Community Corner
2nd Women's March On Chicago To Draw Attention To Mid-Term Elections
The 2018 march is called "March to the Polls," and it is set for January.
CHICAGO, IL — A second Women's March on Chicago has been scheduled for early next year as a follow up to the January 2017 event that had thousands gathering in Grant Park and throughout the Loop to protest the inauguration of President Donald Trump and support women's rights. Called "March to the Polls," the 2018 event will be Jan. 20, and like the inaugural demonstration, it will be one of other "sister marches" held around the country. Organizers say the focus of this year's march will be to draw attention to the upcoming mid-term and gubernatorial elections across the United States, including Illinois.
"In 2017, activists, new and seasoned, joined advocates in the fight for women’s rights and social justice," Jaquie Algee, march organizer, said on the event's website. "In 2018 we celebrate that movement, and march our demands to the polls."
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Organizers will be joined by Alds. Sue Sadlowski Garza (10th Ward) and Michele Smith (43rd Ward) during a press conference at 1 p.m. Wednesday, Oct. 11, at Grant Park to officially announce the second Women's March on Chicago. Other event details, such as the rally's location, are expected to be discussed at the press conference. (Get Patch real-time email alerts for the latest news for Chicago — or your neighborhood. And iPhone users: Check out Patch's new app.)
This year's march will help launch voter education programs designed to heighten awareness around women's rights and social justice. Some of the specific issues include affordable health care, living wages, immigration, racial justice, LGBTQ rights, reproductive freedom and protections for workers, disabled individuals and the environment.
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RELATED: Women's March On Chicago Draws 250K (VIDEO)
"If we want to see progress in this city, state, and country we need women’s votes, voices, and leadership," march organizer Jessica Scheller said on the event's website.
llinois voters go to the polls next year on March 20 and Nov. 6. Republican Gov. Bruce Rauner is up for re-election, and his eventual challenger will come from a crowded field of more than a half-dozen Democratic candidates that includes state Sen. Daniel Biss; Chris Kennedy, son of the late Robert F. Kennedy; billionaire J.B. Pritzker; Chicago Ald. Ameya Pawar; and others.
The 2017 Women's March on Chicago in January attracted around 250,000 participants and was one of the largest of the more than 500 post-Inauguration Day demonstrations held that day. Only similar marches in New York City, Los Angeles and Washington, D.C., had larger turnouts. Original estimates before the rally had organizers expecting between 22,000 and 50,000 people.
Demonstrators gathered in Grant Park and began marching west on Jackson Boulevard to Federal Plaza at South Dearborn Street. Marchers eventually converged in the middle of Wacker Drive, across the Chicago River from Trump International Hotel and Tower, 401 N. Wabash Ave.
Go to the website for the Women's March on Chicago for more information.
The 2017 Women's March on Chicago (Photo by Joe Vince)
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