We got to the Daley Center a little early to find a few hundred people gathering in small groups. Signs, mainly about abortion rights, were mostly handmade. That’s always a clue that while 24 organizations sponsored the event, most marchers were coming as individuals, rather than brought by large, organized groups. Very few buses in sight. Not much visible union participation.
There was a tiny handful of vocal anti-abortion protesters encircled and protected (from what?) by yellow-vested march monitors. Three cops kept an eye on a lone evangelical, preaching the anti-abortion gospel through a hand-held mic and small speaker. There’s no mistaking Chicago for Texas or Tennessee.
As the crowd swelled to a couple of thousand, spontaneous chants broke out until the formal festivities began and speakers appeared on the dais. As usual, those of us on the outer edge of the rally could barely hear the speeches. The loudest sustained applause was reserved for Lori Lightfoot, the city’s first Black, gay, woman mayor.
No matter, we knew what the message was and the crowd’s response was joyful, militant, and enthusiastic. We also knew we were part of something much bigger taking place around the country in D.C., Houston, L.A., and more. This is all happening just days before the Supreme Court meets to begin considering the constitutionality of a Mississippi law modeled on the one in Texas.
By the time the crowd took to the streets, it had swelled to thousands more. The exact count hasn’t come in yet. It doesn’t matter. The message was clear. The latest right-wing assault on women’s rights and criminalization of abortion, etched in law in Texas and other MAGA strongholds and ratified by a Trumpian Supreme Count, will not stand.