Marathon Pundit: Photos from the pro-Ukraine protest at Chicago's Daley Plaza (some pics NSFW)

Sunday, March 06, 2022

Photos from the pro-Ukraine protest at Chicago's Daley Plaza (some pics NSFW)

Last Sunday I attended the pro-Ukraine rally outside Sts. Volodymyr and Olha Ukrainian Catholic Church in Ukrainian Village in Chicago.

This afternoon there was a successful follow-up in Chicago's Loop, at Daley Plaza.

Behind the "Puck Futin" sign is Chicago's world-renowned Picasso sculpture.

Another big crown, roughly 3,000 people, this demonstration was similar to size to the one last week.

I almost didn't make it to the rally. For the first time in over two years, I rode on the Chicago Transit Authority's el, in this case the Red Line. The train stopped at Addison, next to Wrigley Field, when the conductor announced she was stopping the train, "Because of a disruptive passenger." I heard some screaming on the platform, then she announced the police were on their way, next I heard the sound of breaking glass on the el plaform. I was in the lead car--always a good idea--next to that conductor. Then she entered her compartment, and a clearly mentally unbalanced man entered the car I was riding in. Half the passengers immediately left.

I stayed.

Crime and craziness is now common the Chicago's el trains. Last month CWB Chicago posted advice by way of Reddit, on what to do when riding on CTA trains. Rule number1? "No eye contact,ever." Not only did I break that rule, but I broke an obvious one that wasn't even included in that Reddit post. Don't photograph unstable people. Which led to the troublemaker snarl at me, "Don't take no photos of me or I'll give you your life."

Hmm. Not sure what "Give you your life" means.

Then he sat next to me and videotaped your humble 60-year-old blogger, announcing "I'm sitting next to the guy who photographed me."

Twenty uncomfortable minutes later I reached my destination, Monroe Street, and he offered me this Parthian shot as I stood up, "Don't call the police on me."

Left-wing radical Abbie Hoffman once said, "I don't think my goals have changed since I was four and I fought school yard bullies." Neither have mine.

Of course, I called 911 and told the dispatcher about the disruptive passenger on CTA Red Line run 807 that had just departed Monroe Street Station at 2pm. I am not a coward.

The DePaulia has a take on the hell-hole the CTA train lines have become.

I pity CTA employees.

The man on the left is more direct than the "Puck Futin" sign holder. As for the woman on the right, "Close the Sky" was a common chant during the rally.

Oh, back to my el train ride. Let me be clear. I am not equating my unhappy trip downtown to what the people of Ukraine are enduring during the Russian invasion. However, the readers of Marathon Pundit need to know what faces them on the CTA.

Here are two longtime friends of the Marathon Pundit family who I was pleased to see at the protest.

As you know my wife is a Latvian-American. Did you think I would not post a pic of another Latvian who supports Ukraine? Do you want me to sleep on the couch tonight?

On the left is a man wrapped in a Georgian flag. In 2008 Russia invaded the Republic of Georgia. Looking up two photos, sadly, history is repeating itself.

Here is your history lesson for today.

Many of the speakers at the protest, besides calling for a no fly zone over Ukraine, were demanding an international embargo of Russian oil and natural gas. I recognized two of the speakers. US Rep. Mike Quigley (D-IL), and Alderman Brian Hopkins of Chicago's Second Ward, which includes the Ukrainian Village neighborhood.