Minneapolis, MN – 20 people gathered, March 12, on May Day Plaza with signs, banners and Palestinian flags to show solidarity with Palestinian American leader Rasmea Odeh. Earlier in the day, Odeh faced her sentencing hearing in Detroit, Michigan, the conclusion of a political trial where she was unjustly convicted of a trumped-up immigration charge. At the March 12 sentencing hearing, Odeh faced up to 10 years in prison and deportation. 200 of her supporters mobilized in Detroit to attend the sentencing hearing alongside Odeh, including dozens who made the long trip from Minnesota.
Tampa, FL – A small but passionate group of about 12 people gathered on the steps of the Sam Gibbons Federal Courthouse building here, March 12, to stand in solidarity with the Palestinian American leader Rasmea Odeh. The action coincided with the Detroit sentencing of Odeh on trumped-up immigration charges.
Detroit, MI — Palestinian American women’s leader Rasmea Odeh was welcomed with cheers as she walked out of court on March 12 into the arms of 200 supporters. The crowd chanted “Rasmea! Rasmea! Rasmea!”
Tampa, FL – On March 10, members of Tampa Students for a Democratic Society disrupted an FBI recruiting event at the University of South Florida (USF). The FBI claimed the event was part of Women's History Month, their goal being to recruit young women as agents of repression. The FBI continues to threaten important women leaders such as Assata Shakur, who is living in exile in Cuba. In the case of the Anti-war 23, many women anti-war leaders were spied upon for two years and then the FBI raided their homes, in a clear case of political repression.
Minneapolis, MN – Hundreds of Black Lives Matter Minneapolis supporters gathered at the Hennepin County Courts, March 10, to stand in solidarity with the 11 defendants who are being targeted for political prosecution by the City of Bloomington and the Mall of America (MOA).
Chicago, IL – Rasmea Odeh celebrated International Women’s Day with over 125 supporters in Chicago, March 8. She appeared in strong spirits, as she prepares for her sentencing hearing in Detroit in just four days.
For one hundred and six years working class and progressive men and women over the entire world have been marching and demanding equal rights for women on March 8. This is a cornerstone of the unity that we all know is required if we are to win the liberation of the people from exploitation, white supremacist racism, and grinding poverty that afflicts a fourth of the world’s people, according to the World Bank. It is outrageous that four days later, on March 12, 2015, in a Federal Court in Detroit Michigan, the U. S. Justice Department will be asking Judge Gershwin A. Drain to sentence Rasmea Odeh, a courageous activist for women’s rights and human rights, to five to seven years in prison, according to news reports. This is far beyond the federally recommended guidelines of 12-21 months.
Minneapolis – Over 115 researchers, professors and academics have signed a letter as of March 4 urging charges be dropped against protesters who are being prosecuted by Bloomington City Attorney Sandra Johnson for their attendance at Dec. 20 peaceful demonstration at the Mall of America.
Fight Back News Service is circulating a speech that U.S. anti-war activist Joe Iosbaker delivered at a conference in Moscow, Feb. 24. The conference, called “Developments in Civil Society in Russia and the USA,” featured talks by several generations of anti-imperialist activists. A special guest was the Venezuelan Ambassador to Russia, Hoglys Martinez Nunez.U.S. imperialism and the war on Arabs and Muslims
On Feb. 21, the MN Anti-War Committee (AWC) held Rock for Rasmea, a multimedia benefit show, to raise money for the legal defense of Palestinian activist Rasmea Odeh.
Chicago, IL – Defense attorneys for Rasmea Odeh, Chicago’s 68-year-old Palestinian community leader, filed a ‘sentencing memorandum’ in a Detroit federal court, Feb. 25, arguing that Odeh “should not be sentenced to further imprisonment” following her conviction in November 2014 on a single charge of Unlawful Procurement of Naturalization.
Tampa, FL – A group of 50 people gathered at the First United Church of Tampa for a panel discussion, “State Repression and the War on Terror.” Speakers focused on the U.S. government targeting of Arab-Americans, Muslims and anti-war activists for political repression.
Ex-Chicago police officer was shot 28 times by white cops and imprisoned
Chicago, Il – A Valentine’s Day event was held at the Church of the Living God on Chicago’s South Side to welcome home Howard Morgan. Presided over by his wife, Rosalind and the Howard Morgan Defense Committee, there were over 100 people in attendance. 20 organizations sent messages of solidarity, including the U.S. Palestinian Community Network, Freedom Road Socialist Organization and Chicago Torture Justice Memorials, the group fighting for reparations for the torture victims of Chicago police officer, Jon Burge.
New York, NY – Over 35 people gathered at the historic Riverside Church in Harlem, Feb. 13 to show solidarity with Rasmea Odeh. Odeh is a 68-year-old Arab American Chicago community organizer and women’s leader. She faces sentencing for an immigration violation in Detroit on March 12. The Department of Homeland Security and U.S. prosecutors singled her out because of her political views and activity opposing wars and military occupations.
Detroit, MI – Chicago’s 68-year-old Palestinian community leader, Rasmea Odeh, is set to appear in a Detroit federal court for sentencing on March 12, following her conviction on a single charge of Unlawful Procurement of Naturalization. On Feb. 13 Federal District Judge Gershwin Drain issued an order denying two motions by Odeh’s defense team. One motion called for a new trial because of a number of legal errors in the court’s rulings in her November trial. Another called for the judge to set aside the jury’s decision altogether.
Tucson, AZ – People gathered Feb. 15 at a local radical bookstore and café to watch and listen to the inspiring words of Rasmea Odeh by video conference. The 67-year-old Arab American woman faces the possibility of a 10-year prison sentence, loss of citizenship and deportation. Odeh spoke of the importance of organizing resistance to the political agenda that criminalizes activism.
Tampa, FL – On Feb. 13 the Committee to Stop FBI Repression-Tampa held a sign-holding in support of Rasmea Odeh during the National Week of Action to Defend Rasmea Odeh.
