Download .pdf leaflet
Download .pdf leaflet (Bay Area, California)
Download .pdf leaflet (Baltimore, Maryland)
Download .pdf leaflet (The Triangle, North Carolina)
No Military Occupation of Our Cities!
The Trump regime has declared open war on our cities. First it was Los Angeles, with ICE swooping in with heavily armed masked agents to abduct day laborers and people working in a garment factory. People responded to the arrests and the confrontations escalated. Trump then used this as an excuse to order the California National Guard and a unit of Marines into L.A. – supposedly to defend ICE agents.
Now Trump is claiming there is rampant crime in cities across the U.S. Those cities all have Black Democratic mayors. Crime in most of those cities has actually declined. The latest attack is on Washington, D.C., which has ICE agents and 2,300 National Guard occupying the city. And now more than 100 FBI agents are on night patrols. They are running traffic checkpoints and harassing, terrorizing, and arresting people in their neighborhoods. In the first month, around 2,000 people were arrested. Close to 20% were released without charges. Chicago and New Orleans are named as the next targets. Trump’s goal is to normalize the presence of troops on our streets, whether ICE with their uncontrolled thuggish behavior, the National Guard, or the U.S. military.
Trump and his supporters claim that this is an effort to make cities safe. Safe for whom? Certainly not the people of Washington, D.C., who are now more fearful of walking or driving in their own city. Of course, there is crime in resource-starved U.S. cities, which offer few prospects for many of the people who live in them – quite often Black and brown people. Does the desperation of being surrounded by endless poverty push some people, especially young people, into criminal activity? Of course.
But the real criminals are in the White House and the corporate board rooms. They are the ones who have normalized poverty, unemployment, and low wage jobs; an underfunded and inadequate educational system; inferior medical care; inadequate housing and homelessness. Trump is their man – their autocratic strongman. He sees no limits as long as it benefits him, and the billionaires he represents receive tax breaks, government contracts, and subsidies.
Those in power understand that there could be a response to the massive cuts to federal, state and local programs. This show of military force is meant to intimidate us. They want us to believe that we cannot have a say in the running of our lives. But people around the country have begun to say “No.” We have seen opposition growing. The Democrats have also seen this and will try to convince people that the solution lies in the 2026 elections. They have nothing to offer other than their speeches and lawsuits. We should not look to them.
The day Trump was inaugurated there were protests everywhere. And they have continued: at Tesla dealerships when Trump brought Elon Musk on board to trash government agencies and fire federal workers, at National Parks and government offices, and street corners. People have gone to immigration courts to monitor and sometimes block ICE when they try to snatch people who are attending court hearings to gain legal status. When Trump had his poorly attended, militarized birthday celebration in D.C., more than five million people demonstrated that day – “No Kings Day.” This past Labor Day there were more than 1,000 rallies and gatherings across the country.
Healthcare workers are organizing to protect their patients and teachers are organizing to protect their students from ICE invasions of clinics, hospitals and schools. In Washington, D.C., people are setting up night patrols to monitor and record the actions of ICE. Veterans’ groups are forming to talk to members of the National Guard about their right not to violate the law.
When working people across the country begin to overcome the fear mongering by the politicians, many more possibilities will open up. When we see our common needs, and our potential strength if we unite together, a different future is possible. Each one of us has a role to play. We have waited long enough. Now is the time to organize and fight back.
The Triangle, North Carolina: Students Walk Out Against Cuts to Schools
Hundreds of students have walked out in multiple days of protests against massive cuts to teachers and staff across Winston-Salem/Forsyth County Schools. The district cut 350 positions due to federal and state budget cuts, as well as results from a school district audit.
Chants of “Save our teachers!” and “Hands off our education!” rang out as students gathered on lawns and sidewalks outside of their middle and high schools. Signs read “Pick on someone your own pay grade,” and “WSFCS: you are punishing the wrong people”.
The students are right: there should be no cuts to teachers and staff. These are the essential people who make education function. These schools are 68% Black and Hispanic and are already underserved. This is a wealthy country and a wealthy state. Find the money and fund the schools.
Bay Area, California: Richest of the Rich & Most Unemployed
The mainstream media just announced that California, the fourth largest economy in the world, has the highest unemployment rate among states in the United States. California’s official unemployment rate (which doesn’t even count those who have given up looking for work) rose to 5.5% in July. This is not a surprise to Californians – every day we see this huge disparity of wealth. While some jet around and live in mega mansions, many are destitute and living on the streets. And many more of us are working multiple jobs just to pay the bills, and live in fear of a retirement without any savings.
This is the toughest job market in years, especially for new graduates and entry-level workers. And Trump’s federal layoffs, spending cuts and tariffs have started and more are looming. No one should be a billionaire when human beings are living destitute on the streets. Enough is enough!
Baltimore, Maryland: Another Murder of a Black Man in Police Custody
Baltimore’s medical examiner recently ruled that 31-year-old Dontae Melton Jr’s death in police custody was a homicide, but no officers have been charged. Ten years ago, Freddie Gray’s murder in police custody sparked a city-wide uprising, and the six cops were not convicted.
On June 24, Melton was begging the police for help with a mental health crisis. He was initially dismissed and later restrained in a dangerous position. When a medic was finally called, Baltimore’s ancient 911 system failed and medical assistance never arrived. Ten officers considered driving Melton to the hospital or going to find a medic at a nearby fire station, but instead stood around talking and laughing until Melton had been unconscious for 15 minutes.
Dontae Melton, a father of two, was failed by the system at every moment, from the failing 911 system, to the larger system that fails to fund it, to a culture of cruelty among the police that encourages them to watch a suffering man die.
Newark, New Jersey: Library Workers Win Improved Contract
Workers at Newark Public Library recently approved a three-year contract with small but real gains. Their starting salary will now be $37,160, up from $31,611. Depending on their tier, workers will receive at least a 15% pay increase and as much as a 28% increase over the course of the contract. Workers already above the new minimums will receive a 2.5% increase every year. While the small union local, AFSCME 2298, had demanded a starting salary of $40,000, many library workers view the new contract as a significant improvement.
This contract wasn’t given to them out of generosity. The workers organized and protested for their demands for 18 months. Although they wanted more, this small victory highlights the obvious: when workers organize effectively and take collective action, they usually make gains.
