Tallahassee, FL – About 15 people waved signs and chanted outside the Leon County Courthouse, March 1, to protest the wrongful conviction of Antonio and Rodrizgus Richardson, two brothers recently sentenced to life in prison for first-degree murder.

Salt Lake City, UT – Trayvon Martin's death sparked outrage and also a movement to combat the racism that led to his murder at the hands of George Zimmerman. On the one-year anniversary of his death, Utahans met as part of that movement to both mourn his passing and learn about racism, police brutality and how to fight them.

Gainesville, FL – The University of Florida (UF) chapters of Dream Defenders and Students for a Democratic Society (SDS) hosted a speak-out on the one-year anniversary of Trayvon Martin’s murder, Feb. 26. Martin, a 17-year-old black youth, was shot dead on Feb. 26, 2012, in a racist attack by a neighborhood vigilante named George Zimmerman. Martin’s family created an online petition to arrest Zimmerman and it quickly grew into thousands protesting across the country. Six weeks passed before police arrested Zimmerman.

Clarksville, TN – Students for a Democratic Society (SDS) and other students at Austin Peay State University rallied at 4:00 p.m., on UC Plaza, Feb. 26 to demand justice for Trayvon Martin. This was one of a number of actions organized by SDS chapters around the country exactly one year to the day since Trayvon Martin’s murder. Martin’s killer has not been convicted.

Tampa, FL – Feb. 26 marked the one-year anniversary of Trayvon Martin's murder. Students and community members met in front of the student union on the University of South Florida campus demanding justice for Martin and an end to Florida's 'Stand Your Ground' Law. This law legalizes murder on the grounds of self-defense. The state government and judges use it to let white murderers go free for killing African-Americans and Latinos. The same is true for George Zimmerman, Trayvon Martin’s murderer, whose lawyers are attempting to get his charges dropped.

Gainesville, FL – On Feb. 26, University of Florida Students for a Democratic Society (SDS), allied with other student and community organizations, will organize a local action demanding justice for Trayvon Martin, a black youth who was brutally murdered by George Zimmerman in Sanford, Florida on Feb. 26, 2012.

Santa Clara, CA – On Feb. 22, 200 people came to the Muslim Community Association (MCA) here to hear a panel on the fight against the World War II concentration camps for Japanese Americans and the fight to free the Holy Land Foundation 5. The program was organized by the Muslim Legal Fund of America and presented by the MCA Social Committee.

Fight Back News Service is circulating the following Feb. 10 statement from the Peace Delegation of the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia-People’s Army (FARC-EP). While the translation of the statement is imperfect, we think it will help readers better understand conditions in Colombia. Currently, negotiations between the FARC and the U.S.-backed Colombian government are taking place in Havana, Cuba. Prisons or human dumps?

Pittsburgh, PA – The city of Pittsburgh agreed Feb. 14 to pay $400,000 to settle the claims of 13 people who were swept up in a mass arrest of demonstrators, observers and passersby in the Oakland neighborhood of Pittsburgh, hours after the 2009 G-20 Summit ended. The city previously paid $88,000 to settle the claims of 11 of the 25 original plaintiffs, bringing the total paid to settle the case to $488,000.

Civil liberty groups respond

Washington, D.C – A leaked Justice Department white paper titled the “Lawfulness of a Lethal Operation Directed Against a U.S. Citizen who is a Senior Operational Leader of Al Qa’ida or An Associated Force,” was published Feb. 5 by NBC News. The once secret document gives the legal justification the White House is using for the assassination of U.S. citizens living in other countries.

_Fitzgerald organized Grand Jury against anti war, international solidarity activists _

Chicago, IL – “Fitzgerald doesn’t belong on the Board of Trustees. He’s against the right to dissent, and he’s responsible for some of the worst persecutions of Palestinians in the US,” stated Joe Iosbaker of the Committee Against Political Repression in a statement to gathered news media, on Jan 24.

Chicago, IL – More than a dozen activists protested outside the Hyatt Regency hotel here, Jan. 20, while inside former U.S. Attorney Patrick Fitzgerald received an honorary degree from the John Marshall Law School.

The Lebanese media outlet Al Manar reports that hundreds of protesters gathered by the French embassy in Beirut, Lebanon, Jan. 18, to demand that French authorities release the long-held political prisoner George Ibrahim Abdullah. Protesters threw eggs and tomatoes at the embassy building.

Chicago, IL – The massive 2013 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA), signed into law by President Obama Jan. 2, contains sanctions that effectivly ban Iran’s popular station, Press TV, from U.S. airwaves or cable networks. Press TV is still available on the internet.

Somalis face New York City trial

Brooklyn, NY – Three men from Somalia, Ali Yasin Ahmed, Madhi Hashi and Mohamed Yusuf, appeared in Federal District Court here, Dec. 21, on charges of violating U.S. “material support for terrorism” and gun laws. What makes this case different from the dozens of U.S. cases involving Somali men and women in Minnesota, California and other states is that there is no indication the men are U.S. residents or citizens, or that they have ever traveled to the U.S.

Chicago, IL – Fight Back! is circulating a letter of greetings to the Chicago 20th Annual People’s Thanksgiving, sent by Gerardo Hernandez, of the Cuban 5. He is currently serving two life terms in federal prison. The letter includes a reference to Sarah Smith, one of the 23 anti-war and international solidarity activists who were subpoenaed to a grand jury investigating “material support for terrorism.”

Los Angeles, CA – Alex Sanchez won a major victory against government repression, Dec. 17, when the U.S. Attorney main office dropped the outrageous conspiracy to murder and other charges.

San Diego, CA – A young Somali woman and well-known community activist, Nima Ali Yusuf, was sentenced to eight years in prison, here on Dec.11, for conspiracy to provide material support to a terrorist organization. Yusuf, a volunteer at the Humanitarian African Relief Organization was accused of sending a small sum of money – $1450 – to members of Somali resistance organization al-Shabab.

Milwaukee, WI – On Dec. 6, at least 100 people were present at the Police and Fire Commission meeting, held in Milwaukee City Hall, to express their outrage over the Commission's decision to re-instate Milwaukee Police Department officer Richard Schoen. This move comes on the heels of multiple other police brutality incidents, including the deaths of suspects in custody – such as Derek Williams.

Los Angeles, CA – Four men – Sohiel Omar Kabir, Ralph Deleon, Miguel Alejandro Santana and Arifeen David Gojali – were charged with material support for terrorism in Riverside County, Nov. 19. The government alleges the men were planning to join the resistance to the U.S./NATO occupation of Afghanistan.