News and Views from the People's Struggle
Anaheim, CA – On June 22, over 50 community members and activists gathered at Twila Reid Park for a vigil honoring Palestinian martyrs who have been killed during the ongoing genocide. The vigil was organized by the Palestinian American Women’s Association.
Minneapolis, MN – On Tuesday, June 25, around 100 people gathered as the Minnesota Peace Action Coalition led a protest of the Honeywell Aerospace Building in Northeast Minneapolis. Cars honked in support and many people who were just passing by brought bulk packs of cold bottled water for the protesters unprompted, just to show their support on the sunny day.
Wilsonville, OR – On Monday, June 24, 20 pro-Palestinian protesters rallied at the office of Collins Aerospace in Wilsonville, Oregon. The rally was called by PDX for Palestine to protest the company’s involvement in the genocide in Gaza. Collins Aerospace is a subsidiary of Raytheon, and the Wilsonville facility produces weapons components that go to the Israeli military.
New Orleans, LA – On June 24, Donald Trump arrived in New Orleans for a fundraising dinner as protesters disrupted the event with a rally. The protest was organized by the Queer and Trans Community Action Project (QTCAP) and New Orleans for Community Control of the Police (NOCOP). They chanted and demonstrated the opinions of the working-class queer and Black people of New Orleans, with additional speakers in solidarity to the Palestinian liberation movement.
The dinner, hosted by shipyard CEO Donald Bollinger and real estate magnate Joe Canizaro, cost $3300 per ticket for one person, with an additional approximate $22,000 for an opportunity to take photos with Trump. Bollinger and Canizaro are two of the most generous donors to the Republican Party in Louisiana.
Fight Back News Service is circulating the following statement from the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP). The English translation appeared on the Resistance News Network on Telegram.
The war criminal Netanyahu firmly confirms he does not want to stop the war for narrow calculations and rejects Biden's proposal contrary to American claims.
Littleton, CO – On Wednesday, June 12, Denver Anti-War Action (DAWA) furthered their fight against Lockheed Martin with a rally outside the weapon manufacturer's Space Division headquarters in Colorado.
Dozens of protesters showed up between the hours of 3 and 6 p.m. as employees finished up with the workday. While vehicles lined up at the intersection to begin their commute home, protesters denounced the corporation for their contribution to the crimes against humanity being committed in Gaza.
Tampa, FL – On June 18, students led a rally in protest of the University of South Florida (USF) suspension of Joseph Charry and expulsion of Victoria Hinckley. Both students, members of Tampa Bay SDS, were hit with conduct charges related to their participation at the solidarity encampments against the Israeli genocide in Gaza, Palestine. Charry is an international student and Victoria Hinckley is a senior set to graduate.
A lively group of 40 people marched from a nearby rally point to the USF Bulls fountain in front of the Marshall Student Center. Students held signs reading, “Victory to Palestine!” “Defend student protests for Palestine!” and “Stop the suspension of Joseph Charry!”
St. Paul, MN – On June 21 during rush hour, 75 people rallied and chanted at the weekly WAMM (Women Against Military Madness) bannering at the busy intersection of Snelling and Summit Avenues in Saint Paul. This week’s event was co-sponsored by the Free Palestine Coalition.
Englewood, CO – On June 16, Students for a Democratic Society (SDS) held a march to the home of University of Colorado Regent and chair of the Governance Committee, Ilana D. Spiegel. Spiegel, a Democrat, was elected to the University of Colorado Board of Regents 6th Congressional seat in late 2020.
Orlando, FL – On June 15, Orlando for Peace, with the support of civic organizations around Central Florida, created a Memorial for the Children of Gaza on the steps of Orlando City Hall. The event, held the day before Father’s Day, was to remember and mourn the over 15,000 Palestinian children murdered by Israel.
Orlando, FL – Marcus Polzer, a Students for a Democratic Society member at University of Central Florida faced a formal hearing in front of the office for Student Conduct & Academic Integrity (SCAI) on May 30.
The office of SCAI alleged two counts of disruptive conduct, claiming Polzer taped flyers to light poles advertising SDS’s weekly meeting and pro-Palestine messages. Interestingly, while only citing evidence of taped flyers, the university claims the student leader broke rules regarding solicitation and fundraising. Neither Polzer nor the SDS chapter engaged in such activities.
Los Angeles, CA – On the afternoon of Wednesday, June 12, in an act of escalation for Gaza, pro-Palestinian student protesters occupied the student services building at the California State University – Los Angeles (CSULA) campus.
Fight Back New Service is circulating the following statement from Students for a Democratic Society (SDS).
On Friday, June 7, the University of South Florida (USF) made the decision to expel Victoria Hinckley, a leader of the Tampa Bay chapter of Students for a Democratic Society. Hinckley had previously been suspended and barred from walking at graduation, despite being in her final semester. Joseph Charry, another leader of SDS and an international student, was also suspended for a year which threatens his student visa and puts him at the risk of deportation.
Publicado el 7 de mayo de 2024
Los ocupantes Israelíes de Palestina han intensificado sus ataques contra la ciudad de Rafah en el sur de Gaza durante las últimas 24 horas. Han atacado viviendas y han matado a niños. Los aviones están fabricados en los Estados Unidos. El material de guerra que se utiliza lo suministra la administración Biden. Se está llevando a cabo un genocidio en Palestina y Washington, D.C. lo está facilitando.
Fight Back! recently interviewed Fern McBride and Rick Toledo. Both are pro-Palestine activists and SDS members that played important roles in supporting the occupation and the historic resistance at Cal Poly Humboldt, in Arcata, California. What started as sit-on on April 22 escalated into outrageous repression that was, however, met with determined resistance. On May 28, some of the activists had their first court appearance.
Fight Back!: Could you say a few words about how the occupation at Cal Poly Humboldt came about?
Fight Back News Service is circulating the following statement from the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP). The English translation appeared on the Resistance News Network on Telegram.
Milwaukee, WI – On June 6, the student movement steadfastly continued their efforts to get the University of Wisconsin System to disclose its funds and to divest from the apartheid regime of Israel.
At the June UW System board of regents meeting, approximately 15 students and community members entered the open-session financial meeting to disrupt the scheduled programming.
Minneapolis, MN – On June 6, hundreds of protesters unwelcomed former Israeli Prime Minister Naftali Bennett, who came to downtown Minneapolis to speak for the Center for the American Experiment, a conservative think tank based in the suburb of Golden Valley.
The Center has supported a number of Republican-led political initiatives and regularly features right-wing speakers at its events. Ticket prices for the event ranged from $300 for individual seats to $30,000 “diamond sponsor” tickets that included special VIP access to Bennett.
Bennet is known as a war criminal who in 2013 said, “I’ve killed a lot of Arabs in my life and there’s no problem with that.” Bennett was the prime minister during 2021-22 and represented the New Right political party, which opposes the establishment of a Palestinian state and demands Israeli sovereignty over all of Palestine. He describes himself as more right-wing than even Netanyahu. After Israel’s assault on Gaza began in October, Bennett mocked concerns for Palestinian lives, saying in an interview, “Are you seriously asking me about Palestinian civilians?” and “I am not going to feed electricity or water to my enemies.”
The police stood alongside Zionist ticket holders, who heckled the crowd with racist and Islamophobic slurs, flipping off community members, including young children, while cops took no action.
Over the course of three hours, hundreds of Minneapolis police officers, including SWAT and riot teams, joined the racists in antagonizing the demonstrators.
One protester was violently arrested by riot police armed with rifles as he was peacefully walking away. Four others, including three Muslim Twin Cities residents – two of them minors – were arrested later, violently picked off the street by a large, black SWAT BearCat vehicle.
Wyatt Miller from the Anti-War Committee said, “The supposedly progressive city of Minneapolis helped facilitate the visit of an Israeli leader who helped lay groundwork for the current genocide, invited by a right-wing think tank to speak at a major downtown venue. We call on elected officials to denounce this hateful event and the fact that MPD was allowed to set up an apartheid-like militarized area on its behalf.”
The juveniles were released later that night, but the other arrestees were held until the evening of June 7.
#MinneapolisMN #MN #AntiWarMovement #International #MiddleEast #Palestine #MNAWC #MNFreePalestineCoalition
Baton Rouge, LA- On May 3, Students for a Democratic Society (SDS) and Students for Justice in Palestine (SJP) at Louisiana State University co-hosted a walkout and rally for Palestine. The protest was in response to the university’s involvement in the Go-Med Consortium, an initiative with the goals of developing oil drilling practices in the Mediterranean Sea off the coast of occupied Palestine, with the eventual goals of bringing the developed technology to the Gulf of Mexico. The consortium includes Louisiana universities as well as Israeli universities.
Colorado Springs, CO – On May 30, the Colorado Springs People’s Coalition (CSPC) gathered outside the South Gate entrance of the United States Air Force Academy to tell Kamala Harris that she is not welcome in Colorado Springs while supporting the genocide of the Palestinian people.