Things to do in Chicago

As I was in Chicago for a couple of days I did get a chance to do a couple of things that were pretty fun.

Since I grew up about 3 hours from Chicago a lot of the people who I grew up with ended up here. I visited with two of them and met their children, saw pictures of children, and talked about things and choices that I could have made (and didn't). It was interesting how uninterested my friends were in me and my choices. I kind of got the feeling that they had moved on from the choices of youth and saw me as still living there.

On Saturday I went to a benefit event for the SHAC 7 at Foster Beach on the Lake. The draw (for me) was that Chicago Soy Dairy Temptation Ice Cream was one of the sponsors which meant awesome!

Here is a picture of the tubs of vegan ice cream they served. I ate 2 huge waffle cones with 4 scoops each and proceeded to be sick to my stomach for the rest of the day.

Right before I left Chicago I went to the Haymarket Martyrs graveyard. If you ever pass through Chicago I strongly recommend that any anarchist make the time to visit here. It is a powerful feeling to feel so many lives under your feet and devoted to being together in this context. I find the place really touching even though I am not all that into the practice of putting bodies into boxes and under ground.

Here is a shot (w/ shadows) of the memorial



Here is one of the National Blah Blah plaque



Here is a shot of Emma's marker



Here is Voltairine's marker. You will notice that it is partially obscured by a bush. What does that say about her legacy!? (sniff, sniff)



Another of Lucy Parsons marker



I have shared with some of my friends discomfort at watching her being remembered lately. I was sharing this discomfort with my travelling partner yesterday when he reminded me of this quote from Lucy.

“Let every dirty, lousy tramp arm himself with a revolver or knife and lay in wait on the steps of the
palaces of the rich and stab or shoot the owners as they come out. Let us kill them without mercy, and let it be a war of extermination and without pity. Let us devastate the avenues where the wealthy live.”

In that vein here is a fantastic quote from Louis Lingg's speech before being sent to death.

"I tell you frankly and openly, I am for force. I have already told Captain Schaack, “if they use cannons against us, we shall use dynamite against them.” I repeat that I am the enemy of the “order”of today, and I repeat that, with all my powers, so long as breath remains in me, I shall combat it. I declare again, frankly and openly, that I am in favor of using force. I have told Captain Schaack, and I stand by it,“if you cannonade us, we shall dynamite you.” You laugh! Perhaps you think,“you’ll throw no more bombs”; but let me assure you I die happy on the gallows, so confident am I that the hundreds and thousands to whom I have spoken will remember my words; and when you shall have hanged us, then—mark my words—they will do the bombthrowing! In this hope do I say to you: I despise you. I despise your order, your laws, your force-propped authority. Hang me for it!"

• Posted: 06/06/06 08:30AM
• Category: Tour

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