Page 23 - Workers World News Today

Unequal justice in Philadelphia By Betsey Piette posted on July 14, 2021 Fishtown residents raised fists in solidarity with country-wide protests against the death of George Floyd at the hands of police. (Kimberly Paynter/WHYY) Philadelphia As protests over the police murder of George Floyd engulfed the U.S. in spring 2020, in Philadelphia two polar-opposite demonstrations took place.  On the afternoon of June 1, thousands of demonstrators protesting police brutality spilled onto the I-676 h...

President Biden is under intense pressure from activists around the country to abolish the federal death penalty after a state-sanctioned bloodbath marked the end of his predecessor’s first and only term. President Donald Trump went on a killing spree and had 13 people legally lynched in the last six months of his presidency between July 2020 and January 2021. Prior to those executions, there had not been a federal execution since 2003. Protesters march on the Texas State Capitol building at ...

U.N. vote and car caravan for Cuba By Bill Sacks New York City Of the 39 countries on which the U.S. imposes deadly economic and financial sanctions, the longest and most onerous sanctions have been imposed on Cuba through a 60-year blockade. And while Cuba, in defiance of the blockade, has survived and even thrived by establishing a countrywide free health care and educational system, the blockade has caused severe shortages in food, fuel and medical supplies on the island.  In the face of t...

Philadelphia: March against Israeli apartheid By Betsey Piette posted on July 13, 2021 Hundreds of people carrying Palestinian flags, protest signs and banners gathered at City Hall for a March Against Israeli Apartheid July 10.  A spirited march up the Benjamin Franklin Parkway to the Art Museum followed, with speakers on a sound truck leading chants the entire route. One popular chant was “We don’t want your ‘two states,’ we want all of ‘48” in reference to Palestinian territor...

‘Say her name: Sandra Bland’ By Betsey Piette posted on July 9, 2021 July 10 marks the sixth anniversary of the day when Sandra Bland was pulled over while driving to a new job at Prairie View A&M University, a historically Black university near Houston. Texas State Trooper Brian Encinia stopped her for allegedly failing to signal a lane change. Police dashcam footage showed that he had tailgated Bland until she was forced to change lanes to let him pass. Sandra Bland The traffic stop qui...

Abuse continues as Texas repurposes prison for ICE detention By Mirinda Crissman posted on July 7, 2021 by Kim Dinh for Justeseeds.org Houston On July 16, by order of Texas Governor Greg Abbott, the state Department of Criminal Justice (TDCJ) began clearing incarcerated people from the Dolph Briscoe Unit in Dilley. But the order did not mandate release of any people or the closing of the prison. Instead, under “Operation Lone Star,” the facility was cleared to be reused for holding migran...

Rally: Free Mumia and all political prisoners A 16-foot puppet of Mumia Abu-Jamal greeted participants and passersby July 3 at a rally: “In the spirit of Consuewella Africa! We must all MOVE to Free Mumia Abu-Jamal & All Political Prisoners.” On July 3, 1982, political prisoner Abu-Jamal was given a death sentence by Judge Albert Sabo. Annual demonstrations in Philadelphia have marked this date. Activists gather July 3 around Mumia puppet at former site of the removed Frank Rizzo statue. T...

U.S. out of Afghanistan By John Catalinotto posted on July 5, 2021 The Pentagon withdrew its forces from Bagram Air Field in Kabul July 2. Corporate media presented this event as an irreversible step in Washington’s departure from the nearly 20-year-old occupation of Afghanistan. Some 650 U.S. troops still guard the U.S. Embassy, and there are many thousands of “contractors” — mercenaries — but many Afghans will see the U.S. departure as guaranteeing a victory for the Taliban-led re...

Emancipation Day in Rhode Island Activists from the Black community gathered in Providence, R.I., June 19, with allies to commemorate Emancipation Day, also known as Juneteenth. The diverse event was organized by Direct Action for Rights and Equality (DARE) which has long-standing roots in the community grounded in political action. From left: Susan Mortimer, Solidarity with the Incarcerated RI/MA; John Prince, Behind the Wall; Martha Yager, DARE; mYia X, Workers World Party. Photo Credit: Deb...

Pakistan: Corporate and state terror drives forced displacement By Tania Siddiqi posted on July 1, 2021 Protesters denounce Bahria Town Karachi destruction of Indigenous peoples’ villages. Karachi — On June 6, the Sindh Action Committee organized a protest and sit-in to draw attention to the systematic and continuous violence that Bahria Town Karachi (BTK) inflicted on Indigenous peoples. Dawn reports that up to 10,000 protesters demonstrated outside of BTK’s main entrance gate, condemn...