Fight Back News service is circulating the following statement from the Dallas Against the Trump Agenda Coalition.

Texas is a battleground against the fiercest of Donald Trump and Greg Abbott’s attacks on the people, and the Dallas -Fort Worth metroplex continues to stand up and fight back. We are proud to announce the formation of the Dallas Against the Trump Agenda (DATA) Coalition as a unified voice to strike back against these attacks on our communities.

We are an action oriented coalition of organizations working together against Trump’s agenda. We are not here merely to speak up, but to build the people’s movements so that they can take meaningful action against this far-right violence. From the first Trump regime to the current one, our communities here in Texas have been a training ground for racist police violence, anti-LGBTQ laws targeting Trans kids, attacks by ICE on our immigrant neighbors, and rollbacks hard-won labor rights. We are building mass people power to keep our communities safe through collective action, no matter what Trump and Abbott throw our way.

We have seen the power of Dallas-Fort Worth in action, and we will continue to grow our unified strength. From the George Floyd uprisings in 2020 and Reproductive Rights rally in 2022 to the Free Palestine marches in 2023 and the ICE Out protests in 2026, we have seen our communities show up in the tens of thousands to stand united against attacks on the people. Now, in the midst of the Trump regime as these attacks heighten, we must stand taller than ever and fight back twice as hard.

The ground is fertile for collective strength as our communities have nothing to lose but their chains. Trump and Abbott took the gloves off as they repress communities across Texas and the people see them for what they represent: the throes of a dying empire as it tramples everyone underfoot. The people united will never be defeated and together the Dallas-Fort Worth metroplex will rise against our enemies in the White House and Governor’s Mansion.

We call on all DFW organizations fighting against the Trump agenda to join the DATA Coalition and stand alongside us in our mutual struggle for the freedom we all deserve. To our local communities, we ask you to join us in the streets, get organized in the people’s movements, and build this coalition alongside us. Together, we have the power to win and our future looks bright.

#DallasTX #TX #Trump #PeoplesStruggles #ImmigrantRights

Chicago, IL – Over 8000 people gathered in Union Park on May 1 to celebrate International Workers’ Day and march demanding protection for workers and immigrant rights.

Since May Day last year, Trump sent ICE and Customs and Border Patrol to Chicago for months of terror, with over 3000 members of immigrant communities arrested and taken away. The large contingents marching from immigrant communities in Union Park was a statement of courage.

Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson said during his speech, “We are not going to stop fighting for every single worker and every single working family in this city and in this country and in this world,” and demanded that “we get our fair share of the equitable distribution of the wealth. Are you with me workers?”

Some of the principal organizers of this May Day protest included the Chicago Teacher Union (CTU), Service Employees International Union Health Care Illinois/Indiana, the Coalition Against the Trump Agenda (CATA), and the Illinois Coalition for Immigrant and Refugee Rights (ICIRR).

CTU President Stacy Davis Gates said, “Workers united with communities, across cultures, across industries, win the fight every time. Do not give up your power to assemble and do not give up your power to organize. Workers over billionaires!”

This year CTU organized to make May Day a day of civic action in Chicago. Together with families, they brought out over 800 high school students to participate in the protest. Hundreds of university students and graduate employees were also in attendance.

Nadia Alyafai spoke at the rally for the U.S. Palestinian Community Network (USPCN) and CATA. She said, “Our city is home to one of the largest Palestinian communities in the United States, alongside a broader Arab immigrant population that has long been at the frontlines of the immigrant rights and other movements in this city. We were there alongside many of you when we put almost a million people in the streets to defeat the Sensenbrenner bill in 2006, and now 20 years later we still are fighting strong for justice for our communities.”

CATA marched with a banner demanding “Legalization for all. Defend voting rights. Stop all U.S. wars!” They marched together with the immigrant rights contingent organized by ICIRR.

Chicago has played a crucial role in the labor and immigrant rights movements. May Day was born in Chicago, the center of the nationwide1886 strike for the eight-hour workday. The resulting repression of the labor movement led to workers around the world declaring May 1 to be International Workers’ Day. On March 10, 2006, Chicago held the first mega march of the immigrant rights movement. That movement then called for nationwide marches on May 1. Over 2 million immigrants and their supporters took to the streets that day, which also brought May Day back to the labor movement in the U.S.

#ChicagoIL #IL #Labor #ImmigrantRights #MayDay #FRSO #CATA #Trump #CTU

Chavez-DeRemer had served as a congresswoman from Oregon previously, and, while she is a Republican, she was supported in her congressional campaigns by some unions, including the Oregon Fire Fighters Council, Ironworkers Local 29, the United Food and Commercial Workers, and the American Federation of Government Employees. When she was tapped by Trump to take over as labor secretary, the move was lauded by International Brotherhood of Teamsters President Sean O’Brien, who had recently spoken at the Republican National Convention.

The Department of Labor has a budget of roughly $14 billion a year and over 15,000 employees, and enforces and interprets federal laws that oversee more than 165 million workers in the U.S. While Chavez-DeRemer was a Republican, a member of Trump’s administration, and by no means a champion of the working class, her appointment was seen by many across the labor movement as not as bad an appointment as might have been expected.

DeRemer served from March 10, 2025 until her resignation, amid a host of scandals including an alleged inappropriate relationship with an employee, drinking on the job, as well as improper use of taxpayer money. None of these allegations have been proven; however, DeRemer chose to step down from her role, saying that she preferred to spend “more time with family.”

To replace DeRemer Trump announced that he was tapping Keith Sonderling as Acting Secretary of Labor. Sonderling is viewed as a Washington insider with significant connections to big business interests and in Republican circles of influence that include connections to business and politicians in his home state of Florida, where attacks on unions and the working class have been ramping up under Trump.

Many business leaders and right-wingers were surprised when Chavez- DeRemer was appointed in 2025, expecting a more vicious right-wing, pro-business, anti-worker secretary. This led to those business and right-wing leaders lobbying Trump to appoint Sonderling as the number two person in the Department of Labor under DeRemer. Sonderling was believed to have played a significant role in Elon Musk’s DOGE early in Trumps second presidency.

While it is yet to be seen what will come of Sonderling’s appointment, it signals a move towards an even less worker-friendly Department of Labor and a shift further to the right in the secretary’s office.

#Labor #Trump #LoriChavezDeRemer #KeithSonderling #DepartmentofLabor

Chicago, IL -Chicago is preparing for May Day, which is again a national day of protest against Trump’s racist agenda. A broad coalition of immigrant rights, Black liberation, workers, youth and student organizations are preparing to rally and march on May 1, International Workers Day.

Freedom Road Socialist Organization (FRSO) is going all out to build for May Day. One part of FRSO’s contribution is our annual Working Class Awards Dinner. Again, this year, it was held in the hall of the Chicago Teachers Union on Saturday, April 18.

The purpose of the event is to recognize individuals and organizations that have made contributions to the struggle of workers and the oppressed over the past year, celebrate some victories, and recognize the people who made them possible. It is also FRSO Chicago’s main annual fundraiser.

The event was very successful, with almost 300 people in the hall and over $20,000 raised.

A year of resistance to ICE: Four awards presented

Chicago was one of the first targets of ICE occupation, beginning in September 2025. ICE and Customs and Border Patrol officers terrorized immigrant communities, arresting 3000. They even staged a raid with 300 agents at 3 a.m. in the Black community of South Shore, with agents rappelling from helicopters onto an apartment building where Venezuelan refugees lived.

The Rapid Response teams, Migra Watch, and emergency response protests began before Trump surged agents here.

The awards dinner recognized four activists for contributions to resistance to Trump and ICE. Kathryn Zamarrón is an elementary school music teacher at the Walt Disney Magnet School, and a rank-and-file leader in the Chicago Teachers Union. She serves on the CTU Latinx Caucus and Elementary Education Committee. Zamarron played a crucial role in organizing sanctuary teams to protect students not only in her own school, but across the city. She was presented with an award named for Karen Lewis, the legendary president of the Chicago Teachers Union.

Corina Pedraza, a worker at the Chicago public library, played a leading role in helping the community provide services to the tens of thousands of migrant laborers bused here by the governor of Texas starting in 2022. She was also recognized for her leading role as an organizer of both Southwest and Southeast Side rapid response teams in 2025. Her award was in the name of Silverio Villegas González, murdered by ICE in a Chicago suburb at the outset of the ICE/CBP occupation.

Reverend Ciera Bates-Chamberlain received the Angela Davis Award for organizing faith leaders in opposition to ICE. As executive director of Live Free Illinois, when ICE threatened Chicago, she organized a multifaith, multiracial coalition including Black ministers and churches on Chicago’s South and West Sides. The network held a press conference, a protest in the pulpits, and rallied with the immigrant rights movement to defend our communities.

Finally, the Mexican Students de Aztlán (MeSA) at UIC received an award named for Rigo Padilla Pérez. A member of the Immigrant Youth Justice Alliance at UIC, Rigo was a leader in the Dreamers movement, which compelled passage of the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals legislation. He died of cancer three years ago.

MeSA was honored because in October, ICE agents arrested two women near campus. Students protested, and ICE released the women, but the UIC administration failed to respond. MeSA then led a mobilization of over 200 students to oppose ICE on campus and demand a sanctuary campus.

Award for Palestine solidarity

Gabriella Martinez is a Special Education Certified Assistant in the Chicago Public Schools and a rank-and-file leader in SEIU Local 73. She organized coworkers to file ethics complaints against Illinois State Treasurer Michael Frerichs for the purchase of Israel Bonds. Frerichs even purchased more bonds during the ongoing genocide in Gaza. For her work, Martinez received the Assata Shakur award. Together with several members and retirees from SEIU Local 73, Gabi’s family joined her for the event.

Lifetime Achievement Awards: Pete Camarata Award to Jim Fennerty for movement legal defense

Jim Fennerty has been a fixture at protests in Chicago for decades, wearing the lime green cap of the National Lawyers Guild. Jim is a people’s lawyer who has consistently defended our movement from attacks by the ruling class. Jim and his wife, Janet have been politically active in the movement for over 50 years. Jim represented Rasmea Odeh and the Anti-War 23, and he helped win a historic civil settlement representing 800 protesters arrested at the start of the Iraq War.

Fennerty’s award was named after the late Pete Camarata. Pete was a founder of the Teamsters for a Democratic Union (TDU). In his fight against the criminals that took control of the union, Pete was one of the first to combine rank and file power with legal action.

Fennerty was introduced by family friend Hatem Abudayyeh of the Arab American Action Network and US Palestinian Community Network. Many tables were filled with Jim and Janet’s friends and family, including son Nate, daughter Dina, her husband Daniel Contreras, and grandson Quinn Contreras.

In addition, the family of Pete Camarata was there with the Fennertys, including his wife, Robin Potter, stepson Jackson and his wife, Joan; stepdaughter Aimee, and granddaughter Phoebe.

William L. Patterson Award to Frank Chapman

The night’s biggest moment was the lifetime achievement award for Frank Chapman. It came with recorded greetings from CTU President Stacy Davis Gates and Vice President Jackson Potter.

The William L. Patterson Award was introduced by Anthony Quesada, 35th Ward alderman:

“Through his leadership with the Chicago Alliance Against Racist and Political Repression, Frank has helped lead campaigns that have shaped Chicago. He has been central to the fight for justice for the wrongfully convicted and for community control of the police. His work helped push forward the movement that won elected police district councils, giving people a real voice in public safety. And today, Frank continues to advance this struggle through our fight for the Community Power Over Policing referendum.

“He has also mentored generations of organizers, many of whom are in the room tonight. Across Chicago and beyond, people have learned from him how to stay grounded, how to build collective power, and how to keep going through every phase of struggle. His impact lives in the people he has shaped and the movements that continue to grow.”

There were other elected officials present, including 33rd Ward Alderwoman Rossana Rodriguez-Sanchez, 35th Ward Democratic Committeeperson Carlos Ramirez-Rosa, 25th Ward Alderman Byron Sigcho Lopez, and State Senator Graciela Guzman.

The award is named after William L. Patterson, the Communist Party USA attorney who led the International Labor Defense (ILD), and who organized the mass defense of the Scottsboro Boys in the 1930s. Later he headed up the Civil Rights Congress, and together with Paul Robeson took the We Charge Genocide petition to the United Nations. The formation of the National Alliance Against Racist and Political Repression was based on the model of the ILD.

Chapman: “We’re part of a better world in birth”

Chapman is the executive director of the National Alliance Against Racist and Political Repression; field organizer and education director of the Chicago Alliance; and a Central Committee member of FRSO. In his remarks, he shared some perspective on the Trump regime and on change in this country from his vantage point having been born in 1942.

Referring to people who see Trumpism as an aberration when they say, “That’s not us,” meaning not what the U.S. stands for, Chapman responded, “The hell it ain’t. What they’re doing to the immigrants happened to me and my people…6200 children have been held in detention since Trump came in,” adding, “And shooting people on the streets execution style.”

“But we’ve seen this: we saw Laquan McDonald shot 16 times. And a few days ago, the state police shot a man 15 times, not far from my house,” and “Quit telling me this is something you haven’t seen before.”

“We’re demanding an end to Trumpism, but we’re going further than that. We’re part of a better world in birth!” Going on with the lyrics of The International, Chapman said, “Arise you prisoners of starvation. Arise you wretched of the earth. For justice thunders condemnation. A better world’s in birth.”

“Are you ready to get this done? Are you ready for the revolution?” he asked, to thunderous applause.

#ChicagoIL #IL #ImmigrantRights #OppressedNationalities #AfricanAmerican #FRSO #NAARPR #FrankChapman #Trump #PeoplesStruggles

Oakland, CA – Más de 20,000 personas llenaron las calles de Oakland el sábado 28 de marzo en la tercera manifestación “No Kings” para protestar contra la agenda de Trump.

La manifestación comenzó al mediodía en la Plaza Oscar Grant, en el centro de Oakland, donde los asistentes escucharon a oradores de organizaciones laborales, religiosas, de justicia ambiental y de derechos de los inmigrantes. A la 1 p.m., la multitud marchó hacia el lago Merritt para escuchar más discursos enfocados en generar impulso para las próximas acciones del Primero de Mayo en el Área de la Bahía.

Organizadores trabajaron durante semanas para movilizar para el evento. El capítulo de Oakland de la Organización de Servicio Comunitario (CSO Oakland), miembro de la Red Legalización para Todos, lideró múltiples talleres de arte junto con organizaciones aliadas de derechos de los inmigrantes como Mujeres Unidas y Activas y Pangea Legal Services, grupos también involucrados en las próximas acciones del Primero de Mayo en Oakland y en la campaña por Justicia para Guillermo. También participaron grupos revolucionarios como la Organización Socialista Camino de la Libertad (OSCL).

El evento contó con más de 40 organizaciones y sindicatos, incluyendo Indivisible East Bay, East Bay DSA, SEIU 1021, el Alameda Labor Council, Bay Resistance, Berkeley Faculty & Staff for Justice in Palestine, CAIR-SFBA, Friends of La Peña Immigrant Rights, Jewish Voice for Peace Bay Area, la Oakland Education Association, Sunrise Movement Bay Area, y Tsuru for Solidarity.

“Hoy el pueblo de Oakland hizo oír su voz: la creciente atrocidad del gobierno de Trump debe terminar”, dijo Noah Teller de la Organización Socialista Camino de la Libertad. “Estamos construyendo una alianza estratégica para proteger a las personas oprimidas y desarrollar el poder de la clase trabajadora. ¡Exigimos legalización para todos y ninguna guerra en nuestro nombre!”

La protesta reflejó la creciente frustración entre los residentes de clase trabajadora por las políticas del gobierno de Trump, incluyendo su persecución contra los inmigrantes, los ataques a los derechos LGBTQ, las órdenes ejecutivas que militarizan aún más a la policía, y las escaladas de Estados Unidos e Israel en el Medio Oriente, particularmente sus ataques contra Irán, todo mientras gente en todo el país enfrenta dificultades por el aumento en el costo de vida.

Organización contra Trump en Oakland sigue creciendo El año pasado, después de que la administración amenazara con enviar más de 100 agentes de ICE al Área de la Bahía de San Francisco, CSO Oakland, OSCL y el capítulo de Oakland de la Alianza Nacional en Contra de la Represión Política y Racista organizaron una protesta de emergencia desde Fruitvale hasta el puente de la Isla Coast Guard, donde ICE planeaba establecer su sede. Los organizadores también se han movilizado contra una propuesta de centro de detención de ICE en Dublín, California, y para detener la deportación del activista del Área de la Bahía, Guillermo Medina Reyes.

“Mientras más intenta Trump dañar a nuestras comunidades, más nuestras comunidades lucharán”, dijo Danny Celaya, de CSO Oakland. “Lo hemos visto desde los estudiantes que han salido de clases para protestar contra las deportaciones masivas, las almas valientes que han mantenido seguras a nuestras comunidades, como Alex Pretti y Renee Nicole Good, cuyas vidas les fueron arrebatadas por ICE, hasta los millones que han salido a las calles en todo el país desde ciudades como Los Ángeles, Chicago y Minneapolis hasta pueblos como Billings, Montana; Charleston, Carolina del Sur, y Decorah, Iowa. Todos ellos tienen una organización miembro de la Red Legalization for All. En resumen, la gente se está organizando, detendremos la agenda racista de Trump, y vamos a ganar.”

CSO Oakland también distribuyó volantes en la marcha para una colecta en apoyo a la familia de Guillermo Medina Reyes, mientras una coalición de organizaciones del Área de la Bahía, de la cual CSO Oakland forma parte, sigue luchando por su liberación de un centro de detención con fines de lucro en California City, propiedad de CoreCivic, uno de los más de 40 centros de detención privados que opera la empresa. Las donaciones se pueden hacer aquí.

Empresas privadas operan aproximadamente el 90% de los centros de detención de inmigrantes en todo el país.

#OaklandCA #CA #ImmigrantRights #DerechosDeLosInmigrantes #Trump #NoKings

Appleton, WI – On March 28, over 3000 people took to the streets in outrage at the Trump administration. The crowd gathered at Houdini Plaza, a central location downtown.

One speaker from the Freedom Road Socialist Organization, Tanner Ziebell, stated “This is an empire in decline, and we will continue to see crimes like these happen on an increasingly severe scale until it is brought to the ground! We can confidently assume that attacks on the people of this world will continue. We can also hold our heads high, knowing that it's a fight we aren't scared to take up, knowing that's exactly what we're going to do, and that this country will be made ungovernable until we win!”

Daisy Sinclair from Hate Free Outagamie reminded the community that “Hate Free Outagamie is committed to the fight for trans rights, committed to fighting for a trans sanctuary in Outagamie to protect our rights. We are not ceding ground to Trump’s hatred and attacks on any group of people, and will fight to ensure it stays that way!”

Members of the community took to the streets, occupying both lanes of traffic for blocks. As they marched, deafening chants demanding no war, an end to deportations, and fighting back shook the city.

The event was organized by the Outagamie County Democratic Party, Hate Free Outagamie, Appleton Area NOW, Northeast Wisconsin Democratic Socialists of America, Freedom Road Socialist Organization, Wisconsin Resist, and others.

The organizers expressed intention to work together in the future and continue to build a strong front against the Trump administration in the coming years.

#AppletonWI #WI #PeoplesStruggles #Trump #ImmigrantRights

Salt Lake City, UT- On Saturday, March 28, tens of thousands of people gathered at Utah’s Capitol building for a No Kings protest. The protest comes in the wake of news that ICE is building a detention center in Utah, one of the largest in a series of centers which the Department of Homeland Security intends to build around the country.

Chants such as “El pueblo unido, jamás será vencido!” were commonly heard.

Opposition to ICE wasn’t the only message communicated at the capitol building. Amid plummeting support for intervention in other countries, Iran was a hot topic as well.

Robert Birch, one of the organizers for Utah’s No King’s rally in SLC, questioned the necessity of war in his speech on the steps of the capitol, asking why billions were being spent on “unnecessary war” instead of the less fortunate.

The Utah Anti-War Committee marched with a banner at its front reading “Hands off Iran!” in bold capital letters and leading chants focusing on Western intervention in Venezuela, Iran and Palestine.

Though much of the anger among Saturday’s protesters is currently directed at the Trump administration, when Trump is gone, the conditions which fuel this rising anger will remain.

#SaltLakeCityUT #UT #ImmigrantRights #PeoplesStruggles #NoKings #Trump #AntiWarMovement

Chicago, IL – The No Kings protests and demonstrations are both an organized response and a clear manifestation of a spontaneous uprising in resistance to Donald Trump’s agenda. Given the commentary and calls of the leaders and organizers of the demonstration, it’s clearly entrenched within the limited oppositional politics of the Democratic and Republican parties.

The Republican Party has gone so far to the right that it has actually deprived the Democrats of a lot of oxygen for carrying out their neoliberal programs. The Democratic Party’s neoliberal budget cuts leave us lean, but the Republican cuts are to the bone. This makes for an interesting kind of politics. You might say that the Democrats are for restoring the leadership of the Democratic Party to its neoliberal mission. It’s more about restoring the status quo of neoliberalism, and this shows up in how they are presently negotiating with the Republicans about ICE, government layoffs, the “Big Beautiful Bill,” and so on. 

So where do we find the bottom line? If we look for the bottom line that the Democrats are drawing saying “Here’s where we stand. Here’s where we will fight, and we shall not be moved,” it’s hard to find that line. Just look at the fights around the budget. First they said ICE should be abolished. Then they said they had to be restricted. They had to show their badges, their warrants, and not wear masks. They went back and forth on that so much that we couldn’t keep track of what they are demanding, what’s the bottom line. Now that we’re in a period of trying to stop a government shutdown, they agreed to the Republican bottom line in the Senate. Now they’re being critical of the Democrats in the House for not going along with the Democrats in the Senate. 

And what’s wrong with this? They have been negotiated backwards to just the limited demand of giving ICE no more money, when ICE already has gotten hundreds of billions of dollars to function, and they don’t really need more money. So, it’s almost a meaningless demand. 

Both the liberal and the conservative parts of the Democratic Party unite and agree that the problem that people have with Trump is the price of eggs and the price of gasoline, and that he broke his promise to take prices down and instead prices have gone up. They have moved the economy to the front burner. This becomes their principal demand. 

But what about the Medicaid cuts? What about housing? What about the near-elimination of the National Labor Relations Board, where no government official is bound to respect trade union rights? What about the massive layoffs of all of the government workers, including air traffic controllers? And last but certainly not least, what about the white supremacy? What about the unchecked, blatant, gross racism that currently resides in the White House?

It becomes like a meteorite issue that flashes through the political firmament and then is no longer seen and no longer mentioned by the Democratic Party, even when their own leadership, like the Obamas, have been characterized as apes by the President. 

As harsh and mean-spirited as Trump’s racism is, it is not exceptional or unprecedented in the annals of American history. 

The masses of the people are way out ahead of the Democrats when it comes to opposing Trump’s agenda. We think this was demonstrated in Minneapolis, and we think it’s also been demonstrated at numerous Congressional hearings, but mainly in Minneapolis, where we heard an undisputable, unmistakeable protest against the ICE occupation and the police state tactics of Trump, coming from the masses of people. 

I’m not talking about the governor of Minnesota. He opposed it, yes. Nor am I talking about the mayor of Minneapolis. He opposed it, too. But they also did not draw the line when it came to aggressive, brutal and murderous actions of ICE on the ground. They let one face of ICE be replaced by another, switching out Bovino for Homan. 

So, the challenge to us is that in these momentous times, when you have political leaders clearly standing in contradiction and opposition to the popular demands and impulses of the masses, that we consciously intervene and make it clear that defeating Trumpism, or defeating the Trump agenda and all the social savagery that it unleashes on the people, means we must address the racism, xenophobia and gender-based oppression as vigorously and uncompromisingly while we also address the social misery caused by the rise in the cost of living. 

Our response to the neoliberal war cry coined by Bill Clinton decades ago, “It’s the economy, stupid,” is “It’s the politics, stupid.” 

Because of the extremism characteristic of this administration, we must not draw the conclusion that our demands are unreachable. We must take the fighting attitude that to get out of the situation that we’re in, our demands must be met. Our immediate demands to stop the Trump agenda must not be seen as a transitionary demand to tolerate the present moment until we get a better moment.

Trumpism is totally unacceptable now, and we must fight it to the finish.

#Opinion #Commentary #FrankChapman #Trump #PeoplesStruggles #ImmigrantRights

Jacksonville, FL – Around 6000 people marched at the No Kings rally, joining millions protesting across the country.

Protesters started at Friendship Fountain, took the streets and marched across the Main Street Bridge before stopping at the Duval Courthouse for a rally. They chanted, “We want justice you say how? Hands off Iran now,” “When immigrant rights are under attack, what do we do? Stand up fight back!” Other chants included ones denouncing Trump along with calling for a free Palestine and Black lives matter.

Organized by a coalition of groups including 50501 NE FL, Indivisible Jax, Beaches Activists Movement, the Jacksonville Community Action Committee, Jacksonville Palestine Solidarity Network, the Jacksonville Immigrant Rights Alliance, 50501 Vets Jax Chapter, the Freedom Road Socialist Organization and others, this rally drew a large number of protestors united in opposing the Trump agenda.

Organizers vowed to have more mobilizations like this in the near future.

#JacksonvilleFL #FL #NoKings #Trump #PeoplesStruggles #Iran #ImmigrantRights

Chicago, IL – Now more than ever it’s important for our movement to talk about what the Trump administration is doing and what we need to do to stop it. Right now, he doesn’t have the entire ruling class behind him, but right now he has the MAGA people of the Republican Party, which operates like a racist cult. The difference being that they have state power, and this is the difference that makes a difference.

What we should be looking at is what they’re actually doing with that state power vis a vis Kristi Noem with the Department of Homeland Security and Pam Bondi with the Justice Department, and how both these agencies of government have gone rogue and show no intention, much less a desire, to abide by the Constitution, or to respect the balance of powers.

So, all we’ve had since the election is one act of defiance after another, and the most blatant one before engaging us in the war against Iran and the peoples of the Middle East, was clearly the refusal to obey the mandate from Congress to release the Epstein files.

Although it’s been a back and forth with the federal courts because the Supreme Court has time and time again taken the side of Donald Trump, there’s a trend that can’t be ignored where Trump has also been in defiance of federal district courts with regard to ICE and lately the Supreme Court itself on the question of the tariffs. The thing to be noted here is that the basic trend has been to vilify the courts and refuse to obey their rulings if they are against Trump’s policies.

What Trump has done through all these measures is to turn the federal government into the enemy of the people and actively engage in setting up a regime of racist and political repression.

This administration has been actively engaged in weakening the federal government in areas that have to do with workers’ rights. It’s active in weakening if not abolishing the Voting Rights Act with new ID requirements which have become a new poll tax. This regime has told people that the gains made by the LGBTQ community do not have to be respected. They’ve done several broadsides against women and the women’s movement, and one of the headline things is what they did in the Winter Olympics, so much so that the athletes who participated in those games, both men and women, have come out and denounced the administration, and refused to go along with it.

There are so many instances of blatant, open, racist expressions on the part of Trump and his administration. We can take what happened with Bad Bunny at the Super Bowl, or the instance where Trump portrayed the Obamas as apes. All of these incidents spell one thing: that already this administration is in open defiance of Congress, the Constitution, and the people of the United States who have been demonstrating en masse against them, manifested by what happened in Minneapolis.

As of this moment, they are illegally holding people, despite court orders, in detention centers. They are illegally going about the business of trying to set up concentration camps throughout the United States. What has put a hold on it is that these jurisdictions where they’re trying to set these up are saying “no, we don’t want that here.” Why would people be saying no? Because people know what it is. They know that these detention camps are really the prelude to concentration camps, a place where they can send those of us who are engaged in resistance as well as immigrants. If they get these detention camps set up all over the country, they’re not going to make a distinction.

Also, they have entered into hidden and open agreements with other countries. We know about the agreement they’ve entered into with El Salvador, but they’re not just talking about sending immigrants to El Salvador. They’re talking about sending American citizens to El Salvador, including people who are in prison on felony charges having absolutely nothing to do with immigration. Again, it is obvious that in fact, we have a regime of repression that is openly and flagrantly carrying out its illegal actions with the power of the state. They have taken over the government to make the government an instrument of their illegal actions.

All the major news networks talk about what they’re doing. The reporting on Fox News now and the reporting on MSNBC and CNN are not fundamentally different. What’s different is Fox News is openly supporting Trump and the other ones are being critical of him and taking advantage of the mass protests and whatnot to express that criticism. But also making him popular at the same time, giving him a lot of airtime.

Right now, he’s using his authority as president to make wars, and to do all of these things that he’s not supposed to be able to do, except through Congress, he is in fact doing them.

What the war on Iran and the peoples of the Middle East has revealed is more than the prerogatives of an imperial presidency. It has revealed that defending and perpetrating the crimes of U.S. imperialism remains a significant point of unity for the U.S. ruling class. Is there any doubt that the war that is presently being waged against Iran has the support of the U.S. ruling class, even though some of them raise issues of legality? At the same time, they praise Trump for having murdered the leaders of the Iranian people and ruthlessly prosecuting a war for regime change.

This brings us down to this here. There are no big differences in the understanding of what’s going on between the different networks, between the masses of the people and the politicians. Millions of people see where this is going.

A word about the Texas elections. The Texas elections are again a clear demonstration of the willingness of the Democratic Party to still pursue the bankrupt policy of reaching across the aisles in search of mythical unity with the Republican Party that will stop the movement that they’re engaged in to destroy every semblance of democracy in the United States.

So where is the real opposition? It’s the spontaneous uprising of the people in the streets and the growing organized engagement of the people on the part of Freedom Road and our allies.

We have to make up our minds going forward to really give a program to our slogan “make the country ungovernable.” Now is the time to do that because in these momentous times, our movement and our people are engaged in an existential struggle to bring about an end of the Trump administration, which is using every enforcement mechanism the government has to protect the rights of the people to destroy the rights of the people. And finally, choosing world war over peace.

This is not so much an analysis as a factual depiction. These are the facts. This is the reality created by the Trump administration that we must change.

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The United States and Israel are waging a war on Iran. It is a war that is unjust and unprovoked. There have been widespread civilian casualties in Tehran and other cities, including reports of 85 schoolchildren dead in Minab.

This is a war that the U.S chose. Trump walked away from negotiations, then enlisted apartheid Israel, and now, bombs and missiles are raining down on schools and TV stations. Iran has every right to respond.

This year comes in a context. The decline of U.S. imperialism is accelerating. Trump is trying to preserve the dying U.S. empire, and control of the Middle East is a part of that project. Last year the U.S. and Israel waged a failed 12-day war that was meant to break Iran.

Now they are back again for another try. Along with his partner in crime Benjamin Netanyahu, Trump will face more defeat and failure – if not sooner, then later. Either way they will meet the fate of the paper tigers that have gone before them.

Iran is charting an independent course. It stands at the center of an axis of resistance that includes the progressive, patriotic forces of Palestine, Yemen, Lebanon and Iraq. The free people of the Middle East won’t live under U.S. domination. They are determined to end the genocidal occupation of the Zionists. So, the defenders of empire will have their hands full.

Here in the U.S., progressives and revolutionaries need to go all out, uniting all who can be united to end the war on Iran. What the U.S. and Israel are doing to Iran is crime, and it needs to be judged accordi