The political climate in this country is sharpening, and we are headed into battles on many fronts. We in the Freedom Road Socialist Organization are going to rise to every challenge standing strong, united, and prepared. This past year, we achieved a monumental goal: we purchased a building. This accomplishment is a beacon of change and a testament to our determination—when we say we’re going to do something, we do it.

We said we would secure headquarters, and we did. Now, we are saying we will build a new communist party in the United States, and we intend to do just that.

Capitalism’s failures are undeniable, and these days the decline of the U.S. Empire is on full display. That this system can’t be saved is good news: we need a revolutionary solution, and an organization that’s up to the task.

Our building is a brick-and-mortar symbol of the advances we’ve made in party building and our growing capacity to organize—in the trade union movement, in the struggle against police crimes and war, in the fight for immigrants rights, and in many other fronts of the people’s movements. Our growth is accelerating, and it’s far from over.

To future-proof our gains and make our headquarters a permanent asset, we intend to make major headway in paying off our building. This $100K Fund Drive is a critical step toward that goal. We know that the Trump administration is targeting our movements, and this fundraiser is about laying down walls and digging moats to protect what we’ve built. No hostile political climate or administration should ever have the power to take it away from us.

This is a call to action for every FRSO member, supporter, and ally. We have proven time and again that when we unite behind a common goal, we can make huge strides forward. Your support will help us secure our headquarters and fortify our movement for the battles ahead.

Let’s come together to make this fund drive a resounding success. Let’s show that our movement is built on solid ground and ready to weather any storm.

The time is now. Donate today at frso.org/donate and be part of this historic effort to secure our future!

#FRSO #Statement #FundDrive #PeoplesStruggles #Featured

Portland, OR – On Sunday afternoon, February 16, pro-Palestine group Portland for Palestine held a rally outside the Pioneer Courthouse in downtown Portland. The rally’s goal was to “Tell Trump that Gaza is not for sale,” referencing his threats since February 4 to have the United States buy Gaza, occupy it, then ethnically cleanse it of all Palestinians.

Despite heavy rain at the beginning and a last-minute shifting of the location due to construction work in neighboring Pioneer Courthouse Square, 40 people showed up to the event and gave their support.

Portland for Palestine member Omar Gil, stated, “While genocide Joe tried to cover up his war crimes, Trump speaks bluntly of the true intentions of the imperialist United States. But his callousness is only representative of one thing, and that is the heightened social consciousness regarding Palestine. There is no longer a need to hide the facts because more and more people have awakened to the true purpose of the United States and all its exploitation and oppression.”

One of the attendees, Elijah Thahir stated, “I just want to be active in some way or any way in protesting what [the United States] has done and what it’s doing to the Palestinian people. Overall, it kind of just feels like, especially as an American, that I have to do something, you know?”

Cars passing through the city streets honked their horns and people raised their fists in approval of the rally, to the cheers from the crowd.

The rally ended with many gathering around the table set up by the organizers to become more involved with Portland for Palestine’s future events. The people of Portland have made it clear that they will continue to stand up to Trump, even as the Democratic Party refuses to.

#PortlandOR #OR #PeoplesStruggles #Trump #Palestine #AntiWarMovement

New Orleans, LA – On February 9, roughly 200 people took to the streets in downtown New Orleans for a rally and march against President Donald Trump’s visit to the Super Bowl LIX at the Superdome.

The protest was called by New Orleans for Community Oversight of Police, alongside a broad coalition of organizations. After Trump’s recent attacks on the most oppressed, protestors came out to demand Trump end ICE raids and deportations, stop attacks on trans people, and keep out of Gaza.

The rally began at Armstrong Park around 4:30, with speakers. The crowd chanted, “Donald Trump has got to go!” and “Un pueblo unido, hamas sera vencido! The people united, will never be defeated!” Community members brought signs and flags, reading “Nadie es ilegal!”, “Trans liberation now!” “Defend women’s and reproductive rights!” as queer flags, Mexican flags, and Palestinian flags waved above.

“A lot of us are here to resist Donald Trump, but some of us are here for other reasons,” said a member of New Orleans for Community Control of the Police (NOCOP). “I’m here because my friend’s dad got deported a couple of months ago, before Trump was even in office. I’m here because my last interaction with the police ended up with a police officer’s arm around my neck, and me sitting in jail. I’m mad, and I’m not forgetting any of that!”

“More than fear, I’m angry!” declared Molly Dayle, a member of the Queer and Trans Community Action Project (QTCAP). “He’s attacking our immigrant siblings, our Black and Brown siblings, and he’s coming after unions. We are only going to be able to fight this together.”

“Immigrants are the ones who build up this city after every hurricane!” said Martha Alguera from the Southeast Dignity Not Detention Coalition. “Right here in Louisiana, we have the largest amount of for-profit detention centers in the country. Thousands of people who were just taken asylum are sent here, and have to deal with medical neglect and abuse.”

During the rally, it began to rain heavily. As clothes and signs got soaked, the energy of the crowd remained high. After the speakers finished, the people took the streets marching from Armstrong Park down S Rampart Street all the way up to just outside of the Superdome’s security perimeter. Police presence buzzed around the protest, but because of an excellent security plan and experienced police liaisons, the march concluded with no arrests, injuries, or major disruptions. The crowd cheered, “Rain will not take us down! Trump out of NOLA now!”

When the march returned to Armstrong Park, the crowd chanted and cheered “I believe that we will win!” Bright smiles and hugs congratulated the successful protest as the action came to a close.

#NewOrleansLA #LA #PeoplesStruggles #Trump #Sports #SuperBowl #LGBTQ #ImmigrantRights

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

Despite cold gusts of wind, the crowd filled the intersection of S Bristol Street and W McFadden Avenue, a location people have rallied at for years, such as on Trump’s first inauguration or during the George Floyd Rebellion.

Erica Gonzalez of Chicanxs Unidxs (CU) said, “I stood on these streets in September 2017 with my four kids, all under the age of 14, to rally against the Trump administration for putting kids in cages and separating families at the border. It was during that rally that I felt the power of community for the first time. Here we are all these years later, except this time we’re much more organized and better prepared.”

Rachael Pozos of TransLatinx spoke on the danger posed to the LGBTQ community by Trump, stating “We are part of this community. They want to segregate and silence us, but we are raising our voices too. We demand that hormone replacement therapy continue to be carried out. We are not going to back down: on the contrary, we are going to fight!”

In his second administration, Trump will likely ramp up police spending and repression of the people’s movements. During his campaign he suggested harsh crackdowns on the Palestine solidarity movement, and in his first administration he responded to the George Floyd Rebellion with heavy repression. Last week Trump’s Department of Justice suggested halting consent decrees requiring reforms of police departments around the country.

Donna Acevedo-Nelson spoke about her son, Joel Acevedo, who was only 21 years old when he was killed by Anaheim Police Department, stating, “My son Joel was dragged, beaten, handcuffed and then shot in the back of the head. The police changed their story a few times. They lie. They go into the media. People believe what they read in the newspaper and there’s always more to the story.”

Protesters visible to passing cars held signs that read, “Indict! Convict! Send these killer cops to jail! The whole damn system is guilty as hell!”

Emma Gottfried from Community Service Organization (CSO) spoke about the killing spree by Anaheim and Santa Ana police over the years. In December, SAPD killed Noe Rodriguez moments after arriving at the scene, giving commands only in English and firing at least 30 bullets even as he collapsed.

Gottfried said, “CSO has launched our ‘24/48’ police accountability campaign. We are fighting for more transparency, demanding the public releasing of officer names when they are involved in misconduct or a shooting within 24 hours, and for releasing unedited footage of the incident within 48 hours. Families deserve to see what happened and know who was involved so we can hold them responsible!” Protesters waved signs saying, “Justice for Noe Martinez Rodriguez.”

Labor activist Manaal Subhani warned of Trump’s legacy of attacking workers, stating, “During his presidency, Donald Trump systematically undermined worker protections and unions. His National Labor Relations Board repeatedly sided with corporations over workers, making it harder to form unions and easier to decertify them.”

Subhani continued, “Workers built this city, workers run this city, and workers will fight back against the Trump administration and the cop administration!”

Abraham Quintana of Freedom Road Socialist Organization (FRSO) reinforced the importance of the working class struggle, stating, “The billionaires depend on our labor for their profits. It's not Elon Musk on the assembly line building those ugly, explosive trucks. It's not Gavin Newsom out there fighting wildfires. It’s workers!”

Quintana spoke of FRSO’s task of building a political party of the multinational working class, saying, “Instead of living in a world where we live to make profits for the billionaires, we can build a society that meets everyone’s needs and puts the power in the working class's hands instead of the hands of the 1%.”

Sandra de Anda, coordinator of the Orange County Rapid Response Network (OCRRN), encouraged the crowd to call their hotline if ICE is spotted in Santa Ana (714-881-1558). She cautioned people to correctly verify sightings to avoid panic and shared about their participatory defense work to stop and reduce detentions, deportations and incarcerations.

Sandra de Anda said, “We are here as a reminder that everyday people can organize: mothers, hermanos, everybody can learn how to get their loved ones out of cages. Right now is the time for regular people to do courageous things!”

Protesters waved signs that read “No to deportations,” “Protect Immigrants” and “Don’t bite the hand that feeds you.” The crowd shouted, “Up, up with liberation! Down, down with deportation!”

Vinny Mansoor of the US Palestinian Community Network (USPCN) stressed the importance of solidarity across different movements, telling the crowd, “I find myself for the life of me unable to see the difference between a child in a cage in California and a child in a cage in Gaza! Our children are being taken from us and we have to stand united!”

Erick Landeros of Guerrero, a solidarity organization supporting the National Democratic Revolution in the Philippines, connected the struggle between immigrants in Santa Ana with oppressed peoples around the world: “From here in Santa Ana with migrant, working class families, to Palestine, to Mexico, to the Philippines, we all face a common enemy: U.S. imperialism.”

Jensen Walsh of Orange County Democratic Socialists of America (OCDSA) called the audience to action, stating, “Right now, we are mobilized, but what we must do is organize for greater mobilization in the future.”

The crowd marched around the intersection, hoisting signs in the air and shouting over the gusty wind and traffic. Spirits were high as people raged against the Trump administration. The rally highlighted the importance of solidarity between all of the people’s struggles and the importance of joining an organization for long-term organized struggle against this administration.

The event was organized by CSO OC in coalition with CU, OCEJ, USPCN, FRSO, OCDSA, TransLatinx, Guerrero and OCRRN.

#SantaAnaCA #PeoplesStruggles #Immigrantrights #InJusticeSystem #LGBTQ #Palestine #AntiWarMovement #Environment #CSOOC #CU #OCEJ #USPCN #FRSO #TransLatinx #Guerrero #OCRRN

Denton, TX – Activists from Freedom Road Socialist Organization organized a local resource fair to rally against the incoming Trump administration, January 20, drawing hundreds from the community to engage local organizations and learn about the about the efforts to change the political landscape.

Event volunteers showed up in the early afternoon to set up at the historic Denton Courthouse square. Nearly two dozen organizations from Denton and the Dallas-Fort Worth metroplex showcased their campaigns and work, from the University of North Texas and Texas Women's University to local art collectives like Spider Web Salon and INKtifada. Colorful tables lined the sidewalk with art, banners and information. A growing crowd arrived throughout the afternoon as speakers addressed the issues that faced the Denton and Dallas communities, with no illusion as to the dangers another Trump presidency poses.

A second Trump administration presents a wide, hostile landscape for all workers and oppressed communities across Texas, many already failed by the outgoing Biden administration. Trump signaled his movement’s intent to target our state’s most oppressed through over 70 executive orders on the first day of his presidency. Tension on Inauguration Day was high, but the crowd was spirited.

Groups in attendance came from a wide swath of north Texas communities. Student groups from around north Texas shared the courthouse lawn with immigration and police accountability advocates, queer and anti-war groups. Speakers addressing the crowd included City Councilperson and Jewish Voice for Peace representative Deb Armintor, activists from UNT’s Eagle Dreamers, PRIDenton, DFW Anti-War Committee and local Teamsters.

Rick Majumdar, a member of Teamsters Local 767 addressed the crowd, stating, “The fires that are destroying the chains of imperialism across the world from Palestine to western Sahel are here too, inside of the belly of the beast. That fire is in the hearts and minds of the working class, who know that they have no choice but to fight back.”

The afternoon closed with a simple chant – “The people, united, can never be defeated,” true today as it has been for decades.

#DentonTX #TX #PeoplesStruggles #ImmigrantRights #StudentMovement #SDS #FRSO #Trump

Tallahassee, FL – On Monday, January 20, the Tallahassee Community Action Committee (TCAC) held a rally at the historic capitol to show their unwavering outrage at Trump and the Republican agenda. Around 100 community members attended. They supported the demands, “Unite to defeat all racist and reactionary bills during the legislative session! Say no to SB 54 and all other backwards bills!”

TCAC was joined by the Freedom Road Socialist Organization, Food Not Bombs, Students For a Democratic Society (SDS), and Tallahassee Dissenters.

On January 20, at noon, Donald Trump was sworn into office for the second time. It is no mystery that the Trump administration will try to suppress movements all over the nation including attacks on LGBTQ movements, education and DEI programs, women's reproductive rights, national liberation movements, immigration, and more.

Tavyan Dorsey, speaking on behalf of SDS, stated, “Day one of the second Trump term is not even over and ICE has already been mobilized for mass deportations.”

Dorsey continued, “Families like yours and mine come to the U.S, the ‘land of the free’, attempting to seek a better life for them and their children, and in return what do they get? They face imprisonment and barbaric conditions.”

Tito Leadon with TCAC urged the crowd not to cower away with fear and stressed that it is high time for all of us to get organized. He spoke of the unacceptable police budget and went on to emphasize Tallahassee's need for community control of the police.

Regina Joseph with Freedom Road Socialist Organization closed out the night with her high-spirited calls to action, stating, “We stand for Palestine, we stand against the billions of U.S blood money that fueled a genocidal occupation. While corporations profit from war and suffering, the people are fighting for their lives.”

Joseph continued, “Trump may be in the White House, but we the people hold the power to shape our future!”

It’s clear that the people of Tallahassee, Florida are angered by the current state of politics. It is clear that they are ready for change. One significant chant heard throughout the protest was “Trump’s agenda isn’t ours! Organize for people power!” The energy in the crowd was palpable as they cheered along with passing cars that honked their horns in approval.

The night closed with mingling among attendees with local organizations and food provided by Halisi Africa, a local Black-owned business.

#TallahasseeFL #FL #PeoplesStruggles #Trump #ImmigrantRights

Fight Back News Service is circulating the following speech that was given by Sydney Loving, member of Central Committee, Freedom Road Socialist Organization, at the Washington DC protest coinciding with the inauguration of Trump.

Brothers, sisters, and comrades,

It is so good to stand here with all of you. As an organization last year, we spearheaded the massive marches on the Republican National Convention in Milwaukee and the Democratic National Convention in Chicago that brought 30,000 into the streets – that was the first step, and here is the next. Inauguration day is day one, and we’re mobilizing all over the country. The message is this: we’re not just ready for a fight – we’re looking for one.

The situation in the world today is showing cracks in the U.S. empire. It’s in a period of decline, and the decline is accelerating. We saw the cracks during the George Floyd rebellion – where one man’s murder brought millions into the streets and set cities on fire. It scratched the depth of national oppression and the potential for mass resistance.

After 16 months of atrocities, the Palestinian resistance and its allies have not been defeated. Millions around the world have stood up against the U.S.-backed genocide in Gaza and marched in solidarity with their heroic struggle for freedom. Things are sharpening.

Donald Trump and his gang of billionaires, bigots and corporate puppets are about to take power again. They’ve made their plans crystal clear: mass deportations, police and vigilante violence, attacks on workers, women, LGBTQ people, and immigrants. They’ll try to gut healthcare, roll back our democratic rights, and line the pockets of the rich while stepping on the rest of us.

There’s no one that Trump’s administration won’t try to pick a fight with. But we will bring the fight to him. When his forces come to town, we’re going to smash the event. When they try to provoke us, just like the students refused to leave the encampments for Palestine we’re going to hold our ground. If they’re looking for a fight, we’ll give it to them. Even if we don’t start the fights, we’re going to finish them.

Repression is nothing new to us. We’ve faced raids and FBI scrutiny; we’ve fought back and kept our people out of jail: Every. Single. One. We learned that the only way to win is not to shrink away; to face repression head on. The masses are the makers of history, and only by rallying together can we defend our movements and make real advances.

To those who feel overwhelmed or tempted to stay quiet – silence won’t save us. Solidarity will. We’re not scared of the idea of America coming apart – because this is our moment to fan the flames. We’re here to build movements, defend our communities, and turn up the heat.

Our work is expanding rapidly – we’re building a united front of everybody that has a bone to pick with Wall Street.

To this end, we invite everyone to join us. We’re not keeping our heads down and hoping the next four years blow over. We’re going to rise to every challenge we meet, stand up, fight back, and make the U.S. ungovernable.

#WashingtonDC #PeoplesStruggles #ImmigrantRights #WomensMovement #AntiWarMovement #Palestine #LGBTQ #Labor #FRSO

Washington, DC – On a windy Monday morning, January 20, protesters rallied and marched in opposition to Trump’s inauguration and his reactionary billionaire agenda. Organized by the We Fight Back coalition, organizations united around demands to defend the people’s movements from expected attacks by the Trump administration.

Heating the chill of the air with the fire of their spirits, protesters rallied in Malcolm X Park as speakers from endorsing organizations and coalition partners delivered their message to the crowd.

Coalition members and endorsing organizations included Bayan USA, Anakbayan, Migrante USA, Malaya DC, Kabataan Alliance DMV, International League of People’s Struggle, International Coalition for Human Rights in the Philippines, Freedom Road Socialist Organization, and the DC Alliance Against Racist & Political Repression (DCAARPR).

Sydney Loving, a leading member of Freedom Road Socialist Organization told the crowd, “There’s no one that Trump’s administration won’t try to pick a fight with. But we intend to bring the fight to him. Even if we don’t start the fights, we are going to finish them.”

The organizing chair for DCAARPR said, “Unity is central to our struggle, and we must be united against Trump to defeat him and his reactionary agenda.”

“In the Alliance, we do not call ourselves allies,” the organizing chair continued, “We stand in solidarity with each other. Because we recognize that the same forces genociding our Palestinian family, deporting and attacking our undocumented brothers and sisters, and abridging our reproductive rights are the same forces that target, kill and oppress us as Black people.”

After rallying in the park, protesters took to the streets with chants such as “MPD, KKK, IOF, they’re all the same,” “Free Palestine,” and “The people united will never be defeated!”

The march stopped at the Philippine Embassy, where speakers denounced the collusion between the American and Philippine governments to oppress and exploit Filipinos and how the Trump presidency will continue and further human rights abuses in the Philippines.

“Our people should not be exploited,” said Norynne Caleja, of Malaya DC. “Our people should not be killed and our people should not be shipped out of the Philippines just for U.S. interests.”

The march wound up at Dupont Circle with speeches demanding an end to funding war and militarization by cutting budgets from people’s services; unity to protect immigrants and workers from attacks from the Trump administration, and an end to forced migration.

“The education system produces low-wage workers for export to be treated as commodities for other nations,” said Paolo Estrella, of Kabataan Alliance DMV. “Because of this, we see millions of Filipinos who left the Philippines to work overseas as migrants in the United States – who will be impacted by the Trump administration and their [plans for] mass deportations.”

Though the weather was below freezing, the people brought their passion and righteous anger at the billionaire bigots heading into the White House. The mobilization concluded with a call to action for attendees to get involved with and join organizations that will mount an organized fightback against the Trump administration and his reactionary agenda.

“They have the money, the media, and the power,” the organizing chair from DCAARPR said, “but we have the one thing they don’t: us. Our strength is our numbers, and when we are united, there is nothing the people can’t do. It's our job to make them tremble when we roar, all power to the people!”

#WashingtonDC #PeoplesStruggles #Trump #J20 #ImmigrantRights #WomensMovement #AntiWarMovement #Palestine

Chicago, IL – Negative wind chill could not keep the Coalition to Stop the Trump Agenda from mobilizing 2500 people to Federal Plaza in downtown Chicago to protest the inauguration of Donald Trump.

In the cold midday sun, protesters rallied at the Plaza, marched to Trump Tower, and then rallied a second time there – all to mark a new phase of struggle that will see the social justice movement face grave dangers in the agenda of Donald Trump and his fellow Republicans.

Over 80 organizations are members of the Coalition to Stop the Trump Agenda. They are united around the demands to fight the racist and reactionary Republican agenda; defend and expand immigrant rights; stand with Palestine; defend the right to unionize and strike; stop police crimes; defend women’s LGBTQ and reproductive rights, and defend education and academic freedom.

A number of the forces organizing today’s action led last year’s March on the DNC, including the Chicago Alliance Against Racist and Political Repression (CAARPR), U.S. Palestinian Community Network (USPCN), Students for a Democratic Society (SDS), and Anti-War Committee. As in the case of the March on the DNC, the coalition is broad, containing forces from across the movement, including those in immigrant rights, Palestinian rights, Black liberation, labor, and more.

A plurality of march attendees were Latino immigrants, including three busloads of immigrant workers from the suburban DuPage County organization, Worker Center of Immigrant Solidarity.

The involvement of immigrant rights groups like Illinois Coalition for Immigrant and Refugee Rights (ICIRR) and Mijente is important, especially since the Trump administration’s very first attacks in the U.S. will likely be directed against immigrants.

“We came here in spite of everything, we have paid our taxes, we’ve built our families here, our kids were born here, and we’re not going anywhere!” said Martín Unzueta, executive director and founder of Chicago Community & Worker’s Rights and spokesperson for Mijente.

Other immigrant organizations mobilized as well, including the HANA Center, a Korean American immigrant justice organization; and Anakbayan, a youth organization fighting for Filipino rights and liberation.

In addition to immigrant rights groups, some of the Palestinian rights organizations that led 16 months’ worth of protests against the Israeli/U.S. genocide on Gaza, including USPCN and Students for Justice in Palestine (SJP) – Chicago, took part in the march.

With a ceasefire in Gaza reached just last week, Palestinian rights groups have emphasized that such a victory was only the result of fierce resistance on the part of the Palestinian people and their allies across the world, and not the benevolence of Trump, Biden, Blinken, or any other figure in Washington.

“This achievement only belongs to the steadfast Palestinian resistance and the people of Gaza,” said Noura Ebrahim, USPCN member and co-founder of Boycott Divestment Sanctions – Chicago.

Also protesting Trump were Black liberation organizations like CAARPR, Black Lives Matter Chicago, GoodKids MadCity, Chicago Torture Justice Center, and more.

The involvement of Black liberation organizations is also important, given that Trump’s previous presidency saw Black people in the U.S. experience further economic degradation, the intensification of police repression (such as the killings of George Floyd and Breonna Taylor), and more mass incarceration of Black communities. Trump will seek to continue that trend in his second term, though the resistance, as last time, will be fierce.

“We cannot allow Trump to carry out mass deportations of immigrants. If they come after them today, they’ll come after the rest of us tomorrow,” said Frank Chapman, field director of CAARPR and executive director of the National Alliance.

To mark Martin Luther King Jr. Day, Daryle Brown, a minister at the historic Trinity United Church of Christ greeted the rally with a prayer.

Organized labor is also an essential element of the coalition, with the Chicago Teachers Union (CTU) and CTU’s Black Caucus, United Auto Workers Local 2320, and United Electrical Workers – Western Region among the endorsers of the rally. Many of their rank-and-file members were in attendance.

“Fighting for the rights of oppressed people is not new in Chicago! We stand united here,” said Dr. Diane Castro of CTU.

Other organizations in the Coalition to Stop the Trump Agenda include Anti-War Action Network, Community Renewal Society, Arab American Action Network, United Working Families 50th Ward and others.

#ChicagoIL #IL #PeoplesStruggles #ImmigrantRights #InJusticeSystem #AntiWarMovement #Palestine #CTU #Trump #J20 #Feature

Many of the speakers touched on Donald Trump’s incoming attacks on working people, immigrants, LGBTQ people, and war mongering against oppressed nations around the world. With MLK Day falling on January 20 this year, speakers also celebrated Martin Luther King Jr.’s life and legacy and connected it to the fight against Trump today.

“Trump and his allies in the monopoly capitalist class represent a real threat to the labor movement, as he has already voiced support for a national right-to-work law,” said Alex Carson, a UPS Teamster out of Atlanta. “Georgia and many other states in the South already suffer under right to work laws that threaten union jobs and weaken strikes.”

The rally was organized by a number of organizations including Palestinian Youth Movement, Party for Socialism and Liberation, Georgia Latino Alliance for Human Rights, and Atlanta DSA.

#AtlantaGA #GA #PeoplesStruggles #Trump #J20

Yun Zheng, a member of the Tampa Alliance Against Racist and Political Repression, noted the irony of Trump’s inauguration coinciding with Martin Luther King Jr. Day, stating “What better way to honor the legacy of MLK than by fighting for justice? When Trump comes for one of us, he will have to deal with all of us.”

Speeches highlighted how Trump’s presidency means further attacks on women’s and reproductive rights, LGBTQ rights, worker’s rights and immigrants’ rights.

“Attacks on immigrants’ rights are attacks on workers’ rights,” said Gage Lacharite, a rank-and-file Teamster and UPS driver. “Trump threatens public sector workers, the largest sector of unionized workers in America. In Florida we already know that’s on the chopping block because Governor Ron Desantis passed legislation decertifying most public sector unions in Florida.”

There is a precedent that the reactionary policies in Florida represent the future that Republicans want for the whole country. Florida, along with Texas, was one of the first states to unconstitutionally ban the right to an abortion, which eventually led to the overturning of Roe v. Wade.

Speaking on Trump’s foreign policy, Joseph Charry, a member of Tampa Bay Students for a Democratic Society, said “Trump not only wants to continue the U.S. trend of endless wars, but expand on it by threatening countries like Mexico and Venezuela with military interventions in the middle of his racist rants.”

The protest was organized by the Tampa Alliance Against Racist and Political Repression and Tampa Bay Students for a Democratic Society. It was endorsed by Starbucks Workers United, Friends of Human Rights, Florida Student Power Network, and the People’s Pride Coalition.

#TampaFL #FL #PeoplesStruggles #ImmigrantRights #WomensMovement #Trump #NAARPR

New York, NY – At 4 p.m. on January 20, New Yorkers braved the cold and the snow to gather on the steps of the Brooklyn War Memorial to protest Trump’s presidency and to resist the Trump agenda.

Protesters chanted “No Trump, no KKK, no racist USA!” and “Racist, sexist, anti-gay! Donald Trump, go away!” making it clear that not only did they oppose Trump, but that they opposed the entire agenda that he represents.

Protesters upheld a broad range of demands, including community control of the police, legalization for all immigrants, an end to all aid to Israel, protection of workers’ rights to unionize and strike, and the defense of women’s and LGBTQ rights.

After Shivani Ishwar of NYAARPR started the rally with a round of chanting “When I say people, you say power,” and “Hey hey, ho ho, Donald Trump has got to go!” The crowd heard from speakers from Columbia SDS, Brooklyn Eviction Defense, and FRSO NYC.

The rally was organized by the New York Alliance Against Racist and Political Repression (NYAARPR) and endorsed by NYU and Columbia Students for a Democratic Society (SDS), Brooklyn Eviction Defense, BAYAN North East, GABRIELA NY, from Pratt, FIT, Adelphi, and St. John’s University.

Speaking on behalf of FRSO, Michela Martinazzi said “In New York we have to be especially careful of this Trump presidency, as cop-Mayor Adams is courting Trump to come into New York City to solve ‘the migrant situation.’ Our own mayor is selling us out to the same man that New York state indicted on 34 separate counts!” To cheers from the crowd, she added, “And while I don’t know which battles we’re going to fight next, I want us to take something away from today. We, the people, are resilient. We, the people, fight back! We the people can win!”

Participants left the rally with the knowledge that this fight is not over. NYAARPR and other organizations leading the people’s movements will continue the fight against Trump and the reactionary agenda for the next four years, and until the people win!

#NewYorkNY #NY #PeoplesStruggles #Trump #J20 #NAARPR #NYAARPR #FRSO #BAYAN #SDS

Washington, DC – On January 18, thousands of people flocked to McPherson Square in downtown DC to join the People's March to the White House. The action saw mobilization from every corner of the people's movements, with the common goal of protesting the incoming Trump administration. Popular slogans included “Black lives matter,” “Our body, our choice” and “Free Palestine,” among others that reflected the struggles and demands of the broad movement.

Locally, organizations demanded “Free DC,” and called for recognition of DC as the 51st state of the union. Groups participating in these contingent included members of FRSO DC and AnakBayan DC.

“The masses of people are the ones who change history,” said Jon Abraham of FRSO DC, “Thousands of people took the street today to send a message to the incoming Trump administration that they will not hide, but rather, stand up and fight back.”

FRSO DC and other local organizations will mobilize again on Monday, January 20, to protest Trump’s inauguration.

#WashingtonDC #PeoplesStruggles #WomensMovement #ImmigrantRights #Trump

El 25 de noviembre, el presidente electo Donald Trump anunció su nominación de Pam Bondi para fiscal general de los Estados Unidos. Bondi, de Tampa, es la antigua fiscal general para el estado de Florida. Si es confirmada, ella dirigiría el Departamento de Justicia (DOJ), que supervisa agencias como el Buró Federal de Investigaciones (FBI) y la (Administración de Control de Drogas) DEA.

“El cargo más importante después del presidente de los Estados Unidos en la próxima administración, no soy yo. Es a quién seleccionemos como fiscal general,” dijo el vicepresidente electo JD Vance, en una entrevista con la National Public Radio.

Esta candidatura marca dos cambios importantes. Primero, el gobierno estadounidense está tan polarizado que un DOJ de Trump no hará ningún intento de parecer justicia ciega, por encima de políticas partidarias. Segundo, Trump quiere aprovechar los poderes federales para pisotear el derecho a reunirse.

Bondi: Una títere corrupta

Él anunció su decisión pocas horas después de que su anterior candidato, el representante federal Matt Gaetz, renunciara. Trump escogió a Gaetz por su lealtad política, pero tuvo que abandonarlo porque el congresista enfrentaba una investigación federal por tráfico sexual. Bondi claramente estaba en la lista corta de Trump. Ya se predice que ella tendrá un camino más fácil para ser confirmada, considerando su experiencia en la fiscalía.

Esta administración entrante tiene a los antiguos fiscales generales Jeff Sessions y William Barr en el retrovisor. Ambos cayeron en desgracia con Trump por romper filas cuando él estuvo bajo investigación. Bondi, por otro lado, tiene una historia comprobada de dedicación.

Su lealtad data de 2013, cuando su oficina de repente dio marcha atrás a investigar la Universidad Trump. A los pocos días de este cambio de postura, un comité de acción política apoyando la campaña de reelección de Bondi recibió una contribución de $25,000 de la Fundación Donald J. Trump. En 2016, Bondi apareció en una manifestación por Trump. En 2020, sirvió en su equipo legal durante su primer juicio político. Ella se unió a los gritos de “detener el robo” cuando Trump perdió la elección de ese año. En mayo de 2023, ella apareció en su juicio criminal.

Como fiscal general de Florida, Bondi se opuso al matrimonio gay y se unió a una demanda contra la Ley del Cuidado de Salud a Bajo Precio. Su tiempo en el sector privado incluyó hacer cabildeo para Amazon y Uber. Actualmente preside los brazos legales del America First Policy Institute, un centro de estudios pro-Trump.

En un artículo reciente del Daily Caller, los antiguos empleados de Bondi insinúan que su DOJ exoneraría a Trump y enjuiciaría a oponentes en el Partido Demócrata.

Lista para criminalizar las protestas

Bondi llego a los titulares después de su entrevista con Newsmax en octubre 2023 sobre los activistas estudiantiles. “Francamente, necesitan ser sacados de nuestro país, o el FBI debería entrevistarlos de inmediato cuando dicen ‘Apoyo a Hamas. Soy Hamas,’” dijo.

Eso es peligroso, porque las cortes del DOJ son responsables de escuchar casos de deportación. Las condenas por “delitos que impliquen depravación moral” son motivo para la deportación bajo la Ley de Inmigración y Nacionalidad, incluso para residentes permanentes y los titulares de visas. Estos pueden incluir delitos menores, como crímenes de odio (a menudo interpretados para incluir el anti-sionismo), acoso, y otros cargos injustamente usados contra manifestantes. Hay defensas legales potenciales, dependiendo del caso.

Además de esto, Bondi declaró que el FBI debería investigar manifestantes. Esto va más allá de cualquier cosa que Trump ha dicho en público. También representaría una clara violación de los derechos de la Primera Enmienda.

Más allá de estas declaraciones sobre la solidaridad con Palestina, ella ha elaborado planes para reprimir el Movimiento por la Liberación Negra.

Menos de una semana después de que Trump ganara la elección de este año, el ala de Bondi del America First Policy Institute publicó un reporte sobre protestas en Portland, Oregón durante la rebelión por George Floyd y Breonna Taylor. El informe promete un “enfoque de América primero a la violencia liberal.”

El momento no podría enviar una señal más clara de que la candidata a fiscal general está espumando en la boca por la represión racista y política. La elección de la ciudad para el reporte también es significativa. Portland es donde agentes federales sin identificación se llevaron a personas de las calles en 2020.

Por ahora, una ley de 2021 exige que oficiales federales lleven una identificación visible mientras realizan control de multitudes. Las organizaciones del movimiento ganaron esto después del levantamiento en Portland.

El reporte también culpa a los “fiscales progresistas renegados” por retirar los cargos contra “más del 90%” de los manifestantes de Portland, indicando la voluntad de Bondi de maximizar las acusaciones contra activistas.

Dicho esto, Bondi comparte su ciudad de origen con las 5 de Tampa. Estas cinco mujeres enfrentaron cargos de delito mayor inventados por protestar ataques contra la diversidad en la educación, pero vencieron todos los cargos. Como ellas, los manifestantes en solidaridad con Palestina de costa a costa han resistido en la corte y varias veces han ganado. Las estrategias más exitosas para luchar en contra se basan en abogados defensores agresivos y campañas de apoyo público. Entre más intensa sea la batalla contra la injusticia, más mostrará este sistema su putrefacción.

#PeoplesStruggles #Trump #Bondi #Opinion #Commentary

Chicago, IL – 300 activists, mostly from Latino communities, and many who are immigrants, packed into City Hall this morning to oppose an attack by city council members against Chicago’s Welcoming City Ordinance.

Cook County Commissioner Anthony Quezada kicked off the rally with chants alternating between Spanish and English. “When Black people are under attack, what do you do?” “Stand up, fight back!”

“When sanctuary is under attack, what do you do?” “Stand up, fight back!”

Then in Spanish, “Pueblo, escucha! Estamos en la lucha!” Which roughly means, “People, listen! We’re in the struggle!”

Frank Chapman, field organizer for the Chicago Alliance Against Racist and Political Repression (CAARPR), led a chant of, “The people united will never be defeated,” and remarked that the movement here learned this chant from the struggle in Chile in the early 1970s. He explained the importance of the multi-national character of the rally, with immigrant organizations of Latinos, Asians, Arabs and Africans coming together with a Black-led organization such as CAARPR.

Chapman told the crowd, “Donald Trump is on a mission to divide us. This proves he has not succeeded!”

The rally was a response to reactionary members of the city council, Alderpeople Raymond Lopez and Silvana Tabares, introducing an ordinance to allow the Chicago Police Department to work with Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) to terrorize those immigrant communities. This attack is intended to work hand in glove with the agenda of the Trump regime.

Trump hates Chicago, and the feeling is mutual

Donald Trump will take office on January 20. Because he is a racist, he has a special hatred for our city which began when Chicago sent Barack Obama – the first Black president – to the White House. Trump launched the trajectory that brought him to the White House in 2016 by leading the campaign to deny that Obama was a citizen.

Students for a Democratic Society at the University of Illinois at Chicago (UIC) knows another reason for Trump’s anger at Chicago. “Students here rejected his racist hate campaign in 2016,” explained Liz Rathburn of SDS. “He tried to rally at UIC in April that year, and when 5000 people confronted him, he cancelled and fled.”

There is a determined mood in the movement here. Despite often brutally cold weather, activists have spread out to working-class neighborhoods around the city, distributing 20,000 flyers and over 1000 posters in English, Spanish and Arabic.

Immigrants and Chicago: Trump’s first targets

As Trump prepares to take power, he says he will carry out severe attacks on immigrants, promising the largest deportation operation in American history. Trump and his “Border Czar,” Thomas Homan, are planning an all-out assault. Homan said his planned deportation of millions of undocumented workers and their U.S.-born children will “start right here in Chicago,” as he threatened local officials to open the city and its county jail to the will of federal immigration agents.

Homan has even declared he would prosecute Mayor Brandon Johnson for his actions in defense of asylum seekers.

Inauguration Day protest bringing upwards of 200 organizations together

Monday, January 20 is Martin Luther King Jr. Day. In a perverse coincidence, it’s also the day that a white supremacist will be inaugurated president of the country.

To kick off the anti-Trump movement, at 11 a.m. that day, when Trump begins his swearing in, thousands will gather in Federal Plaza in Chicago to protest his agenda.

The January 20th Coalition lists 72 endorsers, but one of those endorsers is the Illinois Coalition for Immigrant and Refugee Rights, with over 100 organizational members. Another endorser is Consejo de Resistencia pro Inmigrante (Pro-Immigrant Resistance Council), which gathers another 40 organizations, mostly Mexican and Central American community organizations.

The demands of the protest are: Stop the Trump Agenda; Defend and Expand Immigrant Rights; Legalization for All; Stand with Palestine; Defend the Right to Unionize and Strike; Stop Police Crimes; Defend Women’s LGBTQIA+ and Reproductive Rights; and Defend Education and Academic Freedom.

Nazek Sankari of the US Palestinian Community Network noted, “We have organizations representing the Black liberation movement, immigrant rights groups, labor rights, anti-war groups, Palestinian groups, voting rights, and environmental groups.”

Solidarity among organizations representing the many fronts of people’s struggles is exactly what is needed to stand up to the attacks coming at us from Trump and his billionaire backers.

#ChicagoIL #IL #Trump #J20 #ImmigrantRights #PeoplesStruggles #Feature

Trump está a punto de asumir el cargo en su inauguración en Washington, D.C., el 20 de enero. Desde expansiones absurdas de territorios, hasta desafiar la ciudadanía natal protegida por la constitución, ya sus declaraciones escandalosas vienen una tras otra. Aunque parte de esto sin duda pretende animar los elementos más reaccionarios de su base, su retórica incendiaria contiene amenazas reales y materiales. Trump y su cúpula de billonarios intolerantes y tontos harán todo lo posible para cumplir su agenda opresiva y reaccionaria. Un vistazo a sus nombramientos para la administración entrante es un anticipo del desastre que seguramente vendrá. El mensaje es claro — las grandes empresas vienen primero; el planeta y el pueblo vienen al final.

Es crucial que las organizaciones que representan los diversos frentes de las luchas del pueblo hagan un llamamiento a las movilizaciones. Sabemos que Trump viene por nuestros movimientos — a través de ataques a la inmigración, retrocesos de derechos democráticos, agresiones a protecciones vitales, y ataques a la libertad de expresión, ya sea en los campus o en cualquier otro lugar. Más de un millón de personas en los Estados Unidos viven bajo el Estatus de Protección Temporal, y las políticas de Trump, junto con las deportaciones a gran escala, constituyen una parte de un ataque amplio y agudo a los inmigrantes. Su agenda amenaza otras áreas críticas, incluyendo el acceso a atención médica vital, los derechos LGBTQ y los derechos de las mujeres. En su primer mandato, Trump atacó los derechos de los trabajadores federales y dificultó la organización de los trabajadores al hacer nombramientos anti-laborales en la Junta Nacional de Relaciones Laborales, y no hay razón para pensar que actuará de manera diferente en este mandato. Los ataques en un área preparan el terreno para ataques en otras. Hay demasiado en riesgo, y nuestra mejor defensa es construir el frente más amplio posible contra la agenda reaccionaria de Trump.

No tenemos ninguna ilusión de que Trump ponga fin al genocidio en Gaza. Los EE. UU. sigue enviando miles de millones en forma de armas al régimen sionista, incluyendo un reciente paquete de $8 mil millones, y Trump no ha dado ninguna indicación de que este flujo de dinero de sangre se detendrá. Mientras los capitalistas monopolistas se están enriqueciendo con esta guerra genocida, la resistencia palestina y sus aliados continúan su lucha heroica contra la ocupación sionista. Estamos en solidaridad absoluta con su lucha. Durante el año pasado, masivas movilizaciones por Palestina han demostrado que no vamos a rendirnos — exigimos el fin de la ayuda de los Estados Unidos a Israel y el fin del genocidio.

Con todos los desafíos por delante, es natural que algunas personas quieran retirarse y callarse. Pero el silencio no nos salvará — la solidaridad lo hará. Ahora es el momento de ser atrevidos, defender nuestras comunidades y sindicatos, y traer con nosotros a la mayor cantidad de nuevos luchadores posibles mientras trabajamos para construir el movimiento revolucionario. El Día de la Inauguración marcará el inicio de un nuevo período de lucha, así que el 20 de enero, ¡digamos no a la agenda de Trump y únete a nosotros en las calles!

¡Únete a la OSCL para construir juntos el movimiento contra Trump!

#PeoplesStruggles #ImmigrantRights #Trump #FRSO #OSCL #Statement

Trump is set to take office at his inauguration in Washington, D.C., on January 20th. From nonsense expansionist land-grabs, to challenging constitutionally protected birthright citizenship, already his outrageous statements come one after another. While some of this is undoubtedly blustering meant to embolden the most reactionary elements of his base, his incendiary rhetoric contains real, material threats. Trump and his thunderdome of billionaire bigots and fools will make every effort at their disposal to pursue their oppressive, reactionary agenda. A look at his appointments to the incoming administration is a preview of the mess that’s sure to come. The message is clear—big business will come first; the planet and the people will come last.

It is critical that organizations representing the many fronts of people’s struggles call for mobilizations. We know Trump is coming for our movements—through attacks on immigration, rollbacks of democratic rights, and assaults on life-saving protections, and attacks on free speech, on campus or otherwise. Over a million people in the U.S. live under Temporary Protected Status, and Trump’s policies, alongside mass-scale deportations, constitute part of a sharp, broad attack on immigrants. His agenda threatens other critical areas, including access to lifesaving healthcare, LGBTQ rights, and women’s rights. In his first term, Trump attacked the rights of federal workers and made it harder for all workers to organize by making anti-labor appointments to the National Labor Relations Board, and there is no reason to think he will do any differently this term. Attacks in one area pave the way for attacks on others. There’s too much at stake, and our best defense is to build the broadest possible front against Trump’s reactionary agenda.

We’re under no illusions that Trump will put an end to the genocide in Gaza. The U.S. continues to send billions in weapons to the Zionist regime, including a recent $8 billion package, and Trump has given no indication that this flow of blood money will stop. While monopoly capitalists are getting rich off of this genocidal war, the Palestinian resistance and its allies are continuing their heroic fight against Zionist occupation. We stand in full solidarity with their struggle. Over the past year, massive mobilizations for Palestine have shown that we’re not backing down—we demand an end to U.S. aid to Israel and an end to the genocide.

With all the challenges ahead, it’s natural that some people will want to retreat and quiet down. But silence won’t save us—solidarity will. Now is the time to be bold, defend our communities and unions, bring as many new fighters alongside us as we can as we work to build the revolutionary movement. Inauguration day will mark the beginning of a new period of struggle, and on January 20th, say no to Trump’s agenda and join us in the streets!

Join the FRSO to build the movement against Trump together!

#PeoplesStruggles #Trump #FRSO #Statement #J20 #Feature

Los Angeles, CA – Fires in Los Angeles caught many neighborhoods completely off guard, despite forecasts predicting life threatening winds reaching up to 100 mph in the mountain and valley areas. Late at night on Tuesday, January 7, residents watched flames engulf the Pacific Palisades and Eaton Canyon. Many residents within the city lost power and internet service, and power lines and traffic lights collapsed as wind gusts grew intense.

In the morning of January 8, residents in all of LA awoke to ash covering vehicles, homes, streets and buildings. The intense stench of smoke filled the air and turned the sunrise sky a deep orange. Still, no alert went out to Los Angeles Unified School District (LAUSD) students about school closures. So, the bus drivers picked the students up and took them to school.

“The district was slow to act!” said Luis Sifuentes, an LAUSD school bus driver, “My eyes stung in the morning as I checked out my bus. Students arrived at school in the morning only for them to be in the auditorium until parents came and picked them up. It was a chaotic situation; they should’ve shut down the schools when the fires started.”

It wasn’t until about 10 a.m. that schoolteachers were notified that parents should pick up their students immediately from school. Panic set in and parents rushed to pick up their children.

“I actually didn’t send them to school at all,” says Jazmine Moreno, single mother of two LAUSD students. “I knew since this morning that it was going to end up happening this way. LAUSD is notorious for trying to push for a regular school day and then deciding halfway through the day that they want to dismiss the kids. They have no consideration for the health or wellbeing of the students or single, working parents who would have to leave work to pick kids up at the drop of a dime.”

LAUSD has notified parents that schools will remain closed for all of January 9 and to continue checking the school alerts for when classes will resume.

The fires have caused over 27,000 acres of devastation, over 70,000 to vacate and abandon their homes, and five known casualties. Fire departments from all over California and other states have trekked to southern California, in an attempt to help contain the wildfires. Unfortunately, 0% have been contained.

#LosAngelesLA #LA #PeoplesStruggles #Environment #Wildfires #Feature

Fight Back News Service is circulating the following statement from Frank Chapman, National Alliance Against Racist and Political Repression executive director, on the present political landscape, and the need for the people’s organizations to rally towards an all-out mobilization on January 20. NAARPR branches and affiliates across the country should join up with the call to fight back against Trump’s agenda and show out for Inauguration Day!

Statement on Trump’s victory and need to protest January 20

In all of the post-election analysis and armchair commentaries, there emerges a fundamental truth, and that truth is that both parties are controlled and managed by the rich. Meaning that the people are left with the best election money can buy.

The genocidal war against Gaza perpetrated by Israel demonstrated more than any other issues that when it comes to U.S. imperialism there is no difference between Democrats and Republicans that makes a difference. In terms of warmongering rhetoric, the parties are united.

The Gaza genocidal war was a double edge sword. Perhaps this explains why the margin of victory was such a small percentage. Given this perspective, we do not see Trump’s victory as indicative of the people giving the far right a mandate. On the contrary we see his victory as a manifestation of the fact that the Democrats with respect to foreign and domestic policies have made a right turn. This is particularly evident when it comes to racist and political repression.

The Biden administration did nothing to end police repression, the George Floyd Bill did not move. The late Congressman John Lewis’s Bill on Voting Rights is crickets in the House. The federal death row prisoners continue to seek justice in vain. And pleas for any justice for America’s longest political prisoner Leonard Peltier have fallen on deaf ears. Although Biden has pardoned many convicted felons who were corrupt and clearly guilty, like corrupt Ohio County Commissioner Jimmy Dimora and infamous tax cheat Paul Daugerdas. And last but not least, Biden was indifferent to all demands raised by the immigrant rights movement, and continued to allow families to be separated with repression and detention at the border.

So every section of the people’s movement has been targeted by the incoming Trump administration. The agenda has been clearly and unequivocally set forth to increase political repression in regards to Black and brown people and all oppressed people, with regard to women and the LGBTQ+ movement, and particularly with regard to the immigration rights movement.

The opening shot in this war against the people is going to be fired at the immigration rights movement, with Trump declaring that on his first day in office, he will proceed to order, command, and force the deportation of millions of immigrants, including entire families. Him and the incoming administration have projected that anybody resisting these measures, including elected officials such as Mayors and Governors, will be arrested, or confronted in ways not yet revealed. In particular, the Mayor of Chicago has been targeted because Chicago is a Sanctuary City and has a declared position that they will not comply with this policy of mass deportation.

So, while our struggle must continue to build resistance to police crimes, mass incarceration, suppression of the rights of Black and brown people to vote, and the freeing of the wrongfully convicted and political prisoners, that first line of battle coming up in the immediate future on January 20 is to join with and help mobilize and muster all democratic forces to stand up against these proposed mass deportations and to make it clear that on this front and every other front of the people’s struggle, we’re dedicated to organizing and defeating Trump’s reactionary agenda, and all of the policies that flow from it.

All of our branches, affiliates, and supporters should bring out all hands on deck to build for January 20 protests across the country!

#InJusticeSystem #PeoplesStruggles #NAARPR #Trump #J20

Fight Back News Service is circulating the following call from New Students for a Democratic Society (SDS).

As the first step of our national campaign to defeat Trump, National SDS is calling for a national week of action during the week of Trump’s inauguration, from November 20th through November 24th. SDS invites other student organizations and groups to protest the week of January 20th. National SDS encourages our chapters to take up campaigns against Trump’s policies and attacks on education and to demand that their campuses shut down Trump’s agenda. We will be rallying to say, “Defeat Trump’s Agenda!”

Donald Trump is pushing a right-wing agenda that will attack students and our right to an education. His appointment of Linda McMahon as the Secretary of Education is his first step to closing the Department of Education in order to privatize education; this means tanking the quality of public schools in order to deprive them of enrolled students, closing them, and then diverting taxpayer dollars instead to for-profit schools run by or invested in by Wall Street billionaires, including Trump’s former Secretary of Education Betsy DeVos. Grades kindergarten through 12th grade, once free, will now become a luxury and be put up, expensively, for sale.

During Trump’s last presidency, he levied attacks on education and diversity in education, rescinding Deferred Action of Childhood Arrivals (DACA), appointing conservative/right wing justices to the Supreme Court who overturned affirmative action, and more. He fueled bills to ban abortion and he attacked women’s and reproductive rights everywhere. He carried out deportations, the construction of the US-Mexico border wall, and instituted a ban of immigration to and from Muslim-majority countries. This time around, Trump has made new threats to the student movement, particularly the students who stand with Palestine.

This vindicates the continued need to unite our campuses to carry out National SDS’s campaign to defend free speech. University administrators have been ignoring students’ demands to divest from Israeli apartheid and the genocide of the people in Gaza, and student activists have been hit with suspensions, expulsions, and more, and Trump only promises to deepen this repression further. We invite all student groups and students to join us in protesting Trump and defending free speech on campus.

Trump’s plan to close the Department of Education will restrict education access to the working class and Black, Chicano, and Latino students. Closing the Department of Education would end federal grants, student loans, Title 9 protections for women and LGBTQ+ students, special education programs and protections, English for Speakers of Other Languages programs, resources for students with disabilities, and it would end the enforcement of civil rights and Title VI, which allows for the investigation of racist discrimination in schools. Education would become accessible to the rich and white and no one else. Everyone deserves equal access to education, thus we must fight to defend public education.

SDS demands that university administrators DEFY Trump's attacks on students and education. Universities need to do the right thing by upholding and protecting DEI programs, Ethnic Studies, GWSS departments, LGBTQ+ rights and programs, and increasing enrollment of Black, Chicano and Latino, undocumented students, and Native students. We also demand administrators do not hand over sensitive information about trans or immigrant students. We call on schools to not comply with book bans, bans on students going by the right pronouns or to the right bathrooms, or discipline for parents and teachers who support queer students.

All students have a right to an education that is meaningful and accessible to them, one that meets their academic and cultural needs. No compliance with Trump is the only acceptable option for administrators. If administrations do comply with Trump, SDS’s calls on all of our chapters, non- SDS affiliated student groups, and students at large to defend education and students’ rights by rising up and shutting down campuses across the country.

Fight Trump's Agenda!

No More Deportations!

Defend Education!

Protect Free Speech & Academic Freedom!

Fight for Women’s and Reproductive Rights!

Defend LGBTQ+ youth!

Stand With Palestine!

#StudentMovement #PeoplesStruggles #Trump #SDS #J20