New York, NY—On September 9, a motion was filed for Venezuela’s First Lady Cilia Flores, petitioning for her release from the Metropolitan Detention Center (MDC), and for her to be instead placed under house arrest in New York City, due to the severity of her heart condition.

After she and President Nicolás Maduro were illegally kidnapped by the U.S. in January of this year, her health has rapidly deteriorated throughout her imprisonment.

First Lady Flores is the 69-year-old wife of Venezuelan President Maduro and a sitting deputy of the Venezuelan National Assembly. She was lead attorney for Hugo Chávez’s defense, securing his release from prison in 1994, and emerged throughout the 1990s and 2000s as a key figure in the victory of the Bolivarian Revolution. She was the first woman to serve as president of the National Assembly, from 2006 to 2011, before becoming attorney general of Venezuela from 2012 to 2013. In 2017, she was once again elected to the National Assembly. Throughout her career, she has remained a staunch defender of human rights and the achievements of the Bolivarian Revolution.

According to court documents, she was in good health before the illegal U.S. invasion of Venezuela, in which the U.S. abducted her and Maduro from their home in Caracas and killed over 100 people. Now, after eight months imprisoned at the MDC, she suffers recurring chest pains, has lost two molars, has lost more than 25 pounds, and likely suffered a minor heart attack on July 29.

The MDC is notorious for horrific conditions. Detainees go weeks without seeing the sky or breathing fresh air. Power and water cut out, sometimes for up to a week at a time. And there is a well-documented pattern of medical neglect. In one case, cited by Federal Judge Jesse Furman in a January 2024 decision on conditions at the MDC, the jail refused to transport an inmate for surgery to repair his broken cheekbone; when he finally received surgery, his cheek had to be rebroken. In another case in 2024, a man named Terrence Wise died in custody after months of medical neglect let his lung cancer proliferate unchecked. This context makes Flores’s fragile health all the more alarming.

In the last eight months while imprisoned, Flores has experienced palpitations, elevated heart-rate, chest tightness, chest pain and fatigue. On July 29, her lawyers believe she had a minor heart attack when she reported intense pressure on her chest and a shortness of breath. She is able to sleep only three or four hours a night and suffers asthma attacks when the MDC guards use pepper spray against other prisoners.

The MDC medical staff has recommended that she undergo cardiac surgery. But under the conditions at the MDC, recovery from such a surgery is unthinkable.

The medical neglect Flores faces is not accidental. Rather, it must be understood as part of the U.S. government’s strategy to punish Maduro, Flores and Venezuela for withstanding U.S. imperialism.

The U.S. government’s total disregard for Flores’ health has been apparent since it first abducted her. At her first hearing on January 5, it was reported that Flores appeared with wounds on her forehead – the new motion reveals further detail. The U.S. government was almost certainly aware that, at the time of the invasion and abduction on January 3, Flores was still in recovery from a recent total hysterectomy and had been ordered by her doctors to limit movement for three months. Despite this, when the U.S. military invaded her home, she was thrown against a wall or a dresser, causing the injuries to her forehead, which required some 20 stitches and left her with permanent scarring.

This violence, like the medical neglect she now faces, is violence against a woman who has dedicated her life to fighting for her people and standing against imperialism and intervention. It should be met with outrage from all progressive and imperialist forces. It is not enough for Flores to be merely released under house arrest; the charges against her must be dismissed, and she must be freed once and for all.

Across the country, member organizations of the Anti-War Action Network are mobilizing on October 3 to say no to U.S. intervention in Venezuela and to free Maduro and free Flores! Visit www.antiwaractionnetwork.org/ to find an organization near you and get involved.

#NewYorkNY #NY #AntiWarMovement #International #Venezuela #CiliaFlores #Maduro #AWAN

New York, NY – On September 10, students from New York University Students for a Democratic Society (SDS) rallied outside NYU’s D’Agostino Hall on September 10 to protest the appearance of Jim Campbell, chief legal counsel of the Alliance Defending Freedom (ADF).

Campbell came to NYU to speak in support of the Supreme Court’s June decision concerning state restrictions on transgender athletes’ participation in women and girls’ sports. The ADF has been designated a hate group by the Southern Poverty Law Center.

Throughout the afternoon, protesters chanted, “Say it loud, say it clear, Campbell’s not welcome here!” and “Out of the closet, into the streets!” The chants reflected protesters’ opposition to Campbell’s appearance and their belief that providing a platform to speakers advocating restrictions on transgender rights does not represent the values of many students on campus.

Students and passersby stopped to watch the demonstration, with some taking photos and videos, listening to speeches, or joining the chants. Others expressed their support for the protesters.

During the rally, NYU SDS member Zaara Ahmed asked the crowd, “Does this represent us?” Protesters responded with a resounding “No!” Ahmed then asked, “Do we want to provide a platform to someone whose work advocates to remove trans people from public life?” Again, protesters answered in unison.

The exchange captured the central message of the demonstration: protesters argued that NYU’s decision to platform Campbell conflicts with their vision of a campus where transgender students can live and participate in public life without discrimination.

NYU SDS member and rally emcee Ebtesham Ahmed emphasized that the fight would not end with the demonstration, stating that “we will continue to fight back against transphobes on our campus.” They stressed the importance of continuing to defend transgender rights and connected the present struggle to the history of transgender people being pushed into hiding and excluded from public life.

As the rally came to a close, protesters returned to their chants while organizers called on students to stay organized. The demonstration ended with a message that the fight against restrictions on transgender rights, and against the platforming of speakers who protesters view as advocating those restrictions, would continue beyond this rally.

#NewYorkNY #NY #StudentMovement #LGBTQ #SDS

New York City, NY – On the evening of September 9, organizers from the New York Alliance Against Racist and Political Repression organized a speakout at city hall to protest a spike in killings by the NYPD. In less than a week, officers gunned Pamela Cisneros in Times Square and Chaun Bottom on the Brooklyn Bridge. The NYPD has shot and killed eight people so far in 2026, after a record high of 13 shot and killed in 2025.

The speakout began with chants of “Justice for Chaun Bottom” and “When Black lives are under attack, what do we do? Stand up, fight back!”

Almost immediately, two officers from the NYPD Community Affairs Bureau ordered organizers to stop using amplified sound, threatening to confiscate equipment and issue summons. Along with a beat cop and two plainclothes officers, police remained nearby, blocking access to a Citi Bike station. The New York Alliance continued to chant and speak out, drawing a crowd at City Hall Park.

The speakout identified a pattern of justification for unilateral violence by police; for both Cisneros and Bottom, the NYPD described them posthumously as mentally unwell.

Ruby Doswell, speaking for the New York Alliance, said that the NYPD pushes forward the narrative that officers had no choice but to use deadly force, but then “delays or refuses to release body cam footage and keeps the investigation internal.”

In many cases, the family and loved ones of those shot by police dispute the NYPD narrative. The Daily News reported that Chaun Bottom’s mother was shocked to hear the NYPD’s description of her son, given he had no history of mental health struggles.

The NYPD has been consistent in its approach to control the narrative around people they shoot and kill. They refuse to identify the deceased or release body camera footage. The Office of the Deputy Commissioner, Public Information (DCPI) stages a press conference with a prepared statement that blames the deceased and uses consistent language to paint them as dangerous. When police are found later to have lied, there are rarely consequences.

The New York Alliance was joined by organizers from We The People NYC, a mutual aid collective based in Harlem and Bed-Stuy. Relly Rebel, speaking on behalf of We the People, called out city hall’s meek response to police misconduct, saying, “They are playing in our faces.”

No matter the party affiliation of the mayor or city council members, the police have remained one of the most powerful political forces in the city. The NYPD has brutalized and murdered Black and brown New Yorkers under every administration since its founding.

Daniel Koh of the New York Alliance described the NYPD as “a powerful enemy, one that we have seen city hall and the mayor’s office hesitate to stand up to. But the people will hold Mayor Mamdani accountable to his campaign promises about public safety!”

The New York Alliance will continue to fight for community control of the police, which would elect a community board with full authority to determine rules, budget, and discipline of corrupt and killer cops.

#NewYorkNY #NY #InjusticeSystem #KillerCop #NYPD #NYAARPR #ChaunBottom

New York, NY – 50 activists gathered outside of the Metropolitan Detention Center (MDC) in Sunset Park, Brooklyn, on Thursday, September 3, to protest the ongoing detention of Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro and First Lady Cilia Flores. Attendees represented a broad coalition of New York organizations fighting against U.S. Intervention in Venezuela, including Brooklyn Against War, Workers World Party, Black Alliance for Peace, Venceremos Brigade, and the Venezuela Solidarity Network.

Attendees held signs demanding freedom for the kidnapped Venezuelan president and first lady and joined in chants like “Free the prisoners, free them all! Free Maduro from these walls!” and “We will say it every time! U.S. sanctions are a crime!”

The protest occurred the day after motions were filed to dismiss the charges against Maduro and Flores. In the motions, the lawyers for Maduro and Flores maintain their innocence of the charges against them and further argue that the couple are immune from prosecution since they are the president and first lady of Venezuela. At the rally, speakers from multiple organizations pointed out that should the charges not be dismissed, this opens the door for the U.S. to pursue similar strategies of illegal imprisonment and prosecution against the leaders of other sovereign nations.

Speaking on behalf of Brooklyn Against War, Briony Smith said, “We know that this prosecution is baseless. We know it’s fabricated. And we know it’s illegal. But we also know that we are up against an administration rank with dangerous absurdity and hypocrisy. So, we’re going to keep fighting, and we’re going to be loud enough that the people of Venezuela can hear us, so that they know that we have not forgotten them, that we have not turned our backs on them, and that we will keep fighting until President Maduro and First Lady Flores are free!”

Protesters will return to the MDC on October 3, at 2 p.m. as part of the Anti-War Action Network’s National Day of Action against U.S. Intervention in Venezuela. The activists also vowed to rally outside the federal courthouse in Manhattan in support of Maduro and Flores on November 17, when the court will hear oral arguments to dismiss the charges.

#NewYorkNY #NY #AntiWarMovement #Venezuela #Maduro #CiliaFlores

New York, NY – On September 4, at Washington Square Park, members of the Students for a Democratic Society (SDS) at NYU rallied to demand, “No ICE on campus!” and “Sanctuary campus now!”

Protesters chanted, “Say it once, say it twice! We will not put up with ICE!” and “When Immigrants are under attack, what do we do? Stand up, fight back!” People passing by the rally took photos and videos of the action, some staying to listen to speeches or chant along. Many offered support to the protesters. 

Zaara Ahmed, a member of SDS and emcee, began, “We are rallying here today to fight back against the violence perpetrated by ICE across this country every single day,” emphasizing, “Systemic change does not come from one moment or one rally. To see justice, the fight must be continuous. We organize because survival depends on it because silence is not neutrality. Silence is permission.” 

Laynee Jade, a student activist at NYU, spoke about the revocation of Temporary Protected Status for hundreds of thousands of Haitian immigrants. “Right now, there is one bill left that will restore TPS for Haitians and that is Senate Bill S4814. So, call your senator and ask them to vote on it. We can stop the deportation of 350,000 people,” adding, “By the end of this year, Trump will have plans to deport every single group, and it is up to us whether or not we’re going to allow that.”

Ebtesham Ahmed, also with NYU SDS, ended the rally, “People all throughout the country are not taking ICE’s terror sitting down. We are fighting and it has got the folks in the Trump administration shitting their pants. It is a reminder to them that the power of the people is greater than the people in power.” Ahmed also said, “That is why we got to bring that fight here to NYU. Seeing the detentions of students across campuses in the country, it is important that we fight to make sure our community here is safe. That is why we are demanding a sanctuary campus at NYU.”

Protesters chanted to end the rally. Organizers directed protesters to attend SDS’ new members meeting, emphasizing the importance of organizing and fighting back against NYU and the Trump administration.

#NewYorkNY #NY #NYC #NYU #StudentMovement #ImmigrantRights #ICE #SanctuaryCampus

New York, NY – A new, militant group of rank-and-file unionists formed within the United Federation of Teachers (UFT) this week, called “ASAP – Alliance of Substitutes and Paraprofessionals”.

The new group, mainly consisting of members of the union’s reform caucus MORE (Movement of Rank-and-File Educators), was formed to meet a pressing need in the union. In the NYC Department of Education, substitute teachers, paraprofessionals and substitute paraprofessionals are the most neglected workers. So, union members are banding together to change this. In addition, the inequality in pay and conditions takes on a nationality, racial, and gendered character with many substitutes and most paraprofessionals being Black, Latino, immigrant and women.

While there are some groups which exist within the union to address certain specific issues that affect these education workers, such as Fix Para Pay, ASAP hopes to be the rank and file led option which really engages in militant fights on these issues.

Paraprofessionals are in the news lately, for many reasons. Most recently, Mayor Mamdani decided to sue NYC City Council for passing the Para RESPECT Check bill into law, which will provide a $10,000 bonus check for paras, which the UFT has been pushing for over the last two years. Additionally, the city’s Teacher Retirement System (TRS) attacked para retirees by demanding they make huge repayments due to a miscalculation on the part of TRS. Thankfully, this attack was partially routed by the UFT’s response via its legal team.

Meanwhile, substitutes do not have proper representation in the union. Most titles, such as teachers, social workers and paras, have their own chapters, whether based in the school or otherwise. Substitutes have no chapter of their own, which means there is no mechanism to formally represent their collective voice. Also, substitutes do not have representation on UFT’s executive board or at its delegate assembly, the union’s primary decision-making body.

Claude Copland, a member of ASAP and a substitute teacher in the Bronx, said, “As a long-term substitute teacher for almost five years now, I look forward to working with other subs and paras to help build a union that does not take any title for granted and wants to see the best outcomes for all their members.”

The Alliance of Subs and Paras vows to build the fight around these kinds of issues and will be holding related events.

ASAP is hosting a Para Town Hall, where paraprofessionals can gather to give their voice on what course of action to take with the recent lawsuit from the city against city council’s Para RESPECT Check. The event will take place over Zoom on September 16, at 6 p.m.

For more about the Alliance of Subs and Paras, follow them at: @nycsubparaalliance on Instagram.

#NewYorkNY #NY #NYC #Labor #UnitedFederationOfTeachers #Teachers

Brooklyn, NY — On Thursday, August 27, activists led a protest in front of the 71st Precinct of the NYPD to demand, “Justice for Eudes Pierre!” Undeterred by rain, community members stood outside the precinct responsible for Pierre’s murder and chanted, “NYPD kills on patrol! How do we stop them? Community control!”

Speakers from the New York Alliance Against Racist and Political Repression (NYAARPR) explained the details of Pierre’s death and the suffering that has continued to this day. In December of 2021, Eudes Pierre experienced a mental health crisis and called 911. The NYPD officers who responded to his call from the 71st Precinct brutally murdered him. Since then, no action has been taken against the police. New York’s Civilian Complaint Review Board (CCRB) found that the officers acted within NYPD guidelines, and the state Attorney General Letitia James declined to pursue any charges against the officers.

NYAARPR spokesperson Daniel Koh shared details, “134 cops work at this precinct. 79 of them have allegations of misconduct and brutality. That means three of every five cops have abused their authority and hurt the people in this neighborhood. That means if anyone dials 911 in this neighborhood, they’re likely to get a crooked cop.”

This includes Officer Conrado Abreu-Gerez, one of Eudes Pierre’s killers, who has multiple allegations from before and after Pierre’s murder.

The New York Alliance also fights for community control of the police, a system that would give people the democratic power to determine how their communities are policed. Jamie Kowalski of the NYAARPR said, “We know that if our communities come together and we combine our power, we are stronger than the billionaires and their racist attack dogs in the NYPD! Compared to the power of the people, the pigs are nothing!”

Together with the family of Eudes Pierre, the New York Alliance will continue holding monthly protests at the 71st Precinct on the last Thursday of each month. The next protest will be Thursday, September 24.

#BrooklynNY #NY #InJusticeSystem #OppressedNationalities #AfricanAmerican #KillerCops #EudesPierre #NYAARPR #NAARPR

New York, NY – On August 15, over 100 people gathered in the heart of Times Square, near the Army Recruiting Office, to mark Korean Liberation Day. The protest was organized by Nodutdol and Bayan USA.

Korean Liberation Day is a celebration of the Korean resistance rising up and overthrowing Japanese imperialism on August 15, 1945. Since that day, it has become a yearly celebration to remember the militancy of the Korean people against imperialism and occupation.

For this protest, Nodutdol and Bayan demanded “U.S. out of Korea” and an end to the Pacific war. The United States has long engaged in violent meddling and intervention in South Korea to oppose North Korea. Additionally, weapon trade and war games in the region have escalated deaths of civilians.

A speaker from Nodutdol said, “My grandmother lived through the Korean War as a young girl. The U.S. claims to have saved Korea, but my grandmother and the millions of civilians killed would say otherwise. We cannot hear the voices of the dead, but we must hear the voices of the living!”

Next, the action marched to the Philippines Consulate, where a speaker from Anakbayan told of the complicity of the Philippines government in the oppression of its people both in the U.S. and at home. They went on to share how Filipino and Korean people are both affected in similar ways by U.S. imperialism, the military presence in their homelands, and “war games” conducted by the U.S., Philippines and South Korea, to imitate acts of war against China and the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea.

Protesters marched to a corporate office for Hanwha, a South Korean weapons profiteer that also makes deals with the government of the Philippines. A speaker from the Philadelphia Alliance Against Imperialism explained how Hanwha has recently expanded its operations in the nearby city, directly profiting from U.S. imperialism’s warmongering and forcing its workers to endure dangerous and even deadly conditions.

Throughout the rally and march, protesters chanted, “No boots on the ground, no bombs in the air, U.S. out of everywhere!” and “From Korea to the Philippines, stop the U.S. war machine.”

#NewYorkNY #NY #NYC #Korea #USOutofKorea #Nodutdol #BayanUSA #AntiWarMovement #KoreanLiberationDay #Feature

Brooklyn, NY – On August 3, at 5:30 p.m., anti-war activists gathered outside the Metropolitan Detention Center, demanding freedom for Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro and First Lady Cilia Flores. This rally was part of a picket that takes place on the third day of every month, marking the anniversary of January 3 , when the United States bombed Venezuela and abducted the two political leaders.

The organizations in attendance, including Black Alliance for Peace NYC/NJ,Brooklyn Against War, Code Pink, and Workers World Party, have been on the front lines of the struggle to free Maduro and Flores for seven months.

Chants of “Free the prisoners, free them all! Free Maduro from these walls!” and “¡Cilia aguanta, el pueblo se levanta!” rang through the isolated area surrounding the prison.

Briony Smith, a member of Brooklyn Against War and the Anti War Action Network Steering Committee, stated, “Seven months since Maduro and Cilia were illegally kidnapped from Venezuela — say shame! Seven months that they’ve been imprisoned in the United States, right here in the MDC, awaiting a bogus trial of fabricated charges. Shame!”

Smith continued, “And one more time, you all have been out here every single month. You’ve been here through the freezing cold, through brutal heatwaves, in apocalyptic smoke. We have been outside the court in January, in March, and July despite the racist, reactionary gusanos who pretend to speak for the Venezuelan people.”

The rally ended with a short march around the federal prison buildings. Protesters are determined to continue the picket, which will take place again on September 3, and are prepared to mobilize for future court dates.

#BrooklynNY #NY #NYC #Maduro #CiliaFlores #AntiWarMovement #Venezuela

Brooklyn, NY – After the murder of Corey Ruiz by police in Madison, Wisconsin on Wednesday, July 22, the National Alliance Against Racist and Political Repression called a National Week of Action.

In New York, the New York Alliance held their fifth monthly protest at the 71st Precinct on Thursday, July 30, uniting the calls for justice for Eudes Pierre, another Black man killed by police brutality, and Corey Ruiz.

Earlier that day, the New York Alliance had also organized a call-in to demand that one of Eudes Pierre’s murderers, NYPD Officer Conrado Abreu-Gerez, be immediately fired. Hundreds of calls from around the country jammed the phone line. The officers who answered grew increasingly upset, berating callers and claiming that Abreu-Gerez no longer worked at the 71st Precinct. Eventually, they stopped taking calls altogether, effectively shutting down the line.

Also present at the speakout were community members and the family and loved ones of Eudes Pierre. Speeches and chants connected Corey Ruiz’s murder to the murders of Eudes Pierre in 2021 as well as the murder of Óscar Granados Colindres by state and local police in Wappingers Falls, New York on June 27. For Eudes Pierre and Corey Ruiz, the police attempted to dehumanize and criminalize the people they murdered. For Eudes Pierre and Óscar Colindres, 911 sent police instead of healthcare workers.

In all three cases, police escalated to lethal force and have faced no accountability. Sheina Banatte, Eudes Pierre’s cousin and the managing director of advocacy for the Justice for Eudes Pierre Coalition, said, “This is what the NYPD does. They turn a blind eye when officers assault, brutalize, and murder us.” Chapters of the National Alliance work with families who fight similar battles against a system that protects killer cops.

Hannah Healy from the New York Alliance explained the goal of community control of the police as a path to justice. Healy said, “We’ve actually seen community control of the police work before…they drove out the KKK and protected their right to vote against violent counter-revolutionaries! We can achieve this again to serve and protect ourselves.”

Unlike the current toothless CCRB, a Civilian Police Accountability Council would have full control over police budget, staffing, and discipline. CPAC would empower impacted family members to fire and prosecute killer cops.

The New York Alliance will continue to protest the 71st Precinct on the last Thursday of every month. Next month, the protest will take place on August 27th. They will continue to fight until Eudes Pierre’s killers are fired and prosecuted, police are removed from mental health response, and the people win community control of the police.

#BrooklynNY #NY #InJusticeSystem #NAARPR #NYAARPR

New York, NY – On July 29, over 150 people rallied outside of New York City’s Philippine consulate for the annual People’s State of the Nation Address (PSONA), presenting the people’s assessment of the Marcos Jr. administration and demanding justice for Filipino immigrant workers and an end to political repression.

The rally took place with an added sense of urgency after community member Kuya Raul was taken by ICE two nights before the demonstration. Throughout the afternoon, protesters repeatedly chanted “Free Kuya Raul” and “Justice for Kuya Raul!” linking his detention to the broader struggle against anti-immigrant policy and state repression.

A member of the Malaya movement asked the crowd, “Do we think he’s [Marcos Jr] telling the truth?” Protesters answered with a loud “No!” Do we think he knows the realities of the Filipino people?” Once again, the crowd responded in unison. The exchange reflected the central message of the People’s State of the Nation Address: that the experiences of workers, immigrants and poor communities stand in sharp contrast to the image presented by the Marcos administration.

Speakers from Migrante, Gabriela and Anakbayan connected the conditions faced by Filipinos in the Philippines with the struggles of immigrant communities in the United States, emphasizing that poverty, displacement, labor exploitation and state repression cannot be separated from attacks on migrants abroad.

Speakers from Nodutdol and JUPI connected the struggles to their own national liberation struggles in Korea and Puerto Rico, emphasizing the need for international solidarity. Participants carried signs and banners calling for justice, chanted throughout the march, and called on passersby to stand in solidarity with the Filipino people.

Among the day’s most emotional speeches was that of Kuya Raul’s son, who stated, “He needs to be home,” he told the crowd. “He is the breadwinner of our family.”

After the rally, demonstrators marched towards the Ceberus building, bringing their demands beyond the Philippine Consulate. Chants of “Justice for Kuya Raul!” echoed alongside calls for justice for the Filipino people, drawing the attention of pedestrians and motorists while demonstrating the unity of the coalition assembled for this year’s PSONA.

As the march concluded, organizers reaffirmed their commitment to continuing the struggle for genuine democracy and justice for the Filipino people while calling for Kuya Raul’s release.

#NewYorkNY #NY #International #Philippines

New York City , NY – Early on the morning of Wednesday, July 22, dozens of anti-war activists and community members gathered facing the courthouse in downtown Manhattan for the federal hearing of President Nicolás Maduro and First Lady Cilia Flores.

This was the third hearing after the abduction of Maduro and Flores from their home in Caracas on January 3. The Trump administration carried out a bombing campaign that killed around 80 people in their pursuit of the president and first lady. They were brought to the Metropolitan Detention Center in Brooklyn, New York, where they are awaiting a sham trial.

The protest outside was organized by several organizations, many who have been on the frontlines of the struggle to free Maduro and Flores since January 3. The forces were Brooklyn Against War, Black Alliance for Peace, Workers World Party, Bronx Anti War, and Freedom Road Socialist Organization.

The rally began with chants such as, “We want justice, you say how? Free Maduro, free him now!” and “Donald Trump, you’re a liar! No more wars for empire!”

“President Nicolás Maduro and First Lady Cilia Flores were kidnapped by Trump and the U.S. government after an illegal military invasion. They have committed no crime. We are here in NYC to oppose their kidnapping, detention and trial! They should be set free!” said Tom Burke, a longtime anti-war activist and organizational secretary for the Freedom Road Socialist Organization.

The chants and rallies continued, despite the small opposition forces trying to feebly out-chant the protest.

As the protest in New York was happening, there were concurrent protests all over Venezuela in support of their president and first lady.

The last speech was made by Briony Smith, a member of Brooklyn Against War and a steering committee member of the Anti-war Action Network, “It is not the will of the American people to invade foreign nations and capture their leaders, because it is not the American people who grow rich off their exploitation. Every day, more and more people in this country are realizing that we have more in common with the people of the Philippines, Palestine or Venezuela than we do with Congress, the White House, or Wall Street.”

Smith continued, “American imperialism is crumbling, while our movement is growing. President Nicolás Maduro and First Lady Cilia Flores have done nothing wrong, and they will walk free! The sanctions on Venezuela will be lifted! The people will be victorious!”

The rally finished with a march and protesters are ready to gather for future hearings. The next seems to be set for November 17. The trial is officially set for June 2027, and activists are ready to hit the ground running to build the campaign to free Maduro and Flores.

#NewYorkCityNY #NY #NYC #AntiWarMovement #Venezuela #Maduro #CiliaFlores #Feature

NYC, NY—On July 22 at 8 a.m., protesters will rally to demand, “Free President Maduro and First Lady Flores!” outside the federal courthouse in Manhattan, New York.

A growing coalition of groups and individuals, both in NYC and nationally, support freedom for the pair. Coalition members include Brooklyn Against War, the Anti-War Action Network, Workers World Party, International Action Center, Palaver Collective, Black Alliance for Peace, and the International League of People’s Struggle.

“President Nicolás Maduro and First Lady Cilia Flores have done nothing wrong. They have committed no crime. Their kidnapping, detention, and trial by Trump and the U.S. government is the only crime here,” said Tom Burke, a longtime anti-war activist and organizational secretary for the Freedom Road Socialist Organization.

Burke continued, “The whole world sees Trump and Wall Street attempting to dominate Venezuela’s oil, minerals and economy. It is armed robbery.”

“While other countries send Venezuela earthquake aid, Trump and the U.S. government are imposing U.S. military forces and enforcing U.S. economic sanctions,” Burke said.

Dozens of anti-war and international solidarity protesters will gather at Baxter Street and Worth Street in Manhattan to let the U.S. Department of Justice know they demand the cancellation of the prosecution against President Maduro and Cilia Flores. Their flyer reads, “Free Maduro! Free Flores! Hands off Venezuela! No war with Cuba!”

#NYCNY #NY #International #AntiWarMovement #Venezuela #Maduro #Cuba #BAW #AWAN #Feature

Brooklyn, NY — On the evening of Friday, July 17, community members gathered outside the Metropolitan Detention Center for a speak-out style protest under the banner “No more ICE murders!”

The action, held in full view of the Gowanus Expressway, was organized by the New York Alliance Against Racist and Political Repression, which was joined by organizers and speakers from Brooklyn Against War, NYC ICE Watch, and the Freedom Road Socialist Organization.

Protesters unfurled a massive banner reading “ICE out of everywhere” as rush-hour traffic roared past on the elevated expressway and Brooklyn’s 3rd Avenue. That tactic drew plenty of positive attention, as drivers on the expressway responded with a chorus of honks, signaling solidarity with the demonstrators. Meanwhile, organizers handed out flyers to pedestrians walking past on the sidewalk, some of whom joined the action to chant and listen to the lineup of speakers.

Speakers addressed the crowd and passing commuters alike, demanding justice for the victims of recent ICE violence, legalization for all undocumented immigrants, and a complete withdrawal of ICE and all federal agents from New York City. Conditions around the MDC, a federal facility holding at least 200 immigrants, many of whom have not been charged with a crime, were condemned as a manifestation of racist national repression.

“The Metropolitan detention center is notorious for being dark and overcrowded, for mold and fungus, and poor quality food, for non-functioning toilets and unsanitary conditions,” NYAARPR organizer Jamie Kowalski said in a speech. “We demand free all ICE detainees from the MDC!”

The evening's program also featured calls to action linking local resistance to the broader national movement against ICE violence.

“We are the New York Alliance, and we are out here to say we reject the idea that communities are made safer by armed immigration raids,” said organizer Ruby Doswell. “We reject the criminalization of immigrants who come to this country to work, support their families, and build a future. We demand accountability for the deaths of Lorenzo [Salgado Araujo], Joan [Sebastián Durán Guerrero], and Juan [Jairo Coronilla Duran].”

In their speech, Briony Smith, an organizer with Brooklyn Against War, observed that repressive immigration enforcement is not “arbitrary” or “isolated,” but the domestic arm of U.S. imperialism.

ICE repression “is part of a larger agenda that looks to expel, in particular, Latin American people but not exclusively, at the same time that the Trump administration attempts to extend its tentacles throughout Central and South America to suck dry the resources of sovereign countries, in order to enrich American billionaires,” Smith told the crowd.

The protest comes amid escalating outrage over ICE’s deadly operations and the ongoing invasions of immigrant communities. Organizers made it clear that the struggle is far from over, vowing to continue building pressure until ICE is removed from every corner of the city.

#BrooklynNY #NY #NYC #ImmigrantRights #NYAARPR

Last week on July 1, Nadia Topete, an immigrant rights activist and organizer with Centro CSO, was issued a grand jury subpoena by police in Los Angeles. By now, it’s clear the purpose of this grand jury is to investigate and harass organizers who mobilized to resist ICE oppression in Los Angeles last summer.

The New York Alliance is proud to stand in solidarity with Nadia and all other immigrant rights organizers facing this vile repression throughout the country, which we condemn in the strongest possible terms. Repression against activists takes many forms, and the grand jury is one of the key legal tools weaponized against organized movements.

Grand juries are secret proceedings often used against activists in order to criminalize dissent and weaken our movements. 

Nadia was first subpoenaed to testify in June, and now they’ve come for her again. It’s clear this grand jury is being called to pressure Nadia into talking about last summer’s anti-ICE protests — which led to bogus conspiracy charges against fellow organizer Alejandro Orellana that were later dropped. 

We demand that US Attorney Bilal Essayli and assistant US Attorney Michael Wheat drop the grand jury investigation now! 

Hands off Nadia! 

End repression of all immigration activists!

#NewYorkNY #NY #NYC #NYAARPR #NadiaTopete #ImmigrantRights #PoliticalRepression

Brooklyn, NY – On July 3, dozens of activists rallied outside of the Metropolitan Detention Center (MDC) to demand freedom for kidnapped Venezuelan president Nicolás Maduro and First Lady Cilia Flores. The picket also marked six months since President Maduro and First Lady Flores were kidnapped from Caracas in a United States military operation which killed 100 people, including 32 Cuban bodyguards.

Despite the oppressive 100-degree heat, energy was high. Bolstered by reports that Maduro had been able to hear last month’s protest, protesters chanted loudly, “Maduro, aguanta, el pueblo se levanta!”

Organizations in attendance included Workers World Party, Palaver Collective, Black Alliance for Peace, the International League of People’s Struggle, and Brooklyn Against War.

Michela Martinazzi of Brooklyn Against War spoke, connecting the heatwave with the U.S. military aggression against Venezuela. “The number one polluter in the world is the United States military. It is our responsibility as people living on this planet to fully dismantle the U.S. military and the system that upholds it. So today, we’re standing in record-high temperatures, and we know that war affects all of us. It affects every single one of us. And President Maduro and Flores, who haven’t done anything wrong except govern their country in a way that challenges the United States, are being held right here at the Metropolitan Detention Center. This is a war crime.”

The activists vowed to continue their monthly protest at the MDC until Maduro and Flores are freed. They will also rally at the federal courthouse in Manhattan on July 22, the next scheduled court date for Maduro and Flores.

#BrooklynNY #NY #International #Venezuela #AntiWarMovement

NYC, NY – On June 28, beginning in Union Square, Manhattan, thousands participated in the annual Queer Liberation March.

The event is an alternative to the Pride march and gives the radical and militant activists in the LGBTQ community the opportunity to organize away from the corporate sponsors of Pride.

The annual march always hosts a large array of progressive, leftist and revolutionary organizations who uphold the militant legacy of 1969 Stonewall Riots, where the LGBTQ community of NYC’s Village fought back fiercely against violent police raids.

One organization present at the march was Freedom Road Socialist Organization (FRSO), which led a contingent of 700 people at its height.

Chants included “Out of the closet and into the streets, no justice, no peace!” “We will not be quiet, Stonewall was a fucking riot!” “Say it loud and say it clear, ICE and feds ain’t welcome here!” Flags showing solidarity with Palestine and Lebanon were also present.

The march went from Union Square to the ICE headquarters at 26 Federal Plaza, showing solidarity with immigrants detained by ICE.

A participant in the march and member of FRSO, Shivani Ishwar, said, “The cause of queer liberation is much bigger than a corporate Pride parade. We understand that all rights that queer and trans people have were earned in blood. The system is trying to claw back those rights, with crackdowns on queer and trans communities nationwide, along with the terror being unleashed on immigrants by ICE and the feds. We recognize that we must continue to stand together in militant solidarity, to protect those rights and to win our demand for liberation. Until all of us are free, no one is, and that goes for every community under attack by the Trump administration and U.S. imperialism.”

#NewYorkNY #NY #NYC #LGBTQ #Pride #Stonewall #ImmigrantRights

Brooklyn, NY – Community members and the family of Eudes Pierre gathered Thursday, June 25, for their fourth monthly picket at the NYPD’s 71st Precinct. Alongside Pierre’s family, organizers from the New York Alliance Against Racist and Political Repression (NYAARPR) demanded justice for Eudes Pierre and put up wanted posters of the officers who murdered him in 2021.

The previous day would have been Pierre’s 31st birthday. He was only 26 years old when he called 911 in the midst of a mental health crisis on December 20, 2021. Instead of the care he needed, dispatch sent Officers Peter Lan and Conrado Abreu-Gerez. Pierre’s cousin, Sheina Banatte, described how he was “followed, chastised, criminalized, attacked, gunned down, then dehumanized when his murder was labeled ‘suicide by cop’ after he called 911 for help.”

The NYPD denied wrongdoing. Its Civilian Complaint Review Board (CCRB) ruled Lan and Abreu-Gerez acted “within NYPD guidelines.” New York Attorney General Letitia James declined to pursue criminal charges against them. Killer cops feel emboldened to brutalize and kill Black and brown New Yorkers because the system is built to deny justice to those impacted by police violence.

Joe Wilkins from the New York Alliance outlined a path to justice in community control of the police, stating, “Accountability should not take years of pickets and protests and rallies. It should be built into the system from the bottom-up, through community boards with real power to hire, fire and discipline every single officer in this building, and throughout the five boroughs.”

Participants directly confronted officers from the 71st Precinct with chants such as, “How do you spell murderer? NYPD!” One participant used to 50-a.org database to search the names and badge numbers of officers who stood, laughing, behind their metal barricades. Like Peter Lan and Conrado Abreu-Gerez, several of the officers present had documented histories of brutality and racist violence.

As they build the Justice for Eudes Pierre campaign, the New York Alliance and the family of Eudes Pierre will continue to picket the 71st Precinct on the last Thursday of every month. They will continue to fight until Pierre’s killers are fired and prosecuted, police are removed from mental health response, and the people win community control of the police.

#BrooklynNY #NY #InJusticeSystem #KillerCops #EudesPierre #NYAARPR #NAARPR

Brooklyn, NY – Organizers from the New York Alliance Against Racist and Political Repression gathered in the Bed-Stuy neighborhood of Brooklyn on Friday, June 19, to speak out against police crimes that disproportionately affect Black and brown communities of New York City.

Held on Juneteenth, a holiday marking the day when the enslaved people in Texas were informed of their freedom after the U.S. Civil War, the speakout was a part of a National Day of Action called by the National Alliance Against Racist and Political Repression.

Speakers from the New York Alliance focused on the struggles of families to demand justice for their loved ones lost to police brutality across the country. In Brooklyn, the Alliance works closely with the family of Eudes Pierre, a young Black man who was murdered by the NYPD while in the midst of a mental health crisis in 2021. Over four years later, the Civilian Complaint Review Board has ruled in favor of the officers, and State Attorney General Letitia James has declined to pursue any charges against them.

“If executing a young Black man during a mental health crisis is ‘within guidelines,’ then the entire institution is fundamentally, structurally criminal,” said Jamie Kowalski, a member of the New York Alliance. “We stand in unwavering solidarity with the family of Eudes Pierre, alongside the families of every person whose life was stolen by police violence.”

The day of action also focused on the erosions of voting rights that the Trump administration and Supreme Court have been steadily pushing, including the recent Louisiana v. Callais, which rolls back protections of Black people’s right to vote enshrined by the Voting Rights Act of 1965, protections that were hard won by the Civil Rights and Black Liberation movements of the 1960s.

Shivani Ishwar, the Chair of NYAARPR, said, “Across the country, the National Alliance is working to defend Black communities from going back to the Jim Crow era. We will not allow this racist system to silence Black voices, to ignore Black communities, or to take Black lives.” As an organization that fights for community control of the police, Ishwar went on, the New York Alliance recognizes that the right to vote is fundamental to Black people’s ability to control how their communities are run.

The New York Alliance also invited community members to join an upcoming protest on Thursday, June 25, to commemorate Eudes Pierre’s 31st birthday and continue demanding justice for his family. The protest will be held at the 71st Precinct, which responded to Eudes’ call back in 2021, and where one of the officers who killed him still works. The New York Alliance are demanding that both of the officers who killed Eudes be fired and prosecuted for murder.

#BrooklynNY #NY #NYC #NAARPR #InjusticeSystem #Juneteenth #EudesPierre

Brooklyn, NY – On Saturday, June 6, community members and activists with Brooklyn Against War [BAW] gathered at the Bedford Library for a panel and discussion regarding their ongoing campaign to free Nicolás Maduro and Cilia Flores. Titled “What is Happening in Venezuela?”, the panel featured guest speaker Steve Ellner, an author, historian and political scientist who taught at the Universidad de Oriente for 26 years. 

Ellner stated, “The Chavista movement is solidly behind Delcy Rodríguez. Washington, and Trump in particular, has made no secret of what could happen to the Rodríguez government if [she] were to put up major resistance to the demands that the Trump administration is making.”

These comments from Ellner were made in response to criticisms of the acting president from members of the international left, who incorrectly condemn Rodriguez, rather than the imperialist aggression of the United States.

A member of BAW stated, “President Maduro is right now being held in our backyard at MDC. We are paying taxes, high taxes, and we don’t see them returning to our communities. There have been billions of dollars in war, and they are still using our tax dollars to bomb the country and try to control the oil.”

The Metropolitan Detention Center sits in the heart of Sunset Park, where it holds not only political prisoners President Maduro and Cilia Flores, but also nearly 200 ICE detainees.

BAW members also shared a petition to drop the charges, and spoke about their plans to mobilize to the federal courthouse on June 30, the next hearing date for Maduro and Flores. 

Ellner’s portion of the panel is available on YouTube at BrooklynAgainstWar.

#BrooklynNY #NY #AntiWarMovement #Venezuela #International #BAW