Fight Back! News

News and Views from the People's Struggle

In-Justice System

By Loretta VanPelt

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St. Paul, MN—Dozens braved near zero temperatures to demand “Justice for Philip Quinn”, a 30-year-old White Earth Ojibwe man killed by St Paul police last September.

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By Fabian Van Onzin

Protesters gather outside the Waller County Courthouse in Hempstead, Texas.

Hempstead, TX—Twenty-five activists protested outside the grand jury at the Waller County Courthouse on January 6. The grand jury met to determine whether or not to indict Texas Trooper Brian Encinia for the unlawful arrest of Sandra Bland. Trooper Encinia lied about forcefully removing Bland from her car while yelling, “I will light you up!”

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By Freedom Road Socialist Organization

Protests in Chicago have been occurring for weeks in reaction to a mass cover-up by the Chicago Police Department, Mayor Rahm Emanuel and Cook County State Attorney Anita Alvarez. LaQuan McDonald was a 17-year-old African American teen who was murdered – shot to death by Chicago police officer Jason Van Dyke in October 2014. Shortly after the murder, killer cop Van Dyke and the Chicago police tried to claim that McDonald had threatened the officer’s life. However, recently released police cruiser dashcam footage showed McDonald walking away from police officers as Van Dyke fired 16 bullets into his body. Many of those shots occurring as McDonald lay dying on the ground.

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By Joe Iosbaker

Chicago community vigil for Quintonio LeGrier.

Chicago, IL – A silent crowd of nearly 200 gathered across the street from Gwendolyn Brooks Academy in Chicago’s Roseland neighborhood tonight, Dec 29, to remember Quintonio LeGrier, killed by the cops the morning after Christmas.

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By staff

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Chicago IL – 200 people gathered, Dec. 27, in the rain for an emotional vigil in front of the West Side home where a Chicago cop murdered Bettie Jones and Quintonio Legrier. The protest was called by Action Now, the community group that Jones had been active with.

#ChicagoIL #PoliceBrutality #PeoplesStruggles #Antiracism #policeKillings

By staff

Frank Chapman

Chicago, IL – Bettie Jones and Quintonio Legrier are the names of the latest victims of the Chicago Police Department.

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By Loretta VanPelt

Jigme Ugen, Alex Clark (shortly before his arrest), and Jess Sundin.

Bloomington, MN – Just two days before Christmas, Dec. 23, and despite a failed lawsuit that asked courts to force organizers to cancel, Black Lives Matter protesters descended on the Mall of America (MOA) to protest the police murders of Jamar Clark and other African Americans.

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By staff

Minneapolis, MN – In an unprecedented attempt at halting the upcoming Black Live Matters Minneapolis gathering, the Mall of America has sued eight activists to compel them to immediately” post messages on social media and send out a mass text message announcing their Dec. 23 event is cancelled.

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By Brad Sigal

Dec. 19 march demanding justice for Jamar Clark.

Minneapolis, MN – Chanting, “If Jamar don’t get it, shut it down!” hundreds of people marched Dec. 19 in frigid weather from the Fourth Police Precinct in north Minneapolis to city hall demanding justice for Jamar Clark. Clark, a 24-year-old African American man, was shot in the head and killed by the Minneapolis police on Nov. 15 on Plymouth Avenue in north Minneapolis, sparking an 18-day encampment at the Fourth Precinct to protest his killing. Today’s march was the largest protest since police dislodged the occupation in front of the Fourth Precinct on Dec. 3.

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By staff

Mike Siviwe Elliot, Frank Chapman, and Gerrit Hatcher of the Chicago Alliance

Chicago, IL – Chanting, “How many shots? 16 shots!” the second walk-out in a week took the streets in downtown Chicago Dec 18. Protest organizers like Lamon Reccord and Rousemary Vega called for Mayor Rahm Emanuel to resign because he covered up the murder of 17-year-old Laquan McDonald for 13 months.

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By staff

Black Lives Matters protest at Mall of America.

Minneapolis, MN – Black Lives Matters Minneapolis announced Dec. 17, that a #Justice4Jamar protest will move forward at the Mall of American in Bloomington, unless authorities release the tapes of Clark’s killing, prosecute the police by a special prosecutor without a grand jury, and bring federal terrorism charges against the white supremacists who shot protesters at the Fourth Precinct police station.

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By staff

Struggle against Mayor Emanuel continues

Chicago, IL – On Friday, Dec. 18, people in Chicago will again walk out of school and off their jobs to call for Mayor Rahm Emanuel and State’s Attorney Anita Alvarez to resign. The protesters will assemble outside Chicago City Hall, around Daley Plaza.

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By staff

Chicago march against police crimes.

Chicago, IL – Victims of Chicago Police Department (CPD) crimes gathered with 500 supporters on Dec. 10 to file complaints with the U.S. Attorney’s office. The official complaints represented torture victims, such as Mark Clements; Howard Morgan, a former police officer who survived being shot 28 times by Chicago cops; Emmet Farmer, on behalf of his son Flint, whose murder was captured on dash cam video; and Dorothy Holmes, mother of Ronald “Ronnieman” Johnson. The video of Ronnieman’s murder one year ago has just been released by the city, and has sparked another massive wave of protests.

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By staff

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Chicago, IL – #ResignRahm was trending today, Nov. 9, on Twitter, as high school students and office employees walked off their jobs to march outside city hall. What started as a joke Facebook event resulted in thousands of people in a protest demanding that Mayor Rahm Emanuel resign.

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By Jess Sundin

Struggle to get justice for Jamar marches on

Protest inside City Hall demands justice for Jamar.

Minneapolis, MN – Hundreds descended upon City Hall on Thursday, Dec. 3, after eviction of an 18-day encampment set up to protest the killing of Jamar Clark outside the Fourth Precinct police station. 100 Minneapolis police raided the encampment at 3:45 a.m., arresting eight, then destroying the camp with bulldozers.

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By staff

Veronica Morris Moore of Fearless Leading by the Youth

Chicago, IL – Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel fired the Superintendent of Police, Garry McCarthy, Dec. 1. The action came one week after a judge forced the city to release a video of the execution-style murder of a Black youth, Laquan McDonald, by a Chicago cop.

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By staff

Outrage grows as white supremacists avoid attempted murder charges after shooting 5 protesters

Minneapolis, MN – A group of 30 clergy, demanding justice for Jamar Clark, took over the rotunda at City Hall this morning, Dec. 1. Hundreds will rally this afternoon at the Hennepin County Government Center, at 4:00 pm, in the wake of County Attorney Mike Freeman’s failure to bring attempted murder charges against white supremacists who shot five protesters.

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By Jess Sundin

Minneapolis, MN – North Minneapolis was on high alert Monday, Nov. 30, after Mayor Betsy Hodges and Congressman Keith Ellison joined others in a press conference calling for an end to the occupation of the Fourth Precinct police station. The block of Plymouth Avenue in front of the police station has been closed for two weeks by protesters calling for justice for Jamar Clark, a 24-year-old African American man killed by police.

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By staff

Frank Chapman marching in Chicago Black Friday protest demanding justice.

Chicago, IL – 1500 people marched on Chicago’s Magnificent Mile on Friday, Nov. 27, the day after Thanksgiving. “A Unity March and Rally in Memory of Laquan McDonald” was called as part of the Black Friday protests that originated last year as part of the Black Lives Matter movement.

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By staff

Dallas protest slams Texas Governor Greg Abbott's anti-refugee statements.

Dallas, TX – About 40 protesters gathered at the Grassy Knoll near downtown here, Nov. 21, to call out Texas Governor Greg Abbott's anti-refugee statements. Abbott recently declared that Texas would not accept Syrian refugees.

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