Chicago IWD Celebration, March 11

We were pleased that close to 40 people joined our celebration of International Women's Day at our organizing center on Chicago's southeast side. Most of the nearby storefronts are still empty and boarded up, having never recovered from the pandemic. But the storefront at 1875 E 71st Street, the Revolution Club Organizing Center, was definitely “live.”

We had zip-tied the “Break All the Chains, Unleash the Fury of Women as a Mighty Force for Revolution” banner to the outside grate. New decorations inside included enlargements of photos from Wednesday's International Women's Day rally and march called by the club and photos of the “green wave” in Latin America. Rise Up for Abortion Rights brought a beautiful display. There was an array of “snacks from around the world.”

Participants included at least a half dozen people who had never been to our center before and others who had maybe been there only once or twice. As they arrived, people from the neighborhood and other parts of the city loaded up their plates with snacks and took their seats.

Our program was very well received and the atmosphere was one where people felt comfortable to both shout out and break into applause at various points. Leo from the Revolution Club opened the event, which began with two poems from club members. Roosevelt performed “Her Eyes” a poem very relevant for IWD that he has also performed on The RNL—Revolution, Nothing Less!—Show. Another club member, AJ, did a beautiful poem that opens with a woman migrating across the globe. A member of Rise Up for Abortion Rights announced their upcoming plans to respond to the likely outlawing of the abortion pill. A hush filled the room as people watched Annie Day's video of “Because” in awe. The program ended with the 20-minute segment on IWD from this week's RNL Show which really put the stakes and the type of revolution needed very powerfully with photos of women all over the world and it was really good to popularize the RNL Show to a number of new people in attendance. A fundraising pitch was given and $108 was raised. Then DJ, JR from the club, put on the music and people began mingling and getting more food.

First-time visitors got copies of Bob Avakian's “Break the Chains” pamphlet and “Organizing for an Actual Revolution: 7 Key Points.” There were different kinds of discussions. Some were just getting to know each other. Discussions about why women were being slammed backward were going on in some parts of the room as people engaged the RNL Show and others involved intense wrangling with questions of the revolution.

One woman from the other end of the city, who had not been to our center for a long time, responded to the question, “What does 'Break the Chains, Unleash the Fury of Women as a Mighty Force for Revolution' mean to you?” by pouring out her heart about how empowering and liberating the slogan is and how it goes up against the horrors of women's lives. She works as a home health aide and was super excited to take the “Break the Chains” pamphlet to an elderly woman she cares for who was part of the struggle to win abortion rights. She said she plans to record an interview with her.

Another woman, a first time visitor from the neighborhood, brought a poem she had written in her teens. We told her we'd do a small open mic during the mingling where she could perform it. She had to leave before this could happen. She was pleased to learn that we have plans to hold Open Mics more regularly.

A woman who had joined our march downtown on Wednesday was really excited to see the enlarged photos of herself leading chants in the protest. Unfortunately none of the high school and college students who joined the march made it to the event. We had called all who signed up but were not able to connect with them beyond text messages. We plan to pursue getting with them. This includes a half dozen, mostly white, college students from a small art school downtown. Had they attended, this would have been like crossing a big divide in this very segregated city.

At points the music was soft so people could mingle but at other points JR turned up the volume and “brought on the noise” and people danced. One woman from the neighborhood, who had repeatedly reached out to us about when would we be open, joined others as they danced, danced, danced. She told us that she loved the event and kept saying, “what a successful turnout.”

While our flyer said the event would be from 3-5 pm, the last crew didn't leave until 6:30 pm. JR ended it wonderfully putting on Bill Withers' “Lean on Me.”­ About a dozen of us put our arms around each other and literally “leaned on each other” and the entire remaining crowd sang along. 

Downtown Chicago, International Women’s Day, March 8

The poem “Because,” read by Annie Day, could be heard across the street as it blasted from the sound system catching people’s attention as the crowd gathered. The banner, “Break All the Chains, Unleash the Fury of Women as a Mighty Force for Revolution” framed the rally and led the march. There were large photos of women erupting in struggle in Iran, in Mexico, and in Latin America. Lots of green bandanas and stickers with “Forced Motherhood is Female Enslavement.” A Rise Up for Abortion Rights contingent was there with banners “Legal Abortion Nationwide” and signs and a banner to free women imprisoned in El Salvador for the crime of a miscarriage.

The rally speakers included Patricia from RU4AR who made it clear that this is not a day to give women flowers or honor one woman’s achievement but it is a day for demanding women’s rights. She spoke to the importance of the fight for abortion rights and control of our bodies and saluted the women in Latin America who have spread the green wave now to the U.S. Paul Street from Refuse Fascism spoke about how forced motherhood is female enslavement and the control of women is part of the fascist program. A statement from an Iranian teenager sent to the rally was read. Leo from the Revolution Club spoke about how the oppression of women could be ended through real revolution, why this is a rare time when that is more possible, and ending with the quote from BA that “you can’t break all the chains except one.”

There were 30 people at the rally and 40 or so at the high point of the march. 

Besides the crews from the Revolution Club and from RU4AR, the march was filled out by a number of college and high school students. A group from an art college downtown played a lively role. One of them had seen an advertisement for IWD and got the others to come, bringing their signs. One young man had a sign, “women don’t owe you shit” which he spoke passionately about at an impromptu rally during the march. Two other college students came with signs in Spanish. There were high school students from at least three different schools. One crew came because their high school was flyered, others joined on the spot.

The march was an attractive force and drew in even more youth to join and making it even more lively! The chant “Break, break the chains, unleash the fury of women as a mighty force for revolution” was chanted powerfully, and over, and over. A Black woman seemed to hear the chant, “we won’t bow down, we won’t submit, fuck your women hating shit” and jumped into the march and later spoke to the crowd about not letting women’s right to abortion pills be taken away. Favorites were stops at the Walgreens stores to call out their craven capitulation in not distributing abortion pills because fascist state attorneys general sent them a letter.