Chicago Dyke March returns with focus on pro-Palestinian agenda
Sun. June 17, 2018 6:54 AM by GoPride.com News Staff
Chicago, IL -
The Chicago Dyke March returns this weekend after it was marred in controversy last year when three collective members carrying a Jewish Pride flag were asked to leave because they "made people feel unsafe," and that the march was "pro-Palestinian" and "anti-Zionist."
"After last year, it is clear that we all need to engage in more intentional conversations around global anti-colonial solidarity and how all anti-racist work must inherently be anti-Zionist," Chicago Dyke March Collective representative Melisa Stephen told the Windy City Times. "Last year, there were a few folks in attendance whose politics and consequent behavior were clearly at odds with our values and culminated in an unfortunate incident that distracted from and tragically overshadowed what also happened last year: a powerful gathering of queer and trans people of color within and alongside a Latinx community that has a deep culture and history of resistance in Chicago."
The incident, first reported June 24, 2017 by Windy City Times, sparked weeks of debate on social media and within Chicago's LGBT community. The story also received worldwide media attention.
"We hope to prevent this sort of thing from happening in the future by making our politics very clear to the public and training more volunteers in de-escalation," said Stephen.
"This year, it has become more imperative than ever for our collective to raise awareness of the atrocities being continually committed by the state of Israel against the Palestinian people and build cross movement coalitions to ensure that our oppressions are not siloed and are in fact intersectional," she said.
In support of the Chicago Dyke March, the Gay Liberation Network (GLN) announced it will host a "We Stand With Palestine" contingent in this year's Chicago Pride Parade.
The Chicago Dyke March, described as more inclusive, more social justice-oriented than Chicago's annual parade, began in 1996.
The 22nd annual Chicago Dyke March will kick off at Little Village Elementary, 2620 S. Lawndale Ave. at 2 p.m. on Saturday, June 23, ending at 4247 W. 31st Street, Piotrowski Park.
The 49th annual Chicago Pride Parade will kick off at noon in Chicago's Uptown and Lakeview neighborhoods.
Chicago Pride Month Calendar
"After last year, it is clear that we all need to engage in more intentional conversations around global anti-colonial solidarity and how all anti-racist work must inherently be anti-Zionist," Chicago Dyke March Collective representative Melisa Stephen told the Windy City Times. "Last year, there were a few folks in attendance whose politics and consequent behavior were clearly at odds with our values and culminated in an unfortunate incident that distracted from and tragically overshadowed what also happened last year: a powerful gathering of queer and trans people of color within and alongside a Latinx community that has a deep culture and history of resistance in Chicago."
The incident, first reported June 24, 2017 by Windy City Times, sparked weeks of debate on social media and within Chicago's LGBT community. The story also received worldwide media attention.
"We hope to prevent this sort of thing from happening in the future by making our politics very clear to the public and training more volunteers in de-escalation," said Stephen.
"This year, it has become more imperative than ever for our collective to raise awareness of the atrocities being continually committed by the state of Israel against the Palestinian people and build cross movement coalitions to ensure that our oppressions are not siloed and are in fact intersectional," she said.
In support of the Chicago Dyke March, the Gay Liberation Network (GLN) announced it will host a "We Stand With Palestine" contingent in this year's Chicago Pride Parade.
The Chicago Dyke March, described as more inclusive, more social justice-oriented than Chicago's annual parade, began in 1996.
The 22nd annual Chicago Dyke March will kick off at Little Village Elementary, 2620 S. Lawndale Ave. at 2 p.m. on Saturday, June 23, ending at 4247 W. 31st Street, Piotrowski Park.
The 49th annual Chicago Pride Parade will kick off at noon in Chicago's Uptown and Lakeview neighborhoods.
Chicago Pride Month Calendar