The April 1 Chicago Teachers Union One-Day Not-Quite-Strike
On April 1, Chicago Teachers Union went on a one-day strike.
Well, sort of. See, CTU can't legally go on strike at the moment. First, an arbiter must present the findings of fact (which won't happen until April 16, and then both CTU and Chicago Public Schools district officials must have a chance to consider those findings. If they agree with the findings, the recommendations they contain become CTU's next contract. If not... CTU will legally be able to strike right around the beginning of May.
The union has been arguing that it was a one-day labor action. I guess it would be up the courts to decide who's right, because the CPS Board of Education filed a complaint with the Illinois Educational Labor Relations Board, asking it to declare the strike illegal.
Whatever the thing they did will ultimately be ruled to be, CTU has been vocal about why they are doing it. It's the same reason as why they had a rally back in February, as well CPS' decision to implement involuntary furlough days - one of which was, not-so-coincidently, exactly seven days before the strike.
But what happened on April 1 was about more than just CTU. Since the February rally, the state of Illinois still hasn't passed the budget - and the fallout is hitting state colleges. Without a budget, there are no MAP grants for low-income students, and no state funding for the colleges. Every single one of them - including my alma mater, University of Illinois at Chicago - has been affected to some extent or another. But none have been hurt worse than Chicago State University, the perpetual red-headed stepchild of the state college system. Without funding, it will be forced to close by the end of spring semester. The Northeastern Illinois University, where I tried to get my teaching certificate, hasn't been coping too well, either. So for their professors, joining the strike was no-brainer. For members of the UIC faculty union, the stakes weren't quite as dire, but they joined in anyway.
A whole bunch of other labor unions also joined in - the union of Chicago charter school employees (the ones that managed to successfully unionize), suburban school unions, community college faculty unions and a union of at least one downstate state university. Members of teachers unions from Milwaukee, St. Paul, the state of Ohio, Houston, Seattle, San Francisco and even freaking Canadian province of British Columbia were there. Like in February, American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees union and Service Employees International Union were both there in force, but there were also other labor unions from fields that had little to do with government, or education - like the Amalgamated Transit Union, which represents Chicago Transit Authority bus drivers and engineers.
And that's just the cap of the iceberg. There was the venerable who is who of Chicago community organizations and advocacy groups, Black Youth Project 100, other Black Lives Matter activists and, of course, your usual batch of socialists and communists.
During the first day of the 2012 CTU strike, there were pickets at all CPS district schools and a rally in downtown Chicago. For the April 1 strike, the organizations involved planned something more elaborate, with pickets, protests, teach-ins and rallies. By 4:00 PM, everyone would converge at the Thompson Center, where a whole bunch of state officials and departments have their offices. There would be a rally, and then they would march.
I had some work to finish (because, to be perfectly honest, I procrastinated), and even if I was fully free, there were only so many hours in the day and so many spots I could hit. So I decided to check out the UIC Rally and then follow it to Thompson Center to see everything else.
UIC Rally
The rally took place the same spot as the UIC faculty strike rally did two years ago. From what I understand, UIC officially calls it "the Quad," but I don't think I've ever actually heard anyone call it that - it's either "the plaza" or "the square" or "that place we pass through between lectures." Located in the middle of UIC's East Campus, it was designed for precisely these kinds of public gatherings - and as place to relax and hang out the rest of the time.
For some reason, I thought the rally was supposed to start at 2:30 PM, instead of 2:00 PM (as the schedule clearly said). And when I got to the plaza... actually, it was still pretty much in full swing.
The plaza has two areas - one on the north and one on the south - that could conveniently serve as stages. Usually, I had no problem hearing whoever was speaking. But this time... I'm not sure what happened, but I could only hear some of the speakers, and even then, I missed some of what they said.
And many people in the rally weren't paying that much attention. Some people hung out and chilled.
Or showed off their posters for the cameras
While some groups, as always, used the event as opportunity to draw attention to their causes. A group who called themselves "Socialist Alternative" were promoting Bernie Sanders' candidacy.
These folks... The best I could tell, they were calling for amnesty for illegal/undocumented immigrants.
This is actually one of the things I wish I could have looked into more. I think this banner belongs to North Lawndale College Prep, but I'm actually not sure. And I really don't know why I didn't ask, since this would fall under Austin Weekly News coverage area.
Either way, it's a damn awesome banner.
And then, there were Communists of some kind of another, because of course there would be Communists.
Given my background, I'm sure it wouldn't surprise you if I said I have little patience with that particular strain of left-wing politics. I have even less patience with UIC communists, since, back when I was a student, they told me that I, a Russian, didn't know what Communism was really about like they, a bunch of Westerners, do.
Nope, still not over that.
But most people just either sat around or stood around, holding signs.
Even if they weren't paying attention to the speakers, I don't doubt their commitment for a second. They were there to show their discontent, and they did it with legitimate creativity.
I would've said "this one is for Dana," but I actually didn't realize what the sign said until it reviewed the pictures. And, in any case, it's only in Dana's area in the same way as Baltimore is in New York area (which is to say, not really)
And here's a bit from CSU
Obligatory "kids with signs" photo
Overall, the rally managed to attract a bigger crowd than UIC Faculty Union rally. Not by much, but it still made for an impressive sight.
Rallying Through Public Transit
Like I said earlier, the plan was for people who took parts in all of the events all over Chicago to converge at Thompson Center. I figured that CTU was going to provide buses, but no - the plan was for everyone to take the freaking 'L'
And so they marched toward UIC-Halsted Blue Line 'L' Station.
I couldn't resist getting this shot of marchers walking past University Hall - the administrative heart of UIC. The chancellor's office is all the way on the top floor.
Also, even while I was attending, the building was notorious for all the concrete falling off its "ribs." From what I understand, that's still a problem.
[Insert your own metaphor here]
The marchers crossed Harrison Street
And walked toward the station's Morgan Street entrance
As they walked over Eisenhower Expressway, a bunch of cars honked loudly. Several people rushed to the edge and waved their signs.
Since I get monthly transit passes on regular basis, it's been a long time since I worried about paying to get on the 'L'. But as it turned out, even if money was an issue, I wouldn't have had to worry. Remember how the transit union was supporting the strike? The staff quite happily let everyone through for free.
And then, there was the awkward few moments where a bunch of people holding signs waiting for the 'L' train - as more drivers honked at them in support.
While riding the train, I wound up striking up a conversation with the protestors who turned out to be UIC students.
But before long, the train arrived at Clark/Lake, and a whole bunch of people piled onto the platform, earning lots of bewildered stares.
A guy with the transit union sign being in the shot was the sort of hilarious bit of serendipity one dreams about.
The protesters went up the escalator
From there... Normally, they'd be able to take the pedway directly to Thompson Center's lower level. But I guess that's precisely what state police wanted to avoid, because the exit was shut off and there were plenty of officers standing behind the door, just in case.
Barely missing a beat, everybody went up another escalator, to the street-level Lake Street exit.
At street level, another batch of cops was guarding the ground-level entrance to Thompson Center, so people had no choice but to go outside and head straight for the plaza in front of Thompson Center's main entrance.
Thompson Center Rally
One of the first thing I saw was kids holding signs.
And soon, it became clear that just large the rally was.
It would only keep getting larger over the next hour.
Of course, there would be your obligatory Communists (not the same bunch as at UIC)
Another bunch of Communists still
But those were just a few of the many, many organizations that flew their banners high.
And some schools had banners of their own.
A with the UIC Rally, there were plenty of hand-made signs.
Including this fairly simple gem.
There was a stage on the north end of the plaza, but it was hard to see for this near-sighted blogger - and there was no way to get anywhere near it. Thankfully, the sound carried pretty well this time around.
Like I said in the introduction - there were a lot of groups represented at the rally, and the line-up of speakers reflected that. As I listened, it struck me that, while they agreed on some things, ultimately, many of the groups involved had different goals and different priorities. Some wanted to shut the city down (the way members of BLM groups tried to grind Black Friday to a halt at Mag Mile - and, in a lot of ways, succeeded). Other simply wanted to sent a message to Rauner that unions won't be pushed around.
A speaker with the Fight for 15 movement asked if everybody who assembled here would be willing to return the favor and join their rally on April 14 - which was actually a very interesting question. I don't doubt that many groups that assembled there would, and happily - but not all.
The many groups that came to the rally were united in the goals of speaking out against Rauner, Emanuel and CPS board - but that didn't mean they wouldn't agree on everything all the time. And it doesn't mean that the organizers would be able to get all the groups out marching like that every single time.
Something that we got to see first-hand a bit later... but I'm getting ahead of myself.
At around 4:30 PM mark, my camera's battery started crapping out. Since this is the sort of thing that bit me in the rear not once, but twice... You would think that I would learn my lesson and make sure my battery is charged before what I know is going to be a day that involves lots of photography.
You would think.
But at least I learned to always carry at a charger as part of my messenger bag reporter "field kit." Since I knew that the march wasn't going to start until 5:00 PM, I decided to head down to the Pedway and take advantage of the power outlets.
My camera battery did have enough juice to get this picture
As you can tell from some of those pictures, there were a few bursts of rain. By the time I returned to the surface, it was sunny, but there were still enough clouds that I knew that it probably won't stay that way for long.
Even when I was heading down the pedway, I saw a bunch of people who simply couldn't find room in front of the Thompson Center handing around the Daley Center across the street. They got even bigger by the time I returned.
One thing I've kind of avoided mentioning so far is that, well, April 1 is April Fools. Which I still think wasn't exactly the best day to hold a strike. While for the most part, organizers avoided mentioning that fact, a few signs played on it.
Suffice to say, the closer to Thompson Center I got, the more impassable the crowd became.
I tried to make it through the crowd the way I would in St. Petersburg subway - ruthlessly and forcefully, exploiting every little opening and pushing my way through if necessary. Which people didn't exactly take kindly to, so I slowed down a bit, taking pictures of various interesting signs.
Some signs were poignant.
Some were whimsical
And some were... less than subtle.
WAY less than subtle
Later, I saw the woman that was holding this sign.
Plus, there was this thing
As I stood in a crowd, I overheard a woman telling her friends.
"...the journalists already got a story they want to tell. But you don't have to talk to them, if you don't want to."
And I couldn't resist saying
"Hi, member of the evil media here. How are you doing?"
At which point, the politely excused themselves. And, since they couldn't really go anywhere, I left them alone.
Later, I overheard that they came from somewhere in California.
Even as I was making my way through the crowd, people were getting impatient. By 5:00 PM, that impatience got a lot more audible. Thankfully for everyone involved, it was only another few minutes before orders came down to line up and get ready to march.
Marching Through Rain and Hail
Slowly but surely, people headed north on Clark Street, toward Chicago River
As riders watched from the Clark/Lake 'L' station platform above
The march turned east on Wacker Drive
And walked along the river, heading toward Michigan Avenue
Look at how far down the street the line goes. And keep in mind - at the time this photo were taken, the tail end of the march was still on Clark.
The march came to a halt at the State/Wacker intersection as cops went to clear traffic ahead.
On the other side of the street, a guy in a reflective vest went up to a Special Service Area 1 contractor who was sweeping the street. The two greeted each other with a fist bump.
"What a mess, man," said the guy in the vest, and i'm pretty sure he wasn't talking about trash.
Before the march resumed, the people in front of the procession posed for the many, many photographers. There was no way to capture it in one shot, so here's my best attempt to capture it in three
.
But just as the march resumed....
...The charge in my camera battery started running out again. Which wasn't that terribly suprising - I only chrged it for less than half an hour. So I wasn't able to capture the march walking past Trump tower, or turning south on Michigan Avenue, sending tourists and shoppers scrambling for their phones.
I kept looking for a coffee shop where I could recharge the battery, or any place that had a power outlet, really. I considered forgetting all about it and simply following the march... but I wan'ted to be able to document at least a few more parts of it.
As I joked on Twitter - what' shte point of marching if you can't even take pictures?
So I wound up diving into the pedway again and sitting at a Millemium Station Starbucks for another half an hour.
At about 6:00 PM, I headed back to the surface - only to run into some protesters with posters heading in the opposite direction.
Up, on the street level of Michigan Avenue, the rain was pouring - and it looked like the protesters were going home.
But the march wasn't quite over - there were sitll a whole punch of people marching south on Michigan Avenue.
It didn't realize it right away, but iteventually became clear that the march was winding down. People were heading toward Mornoe Street, turning east and walked to the march ending point.
CTU had bus waiting for people
But most basically walked to the nearest public transit station.
Though some hung around for a bit.
From what I understand, the march was supposed to go on a bit longer, but weather service was forecasting hail, and CTu didn't want to risk it. And, indeed, when I was heding back, I got plented with very painful ice balls. It only lasted for few minutes, but CTU had no way of knowing that. And, when it comes to this sort of thing, it was better to be safe than sorry.
And so, slowly but surely, more and more people went home.
Later that day, when I was trying to upload the photos, I'd see reports on Twitter of police threatening to arrest anyone who wasn't on the sidewalk. The next morning, I found out what happened. Black Youth Project 100 members decided to keep going, heading for Lake Shore Drive in hopes of bringing the evening rush hour traffic to a halt, and some CTU members and protesters from other groups went along with them. There were a few arrests, but ultimately, things were resolved more or less peaceful-ish.
A few final thoughts. First of all, the sheer size of the Thompson Center rally and the march was nothing short of awe-inspiring. Out of all Chicago marches, rallies and protests I witnessed in person, only the 2012 anti-NATO protests came anywhere close. There is, indeed, power in the union - but there is also power in the unions working together with other groups.
At the same time... I keep thinking how optimistic the 2012 rally was. There was a palatable sense that, yes, people did support the public school teachers, that maybe they could actually win. The February rally wasn't quite as cheerful - but there was nothing like the palpable frustration, if not outright anger, I felt on April 1. Not that anyone can blame them - at this point, the state has only two months to pass a 2015 budget, and the possibility that nothing would be passed at all is becoming more and more distressingly real every day.
CPS is in a financial hole, CSU and NEIU are running out of money, thousands of low-income students face a very real prospect of not being able to pay for their education, social service providers are closing left and right - and Rauner vetoed the measures that might at least halt the bleeding while the budget is being worked out.
And finally - I remember how, during the 2012 CTU rally, a lot of cops seemed to be privately (and not so privately) supporting the teachers. I felt nothing of the sort this time around. It wasn't quite the frustration that bubbled just beneath the surface during anti-NATO and BLM protests, but you could tell that the officers weren't terribly happy with what they were seeing.
If I had to guess... I think the presence of Black Youth 100 and other BLM groups had something to do with it. The 2012 rally was mostly CTU, with a few other municipal unions and contingents Occupy Chicago and Anonymous marching along. While CPD weren't really fans of Occupy or Anons, it's nothing compared to the bad blood between them and BLM groups.
Which, if you ask me, is a shame.
Chicago's emergency service unions aren't legally allowed to strike, but they could still offer support. And, as somebody on Twitter pointed out, imagine what would happen if all municipal unions join forces to show their discontent with the way the city is run.
It probably won't happen - for reasons that go beyond BLM - but boy would it be effective if it did.
Well, sort of. See, CTU can't legally go on strike at the moment. First, an arbiter must present the findings of fact (which won't happen until April 16, and then both CTU and Chicago Public Schools district officials must have a chance to consider those findings. If they agree with the findings, the recommendations they contain become CTU's next contract. If not... CTU will legally be able to strike right around the beginning of May.
The union has been arguing that it was a one-day labor action. I guess it would be up the courts to decide who's right, because the CPS Board of Education filed a complaint with the Illinois Educational Labor Relations Board, asking it to declare the strike illegal.
Whatever the thing they did will ultimately be ruled to be, CTU has been vocal about why they are doing it. It's the same reason as why they had a rally back in February, as well CPS' decision to implement involuntary furlough days - one of which was, not-so-coincidently, exactly seven days before the strike.
But what happened on April 1 was about more than just CTU. Since the February rally, the state of Illinois still hasn't passed the budget - and the fallout is hitting state colleges. Without a budget, there are no MAP grants for low-income students, and no state funding for the colleges. Every single one of them - including my alma mater, University of Illinois at Chicago - has been affected to some extent or another. But none have been hurt worse than Chicago State University, the perpetual red-headed stepchild of the state college system. Without funding, it will be forced to close by the end of spring semester. The Northeastern Illinois University, where I tried to get my teaching certificate, hasn't been coping too well, either. So for their professors, joining the strike was no-brainer. For members of the UIC faculty union, the stakes weren't quite as dire, but they joined in anyway.
A whole bunch of other labor unions also joined in - the union of Chicago charter school employees (the ones that managed to successfully unionize), suburban school unions, community college faculty unions and a union of at least one downstate state university. Members of teachers unions from Milwaukee, St. Paul, the state of Ohio, Houston, Seattle, San Francisco and even freaking Canadian province of British Columbia were there. Like in February, American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees union and Service Employees International Union were both there in force, but there were also other labor unions from fields that had little to do with government, or education - like the Amalgamated Transit Union, which represents Chicago Transit Authority bus drivers and engineers.
And that's just the cap of the iceberg. There was the venerable who is who of Chicago community organizations and advocacy groups, Black Youth Project 100, other Black Lives Matter activists and, of course, your usual batch of socialists and communists.
During the first day of the 2012 CTU strike, there were pickets at all CPS district schools and a rally in downtown Chicago. For the April 1 strike, the organizations involved planned something more elaborate, with pickets, protests, teach-ins and rallies. By 4:00 PM, everyone would converge at the Thompson Center, where a whole bunch of state officials and departments have their offices. There would be a rally, and then they would march.
I had some work to finish (because, to be perfectly honest, I procrastinated), and even if I was fully free, there were only so many hours in the day and so many spots I could hit. So I decided to check out the UIC Rally and then follow it to Thompson Center to see everything else.
UIC Rally
The rally took place the same spot as the UIC faculty strike rally did two years ago. From what I understand, UIC officially calls it "the Quad," but I don't think I've ever actually heard anyone call it that - it's either "the plaza" or "the square" or "that place we pass through between lectures." Located in the middle of UIC's East Campus, it was designed for precisely these kinds of public gatherings - and as place to relax and hang out the rest of the time.
For some reason, I thought the rally was supposed to start at 2:30 PM, instead of 2:00 PM (as the schedule clearly said). And when I got to the plaza... actually, it was still pretty much in full swing.
The plaza has two areas - one on the north and one on the south - that could conveniently serve as stages. Usually, I had no problem hearing whoever was speaking. But this time... I'm not sure what happened, but I could only hear some of the speakers, and even then, I missed some of what they said.
And many people in the rally weren't paying that much attention. Some people hung out and chilled.
Or showed off their posters for the cameras
While some groups, as always, used the event as opportunity to draw attention to their causes. A group who called themselves "Socialist Alternative" were promoting Bernie Sanders' candidacy.
These folks... The best I could tell, they were calling for amnesty for illegal/undocumented immigrants.
This is actually one of the things I wish I could have looked into more. I think this banner belongs to North Lawndale College Prep, but I'm actually not sure. And I really don't know why I didn't ask, since this would fall under Austin Weekly News coverage area.
Either way, it's a damn awesome banner.
And then, there were Communists of some kind of another, because of course there would be Communists.
Given my background, I'm sure it wouldn't surprise you if I said I have little patience with that particular strain of left-wing politics. I have even less patience with UIC communists, since, back when I was a student, they told me that I, a Russian, didn't know what Communism was really about like they, a bunch of Westerners, do.
Nope, still not over that.
But most people just either sat around or stood around, holding signs.
Even if they weren't paying attention to the speakers, I don't doubt their commitment for a second. They were there to show their discontent, and they did it with legitimate creativity.
I would've said "this one is for Dana," but I actually didn't realize what the sign said until it reviewed the pictures. And, in any case, it's only in Dana's area in the same way as Baltimore is in New York area (which is to say, not really)
And here's a bit from CSU
Obligatory "kids with signs" photo
Overall, the rally managed to attract a bigger crowd than UIC Faculty Union rally. Not by much, but it still made for an impressive sight.
Rallying Through Public Transit
Like I said earlier, the plan was for people who took parts in all of the events all over Chicago to converge at Thompson Center. I figured that CTU was going to provide buses, but no - the plan was for everyone to take the freaking 'L'
And so they marched toward UIC-Halsted Blue Line 'L' Station.
I couldn't resist getting this shot of marchers walking past University Hall - the administrative heart of UIC. The chancellor's office is all the way on the top floor.
Also, even while I was attending, the building was notorious for all the concrete falling off its "ribs." From what I understand, that's still a problem.
[Insert your own metaphor here]
The marchers crossed Harrison Street
And walked toward the station's Morgan Street entrance
As they walked over Eisenhower Expressway, a bunch of cars honked loudly. Several people rushed to the edge and waved their signs.
Since I get monthly transit passes on regular basis, it's been a long time since I worried about paying to get on the 'L'. But as it turned out, even if money was an issue, I wouldn't have had to worry. Remember how the transit union was supporting the strike? The staff quite happily let everyone through for free.
And then, there was the awkward few moments where a bunch of people holding signs waiting for the 'L' train - as more drivers honked at them in support.
While riding the train, I wound up striking up a conversation with the protestors who turned out to be UIC students.
But before long, the train arrived at Clark/Lake, and a whole bunch of people piled onto the platform, earning lots of bewildered stares.
A guy with the transit union sign being in the shot was the sort of hilarious bit of serendipity one dreams about.
The protesters went up the escalator
From there... Normally, they'd be able to take the pedway directly to Thompson Center's lower level. But I guess that's precisely what state police wanted to avoid, because the exit was shut off and there were plenty of officers standing behind the door, just in case.
Barely missing a beat, everybody went up another escalator, to the street-level Lake Street exit.
At street level, another batch of cops was guarding the ground-level entrance to Thompson Center, so people had no choice but to go outside and head straight for the plaza in front of Thompson Center's main entrance.
Thompson Center Rally
One of the first thing I saw was kids holding signs.
And soon, it became clear that just large the rally was.
It would only keep getting larger over the next hour.
Of course, there would be your obligatory Communists (not the same bunch as at UIC)
Another bunch of Communists still
But those were just a few of the many, many organizations that flew their banners high.
And some schools had banners of their own.
A with the UIC Rally, there were plenty of hand-made signs.
Including this fairly simple gem.
There was a stage on the north end of the plaza, but it was hard to see for this near-sighted blogger - and there was no way to get anywhere near it. Thankfully, the sound carried pretty well this time around.
Like I said in the introduction - there were a lot of groups represented at the rally, and the line-up of speakers reflected that. As I listened, it struck me that, while they agreed on some things, ultimately, many of the groups involved had different goals and different priorities. Some wanted to shut the city down (the way members of BLM groups tried to grind Black Friday to a halt at Mag Mile - and, in a lot of ways, succeeded). Other simply wanted to sent a message to Rauner that unions won't be pushed around.
A speaker with the Fight for 15 movement asked if everybody who assembled here would be willing to return the favor and join their rally on April 14 - which was actually a very interesting question. I don't doubt that many groups that assembled there would, and happily - but not all.
The many groups that came to the rally were united in the goals of speaking out against Rauner, Emanuel and CPS board - but that didn't mean they wouldn't agree on everything all the time. And it doesn't mean that the organizers would be able to get all the groups out marching like that every single time.
Something that we got to see first-hand a bit later... but I'm getting ahead of myself.
At around 4:30 PM mark, my camera's battery started crapping out. Since this is the sort of thing that bit me in the rear not once, but twice... You would think that I would learn my lesson and make sure my battery is charged before what I know is going to be a day that involves lots of photography.
You would think.
But at least I learned to always carry at a charger as part of my messenger bag reporter "field kit." Since I knew that the march wasn't going to start until 5:00 PM, I decided to head down to the Pedway and take advantage of the power outlets.
My camera battery did have enough juice to get this picture
As you can tell from some of those pictures, there were a few bursts of rain. By the time I returned to the surface, it was sunny, but there were still enough clouds that I knew that it probably won't stay that way for long.
Even when I was heading down the pedway, I saw a bunch of people who simply couldn't find room in front of the Thompson Center handing around the Daley Center across the street. They got even bigger by the time I returned.
One thing I've kind of avoided mentioning so far is that, well, April 1 is April Fools. Which I still think wasn't exactly the best day to hold a strike. While for the most part, organizers avoided mentioning that fact, a few signs played on it.
Suffice to say, the closer to Thompson Center I got, the more impassable the crowd became.
I tried to make it through the crowd the way I would in St. Petersburg subway - ruthlessly and forcefully, exploiting every little opening and pushing my way through if necessary. Which people didn't exactly take kindly to, so I slowed down a bit, taking pictures of various interesting signs.
Some signs were poignant.
Some were whimsical
And some were... less than subtle.
WAY less than subtle
Later, I saw the woman that was holding this sign.
Plus, there was this thing
As I stood in a crowd, I overheard a woman telling her friends.
"...the journalists already got a story they want to tell. But you don't have to talk to them, if you don't want to."
And I couldn't resist saying
"Hi, member of the evil media here. How are you doing?"
At which point, the politely excused themselves. And, since they couldn't really go anywhere, I left them alone.
Later, I overheard that they came from somewhere in California.
Even as I was making my way through the crowd, people were getting impatient. By 5:00 PM, that impatience got a lot more audible. Thankfully for everyone involved, it was only another few minutes before orders came down to line up and get ready to march.
Marching Through Rain and Hail
Slowly but surely, people headed north on Clark Street, toward Chicago River
As riders watched from the Clark/Lake 'L' station platform above
The march turned east on Wacker Drive
And walked along the river, heading toward Michigan Avenue
Look at how far down the street the line goes. And keep in mind - at the time this photo were taken, the tail end of the march was still on Clark.
The march came to a halt at the State/Wacker intersection as cops went to clear traffic ahead.
On the other side of the street, a guy in a reflective vest went up to a Special Service Area 1 contractor who was sweeping the street. The two greeted each other with a fist bump.
"What a mess, man," said the guy in the vest, and i'm pretty sure he wasn't talking about trash.
Before the march resumed, the people in front of the procession posed for the many, many photographers. There was no way to capture it in one shot, so here's my best attempt to capture it in three
.
But just as the march resumed....
...The charge in my camera battery started running out again. Which wasn't that terribly suprising - I only chrged it for less than half an hour. So I wasn't able to capture the march walking past Trump tower, or turning south on Michigan Avenue, sending tourists and shoppers scrambling for their phones.
I kept looking for a coffee shop where I could recharge the battery, or any place that had a power outlet, really. I considered forgetting all about it and simply following the march... but I wan'ted to be able to document at least a few more parts of it.
As I joked on Twitter - what' shte point of marching if you can't even take pictures?
So I wound up diving into the pedway again and sitting at a Millemium Station Starbucks for another half an hour.
At about 6:00 PM, I headed back to the surface - only to run into some protesters with posters heading in the opposite direction.
Up, on the street level of Michigan Avenue, the rain was pouring - and it looked like the protesters were going home.
But the march wasn't quite over - there were sitll a whole punch of people marching south on Michigan Avenue.
It didn't realize it right away, but iteventually became clear that the march was winding down. People were heading toward Mornoe Street, turning east and walked to the march ending point.
CTU had bus waiting for people
But most basically walked to the nearest public transit station.
Though some hung around for a bit.
From what I understand, the march was supposed to go on a bit longer, but weather service was forecasting hail, and CTu didn't want to risk it. And, indeed, when I was heding back, I got plented with very painful ice balls. It only lasted for few minutes, but CTU had no way of knowing that. And, when it comes to this sort of thing, it was better to be safe than sorry.
And so, slowly but surely, more and more people went home.
Later that day, when I was trying to upload the photos, I'd see reports on Twitter of police threatening to arrest anyone who wasn't on the sidewalk. The next morning, I found out what happened. Black Youth Project 100 members decided to keep going, heading for Lake Shore Drive in hopes of bringing the evening rush hour traffic to a halt, and some CTU members and protesters from other groups went along with them. There were a few arrests, but ultimately, things were resolved more or less peaceful-ish.
A few final thoughts. First of all, the sheer size of the Thompson Center rally and the march was nothing short of awe-inspiring. Out of all Chicago marches, rallies and protests I witnessed in person, only the 2012 anti-NATO protests came anywhere close. There is, indeed, power in the union - but there is also power in the unions working together with other groups.
At the same time... I keep thinking how optimistic the 2012 rally was. There was a palatable sense that, yes, people did support the public school teachers, that maybe they could actually win. The February rally wasn't quite as cheerful - but there was nothing like the palpable frustration, if not outright anger, I felt on April 1. Not that anyone can blame them - at this point, the state has only two months to pass a 2015 budget, and the possibility that nothing would be passed at all is becoming more and more distressingly real every day.
CPS is in a financial hole, CSU and NEIU are running out of money, thousands of low-income students face a very real prospect of not being able to pay for their education, social service providers are closing left and right - and Rauner vetoed the measures that might at least halt the bleeding while the budget is being worked out.
And finally - I remember how, during the 2012 CTU rally, a lot of cops seemed to be privately (and not so privately) supporting the teachers. I felt nothing of the sort this time around. It wasn't quite the frustration that bubbled just beneath the surface during anti-NATO and BLM protests, but you could tell that the officers weren't terribly happy with what they were seeing.
If I had to guess... I think the presence of Black Youth 100 and other BLM groups had something to do with it. The 2012 rally was mostly CTU, with a few other municipal unions and contingents Occupy Chicago and Anonymous marching along. While CPD weren't really fans of Occupy or Anons, it's nothing compared to the bad blood between them and BLM groups.
Which, if you ask me, is a shame.
Chicago's emergency service unions aren't legally allowed to strike, but they could still offer support. And, as somebody on Twitter pointed out, imagine what would happen if all municipal unions join forces to show their discontent with the way the city is run.
It probably won't happen - for reasons that go beyond BLM - but boy would it be effective if it did.