_FRSO urges protests in response to grand jury decision on killer cop _
St. Louis, MO – Missouri Governor Jay Nixon has declared a state of emergency. According to reports, the National Guard is heading to Ferguson. Citing the “possibility of expanded unrest,” government authorities are moving to contain the expected massive protests that will result if the grand jury fails to indict the white cop who killed Mike Brown, an African American youth.
Milwaukee, WI – Over two dozen people gathered here in freezing temperatures the night of Nov. 14 to stand in solidarity with Rasmea Odeh and demand she be released from jail.
Gainesville, FL – On Nov. 10 the University of Florida’s chapter of Students for Justice in Palestine (SJP) held a corner sign-holding protest in support of Rasmea Odeh. Odeh is a 67-year-old Palestinian woman activist from Chicago who is now being held in a Detroit jail. The U.S. government is targeting her because she is a powerful leader who speaks out against U.S. complicity in Israeli war crimes.
Detroit, MI – Supporters of long-time Palestinian American leader Rasmea Odeh are planning a protest here at the Theodore Levin U.S. Courthouse, 231 W Lafayette Blvd, Nov. 14, at 1:30 p.m., to demand her immediate release from jail.
Chicago, IL – 250 people came together here, Nov. 12, in the Federal Plaza to express their grief and anger at the injustice that took place on Monday, Nov. 10, at the trial of beloved community leader Rasmea Odeh.
Oakland, CA – Activists with the Bay Area Rasmea Defense Committee chained themselves to doors of the federal courthouse here, Nov. 12 to protest the conviction and imprisonment of 67-year-old Palestinian community organizer Rasmea Odeh.
Gainesville, FL – On Nov. 5, Students for a Democratic Society at the University of Florida (UF SDS) conducted a workshop on history and growing militarization of police in the U.S., titled “The War at Home.” 25 students participated in the workshop. The University of Florida is where graduate student Kofi Adu-Brempong was shot by campus police with an assault rifle on March 2, 2010. Adu-Brempong, from Ghana in Africa, was in his apartment when police broke down the door and Officer Keith Smith shot him in the face. The university eventually fired Lt. Stacey Ettel who was in charge at the scene.
Minneapolis, MN – About 40 people rallied here in the midst of a major snowstorm Nov. 10 to demand the immediate release of Palestinian American leader Rasmea Odeh. Odeh was found guilty of a trumped-up immigration charge in Detroit that same day and Federal Judge Gershwin Drain revoked her bail. She will be jailed until her sentencing on March 15, 2015.
Detroit, MI – The jury in the case of Rasmea Odeh returned a guilty verdict after less than two hours of deliberation this morning, Nov. 10. They accepted the charge against her for “unlawful procurement of citizenship.” In her application for citizenship a decade ago, she failed to disclose that she was a political prisoner in Israel 45 years ago, convicted after soldiers raped and tortured her into a confession.
Detroit, MI – Prosecutor Jonathan Tukel of the U.S. Attorney’s Office is asking that the bond for Palestinian American leader Rasmea Odeh be revoked. This comes on the heels of an unjust guilty verdict in her case. Judge Drain will decide the issue in a hearing at 2:00 p.m. today, Nov. 10.
Tallahassee, FL- Over 50 people marched demanding justice in the police killing of Kaldrick Donald in Gretna, Nov. 5. Gretna is a small African American town just west of Tallahassee, where 30% of residents live below the poverty line. City Manager Antonio Jefferson and five full-time police officers rule the town of 1709 people.
Salt Lake City, UT – Fifteen anti-war activists gathered in front of the William F Bennet Federal Building on Nov. 4 to stand in solidarity with Rasmea Odeh. Rasmea Odeh is an Arab American and women's rights activist being targeted by the FBI for her political activism. The U.S. government is attempting to weaken the Palestinian solidarity and anti-war movements. People protested across the country on the opening day of Rasmea Odeh’s trial in Detroit, including in Salt Lake City.
Tampa, FL – Anti-war activists protested outside the Sam Gibbons Federal Courthouse on Nov. 4 to demand justice in two cases of political repression. One is the current trial of Palestinian American activist Rasmea Odeh. The other is the sentencing of Tampa Bay native Sami Osmakac, an Albanian American and Muslim found guilty in an FBI entrapment case.
Ft. Lauderdale, FL – At the start of rush hour on Nov. 4, a dozen anti-war organizers and members of the Palestinian community gathered outside the Federal Courthouse in downtown Fort Lauderdale with a huge banner, “Drop The Charges Against Rasmea!”
Gainesville, FL—Twenty-five University of Florida (UF) students and allies rallied on campus in solidarity with Arab American women’s leader Rasmea Odeh. Odeh’s trial began in Detroit on Nov. 4 and is continuing thru the week.
Detroit, MI – Rasmea Odeh’s supporters were in high anticipation as they waited on line for Judge Drain’s court room to open this morning, Nov. 6. Everyone expected the high point of the trial to be when Rasmea Odeh took the stand to testify in her own defense.
