Tallahassee, FL – On October 4, Tallahassee Students for a Democratic Society hosted their annual Halloween Talent Show in an effort to raise funds for travel expenses to the upcoming SDS National Convention.
The event was emceed by Tally SDS member Kingsley Early, who kept the evening light with stand-up comedy between sets. Local artists performed in seven different acts, showcasing their talents in poetry, singing, electronic music, rapping, noise music and songwriting. The event was a success in spite of the spookiest thing student activists are confronting this Halloween: political repression.
Tallahassee, FL – On August 25, over 80 local community members showed up at Common Grounds Books, a local LGBTQ-friendly bookstore, to support their “Drag Story Hour” event which was threatened with protest by a religious organization, America Needs Fatima.
According to Alex Spencer, the owner of Common Grounds Bookstore, her shop received a threat of protest. In an email, America Needs Fatima reads, “We must peacefully and legally say NO to the homosexual plan to expose young children to indecency, impurity, and unnatural vice.” Drag Story Hour is a monthly event held at Common Ground in which a local drag artist reads storybooks to children.
Tallahassee, FL – On Sunday, August 18, about 30 community members gathered at the Florida Capitol building to protest Kamala Harris and her policies regarding the Israeli genocide in Gaza.
Protesters held signs within sight of the busy intersection in front of the capitol complex stating, “We won’t vote for genocide” and “Arms embargo now!”
Tallahassee, FL – On August 7, a dozen community members gathered at the Smokey Hollow Historic District for a vigil for Sonya Massey and other victims of police brutality. The vigil was hosted by the Tallahassee Community Action Committee (TCAC).
Tallahassee, FL – On July 20, the Tallahassee Community Action Committee hosted a forum for candidates running for city commission Seats 1 and 2. The forum was held at the Dr. B.L. Perry Southside Branch Library.
For Seat 1, Jacqueline “Jack” Porter, the incumbent, and one challenger, Louis Dilbert, was in
attendance. Another challenger, Rudolph “Rudy” Ferguson, did not respond to TCAC’s requests to attend.
Tallahassee, FL – On June 30, two days after the 55th anniversary of the Stonewall uprising, students and community members gathered at Tallahassee Students for a Democratic Society’s annual pride talent show, one of the longest-running non-corporate pride events in the city.
Tallahassee, FL – On June 29, the Tallahassee Community Action Committee (TCAC) along with other activist organizations held a rally in remembrance of Stonewall, the 1969 queer uprising that led to the creation of the current LGBTQ rights movement that exists around the world.
Around ten attendees joined together to talk about the history of the Stonewall Riot and the progressive movements that represent the spirit of Stonewall that exist today.
Tallahassee, FL – On the afternoon of June 22, the Tallahassee Community Action Committee (TCAC) hosted a Community Forum at the LeRoy Collins Leon County Main Public Library. About 20 community members came to the event that was held in preparation for the city commission candidate forum which will take place in July.
Tallahassee, FL – On June 19, friends and family held a rally at Tallahassee City Hall demanding to overturn the verdict and sentence against Calvin Riley.
Community members joined the Riley family to speak during public comment at the city commission meeting, which apparently was held despite the Juneteenth holiday. Speakers demanded justice for Calvin Riley after he received a conviction and a DUI sentence, despite proof that a police officer planted evidence on him.
Tallahassee, FL – On Saturday, June 1, around 25 community members held a rally at Leon County Courthouse to continue to demand that the false and racist charges against Calvin Riley be dropped.
Tallahassee, FL – On the morning of Wednesday, May 1, about 30 students at Florida State University (FSU) established a Palestine solidarity encampment on Landis Green, the epicenter of FSU campus. They had camped for three days prior to demand a meeting with FSU President Richard McCullough.
Tallahassee FL – On Wednesday, April 10 people held a press conference outside City Hall and rallied the community in defense of Calvin Riley – a Black man jailed for DUI despite body camera footage showing Tallahassee Police Department officer Kiersten Oliver planting evidence in his vehicle.
Tallahassee, FL – On Friday, April 12, students at Florida State University joined Tallahassee Students for a Democratic Society to demand that the university divest from apartheid Israel, including ending its partnership with infamous weapons manufacturer Boeing, which arms the Israeli occupation.
Tallahassee, FL – On March 21 at the Bruce J. Host Northeast Branch Library in Tallahassee, around 100 people, including firefighters and their families, packed into a presentation room. They gathered to get information and vent their frustrations regarding the stalled negotiations between the city of Tallahassee and the Tallahassee Professional Firefighters-IAFF Local 2339 (TPF). The event was sponsored by Leon County Commissioner Bill Proctor.
Tallahassee, FL – On the evening of March 24, 25 community members gathered to honor the life of Nex Benedict, an Oklahoma transgender teenager who was murdered. The vigil was held at Common Ground Books, a local LGBTQ bookstore.
Tallahassee, FL – On March 8, at 6 p.m., the Freedom Road Socialist Organization, along with the Tallahassee Dissenters, Students for a Democratic Society, Food Not Bombs, and the Tallahassee Community Action Committee, rallied at the Florida Historic Capitol building for a protest recognizing International Women’s Day and the ongoing struggle for Palestinian liberation.
Tallahassee, FL – On March 1, around 50 people joined Tallahassee Students of a Democratic Society (SDS) in a rally at Florida State University for a “Hands off Rafah!” national day of action called by National SDS. The event opposed ongoing Israeli attacks on Palestinians in Gaza’s southernmost city of Rafah.
Tallahassee, FL – On February 24, about a dozen community organizers and students mobilized to the Florida Historic Capitol building to rally against SB 576, as well as attacks on the pro-Palestinian movement and attacks on the LGBTQ community.
The mobilization was part of a larger week of action called by National Students for a Democratic Society (SDS) and the National Alliance Against Racist and Political Repression (NAARPR).
SB 576 seeks to limit police oversight by restricting the ability of cities to institute police review boards as a means to provide any form of accountability for local police departments.
Tallahassee, FL – On February 20, approximately 30 students and community organizers mobilized to the Florida Capitol building to hold a press conference and speak out against HB 601. This bill seeks to prevent any meaningful oversight of police misconduct by making it unlawful to form citizen police review boards or any organized body to review the conduct of police departments.
The mobilization was part of a larger week of action called by National Students for a Democratic Society (SDS) and the National Alliance Against Racist and Political Repression (NAARPR).
