FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Milwaukee community condemns Arizona's racist law SB1070

Students, workers and community members will protest against Arizona Senate Bill 1070, as the racist law goes into effect on July 29th.

Milwaukee, WI – July 29th, 2010 – A coalition of community organizations including Voces de la Frontera, Movimiento Estudiantil Chicano/a de Aztlan (M.E.Ch.A), Students for a Democratic Society (SDS) and The New Sanctuary Movement, will protest Arizona’s racist law, SB1070 this Thursday, beginning at Zeidler Park (3rd & Michigan) at 11:00am.

July 29th has been named a national day of action of non-compliance against Arizona’s SB1070 & HB2281. Marquette student and MEChA organizer Anahí Sánchez said “We’re protesting because we’re tired of the injustices towards Latino’s and immigrants. We can no longer sit back and watch these racist attacks against communities of color, whether it’s in Arizona or Wisconsin. We will not allow a law like SB1070 in Wisconsin!”

We demand that the Obama administration and congress put an end to all collaboration of programs of Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) & police, which contributes to the criminalization of hard-working people of Milwaukee and the United States. We demand an end to the unjust deportations, an end to the separation of families, and an end to workplace raids. We do not support any form of racism, whether it is social or institutionalized. Included in our demands are the passage of just and humane immigration policy that does not criminalize immigrants and the passage of the DREAM Act.

We will not comply with racist laws like SB1070. We will stand up against hate and racism on behalf of those who have been intimidated to stay silent or who live in fear. We stand in solidarity with the people affected by this cruel law; they are not alone in this battle for justice.

Pass CIR & DREAM Act Now!
Boycott Racism! Say No to Arizona's SB2070 & HB2281

Contact:
MilwaukeeSDS at gmail dot com
###

Protest SB1070 - July 29th

Thursday, July 29th
Zeidler Park, 3rd & Michigan
11am-1pm

As part of the national day of action against Arizona's racist law SB1070 community members will come together downtown to protest SB1070 and similar laws being passed around the country. 
We are demanding:
Pass CIR & DREAM ACT Now!
Boycott Racism! Say No to Arizona's SB2070 & HB2281!
End Police/ICE Collaboration!
Stop Separating Families and End the Raids!

Sponsors:
M.E.Ch.A de Milwaukee
Voces de la Frontera
New Sanctuary Movement
Students for a Democratic Society

http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=125860914122842#!/event.php?eid=139750592716633

Victory for the Milwaukee 16! UWM offers to drop charges!

Milwaukee March 4 protest for educational rights. (Fight Back! News/Staff)

Milwaukee, WI - The Milwaukee 16, the students who were arrested at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee (UWM) on March 4, the National Day of Action to Defend Education, have achieved victory. On June 29, the University offered to drop the charges and the investigation into the conduct of the UWM campus police continues.

At the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee on March 4, the Students for a Democratic Society (SDS) led the charge of nearly 200 students and workers at the Chancellors office to demand an end to wage cuts, tuition hikes and union busting. The UWM police responded by pepper spraying protesters, arresting a student based on racial profiling and aggressively detaining other students and workers. The university community, including faculty, staff and students, organized in outrage at the response of the police and the administration on March 4. As a result, the Milwaukee 16 will have their charges dropped. SDS member Molly Ubbesen states, “On March 4, the university tried to silence our voices by arresting protesters, but we will continue to fight for democracy and education rights.” 

After March 4, UWM Chancellor Santiago agreed to meet with members of the Education Rights Campaign regarding their demands. Students and workers accompanied their representatives, standing outside for hours in the rain to hear that some of their demands would be met. Santiago agreed to address their demands publicly, which led to the UWM Panel on Education Rights, where a group of professors, workers, students and administrators spoke about the issues to the media and an audience of nearly 200 people. At the panel, Santiago denied the request to drop the charges, so the Education Rights Campaign organized another protest where students stormed a Board of Regents meeting demanding that the charges be dropped. As a result of the demonstration and support from students, staff and faculty of the campus community, all of the charges will be dropped for the Milwaukee 16. 

Though the charges will be dropped, SDS and the Education Rights Campaign will continue to seek justice for those who were mistreated by the police on March 4, through a formal third party investigation. Rachel Matteson, one of the Milwaukee 16 states, “The investigation of the UWM campus police is an attempt to protect democracy on our campus from the people who have tried to take our rights away from us.” 

SDS began organizing the Education Rights Campaign at UWM in the fall of 2009, and now over 20 student and worker organizations are active in defense of their jobs and their education. They have worked in coalition with other SDS chapters and organizations around the country to demand an end to wage cuts and tuition hikes. SDS member Mary Rutkowski explains, “The goal of the education rights campaign is for our university system to educate students, not earn a profit.”

As tuition rises and wages are cut at universities around the country, the fight continues. SDS and others are organizing nationally to demand that the rich pay for their economic crisis, not students and workers. October 7 will be the next National Day of Action to Defend Education. Students and workers are already organizing to make this another historic day in the struggle for jobs and education.

http://www.fightbacknews.org/2010/7/5/victory-milwaukee-16-uwm-offers-drop-charges?utm_source=Fight+Back!+News+Service&utm_campaign=86dc2a538a-UA-743468-8&utm_medium=email

Arizona Freedom Summer

All out against White Supremacy! Be part of the Arizona Freedom Summer, July 23–August 5, 2010.

Join SDS this summer in the struggle against racism in Arizona! Come work alongside dozens of grassroots groups who are organizing against SB 1070 and other anti-immigrant laws.


Please join the facebook group: http://www.facebook.com/?sk=app_2309869772#!/event.php?eid=107301169320209