Thousands In North Side March Told: If Serious About Helping, Come To South And West Side Cleanup Events This Week

OLD TOWN — Thousands of Chicagoans marched from Wrigley Field to Old Town Tuesday in a peaceful protest that included a call to action: Get out and help rebuild.

Organizers of the North Side Black Lives Matter peaceful protest called on the thousands of supporters to help clean up the South and West Side neighborhoods hit hard from looting and vandalism this past weekend. 

Fourtune House, a creative-based organization founded in 2018 that organized the North Side protest, is also organizing a South Side cleanup Wednesday from 12 to 3 p.m. 

“If y’all are really serious about helping, there is a South Side cleanup going on this week because South Side neighborhoods — Black businesses — were looted and we need to help clean up,” organizers told the crowd.

The cleanup will take place the rest of the week at the following locations: 

• Roseland and Halsted 
• 95th and Stony Island
• 87th and State
• 79th and Cottage Grove
• The Walmart on 47th and Cottage Grove
• Lake Meadows Shopping Center at 35th and S. Martin Luther King Drive Jr.

The organizers encouraged people to bring their own supplies like masks, gloves, garbage bags, brooms and paper towels, but said if people need cleaning materials, they can reach out to the collective via Instagram. 

Fourtune House organizers said these hard-hit neighborhoods need support from all over the city and the protest’s goal was to “wake up the North Side” to the realities that exist outside of the predominantly white neighborhoods. 

“Your South Side neighbors need your help,” said an organizer.