Bogotá, Colombia – En Octubre 7, miles de colombianos marcharon por Bogotá conmemorando el aniversario de un año de la Operación Diluvio de Al-Aqsa realizada por la resistencia Palestina, y el posterior genocidio llevado a cabo por Israel en contra del pueblo Palestino. El día de acción fue llamado por el Comité Colombiano de Solidaridad con Palestina, una coalición de organizaciones formada un año antes para protestar el genocidio que continúa. Entre los patrocinadores estuvieron partidos políticos, sindicatos, y organizaciones progresivas, como el Congreso de los Pueblos, el Partido Comunista Colombiano, entre docenas de otros. En su llamado a la acción, la Unión Sindical Obrera de la Industria del Petróleo (USO) dijo: “Llamamos entonces al pueblo colombiano a condenar el genocidio y la escalada de violencia en el oriente medio y exigimos que se cree y se reconozca el estado al que Palestina tiene derecho.”

La manifestación comenzó a las 10 am, cuando un plantón se reunió en frente de la Embajada de Estados Unidos exigiendo un fin al apoyo de este país a Israel y el genocidio. Al mismo tiempo, activistas tuvieron una jornada de expresión en la Universidad Pedagógica Nacional, que se convirtió en una charla a la 1:30 pm. Más personas se reunieron para las 3:30 pm, cuando la marcha oficialmente comenzó saliendo de la Universidad, cantando “Mujeres palestinas, guerreras sin igual, luchando por su pueblo, y por su libertad!”

La primera parada fue la Embajada del Líbano, en la cual los oradores compartieron declaraciones en solidaridad con el pueblo libanés y su lucha contra Israel. La guerra de conquista de Israel ha matado a miles de civiles en el sur del Líbano, junto con el secretario general de Hezbolá, Hassan Nasrallah. Después en la marcha, los protestantes arribaron a la Embajada Palestina, en donde fueron recibidos por Raouf Almalki, embajador palestino en Colombia. A medida que comenzaba una vigilia con velas, las personas dejaron flores en la entrada de la embajada en duelo por las víctimas del genocidio. Los asistentes también fueron invitados a un evento cultural realizado por la embajada el día siguiente en reconocimiento de las víctimas.

En una respuesta corta para ¡Lucha y Resiste!, el embajador explicó lo que la marcha y vigilia significaban para él: “Esto muestra lo que es el verdadero pueblo colombiano, no aquel pueblo que dicen que representan aquellos que son amigos del estado de Israel. Esta gente está saliendo a decir no al genocidio, sí a la justicia, sí a a paz, sí a la lucha del pueblo palestino por su liberación. Estas manifestaciones nos llenan el corazon de satisfacción al saber que el pueblo palestino no esta sólo, está acompañado por todos los pueblos del mundo.”

Después, los participantes quemaron banderas israelíes en frente de la embajada, y continuaron su marcha hacia la Embajada de los Estados Unidos para unirse al plantón que había comenzado en la mañana. En el camino, el contingente del campamento estudiantil de la Universidad Nacional de Colombia desveló una enorme bandera palestina desde un puente peatonal, bloqueando la calle. William Hurtado, líder del campamento, explicó que la bandera era en forma de celebración ya que el campamento pudo durar desde mayo 8 a septiembre 22, y que logró la creación de una electiva en la universidad acerca del conflicto arabe-israelí desde una perspectiva pro-palestina.

Mientras los manifestantes llegaban a la Embajada de Estados Unidos, tambores y cantos dominaban la atmósfera, y oradores denunciaron el apoyo del gobierno estadounidense a Israel y su genocidio. Los marchantes volvieron a quemar banderas israelíes y grafitearon la entrada de la embajada, con consignas como “Palestina resiste” y “Yankees fuera de Palestina”. Pero mientras continuaba la protesta, policías anti disturbios empezaron a alinearse en frente de la embajada, incitando a la violencia contra los manifestantes. Defensores de los derechos humanos pudieron formar una línea para proteger el plantón de los policías, y el evento terminó con los policías yéndose y los participantes celebrando.

Marchas y protestas similares también ocurrieron en otras ciudades de Colombia, como Cali, Medellín, Bucaramanga, entre otras.

#International #Columbia #Palestine

Bogotá, Colombia – On October 7, thousands of Colombians marched in Bogotá commemorating the one-year anniversary of the Operation Al-Aqsa Flood carried out by the Palestinian resistance, and the subsequent genocide carried out by Israel against the people of Palestine. The day of action was called for by the Colombian Committee of Solidarity with Palestine, a coalition of organizations which had formed a year back to protest the ongoing genocide.

Amongst its endorsers were political parties, trade unions and progressive organizations, such as the Peoples’ Congress, the Colombian Communist Party and dozens of others. In their call to action, the Oil Workers’ Union (USO) said, “We call on the Colombian people to condemn the genocide and the escalation of violence in the Middle East and we demand that the state to which Palestine has a right is created and recognized.”

The action started at 10 a.m., when a rally gathered in front of the United States Embassy calling for an end to the U.S. funding of Israel and the genocide. At the same time, activists held a workshop at the National Pedagogical University, which at 1:30 p.m. turned into a talk. More people gathered by 3:30 p.m., when the march officially started leaving the university, chanting “Palestinian women, warriors without equal, fighting for their people, and for their freedom!”

The first stop was the Lebanese embassy, where speakers shared statements in solidarity with the people of Lebanon and their struggle against Israel. Israel’s war of conquest has killed thousands of civilians in southern Lebanon, along with political leaders such as Hezbollah Secretary General Hassan Nasrallah.

Later in the march, protesters arrived at the Palestinian embassy, where they were greeted by Raouf Almalki, Palestinian ambassador to Colombia. As a candlelight vigil started, people left flowers by the entrance to the embassy mourning the victims of the genocide. Attendees were also invited to a cultural event held by the embassy the following day in recognition of the victims.

In a short answer to Fight Back!, the ambassador explained what the march and vigil meant to him, stating, “This shows what the true Colombian people are, not what the media allied with Israel says the Colombian people are. These people are coming out to say no to genocide, yes to justice, yes to peace, yes to the Palestinian people’s struggle for their liberation. These events fill our hearts with satisfaction, knowing the Palestinian people are not alone but are accompanied by all the peoples of the world.”

Attendees then burned Israeli flags in front of the embassy and continued their march to the United States embassy to join the rally that had started there earlier in the day. On the way there, the student encampment contingent from the National University of Colombia unveiled a huge Palestine flag atop a pedestrian bridge, blocking the street. Encampment leader William Hurtado explained that it was a form of celebration, because the encampment was able to last from May 8 to September 22 and had achieved the creation of an elective in the University about the Arab-Israeli conflict from a pro-Palestine perspective.

As protesters reached the United States embassy, drums and chants dominated the atmosphere, and speakers called out the United States government for its aid to Israel and the genocide. Marchers again burned Israeli flags and graffitied the entrance to the embassy, with slogans such as “Palestine resists” and “Yankees out of Palestine.” As the rally continued however, riot cops started lining up in front of the embassy, inciting violence towards protesters. Human rights defenders were able to form a line to protect the rally from cops, and the event ended with the police leaving and protesters celebrating.

Similar marches and rallies occurred in other cities of Colombia, such as Cali, Medellín, Bucaramanga and more.

#Columbia #International #AntiWarMovement #Palestine

In a radical act of solidarity with the Palestinian people, university students across the country have escalated the struggles on their campuses with the campus encampment movement. At Emory University in Atlanta, students, faculty and community members created one such encampment demanding for the immediate and total divestment from the Israeli apartheid state. The Atlanta Police Department and Georgia State Patrol were called to the encampment by the Emory administration where they brutalized, beat and arrested dozens of protesters.

The Atlanta District of the Freedom Road Socialist Organization condemns the violence and arrests perpetrated by APD and GSP. This is an attack on the student and Palestinian liberation movements – movements that have agitated, mobilized and organized day after day for the complete and total liberation of Palestine. We echo the demands of students at Emory University calling for the university's divestment from apartheid and demand that any and all charges on protesters be dropped immediately.

The U.S empire is crumbling, and these acts of repression are the last gasps of a dying empire. The Atlanta district of the Freedom Road Socialist Organization stands in total solidarity with the students at Emory and will continue to organize to drop the charges on arrested protesters and fight for a free Palestine.

Protesting is not a crime, drop the charges now!

Divest from Israeli apartheid!

From the river to the sea, Palestine will be free!

#AtlantaGA #GA #FRSO #Statement #StudentMovement #Emory #Columbia #Occupy #Encampment #AntiWarMovement #International #Palestine #MiddleEast #Feature

Arcata, CA – On Monday, April 22, around 4 p.m., roughly 30 students began a sit-in in Siemens Hall at Cal Poly Humboldt, California, to show solidarity with Palestine and with other campuses that are doing the same. While many students on other campuses are setting up encampments, theirs is the first in the movement to take over a building so far, and an admin building, no less. This also made them the first state university to join the movement.

At the start, protesters were demonstrating inside the building, sitting together, and chanting. Police soon arrived, they attempted to drag the students out and destroy the barrier that they had set up using chairs inside the building.

At the peak of the protest, students inside reinforced their barricade – while outside student activist Jasmine Jolly led chants to keep people united. She chanted on the megaphone, “Link your arms, hold the line, protect your families,” and could be heard throughout the quad as protesters followed suit. There is no doubt that the actions of activists like herself helped to rally the crowd and defend the occupiers inside of the building.

When asked about the protest, Jolly stated, “I am a part of this protest because I dream of a free Palestine and an end to the unjust Israeli occupation. I hope that this message of hope and resilience gets out to other students across the nation. I hope that it shows that we, the young people, are changemakers, and revolutionaries; that we are some of the most compassionate and capable people in the world. Fixing the mess that was left by our predecessors means building an equitable future that is actually by and for the people. I am here because we will see a free Palestine in my lifetime.”

Within the building the occupiers linked arms and barricaded the door. They worked together to ensure that the police would not defeat them and put an early end to their powerful movement. Building occupier Olivia Fox (who goes formally by Fox), a member of Students for a Democratic Society (SDS) stated, “Solidarity with our family in occupied Palestine requires us to resist the normalization of mass suffering, genocide and ecocide at the hands of a globalized colonial project, which is currently manifesting itself as the United States/Israel. The distinction between these two is illusory. To stand in solidarity with Palestine requires us to recognize the struggle of all colonized people suffering globally from state violence, displacement and ethnic cleansing. The pattern of colonization is distinct and has manifested itself in the destruction of human life on Earth.”

Police brutally assaulted multiple students, throwing one out of a truck onto the concrete, and bashing a protester's head so hard that it bled. More students arrived to help and together we were able to hold the line and prevent any more arrests or attacks by police. Faculty and CFA also arrived on the scene to demand that the police be called off by the campus administration. Around 11:30 p.m. the police finally went home, and campus was shut down for the foreseeable future. Protesters had won the first round. Students are still occupying the building at the time of the writing of this article and still refuse to leave until their demands are met.

SDS Humboldt member, Rick Toledo, was acting as a legal observer for the event. He was directly in front of the building recording police activity, badge numbers, and their attacks on the innocent students. When asked about the protest, he stated, “The violence, abuses, and crimes that the police committed at the protest mirror the same kind of violence that the Israeli Occupation Force has been using against the indigenous Palestinian people. The students that rose up to the occasion, and challenged business as usual, to stand with the Palestinians are heroic and some of the bravest people that I know. The response of the administration and the police demonstrates utter cowardice and a complete disconnect from what this university is supposed to stand for. No more student repression, no more investing in genocide, no more pretending to be inclusive while stabbing BIPOC in the back – it’s time for a change, and its time for the admin to finally listen to the students for once.”

The students are now calling their collective movement “Occupy Cal Poly Humboldt” and have set up an official Instagram for it. All students involved have taken a major step towards a free Palestine and a more equitable university. The sit-in is ongoing and in order for students to leave the building they are requesting that the campus administration at least meet some of their demands and begin negotiations with them. Until then, they plan to remain indefinitely. In the meantime, the students have invited more protesters to join in and students, community members, and faculty have all pitched in to provide resources and support to this ongoing show of student power and solidarity.

Their current five demands are as follows: First, the full divestment of the university from anything profiting off of or associated with Israel, including weapons manufacturers, exploitation of the West Bank as well as any firms that invest in those activities; second, they want the university to boycott all Israeli academic institutions and sever any academic ties with them; third, to publicly call for a permanent ceasefire in Gaza; fourth, to give assurances that there will be no charges, either criminal charges or disciplinary action taken against any protesters; and fifth, to either amend or remove the time, manner or place clause which allows them to call the police on students for organizing in ways that they deem inappropriate.

#ArcataCA #CA #StudentMovement #SDS #AntiWarMovement #International #Palestine #Columbia #Encampment #Occupy #Feature

Fight Back News Service is circulating the following statement by the New Students for a Democratic Society (SDS).

While standing in solidarity with Palestine, the student movement has once again escalated protests on campus with the campus encampment movement. Students are calling out their universities and its administrators for their decades’ long support of Israel’s genocide of Palestinians and are demanding that our universities divest and cut all ties to Israel! University administrators have no right to ignore the students as university administrators continue to support the genocide in Gaza and maintain support for Israel.

Rather than carrying out the demands of the student movement to divest, cut ties with Israel, and end U.S. aid to Israel; university administrators, the Biden administration, and Congress have chosen to attack students’ First Amendment rights. In order to justify the arming and funding of the genocidal Israeli government, they have felt the need to silence and attack students for standing bravely for a Free Palestine. Since October, congress has passed legislation against students' right to protest in solidarity with Palestine and have labeled students demanding a free Palestine from the River to the Sea as antisemitic. SDS condemns these cowardly and illegal attacks on free speech, the right to assemble, and academic freedom. It is right to stand with Palestine!

As students standing in solidarity with Palestine, and against the actions of our universities, President Biden, and the actions of congress, we need to have each other’s backs and join forces with pro-Palestine student groups like Students for Justice in Palestine in an effort to spread these encampments across the country! SDS understands that university administrators will attack the student encampments every opportunity they get by sending the university police departments to attack and tear down the encampment, arrest students, lie to the press and media, and threaten students with code of conduct charges. We need students across the country to be ready to show support by showing up to the encampments, holding solidarity actions, sharing updates on social media, participating in call-ins if and when students are arrested, and having their own protests and encampments. We are the student movement, and we are far more powerful than the administrators and their police!

Students for a Democratic Society stands with student encampments and all students demanding a Free Palestine! We took inspiration from Columbia Students for Justice in Palestine, and the Columbia students who started the encampment movement. We stand in unconditional solidarity with Columbia students, NYU students, and all student encampments demanding divestment, cutting ties with Israel, and demanding an end to Israeli genocide in Gaza. We call on students to stand in solidarity with the campus encampments and start encampments on their campuses. We must escalate actions to demand an end to U.S. aid to Israel, and for universities to cut all ties!

National SDS demands:

1. Universities fully divest from Israel.

2. Universities carry out an academic boycott of Israel.

3. Universities condemn Israel for its genocide in Gaza.

4. The protection of first amendment rights to free speech, protest, and academic freedom.

5. President Biden and Congress end all U.S. aid to Israel.

#StudentMovement #SDS #Columbia #International #MiddleEast #Palestine #AntiWarMovement #Feature

Trinidad is needed by the FARC in their negotiations with the Colombian government in order to secure peace with social justice. Activists from around the U.S. and media from around the world will converge in Florence, Colorado to ensure that President Obama hears the demand “Free Simon Trinidad now!”

The action will be on Monday Sept. 21 at 11:00 a.m. on State Route 67 in Florence, Colorado in front of the federal prison.

There will be a public information meeting on the 20th at 6:00 p.m. at the Posner Center, 1031 33rd Street in Denver, Colorado.

For further information contact Simon Trinidad’s Attorney Mark Burton: markburtonlaw@unseen.is 303-517-1187 or The National Committee to Free Ricard Palmera (Simon Trinidad): info@freericardopalmera.org

#TucsonAZ #AntiwarMovement #SimónTrinidad #Columbia

Students for a Democratic Society stands with Simon Trinidad and the peace process in Colombia. Simon Trinidad is an important political leader in the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia-People's Army (FARC-EP). He served as a peace negotiator before the CIA pushed for his extradition to the US for trumped up charges. The US government sentenced Simon Trinidad to 60 years in prison when it got a conviction after Trinidad beat three of the four kangaroo court trials. He's forced into solitary confinement and denied basic human rights.

If the United States government's gross violations of Simon Trinidad human rights were not enough, it actively supports, funds, and trains the Colombian government to engage in a dirty civil war. The vast majority of human rights violations in Colombia occur either by the government itself or by the government supported narco-paramilitaries. Yet, Colombia has received nearly 8 billion dollars in US aid primarily for military operations under the guise of “counter-narcotics.”

The FARC-EP demands the release of one of their main peace negotiators, Simon Trinidad, from inhumane conditions. The United States and Barack Obama must meet this incredibly reasonable request for the sake of the peace process in Colombia. National SDS will mobilize on September 21st to demand Simon Trinidad's release at the Florence Colorado Supermax prison known as the “Guantanamo of the Rockies”.

#UnitedStates #SDS #Colombia #PeoplesStruggles #SimónTrinidad #Columbia #Americas

Mark Burton is the lawyer for Colombian revolutionary Ricardo Palmera. Palmera is a political prisoner of the U.S., currently held in the Florence, Colorado supermax prison. Mark Burton is one of the few people allowed to visit and communicate with him. There is a campaign to Free Ricardo Palmera so he can take part in ongoing Colombian peace talks happening in Cuba. Ricardo Palmera is popularly known as Simón Trinidad in Colombia. For more information see www.FreeRicardoPalmera.org.

Fight Back!: Why is Ricardo Palmera a political prisoner of the U.S. government?

Mark Burton: Ricardo Palmera is a political prisoner as his extradition and prosecution were at the behest of the Colombian government for political reasons. It wanted to make an example of him to intimidate the opposition.

We now know from a cable, from U.S. Ambassador Robert Wood, disclosed by Wikileaks, that President Uribe of Colombia asked the U.S. to extradite Ricardo Palmera in 2004. The U.S. government could not extradite him as there were no pending cases against him here. A case was then constructed by the Colombian and U.S. governments that allowed him to be extradited in December 2004.

Fight Back!: What are the conditions like for Ricardo Palmera in prison?

Burton: Mr. Palmera has been under Special Administrative Measures [SAM], while in custody from very shortly after his arrival in the U.S. in 2004. The SAM restricts his contact with people from outside, and inside, the prison, so he has been subject to excessive isolation.

Fight Back!: Why is it important to free Ricardo Palmera at this point in time?

Burton: The Colombian government and the largest guerrilla group in Colombia, the Fuerzas Armadas Revolucionarias de Colombia – Ejercito Popular [FARC-EP] have been in formal peace talks with the Colombian government in Havana, Cuba since August of 2012. There has been much progress reported in the peace talks and, perhaps for the first time in the history of the 50-year-old armed Colombian conflict, there is the possibility of a peace agreement.

Ricardo Palmera was an important peace negotiator in the last peace talks between the FARC-EP and the Colombian government in San Vicente del Caguan, Colombia from 1998-2002. Due to his work in the peace talks in San Vicente, Ricardo Palmera is reputed to be a skilled negotiator and adept diplomat. The Colombian peace talks would be enriched if Mr. Trinidad were to be released and allowed to join the negotiations, where he has been named as a delegate. He could be of great service to the cause of peace, and the reconciliation of Colombian society.

#UnitedStates #RicardoPalmera #PoliticalPrisoners #Interview #FreeRicardoPalmera #Columbia