This afternoon, I was part of the ENDA13- a group of LGBTQ rights activists that staged a sit-in at Senator Dick Durbin’s office in Chicago, IL. We wanted Senator Durbin (the second most powerful person in the U.S. Senate) to sign our pledge, asking him to be an active and outspoken leader for a transgender-inclusive Employment Non-Discrimination Act (ENDA). We were told that Senator Durbin “doesn’t do pledges,” but we weren’t going to take no for an answer. We informed the staffer who spoke with us that we wouldn’t leave the office until we could speak with the Senator over the phone and he agreed to sign our pledge.

We began chanting “What do we want? Equal rights! When do we want them? Now!” and “Pass ENDA now! Pass ENDA now!” and “Call Dick! Call Dick! Call Dick!” It wasn’t long before three officers showed up. We were told that we had two minutes to leave on our own, or we would be arrested. As they handcuffed us, we chanted “Show me what democracy looks like! This is what democracy looks like!” As I spoke, my voice started shaking, and my eyes teared up- not because I was nervous and not because I was scared- because I was proud. I was so proud. We were really doing it. We were standing up for what we believe in. We were taking action. I was so proud.

They took us down to a room on the third floor, removed the handcuffs, collected our IDs  and wrote each of us a $175 citation for “failure to comply with signs and regulations.” Then they escorted us out of the building. We were out by 1:30. I was expecting to be held for 3 or 4 hours, so it moved a lot more quickly than I thought it would.

I have to say, being arrested for civil disobedience is pretty damn exciting.

From our press release for the event:

 Chicago, IL – May 20, 2010 - As part of a broad strategy to gain a vote on ENDA  this year, a group of Chicago activists have been arrested after a sit-in in Senator  Richard J. Durbin’s office. The sit-in was initiated due to the Senator’s lack of  response regarding a pledge that a coalition of activist groups sent to the Senator  for signature. The pledge (in its entirety below) affirms his commitment to a  transgender-inclusive Employment Non-Discrimination Act, and forceful  advocacy of the bill before the Media and Senate. The ‘form letter’ response  received from the Senator via email did state his support for ENDA, but does not  mention transgender protections as part of the bill he supports:

You can read the full press release, (which includes the pledge we asked the Senator to sign) by clicking this link.

News of our sit-in was reported on several sites, including (I’m very proud to say) from The Advocate.

 Thirteen activists demanding passage of the Employment Non-Discrimination Act  were arrested Thursday in the Chicago district office of Illinois Senator and  Democratic Party Whip Richard Durbin.

 The protesters, organized by the group Chicago Harvey Milk Week of Action,  entered Durbin’s downtown office at noon and demanded that the senator, who  was not in the office, sign a pledge committing to the passage of a trans-inclusive  ENDA. The group refused to leave and began chanting "ENDA now" when aides  reportedly told them they could not speak to the senator via phone.

You can read the full article by clicking this link.

You can also view video of us speaking with the staffer in the office here:

(Click the photo to be linked to the video.)

And, for more information on why we chose ENDA (and Senator Durbin) as the subject of our sit-in, you can check out the info we have on our ChicagoMilkWeek website.

You can also SIGN OUR PETITION to Senator Durbin, asking him to sign our pledge and step up as a real leader for equal rights.

~ Samantha