Facebook Instagram Twitter YouTube

United States

NYPD Continues to Harass Black Lives Matter Activist in Tense Standoff in Midtown

Since early this morning, the NYPD have been surrounding the house of a Black Lives Matter activist, attempting to take him into custody without a warrant. The protester, an organizer with Warriors in the Garden, has been resisting this intimidation and streaming the incident live on social media.

Sou Mi

August 7, 2020
Facebook Twitter Share

In the early hours of Friday morning, the NYPD surrounded the house of a peaceful protest organizer and Warriors in the Garden member (name still unknown) in Midtown Manhattan, beginning a siege that is currently still ongoing. The police arrived at the activist’s residence complete with riot gear and police dogs and had already occupied the rooftops of surrounding buildings before banging on the front door while covering the peephole. The organizer has been a visible face at ongoing demonstrations, leading from the front to denounce racism and racist police brutality. Today, they have been live streaming the interaction throughout the day. During the course of the livestream, the hundreds of those who tuned in to witness this harassment and intimidation noticed drones outside his window, evidently trying to gather evidence on his movements inside. 

In response to the stream, over 100 people answered the call to gather at the residence and help defend the activist from police intimidation and act as legal observers to what is clearly an attempt at a violent and unlawful arrest. After what has now become an hourslong standoff, the police have still not produced an arrest warrant and have not stated why they are seeking to arrest the activist. 

This clear intimidation and harassment by the NYPD of a protest organizer is a targeted attack against those who have stood up and denounced the NYPD’s racist violence on the streets now for over two months. Such attacks, of course, are nothing new. From the revolutionaries in the Black Panther Party who were hunted down by the state to Black organizers now, who are at the forefront of one of the most dynamic movements in decades, the state continues to use its armed wing to target and intimidate activists in mass movements. We condemn this harassment of activists of the current Black Lives Matter movement, as well as the  political targeting and harassment of all activists by the police. This isn’t a flaw of the system; this is by design.

Update: Around 1pm the police left the area and supporters were able to move closer to the apartment as protection. The activists is still talking with their lawyers to discuss next steps.

This is a developing story

Facebook Twitter Share

Sou Mi

Sou Mi is an activist based in New York City.

United States

Scabs Will Not Pass: Defend the UAW Strike With Organized Grassroots Power

The Big Three are escalating their use of scabs. The rank and file are fighting back.

Jason Koslowski

September 27, 2023
NYC Mayor Eric Adams stands at a podium.

The Housing Crisis and Migrant Crisis Are Crises of Capitalism

As thousands of people come to the U.S. seeking shelter, politicians around the country are claiming that housing in the U.S. is already in crisis and that there is no room for them. Both the “migrant crisis” and “housing crisis” are crises created and exacerbated by capitalism.

Mike Pappas

September 20, 2023

To Win, the UAW Strike Must Be Organized from Below

The strike at the Big Three has put the working class at the center of national politics. The autoworkers’ demands are bold and touch on issues of growing exploitation across the country. To win big, the strike must be organized from below.

Tristan Taylor

September 18, 2023

The KOSA Bill Is Another Attack on LGBTQ+ People, People of Color, and Children’s Right To Learn

KOSA is ultimately a surveillance bill whose purpose is to limit the spread of progressive politics that pose a threat to the state.

Olivia Wood

September 14, 2023

MOST RECENT

China’s Rise, ‘Diminished Dependency,’ and Imperialism in Times of World Disorder

In this broad-ranging interview, originally published in LINKS, Trotskyist Fraction member Esteban Mercatante discusses how recent global shifts in processes of capital accumulation have contributed to China’s rise, the new (and old) mechanisms big powers use to plunder the Global South, and its implications for anti-imperialist and working-class struggles today.

Esteban Mercatante

September 22, 2023
President Biden giving a speech on Friday, September 15, about the UAW strike. A UAW sign in the background.

Joe Biden Is Afraid of the UAW Strike. That’s a Good Thing.

A few days ago, Biden called on the bosses of the Big Three automakers to give concessions to the striking UAW workers. It’s because he’s scared of the UAW’s power.

Enid Brain

September 20, 2023
Migrants from Northern Africa sit in lines on the Italian island of Lampedusa.

Crisis in Lampedusa: Down with Fortress Europe, Open the Borders!

The way out of the immigration crisis is through the struggle against imperialism. This is a declaration from the European organizations of the Trotskyist Fraction - Fourth International.

Trotskyist Fraction – Fourth International

September 20, 2023

Germany Is Threatening to Deport Palestinian Refugees for Their Activism

#StandWithZaid: Zaid Abdulnasser, the coordinator of the Palestine solidarity network Samidoun Germany, is a Palestinian refugee from Syria. The German are threatening to revoke his residence permit due to his political activism.

Tom Krüger

September 18, 2023