The first Chicago Dyke March took place in Lakeview in 1996, and from the
very beginning, its intentions were radical. That first march, its
organizers said, was conceived as an alternative to the “corporate, white
male dominated Chicago Pride Parade.” To this day, it has no corporate
sponsorships and doesn’t allow police officers or politicians to
participate. Its original intention was also to increase dyke visibility,
which in recent years has expanded to include queer, bisexual, and
transgender folks.



Stephanie Skora, a self-described “genderqueer trans woman” and
“anti-racist, anti-Zionist white Jew,” echoes this sentiment. “Dyke March
has always been safe for Jewish people,” she says. “There’s never been an
issue with anybody being visibly Jewish at Dyke March.” Skora attended the
march last year, and was one of the participants who engaged in dialogue
with the three women who were asked to leave. She is also a member of
Jewish Voice for Peace (JVP), a national organization that supports the end
of the Israeli occupation of the West Bank, Gaza, and East Jerusalem. JVP
issued a statement in support of Dyke March last year.



When asked last week for a statement on the march, Ronit Bezalel,
communications director of A Wider Bridge, responded in part, “We believe
that full equality and inclusion of LGBTQ people is only possible if
everyone is at the table. A Wider Bridge works with our allies in the
progressive community to ensure that no one is asked to hide part of their
identity, whether Palestinian, pro-Israel or other identities.”



“We are marching in La Villita, Little Village, again this year, to
highlight and align ourselves with the struggles of brown and black and
indigenous people here in the U.S. and in Chicago: undocumented folks,
folks who deal with surveillance, incarceration, overpolicing,” Youssef
said. “And really think about what that looks like here, what that looks
like in Palestine, even though it’s unfortunately all too similar. I really
hope [our] community is there to celebrate and to show our resilience and
strength.”