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Sunsara Taylor

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Sunsara Taylor
Taylor pictured in 2011
Years active2006–present
Political partyRevolutionary Communist Party, USA
Websitetwitter.com/sunsarataylor

Sunsara Taylor is an American far-left political activist and member of the Revolutionary Communist Party, USA.[1] She has been a vocal opponent of the anti-abortion movement, the sex industry, and U.S. imperialism, having previously debated these topics on Fox News.

Activism

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Taylor has been a co-host of The RNL – Revolution, Nothing Less – Show, a weekly YouTube show that advocates for global communist revolution grounded in Bob Avakian's work, since its founding in 2020.[2] Many of the groups she leads have been described as front groups for RevCom and Avakian.[3]

In 2005, Taylor co-founded World Can't Wait.[4] In a 2006 article for the group, "Comparing Bush to Hitler: Lessons for Today", she wrote that the presidency of George W. Bush was "fascistic", and called for Bush to be "driven from office".[5]

Taylor is also a frontwoman for Stop Patriarchy and led the group's 2013 promotional tour, the Abortion Rights Freedom Ride.[6][7] Stop Patriarchy has been described as the "pro-choice group Texas feminists hate" and has been criticized by Texans for Reproductive Justice for its "messaging, tactics, dishonesty, and racism".[6] The group has elicited controversy for wearing chains and chanting, "Forced motherhood is female enslavement!"[8] In response, Taylor accused Texans for Reproductive Justice of hypocrisy, citing their use of a flag that flew over half of Mexico and calling their hypocrisy "stunning".[6] Taylor also led protests against the release of the film Fifty Shades of Grey with Stop Patriarchy.[9]

In December 2015, Taylor and longtime activist Carl Dix announced the formation of Refuse Fascism, with the aim of stopping Donald Trump from being elected president in 2016.[10] As a representative of the group, she spoke at the 2017 Women's March on Washington,[11] protested outside Trump Tower, tweeted video of protesters burning the U.S. flag,[12] and drew media attention for comparing Donald Trump to Adolf Hitler during an appearance on Tucker Carlson Tonight.[13]

In an interview with KPFK, Taylor called for Trump to be "driven from office".[14]

On August 12, 2018, Taylor and other supporters of Refuse Fascism and the RCP took part in protests organized against the far-right Unite the Right 2 rally in Washington, D.C.[15]

In January 2022, Taylor, Merle Hoffman, and other pro-abortion rights activists initiated Rise Up 4 Abortion Rights (RU4AR), an ad-hoc coalition formed to launch mass protests aimed at preventing the U.S. Supreme Court from overturning Roe v. Wade, affecting abortion rights in the United States.[16] RU4AR's launching statement was signed by prominent figures in the arts, law, and the feminist movement, including Rosanna Arquette, Cornel West, Gloria Steinem, and V (formerly Eve Ensler).[17]

Throughout 2022, Taylor and other members of RU4AR led pro-abortion rights protests at places including St. Patrick’s Cathedral and Union Square in New York City.[18][19] The group has been accused of being a front for the Revolutionary Communist Party and diverting money away from abortion providers to RevCom's own operating structure,[20] a charge that Taylor and her colleagues strenuously deny.[21]

2016 RCP protests at the Republican National Convention

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During the 2016 Republican National Convention, Taylor served as a spokesperson[22] for the Revolutionary Communist Party USA, addressing reporters outside the Cleveland Justice Center in what the Los Angeles Times called a rare moment of attention for the party, and declaring that "America was never great".[23] She later alleged Cleveland police had lied when they said they had intervened to stop a flag burning due to a protester accidentally setting himself on fire.[22]

Taylor holds a sign reading "No! Fascist 'Speech' Week" on the sidewalk outside Sproul Plaza, UC Berkeley, September 2017.

Writing and commentary

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Taylor hosts the weekly WBAI-FM radio show We Only Want The World, and formerly co-hosted Equal Time for Free Thought on the same station. She has written for Revolution and Truthdig, and been featured as a guest on The O'Reilly Factor, Tucker Carlson, the Sean Hannity Show, and other Fox shows.

  • "Government Policies Should Not Treat Women as Childbearing Vessels." In Women's Issues in Margaret Atwood's The Handmaid's Tale, ed. David Erik Nelson (Greenhaven Publishing, 2011), 133-37. ISBN 9780737758009.
  • "A Response to Jezebel by Leaders of Rise Up 4 Abortion Rights." With Lori Sokol and Merle Hoffman. Counterpunch June 17, 2022.

References

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  1. ^ Asma, Stephen (2013). Against Fairness. University of Chicago Press. p. 112. ISBN 978-0226029863.
  2. ^ "The Revcoms". YouTube. Retrieved March 9, 2022.
  3. ^ Merlan, Anna (2022-08-04). "The Abortion Rights Group Other Activists Want Nothing to Do With". Vice. Retrieved 2024-02-06.
  4. ^ Merlan, Anna (August 4, 2022). "The Abortion Rights Group Other Activists Want Nothing to Do With". Motherboard. Retrieved 9 August 2022.
  5. ^ "Comparing Bush to Hitler: Lessons for Today". worldcantwait.net. World Can't Wait. Archived from the original on February 23, 2017. Retrieved February 22, 2017.
  6. ^ a b c Stoeffel, Kat (July 29, 2014). "Q&A: The Pro-Choice Group Texas Feminists Hate". New York. Retrieved February 22, 2017.
  7. ^ Flock, Elizabeth (July 22, 2013). "Pro-Abortion Activists Going on Freedom Ride to Call For 'Abortion on Demand'". U.S. News & World Report. Retrieved February 22, 2017.
  8. ^ Klabusich, Katie (August 14, 2014). ""Are the white women wearing actual chains?": Meet the abortion rights group Texas feminists oppose". Salon.
  9. ^ Rampell, Ed (February 18, 2015). "Fifty Shades of Protest". The Progressive. Retrieved February 22, 2017.
  10. ^ Smith, Jack (November 2, 2017). "The far-right thinks a violent antifa overthrow is coming Nov. 4, but the truth is far stranger". Mic. Retrieved 9 August 2022.
  11. ^ O'Connor, Brendan (January 21, 2017). "Women's Marchers Drove the 'Trump Unity Bridge' Out of Town". Jezebel. Retrieved February 22, 2017.
  12. ^ "Protesters burn flag outside Trump's New York hotel". The Hill. Retrieved February 22, 2017.
  13. ^ Hains, Tim (22 February 2017). "Back to Videos 'Refuse Fascism' Activist vs. Tucker Carlson: Trump Is More Dangerous Than Hitler". RealClearPolitics. Retrieved 22 February 2017.
  14. ^ "Michael Slate Show". KPFK. January 6, 2017.
  15. ^ Books, Revolution (2018-08-15), Report Back from Washington, retrieved 2018-08-22
  16. ^ Rahman, Khaleda (January 21, 2022). "Abortion Rights Activists Rally Outside Supreme Court on Roe v. Wade Anniversary". Newsweek. Retrieved 9 August 2022.
  17. ^ Singer, Jenny (May 11, 2022). "What to Know About the National May 14 Protest for Abortion Rights". Glamour. Retrieved 9 August 2022.
  18. ^ "Women protest attack on abortion rights in US". La Prensa Latina. March 8, 2022. Retrieved March 9, 2022.
  19. ^ "Protesters rally in Union Square to call out the assault on reproductive rights". The Villager. March 9, 2022. Retrieved March 9, 2022.
  20. ^ Merlan, Anna (August 4, 2022). "The Abortion Rights Group Other Activists Want Nothing to Do With". Vice. Retrieved 9 August 2022.
  21. ^ Hoffman, Merle; Sokol, Lori; Taylor, Sunsara (July 19, 2022). "We Need Honest Debate, Not Unprincipled Attacks: A Further Response to the Attacks On Rise Up 4 Abortion Rights". Counterpunch. Retrieved 9 August 2022.
  22. ^ a b Nelson, Steven (July 21, 2016). "Cleveland Cops Accused of Lying About Flag-Burning Protesters Catching Fire". U.S. News & World Report. Retrieved February 22, 2017.
  23. ^ Pearce, Matt (June 21, 2016). "'Please ignore the man with the bullhorn': A reporter's diary from outside the GOP convention". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved February 22, 2017.
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