New Orleans, LA – Workers took to the streets on April 6, successfully blocking traffic throughout the heart of the central business district and French Quarter as they chanted for the rights of unionized public sector workers and all workers’ rights.
The rally began in Lafayette Square, when speakers from local unions such as New Orleans City Workers Organizing Committee (NOCWOC), Starbucks Workers United (SBWU), Fair Trade Musicians, United Teachers of New Orleans (UTNO) and New Orleans Workers’ Center for Racial Justice (NOWCRJ) emphasized the importance of organizing in the context of the political repression faced in Louisiana.
New Orleans, LA – On March 31, over 200 LGBTQ folks and allies gathered in Washington Square Park near the French Quarter. Just an hour before the annual Gay Easter Parade, the crowd came together to hear opening remarks from organizations.
New Orleans, LA – On March 22, about 30 people rallied outside the Municipal Court of New Orleans to support Felix Allen. Allen was brutalized and arrested the day before at the Port of New Orleans during a public comment session at the port. He was charged with “obstructing an officer” and “disturbing the peace.” Videos captured by witnesses of the arrest show that Allen was cooperating when he was attacked.
New Orleans, LA – On Thursday, March 21, 60 supporters of Palestine organized by New Orleans Stop Helping Israel's Ports (NOSHIP) gathered to give public comments at the monthly board meeting of the Port of New Orleans. Participants condemned the creation of the “Innovation Embassy,” a direct business alliance and technological partnership between the Port of New Orleans and the Port of Ashdod, in Israel.
Fight Back News Service is circulating the following statement from New Orleans Stop Helping Israel's Ports (NOSHIP).
New Orleans, LA – March 21, around 3:00 pm, during public comments at the Port of New Orleans monthly board meeting, local activist Felix Allen was brutalized and arrested for standing in solidarity with Palestine.
New Orleans, LA – On Monday morning, March 18, about 40 protesters gathered in front of the City of New Orleans Municipal and Traffic Court to defend activist Toni Jones. The previous Saturday, police arrested Jones at a protest against Tulane University’s ties with Israel. Jones faces trumped-up charges of battery on an officer, obstructing a public place, interfering with a lawful investigation and resisting an officer.
New Orleans – On March 16, 13 courageous members of Tulane Students for a Democratic Society carried out a die-in on campus to protest the school’s partnership with Israel. The demonstrators occupied the school’s central building during the nationally attended and Tulane-hosted New Orleans Bookfest. The festival is hosted by the university once a year and brings in thousands of attendees to watch panels and talks by well-known authors and public figures.
New Orleans, LA – On Wednesday, March 13, angry New Orleans residents disrupted this year’s New Orleans Entrepreneur Week (NOEW) on its busiest day. Hosted by Idea Village, NOEW is a major networking event for tech startups, with the founder of Waitr as the featured keynote this year. Protesters disrupted this event 17 times, condemning Ideal Village’s sponsorship of the “Innovation Embassy” – a technological and trade partnership between the Port of New Orleans and the Port of Ashdod in Israel.
Fight Back News Service is circulating the following statement from New Orleans for Community Oversight of Police, Freedom Road Socialist Organization-New Orleans, Tulane & Loyola Students for a Democratic Society, and New Orleans Stop Helping Israel’s Ports.
New Orleans, LA – March 16, around 12:30 p.m., at a protest against Tulane’s aid to Israel, local activist Toni Jones was arrested for standing in solidarity with Palestine.
Fight Back News Service is circulating the following March 14 statement from Tulane Students for a Democratic Society (SDS).
Official Statement on Battery of Tulane Student by Professor Walter Isaacson
On March 13th, a Tulane student and member of Students for a Democratic Society, Rory Macdonald, was assaulted by Walter Isaacson, a Tulane professor and board member. Macdonald was protesting a Tulane-sponsored New Orleans Entrepreneurship Week panel titled “Energy Innovation at Scale” featuring Louisiana State University, ExxonMobil, and Halliburton. Isaacson, an audience member, grabbed Rory and cursed at them, battering them and leaving them with bruises on their arm and scratches on their back. The encounter was captured in multiple videos. Tulane has done nothing to protect Arab students and members of SDS from repeated harassment and threats from Zionist students, and now one of our members has been assaulted by a member of the faculty.
