Even though it is freezing outside, there is much to be done in the twin cities. If you are interested in getting involved with the avengers, we will be having new member meetings in January.
Wednesday, January 20th 7pm
Wednesday, January 27th 7pm
Sabathani Community Center
310 East 38th Street
****Please Forward Far & Wide****
Community Meeting Against Neo-Nazi Provocation in south Minneapolis
Wednesday, September 30, 2009 7:00 PM
Stewart Park Recreational Center
2700 12th Ave. S
Minneapolis, MN 55404
Defend Our Neighborhoods!
Defend Anti-Racist Organizing!
This Saturday, October 3rd, 2009, the neo-nazi National Socialist Movement
have threatened to demonstrate against an anti-racist workshop being held
at the YWCA on East Lake Street in Minneapolis. The NSM has declared the
anti-racist organizers “traitors” to white supremacy.
This provocation also has a wider goal: The NSM has been holding racist
anti-immigrant rallies in southern Minnesota, and now they are seeking to
establish a presence inside the City of Minneapolis. For years Minneapolis
has been a virtual “no-go” area for organized racist activity, due to the
efforts of young anti-racist organizers.
It is vital, especially in the wake of the racist attacks in Brooklyn Park
last week, that the nazis not go unopposed. They plan to bring their
racist, homophobic, anti-immigrant, antisemetic message of division and
hate right into the heart of the city. They must not go unopposed!
No to the Nazis!
Solidarity Against Racism!
One of the things the TC Avengers have been working on lately is support for the folks occupying Rosemary Williams’ south Minneapolis home.
For a ton of backstory on the situation, we recommend the related TC IndyMedia stories you can scroll through here.
This makes me unbearably angry.
From TC Indy Media:
Military spy outted in Olympia, WA antiwar/SDS/IWW groups
Spy for the US Military Exposed: Spent Last Two Years Spying on Activists
“John Jacob” was an activist well liked by many in Tacoma and Olympia, WA.
He was active in the anti-war and anarchist communities in both towns. He
did extensive work with the group Port Militarization Resistance (PMR)
which blocks military shipments to and from Iraq and Afghanistan through
Northwest ports.
–>
But some recent records requests done through the City of Olympia, asking
the City for any information on anarchists/anarchism/anarchy, SDS and the
radical union Industrial Workers of the World, surfaced an email from a
John J Towery II from Fort Lewis Force Protection with a daily force
protection update for Fort Lewis. Interested in this email and the name
attached to it, several activists did some research that eventually
confirmed the identity of “John Jacob” as John J Towery II.
Two anarchists met with John Towery after this information was confirmed.
By his own admission, John Towery spent the past two years spying on
anarchists, Iraq and Afghanistan War veterans, SDSers and anti-war
activists in Tacoma, Olympia and the Pacific Northwest. He admitted that
he reported to an intelligence network that included county sheriffs from
Pierce, Thurston and other WA counties, municipal police agencies from
Tacoma, Olympia, Seattle and elsewhere, WA State Police, the US Army, FBI,
Homeland Security, Joint Terrorism Task Force, and Immigration and Customs
Enforcement (ICE) Agency among other agencies.
John Towery further admitted he passed information on to the above listed
network of authorities about the activities of anarchists and PMR
activists. He admitted that the Tacoma Police placed a hidden camera on a
utility pole across the street from the anarchist social space Pitchpipe
Infoshop for surveillance purposes. John Towery mentioned that the Olympia
and Tacoma police were both planning on raiding the Pitchpipe Infoshop and
an activist house in Olympia and he claimed that they had repeatedly
approached him for any information that would give them a green light to
raid the houses. He also claimed to have knowledge of other informants
that were sent to spy on Port Militarization Resistance and anarchists in
Olympia, but refused to reveal their identities.
In his role as an administrator of the PMR listserve, John Towery had the
email addresses of all subscribers, and the names of most persons involved
with the organization. He had an intimate knowledge of how organizations
in the activist community operated, how and when actions were planned and
the beliefs, politics and personal matters of many activists.
The records requests that leaked out John Towery’s name also leaked out
information that Thomas Glapion from the 305th SFS/S2 based out of McGuire
Air Force Base in New Jersey was investigating activities of SDS, PMR and
“other left wing anti war groups”. Other agencies involved with
intelligence gathering and surveillance of Olympia SDS in particular and
Olympia activists in general include the Coast Guard (where there is an
informant spying on activists according to one record) and US Capitol
Police.
Attorney Larry Hildes of the National Lawyers Guild has made numerous
attempts to get information from the military and federal agencies for
court cases and civil suits connected to the port protests, only to run
into the repeated refusal of Brian Kipnis from the US Attorney’s Office in
Seattle to give this information to Hildes and other defense attorneys.
Kipnis explicitly told the US Army not to give information to Hildes and
others. Kipnis is also the same lawyer that prosecuted Lt. Ehren Watada
and was involved with a number of Guantanamo cases. This information is
perhaps the beginning of a larger network of surveillance across the
nation.
Press contacts:
Brendan Maslauskas Dunn
Students for a Democratic Society (SDS), Port Militarization Resistance
(360) 878-1879
maslauskas84 [at] gmail.com
Drew Hendricks
PMR Intelligence Network for Observers
(360) 870-3127
drewhend98513 [at] yahoo.com
————————————-
note – the Port Militarization Resistance peace group held many calm rallies and events. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dM2tNL_roBY This is a video of one of the most violent assaults by police towards the group, as they lined streets during a convoy of military vehicles onto a ship: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IfhUaUuG1sM
Check it out here.
twin cities daily planet coverage
there are tons of pictures on facebook. if you have a link or anything to share, please leave it in the comments!
Stonewall Was A Riot:
Dyke March Remembers the Real Beginnings of Pride 40 Years Ago
What: The annual Dyke March, led by the Twin Cities Avengers, is one of over 25 marches around the world creating space for queer expression and solidarity concurrent with the more mainstream Twin Cities Pride March. This year’s Twin Cities Dyke March theme, Stonewall Was A Riot, recalls the anti-classist, anti-racist, anti-police violence, and anti-genderist roots of the queer movements begun at the Stonewall Bar in New York City 40 years ago. More information can be found at http://tcavengers.wordpress.com/
Where: The Dyke March will begin at 7pm in front of the Walker Art Center, 1750 Hennepin Ave., Minneapolis, Minnesota 55403. We will circumnavigate Loring Park.
When: 7pm to 9pm, Saturday June 27th.
Who: The Twin Cities Avengers invites all dykes, queers, transfolks, homos, butches, femmes, cross dressers, heterosexuals, and all the people who love them or can relate to them, to participate in the march. Over 100 attendees are expected.
Why: “We are facilitating the Dyke March because a community space beyond the mainstream Pride Festival – which trends toward valuing the social norms of consumption, middle-class, whiteness, conforming to gender roles, and nuclear family structures – is needed,” say Twin Cities Avengers. “The march is a space for building community and making connections with people we might not otherwise meet.” The Dyke Marches began nationwide fifteen years ago in order to bring more visibility to women within the queer movements. Over time, the Twin Cities Avengers have expanded this mission to include ending all forms of oppression.
The Twin Cities Avengers is an all-inclusive queer direct action group committed to dismantling all forms of oppression.
