Tacoma, WA – On Saturday morning November 30, about 30 people gathered outside the Northwest Detention Center (NWDC) in the port of Tacoma for a routine trash pickup. As the cleanup began however, community members expressed surprise to see multiple fire trucks and other emergency vehicles rapidly approaching the building.
Los Angeles, CA – 30 people attended a know your rights panel and training in the Boyle Hights neighborhood, hosted by Centro CSO’s immigration rapid response team. The educational event was organized because many in the community are nervous about how immigration law will be impacted by the Trump presidential victory.
San Jose, CA – On November 6, a coalition of community organizations called an action against Donald Trump. Demanding no attacks on undocumented immigrants as well as standing against the genocide in Palestine, over 100 protesters gathered at the corner of Story and King Roads in San Jose the day after the election.
Minneapolis, MN – More than 75 community members and day laborers gathered on Lake Street in Minneapolis to call for Temporary Protected Status (TPS) for Ecuadorians and show their willingness to fight on behalf of their immigrant coworkers and neighbors. During the rally, Lake Street was dense with cars and passersby; the rally was interspersed with their honks, raised fists, and other expressions of support.
Milwaukee, WI – 500 people took to the streets of downtown Milwaukee, November 6, to protest another Trump presidency that will surely launch an all-out assault on workers and oppressed people for the next four years. Rather than giving into despair, the people of Milwaukee, representing various progressive movements, showed they are ready to fight back against Trump’s racist and reactionary agenda.
Minneapolis, MN – More than 300 people rallied and marched in Minneapolis’s West Bank neighborhood, November 6, in the wake of Trump’s election. The protest was in solidarity with Palestine and opposed the ever-widening U.S./Israel war in the Middle East. In addition, demonstrators were united behind a broad, progressive agenda that defends the rights of immigrants, workers, LGBTQ people, women’s and reproductive rights, and African Americans and other oppressed peoples.
So, it happened. The racist, reactionary fool Donald Trump is returning to the White House, and Republicans will dominate Congress. The polarization of American political life is sharpening and deepening. Revolutionaries and progressives have some heavy lifting ahead of us.
There is going to be plenty of time to analyze what happened in the election, but on the morning after, some things are clear. The leadership and wealthy backers of the Democratic Party have only themselves to blame for the outcome. The Harris/Walz campaign was tone-deaf to the needs and aspirations of working people. In fact, the two words that they seemed unable to work into any of their speeches were “working class.” Instead, they offered a sad mixture of genocide in Palestine, combined with an appeal to college-educated, “never Trump” Republicans. And they failed.
Minneapolis, MN – On November 3, over 100 people gathered at Jackson Square Park in the Northeast neighborhood of Minneapolis to protest for immigrant rights and for Palestinian liberation. The action was initiated by the MN Anti-War Committee (AWC) and the MN Immigrant Rights Action Committee (MIRAC) to draw attention to the way both the immigrant and Palestinian communities are being used by the Democratic and Republican parties as political footballs in this week’s presidential election.
Los Angeles, CA – On Friday, October 18, Centro Community Service Organization (CSO) members and community gathered at local bookstore ReArte in Boyle Heights for a film screening and discussion. The film was on the history of Haiti and was shown in light of recent racist remarks by Donald Trump in Ohio. Haitian American and CSO member Chris Bernadel and the CSO immigration rapid response team chair Jordan Peña co-facilitated the event.
Minneapolis, MN – On Monday, October 14 over 50 protesters gathered together on Indigenous People’s Day to tell Republican vice presidential nominee JD Vance that he is not welcome in Minneapolis. Vance attended a private fundraiser in Minneapolis the same day, and held a press conference at the burned down Minneapolis former 3rd Precinct police station.
The protest was organized by the Minnesota Immigrant Rights Action Committee (MIRAC) as part of a national week of action called by the Legalization for All Network to stand with Haitian immigrants in the fight for legalization for all, in the face of the intensely racist anti-immigrant rhetoric spewed by right-wing politicians at every turn.