Protesters detained as pro-Palestine demonstrations surge since October 2023

Peaceful Assembly

Palestine solidarity peaceful protests have continued to grow since October 2023

The US has experienced thousands of protests and the trend is predicted to continue and gain momentum throughout 2024. According to analysts at the Crowd Counting Consortium, more than 1,869 protests in support of Palestine occurred from 7th October to 28th November 2023, making it the largest mobilisation of pro-Palestinian support in US history. As covered in previous reports, below are highlighted examples of demonstrations in the US:

On 30th November, dozens of protesters from the Tucson Coalition for Palestine gathered outside the University of Arizona Tech Park, where weapons manufacturer Raytheon Missiles & Defense is headquartered, to demonstrate against the company’s role in supplying arms to Israel. Protesters held signs with slogans such as “Stop U.S. aid to Israeli apartheid” and wore t-shirts reading “End the genocide economy. Free Palestine.”

The Pima County Sheriff’s Department detained at least 26 people, including a journalist (see expression), for criminal trespassing during a protest. Authorities alleged that the protesters unlawfully entered private property, obstructed roadways and blocked employees’ access to and from the facility. They were taken to a district office, where they received citations and were later released.

According to the independent media outlet The Appeal, Raytheon, together with its parent company RTX, manufactures essential components of Israel’s “Iron Dome” defence system and supplies bombs and missiles used in strikes against Palestinians, including “bunker-buster” bombs designed to penetrate underground targets. U.S. Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin formerly served on Raytheon’s board of directors.

On 11th December 2023, dozens of people demonstrated inside the Hart Senate Office Building at the US Capitol Building in Washington D.C., calling for an immediate ceasefire. During the demonstration, activists hung banners that read “Stop Weapons Now” and “Invest in Life” while chanting slogans about blocking aid to Israel. The protest was organised by US advocacy organisations, Campaign for Palestinian Rights, Jewish Voice for Peace, and About Face: Veterans Against the War.

Following this, police arrested at least 49 protesters for obstructing a congressional office. According to media reports, the arrests were made on the grounds that protests inside congressional buildings are prohibited. Additionally, two protesters were charged with resisting arrest. The demonstrators were released after being issued with citations.

On 13th December, dozens of protesters calling for a ceasefire blocked a major freeway in downtown Los Angeles for two hours. Protesters gathered around a large Menorah, a ceremonial Jewish candlestick placed in the centre of the highway. IfNotNow, an American Jewish activist group, organised the protest and subsequently issued a statement on X: “As Jews, we cannot sit by as the people of Gaza are starved and slaughtered [in] our name. And as Americans, we can’t let Biden & Congress send billions more in funding for Israeli war crimes. We have shut down the freeway to call for a #CeasefireNOW, which 66% of Americans support.” Protesters refused to leave after being told blocking the highway was illegal and clashed with vehicle drivers attempting to break through the line, which led police to arrest 75 people.

On 14th December, Jewish Voice for Peace, an anti-Zionist Jewish activist organisation based in the US, organised several protests occurring simultaneously in eight cities, blocking eight bridges on the eighth night of Hanukkah. The protests targeted bridges in Washington D.C., Philadelphia, New York City, Boston, Atlanta, Chicago, Minneapolis, Seattle and Portland. At the demonstrations, protesters staked sections of highways with signs reading “Jews Say Ceasefire Now” and “Let Gaza Live.” In the Washington D.C. protest, 90 people blocked the overpass to New York Avenue, causing police to usher commuters to different highways. In Philadelphia, about 200 people briefly blocked the I-76 highway and 30 were arrested.

On 19th December, a group broke from an organised tour of the Capitol Building to protest for a ceasefire. The police were already aware that the group planned to break from a guided tour. Protesting within congressional buildings is against the law and once the demonstrators started, the police made over 60 arrests. Before the arrest, the group chanted and carried signs advocating for a ceasefire. One banner read: “The people chose life. Ceasefire now!”

Over 80 national advocacy organisations arranged the demonstration. After the arrests were made, the organisers issued a joint statement saying, “We demand that the United States stop arming Israel and facilitating genocide in Gaza. We demand that there be no further border violence or genocide in our names, funded with our tax dollars. In short, we demand that our leaders divest from militarism, and invest in life!”

On 27th December, dozens of protesters called for a ceasefire by blocking traffic in two of the US’ busiest airports, Los Angeles International Airport (LAX) and New York’s John F. Kennedy International Airport, during one of the busiest travel weeks of the year. During the demonstration, the protesters carried banners with messages including “Divest From Genocide,” “Let Gaza Live” and “Right to Return.”

Demonstrations spun out of control at LAX and as a result police arrested 35 protesters. According to the Associated Press, the Los Angeles Police Department accused protesters of throwing a police officer to the ground and “attacking uninvolved passersby in their vehicles”, without providing further details about either incident. Arrests were made mainly on rioting charges, while one was arrested for battery on a police officer. In New York, the police arrested 26 protesters on charges of disorderly conduct and impeding vehicular traffic.

On 8th January 2024, more than 1000 people blocked major highways in New York City for more than two hours while calling for a ceasefire in Palestine. The protest was organised by the Palestinian Youth Movement with seven other organisations. They made “5 key demands”, including a ceasefire, an end to the US arming Israel, an end to the siege in Gaza, an end to occupation, and release of all Palestinian political prisoners.

“American bombs and American-made internationally prohibited chemical weapons are being dropped on Arabs again, financed by American tax dollars and protected by the American media, again. Those in power think they can get away with this, but us being out here every week is our way of saying we won’t let them,” said one of the protesters. Police dispersed the crowd and arrested at least 320 people.

On the same day, while President Joe Biden addressed a crowd at a campaign rally in Charleston, South Carolina, protesters interrupted the event chanting “Ceasefire now!” Police escorted 12 of the demonstrators out of the event. In response to the chants, Biden addressed the crowd saying, “I understand their passion and I've been quietly working with the Israeli government to get them to reduce and significantly get out of Gaza.”

US unions call for ceasefire in Palestine and Israel

On 14th December, leaders of US worker unions, progressive congress members and thousands of supporters rallied outside the Capitol in Washington D.C., demanding an immediate cease-fire in Palestine and Israel.

Union representation came from some of the largest in the US: United Auto Workers (UAW); the Postal Workers Union; and the United Electrical, Radio and Machine Workers of America. They were joined by US lawmakers, including democratic party representatives Rashida Tlaib (Michigan), Cori Bush (Missouri), Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (New York) and Ilhan Omar (Minnesota). “Our humanity needs a ceasefire, and that is precisely why I'm so happy to have unions here today to join in this fight, […] because we know that unions know how to organise. Unions know how to mobilise and galvanise and energise,” said Cori Bush, the lead sponsor of a congressional ceasefire resolution drafted in October 2023.

On 21st December, thousands, led by union members, protested in the streets of New York City calling for “Peace and Justice in Palestine.” The protesters held signs demanding a cease-fire in the conflict that has killed more than 20,000 Palestinians in Gaza, including over 8,000 children. Additionally, they called for congresspeople to refuse campaign contributions from the American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC), the largest Israeli lobbying group in the US, which plans to give at least USD 100 million in the Democratic primaries to unseat lawmakers supporting a ceasefire.

Pro-Palestinian protests at the Columbia University campus

On 15th November, over 100 Columbia University faculty and graduate workers rallied for recognition of academic freedom following the University’s suspension of the Columbia chapters of Jewish Voice for Peace and Students for Justice in Palestine in early November 2023 (see association). Protesters urged Columbia University to officially recognise that academic freedom includes all forms of political expression, including critiques of Israeli state policies and Zionist ideology.

On 19th January 2024, around one hundred people demonstrated at Columbia campus, demanding the University divest from Israel. A smaller group of counter-protesters stood in front of the pro-Palestinian demonstrators. The protest was the last “Tuition Strike Week of Action” event organised by Columbia University Apartheid Divest, the Barnard-Columbia Abolition Collective and Student-Worker Solidarity.

At least 18 protesters reported being sprayed with an unknown-smelling chemical and experiencing nausea, vomiting, and headaches. While no immediate medical attention was required, 10 sought care later. The NYPD launched an investigation, classifying it as a possible assault rather than a hate crime at this stage. They possess surveillance footage of two suspects and are analysing clothing samples collected from affected individuals.

Columbia University banned the identified suspects from campus while police investigated proceedings. “We condemn in the strongest possible terms any threats or acts of violence directed toward anyone in our community. The University is committed to taking urgent action with the appropriate authorities in any such cases. The safety of every single member of this community is paramount,” said Interim University Provost Dennis Mitchell.

Protesters decry loss of cultural tradition after rodeo ban

On 5th December 2023, dozens of protesters on horseback rode through the streets of Los Angeles after animal rights activists pushed forward a new law that would ban rodeos. The protesters held US and Californian flags and told the media during the rally that they believe the ban “attacks” and “criminalises” Latino cultural traditions. In particular, the demonstrators highlighted the tradition “charreria”, a traditional Mexican rodeo, as being listed by UNESCO as an important cultural practice.

One protester said, “I take issue with the ordinance because it would criminalise certain communities (Black, Indigenous and Latino) more than others in their ability to carry on cultural practices passed on from generation to generation.” Animal rights groups declared that animals ridden bareback or roped and dragged to the ground are cruel and painful practices.

The Los Angeles city council voted 14 to 0 to ban rodeos, but there would be a exemption for special cultural traditions as long as they did not engage in prohibited acts, like bareback bronc riding and calf roping.

US airstrikes in Yemen trigger anti-war protests in New York and Washington D.C.

On 12th January 2024, dozens of anti-war activists gathered in New York City’s Times Square and outside the White House in Washington D.C. to protest recent US and UK airstrikes in Yemen. Chanting slogans against war and in support of Palestine, the demonstrators expressed concern that the strikes would escalate the ongoing conflict in the region. Protesters voiced their opposition to the widening of the conflict, fearing further civilian casualties and a worsening humanitarian crisis in Yemen. One demonstrator in New York City stated, "Hands off the Middle East, hands off Yemen, hands off Gaza." Another protestor near the White House carried a sign reading "Free Palestine" and emphasised the interconnectedness of the struggles.

This protest came in response to joint US and UK airstrikes launched on 11th January against Houthi rebel targets in Yemen in retaliation for Houthi attacks in the Red Sea on ships allegedly linked to Israel.

LA Times union members stage first-ever strike amidst job cut threats

On 19th January 2024, over 300 guild journalists and media workers of the Los Angeles Times staged a one-day strike, the first in the newspaper’s 142-year history. The protest, triggered by management’s announcement of potential layoffs affecting up to 20 per cent of the staff, follows the resignation of executive editor Kevin Merida. The union has criticised the proposed cuts as detrimental to the newspaper’s ability to cover crucial news, accusing management of unfair labour practices. Despite the strike, the newspaper has continued publication.

Education strike in California

On 22nd January 2024, 29,000 faculty members from the California State University (CSU) system began a strike, demanding higher pay and improved benefits. The strike, organised by the California Faculty Association (CFA), affects professors, lecturers, librarians, counsellors and coaches across 23 campuses. The strike at California State University Los Angeles was initially scheduled to last for five days, but a tentative agreement was reached on the same day.

Expression

Anti-war protests continue to underscore free speech hangups

As previously reported by the CIVICUS Monitor, in the wake of the Israel-Palestine conflict, there have been spikes in both Islamophobia and antisemitism across the US. In many instances, demonstrations and outcry for both causes have been criticised as hate speech, triggering debate over freedom of speech, particularly on college campuses.

In response, on 5th December 2023, the House passed a Republican-led resolution condemning antisemitism in the US. The resolution also states that anti-Zionism is antisemitism. During remarks from the House floor, Democratic Representative Jerry Nadler pointed to language within the resolution that equated anti-Zionism to antisemitism and said “That is either intellectually disingenuous or just factually wrong.”

Civil society groups are concerned that the resolution utilises the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance’s definition of antisemitism (IHRA), which is broad and easily weaponised against critics of Israel with antisemitism, suppressing information and debate about Israeli human rights violations, rather than making it easier to identify discrimination against Jewish students. The IHRA’s definition has long been debated, with many civil society organisations, including Jewish and Palestinian groups, warning that it has been used to reinforce anti-Palestinian racism and to censor constitutionally protected speech.

On 18th January 2024, the Centre for Constitutional Rights, Palestine Legal and over a dozen other human rights organisations submitted a letter to the Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights (OCR) “to reiterate the call for OCR to reject codifying the distorted International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance (IHRA) working definition of antisemitism, which conflates criticism of Israel with antisemitism, into agency rules, policies, or decisions.”

Judge temporarily blocks Iowa law banning books and LGBTQI+ education in schools

On 11th December 2023, a federal judge ruled that an Iowa law (Senate File 496) requiring schools to remove books with a description or visual depiction of a “sex act” cannot be enforced while a legal challenge continues. However, US District Court Judge Stephen Locher declined to block the provision mandating schools to notify parents if a student requests an accommodation related to gender identity, such as using a different name or pronoun.

The ruling follows a separate injunction requested from the GLBT Youth In Iowa Task Force, Penguin House and the Iowa State Education Association, the largest teachers’ union in the state of Iowa, just days before penalties for violating the law were set to take effect on 1st January 2024. “Senate File 496 is a book ban, plain and simple. It blocks any book containing a so-called ‘sexual act’ from all library shelves regardless of context. It also created the paradox of, under Iowa law, a 16-year-old student is old enough to consent to sex but not old enough to read about it in school,” said Dan Novack, Vice President and Associate General Counsel at Penguin Random House.

The ruling temporarily blocks enforcement of the law’s restrictions on books and LGBTQI+ instruction in elementary schools, but the legal battle continues. The lawsuits challenging the constitutionality of the law will progress through the courts until a final decision is reached.

Journalists detained while covering protests

On 17th November 2023, freelance journalist Will Allen-DuPraw was detained by security personnel at the National Gallery of Art in Washington, D.C. while covering a climate protest. Assigned by News2Share, Allen-DuPraw documented two activists distributing flyers urging visitors to call on President Biden to declare a climate emergency. After security requested the activists to leave, one was handcuffed for refusing to comply immediately. As Allen-DuPraw continued filming, security handcuffed him as well. Footage shows him attempting to interview the detained protester when a security guard blocked his camera and another initiated his arrest. Despite identifying as a journalist, Allen-DuPraw was detained without clear justification.

On 30th November 2023, police detained journalist Alisa Reznick as she walked back to her car from covering a pro-Palestine protest in Arizona (see peaceful assembly). Reznick, who works for KJZZ, Arizona’s local NPR affiliate, had visible press credentials displayed from a lanyard hanging around her neck when Pima County Sheriff’s deputies handcuffed her. She was detained for several hours before being released.

On 31st December 2023, police prevented freelance reporter Roni Jacobson from covering a pro-Palestine demonstration in New York and then arrested her as she was trying to leave. “I was taking a step back and to the side to be fully out of the way. In fact, I was a moment away from just leaving and going to find another way around because I could tell I wasn’t getting anywhere with these guys,” Jacobson told the US Press Freedom Tracker. “As I was stepping back I bumped into the rookie cop who was behind me and then he had the cuffs on me.”

She attempted to cover the protest while on assignment from the New York Daily News. Police allege that Jacobson attempted to push through the police after being denied entry. She was held in prison overnight and charged with obstructing governmental administration and disorderly conduct, but was released after the district attorney declined to prosecute the case.

US Government threatens top newspapers over alleged ‘material support’ to Hamas

On 4th December 2023, over a dozen conservative state attorneys general issued a letter to the heads of The Associated Press, CNN, The New York Times and Reuters, warning that employing freelancers allegedly affiliated with Hamas may constitute a state and federal crime. Led by Iowa Attorney General Brenna Bird, the letter cited allegedly discredited claims from the pro-Israel group HonestReporting, alleging that these media outlets had hired freelancers with prior knowledge of the 7th October attack on Israel.

The attorneys general argued that employing journalists with alleged ties to Hamas amounts to providing material support to a terrorist organisation, a violation of both state and federal law. They urged the media outlets to review their hiring practices and cautioned that reporting perceived as sympathetic to Hamas could be deemed “material support”:

“But outlets such as yours cannot avoid their responsibility by refusing to perform hiring due diligence and then using that willful blindness as a basis to pay terrorists. If your outlet’s current hiring practices led you to give material support to terrorists, you must change these policies going forward. Otherwise, we must assume any future support of terrorist organisations by your stringers, correspondents, contractors, and similar employees is knowing behaviour.”

While some outlets, including The New York Times, have defended their freelancers, others, such as CNN and the AP, have suspended relationships. The letter, along with similar demands from Republican legislators, has raised concerns among press freedom advocates, who view the allegations as part of a disinformation campaign aimed at intimidating journalists and curtailing coverage of the Israel-Palestine conflict.

Supreme Court upholds conversion therapy ban on children

On 11th December, the Supreme Court dismissed a case challenging Washington State’s law banning conversion therapy for children aimed at changing sexual orientation or gender identity through behavioural or talk therapy.

Conversion therapy is widely documented as ineffective and is strongly opposed by the American Psychiatric Association. Rather than achieving its intended goals, conversion therapy often exacerbates anxiety and depression, particularly among youth already at high risk of suicide in the United States. About half the states in the country prohibit the practice of trying to change a person’s sexual orientation or gender identity through counselling.

The case was brought forward by the anti-LGBTQI+ group, Alliance Defending Freedom, which contested the law’s constitutionality after it was originally upheld in 2018. The Supreme Court ruled six to three, with Justices Clarence Thomas, Samuel Alito and Brett Kavanaugh dissenting. LGBTQI+ activists welcomed the decision. Mathew Shurka of the National Center for Lesbian Rights, also called the Supreme Court’s denying appeal in Tingley a “huge relief.” Laws banning conversion therapy, said Shurka, “play a critical role in protecting LGBTQ minors and their families from this dangerous practice.”

Journalists and media targeted ahead of the 2024 presidential elections

With the 2024 presidential elections, journalists and media outlets have faced public vilification and denial of access to cover candidates’ events. On 28th November 2023, the Republican front-runner and former President Donald Trump, without providing evidence, accused MSNBC through a post on Truth Social of unsubstantiated attacks aimed at interfering with the 2024 election. Trump further asserted that the government should “come down hard on them and make them pay for their illegal political activity.” The post did not specify the type of action he expected from the government. The post also targeted Brian Roberts, chairman and CEO of Comcast Corporation, MSNBC’s parent company, which owns multiple broadcast networks, including NBC and Telemundo.

On 13th December, the Trump campaign team denied press credentials to student reporters from The Daily Iowan, an independent newspaper serving the University of Iowa, and later barred them from entering a campaign event in Coralville, Iowa. The Daily Iowan politics editor, Liam Halawith, declared that he, reporter Alejandro Rojas, photographer Bella Tisdale and videographer Ashley Weil, were all denied access to cover the rally, via email from the Trump campaign.

“I was denied via email, then attempted to gain access by asking if I could enter and if they could tell me why our team was denied. They said I could not attend and didn’t have an answer on the denial,” said Halawith.

Criminalisation of journalism: US journalists targeted with felonies, restraining orders and censorship

The Freedom of the Press Foundation recorded that at least 12 journalists in the United States were arrested or faced questionable charges, including two in Alabama accused of felonies for “publishing”, and a reporter in Illinois cited for asking city officials “too many questions.”

Examples include Illinois-based reporter Hank Sanders, who received citations for contacting local officials about flooding, and Arizona reporter Camryn Sanchez, who was served a restraining order while investigating a state senator. Both cases, alongside others, demonstrate a deliberate attempt to chill news gathering and deter future journalistic inquiries. Further cases of criminalising journalism involve demands for source disclosure and retaliatory legal actions. In California, Bakersfield Californian reporter Ishani Desai faced subpoenas for jailhouse interviews, leading to contempt charges against the newspaper.

Additionally, journalists covering breaking news remain vulnerable. Notable cases include the arrest of NewsNation correspondent Evan Lambert during a live broadcast in Ohio. Legal challenges have compelled journalists to choose between accepting penalties or enduring prolonged legal battles, as seen with Asheville Blade reporters convicted twice for trespassing.

These incidents reflect a worrying trend towards the criminalisation of routine journalistic activities, suggesting that authorities either fail to understand the role of the press or, more concerningly, seek to suppress critical reporting through legal intimidation.

Association

Banning and suspension of pro-Palestinian college student organisations

Universities are attempting to stifle students’ freedoms by suppressing pro-Palestine groups on campus at a time when the Palestine-Israel conflict is a matter of vital public discourse and concern. According to the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU), there is a growing pattern for educational institutions across the country to scrutinise pro-Palestinian students and student organisations for alleged “material support for terrorism,” despite the absence of substantiating evidence. There are other concerning and discriminatory proposals to cancel visas, and deportation of international students who engage in pro-Palestinian demonstrations.

On 9th November, Brandeis University in Massachusetts was the first private university to ban a student chapter of SJP on its campus, alleging that students’ Pro-Palestine protests were supporting Hamas and violence against Israel. The suspension means that neither group will be eligible to hold events on campus or receive university funding.

This decision came on the same day Brandeis President Ronald Liebowitz published an op-ed calling on university leaders to “find their moral compass and no longer allow speech that constitutes harassment or threat of violence to flourish on our campuses.”

He also added that phrases such as “from the river to the sea, Palestine will be free,” called for the erasure of the Jewish state, as well as support for the Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions Movement, which he described as “blatant demonstration of antisemitism.” The US free speech organisation Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression affirmed that none of the chants or slogans cited by Liebowitz met the legal criteria for incitement or harassment:

“Nor is there any indication that actions by members of Brandeis SJP rose to the level of peer harassment, which the Supreme Court defined in Davis v. Monroe County Board of Education as words or actions that are so severe, pervasive, and objectively offensive that it can be said to deprive the victims of access to the educational opportunities or benefits provided by the school.”

On 10th November 2023, Columbia University’s administration temporarily suspended Students for Justice in Palestine and Jewish Voice for Peace, accusing them of violating university event policies and engaging in “threatening rhetoric and intimidation.” The groups were suspended after protesting on the campus plaza on 8th November. This came after a unilateral and recent policy change on events policies without input from the University Senate.

These decisions followed a request from Israeli and Jewish advocacy groups the Anti-Defamation League (ADL) and Louis D. Brandeis Centre for Human Rights Under Law, to investigate student organisations associated with SJP for potential violations of federal and state laws against supporting foreign terrorist organisations.

According to the New York Times, in recent months, the SJP has faced suspension from at least four universities—Columbia, Brandeis, George Washington and Rutgers. Allegations against the group include support for Hamas, class disruptions and intimidation of students. The group, a network of semi-autonomous chapters established approximately 30 years ago, has refuted these accusations.

Federal Court confirms no immediate action to deactivate University of Florida’s Students for Justice in Palestine

As previously reported, in October 2023, Florida Governor Ron DeSantis and the Florida State University ordered the disbandment of local chapters of Students for Justice in Palestine (SJP). In response, on 16th November 2023, Palestine Legal and the ACLU challenged the Chancellor of the State University System of Florida’s order to state universities to deactivate the student group, as it threatens the students’ constitutional right to free speech and association in violation of the First Amendment.

On 31st January 2024, the Federal Court ruled that Florida officials did not intend to deactivate the University of Florida’s SJP. The Court found no evidence that deactivation or criminal investigation is imminent, as no actions have been taken under the Chancellor’s order. The Chancellor’s claim about the alleged Florida SJP association with the national SJP organisation has proven unfounded:

“The decision focused on Chancellor’s Rodriguez’s acknowledgement that the [University of Florida, USF] and USF chapters of SJP are fully autonomous from the national SJP organisation — and that university officials are concerned about incurring personal liability if they were to enforce the deactivation order,” said Brian Hauss, senior staff attorney with ACLU’s Speech, Privacy and Technology Project.

“Ever since the deactivation order was issued, we have had to look over our shoulders, knowing we are under threat of being shut down at any minute. We refuse to let those in power intimidate us into staying silent, and hope that our lawsuit to protect our First Amendment rights will give heart to other students speaking out for Palestinian rights and calling for an end to the current violence in Gaza,” said the University of Florida chapter of SJP.

Amazon embroiled in union-busting controversy

Workers at Amazon’s largest air hub based in northern Kentucky have reported being intimidated following their efforts to unionise—for the first time—by collecting over 1000 union authorisation cards to file with the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB). On 23rd November 2023, workers informed that 11 pro-union workers received final written warnings for “insubordination” for setting up union tables outside of work and talking to their co-workers.

In response to what the workers call union busting, they organised three “March on the Boss” protests to confront managers over the targeting and demand for improved working conditions and benefits. For instance, on 30th November 2023, at least 32 workers marched to demand management drop allegedly illegal write-ups against 11 pro-union workers.

Worker-led efforts to unionise are partly due to rampant inflation in the US, with cost spikes requiring many to work multiple jobs. The Kentucky warehouse workers demand $USD 30 per hour base pay, free on-site childcare, double pay for overtime, translation support and union representation.

According to media reports, an Amazon spokesperson has dismissed claims that Amazon is engaging in union-busting activity and that the letters sent to their employees are due to policy breaches regarding blocking access to the site. Amazon was embroiled in further controversy on 1st December 2023 when the NLRB ruled that Amazon violated federal labour laws by interrogating and threatening their employees due to their union activities.

The ruling found that Amazon managers had racially disparaged organisers seeking to unionise at a Staten Island, New York, warehouse between May and October 2021.

Additionally, Amazon broke federal laws by spending more than $14.2 billion in 2022 alone on “union avoidance” consultants who persuade and threaten employees out of unionising. Amazon spokesperson Eileen Hards said in a statement that the company is reviewing the judge’s decision and weighing its next steps based on the ruling.

Workers unionise at Wells Fargo New Mexico branch

On 21st December, workers at an Albuquerque, New Mexico branch of Wells Fargo held a successful vote to unionise. In doing so, the branch became the first among the US’ largest banks –such as Capital One, Bank of America, Citibank and others– to unionise. According to the employees, workers grew frustrated with staff cuts, leaving the office shorthanded and causing scheduling issues throughout 2023.

Two other Wells Fargo branches in Florida and California have also filed petitions for union representation. In response to the vote, a Wells Fargo spokesperson said that the company opposes unionisation, but that they respect the rights to unionise. “At the same time, we continue to believe our employees are best served by working directly with the company and its leadership," the spokesperson said.

Seven workers have filed complaints to the NLRB regarding anti-union activity by Wells Fargo; the cases remain under investigation.