St. Paul, MN – More than 500 postal workers and community members rallied at the State Capitol Building, March 23, to push back against Trump’s possible privatization of the postal service. The protest was organized by the National Association of Letter Carriers (NALC) Branch 9. Demonstrations have been taking place across the U.S. in response to the Trump administrations attacks on federal workers.

#StPaulMN #MN #Labor #NALC

St Paul, MN – Dozens of residents rallied March 22 alongside the Climate Justice Committee (CJC) in front of Northern Iron, a metal foundry located in the heart of the highly diverse, working-class East Side neighborhood in Saint Paul. The foundry has earned the ire of residents for its failure to contain toxic pollutants from its operations, as well as its refusal to comply with state government efforts to hold them accountable.

Smokestacks located just across the street from residences emit toxic pollutants such as lead and other heavy metals, as well as hazardous fine particulate matter. The foundry, owned and operated by Lawton Standard, continues to subject the residents to toxic pollutants in defiance of standards set by the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency (MPCA). Particulates from the foundry can be seen collecting on cars and houses, and on windows and windowsills. It collects in the lungs of residents and their pets, which can cause long term health effects. It also collects on the surface of the ground, seeping in with the rainfall, rendering soil toxic.

One neighbor reported, “My children are experiencing health problems, including very low hemoglobin, anemia, behavior problems, trouble concentrating, [and] sleep disturbances.” Another neighbor, a young child, expressed frustration that he could not eat the fruit that grows in his yard: “I live four blocks from Northern Iron, and I have an apple and a raspberry tree and I can’t eat them because of Northern Iron. And I have a few questions: why is Northern Iron polluting our neighborhood with toxic metals like lead?”

There was consensus among the people assembled there that families had a right to a safe environment in which to raise their children, and that Northern Iron was violating that right.

In an apparent effort to feign compliance, Northern Iron hastily wrapped its smokestacks in common tarp. Neighbor of the foundry Brittney Bruce remarked: “For them to say that their emission capture is working is literally a joke – we can all see these stacks are not wrapped properly.”

The MPCA recently issued a warning to the foundry, threatening to possibly revoke Northern Iron’s operating permits if they do not provide overdue paperwork by March 27. It is widely expected, however, that the foundry will do nothing to abate its toxic emissions, continuing a pattern of negligence. Furthermore, residents worry that the MPCA will fail to live up to its ultimatum, as the regulators did not fully commit to action.

Considering the foundry’s history of ignoring deadlines set by the MPCA, and the agency’s history of ignoring pollution from the foundry, East Side residents and the Climate Justice Committee are preparing to continue the fight beyond next week’s deadline.

Local resident Mel Lorentz was clear, “I've talked to so many people who live within a few blocks behind this foundry and everybody says they've gotta clean it up or get out and we're not going away until they do that.”

Organizers with the CJC vowed to continue to spread awareness of the mounting campaign and pursue it to a victorious conclusion as was done against the Smith Foundry in the neighboring city of Minneapolis.

#StPaulMN #MN #Environment #CJC

St. Paul, MN – On Friday, March 21, the otherwise obscure Minnesota Retirement Systems building was guarded by dozens of state troopers who blocked entrances to the parking lot. More troopers manned the building entrance, screening bags and limiting entry to only a few dozen members of the public. Inside the small conference room where the State Board of Investment (SBI)’s quarterly meeting was to be held, more troopers along with plainclothes security lined the entire perimeter.

These extraordinary measures were the SBI’s latest attempt to demoralize and discourage members of the public from calling on it to divest the billions of state funds it manages from Israel and companies enabling Israel’s genocide in Gaza.

The attempted intimidation failed. Despite the show of force by law enforcement and arbitrary new restrictions on public comments, dozens of Palestine supporters showed up to deliver testimony and show support for divestment.

The SBI’s decision to limit the number of people in the meeting room backfired spectacularly. Most of the divestment advocates found themselves shut out of the building, but just steps away from the windows of the ground-floor room where the meeting was held. The crowd quickly morphed into an impromptu protest, with chants of “Free free Palestine” and “Disclose, divest, we will not stop, we will not rest!” clearly audible through the entire meeting.

The SBI is composed of its chair, Governor Tim Walz, along with Attorney General Keith Ellison, State Auditor Julie Blaha and Secretary of State Steve Simon. According to the watchdog site DivestMN.com, out of $146 billion total in managed assets, the SBI invests approximately $5.4 billion in entities complicit in Israel’s apartheid regime. That figure includes investments in weapons manufacturers, Israeli banks that fund illegal settlement construction in occupied Palestine, and even Israel Bonds, which directly fund the state of Israel.

Abir Ismael is a Minneapolis public school teacher and member of Minneapolis Federation of Teachers Local 59. “My pension was part of the demolition of almost every educational institution in Gaza. My pension was used to burn children alive,” she told the SBI. “I demand that my pension be divested from companies complicit in the murder of children.”

Several members of the Minnesota Association of Professional Employees (MAPE), a labor union representing state workers, also testified.

“We’re here to remind you that we, the state workers of Minnesota, will not tolerate the investment of our pension funds in these violations of human rights,” said Tracy Waterman, a state Department of Natural Resources employee represented by MAPE. “We haven’t forgotten that Governor Walz once said the situation in Gaza is intolerable, and he was right. It was intolerable then, and it’s intolerable now, this week, as we’re hearing news that Israel has broken its ceasefire and launched new airstrikes on Gaza.”

“Our pension funds were divested from apartheid in 1985; we can, and we must do it again, now,” Waterman added. In 1985, the SBI passed a resolution initiating broad divestment from any corporations deemed to be supporting the apartheid system in South Africa.

Naveen Borojerdi, another state employee and MAPE member, asked the SBI, “With the investments that we have in Israel, and arms manufacturers like Lockheed Martin and Israeli weapons companies like Elbit systems, in the case that what we’re seeing in the Middle East turns into a global energy war, how much of the portfolio potentially becomes affected by that?”

In a powerful moment, city of Minneapolis worker and Minneapolis Professional Employees Association union member Alison Thorson yielded her remaining time for a moment of silence. The SBI was forced to sit through minutes of nothing but the sound of protesters chanting outside the building.

The SBI meeting adjourned immediately after the public comments, with no response from the board members. Afterwards, the testifiers joined with the protesters outside for a press conference and rally.

“Within the structure of settler-colonialism, indigenous people are seen as a demographic problem. Therefore Israel is engaged in an extermination campaign,” Kalani Matus, indigenous Hawaiian and member of the Twin Cities-based Climate Justice Committee, told the crowd.

Many speakers highlighted the Trump administration’s recent attacks on pro-Palestine immigrants, making divestment from Israel a potential route for Minnesota leaders to fight for civil rights. “Palestine is a civil rights cause,” said Matus. “It’s becoming more and more apparent to everybody that anti-Palestinian repression is the tip of the spear when it comes to removing our freedom of speech.”

On March 8, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents abducted and initiated deportation proceedings against Mahmoud Khalil, an activist involved in the Palestine protests at Columbia University in New York, despite him being a lawful permanent resident of the United States. The U.S. Department of Homeland Security alleged that Khalil “led activities aligned to Hamas, a designated terrorist organization,” without providing evidence.

Speakers underscored that the growing tactics of intimidation and repression could not stop the divest movement. “This is going to be a long fight,” said Barry Kleider of Jewish Voice for Peace. “But I’ve learned a lesson from my sisters and brothers fighting for gay marriage. What we’re asking for, what we’re fighting for, is going to be impossible – until it’s inevitable.”

The next SBI meeting, as of press time, is scheduled for May 22 at 10 a.m., with the location yet to be announced. In the meantime, the Minnesota Anti-War Committee has called for a community march to say no to Trump’s ethnic cleansing plan for Gaza, on Saturday, March 29 at 1 p.m., beginning at the northwest corner of Powderhorn Park in Minneapolis.

#StPaulMN #MN #AntiWarMovement #Palestine #MFT #MAPE #MNAWC

St. Paul, MN – The Climate Justice Committee (CJC) and East Side Environmental Justice hosted a community meeting, March 15, in the Payne-Phalen neighborhood of Saint Paul, raising awareness among community members about the growing campaign against the Northern Iron foundry, a major polluter in the area.

Around 50 people were in attendance, including local residents, neighborhood activists, elected officials such as Saint Paul City Council Member Nelsie Yang and state House Representative Peter Fischer, and other concerned community members.

Neighbors near the foundry have been documenting dark soot on their windows, in their homes and on their cars. Testing confirmed the soot contained the same toxic compounds that can be found inside Northern Iron. Northern Iron has also been found in violation of their emissions permits by the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency (MPCA), but it has refused to clean up its act, even taking the MPCA to court to avoid compliance with the agency’s enforcement action.

First, Mel Lorentz, an attorney and Payne-Phalen resident, talked through the details of Northern Iron’s operations and known pollution history, stating, “They’re taking in up to 30 tons per day of scrap metal, and up to 100,000 tons per year of silica sand, they pour molten metal into molds to make equipment for oil and gas drilling, agricultural equipment.”

Lorentz then offered a major update on the status of Northern Iron’s court battle with the MPCA, telling audience members that the agency recently sent Northern Iron a letter setting a deadline of March 27 to submit testing data and detailed plans for how they would get in compliance, or else face potentially having their permits revoked. Lorentz pointed out that this is a major escalation from the MPCA, calling out that “many people in this room know that this kind of thing almost never happens,” and that this was clearly the result of the community’s organizing efforts.

Next, a nursing and public health student, Candis Moore, offered a presentation on the adverse health effects that are commonly associated with the pollutants coming from Northern Iron, primarily lead and PM 2.5 (also known as fine particulate matter).

“Blood lead levels are important because it’s a neurotoxin, so when this is introduced to children, when their brains are growing very fast, it can actually impede that process. This can lead to problems in school, behavioral problems, and this is so important because these are foundational building blocks to kids leading fulfilling lives in their futures,” Moore said., She highlighted the fact that lead pollution is a common factor among many working-class cities and neighborhoods around the country that have high rates of school dropouts and crime among youth, such as many parts of Chicago and Detroit. During the Q&A, Moore underlined that “there is no safe level of lead in the body.”

The audience heard from Minneapolis-based community activist Joe Vital, who played an important role in winning the shutdown of Smith Foundry in East Phillips in 2024. Joe recounted the story of fighting for justice alongside the CJC and other allies in his own neighborhood, emphasizing the lesson that these fights require a diversity of tactics, such as call-ins, putting pressure on elected officials, and community rallies and protests. Vital put it succinctly: “It’s only when people get in the streets that things finally start to move.”

Finally, Britney Bruce, who lives right behind the foundry, shared her story of moving into the neighborhood with high hopes, only to have her dreams dashed when she learned her new home was right next to a major polluter.

“I spent many, many years saving up for my first home. I had plans of having a big backyard to host family barbecues, bonfires, have a garden, a place where my kids can run wild – a place that my boys could always call home,” she said. Bruce moved in almost exactly one year ago and quickly noticed that things were not right. “I noticed that no matter how much I cleaned my windowsills and baseboards, they were always covered in black dust. My oldest, who is diabetic, started having breathing problems. My middle child developed eczema all over his body. I went back to using an inhaler that I hadn’t used since high school.”

Bruce called for everyone in the room to stay in communication with one another, to spread awareness, and to continue to fight so that Northern Iron can’t pollute any longer. She concluded, “It’s easy to mute one voice, but it’s hard to mute many.”

The Climate Justice Committee is organizing a rally outside Northern Iron next week on March 22, and continues to build the struggle against urban pollution and environmental racism in the Twin Cities.

#StPaulMN #MN #Environment #CJC #TwinCities #ClimateJustice

St. Paul, MN – More than 170 immigrant rights supporters mobilized to the Minnesota State Capitol on March 12 to oppose HF 16, a proposed anti-immigrant bill. The bill would prohibit sanctuary-type ordinances in Minnesota’s cities and counties, which would separate local law enforcement from federal immigration enforcement. Minneapolis and Saint Paul have long-standing separation ordinances. The bill would also require all of Minnesota’s county attorneys to notify federal immigration authorities when an undocumented person is arrested.

The House Public Safety Finance and Policy Committee held the legislature’s first hearing on the bill. Community members packed room 120 in the capitol building for the hearing, while also filling the hallway outside, as well as an overflow room on the third floor. Additionally, according to the North Star Alliance, more than 580 people sent letters to their representatives in opposition to the bill.

Several members of immigrant rights organizations gave testimony to the committee on why the bill is harmful and should not be passed. These included members of SEIU Local 26, Advocates for Human Rights, MN8, the North Star Alliance, and others.

Montha Chum of MN8 told the committee, “All we’ve ever dreamed of is to be in a peaceful and safe world. Many immigrants came here because they yearn for safety. However, ICE detention and deportation reflects the cruel conditions of war-time concentration camps and are parallel to the extreme violence we once fled from.”

Despite this mobilization, the committee, which has a slight Republican majority, passed the bill on a party-line vote. This moves the bill forward to the House Elections Finance and Government Operations Committee, which is scheduled to hold a hearing on the bill on March 17. The companion bill in the Senate, SF 643, has not yet received a hearing.

Immigrant rights organizers vowed to continue to mobilize opposition to the bill at the March 17 hearing and any future hearings.

#StPaulMN #MN #ImmigrantRights #MIRAC #featured

St. Paul, MN – On February 15, Anti War Action Network (AWAN) held its founding conference at the Wilder Foundation building in the heart of Saint Paul, Minnesota. AWAN is a nationwide, grassroots, volunteer-based organization comprised of anti-war, student and Palestine solidarity groups and activists from across the U.S. – many of whom participated in national days of action during the upsurge in Palestine solidarity to stop the U.S./Israel genocide in Gaza.

AWAN began as a way for these many different groups to come together to create a network of organizations ready to respond to nationwide calls to action in solidarity with Palestine, including for Al-Nakba Day, Land Day, the marches on the RNC and DNC, and more.

The conference lasted two days and featured workshops and panels led by different leaders in the anti-war and Palestine solidarity movement from all over the country, including Jacksonville, Florida; Tucson, Arizona; Milwaukee, Wisconsin; Green Bay, Wisconsin; Portland, Oregon; Seattle, Washington; San Jose, California; Chicago, Illinois; Dallas, Texas; Denver, Colorado; Detroit, Michigan, and Omaha, Nebraska.

The conference had over 20 workshops and panels on direct-action oriented topics like “Organizing Car Rallies,” “The Growing Divestment From Genocide Movement,” “Building The Next Generation of Activists” and “Graphic Design For Community Organizers”

The opening plenary was given by four keynote speakers: Taher Herzallah, the Assistant Director of American Muslims for Palestine; Jim Byrne of the Tucson Anti-War Committee; Nazek Sankari, the Co-Chair of the Chicago US Palestinian Community Network, and the main organizing force for the conference, Meredith Aby of the Minnesota Anti-War Committee.

In her opening remarks, Aby said, “Welcome to the founding conference for the Anti-War Action Network. Many participated in the national days of action during the upsurge in Palestine solidarity to stop the U.S./Israel genocide in Gaza. Some of us are newer to activism – like our friends from Seattle Against War – whereas other groups like the MN Anti-War Committee have been doing anti-war and Palestine solidarity organizing for over 25 years. We have organized national days of action because we want to work together to end U.S. aid to Israel and to increase national coordination so we can amplify our protests.”

In her opening remarks, Nazek Sankari of the USPCN addressed the crowd of over 200, with a fiery speech, declaring, “There is no going back to the status quo of the world before October 7. This genocide against the Palestinian people has exposed Israel for what it really is, a weak, white supremacist, racist, apartheid, Zionist state, determined to remove Palestinians from their ancestral homes and lands at all costs. We know it is failing and is only around because it is being bailed out by the U.S. and Europe.”

16 anti-war and Palestine solidarity groups formally choose to affiliate with AWAN. AWAN hopes to grow as large as possible over the coming years with the goal of creating a strong, nationwide movement to put pressure on state and federal governments to demand an arms embargo and an end to all U.S. aid to Israel.

When asked about the inspiration to create AWAN, Meredith Aby explained the conference as “an opportunity for us to gather as a movement and discuss how to resist Trump’s agenda. Even with the ceasefire, the Palestine solidarity movement’s work must continue. Trump’s plans for Gaza are ethnic cleansing and to send billions more weapons to Israel. We need to keep the pressure up! This conference is an opportunity to strengthen ties among the anti-war movement and strategize how to move forward with organizers from across the United States.”

The conference received greetings from the Friends of Socialist China, BAYAN USA, US Palestinian Community Network, NODUTDOL – U.S. out of Korea Campaign, International League for Peoples’ Struggle, International Women’s Alliance, Resist U.S.-Led War Movement, and the United National Antiwar Coalition.

During the conference AWAN passed a mission statement and over 12 resolutions that all organizations approved, both of which will be available on their website soon. If your organization would like to learn more about AWAN or join and participate in national calls to action, go to antiwaractionnetwork.org.

#StPaulMN #MN #AntiWarMovement #AWAN #Palestine

St. Paul, MN – On February 8, in honor of Black History Month, the Minnesota Anti-War Committee (AWC) presented an educational panel titled “Black Against Empire: Perspectives On Liberation In Haiti, Congo, Sudan, and the U.S.A.”

The panel was held at Macalester College in Saint Paul. Experts, activists and community leaders spoke about the timelines, struggles and victories of African people throughout history against imperialist oppression.

The panelists included Frank Chapman, head of the National Alliance Against Racist and Political Repression (NAARPR); Nick Tolliver, member of the AWC; Mohammed Farah, member of Healthcare Workers For Palestine, along with a written statement submitted by Ruben Joanem of the Haiti Justice Committee. Facilitating the event were Liz Bolsoni from the AWC and Trahern Crews from Black Lives Matter Minnesota.

“The bottom line is, we have to fight our way out of this. We can’t analyze our way out of it. We can’t pray our way out of it. We’ve got to fight our way out of it,” Chapman said. “We’re building a mass movement, and we’ve got to build even greater.” Chapman is the Executive Director of NAARPR, field organizer of its Chicago chapter, the Chicago Alliance Against Racist and Political Repression, and sits on the Central Committee of Freedom Road Socialist Organization.

“The exploitation of the Congo is the beating heart of the global capitalist system and our collective liberation from imperialism and capitalism is bound together with the liberation of the Congo,” said Tolliver, who provided a history of liberation struggles in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. Tolliver is an anti-war activist and self-proclaimed “Black history nerd” who is passionate about Congo solidarity and African liberation.

Farah was born and raised in Khartoum, Sudan, and works as a hospital pharmacist in Minnesota while pursuing a graduate degree in public health. Farah expanded on the cultural foundation of Sudan found in art and poetry. He said, “Poets are the embodiment of the soul of a nation. It creates the spirit of Sudanese nationalism.”

As presentations and speeches concluded, a dialogue was opened between the panelists and the audience to further discuss issues that Black people have historically faced and how they tie in with modern struggles connected with capitalism and imperialism.

The final question asked was about the future of community organizing around Black liberation, to which Chapman closed with the statement, “Well, the future is always now. And the future belongs to those who are willing to fight for it.”

#StPaulMN #MN #AntiWarMovement #OppressedNationalities #AfricanAmerican #BlackHistoryMonth #International #Africa #Sudan #Congo #StudentMovement #NAARPR #MNAWC #BLM

St. Paul, MN – On January 24, members of Women Against Military Madness (WAMM) and up to 30 activists celebrated the Palestinian resistance and their success in gaining a ceasefire. WAMM also understands that the fight towards liberation for Palestinians goes beyond a ceasefire.

As the Israeli army is continuing to carry out attacks in North Gaza and the West Bank, we vowed to continue the fight to end U.S. support for Israel, without which these attacks wouldn’t be possible. WAMM’s Middle East Committee and Palestine Solidarity Committee pledged to continue gathering every Friday until Palestine is free; until then, those of us in the U.S. are watching their tax dollars kill Palestinians.

#StPaulMN #MN #AntiWarMovement #Palestine #WAMM

St. Paul, MN - As Donald Trump was inaugurated the 47th president of the United States on Monday, January 20, people gathered in Saint Paul to make a promise that from day one they would resist Trump’s agenda. 

The day began at the Saint Paul Police Department’s Western District precinct. With temperatures dipping to negative five degrees, a single hearse led a caravan of over 100 cars in remembrance of Marcus Golden. At the young age of 24, Mr. Golden was murdered by Saint Paul Police on January 14, 2015. He is the nephew of Black Lives Matter Twin Cities organizer Monique Cullars-Doty. 

The caravan participants decorated their cars with Palestinian flags and signs in support of the defense of Black lives, immigrant rights, and reproductive rights. The caravan proceeded from The Saint Paul Police Department’s Western District precinct along University Avenue. Two young men exited their parked cars in subzero weather to wave a Palestinian flag in support as the caravan passed. The caravan participants honked as they continued east toward downtown.

Cullars-Doty spoke about the significance of the single hearse leading the caravan today. “The hearse is from the same undertaker who took my nephew Marcus Golden’s body from Ramsey County Coroner’s office, but it also represents all the revolutionaries this country has killed and silenced. It is also symbolic that we all follow the hearse because we are still fighting. So as this Trump administration rolls in, we cannot let our dreams die. It means we have to keep fighting.” 

A coalition of organizations led by Black Lives Matter Twin Cities (BLM-TC Metro), the Minnesota Immigrant Rights Action Committee (MIRAC), and Twin Cities Coalition for Justice (TCC4J) organized the car caravan and indoor rally.

In the shadow of the Minnesota State Capitol, the caravan arrived at Saint Paul College where 500 attendees filled the cafeteria to chants of “Black Lives, they matter here! and “Immigrants are welcome here!” 

Despite the somber occasion of Trump’s second inauguration, the room buzzed with enthusiasm as the emcees led the crowd in chants. Speaking for MIRAC was Manuel Pascual - a first generation Filipino immigrant who witnessed the violence of ICE raids against his community first hand. 

Pascual stated, “Immigrants and the working class are the backbone of this country. It is extremely important we don’t panic or fall into despair in this time of uncertainty. Instead, we organize. We take to the streets. We continue speaking up, showing up, and fighting for one another.” 

Charlie Berg, a member of the Freedom Road Socialist Organization, affirmed the task ahead of everyone in the room: “It is up to all of us to unite the many in order to defeat the few. We need to make this country ungovernable! Our job is to take the fight to higher stages than ever before.”

Toshira Garraway, the founder of Families Supporting Families Against Police Violence, whose fiancé was murdered by the Saint Paul Police in 2009, inspired the crowd saying, “When we see someone being hurt or harmed or mistreated for any reason at all it’s going to take every nationality of people from every walk of life to stand up against the evil and the corruption in this world and we are going to win!”

Sarah Murphy from the Minnesota Abortion Action Committee who spoke about the fight for abortion access under Trump and the fight against the predatory crisis pregnancy centers that are run by the Christian right and embed themselves in predominantly Black and brown working-class communities and college towns to dissuade people from getting abortions.

The crowd also heard speeches from the Climate Justice Committee, the TCC4J, the Minnesota Immigrant Movement, among many others. Other groups were present to table and talk to community members and other organizers throughout the day to share information and get more community members involved in joining the fight against Trump. 

Closing out the program was Anti-War Committee and Free Palestine Coalition member Sabry Wazwaz, who connected the fights for Black and Palestinian liberation, stating, “This connection is not something new. It has always been there. They don’t want us to remind each other that our struggle is one struggle! If you go to Palestine, you will see murals all along the apartheid walls of Martin Luther King, of Malcom X, of George Floyd - because our struggle is one struggle!”

After the program, participants returned to their cars to caravan to the Minnesota State Capitol building where they ended the day of protest honking outside of the Minnesota State Capitol to send the message that Minnesotans will be in the streets to fight Trump’s agenda starting on day one, even in extreme subzero weather.

#StPaulMN #MLKDay #MLK #Trump #Inauguration #Minnesota #AntiWarCommittee #FreePalestineCoalition #FreePalestine #Abortion #AbortionAccess #ReproductiveFreedom #ReproRights #BLM #BlackLivesMatter

St. Paul, MN – Women Against Military Madness (WAMM) held their weekly Free Palestine Rally with 30 community members joining them. It was stressed that Israel’s genocide is still raging in Palestine.

However, the people are still resisting in many ways. This week we saw many healthcare workers call out at their workplaces and at many hospitals with the theme “Sick of genocide.” In many cities in the U.S., they held press conferences stating they can no longer sit back; they spoke out about the horrors Palestinians face in Gaza with extraordinarily little or no medical help. The situation is beyond dire. WAMM’s rally focused on Gaza’s healthcare crisis.

Sarah Martin, member of WAMM and a retired nurse who worked at Regions Hospital, told the crowd, “I receive a public employee’s pension. It is managed by the SBI [State Board of Investment] which has billions of dollars invested in financial entities and companies carrying out the genocide in Gaza. It sickens me that the money I earn healing people is being used to murder and injure Palestinians by the tens if not hundreds of thousands.”

The people at the rally, layered up in Minnesota’s winter cold weather, held signs reading, “Free Palestine,” “Stop the bombing of Gaza,” “End U.S. aid to Israel” and “Divest MN from apartheid Israel.”

Martin laid out some horrifying statistics highlighting why the healthcare in Gaza is disastrous, “Per The Lancet journal, since October 7, 2023, 46,000 people, including children, were martyred.” She added, “In the first week of January 2025, 395 killed, 936 injuries, 74 children killed and now eight newborn babies have died from hypothermia.”

Martin spoke of the destruction of Kamal Adwan and Indonesian hospitals in the north. “Al Adwa hospital is the last one operating in the north and only just barely and with no electricity but continues to provide treatment even though there is no fuel and there is severe shortage of medical supplies and medicines. There are almost no fuel reserves because little is getting through due to Israeli restrictions. This means incubators, O2 generators and refrigeration for medicines are barely functioning.”

As the rally continued, people heard the continuous honks from cars, buses and trucks as they drove by. People happily waved back to acknowledge their support. As they passed, drivers could see a banner tied between two light poles saying, “Don’t look away, keep resisting genocide” with a Palestine flag in the background. While one car was stopped at a red light, the driver lay on their horn until the light turned green.

Haley Mosely, an emergency medical technician, thinks of Palestine at every point during the shift, and said to the crowd, “Every time I step into an ambulance, I see those images from Palestine in my head. I see the burned, damaged ambulances, ambulances turned into shrapnel, the volunteers rushing to pull people out of the rubble, videos of medics giving compressions on stretchers while being pushed through entrances and hallways full of bleeding and crying people. The patients lying on the floor, the children receiving IVs and fluids without a bed. The emaciated. The crushed. The bleeding. The dying. The dead.”

Mosely continued, “Our hospitals here are overwhelmed. The times I have brought a patient to the emergency department with a head wound, wearing a c-collar, and I have to take them to the lobby to wait – because there are no beds available – I think of Palestine. Of the chaos. The rows of children lining the hallways. I think of them and I feel sick. What Israel is doing – with our tax dollars – is sick, it's demented, it's deranged. The targeting of healthcare is devastating. Israel and its defenders have tried to justify the unjustifiable. The killing of patients. The kidnapping of doctors. The shooting of people seeking refuge in hospitals. The bombings of maternity wards.”

Mosley stressed to the rally, “It is critical that we are not silent. That we as medical professionals stand up and speak out and get involved in stopping this genocide. If we care about our communities and our patients here, we must care about Palestine. Free Palestine! From the river to the sea – Palestine will be free!”

In between speeches, the crowd at the intersection of Summit and Snelling Avenues chanted, “Free free Palestine!” “Netanyahu, you can’t hide! We charge you with genocide!” “Gaza must have food and water! Israel, Israel stop the slaughter!”

Sylvia Schwarz, member of the MN BDS Community, stated, “How is it that hundreds of doctors and medical workers have been assassinated or incarcerated without an outcry from this country’s medical institutions? How is it that hundreds of journalists have been assassinated without an outcry from international media organizations? So, because I am so depressed, I want to address this speech to those people over there, those counter-protesters who think that supporting genocide is the way to show support for Israel.”

Schwartz ended by stating, “Even though many people can’t believe the genocide of the Palestine people of Gaza still is happening and many are sad, depressed and righteously angry, but they will never be deterred.” WAMM’s Middle East Committee and Palestine Solidarity Committee pledged to come to the corner “every Friday not only because it's the right thing to do but because their fight is our fight.”

#StPaulMN #MN #AntiWarMovement #Palestine #WAMM

St. Paul, MN – On the afternoon of Saturday, December 14, Twin Cities community members came together to protest outside the offices of Pro-Life Action Ministries, an anti-abortion Christian organization. The Minnesota Abortion Action Committee held a vigil to remember those who have passed away due to restrictions on abortion care, then transitioned into a rally to show that the community does not welcome Pro-Life Action Ministries and its hateful rhetoric.

The Minnesota Abortion Action Committee hosted the vigil to honor and remember victims of abortion bans by holding a banner bearing the names and ages of those that have passed and commemorating the many others who have gone unnamed. Among those honored were Amber Nicole Thurman, Candi Miller, Nevaeh Crain, Josseli Barnica and Porsha Ngumezi, all women who have died since the overturn of Roe v. Wade after being denied abortion care. Attendees placed flowers and candles around portraits of the deceased to offer a heartfelt tribute to those women.

After an emotional vigil, the action transitioned into a rally against Pro-Life Action Ministries, an organization known for organizing “sidewalk counselors” to harass people seeking care at Planned Parenthood locations. Pro-Life Action Ministries also supports and funds “crisis pregnancy centers.”

June Gromis of the Minnesota Abortion Action Committee talked about how pro-life organizations like Pro-Life Action Ministries are using the guise of religion to further their agendas and expressed that her own faith is rooted in love for all. Gromis sang the song Amazing Grace and the crowd joined in, honoring “everyone who has endured suffering as a result of anti-abortion legislation.”

In a similar vein, a member of Women Against Military Madness, spoke of her own story of ending pregnancies in the past and how “she is at peace with this.” She spoke about her mother, a devoted Christian, who taught her to be pro-choice, and affirmed that her dedication to the fight to “respect people’s choice!”

Michael Wood of the Climate Justice Committee connected the struggle to save the climate with the movement for abortion rights and emphasized the fact that pro-life organizations are not for the people. He spoke about his experience of growing up Catholic, but resisting the anti-abortion beliefs of the church. Wood said that instead, he now stands for reproductive justice for all, which includes “fighting for clean water and air for our children to breathe in!”

A member of the Anti-War Committee spoke about how the fight for reproductive freedoms is connected with the liberation of Palestine, touching on the fact that movements need to be connected. “We cannot be pro-choice here at home, while turning a blind eye to the horror the U.S. and Israel impose on Palestinians and their reproductive rights!” she said.

The emcees ended the rally with a reaffirmation of their commitment to the fight against anti-abortion laws and rhetoric, encouraging the community to keep up the struggle for bodily autonomy in memory of the dead and in honor of all of us still living.

#StPaulMN #MN #WomensMovement #ReproductiveRights #Abortion #MNAAC #WAMM #CJC

Saint Paul, MN – 110 members of the Saint Paul Federation of Educators Local 28 (SPFE) gathered on Monday, November 25 for a member meeting in which a vote was held for the union local to sign on to a letter urging President Biden to enact an arms embargo on Israel and work towards a ceasefire in Gaza, and to put pressure on their national union, the American Federation of Teachers (AFT) to do the same.

SPFE’s Progressive Caucus first introduced this resolution in October. With 55% voting in favor, the resolution passed.

Seven national unions, including the National Education Association (NEA) and the United Auto Workers (UAW), and locals including the Minneapolis Federation of Teachers Local 59 (MFT) and the MN Association of Professional Employees (MAPE), have signed onto the public letter named in the SPFE resolution.

During the meeting SPFE members highlighted how the United States government is using tax dollars to help carry out a genocide while schools remain critically underfunded. Members brought attention to the government funding of Lockheed Martin which is assisting the genocide in Gaza as well as the anti-immigrant violence on the U.S./Mexico border.

One member shared, “We have a responsibility to use the power our union holds to push our lawmakers to stop arming a genocide and stop funding companies like Lockheed Martin who profit from suffering.”

Another member noted that they advocate for an arms embargo to interrupt a cycle of violence and “to show students in our district that when leaders break promises, other adults will stand up for them.”

Some members suggested that the Progressive Caucus and supporters of the resolution only cared about the genocide in Palestine because it is “trendy” to do so. Others speaking out against the resolution criticized the newly-formed caucus for not bringing resolutions forth on other international issues. Some argued against the resolution on the grounds that LGBTQ+ Palestinians are persecuted in Gaza, to which members responded by sharing the experiences of queer Palestinians living under Israeli occupation.

Members speaking against the resolution also suggested that the resolution would cause Jewish students and teachers to feel unsafe in Saint Paul Public Schools, falsely equating anti-Zionism with antisemitism and suggesting that a critique of a state government is the same as hatred towards a national or ethnic group.

Elowyn Pfeiffer, a social studies teacher, shared, “Our union is our source of power as working people. Through our solidarity, we fight injustice.”

As unions have proven throughout history, working class solidarity with oppressed people across the world furthers the power that a union has to fight for change locally. SPFE’s solidarity with the people of Palestine is a lever for change in Saint Paul schools.

#StPaulMN #MN #AntiWarMovement #Palestine #Teachers #MFT #MAPE

St. Paul, MN – On the morning of December 10, 80 members and supporters of the Minnesota Free Palestine Coalition rallied inside and outside the Minnesota State Board of Investment (SBI) meeting. The rally came after the board’s decision to convert their quarterly open public meeting into a small hybrid in-person/online format, without live public testimony.

Protesters demanded the SBI divest taxpayer money from Israel and companies complicit in its apartheid and genocide in Palestine, and that the board stop attempting to silence their constituents.

The meeting also coincided with Human Rights Day, a day meant to affirm all people’s inalienable rights to life, dignity and liberation from oppression. The irony was not lost on observers that the board would choose this day to declare so clearly that they will choose to be accomplices in the deprivation of Palestinians’ lives and rights.

The SBI as an institution is charged with investing Minnesota taxpayer money to fund public worker pensions and other government agency cash accounts, and it is mandated to hold meetings every three months which are open to public attendance and public comment.

Minnesotans have been attending the SBI’s hearings for years, calling on the board to divest from its holdings in Israeli companies and government bonds, weapons and heavy machinery companies whose products are used in Israel’s slaughter and displacement of Palestinians, and other companies which profit from or aid Israel in its crimes against humanity – a sum totaling $5.4 billion, according to research done by the Minnesota Anti-War Committee.

Over the last 14 months of Israel’s genocide in Gaza, larger numbers of Minnesotans – including the local Palestinian community, workers whose pensions funds are managed by the SBI, and other taxpayers objecting to the investments – have joined this appeal to the board. The board has staunchly refused to consider the popular demand.

Rather than continue to hear from their constituents, the SBI opted to change the location of the December 10 meeting from a large room in the Senate Building to a small conference room in the Department of Administration Building, where around half attendees could fit and watch on a TV as the board members held a Zoom meeting with each other from their respecting offices. No public testimony would be heard. Governor Tim Walz, who chairs the board, stated that this change – dozens of people placed in a small room while the board was remote in their offices – was due to the delta variant of COVID-19.

As the meeting started, Walz said the meeting would be conducted using interactive technology. However, the Zoom meeting was only between the board members, they couldn’t hear or see the attendees. Recognizing this, the crowd shouted, “You can’t hear us” and “shame!” They chanted, “SBI you can’t hide, we charged you with genocide!” throughout the meeting.

At different times, the audience members walked up to the monitor to speak, in front of the SBI members. Jasper Nordin, member of Students for Democratic Society and MN United Workers, pointed back at the Zoom call as SBI members went on with their meeting and told the crowd, “We're here to stand in support of the Palestinian people. They deserve liberation. And our leaders don’t even have the decency to be in the same room as us. And listen, as people, we're saying it's unconscionable that Minnesota is investing public funds in genocide.”

The remaining half of the Palestine solidarity crowd were not allowed in the building and locked outside. Yossi Aharoni, member of the Anti-War Committee, rallied the spurned crowd, saying they closed the doors because, “they don't want to hear from their own constituents. Shame! They don't give a shit what we think. Shame! They don't care that their bombs kill children every day. They don't care that it's our money being used to slaughter civilians in Gaza every day.”

The crowd pressed their signs against the windows outside the meeting room, so those inside could hear them chant “Free Palestine” and “Not another nickel, not another dime, no more money for Israel’s crimes!”

After the SBI ended its Zoom meeting, the attendees rejoined the freezing protesters outside for a rally with chants and speeches demanding divestment and chastising the SBI for its silencing stunt. “Was this intended to make it hard for the public to participate? If so, you can see from today’s turnout that this was unsuccessful. But even worse, the board mandated that the public’s testimony be in writing only. Who knows if they even read that testimony? There is zero accountability,” said Bob Goonin from MN BDS Community.

The crowd was unanimous that they stood undeterred in the campaign for divestment. As they stood resolute through the shivers, clutching their signs and banners, the crowd affirmed loudly and repeatedly, “We ain’t going nowhere!”

#StPaulMN #MN #AntiWarMovement #Palestine

St. Paul, MN – On December 5, 45 people protested outside of the Minnesota Senate Building in 15-degree weather to demand that members of the board vote to divest the state of Minnesota from investments in Israel. The protest, held ahead of the board’s December 10 meeting, was organized by the Free Palestine Coalition.

Andrew Josefchak, a member of the MN Anti-War Committee, spoke to the crowd, “Minnesota’s State Board of Investment invests $5.4 billion of our money in genocide and apartheid. That’s $5.4 billion of a pension fund that union workers across Minnesota bargained for, fought hard for, waged strikes for. If we believe Minnesota money is being used unconscionably, to slaughter children, to steal land, to exploit Palestinian workers, all in the name of profit, we should be the ones who make the call that no, we will not tolerate this! We demand this money be divested!”

The protest targeted Minnesota State Auditor Julie Blaha, who is one of the four decision makers on the State Board of Investments. The SBI invests state worker pensions to further enable genocide and give financial support to the apartheid state of Israel. She has refused to divest SBI funds from Israel, saying that divestment is not a risk she's willing to take.

In November, in an effort to hide from residents and state workers demanding divestment, the SBI made the decision to move their public meeting online. However, during the protest, activists learned that the SBI had now posted online that they are now conducting the meeting as a hybrid, with an in-person option.

The Free Palestine Coalition committed at the protest to organize for people to come to the public meeting to again show their outrage at the SBI’s refusal to divest from Israel and companies benefiting from the genocide of Palestinians. The emcees told the protesters to come back on Tuesday, December 10 by 10 a.m. to Room 1200 in the Minnesota Senate Building at 95 University Avenue W in Saint Paul.

#StPaulMN #MN #AntiWarMovement #Palestine

St. Paul, MN – On November 29, around 50 Women Against Military Madness (WAMM) Palestine solidarity activists held their weekly bannering at the busy intersection of Snelling and Summit Avenues in Saint Paul.

The day marked the start of the holiday shopping season People driving or walking by the rally saw Palestinian flags waving in the wind and activists holding signs, as a reminder that there is still a genocide taking place in Palestine.

“While you are shopping, bombs are still dropping,” the crowd chanted. Many can hear the loud honks from cars in support of the Palestinian people and the rally. A man in a car that was stopped at the light shouted, “Thank you!” As a person from the rally said, “We are here every Friday.” The man responded, “I know and thank you!”

Cedar Larson, member of WAMM’s Palestine Solidarity Committee, addressed the crowd, “As we stand in the belly of the beast, we can identify these related struggles. But today specifically of the Palestinians and the indigenous Americans. What a tragically familiar tale; an indigenous population is living comfortably and cohabitating for centuries until a colonizing force arrives. The colonizer claims they cannot be safe unless the indigenous peoples are eradicated from their homeland. The colonizer proceeds to ethnically cleanse the original inhabitants of the land by any means necessary. And so, in order to survive, indigenous resistance must take place.” Larson continued, “This weekly rally is necessary! We will be here every week until Palestine is free!”

Throughout the event people were holding signs, “Stop the genocide,” “Massacre after massacre equals genocide,” and “End U.S. aid to Israel”. They continued chanting, “From the river to the sea, Palestine will be free! From the sea to the river, Palestine will live forever.”

Robyn Harbison, director of WAMM, told the attendants, “It is an international day of solidarity with the Palestinian people and it has been over 410 days of the Gaza genocide. We have seen the continuation of the Gaza genocide, and we have seen and experienced the growing repression of pro-Palestine activists. However, we see that the world refuses to take the violence lying down and neither will we! We will always stand with Palestine! Long live Palestine!”

WAMM’s Middle East Committee and Palestine Solidarity Committee pledged to come to the corner “every Friday not only because it’s right thing to do but because their fight is our fight.”

#StPaulMN #MN #AntiWarMovement #Palestine #WAMM

St. Paul, MN – At 5 p.m., October 30, on a chilly autumn afternoon, over 60 Twin Cities community members showed up at the corner of Raymond Avenue and Energy Park Drive in Saint Paul to demand that ForwardEdge ASIC, a subsidiary of Lockheed Martin, get out of the residential neighborhood and that the state of Minnesota divests all public funds out of Lockheed Martin. This demonstration was called by the Minnesota Peace Action Coalition.

The event began with chants, followed by a few speakers, followed by a short march and more speakers right in front of the ForwardEdge ASIC building. Passersby demonstrated massive support with honking, raised fists, and chanting along with the crowd as they waited for their light to turn green.

Lockheed Martin is the world's largest weapons manufacturer, with an annual revenue around $70 billion. Lockheed Martin manufactures and sells military weapons and equipment to Israel, including F- series fighter jets, AH-64 Apache attack helicopters, Longbow Hellfire missiles, Multiple Launch Rocket Systems (MLRS), as well as a broad array of radar systems, rockets, and fire control and guidance systems, all of which have been used against Palestinians in Gaza and civilians in Lebanon.

Lockheed has even established ten MadaKids Science Kindergartens in Israel to “help develop children’s scientific and technological literacy.” Lockheed also maintains company facilities in Israel and has stated that it plans to expand its “footprint” in Israel in the near future.

It has been documented that Lockheed Martin has directly supplied the weapons that have been used by Israel in its war crimes against the Palestinians and Lebanese in their past and present offensives against Gaza and Beirut. The company’s technologies are fully integrated into Israel's main weapon systems, including F-35 and F-16 fighter jets. These weapons are often gifted to Israel through the U.S. government's Foreign Military Financing program. These weapons have repeatedly been used against Palestinian and Lebanese civilians, resulting in numerous casualties as well as mass destruction of homes and civilian infrastructure – including hospitals, schools, and water and electric systems.

Recently the U.S. agreed to send 100 ground troops to Israel to help operate the THAAD missile systems. THAAD stands for Terminal High Altitude Area Defense, and it is manufactured and produced by Lockheed Martin. This is a clear escalation by the Biden administration to reinsert U.S. troops in the region to maintain U.S. interests regardless of the cost of civilian lives.

According to its most recent asset listings, the Minnesota State Board of Investment puts over $63 million annually of the public pension funds it manages in Lockheed Martin. Of that $63 million, $1.3 million of Minnesotans’ tax money has been invested in the ForwardEdge facility that protesters targeted.

One very powerful speech came from a new member of the Women Against Military Madness, who stated, “We know the truth is that terrorism is a word thrown around to shut down national liberation movements, but every accusation is merely a confession. The U.S. military is the true terrorist and Lockheed Martin is its beneficiary. Lockheed wants to position themselves as simply a business and at the whim of the U.S. government and its politicians. But this isn’t true. If it were, Lockheed Martin wouldn’t be actively lobbying politicians on foreign policy and pushing for the sales of these weapons. In 2023, Lockheed Martin spent over $14 million lobbying Congress.”

In her speech, Families Against Military Madness member Liz McLister said, “For nearly 13 months and counting, Biden – an avowed Zionist and recipient of record AIPAC funding – has doubled down on supporting the openly genocidal Zionist entity. This morally reprehensible stance has allowed Israel to drag us up the escalation ladder with Iran. In addition to being profoundly dangerous, this is asinine from a strategic point of view.”

Longtime the Anti War Committee member Brian Chval told the crowd, “Lockheed Martin owns ForwardEdge, and you see the same thing when the CEO says on TV ‘There is no point in deterring Israel from a military operation. What’s the point? There are conflicts that need to be resolved only with weapons – and we are ready to provide these weapons.’ Lockheed’s sales, without which the genocide in Palestine would be impossible, are not just directly to Israel; the U.S. in its aid packages gives Israel the money to buy from Lockheed Martin and its ilk.”

Chval continued, “When Saint Paul coughs up over a million dollars to subsidize FowardEdge offices, we see what's prioritized while the rest withers. We need to be investing in teaching, in housing, and healthcare; investing in our future!”

During the rally and march the street was filled with honks of support and passengers rolling down their windows to yell “Free Palestine!”

#StPaulMN #MN #AntiWarMovement #Palestine

St. Paul, MN – MAPE, the Minnesota Association of Professional Employees, is an independent union representing approximately 15,000 employees of the State of Minnesota. At their October 26 delegate assembly, MAPE approved a resolution titled “Supporting a Ceasefire and Divestment in Israel-Palestine.” It included strong steps towards divesting both MAPE and Minnesota’s State Board of Investments (SBI) from apartheid Israel. The MAPE Ceasefire Caucus organizing team had conversations with nearly every delegate over the last six weeks in preparation for the vote, which ended up with 82 for, 49 against, with 17 abstaining.

The text calls for the creation of a Pension Divestment task force within MAPE to research the best ways to get the SBI to divest – looking at legislative avenues as well as through connecting to other public sector unions. The task force plans to “...support legislation requiring the SBI to divest MAPE pension contributions from such entities, including drafting model legislation, identifying potential legislative sponsors, and including such legislation in any lobbying efforts, such as MAPE Lobby Day.”

The resolution also calls for MAPE’s board of directors and executive committee to “...issue a statement in favor of a ceasefire in Israel and Palestine, and call upon the SBI to divest MAPE pension contributions from foreign governments, institutions, weapons manufacturers, firms, corporations and other similar entities which commission, provide material assistance to, or profit from, the commission or maintenance of violations of international law and human rights.” As far as MAPE itself, it must “...immediately divest any of its own funds from such entities.”

These steps towards divestment align with a growing movement among labor groups advocating for the cessation of all U.S. aid to Israel and supporting the liberation of Palestine. Notably, the American Postal Workers Union (APWU), International Union of Painters (IUPAT), National Education Association (NEA), Service Employees International Union (SEIU), United Auto Workers (UAW), United Electrical Workers (UE), and Association of Flight Attendants (AFA) have signed a letter to President Biden calling for an arms embargo against apartheid Israel. These unions represent a combined 6 million members, almost half of the United States’ 14 million unionized workers.

This demand is being made with historical precedent, as the Minnesota State Board of Investment voted in 1985 to divest from the apartheid state of South Africa.

#StPaulMN #MN #Labor #AntiWarMovement #MAPE #Palestine

St. Paul, MN – On October 19, Jill Stein, presidential candidate for the Green Party, stopped by the weekly Women Against Military Madness (WAMM) Solidarity Palestine bannering. Stein stopped by to show support for the Palestine solidarity movement on the way to her Green Party fundraiser.

For over a year, every Friday, community activists have steadfastly came to the busy intersection of Summit and Snelling Avenues in Saint Paul to call for an end to the U.S.-backed Israeli genocide in Gaza and for a free Palestine.

The intersection was filled with chants like “They call it a war, that’s a lie, it’s systematic genocide.” Protesters held Palestine flags and signs calling for divestment and an end to U.S. support for genocide. Passing motorists responded resoundingly positively with their unending honks.

Meredith Aby, a member of the MN Anti- War Committee and an educator, closed out the rally, stating, “We have a task. We have to raise the level of consciousness in this country about the genocide. The media won’t do it. We have to do it. Genocide is not a single issue voting issue. The money I need to teach my kids is being spent on the other side of the globe killing kids.”

WAMM organizers pledged to “continue to come to this corner every Friday not only because it’s right thing to do but because their fight is our fight.”

#StPaulMN #MN #AntiWarMovement #JillStein #Palestine #WAMM #GreenParty

St. Paul, MN – On October 17, 40 protesters held banners, signs and Palestinian flags on the Snelling Avenue bridge over Interstate 94 to draw attention to Israel’s atrocities in Gaza and Lebanon. Over 42,000 Palestinians and 2400 Lebanese have been killed by Israel since last October. Now 41% of people in Gaza are in danger of catastrophic levels of hunger in the coming months. Thousands of cars passed under the bridge while hundreds more went up Snelling Avenue.

Erin Stene, a member of the MN Anti-War Committee, came to the bannering, stated, “As we brace ourselves for what will likely be the 13th month of genocide in Gaza and a continuation of Israel's slaughter in Lebanon, our community showed us love today by waving from their cars, honking car horns, and rolling their windows down to cheer us on. This gives me hope that we will see an end to Israel’s atrocities in the Middle East, as well as our country’s complicity in these acts.”

The bannering was called by the Free Palestine Coalition to continue the momentum after their protest of thousands of people in downtown Minneapolis on October 6.

#StPaulMN #MN #AntiWarMovement #Palestine #MNAWC

St. Paul, MN – On August 10, hundreds of people gathered outside the Minnesota State Capitol to demand that the State Board of Investment, chaired by Governor Tim Walz, divest public funds from institutions complicit in Israel’s ongoing genocide and apartheid in Palestine.

The State Board of Investment is the government institution that manages the state's financial assets, including the pension funds of public sector workers, such as public school teachers. The board has invested approximately $4.3 billion of taxpayer money in companies directly participating in Israel's crimes against humanity.

Saturday’s protest was organized by the MN Anti-War Committee to show public support for divestment from Israel, days before the Wednesday meeting of State Board of Investment.

The State Board of Investment’s chairman, Governor Tim Walz, was recently chosen by Kamala Harris to be her running mate in the presidential election. Meredith Aby spoke at the protest, saying, “Walz is now the focus of international attention. The Harris/Walz campaign has so far been vague – they have separated themselves from Biden but they have not taken the stance they need on the genocide.” Aby encouraged the crowd to pressure the Democratic Party to take a stand against U.S. support for Israel and said the MN Anti-War Committee was taking two buses of Minnesotans to protest the DNC in Chicago on August 19.

The rally featured speakers from American Muslims for Palestine, Jewish Voice for Peace, MN Workers United, Healthcare Workers for Palestine, and the MN Immigrant Rights Action Committee.

Protesters were invited to join the Free Palestine Coalition on Wednesday at 10 a.m. at the State Board of Investment meeting to listen to community members and public workers testify against the investment of pensions in apartheid Israel.

#StPaulMN #MN #AntiWarMovement #Palestine