On Aug. 23, members of the People’s Power Assembly and Struggle for Socialism Party participated in a celebration of Black August at the Black owned bookstore, UrbanReads. Joined by the Pan-African Liberation Movement (PLM), Tendea Family, Freestate Coalition, and PSL, activists and community members marched through northern Baltimore to bring attention to the continued threats and attacks at UrbanReads.
Leading up to the 23rd, the city attempted to stop the celebration from happening, denying the request for a permit to host the block party. Also, the Police Major of the district personally called the store owner, Ms. Tia, and tried to make her cancel the event because there “were not enough officers available” for that day.
This is ironic because the Baltimore Police have consistently failed in their promises to Ms. Tia to have officers check in on the store and log when they show up.
In the past month, there has been an increase in threats towards both the store and Ms. Tia. With all of this going on, she, along with the community coalition formed around her, continued forward to host the day’s events and handle security and safety for those who attended the action.
Community members marched to bring the news of these attacks to the community around the bookstore. However, this news also came with calls to action, calls to get organized and calls to fight back and defend our communities.
The march was met with great responses by workers, people driving, and people just hanging out outside.
Following the march, a celebration and concert were held at UrbanReads. There was food, drinks, music and different tables full of things for people to enjoy during the party.
One of the musicians who performed, Slim Rob, is a local Baltimore rapper and member of the People’s Power Assembly. He, along with the other artists, performed music that centered around building class consciousness, fighting back against white supremacy, and honoring the many killed and locked up pillars of the Black diaspora.
Following the party at the store, members of the Struggle for Socialism Party stayed around UrbanReads to provide additional security to both the store and Ms.Tia. The practice of community security at UrbanReads has been going on since the attacks started earlier this year.
In the evening, the People’s Power Assembly hosted a “Sinners” film showing at the bookstore. The event was well attended, and those who came were interested in not only the bookstore but also the People’s Power Assembly and the campaigns the organization finds itself in.
Movie goers took literature explaining the need to counter and prepare for a possible Federal occupation of Baltimore, and also the need to organize and fight for a city-funded grocery store to end the food desert located around the Upton and Sandtown / Winchester communities. From sun up to sun down, it was a beautiful day in celebration of Black August and also in practice of what the month means, which is the continued and unbreakable Black resistance to racism and white supremacy.
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