We Americans ('legal' or otherwise) are now in the middle of one of the largest periods of protest and organization in decades, concerning immigration policy. Moved by this issue, On Monday, May 1st, a couple friends of mine and I traveled to Chicago from Bloomington, IN, to witness the The Immigrant Worker Justice March, the Chicago section of the marches making up the national "Day Without an Immigrant." We documented our experience with photographs. The following Photo Essay consists of a few of those shots.
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Thousands of American flags, banners, and clothing punctuated the giant crowd as they marched through downtown Chicago. Alternating chants of "U.S.A., U.S.A!" and "Si, Se Puede!" ('Yes, We Can!') could be heard from several blocks away, followed by wild cheers echoing down the massive city corridors.
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Here a young man is pictured marching, off-set framed in front of the greater crowd of people. He wears a bandana on his head and someone is holding a sign above his left shoulder that reads, "We are immigrants, not terrorists."
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Members of the "Unite Here" Union (http://www.unitehere.org/) were some of the most numerous and visible elements of the march. Unite Here is an acronym for the group's member unions, formerly known as the "Union of Needletrades, Industrial and Textile Employees" (Unite) and the "Hotel Employees and Restaurant Employees International Union" (Here.)
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Here a local business in support of the cause distributes water bottles to grateful marchers. The sign reads, "We support the March."
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Chicago's famous "Magnificent Mile"--a downtown stretch of Michigan Avenue--is usually one of the busiest places in the city, clogged with traffic and full of local commuters, office workers, and shoppers. Yesterday, the six-lane road stood empty; closed as the hundreds of thousands-strong crowd marched down the intersecting Jackson Boulevard.
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This man was wearing both the U.S. flag, as a cape, and Mexico's flag tucked into the front of his shirt. It was a somewhat common practice for the marchers and a great symbol of representation and respect for either culture.
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A mother marching alone with her young child holds a sign reading "My Boss Will Fire me Tomorrow, But Will Hire Another Mexican Anyway..." Behind them, another man's sign reads "I Pay Taxes So My Neighbor Can Collect S.S.[Social Security] Check."
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A shot of a man proudly waving a U.S. flag while others wave them about him, intersecting different corners of the frame. It has a very whole but compartmentalized feel, united through his image and action.
We hope to keep this Photo Essay going through a few subsequent posts over the next few days, containing numerous new pictures--especially if it is popular. So please let us know if you like it!
Images 1, 3, 5, and 7 taken by MadCasey
Images 2, 4, 6, and 8 taken by xelnein