In Chicago activist Andy Thayer’s experience, Democratic presidential administrations typically deliver the “bare minimum” while in office. But amid increasing attacks on the LGBTQ+ community and threats to abortion rights, Thayer doesn’t think the bare minimum is enough.
“When (Democrats) get into office, the only pressure they feel is from the far right,” said Thayer, the co-founder of the Gay Liberation Network. “It’s up to us here in Chicago and other blue states to say, ‘No, that’s not enough.’”
Part of a new organization made up of abortion and LGBTQ+ rights groups, Thayer and others on Tuesday condemned the city for rejecting the organization’s permit application to march and protest by Chicago’s Water Tower on the eve of this summer’s Democratic National Convention in Chicago. The group appealed the city’s decision at an administrative hearing, and a ruling is likely to come within the next two days, Thayer said.
The Democratic convention, including prime-time speeches at the United Center and the expected renomination of President Joe Biden, is scheduled for Aug. 19-22. Chicago, which last hosted the convention in 1996, is expected to see an estimated 50,000 people at the event, including 5,000 nominating delegates.
Linda Loew, co-founder of Chicago for Abortion Rights, said the planned protest was set for Aug. 18, the Sunday before the DNC kicks off, at the Jane M. Byrne Plaza, previously known as Water Tower Park. Group leaders picked the day, she said, because delegates and guests would be arriving in town, and could see the Democratic Party has to “actually do something to defend and extend our rights.”
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Loew said they sought the permit on the first day applications opened on Jan. 2, and received an official rejection letter on Jan. 22. Groups including Chicago for Abortion Rights, Stop-Trans Genocide and the Gay Liberation Network, make up the new coalition called Bodies Outside of Unjust Laws.
The city declined to comment on the status of the ongoing permit dispute. A spokesperson said multiple city departments review parade permit applications to identify potential conflicts, safety issues and to “assess the availability of resources necessary to support the gathering.” The spokesperson said the city evaluates applications based on the details of the proposed routes and other events happening in Chicago.
If a permit is denied the applicant is given an alternative route that accounts for police resources, security and other additional factors, the spokesperson said. Officials with the DNC declined to comment on the city’s permitting process.
Joe DiCola, an attorney for the Lawyers Guild Chicago representing the coalition, said the city didn’t justify its denial during the hearing on an “empirical assessment of the resources that they’ll have available.” Rather, he said, city officials spoke “negatively” about the march’s potential impact.
“My clients want their march to have an impact — that impact is rooted in their First Amendment rights to express themselves to petition for redress of grievances, in this case, the vicious attacks against the LGBTQ+ community,” DiCola said.
He said the city suggested the activists march in Grant Park where DiCola noted there would be much less visibility. He added that it “offends the First Amendment and sets a regressive tone to the DNC.”
Loew said Biden has been rather “lukewarm” on the issue of abortion rights. While previously saying he was “not big on abortion” because he’s Catholic, Biden has said he supported the now-overruled Roe v. Wade decision and has vowed to push for a federal law codifying a woman’s right to abortion. Loew said she doesn’t just want Biden to defend laws protecting abortion in states like Illinois; she wants these laws to extend nationwide.
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Abortion access is one of the main issues Biden’s campaign expects will drive Democrats to the polls. But Thayer pointed to the Hyde Amendment — an amendment barring federal funding of abortion except when necessary to save a woman’s life — as something Democrats should have worked to overturn. Biden proposed a budget for 2022 that excluded the Hyde Amendment but it was later reinstated.
“(Democrats) are trying to use abortion as basically a tool in their tool chest to get elected, and that’s not good enough,” he said.
At the convention, Thayer said he wants the issues of expanding reproductive health care, LGBTQ+ rights and equal housing rights to be at the forefront, and said some of the pressure to focus on these issues must come from activists in the streets.
Whether the new coalition loses its appeal or not, Thayer said the group plans to march. He said he’s disappointed in the city’s “contempt for the First Amendment,” which he said is similar to conditions under previous mayors.
“If they are worried about chaos, if they are worried about violence, then they will respect legitimate permit applications such as have been put in by this coalition,” Thayer said.
