Fight Back! News

News and Views from the People's Struggle

rnc2024

By staff

Milwaukee march demands justice for D’Vontaye Mitchell and Samuel Sharpe Jr.

Milwaukee, WI – As the Republican National Convention came to an end on Thursday, July 18, hundreds of law enforcement officers and dozens of media outlets circled a crowd gathered for a rally at Red Arrow Park demanding justice for D’Vontaye Mitchell and Samuel “Jah” Sharpe, Jr.

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By staff

Milwaukee, WI - After a protracted fight with authorities, the Coalition to March on the RNC came to agreement July 12 with city government on the route the protest will take on the opening day of the Republican National Convention. 

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By Paul Nelson

Denver activists announce plans to march on the RNC.

Greenwood Village, CO – On Wednesday, July 3, a group of activists and community members came together in front of the Colorado Republican Party’s headquarters to announce their plans to join the march on the RNC.

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By Mick Kelly

Chicago, IL – Chicago activist groups are mobilizing in big way for the July 15 march on the Republican National Convention, in Milwaukee, Wisconsin.

“Many of the protesters coming from Chicago are students,” said Joe Iosbaker of Freedom Road Socialist Organization.

Iosbaker recalled, referring to Trump, “In 2016, students in Chicago were the first to move against his hate tour.” In March 2016, 5000 protesters rallied and confronted Trump at the University of Illinois at Chicago, stopping him from speaking.

“The same organizations – Students for Democratic Society, Students for Justice in Palestine, Mexican Students of Aztlan – are mobilizing to confront him again,” says Iosbaker.

#ChicagoIL #RNC2024 #SDS #SJP #MexicanStudentsofAztlan #FRSO

By staff

Milwaukee, WI – The Coalition to March on the RNC is hosting a national online event titled “All Out for the March on the RNC!” The program takes place on Monday, June 24, at 8 p.m. Eastern time (7 p.m. Central, 6 p.m. Mountain, 5 p.m. Pacific). You can register to receive the Zoom link here: tinyurl.com/marchrnc

The event will feature speakers reporting on their organizing in different movements, giving updates on the Coalition's work, and explaining mobilization plans.

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By Freedom Road Socialist Organization

Step onto the stage of history in Milwaukee, July 15, as thousands march on the Republican National Convention.

More than 100 organizations are participating in this effort, spearheaded by the Coalition to March on the RNC, and mobilizations are taking place in cities across the U.S. As Trump is raking in money from billionaire donors and stepping up his campaign for the White House, it’s vital that all of was who support Justice, progress and peace should be in the streets raising the banner of opposition.

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By staff

Omar Flores, co-chair of the Coalition to March on the RNC, announces a lawsuit to get march permit.  | Fight Back! News/staff

Milwaukee, WI – After a year of denied permits for their proposed march, the Coalition to March on the RNC 2024 has filed a lawsuit against the city of Milwaukee.

Along with a watered-down “free speech zone,” the city of Milwaukee has stoked repression by trying to implement “hard” and “soft” security zones around the Fiserv Forum, where the Republicans are planning to select their 2024 presidential nominee this July.

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By staff

AFSCME Local 526 members join fellow unionists to protest 2023 Republican presidential debate in Milwaukee.  | Fight Back! News/staff

Milwaukee, WI – Milwaukee Public Museum (MPM) employees represented by their union, AFSCME Local 526, are celebrating a decisive victory in their campaign for workplace safety during the Republican National Convention.

In a statement, the union said it “presented a list of proposals to MPM administration that would prioritize the rights and safety of MPM employees during the RNC, which will be held just blocks away from MPM. The Union asked MPM not to host organizations or individuals whose actions are inconsistent with MPM’s values, and that employees suffer no loss of wages or additional transportation expenses during the RNC, among other workplace-specific issues.”

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By staff

Milwaukee labor marks anniversary of the Bay View massacre.  | Fight Back! News/staff

Milwaukee, WI – Trade unionists, community members, and elected officials gathered for a commemoration of the “Bay View Massacre” on Sunday, May 5, in Milwaukee. A sunny afternoon of activities paid homage to the seven martyrs who were shot and killed by the Wisconsin State Militia during the 1886 nationwide general strike for the eight-hour day. The historic event followed closely on the heels of the actions in Chicago which would eventually lead to the creation of May Day. The Wisconsin Labor History Society has organized the commemoration of the Bay View Massacre every year since 1986, and it has become an important labor tradition.

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By Freedom Road Socialist Organization - Wisconsin District

Fight Back! News/staff

Fight Back News Service is circulating the following April 3 statement from the Wisconsin District of the Freedom Road Socialist Organization.

Palestine solidarity activists are celebrating the success of a protest vote campaign in the Wisconsin Presidential Primary. 48,000 people voted “uninstructed” in the April 2 primary, Wisconsin’s version of “uncommitted,” that has found success in several state primaries.

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By Lo Cross

Members of the Milwaukee Alliance Against Racist and Political Repression \[MAARPR\] protest at the headquarters of police union.  | Fight Back! News/staff

Milwaukee, WI – On March 29, Judge Brittany Grayson issued a ruling regarding the Milwaukee Police Association’s (MPA) case against the city of Milwaukee over Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) 575. Judge Grayson denied the city of Milwaukee’s motion to dismiss the MPA’s case against SOP 575, but she also ruled against the MPA’s argument that the Fire and Police Commission violated state law or the collective bargaining agreement. The MPA failed to produce the necessary evidence to justify their argument.

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By staff

Members of the Coalition to March on the RNC are fighting to get permits for the protest at the convention. | Fight Back! News/staff

Milwaukee, WI – On Monday, March 18, organizers with the Coalition to March on the RNC gathered at Milwaukee City Hall to push back on a repressive ordinance being heard at rushed meeting of the Public Works Committee. The ordinance was meant to derail the coalition's efforts and would have given the Milwaukee Police Department special powers to decide who gets to speak and power over the parade route. Furthermore, it would have restricted the protest to a quarter mile away from where the RNC will be held – far from being within sight and sound of the RNC, and far from being what the Coalition to March on the RNC has been demanding for the last year.

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By Tom Burke

Milwaukee protest organized by the Coalition to March on the RNC. | Fight Back! News/staff

Milwaukee, WI – The Coalition to March on the RNC is hosting an organizing conference on February 17 in Milwaukee, Wisconsin.

Activists from across the U.S. will gather at the conference to unite around a plan to rally on the opening day of the Republican National Convention, Monday, July 15.

“We are looking to consolidate plans with all forces that are against the Republicans’ racist and reactionary agenda. We are also looking to inform leaders across the country as to what the situation on the ground in Milwaukee looks like as we prepare to march to within sight and sound of the front doors of the convention,” said Omar Flores, spokesperson in Milwaukee for the Coalition to March on the RNC.

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By staff

Panelists in Milwaukee speak about the connections between Cop City, the war machine, police repression, and Palestine. | Fight Back! News/staff

Milwaukee, WI – 40 people gathered in Bolton Hall on the UW-Milwaukee campus to hear a panel of speakers talk about the connections between the Cop City project in Atlanta, Georgia and other current political situations, specifically the uprising in Palestine.

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By staff

Fight Back News Service is circulating the following statement from the Coalition to March on the RNC 2024.

Republican Party leaders have ramped up racist, dehumanizing statements toward Palestinians, Arabs, and Muslims since fighting broke out between Israeli and Palestinian forces on October 7th. Israel’s ensuing siege of Gaza and indiscriminate aerial assault on 2.3 million stateless Palestinians trapped in an open-air prison is now in its fourth week.

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By staff

Protest at the Republican debates in Milwaukee.

Milwaukee, WI – Nearly 400 people marched in the streets of Milwaukee on the evening of August 23 in protest of the first Republican presidential primary debate. Chants like “Racist, sexist, anti-gay, GOP, go away!” and “Whose streets? Our streets! Whose city? Our city!” rang out as marchers ignored the 100-plus degree heat.

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