Minneapolis, MN – On January 3, over 1200 people marched in South Minneapolis to demand justice for Dolal Idd, who was killed by the Minneapolis police department on December 30.

The lead organization was the Minnesota Council on Islamic Relations (CAIR), supported by the rest of the anti-police terror movement. The rally started at the spot where Dolal Idd was killed, at the Holiday gas station at 36th Street and Cedar Avenue. The large crowd heard speakers, including Dolal's father, then went on a spirited march to Lake Street and looped back to the starting point. This is the third protest since Idd was murdered.

Monique Cullars Doty, a prominent local activist, spoke about the raid on the Idd family home – which happened before the cops informed them that Dolal Idd had been killed. “I am the aunt of Marcus Golden who was shot in the back of his head while parked in his vehicle. They came and raided my mother’s house to get a gun that he legally owned, some 11 hours later, as they tried to craft their lies [that Marcus was armed when they killed him].”

Cullars Doty made the connection: “I watched the video of this [Idd’s] family in their home at 2 a.m. – door busted down, handcuffed, and the little baby who needs help, the police giving him orders, the officer telling the other child ‘You’re OK.’ No, he’s not OK, because there’s been an invasion! I’m tired of the police trying to tell us how we feel in the face of injustice. This has got to stop. This is what happens when police come into the home to look for evidence because they have to create a justification for murder.”

Loretta Van Pelt and Jess Sundin spoke for Twin Cities Coalition 4 Justice 4 Jamar. In addition to demanding justice for Idd, they called for community control of police, to ensure that the community has the power to get rid of racist and violent cops once and for all.

The crowd continued to swell for hours, with protesters still arriving at the starting point as the march returned to the site. Attendees included a large majority of women and youth, many from the Somali community.

There are still many unanswered questions about the night of December 30, when MPD killed the young Somali American man. It is the second killing of a Black person by the MPD in 2020. It is also the second police murder of a Somali man in about a year and half in Minnesota, after Isak Aden was killed by several police in Eagan in July of 2019.

Much like with the murder of George Floyd, the MPD immediately began their public relations smear campaign, including releasing a 27-second body cam video which doesn’t shed light onto the sequence of events. However, it does show how police penned in Idd and fired several shots into his car as he was ambushed – a fate that is unfortunately all too familiar to Black people across the United States. Unbelievably, a woman who was in the car at the time remained unscathed but unheard from after the incident. The community has many questions regarding the whereabouts of this woman. The community is also demanding answers as to why Hennepin County Sheriff's deputies raided Idd's family home hours after he was murdered.

The Washington Post keeps database of people killed by police terror since 2015, the same year Jamar Clark was killed. Each year they have tracked almost 1000 cases. Again, with the murder of Idd and others the total count stands at 999 across the U.S. for 2020. It is clear that, without a major overhaul to the policing system via community control of the police, we will continue to see high levels of police terror in our communities.

The rally and march ended with additional speeches and the community vowed to continue the fight for justice and police accountability.

#MinneapolisMN #PeoplesStruggles #PoliceBrutality #CouncilOnAmericanIslamicRelations #TwinCitiesCoalition4JusticeForJamarTCC4J #JusticeForDolalIdd

Minneapolis, MN – More than 50 people protested Saturday, February 1, outside the Federal Courthouse in downtown Minneapolis to condemn Donald Trump adding six more countries to his administration’s travel ban.

The protest was called by the Council on American-Islamic Relations-Minnesota (CAIR) just a day earlier and was endorsed by the Immigrant Law Center of Minnesota, Black Immigrant Collective, Minnesota Immigrant Rights Action Committee (MIRAC), Anti-War Committee, among others.

The Minneapolis protest was emceed by Jaylani Hussein of CAIR-MN. State Attorney General Keith Ellison and former State Representative Erin Murphy spoke at the rally, as did leaders from the ACLU, Immigrant Law Center, Anti-War Committee, Black Immigrant Collective, RISE and others.

On January 31, the Trump administration announced they intend to ban people Nigeria, Eritrea, Myanmar and Kyrgyzstan from coming to work or live in the U.S., while people from Tanzania and Sudan would be banned from applying for the visa lottery. The new ban would take effect on February 22. Minnesota has many residents from Eritrea and Myanmar whose families would be affected by the ban. This is in addition to people from Libya, Iran, Somalia, Yemen, Syria, north Korea and Venezuela who remain subject to the first Muslim ban.

Speakers emphasized that this ban deepens the Islamophobic policies of this administration. Jaylani Hussein recalled that it was Trump himself who repeatedly called for a Muslim ban during his electoral campaign but was forced to stop using that language when courts made clear that would not stand. Hussein dared him to again be forthright in calling these policies what they truly are. Many speakers also made clear that this expansion of the ban is focused on African countries, including Africa’s most populous country of Nigeria, so in addition to being a Muslim ban it is also a racist Africa ban.

President Trump’s initial Muslim ban provoked mass protests at airports around the country in 2017. That ban was tied up in courts until the Supreme Court voted 5-4 to allow it to go into effect. With this announcement of an expansion it is clear that this administration will not be content with any victories they win – every inch they advance just encourages them to take a mile. Speakers reinforced the need to continue to protest racist and Islamophobic policies.

#MinneapolisMN #International #AntiwarMovement #ImmigrantRights #InJusticeSystem #OppressedNationalities #US #PeoplesStruggles #CouncilOnAmericanIslamicRelations #TravelBan

Minneapolis, MN – Protesters chanted and spoke out against President Trump’s third attempt at a Muslim ban, Oct. 10, at the Minneapolis Federal Building, in downtown Minneapolis.

A Washington Post review of State Department data found that more than 65,000 visas were issued in fiscal year 2016 that would now likely fall under the ban.

On Sept. 24, President Trump issued an updated travel ban. The nations facing travel restrictions to the U.S. now include Chad, Iran, Libya, Democratic People’s Republic of Korea, Somalia, Syria, Venezuela and Yemen. Iraq was dropped from the Muslim ban earlier, Sudan was dropped, but Chad (another Muslim-majority country) along with north Korea and Venezuela were added on Sept. 24. The ban goes into effect on Oct. 15.

Meredith Aby-Keirstead, a member of the Anti-War Committee, which organized the protest, explains, “Trump’s expansion of his racist travel ban is a last ditch effort to make his policy appear less discriminatory towards Muslims. We oppose the travel ban because it targets people fleeing the effects of U.S. foreign policy. As we said in January when the Muslim ban was first enacted, it is criminal for the U.S. to bomb and attack other countries and then turn away refugees when the U.S. has destroyed their homelands. Trump made the announcement the same day as the U.S. conducted airstrikes in Libya. It is outrageous for Trump to enact this while at the same time expanding wars in the Middle East and threatening north Korea and Venezuela.”

Christine Hauschildt joined the Anti-War Committee after participating in their protest of 15,000 people against the Muslim ban on Jan. 31, 2017 and was one of the main speakers at today’s protest. Hauschildt told the crowd, “The Trump administration is labeling entire countries as ‘terrorist havens’ when in fact the U.S. has caused years of terror in them. U.S. warfare has created an international refugee crisis and this ban is an attempt to blame the very victims of these wars for their own trauma. It is immoral and outrageous to deny refugees an avenue to flee to the U.S. when our country was responsible for creating the wars they are running from.”

The protest is a part of a week of actions. On Thursday, Oct. 12, the Anti-War Committee and the Council on American Islamic Relations are organizing mini-protests in downtown Minneapolis to increase awareness surrounding the Muslim ban.

#MinneapolisMN #AntiwarMovement #AntiWarCommittee #CouncilOnAmericanIslamicRelations #Antiracism #NoMuslimBanEver

Judge Michael J. Davis handed down a 20-year sentence for Amina Ali and a 10-year sentence for Hawo Hassan. Both are well respected humanitarian workers. Hundreds of supporters from the Somali community in Minnesota came to the sentencing hearing.

Before sentencing the two Muslim women to prison May 16, U.S. District Judge Michael Davis asked each woman if she supported “jihad, suicide bombings and Sharia law.” Judge Davis also asked, “Does she understand there are some Muslim women who wear dresses or short skirts?” Davis said he was trying to decide whether the defendants would “support terrorist causes” when they are released from prison. The questions reportedly drew audible reactions in a courtroom packed with Muslim spectators.

“It is misguided and unethical for a judge to reference an individual's general support of mainstream Islamic principles, known as Sharia, during sentencing to determine a defendant's future dangerousness,” said CAIR Staff Attorney Gadeir Abbas. “By also linking modest dress to a propensity for violence, the judge revealed a disturbing bias that may have impacted his decisions in this case and his sentencing of the defendants.”

He added that CAIR's complaint will not deal with the specifics of the cases or the charges against the defendants, but with the action of the judge in inappropriately questioning the defendants on their views about Sharia and modest attire, both of which are irrelevant to their cases.

#WashingtonDC #ImmigrantRights #Islamophobia #CouncilOnAmericanIslamicRelations #HawoMohamedHassan #AminaAli #InjusticeSystem

After a traditional Iranian dinner buffet at the Warwick New York Hotel, attendees were greeted by the Iranian president and three other Iranian officials. After apologies for the security measures imposed by the U.S. Secret Service, the Iranian delegation invited remarks from their guests. Speakers included Phil Wilayto, Ramsey Clark, Brenda Stokely of the Black is Back Coalition, Saladin Muhammad of Black Workers for Justice, Nihad Awad of Council on American Islamic Relations, Sara Flounders of International Action Center and several religious leaders.

All expressed their solidarity with the Iranian people, and voiced opposition to the U.S. threats of war, sanctions and other interference in Iran’s affairs. Many called for affirmation of the Durban Program of Action Against Racism and several raised the imminent execution of Troy Davis in Georgia.

Jess Sundin, of the Minnesota Anti-War Committee, addressed President Ahmadinejad saying, “Almost one year ago, my home was raided by the FBI, along with 24 anti-war and international solidarity activists. We are being targeted and criminalized for our lifetimes dedicated to struggling for peace and justice and our own fates are uncertain. We have spoken out against threats of war and sanctions on Iran and we will not be silent. Our silence is the only thing they can use against us. I urge everyone here to follow your example and not be silent in the face of U.S. imperialism.”

After 17 guests spoke, the president addressed the gathering. “Do you know of an animal that has killed one million of its own kind? In our time, we know of a being, that in order to line the pockets of the wealthy, invaded Iraq and Afghanistan and killed one million.”

He responded directly to many of the guests’ comments. Referring to the case of Troy Davis, he said, “We have heard today about someone who is not guilty of a single crime, that is being executed, and all of us feel attacked.”

President Ahmadinejad closed with these hopeful words, “The devil may seem scary, but in reality they are weak and vulnerable. 30 years ago, the U.S. government was unbeatable. They could tackle any problem and beat it. What position do they occupy today? They are weak; they cannot resolve even the most basic problems. Who today has hope they can save the economy and the financial system? They used to say Israel would extend from the Nile to the Euphrates, but now the Zionists are surrounding themselves with 20-foot high walls.”

The meeting closed with applause.

#NewYorkNY #AntiwarMovement #Ahmadinejad #Iran #AntiWarCommittee #JessSundin #RamseyClark #InternationalActionCenter #TroyDavis #antiimperialism #InternationalDayOfPeace #DurbanProgramOfActionAgainstRacism #BlackWorkersForJustice #BlackIsBackCoalition #CouncilOnAmericanIslamicRelations #PoliticalRepression