Facebook Instagram Twitter YouTube

Free All Imprisoned Protesters and Drop All Charges!

The protests erupting throughout the country have been met with brutal police repression. Thousands of protesters have been arrested. Free them all! Drop all charges! Fight against police repression!

Left Voice

June 2, 2020
Facebook Twitter Share
Stephen Maturen/Getty Images

This past weekend, rage against police repression and racism continued with thousands in cities across the U.S. rising up. Furious over the murder of George Floyd, the rage has continued without hesitation. Protesters ignored curfews imposed by local and state governments and took the streets to demand justice for Floyd and other victims of police violence. Marching through tear gas, they confronted state and local police and forced them to retreat as they defied Trump’s tweeted threat: “They start looting, we start shooting.” Protesters even faced down heavily armed members of the National Guard who had been activated in several states to put down the protests. They set fire to buildings and cop cars, specifically targeting buildings linked to the police or other institutions of racism. Workers stood their ground in defense of the protesters as bus drivers in Minneapolis and NYC refused to transport arrested protesters to precincts. 

The police locked up thousands of people in New York, Los Angeles, Atlanta, Detroit, and other cities throughout the country. In New York, police beat up activists. In Detroit, a 19 year old was shot and killed while at a demonstration. In incidents around the country, members of the press were attacked by police; one journalist was permanently blinded in one eye by a rubber bullet.  In addition, some protesters who were arrested, such as Samantha Shader, are facing trumped-up charges designed to imprison them for years on end. Such repression against protesters is unacceptable, and all of those arrested should be immediately released and all charges dropped.

A central demand of future protests must be the demand to free all prisoners and drop all charges. This slogan should be taken up not only at protests, but also by all of the unions that have issued statements against police brutality.  Workers, activists, and oppressed people throughout the U.S. and worldwide must defend the protesters and fight racism, police brutality, and vigilante violence. 

The working class must take up the demands of the protesters in order to force accountability from the state. The enormous pressure exerted by the protests have led to the arrest of one of the four killer police officers responsible for George Floyd’s murder, but that is not enough. All four must be arrested and every arrested protester must be released and all charges dropped.

Facebook Twitter Share

Left Voice

Militant journalism, revolutionary politics.

United States

“Lesser Evil” Biden Wants More Border Patrol Than MAGA Republicans

Over the weekend, Biden bragged about his support for even more resources than “MAGA Republicans.” to “secure the border” on Twitter. This is “lesser evilism” in action.

Molly Rosenzweig

March 28, 2023
Customers clear shelves of water Sunday at Fresh Grocer in West Philadelphia.

A Chemical Plant Just Poisoned Philadelphia’s Water: A First-Hand Account of the Crisis

A company dumped thousands of gallons of poisonous chemicals into Philadelphia’s drinking water. This is an on-the-ground account by a Philadelphia worker and socialist.

Jason Koslowski

March 27, 2023

Joe Biden Is Deporting Russians Who Escaped Putin’s Draft — Let Them All In!

The United States is deporting Russians who sought asylum following the Russian invasion of Ukraine. This is a heinous attack against war resisters and shows that the proxy war in Ukraine is about capitalist rivalry first and foremost.

Sam Carliner

March 26, 2023

20 Years Since the U.S. Invasion of Iraq: A Reflection from a Socialist in the Heart of Imperialism

A Left Voice member and anti-war activist reflects on the U.S. invasion and occupation of Iraq and how he learned to hate U.S. imperialism.

Sam Carliner

March 20, 2023

MOST RECENT

A group of protesters, in the front of whom are a line of protesters wearing red vests. In the front right corner, a white sign reds "vive la retraite," with a skeleton wearing a red hat in the middle of the sign on a black background with a text bubble on its left that reads, "oiv a bosse, c'est pas pour en crever!"

“French March”: The Right to Revolutionary Optimism

Evoking memories of '68, the students enter the fight against Macron. In our chaotic world, the future can only be built in the streets.

Eduardo Castilla

March 26, 2023

On Monday, Germany Will Experience a “Mega-Strike”

On March 27, German railway workers and public sector employees will shut down the whole country. All trains are being canceled. Airports, freeways, hospitals, and daycare centers will all be affected.

Nathaniel Flakin

March 25, 2023

France: On the Frontlines of the War Against Austerity

The French masses have raised the banner of class struggle in what is becoming the first major battle against austerity after the pandemic. Working people across the world should pay attention.

James Dennis Hoff

March 25, 2023

Despite Threats of Arrest, Refinery Workers in France Refuse to Break Strike

As energy strikes continue, France is faced with a kerosene shortage that’s creating an urgent situation at the country’s airports. With capitalist profits on the line, the government has attempted to force Normandy refinery workers back to work through an anti-strike legal weapon called requisitions. In their first victory, refinery workers forced the police to withdraw in an incredible demonstration of solidarity.

Nathan Erderof

March 24, 2023