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Articles by Andy Thayer
The New ‘McCarthyism’ and the Old
Expanded from remarks at the National Lawyers Guild Chicago Chapter upon receiving the organization’s Arthur Kinoy Award, 5/29/2025 Today the National Lawyers Guild and all organizations of the Left are facing perhaps our greatest challenges since last century’s McCarthy Era. So there’s a certain timeliness to celebrating the great attorney Arthur Kinoy, a stalwart opponent of McCarthyism.
The Democrats “Support” You. Why Protest Them?
Why would people of the left protest the Democrats’ convention, especially regarding issues where they say they support us, such as on abortion and LGBTQ+ rights? I was asked that question by Neil Steinberg, a page-two columnist for the Chicago Sun-Times, regarding our Sunday, August 18th march on the eve of this year’s Democratic Convention in Chicago.
Letter to a Bernie Activist
You didn’t seriously think they’d allow you to take over their party, did you? As we’re both Chicagoans, we know how democratic the Democratic Party really is. Our former mayor covered for decades of systemic torture of black people by Police Commander Jon Burge and a host of his colleagues. Our current mayor covered for police murder so he could win reelection. This kind of ruthlessness with peoples’ lives should indicate that no level of dirty tricks is beneath those who truly run the Party.
Why Stonewall Matters Today
The police raid on New York’s Stonewall Inn fifty years ago this month is widely viewed as the most pivotal event in LGBT* history, spawning a movement which prompted many millions around the globe to come out of the closet and fight for their freedom. But for all its significance, the movement launched by the 1969 Stonewall Rebellion remains poorly understood today, even by many radical LGBT people who sing its praises.
How Chicago Police Infiltrated, Spied on Anti-NATO Organizers
Photograph Source: Asher Heimermann – CC BY 3.0 Chicago Police here infiltrated the main anti-NATO summit organizing coalition shortly after its 2011 formation, and maintained that infiltration until shortly after the summit ended in May 2012, according to Chicago Police Department documents recently released under a Freedom of Information Act request. On January 11, 2012, Michael J.
Murderous Chicago Cop Found Guilty: Now an Even Bigger Test
Photo: Andy Thayer. For the first time in this city’s notorious history of violent policing, an on-duty officer finally has been found guilty of the murder. That the killer cop, Jason Van Dyke, was white, and his victim, Laquan McDonald, a troubled black youth, made the victory even more momentous.
Why the Chicago ‘68 Convention Matters Today
The events around the 1968 Democratic Convention were a sharp turning point in U.S. politics. In full view of news cameras, Mayor Richard J. Daley let his police crack the heads of anti-war protesters in the streets of Chicago, as well as cameramen, other journalists and passersby. Inside the convention, he showed brazen contempt for the popular will by engineering the selection of a pro-war candidate who hadn’t won a single primary.
HuffPost: “We Really LOVED Your Contributions, Now FUCK OFF!”
So I, and presumably about another 100k other HuffPo contributors, recently got an email saying that they were shutting down unpaid, independent contributors. Rationalizing the shut-down, it asserted that “Today, with the proliferation of social media and self-publishing platforms across the web, people have many more opportunities to share their thoughts and opinions online.” Ummm, didn’t we just lose DNAinfo and Chicagoist, not to mention that little thing called Net Neutrality?
The LGBTQ Movement is an Intersectional Fail
In recent years “intersectionality” has been the biggest buzz word in progressive circles, liberally sprinkled in activist conferences and social media. Yet few movements have been as long on intersectional talk, and little on action, as the LGBTQ movement. Few events point up this fail more clearly than the impending release from prison this Wednesday of Transgender heroine Chelsea Manning.
159 - Trump vs. LGBTs, Muslims and refugees - Gay Lesbian Bi Trans News Archive - Windy City Times
The LGBT movement faced its first big test of the Trump presidency this past week, and fortunately passed. The administration floated, and rescinded, attacks on LGBT protections in federal employment and federal contractors. The administration then floated, and rescinded, attacks on a broad range of LGBT rights using "religious liberty" as the mask for its bigoted actions.
Black Funeral Directors Sue Mississippi Coroner For Steering Government Contracts to White Funeral Homes
Tax Monies Used to Enforce Racial Segregation For Decades, Federal Suit Says GULFPORT, MS – A federal lawsuit filed today accuses the Coroner of Harrison County of steering the County’s morgue, cremation, and burial business to white-owned funeral homes. The suit also recounts how the Coroner has refused to allow African American-owned funeral homes to handle the bodies of white decedents.
The significance of Chicago's Trump shutdown - Gay Lesbian Bi Trans News Archive - Windy City Times
The people of Chicago are reviving an old tradition. Young people here, particularly blacks and Latinos, have re-learned a lesson about how real change is made and they are teaching the rest of us: We have power in the streets that we don't possess in the electoral arena. We can fight and we can win. And using this approach, on Friday night in the course of a few hours, several thousand Chicagoans did more to stop Trump bigotry than months of media blather and politicians' handwringing.
Journalist Sues to Get Police & State's Attorney Records of Laquan McDonald Shooting Investigations
CHICAGO — The independent journalist who forced the release of the infamous Laquan McDonald police shooting video has sued Chicago Police, the Independent Police Review Authority, and Cook County State’s Attorney Anita Alvarez to force release of their investigations into the police killing of the 17-year-old.
CPD Stingray Use Under Fire Again
In response to the Chicago Police Department’s attempts to keep details of its stingray surveillance from the public, today Loevy & Loevy responded on behalf of our client, transparency activist Freddy Martinez. Electronic surveillance is a key issue of our times, and we are proud to be representing Mr. Martinez in this fight. CPD’s reply brief is due August 28. On September 23 we will be in court to set a hearing date.
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