Fight Back! is circulating this alert from the Committee to Stop FBI Repression. We urge all our readers to call the Humboldt County district attorney when the office opens on Tuesday, May 28.
Call the prosecutors May 28
On May 28, the Cal Poly Humboldt pro-Palestine protesters – who are students, faculty and community members – have their first arraignment court appearance in Eureka, CA. Each of the 30 protesters is being charged with 4 misdemeanors and thus are each facing up to 4 years in prison just for standing with Palestine and saying no to genocide. It was the police and the university who were the aggressors that day. We have a First Amendment right to free speech and protest that must be protected.
Seattle, WA – On May 20, students at the University of Washington in Seattle ended their Palestine solidarity encampment following a protracted struggle that led to an agreement with the university administration. While not a complete win, the agreement marked a real step forward.
On Monday, April 29, students started an encampment. Begun by the Progressive Student Union, a chapter of New Students for a Democratic Society, the encampment had three demands: material and academic divestment from Israel, the cutting of ties with Boeing, and an end to the repression of pro-Palestinian staff, students and faculty.
St. Paul, MN – On May 23, members of the Hamline University Students for Justice (HUSJ) held a gathering at West Hall after their pre-hearing meeting with the Dean of Students, Patti Kersten. The meeting was about the students’ code of conduct violations, charged against them about two weeks after their building occupation and Palestine encampment, even though the university granted them amnesty for the occupation.
Philadelphia, PA– On May 18, hundreds of people gathered outside Philadelphia City Hall to rally and march in remembrance of the 76th anniversary of the Nakba. Protesters marched west throughout the city, eventually arriving at Drexel University. With the support and protection of the people, student organizers established a new encampment on Drexel’s Korman quad.
Nakba Day commemorates the violent displacement of Palestinians that occurred during and after the 1948 Arab-Israeli War, which resulted in the establishment of the state of Israel. The term “Nakba” means “catastrophe” in Arabic and reflects the mass exodus of 400,000 plus Palestinians from their homes and homeland, and the subsequent loss of 15,000 Palestinian lives.
Since October 7, 2023, the dedicated people of the Fox Valley region of Wisconsin have been organizing and mobilizing for Palestine nearly non-stop. Whether it be a banner drop, a march or rally, disrupting political fundraisers, or divestment campaigns at several local universities, the people of northeastern Wisconsin have shown time and time again that they will not rest until the U.S. ends aid to Israel and stops being an active participant in the ongoing genocide of Palestinians. The Wisconsin District of the Freedom Road Socialist Organization has been one of the main forces behind these actions, uniting with student and community activists alike to struggle for change.
Fight Back News Service is circulating the following statement from the Wisconsin Coalition for Justice in Palestine.
The Wisconsin Coalition for Justice in Palestine, representing 64 member organizations, stands by the agreement negotiated by the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee administration with the students represented in the UWM Popular University for Palestine on May 14, 2024. We castigate the harsh critiques levied by UW system President Jay Rothman and the joint statement released by Milwaukee Hillel, the Milwaukee Jewish Federation and, notably, the powerful Anti-Defamation League (ADL). Both of these statements emerge from false narratives of the encampment as well as the nature of the university.
St. Paul, MN – On May 16, Hamline University Students for Justice (HUSFJ) rallied outside of the Old Main administration building, announcing they would end their 20-day encampment for Palestine.
Milwaukee, WI – On May 12, the 14th day of encampment at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee, the UW-Milwaukee Popular University for Palestine Coalition reached an agreement with university administration. Students agreed to take down the encampment, known as “Falasteen Lawn,” after hard-fought negotiations and winning one of the strongest agreements in the country.
Tampa, FL – On Monday May 13 community members and students rallied near the MacDill Air Force Base to demand an end to U.S. aid to Israel and an end to the siege on Rafah. The MacDill Air Force Base is home to Central Command (CentCom) which is responsible for aiding Israel in the genocide of Palestinians.
Irvine, CA – At least 20 police departments besieged the University of California, Irvine Gaza solidarity encampment on May 15, as student protesters marked the anniversary of the 1948 Nakba. Earlier that morning, protesters reclaimed UCI Physical Sciences Lecture Hall and renamed it in honor of Alex Odeh, a Palestinian American activist who was assassinated in Santa Ana, California in 1985 by three members of the Jewish Defense League.
Denver, CO – Denver Students for a Democratic Society (SDS) hosted their People’s Graduation at the Auraria Encampment for Palestine, May 12, as a counter to the graduations of Metropolitan State University (MSU) and CU Denver. This event was held in recognition of the efforts of the organizers of the encampment, as well as a recognition of the Palestinian martyrs who face genocide in Gaza.
New Orleans, LA – On May 7, Tulane and Loyola Students for a Democratic Society held a rally where students and alumni to destroyed awards and degrees they received from the pro-genocide institutions.
Denver, CO – On Monday, May 13, members of Students for a Democratic Society (SDS) occupied the Bursar's office of the University of Colorado, Denver to demand divestment from Israel.
Irvine, CA – “We demand amnesty for student protesters!” said a Palestinian student organizer at the University of California, Irvine (UCI) Gaza solidarity encampment. “We’ve made it clear that we are not leaving until all of our demands are met. If anything, the student suspensions have only made us more determined to stay and hold our ground, because this fight is bigger than us. It’s a fight against genocide and our tuition money going towards the weapons that are murdering Palestinians by the Israeli government!”
Minneapolis, MN – On May 10, the UMN Divest Coalition gathered 100 people, who first rallied outside the McNamara Alumni Center and then packed the meeting room of the board of regents at the University of Minnesota, despite intimidation from campus police.
Orlando, FL – On May 4, around 100 students gathered at the University of Central Florida (UCF) to demand their university open up their investment records and begin divesting from Israel and “merchants of death,” i.e. weapons manufacturers that profit from Israel’s genocide.
Washington, DC – On May 1, at the invitation of the DC, Maryland, Virginia (DMV) chapter of the Palestinian Youth Movement (PYM), the students at the George Washington University Encampment, informally called the Popular University for Gaza, hosted the Freedom Road Socialist Organization for a May Day panel.
Minneapolis, MN – On May 9, 200 community members rallied with students and staff at the University of Minnesota outside of the McNamara Alumni Center. The rally was called by the Free Palestine Coalition to draw attention to Israel’s genocidal attacks on Rafah and to put pressure on the University of Minnesota’s board of regents who were meeting the next day to hear from the Divest UMN Coalition’s demands at their public meeting.
Denver, CO – On Tuesday, May 7, Students for a Democratic Society (SDS) held a rally and sit-in at the Aerospace and Engineering Sciences (AES) building at the Metropolitan State University of Denver. Since April 25, students have been camping on the Tivoli Quad on campus to demand that the University of Colorado and the Metropolitan State University of Denver divest from Israel.
Although student leaders have met with the administration of both universities multiple times, thus far negotiations have stalled, and the schools seem unwilling to grant the students' demands. MSU Denver specifically has a partnership with Lockheed Martin, with an entire floor of the AES building dedicated to Lockheed manufacturing.
Los Angeles, CA – On Tuesday, May 7, the campus of California State University, Los Angeles (CSULA) witnessed a powerful display of solidarity as hundreds of students, led by Students 4 Justice in Palestine, united with community members and alumni at their campus’ student encampment. Their collective voice demanded “Hands off Rafah” and for the CSU system to sever all financial ties with Israel.
