Chicago chapter of Women's March cancels 2019 rally

Citing "high costs and insufficient volunteer hours," the Chicago chapter of Women's March has canceled its rally planned for January 19 next year, the anniversary of the original nationwide Women's March in 2017.

The Hill:

The Chicago chapter of the Women’s March has canceled its rally planned for January, citing high costs and insufficient volunteer hours, the Chicago Tribune reported Wednesday.

The newspaper noted that the cancellation of the event, which in the past drew hundreds of thousands of people to the city, comes amid growing controversy surrounding the group’s national leaders and their ties to Nation of Islam leader Louis Farrakhan, who has made several anti-Semitic comments in the past.

Marches and rallies in Washington, D.C., and in cities across the country are still planned for Jan. 19, including several in Illinois. The Chicago chapter has said it will commemorate the anniversary of the national march in other ways but hasn't yet released details.

The blatant and nauseating anti-Semitism of two of the founders of the March, Linda Sarsour, and Tamika Mallory, has no doubt scared donors away and dampened enthusiasm for the march from volunteers. Both women have praised Nation of Islam leader Louis Farrakhan.

In a February speech in which he praised Women’s March co-founder Tamika Mallory, Farrakhan said that “the powerful Jews are my enemy.” The national movement denounced the comments in March but faced criticism for waiting too long. Mallory has also applauded Farrakhan on social media.

Teresa Shook, a co-founder of the national movement, in November called for national leaders to step down, after having “allowed anti-Semitism, anti-LBGTQIA sentiment and hateful, racist rhetoric to become a part of the platform by their refusal to separate themselves from groups that espouse these racist, hateful beliefs.”

The Washington state chapter announced earlier in December that the group would dissolve in protest, and the Rhode Island chapter declared it is separating from the national movement. 

“Every member of our movement matters to us — including our incredible Jewish and LGBTQ members. We are deeply sorry for the harm we have caused, but we see you, we love you, and we are fighting with you,” Women’s March National Organizer Linda Sarsour said in a November statement, referencing homophobic remarks Farrakhan has also made.

It's good to see the group paying a price for tolerating haters like Farrakhan. But many in the movement have gone to incredible lengths, twisting themselves into knots trying to defend Sarsour and Mallory. That hasn't sat well with some feminists and it certainly hasn't helped their cause with the vast majority of women who may support most of their agenda, but totally reject the hate.

For many in the Women's March movement, playing the "guilt by association" game only goes one way - their political enemies. It now appears that many ordinary women and those who back abortion on demand and other feminist issues, simply can't stomach the hypocrisy.

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