And what a weekend this was!
Tommy and I went to the Women's March in Chicago. We left on the 7:10 train and it was packed! We got to Northbrook, and then became an express train to the city. The train got into the city early enough to stop at McDonalds for breakfast and coffeeeeeeeeee to enjoy on the way to the starting point of the march.
When we got there, we walked right up to the intersection of Columbus and Jackson. We stopped behind a small group of people that were fenced off from the intersection. We were close enough to the stage that on my tippy toes I could see some people on stage and their gestures, lol. We spent most of the time standing and listening to songs, speeches, and chatting with people around us. At some point, people started to chant "march!" over and over again because they were getting restless.
Somewhere between 11-11:30 the speakers announced that the event was filled to capacity and that there were more than 150,000 people there. [It wasn't until much later that we saw on the news that there was more like 250,000 people in attendance!] The speakers told us that we would need to stay where we were standing and that we wouldn't be able to march because there was no where to march. The entire route was filled with people I guess! Well, the people around us didn't love that. Some ended up leaving, others started chanting "march!" again. At one point, when more speakers came on stage to try to fill in the time, since we weren't going to march I guess, the people ahead of us started to try to get people to turn around and start walking back the way we came. I don't think anyone really understood how packed it was because it was hard to get internet and actually see what the place looked like from above. [Checking this out later....omg! Crazy packed!]
I think that was the only time I felt a bit anxious about the situation surrounding me. It was waaaaay less than anything I experienced at the Farewell Address, but I think it might have had something to do with the fact that at the Women's March I had plenty of space the whole time, and then all of a sudden I had a lot of people around me chanting loudly "Turn around!" and "Walk! Walk! Walk!" and I thought to myself, "Ok. If these people behind me start to actually walk and there's no where to go...then I don't like the sound of that." And, it never actually happened that way, but I was feeling like I wanted to get out of the middle of an extremely crowded street with no visible beginning or end. So Tommy led the way and we made it to the side of the street, which was way more spread out. We asked some police officers where to do, and ended up leaving the staging area.
We stopped at the Art Institute to get our bearings, and then left and started walking towards Michigan Avenue. When we got there, there were a bunch of people with signs and the pink knitted hats of course! We stopped to watch a little bit and take a few pictures as people walked by. People were pouring in from all over. Then we jumped into the street with them and started walking. We ended up being right behind a group of people that had a stereo and were playing Beyonce's Formation which was pretty perfect, lol. We walked a bit down the road with the group, listening to chants, reading signs, etc.
We got to the Trump Tower and listened to a bit of the protesters, and then decided that we needed to eat something FAST. At that point we had been on our feet for almost 4 hours, and we had a train to catch. We ended up walking a little further to Shake Shack, which is becoming a city staple for us! The place was packed, but we snagged a four person table and shared it with another couple of two that were also looking for somewhere to sit. The waitress there told me she liked the gay pride pin on my hat and showed me the gay pride tattoo on her hand. She eventually asked me where I got the pin, which was from Etsy from a shop called Brooch Motel and has great choices, and quick shipping. (Not being paid for an endorsement here, I just had a great experience!) I ended up giving the pin to her. It was a small gesture that felt like the perfect way to end such a strong, inspiring, and people-powered day.
Tommy and I left after that because we had a train to catch. As we walked around the city, we occasionally heard chants and cheering from people who were still marching, and even stopped for a brief moment by Trump Tower before continuing our walk.
When we got to Union, we were early for our train, and ended up hanging out while waiting around. On the train ride home I checked some of the news coverage of the different marches that went on around the world. It was amazing! I'm still reading articles about the marches from that weekend! It was a great day, an interesting experience, and I'm glad my husband and I were able to go together :)
