Fight Back! News

News and Views from the People's Struggle

In-Justice System

By staff

Brooklyn event demands justice for Eudes Pierre.

Brooklyn, NY – Eudes Pierre’s family, friends, and supporters filled the room at the Eastern Parkway library, March 1, for the New York Alliance Against Racist and Political Repression’s (NYAARPR) event, kicking off their new campaign to demand justice for Eudes Pierre.

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By staff

Jacksonville, Florida protest against new jail.

Jacksonville, FL – Around three dozen community members gathered in front of Jacksonville City Hall on Tuesday late afternoon to say no to a projected billion-dollar proposal to build a new jail and incarcerate more Jacksonville residents.

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By Jess Sundin

Jae Yates and Syd Loving

Minneapolis – More than 100 people gathered at the New City Center for “We Keep Us Safe: A Teach-in on the Black History of Community Control of the Police,” hosted by Twin Cities Coalition for Justice (TCC4J) and Freedom Road Socialist Organization (FRSO). The program featured panelists from National Alliance Against Racist and Political Repression branches in different cities – all in various stages of the fight for local community control of the police.

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By staff

East LA Chicanos push to ban the Fort Apache logo that is worn by Los Angeles Sheriff's deputies.

Los Angeles, CA – In East Los Angeles, the grassroots organization Centro CSO has been fighting to ban the Fort Apache logo that East Los Angeles Sheriff's deputies proudly wear on the front right pocket of their uniform. The logo is disrespectful to Chicanos, as it was created by deputy gang members from the Little Red Devils gang out of the East Los Angeles Sheriff’s Department (ELASD) station to glorify their attacks on Raza.

The logo depicts a riot helmet on top of a combat boot with the words “Low Profile” and “Siempre Una Patada En Los Pantalones (Always A Kick In The Pants).” The East Los Angeles Sheriff's Deputies created this logo after beating and killing Chicanos during the Chicano Moratorium on August 29, 1970, in East Los Angeles. The Chicano Moratorium was a large Chicano march, and protest against police brutality as well as the Vietnam War, where countless Chicanos were being sent to the front lines to die in the name of U.S. imperialism. Chicanos demanded an end to the draft and the presence of military recruiters in schools.

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By Philip Nguyen

San Jose, California event welcomes the release of Leonard Peltier.

San Jose, CA – 30 community members gathered at the San Jose Peace and Justice center, February 22, to celebrate the release of Leonard Peltier from prison and his return home.

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By staff

Two women hold signs and candles on a sidewalk at night. One sign says “Stop Killer Cops” and the other has a drawing of Antonio Guzman and says “Remember Antonio Guzman Lopez, father, husband, victim to SJSUPD. Justice for Josiah!”

San Jose, CA – On Thursday, February 20, the family of Antonio Guzman Lopez, Students for a Democratic Society, Justice for Josiah, the Aztec Dancers and several other organizations and community members held a vigil honoring the memory of Lopez, an undocumented man killed by San Jose State’s on-campus police 11 years ago, on February 21, 2014.

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By Freedom Road Socialist Organization - New York City District

The New York City subway system serves as the primary avenue in which diverse groups of people come into contact. Recently, it’s become the center of many national issues coming up against each other. Economic issues stemming from not being able to afford basic cost of living, the attacks on immigrants, over-policing affecting Black and brown communities, and the rise of vigilantes, are all broad issues that share the NYC subway system as a common thread.

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By Silas Gillett

Students hold a banner in front of Loyola University that reads "Defend student free speech, Protesting is not a crime."

New Orleans, LA – On Thursday, February 20, around 30 Loyola students and New Orleans community members rallied in front of Loyola University to demand that university administration drop the semester-long suspension of student activist Carson Cruse. The action was organized by the Liberate and Unite New Orleans chapter of Students for a Democratic Society (LUNO SDS).

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By Drusie Kazanova

Day of Remembrance marked in San Jose, California.

San Jose, CA – On February 16, around 350 people gathered at San Jose Buddhist Church Betsuin to commemorate the signing of Executive Order 9066, which authorized the incarceration of over 120,000 Japanese-Americans in U.S. concentration camps during World War II.

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By staff

Luis Lopez.

Fight Back News Service is circulating the following statement by Orlando Against Police Crimes.

Orlando Against Police Crimes strongly condemns the murder of 24-year old Luis Lopez by Orange County deputies on the night of Saturday, February 8th in the Pine Castle neighborhood.

Officers arrived following reports of a burglarized home. In a statement to WFTV, a close friend of Lopez, Loida Zunun, said “Some guy was trying to get in his house, and he called my mom,” Zunun said. “He was scared, and he told us, hey, there’s somebody trying to come inside my house.”

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By Diana Terreros

Escena del asesinato cometido por la policía en Santa Ana, California.

Newport Beach, CA – Oficiales del Departamento de Policía de Santa Ana (SAPD, por sus siglas en inglés) persiguieron y luego mataron a José Velásquez, de 45 años, en Newport Beach el sábado 1 de febrero, alrededor de las 7 a.m.

Al menos siete patrullas y un helicóptero policial persiguieron a un vehículo hasta el muelle de Newport, con los policías llegando con las puertas de sus patrullas ya abiertas y con las armas en la mano mientras desaceleraban hasta detenerse. Dispararon más de una docena de tiros antes de dar cualquier orden verbal y antes de que muchos espectadores tuvieron tiempo de huir del muelle.

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By staff

Dallas, TX – On Saturday, February 8, the National Alliance Against Racist and Political Repression NAARPR-Dallas hosted its Black and Brown Unity: History of DFW Struggle for Liberation Town Hall at the Pan-African Connection in Dallas.

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By staff

Tampa FL – On Tuesday, February 4, over 40 people came out to listen to a panel hosted by Tampa Alliance Against Racist and Political Repression (TAARPR) and led by the families who survived police crimes.

The event was part of a weeklong series of events that honor the life of Andrew Joseph III – a 14-year-old boy who was killed in traffic after he was kidnapped by Hillsborough County Sheriff’s deputies in February 2014 – and the struggle for justice and accountability being fought in his name.

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By staff

Glenn Foster Sr speaks to the press condemning the cover-up of his son's killing by law enforcement in Pickens County, Alabama.

New Orleans, LA – On Sunday, February 9, the family of Glenn Foster Jr hosted a press conference at noon in front of the Hale Boggs Federal Building in downtown New Orleans. As media came to town to cover the Super Bowl, Glenn’s mother, Sabrina Foster, seized the moment to bring light on her son.

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By staff

Protest against NYPD division that targets low income people.

New York, NY – On Friday, February 7, protesters gathered at City Hall facing 1 Police Plaza to protest the new NYPD Quality of Life Division. The creation of this division comes on the heels of cop-Mayor Eric Adams installing officers on every overnight train.

The Quality of Life Division targets poor and working-class New Yorkers. Officers in the division will go after panhandlers, public urination, those sleeping on the train, street vending, and other forms of “broken window” policing. The primary issue with this division is that it doesn’t address the underlying issues that cause people to resort to these actions.

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By Diana Terreros

Scene of killing by police in Santa Ana, California.

Newport Beach, CA – Santa Ana Police Department (SAPD) officers chased and then killed 45-year-old Jose Velasquez in Newport Beach Saturday, February 1, at about 7 a.m.

At least seven police cruisers and one police helicopter pursued a vehicle onto Newport pier, with police pulling up with their squad car doors already open and guns drawn as they slowed to a stop. They fired over a dozen shots before issuing any verbal commands and before many bystanders had time to flee the pier.

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By Erica Veal

Charleston, South Carolina police attack immigrant rights protest.

Charleston, SC– On January 29, police violently dispersed protesters at Marion Square who were standing against Trump’s escalating war on immigrants. The demonstration, which began at 6 p.m., drew 200 to 250 people. Within 30 minutes, Charleston police declared the gathering illegal under the “First Amendment Demonstration Ordinance,” a law restricting protests.

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By David Pulido

Protest against Trump agenda in Santa Ana, California.

Santa Ana, CA – Over 100 community members, activists and organizers rallied in Santa Ana to protest the inauguration of Donald Trump on January 20.

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By staff

Picket for police accountability in Aurora, Colorado.

Aurora, CO – On January 18, despite the cold and snowy weather, the Denver Aurora Community Action Committee (DACAC) and community members gathered outside the Aurora Police Department headquarters to demand transparency and justice.

In the past few years, the Aurora Police Department (APD) has killed at least three unarmed Black men – Jordell Richardson, Kilyn Lewis, and Kory Dillard – and has brutalized dozens of other community members, such as Te’Erica Mosle, who was recording police harassing an unarmed Black man, only to be assaulted herself by the police.

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By staff

Activists hold up their fists in front of a government building.

Tallahassee, FL – On Jan. 15, the Tallahassee City Commission held a final public hearing on Ordinance No. 24-O-40, which is for the creation of the Citizens Police Review Board (CPRB). The Tallahassee Community Action Committee (TCAC), along with other community members came out to oppose the dissolution of the CPRB ordinance.

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