In March of 2024, five months into the genocide in Gaza, Chicago witnessed a convergence of organizers from all corners of the city. They rallied around the Palestinian cause in mourning, marking a weekend of events for International Working Women’s Day (IWWD).
That served as a catalyst for Palestine activism throughout Women's History Month. On March 8, 2024, a solemn vigil took place. It was curated by members of the Palestinian Feminist Collective (PFC), alongside various solidarity groups for Palestine. Tech workers, health care professionals, educators, employees within the cultural sector, and many others took part.
Under the gentle flicker of tea-light candles, Grace Church of Logan Square became a sanctuary for hundreds mourning the over 30,000 Palestinians who the Israeli genocide in Gaza had killed at the time. Today, the number of Palestinians reported killed has surpassed 47,000. Amid this ambiance of candlelight, an array of cultural programming unfolded, featuring poignant poetry readings, impassioned speeches, soul-stirring bagpipe performances, and the rhythmic cadence of Korean folk drumming.
The speeches offered several pivotal themes, echoing well beyond the weekend. The incomprehensible atrocities in Gaza have evoked profound grief, and this shared grief demands immediate action from Palestinians and their allies. It’s also imperative for anticolonial feminism to stand in the face of a genocide perpetuated by colonial ‘feminist’ propaganda.
SJP Chicago organizer and vigil attendee Lena encapsulated this sentiment, stating that, “Palestinian feminism extends beyond the struggles that white liberal feminists typically campaign for. It is anticapitalist, anti-imperialist, and seeks to decolonize.” Both organizers and attendees alike emphasized the necessity of grounding feminism in working-class, anticolonial principles.
The vigil concluded with representatives from each worker collective expressing their solidarity with Palestine and affirming their commitment to strike on May 1 for International Workers Day, which has its origins in the Haymarket Labor Riots of Chicago.
For event organizer Ayah, hosting the vigil during IWWD weekend was paramount. They remarked: “It’s important to recognize the history of IWWD [...] the working class struggle is omitted and invisibilized in mainstream recognition of this day for obvious political reasons, [in an attempt to] decenter the working class… so I think it’s important to show up and acknowledge that history.”
A protester carries a sign that reads, "PALESTINE IS A FEMINIST ISSUE" at the 'Women of the World Unite' march in Chicago on March 10, 2024. Image courtesy of Sarah-Ji.
The following day buzzed with energy as an art build for the citywide march unfolded on Chicago’s South Side. Participants painted banners, crafted posters, and collaborated on visuals for the forthcoming march, a collaborative effort spearheaded by a diverse coalition representing Chicago's vibrant organizing landscape.
A broad range of grassroots organizations from across the city, including the Palestinian Feminist Collective, the United States Palestinian Community Network, Students for Justice in Palestine Chicago, and others were among the organizers. The coalition later marched on the DNC in August of 2024.
The Palestinian cause emerged as not only the primary theme for the day and the DNC coalition’s central demand but also as a testament to the profound history of solidarity among the march’s organizers. This unity has galvanized unprecedented levels of support for Palestine at a critical juncture in the cause’s history.
As USPCN organizer Laila Z. emphasized, “We live in a police state where a lot of these police train with the IOF who oppress Palestinians and occupy them on a daily basis…to oppress people, and especially Black people in Chicago… our struggles are so intertwined.”
Echoing this sentiment, SJP Chicago organizer Jenin declared, “From Palestine to America, everywhere around the world people are still coming out in large numbers.” And indeed, they were.
A crowd gathers at the'Women of the World Unite' march in Chicago on March 10, 2024. Image courtesy of Sarah-Ji.
On March 10, 2024, crowds swelled in the hundreds, gathering at the city’s Federal Plaza. The demonstration commenced with fervent speeches from the march’s organizers, culminating in a letter penned by feminists from Gaza and delivered by members of the PFC. As the speeches concluded, demonstrators began to march with their signs and banners held high, letting the city know why they were taking the streets.
For march attendee Layelle, participation was a tribute to “the Palestinian women of the world who continue to resist Zionism [and are] the pillars in our fight for liberation.”
The route included stops at the Metropolitan Correctional Facility and the Immigration and Customs Enforcement office. Here, mothers from MAMAS and OCAD, among others, shared firsthand accounts of the atrocities inflicted by the United States carceral systems, connecting their personal anguish to the plight of women in Gaza. Speakers denounced borders, deportation, and mass incarceration, while expressing unwavering solidarity with Palestinians, emphasizing the interconnectedness of liberation struggles worldwide.
The march ended back in Federal Plaza, where concluding speakers underscored a sobering reality: the same Zionist colonialism responsible for the murder of tens of thousands of women and children was not far removed from the systems of violence plaguing women in Chicago. These systems have long deployed Western, white feminism to justify their atrocities. Yet, amid the staggering loss, Palestinian women refuse to succumb to despair, and women across the Global South continue to resist. In the wake of immense grief, a moral imperative to act emerges.
Two protesters carry signs that read, "THERE IS NO REPRO JUSTICE WITHOUT PALESTINIAN LIBERATION" and "REPRO JUSTICE = FREE PALESTINE" at the 'Women of the World Unite' march in Chicago on March 10, 2024. Image courtesy of Sarah-Ji.
For community organizer Raya (pseudonym), the demonstration was not just about the who, what, or why of Palestinian feminism — it was about the how. She told Palestine Square, “[In February 2024] we blocked a weapons manufacturer near the [Chicago area] for seven hours. The bombs killing Palestinian women are being made in our backyard… we need action.”
In discourses surrounding anticolonial feminism, there’s a tendency to parse out the obvious, to refute colonial feminism, and to say plainly that any ideology claiming to affirm the life of women cannot concurrently advocate for their extermination, or ignore it. While this explanation can be necessary to shatter the myths under which colonial feminists operate, dwelling on the obvious can lead one down a rabbit hole of obfuscatory theoretical musings. On International Working Women's Day, a pronounced emphasis on the "working" aspect of the title lifted the veil of academic jargon and abstract theories, forcing Western feminists to confront the contradictions in their own ideology that are refuted by the anticolonial praxis found in Palestinian Feminism. While anticolonial feminism certainly offers a framework for articulating Palestinian feminism, its true power lies in charting a course for what Palestinian Feminism can achieve in practice.
For Laila, short-term confrontations with colonial feminisms took the form of casting a strategic uncommitted vote in the state’s presidential primary elections. She spoke to the importance of challenging narratives about the two-party system within Democrat strongholds like Chicago and Illinois at large. “The Democratic Party is committing a genocide… we are not going to let any of these politicians have peace as long as there is a genocide.”
On March 19, 2024 — the day of the primary election — Illinois residents had indeed continued to mobilize beyond IWWD, with estimates coming in that tens of thousands of those in Illinois protest-voted on the Democratic ballot for Gaza.
Nour Jaghama, CODEPINK’s Palestine Coordinator, emphasized the importance of continuing to organize actions around the demands of Gaza. “We will continue to shape our lives around [Gaza’s] needs so that we can always make sure our actions here are in service of [Palestinians].”
Confrontation is necessary to support Palestinians living under occupation as they face genocide. This confrontation — when informed by anticolonial feminism — equips those mobilizing to counter repression and propaganda with impeccable clarity. Palestinian Feminism is a reminder that now is not a time for resignation; it is a time for defiance. As Western state security forces and the Zionist entity intensify their campaign of repression, Palestinian Feminism demands that we mobilize. It is not just theory to be co-opted: it is action. It is a promise for — and a guiding path toward — a Free Palestine.
