Chicago
Popular citiesBrowse all cities
Timeout

Get us in your inbox

By entering your email address you agree to our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy and consent to receive emails from Time Out about news, events, offers and partner promotions.

Search
  1. Photograph: Martha Williams
    Photograph: Martha WilliamsMembers of Black Youth Project 100 and supporters stage a sit-in at City Hall for 28 hours, Nov 25, 2014.
    PreviousNext
    /9
  2. Photograph: Martha Williams
    Photograph: Martha Williams

    Name Breanna, Organizing Co-chair of Black Youth Project 100

    From Bronzeville

    What do you hope to accomplish by being here today?

    The main thing I want to accomplish here is just to be able to help my brothers and sisters that have experienced trauma at the hands of the police and at the hands of the state. That’s the biggest thing for me. To build community—because that’s the most important thing, outside of justice, that we are missing.

    PreviousNext
    /9
  3. Photograph: Martha Williams
    Photograph: Martha Williams

    Name Haroon

    From Woodlawn

    What do you hope to accomplish by being here today?

    I hope we get some unity. In Chicago we hope we can have some type of influence on our elected officials to stand up and do something about racial injustice in America.

    PreviousNext
    /9
  4. Photograph: Martha Williams
    Photograph: Martha Williams

    Name Ahmed

    From Pilsen

    What do you hope to accomplish by being here today?

    I am part of (the group) Students for Justice in Palestine. In Chicago we advocate for justice in Palestine, and the reason we are here is to build solidarity and bond with youth organizations that are trying to advocate for human rights and justice for black people in this country because we share similar struggles as Palestinian youth and we understand the urgent need to change the way the system discriminates against certain people.

    PreviousNext
    /9
  5. Photograph: Martha Williams
    Photograph: Martha Williams

    Name Erica

    From Edgewater

    What do you hope to accomplish by being here today?

    What I hope to accomplish is showing up in numbers. The greater numbers that fight against this injustice—that is the state situation, a racist, capitalist patriarchy that we live under. That is why cops, especially, continue to get away with murder. So I’m here to support that justice that needs to be served.

    PreviousNext
    /9
  6. Photograph: Martha Williams
    Photograph: Martha Williams

    Name Gerry

    From Gresham

    What do you hope to accomplish by being here today?

    To show that there is movement and we are upset, you know, we are angered about what has occurred and we would just like for our presence to be known, and let them know that we care about what is going on across the country.

    PreviousNext
    /9
  7. Photograph: Martha Williams
    Photograph: Martha Williams

    Name Mickey

    From North Side

    What do you hope to accomplish by being here today?

    I am here to show solidarity with the people of Ferguson and those in Chicago organizing around social justice issues. I love this city. I’ve lived here all my life and I know that we suffer from police violence.

    PreviousNext
    /9
  8. Photograph: Martha Williams
    Photograph: Martha WilliamsMembers of Black Youth Project 100 and supporters stage a sit-in at City Hall for 28 hours, Nov 25, 2014.
    PreviousNext
    /9
  9. Photograph: Martha Williams
    Photograph: Martha WilliamsMembers of Black Youth Project 100 and supporters stage a sit-in at City Hall for 28 hours, Nov 25, 2014.
    PreviousNext
    /9

Meet the protesters staging a 28-hour City Hall sit-in

Members of Black Youth Project 100 and supporters are camping out in front of the mayor's office tonight. We spoke to some of them about their reasons why.

Advertising

Members of the Chicago chapter of Black Youth Project 100, an organization of young black activists between 18 and 35, are in the midst of what they pledge will be a 28-hour protest outside Mayor Rahm Emanuel's office in City Hall. The length of the sit-in, which comes in response to a Missouri grand jury's decision not to indict Ferguson, Missouri police officer Darren Wilson for the shooting death in August of unarmed teenager Michael Brown, is what organizers say is the average number of hours between incidents in America of a young black person being shot and killed by police, security officers or "self-appointed vigilantes."

The Black Youth Project is calling on Mayor Emanuel, Police Superintendent Garry McCarthy and other city officials to take a leadership role in achieving fair police treatment of black citizens nationwide. Time Out photo editor Martha Williams spoke with several of the protesters and their supporters this afternoon, and asked what brought them individually to make a stand.

UPDATE: The Black Youth Project 100 members and supporters who remained in City Hall after hours ended the sit-in shortly before 7pm after police began threatening arrest, tweeting that they'd made the decision collectively.

Recommended
    You may also like
    You may also like
    Advertising

    Get us in your inbox

    Loading animation
    Déjà vu! We already have this email. Try another?

    By entering your email address you agree to our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy and consent to receive emails from Time Out about news, events, offers and partner promotions.

    🙌 Awesome, you're subscribed!

    Thanks for subscribing! Look out for your first newsletter in your inbox soon!

    Time Out

    About us

    Contact us

    Time Out products

    Time Out magazine

      Site map
      © 2024 Time Out England Limited and affiliated companies owned by Time Out Group Plc. All rights reserved. Time Out is a registered trademark of Time Out Digital Limited.