Unity, equality, pink hats: Women's March on Chicago calls out to thousands
Channel: every day
Date: 15/01/2017

Unity, equality, pink hats: Women's March on Chicago calls out to thousands
when a woman apprehensive about Donald Trump's presidency broke down in tears at Lynn Coe's North Side shop, Coe offered her an unusual remedy: Come knit with us.

Dozens of women have packed the store in recent weeks armed with bright pink yarn and knitting needles to create hats for the Jan. 21 Women's March on Chicago, where thousands are expected to gather the day after the inauguration.

The cat-eared caps — dubbed "pussyhats" — have become one of the more visible symbols of a movement that began immediately after Trump's election to raise awareness and voice concern over the future of women's rights. Hundreds of thousands are expected to turn out the same day for the Women's March on Washington, which is expected to be the largest gathering in response to Trump's inauguration and has sparked discussions about gender, race and class.

Organizers expect thousands throughout Illinois to board buses for D.C. and thousands more to gather at Grant Park for the sister march in Chicago. Many have said they plan to wear the handmade pink hats as a symbol of solidarity and empowerment, though even the hats are not without controversy.

To meet the demand for the pink hats, Coe has held "knit-ins" at her Lincoln Avenue shop Knit 1. Since Pussyhat Project co-founders put the pattern online and set a goal of 1 million donated hats for participants to wear as they march, women and men alike have squeezed into tight corners and sat on window ledges furiously knitting at Coe's store. When Coe ran out of pink yarn, she turned to a local supplier who dyed the balls of yarn for her.
Coe said the knitting project seems to be cathartic for many participants, and she's been a bit surprised by the level of emotion and passion people brought to the typically tranquil activity. Coe, who said she grew up in a political household in Hyde Park in the 1960s and '70s, had been cautious about mixing politics and work.

"I don't feel that way anymore," said Coe, 58. "I feel like this is too important. I don't think any of us can afford to be silent this time around."

Like many women who demonstrated for civil rights and equality decades ago, Coe said she never imagined herself marching for women's rights in 2017.

"I thought we were done with that," she said. "I really thought that we wouldn't have to fight that battle again, but I guess you can't ever be complacent."

G. Marie Leaner, a Chicago real estate broker who grew up in Washington Park on the city's South Side, knows those battles well. Leaner said she was active in the women's equality movement more than 40 years ago when she was a proud member of the Chicago Women's Liberation Union.

She views the upcoming march as a continuation of that work.

"It's consistent with my values and my reality," Leaner said. "Why would I stop now?"

Not even a business conference in California will deter her. Chicago's march is one of more than 200 sister demonstrations scheduled to take place throughout the world that day, and Leaner said she plans to attend one in Los Angeles.