News and Views from the People's Struggle
New Orleans, LA – On September 18, students from the Loyola Students for a Democratic Society (SDS) organized a rally to demand that Loyola University of New Orleans divest from Israel. Despite escalating calls from the student body in the past months, the administration has only responded with force.
New Orleans, LA – On Friday, September 13, Tulane University encampment arrestees held a press conference outside the Orleans Criminal District Court ahead of their court appearance. They read a resolution signed by over 40 of New Orleans’ community organizations, demanding that charges against pro-Palestine encampment protestors and activist Toni Jones be dropped.
Fight Back News Service is circulating the following resolution in solidarity with New Orleans’ pro-Palestine protesters.
WHEREAS, the undersigned organizations stand in complete solidarity with New Orleans’ pro-Palestine protesters, and denounce Tulane University for pursuing unjust charges and tacitly endorsing police brutality against these activists, simply because they protested this institution’s ties with Israel;
WHEREAS, Tulane emeritus board member Walter Isaacson grabbed and shoved Tulane student Rory MacDonald on video at a protest on March 13, without facing repercussions;
WHEREAS, Toni Jones, organizer with New Orleans for Community Oversight of Police (NOCOP), was arrested by TUPD on March 16 at a protest for MacDonald’s and other students’ rights to free speech;
WHEREAS, Brenna Byrne, Sruly Heller, Quest Riggs, Serena Sojic-Borne, and three other protesters, were arrested by TUPD on April 29 on the first day of Students for a Democratic Society’s (SDS) peaceful encampment for Gaza, several suffering injuries from police horses or officer misconduct;
WHEREAS, Rory MacDonald, Carson Cruse, Juleea Berthelot, Shreyas Vasudevan, Vonne Crandell and nine other protesters were arrested by Louisiana State Police on May 1, the third day of SDS’s peaceful encampment for Gaza, over one hundred state troopers used tear gas, a BearCat armored vehicle, and rifles aimed at students to arrest fourteen people, including one just passing by for a walk that evening; and
WHEREAS the TUPD targeted and arrested a student days after the encampment ended, unjustly charging them with a felony;
BE IT RESOLVED, the undersigned demand that District Attorney Jason Williams and City Attorney Donesia Turner drop the trumped-up charges against these protesters;
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, the undersigned call upon the administration of Tulane University to end their witch-hunt of these protesters.
In signing this resolution, our organizations commit to doing everything we can to make this gross injustice known, and to organize a powerful solidarity movement to defend these protesters, who courageously stood against aid for Israel’s genocide.
Voice of the Experienced
Masjid Omar
Jewish Voices for Peace – New Orleans
First Grace Community Alliance
Hagar’s House, shelter
Project Ishmael, immigration law
Louisiana InterFaith for Human Rights
Friends of Sabeel – New Orleans
Palestinian Youth Movement New Orleans
William Quigley, Emeritus Professor of Law, Loyola University
American Federation of Musicians – New Orleans
Starbucks Workers United NOLA
Louisiana National Lawyers’ Guild
Queer Trans Community Action Project
New Orleans for Community Oversight of Police
Sunrise Movement NOLA
Reproductive Justice Action Collective
Harvey Mudd College Dissenters
NOLA Healthcare Workers for Palestine
Southern Solidarity
New Orleans Stop Helping Israel’s Ports
Muslims for Just Futures – Gulf South
NOLA Musicians for Palestine
Freedom Road Socialist Organization NOLA
Laveau Contraire, drag artist
Students Organizing Against Racism TU
Feminist Alliance of Students at Tulane
Rev. Gregory Manning
Justice and Beyond
Muslim Students Association – Loyola
NOLA Democratic Socialists of America
NOLA Freedom Forum
Miss Anne’s Maypop Herb Shop
LifeCity Impact Management Firm
End Jim Crow Louisiana
SPORTS DRINK
Trans Income Project
Mo Munchies LLC
Fight Covid NOLA
Fred Hampton Free Store
Chicken’s Kitchen
Tulane Students for a Democratic Society
Loyola Students for a Democratic Society
LSU Students for a Democratic Society
#NewOrleansLA #LA #AntiWarMovement #Palestine #StudentMovement #SDS #InJusticeSystem #PoliticalRepression #FreeSpeech #NOCOP
New Orleans, LA – On September 4, 40 students and community members rallied outside of Tulane and Loyola Universities demanding the Tulane and Loyola drop the disciplinary sanctions against students involved in the Popular University for Palestine encampment. They also pushed the demands of each university’s Students for a Democratic Society chapter – disclosure of university investments and divestment from apartheid Israel.
Despite the rainy weather, they chanted “From the river to the sea, Palestine will be free” and “The students, united, will never be defeated!” and caught the attention of passersby.
New Orleans, LA – On Friday, August 16, the 3rd District of the Communication Workers of America (CWA) stopped work and walked off the job at AT&T after contract negotiations broke down. The previous contract expired on August 3. Picketers across the Southeast were demanding that AT&T negotiate in good faith.
New Orleans, LA – On August 13, pro-Palestine activists rallied to protest President Biden as he visited Tulane University. About 50 people came together outside Tulane’s campus, including locals and university students. Many stayed home out of fear of the dozens of local and federal police cars that were watching the area.
New Orleans, LA- On June 25, FBI agents phoned Cuba solidarity activist Jack Reno Sweeney to attempt to interrogate him about his work. A week prior to calling him, they visited his former apartment, and then called his mother on June 24. They called his mother a second time two days later.
New Orleans, LA – On August 6, at 9:30 a.m., nearly 100 local activists and community organizations converged onto New Orleans City Hall. They gathered to stand against the New Orleans City Council adopting a “Statement of Peace,” and demanded instead a resolution for a permanent ceasefire in Gaza.
The so-called “Statement of Peace” was sponsored by the Jewish Federation of Greater New Orleans, an openly Zionist organization. It calls for peace while conveniently omitting Palestine or Palestinians, ignores local victims of Israeli genocidal violence such as Tawfic Abdeljabbar, and implies that local anti-genocide protests are “calls for violence.” After only a few weeks in circulation, the statement has been put forth on the council agenda.
New Orleans, LA – On July 30, around 40 people gathered outside of New Orleans criminal court at 2 p.m., an hour before the third court date for the 14 people arrested at the Tulane/Loyola University encampment. The 14 were arrested on May 1, around 3 a.m., by a combination of TUPD, NOPD and Louisiana state police officers.
Fight Back News service is circulating the following statement from the New Orleans Ceasefire Coalition, which includes Masjid Omar, Jewish Voice for Peace – New Orleans, New Orleans Stop Helping Israel’s Ports, Voice of the Experienced, and others.
In recent days, our coalition has been made aware of this ‘Statement of Peace,’ being distributed to local leaders and institutions, and signed by all of the New Orleans City Council Members. This statement seeks to address the “ongoing conflict in Gaza and Israel,” and is likely to be introduced as a resolution on the council’s agenda for a vote on Thursday, August 8th. Our coalition, which has been tirelessly advocating for a ceasefire resolution to this council, was not consulted about this statement. We consider this ‘Statement of Peace’ insidious in its language, and firmly reject it.