This piece was written by Anthony Bryson, a Long Beach resident and human rights activist, and winner of the 2025 LBCC Black Empowerment Award for Juneteenth. He is the co-founder and leader of a large Southern Californian grassroots coalition known as SoCal Uprising. The SoCal uprising is a coalition of Queer and BIPOC (Black, indigenous, people of color) activists and organizations who are determined to fight against fascism and state sanctioned violence home and abroad. Anthony’s clear goal is to swing the pendulum further left, secure human rights for all who are living, to promote quality of living on a local and global basis.
Since the global outcry following George Floyd’s murder in 2020, I have been actively protesting as part of the Black Lives Matter movement. The sight of thousands of people rallying for justice was both inspiring and empowering, even as white supremacists pushed back against the call for awareness.
The removal of Confederate monuments felt revolutionary, and amidst a pandemic and the ongoing crisis of police brutality, communities began to unite.
For a fleeting moment, it seemed like change was possible, with discussions around movements like #Me-Too and Black liberation gaining traction in mainstream media. However, that momentum quickly faded, and the world returned to its previous state.
Despite this, I remained committed to advocating for Black liberation, especially as we faced a series of devastating setbacks, from the erosion of reproductive rights to the ongoing genocide of the Palestinian people, all visible through social media platforms.
I stood in solidarity with my Palestinian siblings and those who identify as female or feminine, even as the political landscape grew more tumultuous with another Donald Trump victory and the painful echoes of mass deportation reminiscent of historical atrocities. I have personally had friends deported or returned to their countries of origin during this time.
In these challenging times, when activists and organizers are often “disappeared,” I urge everyone to be brave and stand on the right side of history. It takes tenacity and endurance to bring real change, but most importantly it takes people power.
We have to stop the infighting on the left side of the spectrum. We can’t afford to cancel, or dismiss any organizer or protest message. We can’t afford to wait for more dire times — the times are dire now. Progressive and leftist, we cannot fear being co-opted by the Democratic National Committee (DNC).
I have overheard Leftists call groups like Indivisible and 50-50-1 the controlled opposition. Yes, 50501 have made mistakes by individual chapters within the movement. Yes, these are predominantly democrat establishment based organizations.
Yet, please understand our only opposition is the rise of fascism and the perpetrators of death and genocides, taking place all over the world.
We must co-opt the DNC! Let them know that they will not get any votes unless they stand for Black liberation, a free Palestine, an end to the mass deportations, healthcare for all and housing as a human right.
We need to bring equal awareness to the crisis in Sudan and Congo and how they are ignored as Anti-Blackness proliferates on a global scale. We have to set the bar and we can’t be intimidated and we can’t begin to put our own side to the litmus test with purity challenges.
It is our obligation to ensure that these elected officials who do nothing but fundraise actually uphold our invested interest in society. We are America! If they won’t fight for your rights and quality of life, I will — and I encourage you to do the same. Our fight is against the system and not each other.
We have to first come together and then we can work on solutions. Understand that everything is connected. These are not separate movements; Palestine, Black liberation, reproductive rights, immigration.
They are all related, all oppressed people. One movement.
