Appleton, WI – On Saturday, September 23, students, faculty, and other members of the Fox Valley community gathered at Lawrence University’s Warch Cinema in defense of the Tampa 5. In their second stop on their national tour, Lauren Pineiro and Chrisley Carpio of the Tampa 5 spoke to the LU community. Opening with chants of ‘drop the charges now!’ and ‘fight back!’, the Tampa 5 representatives spoke in detail of their case and its repercussions to the group of 35 people. For some, it was their first time hearing of the infuriating case, where the five protesters are facing five to ten years in prison on false charges.
Milwaukee, WI – More than 30 activists, organizers and supporters gathered at ZAO Church in Milwaukee on the evening of September 25 to listen to the Tampa 5's Chrisley Carpio and Lauren Pineiro talk about the situation in Florida and what led to their current struggle.
Seattle, WA – Over 20 community members and activists brought together by the Seattle Alliance Against Racist and Political Repression (SAARPR) gathered at City Hall on September 26 to deliver public comment and demand justice for Jaahnavi Kandula, who was killed by Seattle Police officer Kevin Dave on January 23, 2023.
Fight Back News Service is circulating the following statement by the Climate Justice Committee of Minnesota.
The Climate Justice Committee (CJC) resolutely condemns the recent felony RICO indictments of 61 Stop Cop City activists in Atlanta, as well as the refusal by the Atlanta city government to count the 116,000 petition signatures to put Cop City on the ballot. These blatantly anti-democratic and criminal actions by the Georgia Attorney General, the Mayor of Atlanta, and Atlanta elections officials will not go unanswered.
Milwaukee, WI – On Thursday, September 21, the Milwaukee County board of supervisors discussed whether to file the Milwaukee County Sheriff’s Office’s (MCSO) report on the Milwaukee County Jail. If filed, this would mean the board of supervisors accepts the MSCO’s report, effectively eliminating the possibility of any further public discussion on the report at county board meetings. The MCSO produced this report after significant public pressure demanding transparency and accountability from the office.
Minneapolis, MN – “All of us were brutalized. I saw my friends kicked, punched, pushed into walls, put in chokeholds,” said Lauren Pineiro to a 100-person crowd that nearly filled the University of Minnesota lecture hall. “The chief of police even groped a student.”
Fight Back! is circulating this statement from the Committee to Stop FBI Repression.
The Tampa 5 – Gia Davila, Lauren Pineiro, Laura Rodriguez, Jeanie K, and Chrisley Carpio – are the five Students for a Democratic Society protesters at the University of South Florida who were attacked by campus police and are now facing five to ten years in prison for protesting Governor Ron DeSantis' attacks on diversity programs and all of higher education.
New York, NY – The police union that represents NYPD officers, the Patrolmen’s Benevolent Association (PBA), has intervened in an historic legal settlement in an attempt to prevent new regulations on how police respond to protests.
Chicago, IL – In Chicago, the movement to stop police crimes is demanding city hall act to block the most recent attempt by the Fraternal Order of Police to undermine police accountability. Chicago organizers, district councilors and alderpersons spoke in a press conference Thursday September 14, to demand the Chicago City Council vote down an FOP-aligned arbitrator's decision to give officers accused of serious misconduct the choice of behind-closed-doors arbitration instead of going before the Chicago Police Board.
Seattle, WA – On September 14, over 200 people came to an emergency rally and march organized by the Seattle Alliance Against Racist and Political Repression (SAARPR) to fight for justice following the murder of Jaahnavi Kandula by Kevin Dave, an officer in the Seattle Police Department.
