Trial of racist killer begins

Jacksonville, FL – Over 35 protesters gathered here outside of the Duval County Courthouse, Feb. 4, for the first day of jury selection in the trial of Michael Dunn, the racist killer of 17-year-old African American youth Jordan Davis. Holding signs and chanting together, the crowd demanded “Justice for Jordan” and the conviction of Dunn.

Los Angeles, CA – Over 100 students, community activists, faculty, staff and others jammed the Cal State University of Los Angeles (CSULA) faculty Academic Senate, Jan. 28, to demonstrate support for Ethnic Studies – Chicana/o Studies, Pan-African Studies and Asian American Studies – becoming part of the General Education program.

Demand 'Free Marissa now!' and 'Justice for Jordan Davis'

Jacksonville, FL – 40 progressive activists marched together in the city's annual Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. parade on Jan. 20. These activists commemorated King's legacy by demanding freedom for Marissa Alexander, the 33-year-old African American mother whose conviction for resisting domestic abuse was recently overturned, and justice for Jordan Davis, a 17-year-old African American youth murdered in 2012 by a white vigilante in Jacksonville.

Oct. 7, 1934 – Jan. 9, 2014

Newark, NJ – He was a poet, playwright and political activist. He was my mentor and guide for almost a quarter of a century.

Minneapolis, MN – In early November, Shannon Gibney, an English Professor at Minneapolis Community and Technical College (MCTC), was given an official letter of reprimand by the college’s Vice President of Academic Affairs Lois Bollman after two white male students interrupted a discussion on structural racism in her Intro to Mass Communication class. The two white students said they felt uncomfortable and “singled out” for being white. After class they, along with another white male student, issued a formal complaint of racial discrimination with MCTC’s Office of Legal Affairs.

Washington DC – More than 300,000 people are gathered on the mall today for the March on Washington, with at least 150,000 on each side of the reflecting pool. The massive crowd is largely African-American, mobilized by the 50-year anniversary of Martin Luther King’s speech and by the pressing demand for justice for Trayvon Martin. African-American groups range from Florida’s Dream Defenders, to New Jersey’s People’s Organization for Progress, to the national NAACP. There is also a big union mobilization, with the United Auto Workers turning out thousands of members in t-shirts. Many other unions and their associated groups like Working America are also out in force.

Newark, NJ – The struggle to get justice for Trayvon Martin continued here, July 20. Over 500 people turned out at the Federal Building to demand a federal civil rights investigation of his murder by George Zimmerman. The rally was called by the National Action Network (NAN.) Speaker after speaker denounced the Zimmerman verdict and contrasted it with the 20-year sentence given Marissa Alexander in the same state of Florida for firing a warning shot in her own defense that harmed no one.

The rulers of the U.S. are waging a war on the oppressed at home and abroad. The murder of Trayvon Martin and the July 13 not guilty verdict for his killer is an indictment of the system we live under. When the rich and powerful talk of justice they lie. Just take a look at what happened in Florida, or Iraq, or so many other places.

Minneapolis, MN – Thousands of people gathered here, July 15, in the Peoples Plaza in front of the Hennepin County Government Center, to demand justice for Trayvon Martin, Terrance Franklin and all victims of police brutality.

Green Bay, WI – A group of about 30 protesters, many from the black community, came out to the Brown County Courthouse July 16 to protest the not guilty verdict of George Zimmerman in the Trayvon Martin killing. Members of Students for a Democratic Society (SDS) and Occupy Green Bay were in attendance, along with a diverse group of members of the community.