Fight Back! News

News and Views from the People's Struggle

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By staff

Ben Frazier, rights activist and Black journalist in handcuffs.

Jacksonville, FL – Jacksonville residents angered with Governor Ron DeSantis' handling of the pandemic and other issues showed up to make their voices heard on Tuesday morning, January 4, just before the governor was scheduled to conduct a press conference in Jacksonville.

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By staff

Rally against police budget

Protest at mayor and sheriff’s inauguration in Jacksonville, FL.

Jacksonville, FL – Around 50 people gathered in downtown Jacksonville, Monday morning, July 1, to protest Mayor Lenny Curry and Sheriff Mike Williams’ inauguration. Curry and Williams both ran a campaign this spring based on law-and-order and the promise of lower crime rates. Despite the community’s demand over the last two years for less money for police and more money for community investment, Jacksonville city council and Mayor Curry repeatedly rewarded the Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office (JSO) with an increased budget, although crime continues to rise. The proposed JSO budget is $445 million, which is roughly a third of Jacksonville’s budget and $35 million increase over last year.

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By staff

Walk out at Jacksonville city council meeting.

Jacksonville, FL – It was a very violent weekend in Jacksonville. There was a shooting at the Raines High School versus Lee High School football game on Friday, August 24, and the following day, August 25, there was a shooting at the Jacksonville Landing during a video game tournament, leaving families and friends all over the city mourning. The Jacksonville city council typically meets the second and fourth Tuesdays of the month, and although rescheduled due to voting in the statewide primaries, the city council meeting on Wednesday, August 29 was attended by many angry community members and activists that wanted answers.

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By Fern

Activists signed some of the gifts given to the mothers of the slain men.

Jacksonville, FL – Over 75 people gathered in Klutho Park, May 11, to honor several mothers of the movement against police crimes, including the mothers of Keegan Von Roberts, Maurice Hobbs and Vernell Bing Jr., three Black men murdered in Jacksonville over the past two years. In all three cases, the Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office (JSO) either murdered the men (Bing Jr.), failed to prosecute the killer (Von Roberts) or refused to even investigate the murder despite having evidence about the case (Hobbs).

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By staff

March for justice in Baker County.

MacClenny, FL – On April 21, around 150 community members and activists, as well as the family of Dominic Broadus II, marched to the Baker County Courthouse to call for justice.

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By Fern

Members of the Jacksonville Community Action Committee (JCAC) gathered

Jacksonville, FL – Almost two dozen members of the Jacksonville Community Action Committee (JCAC) spoke at the city council meeting July 25 in favor of police accountability.

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