A Marxist-Leninist group tied to a pro-Beijing network helped stall a $5 billion data center in Landover, Maryland. The petition against the project had 180 signatures before the Party for Socialism and Liberation posted a video promoting it. It went on to top 20,000.
Taylor Frazier McCollum started the petition in June 2025 to stop construction at the old Landover Mall site. Three months later, the PSL’s D.C. chapter put her on camera accusing the developers of “environmental racism.” The group followed up with a video urging people to rally outside a county meeting. Protesters showed up with signs bearing the party’s logo. The Free Beacon counted a dozen videos promoting her activism and rallies. By June, McCollum was calling for a permanent ban.
“We want a ban. Full stop.”
McCollum told 7News the video helped her petition reach more people. She said she received no money from outside groups connected to China. The Free Beacon separately reported that McCollum did not respond to its request for comment on whether she is being paid by the PSL or another group in its network.
The China connection runs through the party that promoted her. The Free Beacon reported that the PSL shares funding and personnel ties with organizations in the pro-China network of Neville Roy Singham, a Beijing-aligned tech millionaire based in China. Those groups include The People’s Forum and BreakThrough News. In Landover, the party used its reach to promote the petition and turn people out against a major piece of American computing infrastructure.
In July, Prince George’s County approved a two-year pause on certain data center applications. In October, the council ended an exemption from detailed site-plan review, putting another hurdle in front of the Landover project. For now, the concrete crews, electricians, and steamfitters who could build it have one less job site.
I wrote in August about the tradespeople who have been showing up at public hearings to make the case for these projects. Steamfitters Local 602 told politicians who oppose data center construction they shouldn’t count on its help at election time. The union spelled out the stakes in a memo to members:
“This is an existential moment for Local 602. We are drawing a clear line.”
Don Slaiman of IBEW Local 26 said his members worked 28 million hours last year, twice what they worked a decade earlier. When politicians put these projects on hold, that’s the kind of work they’re asking people to wait for.
The Bitcoin Policy Institute counted 21 campaigns involving the PSL across 14 states. It says those campaigns helped stall or block $23.6 billion in proposed U.S. data center investment. The party’s role varied, and much of its funding remains opaque.
How many times are we going to give Beijing the benefit of another delay? The best American and Chinese AI models have already traded places at the top of the rankings several times since early 2025. China gets more time to pull ahead every time we make it harder to build here.
Make the developers answer for what they’ll use and who’ll pay for it. Ask who’s organizing the opposition and who’s funding it. Then hear from the people who would pour the concrete and wire the buildings. America should be building the infrastructure that keeps us ahead in AI. A Marxist group with ties to a pro-Beijing network has already shown how much it can accomplish while we sit around debating whether to start.