News and Views from the People's Struggle
Saint Paul, MN – On January 20, Twin Cities Coalition 4 Justice 4 Jamar (TCC4J) held an evening event to honor the legacy of Martin Luther King Jr., Marcus Golden, and “stolen lives” of community members lost to police crimes and terror.
Jacksonville, FL – Nearly 100 people gathered to hold a vigil demanding justice for Kwame Jones, January 17. The Jacksonville Community Action Committee (JCAC) joined with community members, along with the family and friends of 17-year-old Kwame Jones, at the intersection of 45th and Moncrief. It was an emotional night for many as the community mourns the loss of this child.
St. Paul, MN – Saint Paul police were soundly condemned on January 14 for a decade of crimes against families and communities. Monique Cullars-Doty, a community activist, chaired a press conference that highlighted some of these crimes and called on the city council to freeze the Saint Paul Police Department budget until there is an end to these disgraceful acts, along with a guarantee of transparency in the future and justice for victims and their families. She then invited others to speak about their loved ones murdered by police.
Chicago, IL – In a pair of upcoming cases, Associate Judge Thomas Hennelly will have the fate of three wrongfully convicted men in his hands. Given who put them behind bars, his rulings could send a signal that Chicago has firmly turned its back on the legacy of police torture and wrongful convictions that hangs over the city. But, given Hennelly’s direct involvement in prosecuting police torture victims and his attempt to hide racist constitutional violations, Chicagoans would be remiss to expect impartiality from the bench.
Tampa, FL – On November 20, students at the University of South Florida (USF) gathered in front of Cooper Hall to demand that administration increases Black enrollment on campus. Tampa Bay Students for a Democratic Society (SDS) organized and led the demonstration.
Chicago, IL – More than a 1200 joined together November 22, at the hall of the Chicago Teachers Union, to refound the National Alliance Against Racist and Political Repression. The newly refounded Alliance will center its efforts on building the fight against police crimes and for community control of the police, and it will campaign for the release of political prisoners and the wrongfully convicted.
Interview with Frank Chapman
Fight Back! interviews Frank Chapman on the November 22-24 Chicago conference to refound the National Alliance against Racist and Political Repression.
Entrevista con Frank Chapman sobre la Conferencia Nacional para la Refundación de la NAARPR este 22 al 24 de noviembre, 2019. Lucha y Resiste!: ¿Pudiera compartir unas palabras sobre cómo se lucirá la conferencia para relanzar la Alianza Nacional en Contra de la Represión Política y Racista?
New Orleans, LA- LGBT activists are getting ready for the Trans March of Resilience this Wednesday, November 20. The community’s leading Black trans organizers are heading the march. Activist groups Operation Restoration, BreakOUT!, GLAAD, the Southern Equality Fund, and the Real Name Campaign are in support.
Tallahassee, FL – Tallahassee’s public housing tenant association is claiming that plans to redevelop Orange Avenue Apartments, the largest public housing community in the city, will result in displacement and that those plans proceeded without resident participation.
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Tallahassee, FL – November 5 marked the due date for 2019 applications to the Florida Housing Finance Corporation. This year the city of Tallahassee has submitted two applications along with $1.3 million to secure funding for the redevelopment of Orange Avenue Apartments, currently the largest public housing community in Tallahassee, a 200-unit complex is on Tallahassee’s Southside.
Sarah Chambers is a rank-and-file member of the Chicago Teachers Union (CTU) and a member of their bargaining committee.
Milwaukee, WI – Milwaukee’s city council (called the Common Council) held a joint public meeting for the city’s 2020 budget, October 7. Residents came into city hall that evening, and a majority shared a similar message: put money into city services and divest from the Milwaukee Police Department.
Chicago, IL – Unions are on the march in defense of their members across the country, with the autoworker strike against GM and strike authorization votes by teachers and other city employees in Chicago. Unions are also defending their members when they leave work and find their lives in danger from the very people paid to protect them: the police.
Chicago, IL – A standing room only crowd filled the Holy Covenant United Methodist Church on September 29 to commemorate Reverend Bruce Johnson and Eugenia Johnson. The reverend and his wife Eugenia were remembered for supporting the Young Lords and their role in the struggle against poverty, war and oppression. They were savagely murdered in their own home 50 years ago, stabbed to death, during a U.S. government campaign of repression known as COINTELPRO or the Counterintelligence Program.
Racine, WI – In a beautiful display of the power of community, 300 people rallied September 18 at the Racine County Courthouse to demand “Justice for Ty’rese” who was murdered mid-June by Sargent Eric Giese, a Mount Pleasant police officer. District Attorney Patricia J. Hanson decided that Giese’s actions were justified and that he will not be criminally charged. Officer Giese is expected to return to work.
Chicago, IL – On September 13, SEIU Local 73 demanded an end to the city of Chicago spending $33 million from the budget of the public schools, and $12 million from the Parks Department, for police officers. The union, which represents 7000 school workers and 3000 workers in the parks, called for more money for the students and community members. The union was joined by the Chicago Alliance Against Racist and Political Repression, Black Lives Matter and progressive alderpersons.
#ChicagoIL #SEIULocal73 #PeoplesStruggles #AfricanAmerican #PoliceBrutality #Antiracism #ChicagoAllianceAgainstRacistAndPoliticalRepression #BlackLivesMatter
Kenosha, WI – When Cyntoia Brown’s case was brought forward to the media, there was a large public outcry for justice. How could a victim of human trafficking be imprisoned for killing her rapist and trafficker? Unfortunately, her case is not novel. Chrystul Kizer, a Milwaukee native, has been charged with multiple counts for defending herself against a sexual predator, Randall Volar III.
Chicago, IL – Founded in 1973 as an organization that grew out of the movement to free the wrongfully imprisoned Angela Davis and other political prisoners, the National Alliance Against Racist and Political Repression is set to relaunch this November. This refounding, led by the Chicago Alliance against Racist and Political Repression (CAARPR) and other organizations, will be taking place in Chicago, Illinois on November 22-24 at the Chicago Teachers' Union Hall.
St. Paul, MN – On August 24, protesters shut down a light rail train, blocked traffic and shut down the main entrance to the Minnesota State Fair. The protesters demanded justice for victims of killer cops, an end to ICE raids, concentration camps and family separation, and an end to deadly U.S. interventions and blockades against foreign countries. Trump supporters and racists heckled, filmed and attacked the protesters, but failed to block the protesters’ message, and no serious injuries occurred.
