Tag: protests

30+ Met police smash down Quaker meeting house doors to raid anti-genocide gathering

Quakers in Britain have strongly condemned the violation of their place of worship by a gang of Met Police officers last night, which they describe as “a direct result of stricter protest laws removing virtually all routes to challenge the status quo”.

The police, some armed with tasers, forced their way into the Quakers’ Westminster Meeting House and arrested six women campaigners who were meeting peacefully in a hired room – the first time in living memory that someone has been arrested in a Quaker meeting house, according to the religious group.

Police smashed the front door of the building without warning or attempting to gain peaceful entry first by simply ringing the bell. Young people’s anti-genocide group Youth Demand have also condemned the ‘insane’ assault on free speech and peaceful assembly, in a video statement by one of the young women at the event – who reported that police had seized laptops and phones despite only being there for supposed ‘conspiracy to commit public nuisance’. Three of the women remained in custody this afternoon.

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The Hate Group Helping Trump Deport Israel’s Critics

A far-right, pro-Israel group with a history of support for terror and genocide is working closely with the Trump administration, preparing dossiers on thousands of pro-Palestine figures it wants deported from the United States.

Betar U.S. is known to have had several meetings with senior government officials and has claimed credit for the arrest and detention of Mahmoud Khalil, a leader of the nationwide anti-genocide student demonstrations that began at Columbia University last year.

Ross Glick, the group’s executive director until last month, noted that he met with a diverse set of influential lawmakers, including Democratic Sen. John Fetterman and aides to Republican Senators Ted Cruz and James Lankford, and that all supported Betar U.S.’ campaign to rid the country of thousands of “terror supporters.”

Shortly after Glick’s trip to Washington, D.C., Trump signed an executive order titled “Additional Measures to Combat Anti-Semitism” that promises “the removal of resident aliens who violate our laws,” to “quell pro-Hamas vandalism and intimidation” and to “investigate and punish anti-Jewish racism in leftist, anti-American colleges and universities.”

Trump himself announced that Khalil’s arrest, which made worldwide headlines, was “the first of many to come.”

“We know there are more students at Columbia and other Universities across the country who have engaged in pro-terrorist, anti-Semitic, anti-American activity, and the Trump administration will not tolerate it,” he wrote on Truth Social.

The 45th and 47th president has also stated that he plans to deport “Communists” and “Marxists” from the United States, even those who are citizens. As such, this marks an escalation in government-backed suppression of dissent not seen since the McCarthyist era of the 1940s and 1950s.

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Federal Agents Arrest Tufts Student as Part of Crackdown on Pro-Palestine Speech

On Tuesday, ICE agents arrested a PhD student at Tufts University, a private university in Massachusetts, an arrest that appears to be part of the Trump administration’s crackdown on pro-Palestine speech.

Rumeysa Ozturk, a Turkish citizen in the US on an F-1 student visa, was arrested outside of her apartment and is now in federal custody. Her lawyer, Mahsa Khanbabai, said she has not been able to contact her.

“We are unaware of her whereabouts and have not been able to contact her. No charges have been filed against Rumeysa to date that we are aware of. We hope Rumeysa will be released immediately,” Khanbabai said.

Khanbabi said that “based on patterns we are seeing across the country, her exercising her free speech rights appear to have played a role in her detention,” referring to the targeting of foreign students who are critical of Israel’s genocidal war on Gaza.

Ozturk has been targeted by the Canary Mission, a pro-Israel group that doxxes students and professors who are critical of Israel. The Canary Mission’s page on Ozturk lists only one example of her “anti-Israel activism,” the co-authoring of an op-ed that called for Tufts University to divest from Israel and “acknowledge the Palestinian genocide.”

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Trump Vows To Probe Ashli Babbitt Homicide, Consider Comp Fund For Pardoned J6ers

President Trump on Tuesday vowed that he would bring new scrutiny to the Department of Justice’s handling of the killing of Ashli Babbitt by a Capitol police officer during the Jan 6, 2021 riot, and to explore the possibility of a compensation fund for the 1,500 Capitol riot defendants he pardoned.   

Trump’s promises came in a Roosevelt Room interview with Newsmax’s Greg Kelly. When Kelly asked Trump about the DOJ continuing to mount a defense against a $30 million wrongful death claim filed by Babbitt’s husband, Trump said he wasn’t aware of it but would look into the matter: 

“Well, I’ll look into that. I mean, you’re just telling me that for the first time, I haven’t heard that. I’m a big fan of Ashli Babbitt. And Ashli Babbitt was a really good person who was a big MAGA fan, Trump fan. And she was innocently standing there; they even say trying to sort of hold back the crowd. And a man did something to her that was unthinkable when he shot her. And I think it’s a disgrace. I’m going to look into that. I did not know that.”

Babbitt was shot and killed by US Capitol Police (USCP) Lieutenant Michael Byrd as she attempted to climb through a broken window that was part of an interior doorway close to the House chamber. Though the unarmed, 5’2″, 115-pound Babbitt posed no imminent threat of inflicting death or serious injury as she awkwardly navigated the narrow space — with a furniture barricade still ahead of her —  Boyd opted against using any type of nonlethal force, and instead shot her from an ambush position, killing her with a bullet that perforated her trachea and lung. 

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Canadian activist Billboard Chris FORCIBLY ‘moved on’ in Brisbane

Canadian activist Chris Elston, widely known as Billboard Chris, has been forcibly moved on by Police in Brisbane, after initially suspecting he may have been arrested.

Elston, who has gained international attention for his opposition to woke transgender ideology, posted two videos online shortly before his claimed arrest, both without audio, suggesting technical issues.

He then tweeted, “I’m being arrested for having conversations in Brisbane,” alerting his over 400,000 followers on X to the unfolding situation.

The incident occurred while Elston was in Queensland’s capital talking to people on the streets. Video posts shared earlier showed police engaging with him, with one captioned, “Looks like I’m getting arrested in Brisbane,” followed by another indicating officers were debating whether to detain him. The lack of audio left viewers unable to discern the exact nature of the exchange.

Tesla owner Elon Musk took to X to support Elston, asking “are you ok?” in reply to his post about the incident.

Eslton later posted a full video of the interaction with authories showing the confrontation which led to officers moving him on from the mall area where he was talking to passers-by.

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Wife of Activist Trump Wants to Deport Just Tried to Blow Up the Whole Case Against Him

Mahmoud Khalil, the Columbia University anti-Israel activist whom the Trump administration has targeted for deportation, has become a darling of the left, as people who hate America so often do. The New York Civil Liberties Union (NYCLU) claimed Friday that Khalil’s arrest “has created a speech-chilling atmosphere of fear” and charges that “the Trump administration’s actions represent a dangerous escalation of the president’s attempts to choke off the free speech rights of people on American soil.” And on Sunday, Khalil’s wife attempted to blow up the entire case against him, asserting that it was “ridiculous” and “disgusting” to say that Khalil supports Hamas.

This is all-important because if Khalil is found to be a Hamas supporter, the case against him would be nearly open and shut. U.S. Code § 1182 states that “any alien” who is “a representative” of “a political, social, or other group that endorses or espouses terrorist activity” is “inadmissible.” U.S. Code § 1227 adds that such an alien “is deportable.” The Associated Press described Khalil two weeks ago as one of the “student leaders of Columbia University Apartheid Divest” (CUAD). The Washington Post reported last Tuesday that “No one disputes that Khalil was the face of Columbia University Apartheid Divest.” 

Khalil was CUAD’s chief negotiator with Columbia administrators. Politico explained: “Khalil was a lead negotiator representing the student protesters to the Columbia administration during the school’s ‘Gaza Solidarity Encampment’ last spring. The student group behind the encampment — Columbia University Apartheid Divest, or CUAD — had two main demands: that Columbia cut all its ties to Israel, including divesting and halting plans to build a ‘global center’ in Tel Aviv, and that the protesters themselves receive amnesty for their actions.” 

However, apparently aware of how damaging that fact is to his case, Khalil himself disputes this. The BBC framed Khalil’s connection to CUAD as if it were merely something his opponents claimed: “Activists supporting Israel have accused Mr Khalil of being a leader of Columbia University Apartheid Divest (Cuad), a student group that demanded, among other things, the university to divest from its financial ties to Israel and a ceasefire in Gaza. Mr Khalil has denied that he led the group, telling the Associated Press (AP) that he only served as a spokesperson for protesters and as a mediator with the university.” 

It’s easy to see why Khalil would want to distance himself from CUAD. In August 2024, it posted this on Instagram, then removed it once it started getting appalled notice from saner quarters: “We are Westerners fighting for the total eradication of Western civilization.” During the anti-Israel protests at Columbia, the demonstrators screamed “Death to America.”

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‘Inorganic’ – GPS Data Reveals Bernie Sanders, AOC Anti-Oligarchy Rally Was Full Of Serial Protesters

The Democratic Party launched a full-scale propaganda blitz in a desperate attempt to sway public opinion as its favorability ratings plunged to record lows. True to form, the party of leftist radicals prefers to bend reality—relying on rent-a-protesters or, in this case, inorganic crowds—to create a false perception of popularity. And that’s exactly what unfolded on Friday in Denver. 

Drone footage shows a large crowd as U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vermont, spoke at Denver’s Civic Center. The outspoken socialist wrote on X: “34,000 people out in Denver. Largest political rally there since 2008.” 

Sanders attempted to explain that the large turnout reflected what voters are saying: “No to authoritarianism. No to oligarchy. No to Trumpism.”

However, leftist corporate media failed to fact-check the socialist for misinformation or disinformation. Others did—using a sophisticated algorithm to analyze data from all smartphone devices at the event—and found the numbers were severely overinflated. 

Many of the attendees were probably bussed in and had a history of participating in Antifa/BLM, pro-Hamas, and pro-Palestinian protests. The Democratic Party is known for bussing activists through NGO networks to events to fill seats—a tactic repeatedly used throughout Kamala Harris’ 2024 presidential campaign trail to create fake hype. 

Data analyst Tony Seruga exposed just how staged the latest Democratic Party rally was, revealing their ongoing attempts to manipulate public perception with inorganic crowds made up mainly of DEI activists rather than genuine grassroots supporters:

GPS—Here we go again, there were 20,189 devices. Still a large crowd but not even close to the 30,000 quoted in Denver newspapers nor the 34,000 quoted by Bernie Sanders and AOC.

84% of the devices present had attended 9 or more Kamala Harris rallies, antifa/blm, pro-Hamas, pro-Palestinian protests, 31% had attended over 20.

For more insight into what data we also look at in addition to GPS location data would be demographic and psychographic data using over 6,000 different databases, i.e., like the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), Pew Research Center, market research firms like YouGov, Experian, specialized tools like ESRI’s Tapestry Segmentation, consumer surveys, social media platforms like 𝕏, Facebook, Linkedin.

Demographic data includes basic characteristics like age, gender, income, education level, occupation, marital status, family size, ethnicity, and where people live (e.g., city, state).

Psychographic data dives deeper into people’s lifestyles, values, attitudes, interests, personality traits, social class, activities, and how they make purchasing decisions. For example, it might show if someone values sustainability, enjoys outdoor activities, participates in community activism.

While demographic data is straightforward, psychographic data can reveal sensitive personal details, like beliefs even life goals.

Additionally, by cross pollinating each device with other devices regularly within close proximity to the target device we are able to build a detailed profile for each target.

90% of those in the above 84% were likely working with one of these five groups and is the reason for their presence.

Once again, this is based a very sophisticated algorithm that looks at the behavioral metrics for each device, including the physical 1:1 proximity to leaders and paymasters from these groups in the past.

Disruption Project, Rise & Resist, Indivisible Project, Troublemakers and the Democratic Socialists of America.

Each receives money from ActBlue and at least three, via USAID.

Disruption Project: Legal status is unclear, likely operating illegally. Rise & Resist: 501c4 non-profit Indivisible Project: 501c4 non-profit Troublemakers: Legal status is for profit. Democratic Socialists of America: 501c4 non-profit

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Hundreds Of Anti-Erdogan Protesters Arrested Overnight As Crisis Slides: ‘Fight About Democracy’

Turkish police have detained 343 people during overnight protests in several cities against the detention of Istanbul Mayor Ekrem Imamoglu, the Interior Ministry said Saturday.

Demonstrations took place across the country, including in Istanbul and the capital Ankara, the ministry said in a statement. It said the detentions were made to prevent “disrupting of public order” and warned that authorities would not tolerate “chaos and provocation.”

The Republican People’s Party (CHP), of which Imamoglu is a member, said the detentions were politically motivated and urged supporters to demonstrate lawfully. The protests are the biggest in Turkey since the massive demonstrations of 2013 to protest the demolition of Istanbul’s Gezi Park, Kurdistan 24 reported.

“There is a great anger. People are spontaneously taking to the streets. Some young people are being politicized for the first time in their lives,” said Yuksel Taskin, a lawmaker from the CHP.

“The feeling of being trapped — economically, socially, politically, and even culturally — was already widespread,” journalist and author Kemal Can told AFP.

The protests began on March 19 after Mayor Imamoglu was detained at his home that morning on terrorism and corruption charges. “I see today during my interrogation that I and my colleagues are faced with unimaginable accusations and slanders,” Imamoglu said in his defense during a counter-terrorism police interrogation, a court document viewed by Reuters showed.

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Trump Administration Weighs Sanctions on Foreign Funders of Pro-Hamas Campus Protests

The Trump administration is mulling plans to sanction the international funders behind pro-Hamas protests, including prominent Qatari nationals who have vast financial holdings inside the United States, current and former U.S. officials familiar with the internal discussions told the Washington Free Beacon.

The effort seeks to build upon President Donald Trump’s January executive order authorizing the deportation of foreign students engaged in often illegal anti-Semitic demonstrations on college campuses across the country. Instead of targeting the protests’ participants, it would target their funders. The administration could, for example, slap sanctions on foreign individuals who provide groups like Students for Justice in Palestine with significant funding. In cases where those individuals enjoy U.S. visas, it could revoke them.

“President Trump has made it a priority to ensure that Jewish students, indeed all students, feel safe and free from harassment on college campuses,” one senior U.S. official, who spoke on background to discuss the ongoing deliberations, told the Free Beacon. “To that end, his administration is taking a comprehensive approach, not just looking at the visas and green cards of student instigators, but also, for example, going after the people funding the protests, wherever they may be.”

The plans reflect a growing appetite inside the administration to hamstring Hamas’s allies in the United States by penalizing their most prolific funders, including several former Qatari officials known to maintain relations with the Iran-backed group. Iranian government actors have also funded anti-Israel protests in the United States, former director of national intelligence Avril Haines revealed last summer.

Some officials within the Biden administration discussed similar plans to cut off foreign funding or the protests, according to a former U.S. diplomat involved in the efforts both then and now, who said the administration shelved the plans so as not to upset Doha’s government as it mediated peace talks between Israel and Hamas.

“This was on the menu when I was there, but the previous administration was a bit squeamish about taking extreme measures, like revoking visas,” said the diplomat. “But that’s not a problem in this administration, and we’re hearing they’re looking at all options—from sanctions on individuals to the revocation of visas.”

“You can’t get rid of anti-Semitism on campus without getting rid of the funding, and the funders are Qatar.”

The Trump administration has already taken similar action when it comes to America’s southern border. In early March, Secretary of State Marco Rubio announced visa restrictions on “foreign government officials, including immigration and customs officials, airport and port authority officials, and others believed to be responsible for knowingly facilitating illegal immigration to the United States.” Less than two weeks later, Rubio restricted visas for current and former government officials complicit in China’s genocide of the Uyghur minority population.

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Queer Kennedy Center employee FIRED after stripping nude in video to protest Trump admin

Tavis Forsyth, a queer contract employee of the Kennedy Center, was fired on Thursday after stripping nude for a YouTube video to protest changes being made at the center under President Donald Trump’s leadership.

Forsyth, 32, who uses “they/them” pronouns, delivered a 35-minute spoken-word poem to express grievances about the Trump administration allegedly banning drag performers. In the explicit video, Forsyth pondered whether to resign in protest, saying, “Is my complicity inevitable, or am I holding a line on the inside?” Before Forsyth had the option to resign, Forsyth was terminated from the post. The former employee was part of an education division that worked with students at the center, sources told the National Pulse.

“Trump has taken over the Kennedy Center and that’s a place where I work,” said Forsyth at the beginning of the video, who had been sitting fully clothed on a bed. “He has vowed to ban drag performers from its stages, and as the saying goes, ‘We’re all born naked, and the rest is drag.'” Forsyth then snapped and the clothes Forsyth was wearing disappeared. Forsyth proceeded to sit on the bed naked with a rainbow heart-shaped digital censor over his genitalia, and questioned: “Should I quit the Kennedy Center?”

“Does staying make me a collaborator or somehow complicit in a hostile government takeover that’s systematically targeting the livelihood and liberty of poor people, queer people, black/brown people, people of color, immigrants, Muslims, victims of war-torn countries, and ethnic cleansing, women?” Forsyth asked before answering “yes.”

“But on the other hand, is staying holding the line and living to fight another day? Do I take up space and defend the vision for this institution that is diverse and inclusive, unlike Trump’s vision for America?” Forsyth pondered. “Do I stay to defend the beautiful people that come to visit? Do I covertly raise my nose at the regime, raise the peace sign high, and do everything in my power to preserve the values of cooperation, creative freedom, and transformative storytelling that I hold so dear?”

Roma Daravi, vice president of public relations at the Kennedy Center, found the video “extremely disturbing,” given the fact that Forsyth worked with minors. Forsyth defended the video, according to the Pulse, and argued that it was intended to critique the erosion of diversity, equity, and inclusion policies at the center.

According to Forsyth’s bio on the Kennedy Center website, which has since been deleted, Forsyth is an expert in the use of theater to effect social change and was a member of a team at the center that oversees the administration of the Washington National Opera summer training program for high school singers across the nation, the LA Times reported.

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