A Tale of 2 Cities

Last week I spent some time with Rayo, getting to seme ore of what is involved in her ministry.  This is how I found myself amid a crowd of thousands marching from Unity Park to the Federal Square in downtown Chicago.  My first ever May Day Protest!  I was there with a group of children, teenagers and young adults Rayo works with and who were enthusiastically (and loudly) calling for Immigration Reform.   We managed to be stationed right behind a Guatemalan marching band  - just what you need to liven up a few thousand vociferous Latinos!  There were other groups matching too – including teachers against the closure of 53 Chicago schools.  Although these schools are grossly underfunded and under-subscribed  parents and children have a very real fear of the dangers involved in crossing gang territories to travel longer distances to school.

The next day I went to South Chicago with Rayo.  We met a bright, passionate young woman who despite having a good job and being well educated, refuses to leave ‘her’ community, choosing instead to volunteer with the young people of the neighbourhood.  She was distressed over the shooting of an unarmed friend earlier in the week by police – he was crossing the street trying to avoid an altercation between  the police and some gang members and he was shot three times for moving too fast.  The police are afraid and jumpy in these areas... 

We visited ‘Casa Esperanza’ http://casaesperanzachicago.org which is a Helper project serving homeless women and children as they transition out of emergency shelters, towards independent living.  The house provides a safe space, training and community in which the women can train, heal and grow and their children can find stability and security. 

I also spent time with local children who come to the parish after school.  Ostensibly they come for help with their homework, but they are fed and welcomed in a safe space that has become very much their own.  It was lovely to see some of the older teenagers from the community coming to help out.  They were very open in talking about their lives and their dreams – especially to someone with a strange English accent!  It is sobering though to see the extent of the violence and fear that is part of their everyday reality. 

Casa Esperanza (House of Hope) is well named and despite the injustice, poverty and fear – I saw hope in action this week.   By Saturday though I was ready for the other side of Chicago!  Moe and I had a lovely day up in Evanston, gossiping over lunch, walking by the lake and visiting the stunning  Baha’i temple.   The sun was out, all was suburban calmness and there was humour to be seen in the creative rock graffiti at Northwestern University’s lake side.