“We haven’t had a chance to see what democracy looks like in a long time,” Matty Zaradich of Join the Impact- Chicago declared through a bullhorn. Aug. 4, he said, was different.
Other LGBT activists echoed the sentiment. They have chanted in Daley Plaza several times this year. However, on Aug. 4, they spoke as victors, not protestors.
Speakers from Join the Impact-Chicago and LGBT Change, the two groups that organized the rally, stressed that the fight for same-sex marriage in California was far from over, but the mood in the crowd was unmistakably joyous as the rally turned to a march.
Rally attendees chanted, “No more Prop. 8; equal rights in every state!” as they left Daley Plaza for Grant Park. Police on bicycles patrolled the route, but exchanges between marchers and bystanders appeared friendly, if not ecstatic. Passing drivers honked their praises. Many people dining outside on Michigan Avenue applauded and cheered.
“This is a really wonderful decision, and it changes the landscape for us,” said Bill Greaves, director of Chicago LGBT Advisory Council.
Rebecca Perlow, 27, of Alsip also called the news wonderful. She was united with her girlfriend in a Chicago ceremony in May, and she hoped that the overturning of Proposition 8 is a first step towards marriage for all. “This is our home and it’s where we wanted to get married,” she said. “I’m so excited.”
The march ended in Grant Park, where rally organizers urged the crowd to stay active in the fight for marriage equality.
“We can’t just leave it to the courts to do the right thing,” Andy Thayer of Gay Liberation Network said. “A movement in the streets is the way that civil rights have always been won.”
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