Sep 29

Sep 29 Tigray Demonstration

Chicago, Demonstrations, Protest, Public Declarations, Urban Landscapes

“If your pictures aren’t good enough, you aren’t close enough”

— Robert Capa, One of the Founders of Magnum and the Only Photographer to Land on Omaha Beach

I headed to Millenium Park early today for a shoot with my Thursday-morning photography group. Given the day’s assigned task (shoot from the hip), I brought my Leica Q2 with its 28mm fixed lens.

Around lunchtime, when two of my peers and I were passing the Wrigley Building, we saw yellow and red flags across the street. My companions must have assumed that they would not being enjoying my wittisms during lunch as I bolted across the street. I, however, fully intended to rejoin them after just five or so minutes.

This demonstration was unlike the many I have photographed before: I had no idea what it was all about. The Tigrays in Ethiopia? Yet, the red and yellow flags and signs drew me in. My companions had assumed correctly; unable to resist, I bailed on them, but they knew it was in the pursuit of my passion.

At some point, I must have seen a report about the Ethiopian civil war, but it apparently didn’t register. There always seems to be a civil war or coup d'état somewhere in Africa. As of late, those living in Africa can make equivalent claims about the United States.

Suffice it to say, I had the wrong camera for this event. After years of experimentation, I have settled on a two-camera kit for protests and other outdoor events. Both cameras were resting in a cabinet at home. But as every photographer knows, you use what you got. And to use my Q2 well, I had to keep Robert Capa’s signature quip in mind. Get close. Given the wide-angle lens that I was saddled with, close meant basically shoving my camera less than a foot away from the subject’s face to obtain anything even approximating a portrait.

Some Background. I later learned from one of the demonstrators that about 300 Tigrayans live in Chicago. In Tigray, a region in northern Ethiopia, a civil war is raging between the Tigray People’s Liberation Front and the forces supporting Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed. According to the New York Times, the “tide of the civil war has fluctuated wildly.” The Ahmed government faced defeat in November 2021 as the Liberation Front forces moved toward Addis Ababa, Ethiopia’s capital. Several weeks later, Ahmed’s forces reversed the Tigrayan march toward the capital, forcing the Tigrayans back to their mountain homeland.

The Tigrayans, who make up around 7% of Ethiopia’s population, were the ones who brought down the country’s Marxist government in 1991. Interestingly, at one time, Prime Minister Ahmed had aligned with the Tigrayans, but that coalition came to an end in 2018 when he became Prime Minister. A civil war then broke out. Ahmed subsequently negotiated a peace deal that won him the Nobel Peace Prize in 2019, but divisions within the country deepened, resparking the civil war. Now the Peace Prize winner is accused of war crimes.

The 125 or so protesters who participated into today’s demonstration were objecting to human rights abuses inflicted on Tigrayans civilians. Today’s demonstration leaders spoke of forced starvation, ethnic cleansing, rape, and attacks on hospitals and other civilian infrastructure.

In a recently released report, the International Commission of Human Rights Experts on Ethiopia told the UN Human Rights Council that there is evidence of crimes against humanity on both sides of the conflict. The Council was told about “extrajudicial killings, rape, sexual violence, and starvation of the civilian population as a method of warfare.”

An article published by the UN states that “[t]here were reasonable grounds to believe that the Federal Government and its allies ‘looted and destroyed goods indispensable for the survival of the civilian population in Tigray, killing livestock, destroying food stores, and razing crops while also implementing severe restrictions on humanitarian access to Tigray’, [and] that for more than a year, six million people had been denied access to electricity, internet, telecommunications and banking.”

Today’s demonstrators were particularly agitated by the use of drones against the Tigrayans, including attacks on a hospital, rescue workers, and communication centers. Those in the street believe that the Chinese and Turks are supplying the drones to the Ethiopian government forces. According to the New York Times reporting, the drones have been supplied by the United Arab Emirates and Iran, as well as Turkey and China.

Interestingly, comparisons are being made between the use of new technologies during the Spanish Civil War (where Robert Capa cut his photographic teeth) and the use of drones in Ethiopia. According to Peter W. Singer, an expert on drone warfare at a research group based in Washington, D.C., Ethiopia has become “a combination of war and battle lab.”

The Demonstration. What differentiated this demonstration from many others that I have photographed was its geographic range. As I noted, it began on Michigan Avenue, then headed past the University of Chicago’s downtown campus to the NBC Tower, which houses the Turkish Consulate General. The group stopped to yell chants at those inside in the consulate. It was then back to Michigan Avenue, where the group marched north behind colorful red banners illuminated by the afternoon sun—the cloud cover just disappeared.

At Erie, the group turned west, heading to the Consulate General of the People’s Republic of China, located in a nondescript office building. Once again, the group yelled chants at the building, demanding that China stop selling drones to the Ethiopian government. It was then down State Street, across the Chicago River, to ABC News 7’s streetfront studio at State and Lake, where the group paused to demand that ABC cover the war crimes being perpetrated against Tigrayans civilians.

The demonstrators then headed to the CBS 2 studios adjacent to Daley Plaza, where similar demands were made. The march stopped briefly in Daley Plaza, but the demonstrators could not gather under the Picasso statue because of the temporary farmers market occupying much of the plaza. The organizers decided to cover all bases by then heading to the Federal Building, where they demanded President Biden take action to stop the killings by aiding their cause. Throughout the day, demonstrators attempted to draw an equivalency between the situation in Ethiopia to the one in Ukraine.

The demonstration finally concluded under the watchful eye of Alexander Calder’s Flamingo located in Federal Plaza.

Along the way, I spoke with one member of the small contingent of bicycle cops who managed the flow of demonstrators and traffic, keeping the two separate. I asked him how long this demonstration was supposed to last. He said he didn’t know, but that after two-plus hours, he was looking forward to a late lunch. At this point, the officer and I were both concerned about maintaining body and soul. And I needed a restroom. Never drink coffee before a demonstration.

A Textbook Example. The local Tigrayans pulled off a successful demonstration. I doubt yelling outside the two consulates will stop the sales of drones, but the group certainly raised awareness regarding the human rights abuses taking place in Ethiopia. Their red and yellow flags and banners caught many eyes, particularly as the demonstrators marched up Michigan Avenue. The signage was filled with attention-grabbing slogans that spelled out the abuses. Particularly notable were the several smartly attired religious leaders, as well as a woman carrying a red and yellow umbrella with Tigray markings. Visuals always matter.

The palpable passion and commitment exhibited by the marchers were particularly impressive. Sela Gebremeskel, the woman who led the chants, could not be contained. She inspired the group at every stop, although early on she was overcome by emotion, momentarily losing her composure.

I did have one question, though: Why Thursday rather than Saturday afternoon when the streets would be filled with shoppers and tourists? I was told that a Saturday was certainly preferable, but that demonstrators’ work schedules dictated the timing.

Life Goes On During Every Demonstration. Genocide obviously is a serious subject, but outside the Chinese consulate two incidents broke the tension. First, the owner of the nail salon in an adjacent building came running out, concerned that the protest was blocking his establishment’s entrance. The demonstrators were demanding an end to genocide, while others sought a manicure. Should practicalities carry the day? Gebremeskel quickly realized that the group was creating a problem for a small businessman, so she asked the group to move slightly westward. Everyone complied. No need to make an enemy.

Shortly thereafter, I actually laughed. The demonstrators were waiting for the Chinese delegation to return from lunch. (Whether they were actually out to lunch is still unclear to me.) As they waited, a black sedan pulled up in front of the consulate. Were the well-fed Chinese inside? I was standing next to the curb as the driver maneuvered the sedan into the space. Seeing the reflections of the demonstrators in the car windows, I decided to capture the photographic trope that had presented itself.

Suddenly a lone woman emerged from the driver’s side, demanding to know why I was photographing her. I told her that I had focused on the reflections in her car’s windows, and that given the exposure settings, she would not be visible. Relief flashed across her face, and then she finally noticed the demonstrators looking at her and the car, expecting the Chinese to emerge out the back doors. The crowd cast hoots and hollers in her direction, at which point she asked what was going on, explaining that she was just trying to find a parking space. Not missing the opportunity to educate, Gebremeskel used her microphone to inform the woman about the plight of the Tigrayans.

Conclusions. When I arrived at Millennium Park this morning, the skies were overcast and a chill ran through the air. When I left Federal Plaza shortly after 2 PM, the skies were bright blue. The morning photography outing had been a bust, but I found beauty marching down the streets later in the day. I spoke with a number of demonstrators, giving one of the leaders my contact information so that he could inform me of future demonstrations and rallies. Overall, a great day for them and for me.

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