Fight Back! News

News and Views from the People's Struggle

policecrimes

By Kristin Bonner

NAARPR Executive Director Frank Chapman, guest keynote speaker,  gives opening remarks to begin the local DC Alliance Conference.  | Fight Back! News/staff

Washington, D.C. – On May 4, the DC Alliance Against Racist and Political Repression (DCAARPR), hosted its first local conference. A first of its kind for a branch of the National Alliance Against Racist and Political Repression (NAARPR), the conference brought about 50 organizers, activists and community members together for a discussion on police accountability and community control. Many of the attendees were Black, Latino, Arab, Asian, and Pacific Islanders.

Read more...

By staff

Three speakers sit at a table at the head of a room in front of a white board that has "Black Power and the need for communist organization" written on it.

New Orleans, LA – On Saturday, March 2, around 50 community members packed into a community space in the 7th Ward. There, Freedom Road Socialist Organization (FRSO) held a forum titled “Black Power and the need for communist organization.”

Read more...

By Kobi Guillory

Chicago People's Hearing on Police Crimes.  | Fight Back! News/staff

Chicago, IL – “You can't throw a stone and not hit someone who is affected by police torture and wrongful conviction here in Chicago, the torture capital of the United States,” said Merawi Gerima, a co-chair of the Campaign to Free Incarcerated Survivors of Torture (CFIST.)

Gerima was speaking at the annual People's Hearing on Police Crimes on Saturday, February 24, at the office of the Chicago Alliance Against Racist and Political Repression (CAARPR) in Woodlawn neighborhood on the predominantly Black South Side.

Read more...

By staff

Community members kneel near a collection of candles while other hold signs that read "Justice for Joel Acevedo"

Milwaukee, WI – After a five-day trial, a jury acquitted former Milwaukee police officer Michael Mattioli of first-degree reckless homicide on Friday, November 10. Mattioli was on trial for the murder of Joel Acevedo, which took place in April 2020 and was one of the central cases during the 2020 uprising in Milwaukee.

Read more...

By staff

Daviri Robertson, right, hugging his son. | Fight Back! News/staff

Jefferson, LA – On November 4, Jefferson Parish resident Arleen Robertson, mother of police murder victim Daviri Robertson, will speak out at a community forum at Saint Luke’s Episcopal Church. Robertson is fighting to appeal the qualified immunity of the police officer who murdered her son. Fight Back! spoke with Ms. Robertson to share her story.

Read more...

By staff

Protest demands an end to in-custody deaths at the Milwaukee County Jail

Milwaukee, WI – On August 25, 30 protesters gathered for a press conference, which was followed by a picket, to demand an end to in-custody deaths inside the Milwaukee County Jail. Beginning with the death of Brieon Green on June 26, 2022, six people have died in the custody of the Milwaukee County Sheriff's Office (MCSO).

Read more...

By staff

Chicago, IL – Family and supporters of Murod Kurdi packed a Bridgeview Circuit court room, August 8, to demand justice in a case that highlights the racism of the Oak Lawn Police Department.

Read more...

By Jonce Palmer

Laurie Littlejohn, along with family members and supporters, marches for account

Aurora, CO – On June 9, the bodycam footage documenting the police killing of Black youth Jor’Dell Richardson, 14, was released during a press conference given by Aurora Police Department Interim Chief Art Acevedo. The family and community organizers responded in kind with a press conference of their own, to counter the police narrative and march for accountability.

Read more...

By John Metz

Participants in the the  People’s Hearing for Survivors of Police Crimes

Chicago, IL – On Saturday, June 3, newly sworn-in Police District Councilors, community groups and survivors of police misconduct gathered at Gorham Methodist Church on Chicago's South Side for the inaugural People's Hearing on Police Crimes.

Read more...

By staff

Members and supporters of the Milwaukee Alliance picket outside Mayor Cavalier J

Milwaukee, WI – On Wednesday, May 31, the Milwaukee Alliance Against Racist and Political Repression held a picket outside Milwaukee Mayor Cavalier Johnson’s house. The Milwaukee Alliance recently launched their Fair Share Campaign in order to fight back against the strings attached to Milwaukee’s shared revenue increase being proposed by state Republicans.

Read more...