Posts of Robert Jay RSSSat, 05 Jun 2021 13:29:39 GMTOriginally Posted on January 30, 2019.  All photographs provided by: The Larson Lens, LLCPrelude:For much of December and January, Huntington Woods Library's "Drag Queen Storytime" was under attack by forces of bigotry within, and without, the local community. It began with City Commissioner Allison Iversen, whose emails about the event included the following "I have been trying to get this stopped since it started. Please do get more people involved. I am one voice and we need many people to call this out for what it is." That leak prompted a City Commission meeting where residents of Huntington Woods showed overwhelming support for the program."The results that have been achieved by Drag QUEEN Storytime is statistical truth to the desire of Huntington Woods and surrounding cities, which was echoed by community member after community member, at last month's City Commission meeting. There is a waiting list for the event, and ONE letter of opposition that was the only letter sent to the Mayor's office. The community has spoken, HATE chooses NOT to hear them,” stated Jey'nce Poindexter, Founder of Trans Sistas of Color Project - Detroit and Board Member of Women's March, MI, who was in attendance at the meeting. Allison Iversen would resign early on December 18th, with her bid to end Storytime failing. The results have been readily apparent. Joyce Krom, the librarian organizing Storytime, has been assembling wildly successful events, with 100 attendees at her first event and a perpetual waiting list since. "We strive to support all children in our community, one of our top priorities is to be welcoming and inclusive, and always work toward creating a more equitable society," Krom told MDPAN, when describing the purpose behind Drag Queen Storytime. Miss Raven Divine Cassadine, a regular host of Storytime, was leading the reading on January 26th. "I think that it’s very important that we teach the importance of reading to the children and acceptance for everyone regardl... Read more

]]>Sat, 05 Jun 2021 13:29:39 GMTCW: Literal Nazis and what comes with it.Originally Posted on June 10, 2019Update 6/12/19: Features account and video footage of an NSM member assaulting a woman in front of multiple DPD officers.An oral history of Antifascist action in Detroit, collected and synthesized from accounts with on-site participants. Preparations, Confrontations, and Mutual AidOn April 16th Burt Colucci, alleged "Commander" of the National Socialist Movement [NSM], levied a threat against Motor City Pride, stating they would be holding an armed demonstration to intimidate and harm Detroit’s LGBTQIA community. Word of the threat spread among leftist circles, and LGBTQIA rights organizers were rapidly alerted. When Motor City Pride was informed, they asked concerned residents to leave it to the Detroit Police Department.The initial threat, from his Facebook profile. Food Not Class (FNC), which routinely serves a free buffet and clothing/toiletries share for vulnerable community members twice a week, called in as many volunteers as they could for a special serving on the first day of Motor City Pride. They set up along an apropos wall of stone on Jefferson and Bates, having just produced a “History of Pride” zine, celebrating the 50th Anniversary of Stonewall. Their spread was complete with 11 cases of bottled water, lasagna, vegan chili, stuffed peppers, pizza and a veritable mountain of cornbread, delighting the houseless community and passersby alike, wetting whistles and sating appetites. Mitten Medics were on hand to make sure anyone who got hurt could get patched up, and keep folks hydrated on an 80 degree day.Red Orchestra (RO) and the youth cadre of Communist Workers League (CWL) of Detroit provided the direct action and community defense portions of the proceedings, with Antifascists garbed in tie-dye and rainbow bandanas, alternately dubbed the “Rainbow Warriors” or “Rainbow Bloc” by onlookers and social media accounts.The FNC serve, and they still fed State Fair the same day. Whil... Read more

]]>Sat, 05 Jun 2021 13:19:46 GMTOriginally Posted on August 24, 2018Update: 2/13/2020, a certain story involving tangerines and masochism surfaced from this day and had to be included.A compiled oral history of Antifascist action the weekend of August 10-12, 2018 in Charlottesville, VA and Washington DC.August 11th, 11 PMThough their means of acquisition is unknown, this Antifa collective possessed a large pile of confederate flags by the evening of the 11th. Their safehouse also had a fire pit, which left only one logical conclusion for what to do with them. Joining the pile of cloth from failed attempts at white supremacist states was a Blue Lives Matter flag, its movement begging to join the Stars and Bars in the past tense. Once the logs ignited, the ritual began. Curses shouted to the heavens for centuries of brutality and persecution at the hands of the state and its lapdogs, while the racist banners were lowered into the conflagration. The collective cheered as flames licked at the fabric, igniting and melting it. Then, someone said "anyone who doesn't jump over the fire at least once is a cop", and all seriousness dissipated as the collective lined up to leap over the blazing pit.General Sherman was right about one thing... With the daunting task of obliterating Jason Kessler's "Unite the Right 2" rally ahead, the collective cut loose. Tables were danced on, pasta feasts consumed and sing-alongs conducted, ranging from Eric Clapton's "Before You Accuse Me" to Britney Spears' "Oops, I Did It Again". Good times in community are precious when living in the grip of a fascist regime, as it makes the looming threat of Nazis and their state protectors seem smaller, at least for a short while. August 12th, 11 AMWord of Kessler moving his Nazi rally start time up several hours engulfed the collective's communication networks as they swiftly mobilized to ensure black bloc's presence was felt outside the White House. The fascist's gambit failed, as scores of black bloc flooded the streets of DC just ... Read more

]]>Sun, 10 May 2020 17:05:12 GMTBanner image credit: Northern Star.In late December, a caravan of asylum seekers, many beginning in Central America and growing to over 7,000 people, will reach the Southern US Border along Mexico. Trump is threatening to send 15,000 soldiers to the border in response, declaring the imaginary line separating the two countries "sacred" and telling thousands of refugees fleeing violence to "turn around". Should Trump follow through on his threats, it will be the first (official) armed deployment of US soldiers on home soil since the American Civil War. Should those troops (or ICE/CBP/DHS agents) fire on the caravan, it will be in direct violation of both US and International law, which dictates that seeking asylum is perfectly legal.Further, there is only one morally correct response to the caravan: to throw open the doors and welcome them. Failure to do so is not just a rejection of moral duty, it is a complete abdication of both national and international values. It also ignores the weight of responsibility the United States placed on itself when it declared dominion over Central and South American countries, then repeatedly destabilized those countries in the name of corporate interest. While this specific caravan only formed over the past year, the path they walk is over two centuries in the making. Here is the first in a four part series examining the United States' role in the perpetual exploitation of Central and South America.If you would like aid the caravan directly, Pueblo Sin Fronteras is organizing their relief efforts from within the caravan and can be donated to on PayPal. 1823 - 1898: Bad Intentions Gone Worse- 1823: US President James Monroe signs the Monroe Doctrine, stating that any further attempt of European nations to colonize North, Central or South America would be viewed as a slight against the United States. - 1846: Mallarino-Bidlack Treaty signed in New Granada (currently Colombia and Panama), granting the US a unique rig... Read more

]]>Mon, 04 May 2020 01:03:28 GMTAn oral history chronicling the Antifascist actions in Charlottesville/DC the weekend of August 10-12, 2018.August 10th, 2018As Antifa chapters convened across the country, so too did the Abolish ICE Network gather in the humid and ordinarily friendly confines of Charlottesville, VA. A city besieged by white supremacist violence just a year ago, culminating in the savage beating of DeAndre Harris and murder of Heather Heyer, found itself in the grip of an oppressive police state. State Trooper vehicles lined the entrances to the historic campus, formations focused around the college's numerous monuments, and frequent patrols skulked through the downtown streets. Nevertheless, it was Friday, and the Abolish ICE team was committed to continuing their tradition of a One Million Flames solidarity vigil, for victims of the pogrom against immigrants (including the child who died from a respiratory infection contracted while imprisoned by ICE), mass incarceration, and especially Heather Heyer. Candles lined the sidewalk of the Charlottesville Federal Courthouse, the abolitionists forced off the premises proper by local police. They fanned out, enveloping the street corner in candlelight as cars passed by, honking supportively. A few glared at the gathering, furtively taking cell phone pictures of the demonstrators. As the abolitionists were singing "Solidarity Forever", passersby walked up to the courthouse to join them. With the local support, this One Million Flames vigil was officially a success.Abolish ICE Camps Represented: Portland, Tacoma (NWDC), Tampa Bay, Detroit. The Antifa/Abolitionist collective concluded their ceremony thanking the bystanders who joined the movement, however briefly, and quietly returned home to prepare for Charlottesville's defense.August 11th, 2018 - Downtown Charlottesville - 1 PMFueled by pancakes, scrambled eggs and a demand for social justice, the Antifa collective set to work planning their memorial service for Heather Heyer at the site... Read more

]]>Sun, 03 May 2020 21:24:29 GMTOriginally Posted on August 6, 2018As the street sweepers cleared and the sun peaked out from the horizon line the morning of July 27, an intrepid crew of Occupants, numbering 15, rose from their tents and went to work shutting down the Detroit ICE Field office. Eschewing most physical barricades that enveloped the gates in June, this team did most of the work with just their bodies.Prior to the blockade, two groups of two Occupants each faced a frightening encounter. At 1:30 AM, a black Ford F-250 SuperDuty pickup barreled through the Larned/Mt. Elliott intersection on a bee-line for protesters biking away. It swerved at the last moment, snaked up Mt. Elliott to restablize, then ran a red light on a right turn from the middle lane on Lafayette. This exact pattern was later repeated at 3:30 AM towards two protesters on foot.A little after 5 AM, several vehicles tried to enter the facility through the Jefferson gate. A line of people formed in front, shouts of "Shame!" drowning out their cries of frustration, already muted by their car windows. The cars were turned away, but pulled into an adjacent parking lot to stew over a thwarted attempt to continue the work of genocide. Two of the cars bounced between the Jefferson and Mt. Elliott gates, probing for an opening. They found none.Portion of the Deadline Day encampment, 7/26. Not long after 7 AM, a DHS agent arrived in response to employee calls about not being able to come to work. Occupy ICE Detroit began picketing in front of the gates in a roving circle formation. The DHS Agent, who shall henceforth be referred to as Agent (Donald) Glover, began repeatedly shouting "This is America!" in response to the protest, and later "you got me trippin' on some bike locks at 7 in the morning" in reference to the reason why none of the gates could open. The authorities' plea to not block vehicles from entering the facility was summarily ignored. After a half hour of huffing and puffing with channel locks and sledge... Read more

]]>Sun, 03 May 2020 21:02:53 GMTOriginally Posted on July 5, 20186/27 - Not long after sunrise, a DPD squad car approached the Occupy ICE Detroit encampment. A lone officer, flanked by two employees of Centerra Security, demanded we remove displays attached to the ICE Field Office fence. When asked whether the issue was just the signs, or the tent city itself, the officer stated he believed the tents were fine. After 30 minutes speaking to his superior, he confirmed the sole issue was the signs.The five occupants present, groggy and disoriented, slowly complied. The fifteen foot "#ShutItDown" banner was the last to go, folded like an American flag while the occupants belted out a heavily butchered version of Taps.The next few hours were rainy, and punctuated by a fascist bearing an actual American flag, a sign reading "God Bless Our Law Enforcement", a CPL and a gun. After calling one of the women protesting ICE a "skank", DHS officers arrived on the scene. Despite a long deliberation with the fascist, DHS returned to state that both parties had a right to protest, and the armed white supremacist was viewed no differently than non-violent protesters attempting to prevent genocide.Eventually, the fascist left the encampment to spend the next hour licking the boots of a DHS SUV observing the occupation. Not long after, Detroit Animal Control arrived on the scene to force Erick's service goat, Deer, off the premises. After a lengthy, and thoroughly bizarre deliberation that featured phrases such as "live goats are not allowed in the City of Detroit" and protesters firing back "No goat is illegal!", Erick was forced to leave the encampment.At 11:42 AM, a DHS SUV crept up to the protest site, and the agent stated he had received orders to strike the camp. Occupy ICE Detroit had until 1 PM to remove all personal property from the premises, lest it be stolen and thrown away by DHS. No reason for this action was given, beyond it was a command from a superior. As a torrential downpour began,... Read more

]]>Sun, 03 May 2020 13:30:03 GMTOriginally Posted on June 28, 2018The day began at 4 AM, for those not pulling the night shift. Cries of scorn and disgust emanated from tents as bucket drums were beat for a wake-up call. Two days of planning were finally coming to fruition, the blockade of Detroit's ICE Field Office begins. Intel stated ICE agents can enter the office as early as 5 AM to resume their genocidal campaign.Protesters quickly went to work executing their blockade strategy, a hodgepodge of ideas collectively hashed out that created a surprising amount of cohesion and mitigated having such limited personnel. Only 40 could make it at such an early hour. Several suspected ICE agents attempted to pull in, but were met with an impenetrable wall of anti-bigotry chants and hardy activists. In frustration, they shook their head, gave the resistance the finger and turned around, unable to fulfill their requirements for the torture of immigrant families.With three gates to guard, Occupy ICE Detroit was spread thin, but a mixture of guile, courage and communication allowed the blockade to continue for six hours.The tale of Occupy ICE Detroit's standoff is a tale of two camps, holding the line along Mt. Elliott St's gates and another on Jefferson. At first, three DPD squad cars rushed the Northern gate at Mt. Elliot, prompting an influx of reinforcements. DPD officers exited their vehicles and stood agape at the collection of activists blocking off not just the gates to the ICE Field Office, but the Southern end of Mt. Elliott itself. At this point, it was determined blockading the building marked "Immigration Photos" was essential, as immigrants who attend their ICE check-in appointments live under the constant specter of deportation, fearing each appointment could be their last on American soil. Since no ICE Agents could enter their office, the appointments had been summarily canceled. One family with an appointment would have their mother taken from them, should the meeting be allowed to take pl... Read more

]]>Sun, 03 May 2020 13:24:16 GMTOriginally Posted on July 24, 2017On July 24th, the Michigan Trump Republicans held a rally at Duggan’s pub in Royal Oak, MI. Metro-Detroit Political Action Network (MDPAN), Refuse Fascismand members of Solidarity and Defense staged a protest to reject the fascist ideology espoused by the President’s base. While the aim was for a peaceful demonstration, the Michigan contingent of Bikers for Trump violently escalated the situation, assaulting two members of MDPAN.  Joseph Fournier, a leader with MDPAN, made note that “known members of Michigan Militia and Bikers Against Radical Islam, who just love going into communities and tormenting families here,” were in attendance. The latter group recently attempted to drive through Dearborn terrorizing the majority Muslim populace, while thumbing their nose at Islamic traditions by hosting a pig roast, before being shut down by local Elk clubs. “Duggan’s is clearly endorsing them, despite what their official statement may say.” Fournier continued, alluding to a statement that this pro-Trump rally was simply the matter of fulfilling a reservation.The first hour and a half of the protest was mild, peppered by the occasional jeers and Trump supporters wandering into the resistance area to profess the alleged evils of globalism, Black Lives Matter, and immigration. Encounters were tense, but ultimately not harmful.That changed after 7 PM, when both sides clustered on opposite ends of the egress in Duggan’s parking lot. Shouts of “Lock Him Up” and “No Trump, No KKK, No Fascist USA” clashing with “We’re Stronger Together With Trump” and the revving of stationary motorcycles.While the Bikers for Trump camp were safe crossing into resistance territory, two women from the activist camp were not so fortunate. Witnesses at the scene state that a woman walked across the egress, then had her sign grabbed at, and later her person, repeatedly shoved by a female member of Bikers for Trump in bizarre po... Read more

]]>Sun, 03 May 2020 13:17:14 GMTOriginally Posted February 11, 2018Bill 5550 has been proposed to the Michigan House of Representatives amid Metro-Detroit Political Action Network's (MDPAN) protest that Metro City Church is hosting conversion therapy sessions for teenage girls. The bill, introduced by Ann Arbor Rep. Adam Zemke, seeks to make Michigan the tenth state to ban conversion therapy (attempts to reorient LGBTQIA individuals to a hetero/cis gender and sexuality dynamic) by mental health professionals. Zemke is joined Brownstown Rep. Darrin Camilleri in calls to remove the practice. Camilleri is also demanding MI Attorney General Bill Schuette investigate the Church for any deceptive and unconscionable practices under the MI Consumer Protection Act.The protest, organized in under a week by MDPAN, began with author Sara Cunningham's posting of Metro City Church's $200 workshop for teenage girls struggling with gender and sexuality identity. The activist group quickly mobilized. Spearheaded by LGBTQIA chair Brianna Dee Kingsley and Meeko Williams, the protest drew roughly 300 to the Riverview church to support those teenage girls pressured to attend the workshop, and condemning any abuse visited upon them by church staff.One such tale of abuse was suffered by Seth Tooley, a 17-year-old transgender man, who attended a similar workshop by the church four years prior. Kim Tooley, Seth's mother, told the Detroit Free Press "My son had three adults laying hands on him — (he was) screaming so loud I heard him from the other room — praying that God will deliver him from (the homosexuality) demon". The abuse continued as the church insisted on deadnaming Seth, demanding he dress as a female, and subsequently banned him from a boy youth group within the church. With Seth's experience as a focal point, MDPAN rallied LGBTQIA community leaders such as Kingsley and Williams, Jey'nce Poindexter (Equality MI, Trans Sistas of Color Project), Char and Est... Read more

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