I'll have some pictures to add once I get home [added!] but I just wanted to say that the HCAN people put together a great rally with several hundred people in the Federal Plaza.
William McNary led off with his usual rousing style. First Gov. Pat Quinn then Congresswoman Jan Schakowsky and Congressman Danny Davis spoke passionately about the need for health care now and what to do to make sure it passes. A number of other people spoke -- everyone from Lou Lang (who was in wonderful form) to Alexi Giannoulias, Julie Hamos, Toni Preckwinkle, Lou Harris and David Orr.
Boy, is this town blue -- progressive as well. It's something to be proud of.
The contingent of "tea baggers" was pathetically small -- maybe a dozen or so. It looked like the same crowd that comes with pictures of fetuses and 'God-hates-fags' signs at other events. To put their number in perspective, there was maybe five times as many supporters of single-payer on our side -- just the single-payer people -- though the likelihood of single-payer getting proportionate coverage from our media (if only for this reason) is just about nil. I wonder why that is.
Anyway, the rally as a whole marks an important step in the campaign to bring universal health care to our country. It's going to be a campaign requiring all our help.
UPDATE: HCAN has a couple of pictures on their site...
