Chicago.com
How Chicago Ruined The Rally For Sanity
This morning I attended the Rally to Restore Sanity satellite viewing in Grant Park, which was organized by Angie McMahon. When I first walked in I was excited and anxious, but I left an hour later disappointed and upset. What went wrong in that hour? Maybe it was when the live feed from DC was muted so a comedian could compare having an abortion to making a sandwich. Maybe it was when a security guard grabbed the microphone and cursed at the crowd because they were upset over not being able to watch the rally. Maybe it was when speaker after speaker did nothing but shout liberal rhetoric at us (Full disclosure: I consider myself to be liberal). Maybe it was the guy who dressed up in a KKK outfit, which was the complete opposite message of the rally.
Actually, I take that last one back. I honestly don’t know what the message of the Rally To Restore Sanity was because we were not allowed to watch it! And I’m not the only one upset by this. I think this collection of quotes from other Chicagoans attending Angie’s event tells the story of what happened quite well.
“I came to enjoy the spirit of the DC rally with thousands of like-minded people. Had the scheduled speakers embodied that spirit and respected the DC rally, I don’t think I would have complained.“
-Erik Robertson (Facebook)
“Astounded that [the organizers] collected funds only to refuse to broadcast the rally & use [the] forum for their own purposes. Unethical.“
-frageelay (Twitter)
“Angie is awesome, but we’re missing a one of a kind gig from our best satirists in DC to hear Yiddish jokes and liberal talk.“
-Brad Flora (Windy Citizen)
“[The organizer] needs to apologize not only to the people who came out and gave support and money, but also to the organizers of the DC Rally… because what they were organizing against was PRECISELY what the Chicago rally turned into… partisan hackery and pandering. And the pandering wasn’t even funny.“
-William Taplin III (Facebook)
“This was a complete disaster. The amount of cognitive dissonance on display from the event organizers was staggering. They interrupted an event to restore sanity to interject their own bullshit about FBI plots to kidnap anti-war protesters. They co-opted an event organized to reduce the amount of extremism in American politics in order to shout their own extremist position. It was a total failure, and I am ashamed to say I was there.“
-InvisibleCities (Reddit)
“I saw that it was clearly a political rally with a specific agenda and posted that yesterday. I guess I was fooled by the use of the name, similar logo (buyer beware of unsanctioned merchandise), and the excitement of all the other poor sheep who were so unwittingly led too. My bad.“
-Tamara Swanson (Facebook)
“They promoted this as a Stewart/Colbert event, yet if we wanted to watch them we should have stayed home? I’m fine with them having local speakers, but don’t interrupt what we came here to see. They should have had the speakers later.“
-chaosdude78 (Reddit)
“I left [the rally] because it was a tacky bait and switch. I came to Grant Park because i couldn’t make it to DC.“
-Keidra Chanley (Twitter)
“[I] left [the rally] early. I think people would’ve been more understanding if they weren’t bitched out with F-bombs by the organizer.“
-Lisa Stangland (Twitter)
“Well [the rally organizer], you were not exactly what I’d hoped. But the best way to resolve disappointment? Chipotle. This day is certainly redeemable.“
-Heather Jo Douglas (Twitter)
*Some quotes from Twitter have been altered for grammar and clarity
In summary, Angie mcMahon organized an event under the pretense that we would be watching and celebrating Jon Stewart’s message. She raised over $21,000 (full disclosure: I donated to this) to put on this event. Then the event turned out to be nothing more than a liberal version of a tea party.
The one good thing to come out of this disaster is that the money she raised will go to Chicago Public Schools. But that’s the only thing she should be proud of. Everything regarding the execution of this event was a complete disaster.
One last thing to fully disclose: Angie often retweeted me when I plugged her event on Twitter. Now I wonder if she will retweet some constructive criticism of her event.
Last year's Takin' It to the Streets crowd.
The epic lineup for America’s biggest hip-hop festival, Rock the Bells, was announced a few weeks ago, and to the dismay of many Chicago hip-hop fans, the tour isn’t making a stop in the Midwest for the first time in years.
Mos Def
Not to be missed, then, is Chicago’s biggest summer event for aspiring rappers, emcees, producers, and simply hop-hop aficionados: Takin’ It to the Streets – Urban International Festival, from 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. on June 19. With heavyweights Mos Def, Brother Ali and Tinariwen hitting the stages, among dozens of other performers, the event is the only one of its festival kind in Chicago. It’s not just the music that sets Takin’ it to the Streets apart, however: the festival has a very distinct socio-politcal purpose, with a Muslim concentration setting the stage for social change. Although not all of the performers are Muslim, they all share a common trait of social conscientiousness and spirituality–factors that go unnoticed in the typical street festival.
You can expect four diverse stage offerings at the festival: the Unity Stage, Hip Hop Pavilion, World Music Stage, and Streets Stage. It’s not only music that will be showcased on these stages; rather, everything from yoga to a workshop titled “Healin’ the Hood” will go on throughout the day to encourage social consciousness and change. Outside of the stages, activities will include faith and justice dialogue, an international bazaar, a health and wellness fair, 3-on-3 basketball, a family zone, and a prayer center.
In its tenth year, Takin’ it to the Streets will provide a unique experience for the whole smorgasbord of summer festival-goers: the religious and non-religious, the hip-hop fans and the hip-hop haters, the meditation-minded and the partiers. Just bring an open mind.
For the complete schedule of events and for more information, head to http://www.streets2010.com
Now I am not going to say that having Blagojevich speak at a Northwestern is a bad move. However I will say that having this guy speak on ethics in politics is utterly hysterical. The campus leader must think so after scheduling Blago. He probably called his friends saying, “You’ll never guess who I got to speak about ethics! Blah Ha ha!”
That is like asking Chris Brown to speak about loving households. The whole point to inviting people to speak at universities is “freedom of thought.” That means bringing in both the popular and unpopular folks. That means bringing in those that defend the truth and those that perpetuate lies. Blago’s appearance at Northwestern accomplished exactly what was intended; it stimulated discussion and thought. The unruly Northwestern students laughed and yelled stuff like “Shame”, and Blagojevich would raise his voice and say, “Why don’t you at least give me the benefit of the doubt and let me prove myself in a court of law?” He asked.
I suppose “poor ole Blago” deserves his day in court. It is the American way. He is a very cunning and sly speaker. I suppose one would have to be that way in order to be a governor of a tremendously busy state such as Illinois. However, there was no way he was going to tell these students about proper ethical behavior. The point was to inform students about a current state and national issue by allowing a forum for discussion. Students were not told to appreciate corruption. The arbitrator and panelists were very clear to make obvious all the problems with Blagojevich’s conduct and they held him completely accountable for his alleged actions.
Absolutely no one there was defending the man, except Blagojevich himself. Well if this trial doesn’t go in favor for Blago, at least he still has his hair. Cue in some Saturday Night Fever music (you can tell by the way use my walk, I’m a woman’s man, No time for talk). “Ma, I work hard on my hair and he hits my hair.” What do you think about Blago at Northwestern University? Comment and let me know!