Organizers behind the Women’s March offshoot group in Chicago hit back at reporting that said they canceled a January rally commemorating the movement’s signature event two years ago.
“The initial Tribune headline is totally inaccurate,” Women’s March Chicago communications lead Harlene Ellin told the Washington Examiner Wednesday, referring to an article by the Chicago Tribune that suggested the demonstration had been “nixed.” “The reality is not nearly as ‘sexy.’ Women’s March Chicago never planned to march in January 2019. Chicago held its major march in October to fire people up for the midterm elections. The decision to move the march up from January to October was made last spring and has absolutely nothing to do with what is going on at the national level.”
In a statement last month, Women’s March Chicago attributed the decision not to hold a January rally after its October “March to the Polls” to a lack of resources given the expense and manpower required to host the events. But one board member told the Tribune in an article published Wednesday that the move had the “side benefit” of further distancing the Chicago team from its national counterpart. National Women’s March organizers have been widely criticized for links to Nation of Islam leader Louis Farrakhan and his anti-Semitic comments.
“That sort of infighting within the movement is very painful. It’s very painful to watch,” Sara Kurensky, Women’s March Chicago board member, told the outlet. “When a handful of leaders … say something, they are not speaking for an entire movement.”
Other anniversary events will take place on Jan. 19 in Washington, D.C., as well as in other cities around the country and the world. Women’s March Chicago will instead mark the original demonstration’s anniversary, which took place the day after President Trump’s inauguration in 2017 and reportedly drew millions of protesters in the U.S. and overseas, with its “Operation Activation” campaign to encourage grassroots activism.
Farrakhan, who leads the Chicago-based Nation of Islam, last February described “powerful Jews” as his “enemy” in his annual “Saviour’s Day” speech. During the same address, he also praised the work of Women’s March Inc. and its copresident Tamika Mallory, who has a longstanding association with what the Southern Poverty Law Center describes as a “racist, anti-Semitic and anti-LGBT” rhetoric-driven group. The Women’s March national outfit condemned Farrakhan’s remarks last March, earning scrutiny for its delayed response and calls for leaders to cut ties or step down.
The FBI has been the worst enemy of Black advancement. The Jews have control over those agencies of government. #Farrakhan pic.twitter.com/DXKCRr1zpo
— MINISTER FARRAKHAN (@LouisFarrakhan) March 7, 2018
Women’s March Chicago, a 501(c)(4) nonprofit organization, reiterated its rebuke of Farrakhan’s statements in November.
“As an additional point of clarification, and as many of you already know, Women’s March Chicago is not now and never has been affiliated with Women’s March Inc. We receive ZERO funding or organizational support from them and share NO common leadership,” the group said.
Women’s March Washington state disbanded this month to signal its disapproval of its national body. The Rhode Island chapter officially splintered from its parent organization last May.
