. Tallahassee has also agreed to the 287(g) agreement, whereby police officers can take on ICE duties and racially profile the residents of Tallahassee.

At the SDS protest at Landis Fountain, a speaker and Tallahassee Immigrant Rights Alliance member said, “These cameras have been used by police for their own personal gain, to stalk and harass primarily women.” He pointed out, “We have no idea how they’re using this technology right now, because there is no transparency. Recently, the Florida governor made it illegal for undocumented students to even enroll in Florida public colleges. So, do you think that the only line of defense is going to be the admission’s office? What happens when they start to be even more muscular in their crackdown against students on campus? When they start to suspect that some brown kid might actually be illegal on campus?”

FSU students refuse to accept the vague sidestepping of FSU admin and refuse to back down on the fight against Flock. Suspension and ALPR removal are not enough, and SDS will keep up the pressure to protect the right to privacy for all residents of Tallahassee. SDS will demand Flock removal until every Flock camera in Tallahassee is removed.

#TallahasseeFL #FL #StudentMovement #FlockCameras #Flock #SDS #ImmigrantRights #Surveillance #ALPR

Abraham Flores-Tercero was brought into the federal courtroom wearing shackles, dehumanizing him from the second he walked in the door. Abraham, who doesn't speak much English, had to make his plea in Spanish to a translator, who repeatedly interrupted him.

Flores-Tercero gave an emotional speech, begging to be deported, as he had plans to move his family to Nicaragua. Judge Winsor showed no humanity. Winsor simply ignored Abraham's plea and aimed to “make an example” out of him. Winsor sentenced Abraham to two years in federal prison before his deportation, so it would act as a “deterrent” to others.

Since August 21, Tallahassee Immigrant Rights Alliance (TIRA) began circulating a petition to build publicity around Abraham's mistreatment by Judge Winsor leading up to his hearing in the appeals court.

The petition reads: “Trump appointed Judge Alan Winsor sentenced Abraham Flores twice the precedented time for entering into the U.S. undocumented. He ignored Flores' plea to be deported and instead stated the sentence needed to be increased, because he would want to visit his family and should serve as an example to others. Additionally, his ruling is very likely an example of double jeopardy, since he considered a 20-year-old previous charge when justifying his decision. Judge Winsor should face disciplinary action for his mismanagement of the case of Abraham Flores for his bias. In this time of increased prejudice, we must hold our officials accountable. The US judicial system must treat all people under trial impartially. Help Abraham Flores receive a fair trial with a fair outcome.”

Take part in the Tallahassee Immigrant Rights Alliance's stand against judicial repression of immigrants and get justice for Abraham Flores: sign the petition.

Judge Winsor has an extensive history of attacking people’s rights. Winsor defends bans on same sex marriages and attacks women's reproductive rights.

#TallahasseeFL #FL #ImmigrantRights #InjusticeSystem #ICE #Deportations #AbrahamFloresTercero

Tallahassee, FL – On August 17, the Leon County Commission held a public hearing regarding the proposed Historic Harms amendment to the county charter. From the pressure of about a dozen speakers and the presence of dozens more, the commission voted 5-2 to advance the amendment to the November ballot for all county citizens to vote on. Commissioners Brian Welch and Christian Caban voted against the amendment. 

The Historic Harms amendment, if passed, would require the county to periodically investigate past county policies and determine what kind of harms were caused to certain geographic areas due to those policies.

The state of Florida’s SB 1134, which would end funding opportunities for programs based on diversity, equity, and inclusion or any programs that even seemed that way, was signed by Governor Ron DeSantis this past April. The original language of the Historic Harms amendment drew concerns from the Charter Review Committee and from the county attorney due to potentially coming into conflict with the new law. The amendment was rewritten to fit within these bounds – the new language looks purely at geographic neighborhoods regardless of the demographics of who was affected in those areas. This approach did get at least a tacit approval from the county attorney and did get voted through by the review committee.

Members of the Tallahassee Alliance Against Racist and Political Repression (TallyAARPR), the Tallahassee Immigrant Rights Alliance (TIRA), Capital Area Justice Ministry, the League of Women Voters, and Tallahassee ALERT, which wrote the amendment, spoke out in favor on Monday.

“I believe there are many communities in Tallahassee that have been left behind, and this amendment is the first step to really looking at the problems with the city and attempting to rectify them,” said Delilah Pierre with the Tallahassee Alliance.

Brandon Beckett with TIRA said, “I think we need to leave it in the people’s hands to address their futures,” adding, “This amendment is addressing community members that have been left behind through the development of Tallahassee.”

Beckett continued, “It’s their community as well. We need to make sure every member of this community feels respected and doesn't feel as if they’re left behind.”

The amendment will now appear on the ballot in the November elections. State Representative Angie Nixon won an upset victory for the Democratic nomination and will appear on the ballot. As well, there are three Tallahassee city commission seats in the runoff election. The Tallahassee Alliance will spread information about the amendment to educate the public and get people to vote in favor of it.

#TallahasseeFL #FL #PeoplesStruggles #InjusticeSystem #HistoricHarms #OppressedNationalities

Tallahassee, FL – On June 20, the Tallahassee Alliance Against Racist and Political Repression (TallyAARPR) held its Angelversary rally and vigil at the Lynching Historical Marker at Cascades Park to honor the lives of those killed by racist violence.

Organizers demanded justice for victims of police violence, such as Kohen Wiley, the one-year-old shot and killed by police in Senatobia, Mississippi, as well as those victims who still have not received justice, such as Mychael Johnson and Tony McDade, both killed by Tallahassee Police Department officers within weeks of each other in 2020.

Other groups in attendance included the Tallahassee Immigrants Rights Alliance (TIRA), Tallahassee SDS (Tally SDS), and the Tallahassee District of the Freedom Road Socialist Organization (Tally FRSO).

Aedan Bennett with TIRA said, “In Florida and in all of the southern states in the Black Belt South, Black and brown people are still criminalized just for existing. In Florida, Black children are transferred to adult court and tried as adults at seven times the rate of white children. For immigrants and Latino people in this country, they are thrown in jail for being here ‘illegally,’ a fake crime, where they are denied medical care and access to running water.”

Speaking for Tally SDS, JJ Glueck stated, “Most of y'all remember the first time you bought diapers or baby formula or pacis and that feeling of how good it feels and how nice it is to get to take care of this little sweet child that you're related to or that you know. I can't believe that Kohen Wiley's mom will never get to buy him another thing. It's heartbreaking that she'll never get to buy him another thing.”

Glueck continued, “They don't care about any of our lives. But most of all, they treat Black lives like they're disposable, like they're worth killing for some kind of $20 diaper.”

Brandon Beckett with Tallahassee FRSO spoke towards the broader causes of political repression. “This is what police terror looks like. Not an exception, but a pattern. Not a few bad officers, but a system that chooses the property of the capitalist class over the lives of Black people every single time. Over and over again, we see the same thing happen. A Black person is killed. The officer is put on paid leave. The investigation goes nowhere. The grand jury does nothing. And the cycle continues. It is predictable. It is deliberate. And it is by design.”

The event also highlighted the recent attacks on voting rights around the country. Speaking for TallyAARPR, Delilah Pierre said, “The right to vote for Black people wasn't fought in the courts. It was fought in the streets. The right to proportional representation to end gerrymandering is a fight that the people struggled for, not just a few politicians.”

Pierre continued, “We're fighting because in the 1870s, we fought for proportional representation, for Black people to have real rights. And that fight has not been finished. But let me tell you something. Our generation, our movement, our era, will be the ones to finish that fight, and we will be the ones to win.”

#TallahasseeFL #FL #InJusticeSystem #TAARPR

Tallahassee FL, – On Monday, April 20, Tallahassee Students For A Democratic Society (SDS) held a teach-in to inform students and community members on how to combat repression. The event was a part of a coordinated National Day of Action, called in solidarity with Rick Toledo, an organizer at Cal Poly Humboldt who was charged with assault, battery and false imprisonment after a February building occupation protest, which called for the university to divest its funds from Israel’s ongoing genocide.

Among the many important aspects of fighting repression is ensuring that you are public-facing and continue to put public pressure on officials.

“Holding actions is the most important part. We need to show that we’re still fighting,” said Kaiden Rosa, the vice president of Tallahassee SDS, said, “And that’s why you’ll see us rally outside courthouses, oftentimes rallying if there's a university conduct case because we’re going to keep the pressure on.”

Tallahassee SDS is no stranger to political repression. Florida State University has continuously attempted to ignore and repress the organization, recently banning SDS from registration as a student organization for over two years due to “protesting after dark.”

Rosa explained the importance of solidarity and how cases like Rick Toledo's can have ramifications nationwide, stating, “He was suspended from his school and fired, and they’re just trying to turn it against him [and] make it so that the Palestine protests can be more easily silenced, if they can be silenced in one place, they can be silenced anywhere else.”

Attendees also learned more about the case of Alejandro Orellana, an organizer with Centro CSO from Los Angeles, arrested in the wake of the Los Angeles uprising against ICE oppression.

Orellana had his house raided and faced charges of conspiracy, along with aiding and abetting civil disorder, simply for handing out face-coverings to protestors.

During the LA uprising, the LAPD faced scrutiny for its violence against protesters, launching tear gas canisters at protesters and journalists, firing rubber bullets and riding horses over passersby.

A campaign was launched by organizations like Centro CSO to drop the charges against Orellana, and after intense public pressure and outcry, that is what happened.

The Repression Teach-in rang very true for attendees who witnessed the Florida Department of Law Enforcement arrest of Sadie Carlson at the recent No Kings Protest after marchers stepped into a closed and empty street as the sidewalk ended.

“At the end of the day, the most important thing is solidarity,” Rosa said.

#TallahasseeFL #FL #StudentMovement #SDS #PoliticalRepression

Tallahassee, FL – On Friday, April 10, Tallahassee SDS, along with Freedom Road Socialist Organization and FSU YDSA brought together over 40 people on FSU’s Landis Green to protest the Israel Fair, an event sponsored by pro-Israel groups across the campus to celebrate Israel as it carries out genocide against Palestinians.

The event took place two days after Israel conducted 100 airstrikes against Lebanon in ten minutes, killing hundreds.

“It is shameful that FSU is allowing an event on our campus in the name of a state that is built on colonization and genocide,” said Maria Duarte, a member of Tallahassee SDS who spoke at the protest. “Israel is a state that has been displacing and murdering Palestinians for over 70 years. A state that believes that bombing children and innocent civilians is ‘self-defense.’ It is disgusting how our university is whitewashing genocide while Palestinians continue to be murdered and displaced.”

The fair was created by various Zionist organizations, including Students Supporting Israel, Hasbara Fellowships, Hillel at FSU, Zionist Organization of America and the Committee for Accuracy in Middle East Reporting and Analysis.

The protest began at 1 p.m. and was supposed to go until 2 p.m. but continued until around 3:45 p.m. Students chanted “Free Palestine” and made statements that showed solidarity with Palestine, condemned Israel, and ridiculed those involved with the fair.

Zionist counterprotesters responded with slurs and attempts to disrupt the rally, which the protesters ignored. As for the Israel Fair, it should have gone until 3:30 p.m., but it was closed down a little after 2:00 p.m. due to pressures from the protest – which would outnumber the attendees of the Israel Fair.

The speakers made a point to emphasize FSU’s support of Israel and, by extension, the genocide of Palestinians.

The speakers mentioned how the FAMU-FSU College of Engineering partners with Boeing. A close partner of Israel for 75 years, the company recently signed an $8.6 billion contract with the Pentagon to make 25 new F-15 Fighters for Israel. More recently, in March, Boeing signed another deal for $289 million to deliver 5000 air-launched smart bombs to Israel.

“Make no mistake, our campus is heavily complicit,” said one protester.

Before the Israel Fair, FSU power washed pro-Palestinian statements that were written in chalk on Landis Green. An anonymous affiliate of the fair’s organizers posted on YikYak, “this is what FSU thinks of your anti-fair chalk,” with a picture of the Landis Green walkways being power washed.

The “anti-fair chalk” included statements such as “72,000+ dead” (the number of Palestinians who have been killed thus far in the Gaza genocide), “One should not be killed for just being a Palestinian” and a list of names of children who were killed in Gaza and the West Bank by the Israeli occupation forces.

As FSU’s administration defends allowing of Zionist organizations on their campus, Israel continues to perpetuate its genocide of Palestinians. Tallahassee SDS deplores FSU’s hypocrisy in sanctioning hate groups on their campus while suppressing leftist student movements, and they remain in solidarity with Palestinians.

#TallahasseeFL #FL #AntiWarMovement #Palestine #StudentMovement #SDS #FRSO