May 11

May 11 Flag Raising (Palestinian)

Chicago, Demonstrations, Protest, Public Declarations

When I arrived at Daley Plaza at 3:30 PM today, I expected to see blue and yellow flags, together with members of Chicago’s Ukrainian community. I knew that Chicago’s Palestinian community had a 2:00 PM flag raising in the plaza, but I assumed they would be long gone by 3:30 PM, particularly because that is where the Ukrainians hoped to finish their Mother’s Day rally.

Turns out the Ukrainians decided to wind their rally up outside of the Wrigley Building. I had told one of the organizers earlier about the Palestinian event, but at the time, I thought the the plan still included a Daley Plaza conclusion—the assumption being that the Palestinian flag raising would have wrapped up long before the Ukrainians were scheduled to arrive. I guess the Ukrainians improvised.

I only devoted an hour to the Palestinian rally and the subsequent march along Wacker Drive. Here are a few observations:

Not an Endorsement By the City of Chicago. ‘Heritage’ groups regularly schedule ceremonial flag raisings in Daley Plaza, so today’s ceremony was not an endorsement by the City of Chicago of the pro-Palestinian position. The Polish, Ukrainian, Russian, Czech, and other communities all have annual flag-raising ceremonies celebrating their respective heritages.
A group can apply to the city to reserve for a flag-raising ceremony. The city does not charge the groups if the ceremony is scheduled for a workday (Monday through Friday), and lasts no more than an hour.
In fact, I was told that the city pays for the flag. City workers are the ones who man the ropes.
The Palestinians opted for a Saturday, so there was a fee.
Crowd Demographics. While I didn’t do a statistically valid survey, my impression is that the vast majority of those in attendance were people from Chicago’s Palestinian community rather than college students and members of Progressive and left-leaning groups. Undoubtedly, there were non-Palestinians in the crowd, but they were in the minority.
The Program. The event began at 2:00 PM, so I was not there for much of it. While I was present, I heard two speeches—one by a doctor who recently had been to Gaza, and the other by a woman who had lost relatives who lived in Gaza. Both gave heartfelt speeches. It should be no surprise by now: To my way of thinking, that sort of messaging is far more effective than the chanting and angry speeches that the college students frequently deliver.
Counter-Demonstrators. The pro-Israeli forces have recently upped their visibility. When I was present, I saw no pro-Israeli counter-demonstrators.
The Kids. Pablo Picasso must have designed his sculptural gift to the People of Chicago with children in mind. The base functions as the perfect slide. Undoubtedly, many of the kids who availed themselves of the “slide” have been dragged to plenty of pro-Palestinian demonstrations—although the kids at the typical demonstration are often enthusiastic participants. Today, Picasso’s gift gave those kids the the opportunity to set the chants aside one day. They were not identifiable as Palestinians, Israelis, Ukrainians, or Russians. They were just kids being kids. Everyone could learn a lot from the humanity those kids showed today.
On Tuesday, the Jewish community will commemorate Israeli Independence Day with a similar flag-raising ceremony. My bet is that if parents bring their children to that ceremony, the kids will once again take advantage of Picasso’s gift, which would be a good reminder that Palestinians and Jews (Israelis) have more in common than they realize. Both sides should resolve their differences for the kids on the slides in Chicago and Gaza.

[Click on an Image to Enlarge It. The Images Are Not Necessarily in Exact Chronological Order]