San Jose, CA – On December 14, San Jose Against War gathered dozens of people to commemorate International Human Rights Day. The U.S. has been a primary facilitator of human rights violations, including selling weapons to Israel, bombing fisherpeople off the coast of Venezuela, and a host of sanctions imposed on countries striving for national sovereignty.

Protesters held picket signs reading, “San Jose divest from genocide,” “U.S. hands off Venezuela” and “Stop the deportations.”

Philip Nguyen, co-chair of San Jose Against War, said to the crowd that the struggles are connected and that human rights such as “Food, housing, healthcare, education are a second priority for the ruling class; second only to the profit motive especially through war profiteers!”

Nguyen continued by elevating San Jose Against War’s divestment campaign targeting the city of San Jose saying, “The precedent is there – Hayward and Richmond have divested from Israel! Dublin and Alameda County have already passed an ethical investment policy. Now, it is time for San Jose to pass theirs as well.”

Drusie Kazanova of the Freedom Road Socialist Organization told the crowd, “From Palestine to Venezuela, people are fighting for self-determination and liberation from the chains of imperialism. And here at home, from San Jose, to Los Angeles, to Chicago, to Portland, we are fighting for our liberation from the very same oppressors, the imperialist class!”

Lyla Salinas, member of Community Service Organization San Jose, highlighted Trump’s year full of human rights violations including, but not limited to, deportations, saying that, “Trump continues to push a racist agenda aimed at oppressing immigrants and Chicanos. We say no more!”

Salinas continued, “Trump’s administration has continued his attacks on women, trans and queer people, Black people, students, on workers, on Palestine and now on Venezuela. We must not let this stand!”

Megan Sweet, member of Students for a Democratic Society at San Jose State University addressed the crowd, saying, “The people of Venezuela cannot wait for suggestions or proposals, they need the people from within the belly of the beast to rise up and demand from their government: ‘Hands off Venezuela!’”

Sweet said that SDS at SJSU continues their campaign to demand the school administration disclose their investment portfolio, divest from all corporations that facilitate human rights violations and the Israeli occupation of Palestine, and to cut ties with Lockheed Martin.

The crowd marched up the busy Market Street and along the annual Christmas in the Park installation, chanting to the tune of Jingle Bells, “Palestine, Palestine. Free, free Palestine! From the river to the sea ‘til Palestine is free!”

#SanJoseCA #CA #AntiWarMovement #ImmigrantsRights #CSOSJ #SJAW

Austin, TX – Around 60 Austin students and community members held a noise demonstration outside the J.J. Pickle Federal Building on Monday evening, June 16, in solidarity with the anti-ICE protests in Los Angeles.

The J.J. Pickle building, which has been used as an ICE detention facility, was blocked off by police and some windows had been boarded up. Tensions were high after a week of police brutality and arrests. Protesters still showed up to make their voices heard and demand a stop to the ICE raids and mass deportations being carried out by the Trump administration.

The crowd brought noisemakers, musical instruments and their loud voices to send a clear message to ICE, the police, and Republican lawmakers. They chanted, “Immigrants are here to stay, GOP go away,” and “Say it once, say it twice, we will not put up with ICE!”

Jules Lattimore of Austin Students for a Democratic Society was leading chants throughout the protest. Lattimore said, “We’re here in solidarity with the heroes in LA who are fighting back to protect their community and keep families together. We need to show Trump and Abbott that we plan to keep up the pressure until these deportations stop.”

#AustinTX #TX #ImmigrantsRights #ICE #StudentMovement #SDS

Fight Back News Service is circulating the following statement from the National Alliance Against Racist and Political Repression. Orellana has been released from jail and the NAARPR is working to support his defense.

Statement Demanding the Release of Alejandro Orellana

On June 12th, FBI agents arrested Alejandro Orellana, a member of Centro CSO, a branch of the National Alliance Against Racist and Political Repression based in the Boyle Heights neighborhood of Los Angeles, for providing aid to the community being tear-gassed. Orellana’s arrest comes the same day Senator Alex Padilla was violently assaulted at a Homeland Security press conference. We condemn Orellana’s arrest as a clear example of racist and political repression. After immense community pressure led by the Centro CSO, Orellana was released the following day! The power of the people are driving ICE back and freeing people like Orellano, and it will be the power of the people that get Orellano’s charges dropped!

From its role in the killing and imprisonment of Black Panthers to its current role targeting activists organizing against racist ICE raids and deportations in predominantly Chicano and Latino neighborhoods, the FBI remains a vicious weapon of repression deployed against the movements of oppressed peoples.

The struggle is sharp in Los Angeles. The repression is intensifying, and the Trump administration is making it clear they have no plans to loosen up. Now is the time to stand in unconditional solidarity with Orellana, the people of Los Angeles, and with all immigrant communities under attack. Anything less than solidarity with Orellana and immigrant and Chicano communities would be a victory for the enemy, the same enemy responsible for the racist policing that kills record numbers every year.

We are entering another major wave of struggle. The only way to not be washed away by it is to take it to the streets and continue working with the broader masses opposing these racist raids and deportations and the Trump agenda. The struggle continues, and NAARPR will do all it can to defend Orellana and those being targeted by the Trump agenda.

Call U.S. Attorney Bilal Essayli at 213-894-2400 and tell him to drop the charges! We also encourage all our chapters and affiliates to participate in the Legalization For All’s Week of Action June 14-22, calling for ICE and the National Guard to get out of our communities and for Orellana’s charges to be dropped!

Drop the charges!

ICE out of everywhere!

Community Control of the Police now!

#ImmigrantsRights #LosAngelesCA #CentroCSO #InJusticeSystem #PoliticalRepression #AlejandroOrellana #NAARPR #StopFBI #CSFR #L4A #FBI #ICE

Los Ángeles, CA – On Friday, June 6, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) raided multiple locations in Los Angeles, triggering rapid response from communities and a spontaneous protest in downtown Los Angeles.

ICE operations carried out coordinated raids throughout the morning and afternoon, including two confirmed Home Depot parking lots and what’s known as LA’s Fashion District downtown. FBI agents were assisting in ICE operations and people were detained without warrants. It is still unconfirmed how many people were detained.

Centro CSO and the community mobilized quickly when the raids were reported and nearly 100 gathered in the Fashion District to protest the operations and defend the workers. FBI agents escalated and fired tear gas to disperse the crowd. As a response, an emergency protest was called by community organizations. Within hours, a couple hundred people gathered at the Metropolitan Detention Center to protest the raids and demand “ICE out of LA.”

Centro CSO members turned out to the emergency protest and Gabriel Quiroz Jr. spoke in front of the crowd declaring, “We condemn these attacks on Raza that happened today in Los Angeles. We saw clear collaboration of LAPD with ICE and FBI. We will hold Jim McDonnell, the chief of LAPD, accountable. We have a rapid response network in place with our allies, and we will continue to organize and mobilize when we see ICE activity in our neighborhood of Boyle Heights and East Los Angeles.”

Quiroz Jr led the chant, “When Chicanos are under attack we will stand up and fight back!”

CSO members condemn these attacks and denounce LAPD for protecting and colluding with ICE operations today. There are reports that ICE is staging further raids in LA this weekend.

After a recent sighting of ICE in Boyle Heights, Centro CSO will continue as planned to hold a protest at Mariachi Plaza on Sunday, June 8, at 11 a.m. demanding” Legalization for all” and “ICE out of our barrios.”

#LosAngelesCA #CA #ImmigrantRights #ImmigrantsRights #CentroCSO

Baton Rouge, LA – On Sunday, May 4, Baton Rouge held a May Day rally at the State Capitol building, taking the fight for worker and immigrant rights directly to the seat of the state government. Demonstrators united on the steps of the capitol with signs and banners in hand to voice their support for the working class movement and their opposition to the Trump administration’s attacks.

Protesters chanted, “Trump, hear us loud and clear! Immigrants are welcome here!” and “The workers, united, will never be defeated!”

Speakers from the organizations then spoke to the demonstrators about the fight for workers’ rights during the Trump administration.

Enola Guyer of Students for a Democratic Society at Louisiana State University stated, “In the past 104 days Donald Trump has shown time and time again what we already knew. He does not, and will never, care for the workers and immigrants that are the foundation of this country.”

Guyer concluded by calling for an end to these attacks., saying, “We demand the end of university compliance, student visa revocations, mass deportations, and the protection of our free speech!”

Zane Sutor-Benfield of Freedom Road Socialist Organization said, “Solidarity means union power, it means unity with your coworkers, no matter their skin color, gender or immigration status. Solidarity isn’t exclusive to the labor movement. It means unity between all oppressed people, all victims of capitalist exploitation. None of us are free until all of us are free.”

Sutor-Benfield closed by saying, “I’m not going to play down the severity of this moment. These are dangerous times for anyone who isn’t a rich oligarch bleeding this country dry, but I’m not afraid. I’m not afraid because I know that when we fight together, we win together, and now is the time to fight.”

#BatonRougeLA #LA #Labor #ImmigrantsRights #MayDay #SDS

Oakland, CA – On the afternoon of Thursday, May 1, more than 2000 community members took to the streets of Oakland in celebration of May Day.

Themes of international working-class solidarity ran through the event, starting with a youth rally in Fruitvale Plaza followed by a march to San Antonio Park where a closing rally and resource fair took place. 25 unions, grassroots organizations, and nonprofits united behind Oakland Sin Fronteras’ call, “All Power to the Workers.”

The multinational crowd voiced strong opposition to state violence and current immigration policies. Uncle Bobby X, uncle of Oscar Grant, a young, Black man murdered by Bay Area Rapid Transit Police in 2009, electrified attendees, declaring, “All power to the people!” and emphasizing, “An attack on immigrants is an attack on all of us.” He spoke to the damaging impact of police violence and fears of increasing ICE activity and deportations, central themes of the day.

Kai Watanabe, a trans organizer with Freedom Road Socialist Organization Oakland, highlighted these concerns: “This year, we've seen the ruling capitalist class qualitatively shift towards open reaction. ICE is silencing students and sending immigrant workers to mega-prisons while basic civil rights are in the crosshairs.”

Echoing this, a childcare provider and leading member of Mujeres Unidas y Activas, spoke of heightened fear under “la nueva administración” (the new administration). She shared, “Mi miedo ha crecido aún más. Ahora trato de no salir de casa por el temor constante a ser detenida y criminalizada simplemente por mi apariencia.” (My fear has grown even more. Now I try not to leave home due to the constant fear of being detained and criminalized simply for my appearance.) She continued, “Nosotros no dejamos nuestros países por gusto. La mayoría de las veces somos forzados a irnos por las consecuencias del capitalismo y el imperialismo.” (We don’t leave our countries by choice. Most of the time we are forced to leave because of the consequences of capitalism and imperialism.)

Visuals along the march underscored these messages. The International Longshore and Warehouse Union Local 10 displayed a prominent banner stating, “No military cargo for Israel's genocidal war against Palestinians.” Another community member held a sign simply reading “No state violence.” Chants of “Free, free Palestine!” and “¡Viva, viva Palestina!” resonated through the streets, further highlighting the event’s international solidarity against oppression and police violence, reinforcing the unified call for worker empowerment.

#OaklandCA #CA #Labor #ImmigrantsRights #MayDay

Santa Ana, CA – Chants of “No hate, no fear! Immigrants are welcome here!” resounded on the afternoon of May 1 as roughly 300 protesters took to the streets of downtown. The march commemorated International Workers Day. Those in the streets lifted handmade monarch butterfly puppets and signs demanding police accountability, justice for immigrants, and protection for workers’ rights. The event program featured speakers who talked about the history of May Day and the oppression of workers.

Rain Mendoza of Community Service Organization Orange County (CSO OC) educated attendees about the Bracero Program, a federal project started in 1942 that brought laborers in from Mexico to exploit them through short-term work contracts. She then spoke about Mexican Repatriation, stating “Mexican nationals and Chicanos, even U.S. citizens, were deported due to an anti-immigrant surge in response to the Great Depression. This program was presented as a way to alleviate economic strains on the working class.”

Mendoza pointed out that the differences between these two programs show that “the bosses and the government get to decide whether immigrants are a welcomed labor force or a scapegoat for economic hardships.”

Mendoza continued, “Trump is attacking our immigrant communities instead of the greedy bosses responsible for our economic problems! And we have to stand up and fight back to protect and expand immigrant rights!”

Another member of Community Service Organization Orange County (CSO OC), Erika Armenta, shared her demands for justice for Noe Rodriguez, her partner who was killed by Santa Ana Police Department (SAPD) on December 1, 2024. Armenta stressed that SAPD has failed to be transparent with her attorneys and the public about Noe’s case, stating, “More than 45 days have passed and by law they must publish the entire body-worn camera video.”

Armenta’s demands include “the de-escalation of situations and the end of unarmed civilian deaths. These officers are still free and patrolling our streets while we, the relatives, are devastated, struggling for justice.”

Sandra De Anda of the Orange County Rapid Response Network (OCCRN) asked for support from the community in their campaign to free Mina Soliman, who was illegally taken into custody during a routine ICE check-in on April 29. De Anda explained, “ICE check-ins have been used as an alternative to detention for decades, and are now being weaponized against community members who consistently show up for their scheduled check-ins.” Despite arriving with his lawyer and fellow organizers, Soliman was soon transferred to the Desert View Annex in Adelanto, California. The Trump administration has stepped up attacks against the immigrant community and OCRRN, among many, raised the need for organization to defend the community and expand protections.

Nadia Al-Said of the Palestinian Youth Movement (PYM) stated,“During the First Intifada, or uprising, Palestinians organized themselves en masse, building an economy through self-sustenance, boycotting Israeli goods, withholding their labor, and rising up against military infrastructure depriving them of their land and dignity.” Through her speech, she highlighted that despite the challenges they have faced, the Palestinian resistance fights bravely on the frontlines and needs the support of people worldwide.

Abe Quintana of Freedom Road Socialist Organization (FRSO) spoke about the history of May Day. Quintana told of the Haymarket rally and nationwide strike in 1886 that part in hat the holiday commemorates. “If it was not for workers organizing as a class and striking across the country in 1886, we would not have the eight-hour workday. We must come together now for the sake of our communities and workers around the world.” Quintana invited those who are not yet active to join an organization that speaks to them to take an active role in the liberation of the working class.

Quintana urged for unity stating, “Workers of all nationalities and identities experience hardship thanks to the capitalist system built to benefit the wealthy ruling class and their political puppets. We must recognize that when one group of workers is under attack, we are all under attack!”

Put together by the Orange County May Day Coalition, over a dozen organizations like Palestinian Youth Movement, OC Rapid Response Network, Community Service Organization Orange County, and Freedom Road Socialist Organization took part in planning and inviting the unorganized to take action.

Orange County will continue to fight for the oppressed, the coalition will be returning for next year’s May Day, and those involved call on all workers to unite in the shared struggle for labor. The end of oppression will be achieved with organization.

#SantaAnaCA #CA #ImmigrantsRights #Labor #MayDay #CSOOC #FRSO

On March 14th, Republican U.S. Rep. Riley Moore, along with other Republican co-sponsors, introduced a draconian bill to the House Committee on the Judiciary titled the Stop CCP VISAs Act of 2025, which stands for “Stop Chinese Communist Prying by Vindicating Intellectual Safeguards in Academia Act of 2025.”

If passed, this would block visas for Chinese students who want to study and work in the U.S. Many people have pointed out that this bill is reminiscent of the Chinese Exclusion Act of 1882, which banned Chinese immigration. This is telling as to which time period “Make America Great Again” harkens back to.

While some feel this bill is unlikely to pass due to the economic contribution Chinese students make, we feel it is necessary to strongly oppose this action because it is an indicator of a larger anti-Chinese sentiment that is being promoted inside the United States. Given that both the House and Senate are Republican controlled, and the Democratic Party’s track record of fighting back is nearly non-existent, we believe it is best to speak up now and not leave this up to chance.

The basis for this bill is downright racist. It paints an image of Chinese students as some kind of network of spies, in which every single Chinese person is in on the plot to undermine the U.S. The reality is the U.S. government does not need China’s help to undermine itself, because measures such as this one which are economically and diplomatically self-sabotaging.

This is part of a larger effort to attempt to isolate China. This effort cannot help but backfire, as the U.S. is only isolating itself. We see this with the tariffs, sanctions, and the ongoing trade war against China, which the U.S. workers will have to foot the bill for.

Militarily, China is encircled by the U.S. empire, which continues to prod and antagonize from all directions, especially on the Korean Peninsula over the last few months, and intervention in the Philippines. Looking at the way the U.S. has treated the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea gives a lot of insight into what the U.S. ruling class and the Trump administration would love to do to People’s China if they had the chance.

In addition to being racist and reactionary, this bill is also intensely hypocritical, as we know that the U.S. continues its long tradition of meddling and spying on the politics of other nations, probably more so than any other government on earth. The U.S. has always had a double standard set for itself in the realm of foreign policy.

China, on the other hand, does not bully or attempt to influence the politics of other countries. It does not invade them or fight wars of conquest. China approaches other countries on the basis of mutual cooperation, regardless of how big or small. Much of the world is turning towards China because of this, and many working-class people in the U.S. are beginning to look towards China as the trailblazer of a new way forward.

Hands off Chinese students!

End the war on all immigrants!

Defend Socialist China!

#International #China #FriendsOfSocialistChina #Statement #ImmigrantsRights #Visas

Minneapolis, MN – On Saturday, May 3, the Twin Cities district of the Freedom Road Socialist Organization celebrated the great proletarian holiday of May Day – International Workers Day. The event took place at the Lucy Parsons Center in Minneapolis. The celebration included grilling, live musical performances, and a lineup of speakers from various people’s movements active in the Twin Cities.

Beginning at 5:30 p.m., on a beautiful 65-degree sunny day, around 150 attendees joined a cookout while listening to musical performances, that included songs of struggle and resistance. People sat together and ate and talked. Participants int the evert included labor organizers, immigrant rights organizers, student, anti-war, climate and reproductive rights organizers, leaders in the fight against police crimes and for community control of the police along with others. All shared stories of struggle, victories and defeats.

The May Day cookout brought together activists and revolutionaries to celebrate and recognize how all their different struggles are united in the conflict between the billionaire ruling class and the great masses of people.

The last year has seen many battles for the people’s movement. The continued genocide in Gaza, plus the election of Donald Trump unleashing a new wave of reactionary attacks on immigrants, unions, trans people, and more means that those who choose to participate in the people’s struggle and resist these attacks have had their work cut out for them. The cookout and program event created a space for people to unwind, share in solidarity with each other, and celebrate the fighting spirit of the working class.

In addition to an impressive list of speakers from many organizations fighting for change in Minnesota, the attendees honored fallen fighters with an “In Memoriam” dedication video, as well as highlighting internationalism and the worldwide nature of the struggle against monopoly capitalism with a slideshow of May Day celebrations around the world. The energized, excited crowd closed out the event with a sing-along of the communist anthem, The Internationale.

Keeping the unity of all the different people’s movements in mind, the speaker lineup was diverse and varied. Attendees heard from Dieu Do from the Minnesota Immigrant Rights Action Committee; Siobhan Moore of Minnesota Workers United and Teamsters Local 638; Angel Smith El of the Twin Cities Coalition for Justice; Carolyn Handke from the Minnesota Abortion Action Committee; Katherine Bodor from the Climate Justice Committee; Ivonne Hernandez movement for justice for street vendors; Becca Mertes, a Delta flight attendant organizing with the Association of Flight Attendants' unionization effort; Leila Yorek Sundin from the University of Minnesota chapter of Students for a Democratic Society; Allison Gunderson from the Anti-War Committee; Jae Yates from the Twin Cities Coalition for Justice and the Freedom Road Socialist Organization; and a musical performance by Naveen Borojerdi on guitar and signing.

Sydney Loving gave the main speech for Freedom Road Socialist Organization. In her speech Loving laid out the history of May Day and the importance of continuing to celebrate this workers’ holiday. The following is a portion of Loving’s speech:

“The ruling class and big business in this country, they hate May Day and did all they could do to bury it during the anticommunist repression of the 1950s. This was the cold war where every progressive idea was under attack. They renamed May 1 as “Law and Order Day.” This day belongs to the people – we know right from wrong better than their version of law and order. Fighting back is right, and this system is wrong. One day in this country we’re gonna have our version of law and order. And the capitalists sitting up there on Wall Street and in the White House – they’re going to be treated like the criminals they are. As always, they were terrified of the people knowing our real history. Not one of submission, but a history of struggle. Not only the eight-hour day, but also the weekend, the right to unionize, health and safety rules, unemployment insurance, welfare and social security. Everything Trump is going after now, making enemies and bringing them into this fight. Victories for workers weren’t just given to us. They were fought for and won by the people, and we are carrying the torch forward.”

The May Day cookout and program marked another year in struggle by some of the Twin Cities area’s most dedicated fighters and left attendees feeling re-energized to take on another year fighting for the people.

#MinneapolisMN #MN #Labor #ImmigrantsRights #MayDay #FRSO

Tallahassee, FL – On Thursday, May 1, at 5:30 p.m., around 40 people attended a May Day rally organized by the Freedom Road Socialist Organization (FRSO). The protesters demanded the city of Tallahassee end its attacks on immigrants in the city and denounce the 287(g) agreement with ICE.

These agreements give the police department the power to train their offices to carry out immigration-related tasks as if they were ICE agents. The agreement was put in place by Tallahassee Police Department Chief Lawrence Revell without any input from the people or even other city officials.

Protesters rallied outside the WFSU studio where local city and county commissioners held the 2025 Town Hall. At this event, city and county commissioners were asked about a number of issues people in Tallahassee are interested in. Dozens of questions were submitted on a range of topics including affordable healthcare and bike safety. Attendees of the May Day protest, however, were most interested in how officials would address the 287(g) agreement. As of May 2025, five police departments signed into the agreement in Tallahassee alone, including Florida State University PD.

“If you know FSU and its admin it’s no surprise that they would sign this [287g] agreement. This is an admin that platforms white supremacists, arrests students for speaking out, and does nothing when its student’s visas are revoked,” said Kingsley Early, a member of Students for a Democratic Society. “The problem is getting worse.”

Organizers recognized the revolutionary significance of May Day and its history as an international socialist holiday and discussed the need for a continuation of the fight for the rights of workers and oppressed peoples.

“May Day is an international holiday that should be celebrated, that should be remembered for its significance to the American labor movement,” said Delilah Pierre, president of the Tallahassee Community Action Committee. “If it wasn’t for May Day, the eight-hour work day wouldn’t even exist.”

Due to the persistence of organizations like the Tallahassee Immigrant Rights Alliance (TIRA) and FRSO, the issue of the 287(g) agreement in Tallahassee was addressed at the town hall. City Commissioners Dianne Williams-Cox and Curtis Richardson claimed that changing the agreement was out of their control, citing Florida Governor Ron Desantis and the Republican Party as attacking and threatening those who oppose the 287(g) agreement in their own cities.

Organizers from the Freedom Road Socialist Organization made it clear that despite the lip-service from city officials, they would be organizing for May Day next year and would continue the fight to stand up for immigrant rights.

“We’re here honoring the memory of May Day by fighting for workers and immigrant rights in the city of Tallahassee. If we fight, then we win,” said Cas Casanova, a member of the Freedom Road Socialist Organization (FRSO). “We got Juan Carlos Lopez-Gomez freed when he was unjustly detained by immigration, and we’ll make sure this city doesn’t allow ICE to terrorize our communities.”

#TallahasseeFL #FL #Labor #ImmigrantsRights #MayDay #FRSO

Portland, OR – May Day was a busy one in Portland, as four events were held throughout the day and into the evening. These collectively mobilized thousands of people to resist the Trump agenda and to fight for workers and immigrants’ rights.

The first event of the day was organized by 50501 Portland Oregon, with many other organizations present or even speaking, including Freedom Road Socialist Organization (FRSO), Portland Contra las Deportaciones (PDXCD), Democratic Socialists of America, and local unions such as Oregon Nurses Association and SEIU Local 503. The rally began at Portland State University at 1 p.m., followed by a march around downtown Portland.

Cass Cano of PDXCD spoke on the injustices of the U.S. immigration system, stating, “The path to obtaining green card status is full of hurdles. Whether it be the legal costs or the chance that any little error will get your case closed and possibly even deported. No one deserves to live like this, where at any moment they may be ripped away from their families and community! No one deserves to live afraid of going to school, work, or shopping, always worrying about their safety.”

The next event in the day was a rally at Pioneer Courthouse Square downtown at 4:30 p.m., organized by 50501 Portland (distinct from the previously mentioned 50501 group) and Indivisible Oregon. The demands of this event included stable housing, union protection and education for all, regardless of immigration status.

The third event of the day and the final one taking place downtown was a rally organized by the Portland Association of Teachers at Terry Schrunk Plaza at 5:30 p.m. Demands centered on the actions of the Trump administration, calling for an end to attacks on oppressed communities, Social Security and Medicaid.

At the same time, FRSO and PDXCD organized a march and rally in Southeast Portland, at Sewallcrest Park. Palestinian liberation, immigrant rights, and the growing labor movement were the main topics addressed. Omar Gil of FRSO galvanized the crowd to act by saying, “We must unite the many to defeat the few. Power is never conceded, it is won,” and later declaring, “Whether it be at the workplace, in the fields, or in our neighborhoods, the time now is not one to hide but rather to stand firmly shoulder to shoulder with each other and fight back!”

After the rally, the crowd took to the streets of Southeast Portland, with expressions of solidarity coming from onlookers and chants of “Who’s got the power? We got the power!” and “Union power on the rise, now’s the time to organize!”

This year’s May Day demonstrations showed increased public anger following the beginning of Donald Trump’s second term, anger that shows no signs of subsiding and that is now being focused towards mobilizing against the system that gave us Trump in the first place.

#PortlandOR #OR #Labor #ImmigrantsRights #PDXCD

New Orleans LA – On May 1, New Orleans buzzed with activity to celebrate International Workers Day. In the morning, nurses at the University Medical Center (UMC) went on strike, with dozens picketing alongside them for hours. And later in the day at 6 p.m. hundreds gathered for a march to fight for immigrants and workers’ rights.

UMC nurses go on strike to kick off May Day

On their third strike, UMC nurses demanded the hospital sit down with them for contract negotiations. Hundreds of nurses refused to work on May Day and dozens of community members joined them. Spirits were high as people danced on the picket line, chanting “Union busting is disgusting” with signs that read, “Contract now!”

A member of the contract negotiation team, Lauren Waddell, gave a speech saying, “We are done taking the hit while executives cash bonuses!”

Nurses emphasized the importance of striking on International Workers Day, with Terry Mogilles saying, “It is fitting that we have chosen to gather this historic day. Our industries and jobs may differ, but our battles are the same, our enemies the same: corporate greed!” After a fiery first day on the strike line, nurses and supporters later joined the march downtown.

Hundreds march for immigrant and workers’ rights

At 6 p.m. downtown, around 400 people gathered at the Benito Juarez statue for the start of the International Workers Day march. The march was called by Union Migrante, an immigrant rights organization, and led by a broad coalition of community organizations and unions.

A representative of Union Migrante spoke at the statue saying, “As long as the world exists, there’s always going to be work to be done, and there’s always going to be people who come here to do the jobs that other people don’t want to do.”

Terry Mogilles, a nurse fresh off the picket line, emphasized that nurses in their union will continue to treat people regardless of documents, and the crowd chanted “UMC you can't hide, we can see your greedy side!”

A member of Unite Here, a union representing hospitality workers, stated, “We are calling on the city of New Orleans to continue their policy of not collaborating with ICE. We have to stay vigilant, because if they will come for them then they will come for any communities that don't align with them.”

Jack Saucier from the Freedom Road Socialist Organization said, “Donald Trump didn't work to build the economy, you work to build the economy! This system is rigged and it's not for us. If we want to win, we must unite.”

The march then took to the streets with banners reading “Halt all deportations” and “Stop attacks on workers’ rights!” They chanted “No fear, no hate, no ICE in our state!” The protesters made a stop at the police headquarters downtown to make it clear that New Orleans police should continue their non-collaboration policy with ICE. Then they continued onward and concluded at City Hall.

The coalition for the International Workers Day march included unions such as the United Teachers of New Orleans, Unite Here, National Nurses United, and the Painters Union. Community groups such as Students for a Democratic Society, Freedom Road Socialist Organization, Step Up Louisiana, New Orleans for Community Oversight of Police and the Palestinian Youth Movement were also featured.

#NewOrleansLA #LA #Labor #ImmigrantsRights #MayDay

Washington, D.C. — On Thursday, May 1, hundreds gathered in Freedom Plaza near the White House in celebration of May Day, International Workers Day. The event, hosted by Metro DC DSA and sponsored by Freedom Road Socialist Organization DC (FRSO DC), among others, called for “dignity, power, and a future for the many.”

The crowd included many organizations and contingents, such as the anti-Imperialist contingent formed by FRSO DC, the DC Alliance Against Racist and Political Repression (DCAARPR), International League of Peoples Struggles Baltimore DMV (ILPS), Anakbayan DC, Anakbayan Montgomery County, and Migrante DMV. Their signs featured slogans such as “End U.S. militarization now!” “Fight for worker’s and immigrants’ rights!” and “Down with billionaires, we need socialism!”

“The people here today show the clear rising tide of workers who want a better future,” said Iain McNeely of FRSO DC, “When we fight, we win, and every day more and more people are answering the call and getting organized.”

The demonstration featured speakers voicing strong opposition to the Trump administration and his racist deportation policies, with chants of “The people, united, will never be defeated!” and “When immigrant rights are under attack, what do we do? Stand up, fight back!”

“The Philippians observe May Day as the real international workers day ” said Jhong Cruz, an organizer with Migrante, “we are fighting for a better society overall, with the working class at the core, and we want to fight for a society where many Filipinos like myself don't need to migrate to other countries in search of work.”

“There’s a willingness among people to explore more ideas that people maybe would not have thought of before because of the gross atrocities we are witnessing every day now,” said Christina Murdoch with DCAARPR, “We are unwilling to submit to pressure, and our instinct to seize this wave of struggle is necessary to take our movement forward towards a better future!”

#WashingtonDC #Labor #ImmigrantsRights #MayDay #FRSO #DCAARPR #NAARPR #ILPS #Anakbayan

St. Paul, MN — Over 7000 people took to the streets from the Minnesota State Capitol, May 1, to commemorate International Workers Day 2025. Attendees of the protest rallied and marched for over three hours in rainy weather to demand an end to attacks on immigrants and workers, to fight Trump’s billionaire agenda, and for legalization for all.

The event was organized by a coalition made up of the Minnesota Immigrant Rights Action Committee (MIRAC), Minnesota Workers United (MWU), Minnesota Immigrant Movement (MIM), and Asamblea de Derechos Civiles (Asamblea). It was endorsed by over 50 local community organizations and unions, including the Minnesota AFL-CIO, Minneapolis Federation of Educators, SEIU local 26, Freedom Road Socialist Organization, Indigenous Protectors Movement, Minnesota 8, and MN Anti-War Committee.

Beto Villanueva of MIRAC stated, “Immigrants are essential. We contribute to the economy. We help keep this country alive. And we’ve been doing it while being targeted more and paid less – while being disrespected and undervalued. The systems are built to divide us. They want workers to blame immigrants. They want to pit trans people and women against each other. They want poor folks to fight poorer folks. It’s all a game to divide us. But we see through that. We stand together.”

Sara Nelson, the international president of the Association of Flight Attendants CWA, AFL-CIO spoke to the long fight for workers’ rights. She said, “100 years ago workers didn’t have legal rights, they organized and built them through solidarity.” She also stated that we must stand together, “No one is born with racism, sexism or bigotry in their heart. These are the tactics from the boss to keep us from exercising our power and gaining our fair share.”

Rachel Dionne-Thunder of the Indigenous Protector Movement grounded protesters by saying, “Today is a reminder of the power of the people. These borders crossed us, we did not cross these borders. This country is built on an illusion of power, but the true power is with the people. Now is the time to say enough is enough!”

Marcia Howard of the Minnesota Federation of Teachers Local 59 spoke in strong support of immigrant students and colleagues. She urged listeners to stand up in solidarity, saying: “I need you to think about your neighbor. The immigrants we are talking about are your neighbors. They are your coworkers. They are your students’ classmates. I need you to pick a side and if you’re standing here, you better not be on the side of any billionaire.”

During the rainy march, the crowd was energized by a group of young people. The middle schoolers, who organized a walkout at their school, led chants like “No one is illegal, all power to the people!”

At a time when anti-immigrant rhetoric is rampant, the people of Minnesota stood up to send a clear message that they stand united in solidarity with workers and immigrants across the country.

#StPaulMN #MN #Labor #ImmigrantsRights #MIRAC #AFACWA #MWU #MIM #Asamblea #MFE #SEIU

Chicago IL – Over 35,000 immigrants and their supporters filled the streets of Chicago on May 1, demanding an end to Trump’s attacks on immigrants and workers.

Led by the Consejo de Resistencia en Defensa del Inmigrante, the mass rally brought together over 150 organizations, mostly composed of Latino, Arab and Palestinian, Filipino and Korean immigrants and their supporters.

Consejo inherited the legacy of the March 10th Movement of 2006. That year, Chicago staged the first mega march in the country, with 300,000 marchers against the racist Sensenbrenner Bill, which would have made it a felony to be undocumented.

Of the four founding leaders of Consejo – Omar Lopez, Jorge Mujica, Martin Unzueta and Hector Rico – the first two were co-chairs of the March 10th Movement. A new generation of organizers joined them in organizing this march, including Vicky Lugo, Maria Bahena, Margarita Morelos and Jill Manrique, to name some of the most prominent.

Speaking as a member of Students for a Democratic Society – UIC, Ariana Vega stated, “Our schools should be sanctuaries – places where students can learn, grow and build better futures. That’s what we’re fighting for. That’s why we’re here today. In the face of Trump’s racist and reactionary administration, we must stand stronger than ever. We must build a movement that refuses to back down. We are not going back – and if we stand united, no one can stop us!”

Displaying the Black and brown coalition that exists in Chicago, speakers included Frank Chapman, executive director of the National Alliance Against Racist and Political Repression; Chicago Teachers Union President Stacey Davis Gates; Service Employees International Union President April Verret, and Mayor Brandon Johnson, who has been targeted by the Trump administration for his continued defense of Chicago’s Welcoming City ordinance.

Nerissa Allegreti, president of the National Alliance of Filipino Concerns, blasted the U.S. empire for its colonization of the Philippines, along with Puerto Rico and Cuba, in the early 1900s, making itself the common enemy of all immigrant working-class communities. Allegreti stated, “We will organize like all the other immigrant communities, we will organize and keep on fighting.”

Kobi Guillory, a member of Freedom Road Socialist Organization and the Chicago Teachers’ Union, gave a powerful closing speech on the strength of the masses, recalling countless victories of the organized people against their oppressors. He noted that May Day this year is seeing protests in over 700 cities – the largest number in modern U.S. history.

Explaining that Black resistance was stronger than slaveholders and segregationists, the movement for the eight-hour workday was stronger than the bosses, and the George Floyd Rebellion was stronger than Donald Trump, Guillory said, “Whether it’s five people or 5 million, when we come together in our numbers, when we come together in our solidarity, when we stand up and fight back, we are stronger than the people in power.”

#ChicagoIL #IL #Labor #ImmigrantsRights #Consejo #NAFCON #CTU #FRSO #MayDay #Feature

Jacksonville, FL – On Thursday, May 1, more than 450 workers, immigrants, students and community members rallied in front of the Duval County Courthouse for International Workers Day.

“The attendance for this event shows that our city is making the connection between the labor struggle and all other struggles. The system gutting the department of education is the same system attacking our federal workers,” said Monica Gold, a union teacher with Florida Future Labor Leaders. “The system emboldening ICE to carry out deportations and separate families is the same system sending our tax dollars to carry out a genocide against the Palestinian people.”

The central demands of the protest were to stand up for workers and immigrant rights, to defend federal workers, and to stand with Palestine. “It’s the same ruling class with an agenda to put down and exploit workers that is oppressing Palestinians and attacking immigrants!” said Shayne Tremblay, an IBEW electrician speaking on behalf of the Jacksonville Palestine Solidarity Network. “Only solidarity will set us free!”

The event was organized by Florida Future Labor Leaders (FFLL), the Jacksonville Community Action Committee (JCAC), Jacksonville Palestine Solidarity Network (JPSN), Jacksonville Immigration Rights Alliance (JIRA), and a coalition of over 20 union locals and community organizations.

The crowd chanted slogans of “When workers are under attack, what do we do? Stand up fight back!” and “El pueblo unido jamás será vencido” as community members signed up to join local organizations at the dozen tables that had been set up to encourage more people to become organized.

After the opening rally, the crowd marched into the streets to demonstrate their demands.

“This event was in honor of May Day, and it built real solidarity in the community,” said Sarah Ben Hassine of JPSN as the event came to a close. “We brought together over 20 organizations from around Jacksonville to champion the labor movement, end police violence, defend our immigrant community, and call for an end to Zionist arms trade in our ports. What better way is there to honor a day intended for solidarity?”

#JacksonvilleFL #FL #Labor #ImmigrantsRights #MayDay

Colorado Springs, CO – On Tuesday, April 29, a crowd of about 100 community members gathered in front of the El Paso County Sheriff’s Office to demand local law enforcement stop cooperating with federal immigration enforcement under President Donald Trump’s administration.

The demonstration, organized by the Colorado Springs People’s Coalition, came in response to a Sunday raid in which more than 300 officers from local and federal agencies – including the Drug Enforcement Administration, Colorado Springs Police Department, and El Paso County Sheriff’s Office – surrounded a nightclub with weapons drawn. Authorities ordered occupants to exit with their hands up, detaining and transferring 114 people to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE).

Protesters gathered near the sheriff’s office entrance, holding signs reading “We say no to deportations,” “Free political prisoners” and “End El Paso County Sheriff’s Office cooperation with ICE.” Chants of “¡El pueblo unido, jamás será vencido!” “The people united will never be defeated!” and “Say it once, say it twice, we will not put up with ICE!” echoed as a coalition of groups, including Aurora Unidos CSO, the Colorado Immigrant Rights Coalition, the Colorado Rapid Response Network and the Freedom Road Socialist Organization, joined the rally.

Nayda Benitez of the Colorado Immigrant Rights Coalition stated, “The community, especially immigrants in this community, already don’t feel like they can call local law enforcement to report crimes.”

Khalid Hamu of the Freedom Road Socialist Organization connected the immigration crackdown to economic issues, stating, “Trump is dehumanizing immigrants to distract us from this broken system designed by billionaires for billionaires.”

Yoselin Corrales of Aurora Unidos recalled false narratives about “violent gangs taking over Aurora” in 2024. CSPC founder Brandon Rincon called the raids “terror attacks targeting Black and brown people.” Rincon called for community control of the police as a solution to make the community safer, stating, “These are police crimes, and how do we stop police crimes? Well, we stop police crimes with community control — an all-elected, all-civilian board that has the power to write policy, hire and fire police officers, investigate misconduct and harassment, and get these officers off the force.”

As sheriff's office employees watched from windows, the crowd continued chanting for over an hour, at one point joining in a chorus as Rincon sang a Black Panthers’ resistance song Power to the People, Free Our People.

#ColoradoSprings #CO #ImmigrantsRights #Trump #InJusticeSystem #ICE #CSPC #CSO #CIRC #CRRN

Minneapolis, MN – Donald Trump has spent the first 100 days of his second administration unleashing a wave of terror against immigrants, their communities, their supporters, and even immigration lawyers and judges. This shouldn’t be a big surprise, given his lifetime of racism and his shrill anti-immigrant rhetoric during last year’s election campaign – falsely scapegoating immigrants for the problems created by the billionaire class.

But the scope and methods the administration is using in the anti-immigrant onslaught this time already surpass the cruelty to immigrants in Trump’s first term. This is starting to provoke a significant backlash of mass protests and lawsuits. Even some Democrats in Congress are starting to speak out after their silence or outright support for anti-immigrant measures in the aftermath of Trump winning the 2024 election.

More people are recognizing that Trump’s attacks on immigrants are not only a massive injustice that must be firmly opposed but see the attacks as a leading edge in the overall attack on the democratic rights of all people. Trump has repeatedly said he wants to use the same repressive methods he's using against immigrants to target U.S. citizens he considers his enemies, too.

While Trump and the far right have lambasted “illegal” immigration for decades, the Trump administration’s current attack goes well beyond that. It targets huge numbers of immigrants regardless of their immigration status, especially those from Latin America and the Caribbean, Asia, Africa and the Middle East.

The racist character of the anti-immigrant movement is made explicit with the Trump administration terrorizing Latino, Black and Middle Eastern immigrants in the U.S. and shutting down nearly any path for legal immigration for much of the world, while at the same time openly encouraging white South Africans to come here with a fast path to citizenship.

Trump has also said he will create a “gold card” visa for the ultra-rich from other countries to get a fast-track to U.S. citizenship, making clear that the anti-immigrant attack is an attack on working-class immigrants first and foremost, while rich people will still be welcomed, from some countries at least.

There is still a tiny window of debate in the administration that flared up in an online fight over H1-B temporary worker visas. The despised billionaire Elon Musk supports some very limited visa programs for immigrant workers so he and other corporate heads can exploit cheap labor, and others want to kick out every single immigrant, period. But even if those who support keeping limited, exploitative guest worker programs in place win out, this would still be a terrible injustice, leaving only a tiny number of highly exploited immigrants temporarily in the U.S. while tens of millions of families would be cruelly torn apart.

Despite all the right wing’s rhetoric about targeting “criminals”, according to available data, the majority of people they have deported in the first 100 days don’t have a criminal record. And the Trump administration has not limited its attack to undocumented immigrants. They have targeted hundreds of thousands of legal Temporary Protected Status (TPS) holders, announcing the end of TPS for everyone from Cuba, Venezuela, Nicaragua and Haiti, with more countries sure to be added to the list. They have swept through electronic records of international students and attempted to terminate visas for hundreds of legally-present international students around the country.

Even lawful permanent residents, who are supposed to enjoy most legal rights and protections of citizens, have come under threat of deportation for nothing more than expressing pro-Palestine political views. This includes Mahmoud Khalil, who was not accused or convicted of any crime. He was essentially kidnapped from his apartment lobby in New York City by plain-clothed immigration agents in front of his eight-month pregnant wife and thrown into an unmarked vehicle, then sent hundreds of miles away to an immigration prison in Louisiana to await deportation while his lawyers and a mass movement fight for his release.

Khalil was targeted because he participated in pro-Palestine protests at Columbia University. This also happened to Rumeysa Ozturk, a graduate student on a valid F-1 visa at Tufts University. The video of Ozturk’s abduction by masked, plain-clothes agents in broad daylight went viral and caused massive outrage. They are two of many international students Trump is unjustly targeting for deportation, without even the allegation that they have committed any crime.

Cases are piling up of asylum seekers and people who have followed U.S. immigration procedures appearing at their immigration appointments only to be detained and slated for quick deportation. Cases are also piling up of U.S. citizens – mostly Latinos – who have been detained by ICE or Customs and Border Patrol and held incommunicado for weeks. Cases are increasing as well of foreign tourists arriving at the U.S. border and being detained, harshly interrogated, and even removed from the country with little to no explanation. The cumulative effect of all this has led to a rapid and sharp decline in foreign tourism to the U.S., which is sure to put a dent in the economy.

All of these attacks are on top of the increasing daily terror targeting undocumented workers, who bear the daily brunt of attacks on immigrants. They are overwhelmingly here because of U.S. imperialism wreaking havoc in their home countries, through methods like war and coercive economic sanctions, hollowing out their countries’ economies through unjust trade agreements, or making their countries unsafe by supporting oppressive U.S.-backed governments. The largest number are from Mexico and Central America, though numbers have gone up in recent years from other countries under attack by imperialism. These are workers at the core of important sectors of the U.S. economy like agriculture, meatpacking, food service, hospitality, cleaning and residential construction.

These attacks can be seen in growing immigration operations targeting day laborers, like the one in Pomona, California in April, or attacks on farm workers in Bakersfield, California in January. They can be seen in increasingly large sweeps like one in Colorado in April where around 100 immigrants were detained, and a large-scale operation in Florida that nabbed as many as 600 immigrants.

As the scale of these immigration operations continues to grow in size, many immigrant rights activists foresee the likelihood of large workplace raids, which haven’t been seen since the last two years of the Bush administration in 2007-2008. There are already smaller but significant workplace immigration operations happening, like at Hardcoat, Inc. in a Minneapolis suburb where seven immigrants were detained. Unions and immigrant rights activists have been preparing for their likelihood of much larger-scale workplace raids as the Trump administration increases their capacity for larger-scale operations.

Trump administration officials trumpeted the scale of the April operation in Florida, where 600 immigrants were captured being made possible by “partnership agreements” known as 287(g) agreements between federal immigration authorities and local and state law enforcement agencies. 287(g) agreements train and authorize local law enforcement to act as immigration enforcement officers, dramatically multiplying the reach of immigration officials. 287(g) agreements proliferated under the Obama administration, but immigrant rights activists pushed back and succeeded in getting them largely stalled out. The Trump administration is exerting extreme pressure on local governments to cooperate with immigration enforcement, threatening to cut federal funding to local governments and even to prosecute local government officials who don’t facilitate immigration operations.

This is part of Trump’s war on sanctuary cities, cities which have welcomed immigrants and refugees, and have passed policies prohibiting local government employees and local police from asking people about their immigration status or cooperating with federal immigration enforcement. As part of these attacks on sanctuary cities, Republicans in Congress called Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson to testify in D.C., where they tried to grill him. But he set a positive example of standing up for policies that welcome immigrants and refusing to cooperate with federal immigration enforcement.

The Trump administration is not only threatening local government officials. They are also ramping up the volume and venom of their threats against immigration lawyers and judges who they see as impeding their mass deportation agenda.

One Trump executive order threatens immigration lawyers with repression, accusing them of being liars and of acting illegally in their work to defend their clients against the extreme anti-immigrant onslaught. This is clearly designed to try to intimidate people away from practicing immigration law and from following their legal responsibility to vigorously defend their clients.

Wen Judge James E. Boasberg ordered the Trump administration to halt flying Venezuelan immigrants to El Salvador out of the reach of U.S. courts – and then later directed the administration to facilitate the return of Kilmar Abrego Garcia, who, the government admitted, was sent to El Salvador due to administrative error – the administration and its allies responded with a withering attack on Boasberg personally and on the judiciary in general.

The administration claims that judges should not be able to question or impede the Trump administration’s mass deportation agenda in any way. This attack on judges escalated in April when Trump’s FBI arrested Judge Hannah Dugan in Milwaukee, alleging that she was impeding ICE from detaining an immigrant who was in her courtroom. The attacks on judges and the arrest of judges is a serious escalation in the Trump administration’s attempt to centralize power and end the ability of any other branch of government to stop their cruel and unlawful mass deportations.

Perhaps most alarmingly, the Trump administration has disappeared hundreds of Venezuelan immigrants to a notorious prison in El Salvador, purposely out of the reach of the U.S. justice system. Trump accuses them of being gang members, without the due process of the government proving to a judge that the gang allegation is true, and without the immigrants having any ability to communicate with their families or lawyers. Even members of U.S. Congress who have traveled to El Salvador have not been given access to communicate with any of them, except one, and have not even been able to confirm if they are alive.

Many have likened the Salvadoran mega-prison, the “Terrorism Confinement Center” or CECOT, to a concentration camp, where people are sent there without charges and without due process to be able to refute any charges against them or any idea if they will ever be able to get out. The Salvadoran justice minister has bragged that the only way out of CECOT is in a coffin. The Trump administration flew immigrants there in defiance of a court order and continues to defy the court order to facilitate the return of one person that they admit was sent there by “administrative error,” Kilmar Abrego Garcia.

A massive movement has grown to demand the return of Abrego Garcia, anchored partly by the union he was a member of in Maryland, the Sheet Metal Rail Transportation (SMART) union, along with many immigrant rights and civil liberties organizations. Trump has made clear he intends to send many more immigrants to El Salvador’s CECOT prison without due process, and has repeatedly said he also wants to send U.S. citizens there as well. The administration also claims it is seeking similar agreements with other countries to send immigrants to their prisons, again outside the jurisdiction of U.S. courts and unable to communicate with family or lawyers.

How has the Trump administration justified rounding up immigrants and disappearing them to a prison in El Salvador with no recourse? On March 15, the administration invoked the Alien Enemies Act of 1798. This is just one of the administration’s legally-dubious invocations of emergency powers to carry out normally-unacceptable repressive actions, similar to his invocation of the International Emergency Economic Powers Act to take the power to invoke tariffs away from Congress and into his own hands.

The Alien Enemies Act is only supposed to be used if the U.S. is invaded by a foreign country. This is obviously not happening, but the Trump administration pretends that immigration from Venezuela is an “invasion” of a gang that he has declared a terrorist organization, and he has claimed is being directed by the Venezuelan government. Under that preposterous guise, the administration has usurped sweeping powers to remove people from the U.S. without even the normally existing inadequate legal processes that are supposed to exist for immigrants.

Another goal of the far right wing for decades has been to end birthright citizenship in the U.S. Trump issued an executive order on his first day in office declaring that birthright citizenship no longer exists. This was immediately challenged in the courts, as birthright citizenship is guaranteed in the 14th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution and can’t be done away with via executive order.

The attack on birthright citizenship is another clearly racist aspect of the anti-immigrant movement, as it was won in the U.S. Civil War for African Americans, who, before the Civil War, were not citizens. It was confirmed to include children of immigrants in a landmark Supreme Court case in 1898, United States v. Wong Kim Ark, and has been upheld repeatedly ever since. But it is precisely the children of immigrants from Asia, Africa, Latin America and the Middle East that anti-immigrant crusaders like those setting immigration policy in the Trump administration want to exclude from U.S. citizenship.

The legal challenge to Trump’s executive order attempting to end birthright citizenship is ongoing. The legal basis to end it is dubious, and under most circumstances Trump’s legal arguments would likely be laughed out of a courtroom. But it can’t be ruled out that this right-wing Supreme Court might bend to Trump’s will to reinterpret the 14th Amendment to not apply to the children of immigrants.

Other attacks on people who support immigrants include threatening people who do “know your rights” trainings for immigrants. Trump’s border czar Tom Homan threatened a U.S. congressperson who did an online ‘know your rights’ training. The Trump administration is also starting to detain prominent immigrant rights and labor activists like Jeanette Vizguerra in Denver, and Alfredo “Lelo” Juarez Zeferino in Washington state.

Most of the Trump administration’s actions detailed here have been undertaken through executive orders and through invocations of emergency powers. But immigration policy is generally set by Congress passing immigration laws.

Even though Republicans control Congress, they only passed one piece of immigration legislation in the first 100 days. This was the Laken Riley Act, which was an extremely anti-immigrant bill that handed extra powers to the administration to detain certain immigrants without due process, requiring detention of immigrants arrested or charged with (not even convicted of) some specific crimes. It also empowered state attorneys general to appeal to halt immigration from specific countries. While the Republicans have a majority in the U.S. Senate, they needed some Democrats to vote with them to meet the 60-vote threshold to pass it, and 12 Democratic senators voted with them to pass the bill. Congressional Republicans are also talking about passing huge increases to the already-massive budget for immigration enforcement.

The administration has taken many other actions attacking immigrants in the first 100 days that aren’t detailed here. There has just been too much to cover everything in one article. This is intentional – it’s part of their strategy to try to ‘flood the zone’ to overwhelm people so they can’t even keep track of it all or figure out what to focus on, and then feel helpless. While that seemed like it might work at first, it seems to have now brought together a broad coalition of forces opposed to the whole repressive and reactionary Trump agenda. That coalition is now mobilizing in the streets as a growing and increasingly unified force.

100 days into the Trump administration, the stories are spreading about the immigrants who are being attacked, and the scale and unjust cruelty of Trump’s attacks on immigrants are becoming clearer. As a result, Trump’s overall poll numbers and his polling on immigration specifically have begun to slide significantly. His former “strength” on immigration is turning into its opposite, as his attacks on immigrants have become emblematic of how revolting his whole agenda is to most people.

Polls now show an overwhelming majority opposes Trump sending people to a foreign prison camp without due process. A majority opposes Trump canceling international student visas. A majority think Trump’s attacks on immigrants have already gone too far and are not making the country safer. These changes in public opinion are happening because of people standing up to Trump’s attacks on immigrants in the streets, and in the courts. The administration is threatening people with repression to try to scare them away from challenging Trump. The administration is doing this because protests and legal challenges are working.

This makes it all the more important to continue the struggle to stop Trump’s mass deportations, and his whole reactionary agenda.

#MinneapolisMN #MN #Trump #100Days #ImmigrantsRights

Speakers at the rally will include representatives of unions and organizations fighting for immigrant rights and racial and social justice. Among them will be Marcia Howard, president of the teacher chapter of the Minneapolis Federation of Teachers (MFT); State Representative María Isa Pérez-Vega; Jaylani Hussein, executive director of the Minnesota chapter of the Council on American Islamic Relations (CAIR), and Sara Nelson, the international president of the Association of Flight Attendants (AFA-CWA).

Jovita Morales, an organizer in the Minnesota Immigrant Movement, said, “May 1 has always been important, but this year it matters more than ever. While the wealthy try to strip away our rights – attacking unions, slashing healthcare and education, deporting our neighbors – we are standing together, stronger than ever. We will not accept their cruelty. We will fight for the future our families deserve.”

Sorcha Lona, an organizer with Minnesota Workers United and a rank-and-file member of Teamsters Local 638, commented on the Trump administration’s attacks on organized labor, saying, “All of us in the May 1st Coalition are ready to stand up and fight back against the mass firings of federal workers, the attempts to eliminate their unions, and the efforts from Donald Trump and Elon Musk to privatize the federal government, which includes vital programs like Medicaid, Social Security and public education.”

At a moment of intense attacks on immigrants and workers from the Trump/Musk administration and their corporate backers, the May Day protest is going to show that working-class Minnesotans won’t be divided by our jobs or where we were born in our fight for a better future for all of our families.

Marchers will stand against escalating attacks on immigrants around the country including attacks on immigrants here in Minnesota such ICE detaining immigrants at workplaces from Saint Louis Park to Duluth; the Department of Homeland Security revoking the visas of at least 11 international students at the University of Minnesota, ICE detaining a hospital employee at the hospital where he works in Marshall, as well as other unjust immigration enforcement operations around the state.

The May 1 protest was initiated by the Minnesota Immigrant Rights Action Committee, Minnesota Immigrant Movement, Asamblea de Derechos Civiles, and Minnesota Workers United. It is co-sponsored by the following 50 organizations and unions: Association of Flight Attendants-CWA, AFSCME Local 34, AFSCME 2822, AFSCME Local 3800, Anti-War Committee, Asamblea de Derechos Civiles, Centro de Trabajadores Unidos en Lucha, Council on American Islamic Relations-MN, Climate Justice Committee, Communities United Against Police Brutality, Communications Workers of America Local 7250, East Phillips Neighborhood Institute, Families Against Military Madness, Filipinx for Immigrant Rights and Racial Justice, Free Palestine Coalition, Freedom Road Socialist Organization, Healthcare Workers for Palestine, IBEW 292, Indivisible Twin Cities, Indigenous Protector Movement, Kalpulli KetzalCoatlicue, Labor Council for Latin American Advancement, MN8, Minnesota 50501, Minnesota Abortion Action Committee, Minnesota AFL-CIO, Minnesota BDS Community, Minnesota Federation of Teachers Local 59, Minnesota Immigrant Movement, Minnesota Immigrant Rights Action Committee, Minnesota Peace Action Coalition, Minnesota Workers United, Party for Socialism and Liberation – Twin Cities, Saint Paul Federation of Educators, Service Employees International Union Local 26, Students for a Democratic Society, Teamsters Local 638, Twin Cities Coalition for Justice, Twin Cities Democratic Socialists of America, United Food & Commercial Workers Local 663, United Food & Commercial Workers Local 1189, UMN Graduate Labor Union-United Electric Local 1105, UNITE HERE Local 17, Veterans for Peace Chapter 27, Women Against Military Madness, Women’s March MN, Wrongfully Incarcerated and Over-Sentenced Families Council – MN.

#StPaulMN #MN #Labor #ImmigrantsRights #MayDay #MIRAC #MWU #AFSCME #AFACWA #MIM #ADC

On International Workers Day 2025, our mission is clear: Stand up for workers and immigrants’ rights. Since Trump’s inauguration, the people have not missed a beat. Battles have unfolded on many fronts. The people have marched to defend democratic rights, build the immigrant rights movement, fight discrimination, resist attacks on the working class, and to stand against the genocidal war in Palestine.

May Day started in 1886, when immigrant workers in Chicago launched an historic strike for the eight-hour workday and things came to blows at Haymarket Square. The people had had enough, and thousands flooded the streets to demand change. In response, the bosses sent their hired guns—the police—to crush the strike. The state had hanged four labor leaders. They weren’t criminals, they were champions of the working class. The executions lit a fire that spread around the world.

In 2006, May Day was reignited by the fight for immigrant rights. We were there, helping lead demonstrations of millions in LA, Chicago and across the country. The power of those mega marches revived May Day as a day of militant solidarity, and today the fight for immigrant rights is burning even brighter.

The Trump administration has carried out an onslaught of attacks and terror against immigrants and a wave of terror: detention camps, family separations, mass deportations, and even attempts to strip away birthright citizenship. He’s used ICE to target activists standing in solidarity with the Palestinian resistance. His policies are designed to silence immigrant communities—especially Chicanos, Mexicanos and Central Americans—but the wave of protests and actions to stop deportations that are erupting across the country prove that resistance is growing.

Trump is making enemies of people from all walks of life, and his second term is hitting labor hard, too. Federal workers are being fired or laid off. He is trying to take away union representation from 700,000 federal workers.

It’s clear as day that the system is rigged for the rich. The people in power love telling us the economy is doing great. But for most working class people, who are getting squeezed tighter and tighter to make ends meet, something’s not adding up. Prices for the basic things that we need to live are skyrocketing and wages stagnate. The richest 1% treat the financial system like a casino, and Trump’s policies give the billionaires more and more money to play with. It’s a crumbling system, and no amount of ‘America First’ smoke and mirrors will save it.

The ruling class wants us to believe that capitalism is the best we can do, but we know better. We’re building a united front of everyone who has a bone to pick with Wall Street. The future we’re fighting for is a brighter one, where the people hold the power and the needs of the many come before the greed of the few.

On International Workers Day, Stand up for Workers & Immigrants’ Rights

Stop the Deportations!

Fight Trump’s Agenda!

Defend Federal Workers!

Stand with Palestine and Oppressed People Everywhere!

Down with the Billionaires, We Want Socialism!

#Labor #ImmigrantsRights #InternationalWorkersDay #MayDay #FRSO #Statement