Skip to content

#BlackLivesMatter

#BlackLivesMatter Interrupts Capitol Hill Lunch

January 25, 2015 Christine Conetta and Dana Liebelson, www.huffingtonpost.com , , ,
Protesters interrupted lunch in a Capitol Hill cafeteria Wednesday, holding a "die-in" to honor Michael Brown, an unarmed black teenager who was killed by police in Ferguson, Missouri, last summer. About 50 protesters congregated in a U.S. House of Representatives office cafeteria in Washington, D.C., chanting "Black Lives Matter" and taking over the space in front of the cash registers. They held signs reading "outlaw racial profiling" and "stop jump outs" and stayed on the floor for about four and a half minutes, recalling the four and a half hours that Brown's body remained face down in the street after he was shot. The protesters included Jewish, Christian and Muslim clergy and people of faith.

Protesters Interrupt Alabama Governor’s Inauguration

January 23, 2015 Staff, www.PopularResistance.org , , , , ,
A group of citizens from Selma, Montgomery, and other cities and towns from around the state of Alabama interrupted Governor Robert Bentley’s inauguration address to sing “We Shall Overcome” and chant ‪#‎BlackLivesMatter‬. The protest was organized by the Montgomery group Birthplace For Justice. “In Montgomery, the birthplace of the Civil Rights Movement, we’ve been far too quiet in seeking justice in our communities and in this country,” said Michael Eric Grant, a spokesman for the group. “We protested today because in addition to it being the inauguration, it’s Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Day. We’re fighting to keep his dream of unity and justice alive. We hope that Governor Bentley will carry out his oath to office with a similar commitment.” “The only normalcy that we will settle for is the normalcy of brotherhood, the normalcy of true peace, the normalcy of justice.” -- Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., Address at the Conclusion of the Selma to Montgomery March, 1965

How Boston Activists Shut Down I-93

January 17, 2015 Staff, www.PopularResistance.org , , , ,
Activists protesting what they call "police and state violence against black people" chained themselves to concrete-filled barrels and blocked a busy Boston-area highway at the height of the Thursday morning commute. The protesters north of the city chained themselves together using plastic pipes. A total of 29 people were arrested at the two protest sites. A statement explaining the protest: "In the past 15 years, law enforcement officers in Boston have killed Remis M. Andrews, Darryl Dookhran, Denis Reynoso, Ross Baptista, Burrell “Bo” Ramsey-White, Mark Joseph McMullen, Manuel “Junior” DaVeiga, Marquis Barker, Stanley Seney, Luis Gonzalez, Bert W. Bowen, Eveline Barros-Cepeda, Daniel Furtado, LaVeta Jackson, Nelson Santiago, Willie L. Murray Jr., Rene Romain, Jose Pineda, Ricky Bodden, Carlos M. Garcia, and many more people of color. We mourn and honor all these lives. We must remember, Ferguson is not a faraway Southern city. Black men, women, and gender-nonconforming people face disproportionately higher risk of profiling, unjust incarceration, and death. Police violence is everywhere in the United States. A comment on the inconvenience " Disruptions are temporary. Structural racism in this country is ever-present. These disruptions don’t occur in a vacuum. Context informs them. To get that many people to disrupt life all across America means that the legal, less risky channels for addressing one’s grievances have been exhausted.

#ReclaimMLK Protests Begin On Rev. King’s Real Birthday

January 15, 2015 Staff, www.PopularResisitance.org , , , , , ,
The #BlackLivesMatter movement is seeking to reclaim the legacy of Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr in protests across the nation with the hash tag #ReclaimMLK. People are not focusing on his "I Have a Dream" speech but instead on his challenge to the United States as the "greatest purveyor of violence in the world" as well as his criticism of capitalism. When King was murdered he was preparing to lead an occupation of Washington, DC -- Resurrection City -- as part of the Poor People's Campaign. King had already shown himself to be a powerful organizer and mobilizer of people in the Civil Rights movement, but at the end of his life he had taken on other big causes and was mobilizing people to challenge capitalism and militarism. Since his death both of those issues have gotten worse and much of the world and many thousands in the United States are organizing to challenge them. King described three interlocking evils: "the sickness of racism, excessive materialism and militarism."

Protesters Defy Ban On Die-Ins In Grand Central Station

January 14, 2015 Zishun Ning, www.indypendent.orrg , , , ,
#BlackLivesMatter protesters have been doing events in Grand Central Station in New York on a regular basis. After they held a successful 24 our vigil #CarryTheNames which included putting the names of those killed by police violence on the floor of the station, police announced there would be no more die-ins or putting names on the floor -- such actions were prohibited. When this occurred we asked out loud what would the #BlackLivesMatter campaign do? Would they accept this? We're pleased to report they are continuing to stand up, exercise their rights and raise the consciousness of thousands. In defiance of the recently issued MTA ban on die-in protests at Grand Central Terminal, protestors held another demonstration in the main concourse on Monday to demand justice for unarmed black men killed by police. Although two protestors were arrested at a similar demonstration in Grand Central six days earlier, no arrests were made during Monday's protest. However, the stations loudspeaker repeatedly warned: "Lying on the floor, platform, stairs or landing is prohibited." Check out the video below.

Coffins Brought To DC Police To Protest Police Killings

January 13, 2015 Kevin Zeese, www.PopularResistance.org , , , , , ,
The Washington, DC based Hands Up Coalition DC along with Witness Against Torture delivered coffins at its weekly 'Justice Monday Vigil' to the US Department of Justice and the DC Metro Police Headquarters on January 12, 4:00 PM. The two groups brought coffins marking the deaths of three African-Americans killed by police to the doors of the Justice Department. The coffins highlighted the deaths of two mentally ill African Americans recently killed in police custody, Tanisha Anderson and Matthew Ajibade. The protest honored the life of unarmed Emmanuel Okutuga killed by police. After marching and rallying at the US Department of Justice the groups marched to the DC Metropolitan Police Headquarters. Members of Witness Against Torture went inside the building and obstructed the entrance 28 minutes, in recognition that a person of color is killed by police or vigilantes every 28 hours in the United States. They recited the names of dozens of victims of police violence and spoke the words of men indefinitely detained in Guantánamo Bay calling for justice. Activists from the Hands Up Coalition DC stood outside chanting and singing.

#BlackLivesMatter Stops Commuter Train Before Game

January 11, 2015 Staff, www.revolution-news.com , , ,
Dedham, MA — Activists from across New England delayed an MBTA commuter rail train at the Dedham, MA station traveling to the New England Patriots game in order to interrupt “recreation as usual.” This peaceful demonstration was organized to continue lifting up the message of the Black Lives Matter movement and in honor of the “2015 Year of Resistance.” Organized by a diverse group of white, non-black people of color, and black activists, the action was meant to highlight white complicity that allows police and state violence to be carried out against Black people. “As white allies, we are taking direct action to challenge white supremacy and amplify the demands for an end to the war on Black communities across the county,” said one of the organizers, Mallory Hanora of Boston, MA.

Police Reform Advocates Will Disrupt Opening Of MD Legislature

January 11, 2015 Jaisal Noor, www.therealnews.com , , , ,
DAYVON LOVE, DIRECTOR, RESEARCH AND PUBLIC POLICY LEADERS OF A BEAUTIFUL STRUGGLE: So next Thursday, January 15, there's going to be a mass demonstration. It's going to be at ten o'clock in Annapolis. There are going to be buses that leave from Baltimore at 8 a.m., one on the east side, one on the west side, so one at Mondawmin, one from Alameda Shopping Center. The point of the demonstration is to provide force behind legislative changes around the issues of police brutality and other issues that affect people most directly affected by racism and white supremacy, poverty, etc. And so that's really the plan, where our hope is is that this can send a message to legislators who will likely be influenced by law enforcement's powerful lobby.

Cleveland Public Safety Dept Official Resigns Over Tamir Rice Killing

January 11, 2015 Reagan Ali for Counter Current News, www.mintpressnews.com , , , , , ,
In a resignation letter obtained by the Northeast Ohio Media Group, dated December 17th, former fiscal manager Shawn Gidley explained that he once believed that his job “was making the City of Cleveland a better place to live.” The City of Cleveland’s fiscal manager for the Public Safety Department has just issued his resignation, citing his inability to work for a city that refuses to prosecute Officer Timothy Loehmann. Loehmann fatally shot 12-year-old Tamir Rice on November 22nd of last year. Tamir had been “armed” only with a toy BB-gun, and had never aimed it at the officer who virtually shot him on sight, in spite of the 911 caller stating repeatedly that Rice was a juvenile and that the “gun” was likely a toy. In a resignation letter obtained by the Northeast Ohio Media Group, dated December 17th, former fiscal manager Shawn Gidley explained that he once believed that his job “was making the City of Cleveland a better place to live.” Gidley explains that the shooting of Tamir Rice, and the refusal of the City of Cleveland to prosecute him, as well as “years of mismanagement, poor leadership and improper training in the Public Safety Department” led to his disillusionment with the city administration and have “ended with a child paying the ultimate price.”

#BlackLivesMatter Movement Urges Net Neutrality

January 11, 2015 Matt Sledge, www.huffingtonpost.com , , ,
Police reform organizers traveled to Capitol Hill and the Federal Communications Commission on Friday to push for open access to the Internet, which they say is an increasingly vital organizing tool in the wake of the controversial deaths of Trayvon Martin and Michael Brown. The delegation met with black members of Congress including Rep. John Lewis (D-Ga.) and Hakeem Jeffries (D-N.Y.). They also met with one commissioner and staffers from the FCC, which will decide in February whether to classify broadband Internet as a public utility, a step that could prevent broadband companies from charging for priority access to their customers. "We were founded clearly in response to the murder of Trayvon Martin, on the key premise of the failure of the media to adequately report on the murder," said Dante Barry, the director of the group Million Hoodies. "If we don't have access to open Internet, and we don't have net neutrality, then it limits the ability for black people to save themselves." The organizers met with FCC Commissioner Mignon Clyburn and staffers for Chairman Tom Wheeler and Jessica Rosenworcel, the three Democratic-appointed members of the commission.

#CarryTheNames 24 Hour Vigil In Grand Central Station

January 7, 2015 Staff, www.PopularResistance.org , , , , , , ,
Participants called it a "beautiful action" -- a 24 hour vigil in Grand Central Station in New York City where people carried the names of those who have been killed in police violence. "We #CarryTheNames--reading the names and stories of some of the many killed over the years because of racism. Vinie Burrows came and read a Langston Hughes poem. Dragonfly sat in the middle of the signs with all the names and sang. We marched around the information booth singing 'I can hear my brother crying, 'I can't breathe.'" The Village Voice reports on Rev. Billy Talen being arrested after 18 hours of the protest: According to a police spokeswoman, Talen was told to remove signs placed on the floor that could be a hazard to commuters walking by. After an officer tried to take one of the signs, police said, Talen pushed the officer. He was arrested with charges of obstructing governmental administration and disorderly conduct shortly after 12:30 p.m. Talen was the only person at the protest who was arrested. . . The vigil had gone on peacefully for eighteen hours before the arrest, and Savitri said she's glad the arrest didn't stop the protest, which continued until 5 p.m. "This is a First Amendment violation," she says. "And it's terrible, because it keeps us from talking about the lives being taken by police." Talen is expected to spend the night in "The Tombs."

Time To Stand Up To The NYPD

January 4, 2015 Kevin Zeese, www.PopularResistance.org , , , , , , , , , ,
What kind of relationship do communities and individuals want to have with the police? Do police want the respect of the communities and people they serve? How does a city create a vision for the type of policing it wants to see and then achieve it? Unfortunately, the NYPD union leadership seems committed to making things worse. Patrick Lynch has threatened “When these funerals are over, those responsible will be called on the carpet and held accountable.” What does that mean? Is he threatening a police coup of city government? Leaked emails and comments in chat rooms show that the NYPD is working with GOP politicians to continue to escalate protests in order to remove de Blasio from office. De Blasio should not back down. The public is with the mayor because they know there are serious problems within the NYPD. He should escalate his efforts for positive police reforms. It is time to talk about an era of community control of policing where structures are put in place that give the community power in their relationship with police.

Die-Ins Breathe Life Into Antiracism Uprising

January 4, 2015 Pam McCallister, www.activistswithattitude.com , , , ,
Last year, inspired by a massive cyclists’ die-in in Amsterdam in the 1970s, 1,000 cyclists staged a die-in in London to call attention to the need for improved road safety. They were asked “to lie on the pavement with your bicycles, turn on your lights and let them flash in the memories of people killed and injured in the last eight years.”Die-ins are a more recent variation. One of the earliest took place on the first Earth Day, April 22, 1970, when Harvard Ecology Action sponsored a die-in at Logan International Airport to protest environmental pollution. In May 1970, 150 demonstrators staged a silent “die-in” in Seattle to protest the shipping of nerve gas through Washington state. In 1981, on International Women’s Day, 3,000 women in Ramstien, West Germany lay down in front of a NATO airbase to simulate the effect of a nuclear attack.

Newsletter: 2015, The Year We Build Power Together

January 2, 2015 Kevin Zeese and Margaret Flowers, www.PopularResistance.org , , , , , , , , , ,
“2015 The Year We Build Power Together” is the major task we see for the movement this year. In 2014 we saw tremendous growth of the movement across numerous fronts of struggle – worker rights and the wages, racism and policing, climate, the environment and extreme energy extraction, building a new economy and so much more. We also saw how uniting and working in solidarity is a foundational requirement for success. “Building power together” means building on the 2014 successes of creating a larger and bolder movement that is beginning to work together as a movement of movements and recognizes that we are building our unified power because all of our issues are connected. If the people defeat transnational corporate power in the first big confrontation of 2015, we will be on our way to making 2015 the year we built our power together. We will be freed to create the world in which we want to live and one that increases the chances of a livable future.

From Ferguson To New York, Women Are Leading Protests

December 17, 2014 Hannah Giorgis, www.theguardian.com , , ,
Saturday afternoon in New York, a diverse crowd of over 50,000 people marched through the city expressing frustration with a system that continues to let black die people without justice. The Millions March NYC, characterized as much by deep affirmation of black life as collective outrage over that injustice, brought together people of all backgrounds to protest ongoing state violence. But the latest successful moment of the post-Ferguson movement wasn’t the work of an established civil rights organization or well-funded non-profit: like the protests and organizing in Missouri and beyond, it was driven chiefly by the efforts of young black women and brought to fruition by a coalition of young multi-racial activists. Umaara Elliott and Synead Nichols, the lead organizers of Saturday’s march noted that they are part of a new generation of activists “willing to take up the torch” and “demand that action be taken at every level of government to ensure that these racist killings by the police cease.”
«12345678910»
assetto corsa mods

Urgent End Of Year Fundraising Campaign

Online donations are back! Keep independent media alive. 

Due to the attacks on our fiscal sponsor, we were unable to raise funds online for nearly two years.  As the bills pile up, your help is needed now to cover the monthly costs of operating Popular Resistance.

Donate Here

Urgent End Of Year Fundraising Campaign

Online donations are back! 

Keep independent media alive. 

Due to the attacks on our fiscal sponsor, we were unable to raise funds online for nearly two years.  As the bills pile up, your help is needed now to cover the monthly costs of operating Popular Resistance.

Donate Here
Sign Up To Our Daily Digest

Independent media outlets are being suppressed and dropped by corporations like Google, Facebook and Twitter. Sign up for our daily email digest before it’s too late so you don’t miss the latest movement news.