New York, NY – Several hundred people gathered in Union Square Park to rally and march in celebration of International Workers Day, May 1. The event was pulled together by over 60 organizations, under the leadership of the organizations in the International League of Peoples’ Struggle.

The celebration began on the north side of Union Square Park, which was a change from the last ten decades when May Day was celebrated on the south side. This move was an initial deterrent by the NYC Parks and Recreation Department to stop May Day. However, the organizers were ready to rally regardless of attempts of political repression.

Forces began gathering at noon and were greeted by songs of liberation and revolution. The first round of emcees stood on the bed of pick-up truck with a banner emblazoned, “Fight together! Strike to win! Migrants and workers run the world!”

The series of speeches were militant and kept the crowd going. In between speeches, there were chants that ranged from, “Money for jobs and education, not for war and occupation!” to “We fight together! We strike to win! New York we know you’re listening!”

Jessica Schwartz, an organizer from the Committee to Stop FBI Repression-NY, gave a speech that reviewed the history political repression and May Day. Part of her speech was announcing the new CSFR-NY campaign, which is targeting the sector of the NYPD called the Strategic Response Group (SRG). The SRG is a highly-militarized response unit that was created post 9/11 to respond to terrorism. However, in the last years it’s been used to highly police and repress protests. Schwartz ended her speech by saying, “That is why, to honor the original martyrs of May Day, the Committee to Stop FBI Repression wants everyone here to organize in their communities when they’re under attack, whether it’s anti-gentrification, immigrant rights, workers’ rights, or any other issue. The Committee to Stop FBI Repression asks that you join us in our demand to have the NYPD and Security Response Group stop targeting and arresting activists.”

One of the next speakers was Nadz Martinez, representing Bayan USA North East, who gave a rousing and passionate overview of how the U.S. has puppets throughout the world. Martinez focused on the Duterte’s fascist regime in the Philippines and how he’s carrying out three wars against the people. They touched upon how these various struggles are fighting back and the importance of standing in solidarity with them. They ended their speech with a chant, “When workers’ rights are under attack, what do we do? Stand up! Fight back!”

The march began at 5 p.m. and headed to Foley Square, the Federal Plaza in New York. While the marchers kept their spirits up, the NYPD tried several times to stop, deter and break up the march. The main occurrence was when they attempted to break up the front of the march near the corner of Washington Square Park – where Mayor De Blasio was holding his event. However, the organizers out-maneuvered the cops and were able to get their march back together and end in Foley Square!

The day ended with small speak-outs, chants and a recommitment to the movement.

#NewYorkNY #MayDay #PeoplesStruggles #NYC #UnionSquare

New York, NY – Several hundred gathered at Union Square on May 1 to celebrate International Workers Day. The event was one of several organized for the day and was put together by groups that are a part of the International League of People’s Struggles – North East.

The event was called “Shut it down: Strike to defend migrants, refugees and all workers” and started at noon at the south end of the park. The program consisted of speeches and cultural performers.

Speakers and performers stood in front of a large banner that declared “Strike!” in several different languages, as unions and worker centers, such as the Laundry Workers Center and B&H Photo workers, called for a one-day general strike.

Joe Catron, an organizer with Samidoun the Palestinian Prisoner Solidarity Network, read a statement of solidarity on behalf of the 1000 plus Palestinian prisoners currently on hunger strike.

Michela Martinazzi, an organizer with the Committee to Stop FBI Repression, spoke on political repression, stating, “We scored a victory in keeping Rasmea Odeh out of jail. It’s the people who must protect their own. From those arrested at Occupy, to J20 and Jacksonville, when the state attacks our own, we have to stand up to them. Together we fight and united we win!”

There were also speakers from different countries that highlighted how those countries were experiencing and fighting back against the brunt of U.S. imperialism and intervention, such as Venezuela, Puerto Rico and Korea.

At 2:30 p.m. the speeches stopped for one hour as different groups set up in different parts of the park for teach-ins on respective issues in our movement. The main program began again at 3:30 p.m.

Susan Sarandon, an actress and an outspoken progressive voice in Hollywood, made an unexpected appearance and gave a speech. She stated, “I’m a born and bred New Yorker and the reason I came here is because of the spirit and fuck you attitude,” she continued as the crowd cheered, “There have been infringements on people’s lives beyond the past eight years and just now people are noticing. It’s now more important than ever that we stand together and we demand that New York is a sanctuary city.”

Cultural performances included Palestinian Dabke Dancers, singers, spoken word and short skits. Each performance highlighted a particular culture or showcased parts of the movement.

Throughout the day, Alt-Right and Trump supporters attempted to tear down the event, but they were thwarted by security, comprised of event organizers. The NYPD arrested organizers and those trying to defend themselves.

The march began at approximately 5:30 p.m. even though there were a couple of speakers left on the program. The decision was made when security noticed that armed fascist forces had infiltrated the park and surrounded the area. As the march began, the NYPD arrested people on the front banner who took the streets.

Regardless of the heavy police and right-wing repression, the rest of the organizers took the lead and continued marching. Approximately 5000 people marched for three hours downtown chanting, singing and standing up for justice!

#NewYorkNewYork #Labor #MayDay #ILPS #InternationalLeagueOfPeoplesStruggle #NewYorkCity #MayDay2017 #UnionSquare