Chicago is now squarely in the sights of President Trump and his authoritarian administration.

Despite continued resistance from state and local officials, Trump on Monday reiterated threats to send in National Guard troops to the city, citing unfounded claims about rising crime and mayhem, and referring to Chicago as “a disaster” and “a killing field,” according to news reports.

Trump’s comments this week come on the heels of earlier threats to elevate police action in the nation’s third-largest city, and follow similar action taken in Washington, D.C., where the National Guard was deployed on Aug. 12. These moves are clear signs of the rising authoritarianism agenda from the White House.

In response to Trump’s threats, an Illinois coalition of leading advocacy organizations issued a statement, citing the recent sharp decline in crime in the city. “He’s doubling down on a racist gambit to create chaos in cities to distract them from his tanking poll numbers and disastrous policy agenda,” the statement said.

But statements alone won’t prevent Trump from turning his threats into reality. It’ll take all of us—not just on single days of mass action, but through sustained organizing in our communities.

If you haven’t already, please join One Million Rising, the national effort launched earlier this summer to train one million people in the strategic logic and practice of non-cooperation, as well as the basics of community organizing and campaign design.

Take action before it’s too late! If you were unable to attend the three sessions, you can still watch the recordings of the training here.

Date: Wednesday, September 3, 2025
Time: 7:00 to 9:00 pm, CDT
Location: Oakwood 83, 1959 W Montrose (near Damen)
Register➜

To counter the authoritarian onslaught, we need a grassroots resistance of strategic non-cooperation that can be practiced at your grocery store, your ‘L’ stop, your gym—anywhere you are part of a community. Let's brainstorm and find effective ways to help undermine Trump's pillars of support.
 
This event piggybacks on Indivisible's "One Million Rising" initiative. If you missed the three Zoominar explainers, you can view them here:

• Session #1

• Session #2

• Session #3

We’ll have presenters to give us some background; we’ll break out into small groups to come up with non-cooperation ideas; and finally re-convene to report back. We’ll also have free yard signs and buttons.
 
New members especially welcomed—bring your friends!
 
Please RSVP here so we know how many to expect.

Across the country, authoritarian forces are getting bolder and more dangerous. Trump and his allies are not hiding their agenda: mass deportations, rollbacks of civil rights, weaponized courts, and full-scale attacks on our democracy. We don’t have to wait until it’s too late. We can stop this. But it’ll take all of us—not just on single days of mass action, but through sustained organizing in our communities.

This summer, national Indivisible launched One Million Rising—a national effort to train one million people in the strategic logic and practice of non-cooperation, as well as the basics of community organizing and campaign design.

If you were unable to attend the three sessions, you can still watch the recordings of the training here.

Or to watch individual session records:

Chicago joined a national effort to protest unlawful redistricting plans in Texas proposed by Gov. Greg Abbott and the Trump administration during an event in Millennium Park on Aug. 16. 

In addition to supporters from around the city and suburbs, Democratic representatives from the Texas House of Representative were in attendance. The state representatives, who left Texas two weeks ago to deny their state legislature a quorum to vote on the proposed maps, have been welcomed in Illinois by Gov. J.B. Pritzker.

“Texas House Democrats are demonstrating what it means to fight for the preservation of our constitutional republic,” said Pritzker at an earlier press conference welcoming the politicians. He has characterized the redistricting plan as “cheating” at the request of President Trump.

Gerrymandering—the practice of manipulating electoral boundaries to favor one party—is an issue of broad national concern.

The Chicago event was organized by Indivisible Chicago. Stay tuned for more local events to support individual states facing these actions as they unfold.

Date: Saturday, August 16, 2025
Time: 11:00 am
Location: Millennium Park, 201 E. Randolph St. (Michigan and Randolph)
Register

This Saturday, August 16th is the national day of action in response to the plans of Texas and other states to steal the 2026 election through new gerrymandering.

As Illinois hosts members of the Texas delegation, we need our voices to be loud and clear to defend democracy, denounce Donald Trump's power grab, and push our leaders to fight back with every tool we have. We also need to keep supporting the legislators that have been showcasing this takeover and leading the resistance.

A large delegation of Texas lawmakers will be attending in person.

Let's get a big turnout to welcome these legislators from Texas! .

A core principle behind this action is a commitment to nonviolent action. We expect all participants to seek to de-escalate any potential confrontation with those who disagree with our values. .

 You can find rallies outside of Chicago here.

From Blue State Defiance/Indivisible (national):  

Republicans want to rig Congress and give themselves permanent power. They’re getting ready to redraw congressional maps, again, to lock in control of the House, and they’re not being subtle about it. Texas Republicans (like Greg Abbott) are threatening to gerrymander their way to a permanent majority, and Donald Trump is publicly calling on them to do it. 

If Republicans gut fair maps, blue states can’t just sit back -- it's time to fight fire with fire. Even before taking legislative action, governors and legislators need to make it clear that if Republicans redraw maps to rig the system, blue states will respond.

To be clear, we’re not calling for Democrats to gerrymander first. We’re saying: don’t stand idle if it happens; and be prepared to act. 

Contact your elected officials! Go to Blue State Defiance to find a suggested script and links to your representatives. 

While you are at it, take a moment to thank our Illinois governor, JB Pritzker for standing with the Texas Democrats who've come to Illinois to fight the GOP's threat to rig Texas maps.  You can find contact information at Blue State Defiance.

When three Wisconsin Indivisible groups heard their GOP representative, Tom Tiffany, was using sprinklers to disperse peaceful protestors outside his office, they knew they had to respond creatively. Just like that, the Tom Tiffany Beach Bash was born!

At their next protest outside Tiffany’s office, dozens of Indivisibles showed up in street clothes like normal -- until the sprinklers came back on. Rather than run from the petty waterworks, the Indivisibles stripped down to their bathing suits, broke out their floaties, and kept on protesting! 

Video of protest from UpNorthNews

From the Chicago Alliance Against Racist and Political Repression

For at least the past two months, the Broadview ICE Staging Facility has been used as a de facto immigration detention center. The Broadview ICE Staging Facility is meant to hold detained immigrants for up to twelve hours. In the past two months, there have been reported and confirmed cases of detainees held in the facility for far longer, some for more than a week. 

The facility was not designed to house detainees for even a night; it does not have beds or showers. ICE detention standards require three hot meals a day to be provided to detainees; at Broadview, detainees report receiving one meal.

Urge States Attorney Eileen Burke and Attorney General Kwame Raoul to close the Broadview Ice Facility.  Use the CAARPR Immigrant Working Rights Committee’s easy online form. 

From Indivisible Illinois

Rockin' Zoom Phone Bank to Protect Medicaid

Date: Sundays
Time: 4:00-5:30 pm (Central)
Location: Virtual, call from anywhere
Register➜

Help Protect Medicaid! Every Sunday, Indivisible Illinois hosts a phone bank on Zoom from 4-5:30 pm to call into the IL-12, IL-15 and IL-16 to let the voters know that their Member of Congress voted to cut Medicaid, and what that means for them and their communities.

From Indivisible national

Gaza is on the brink of a catastrophic man-made famine. Starvation is already widespread; one in three people are going days at a time without food, and children are dying daily of hunger-related causes.

After imposing a full blockade for months, Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu is now letting in only a fraction of the aid needed, and the current distribution sites are functioning as nightmarish death traps. Over 1,000 Palestinians trying to feed themselves and their families have been killed by Israeli forces (and possibly US contractors) since May.

The images are so heartbreaking, the situation so dire, that we are beginning to see calls for action from across the ideological spectrum. Even Trump has publicly broken with Netanyahu over the images on his TV.

 But words mean little. Our elected leaders from both parties need to demand that Trump use US leverage to address this manufactured humanitarian crisis immediately.

Use this Indivisible form to contact your Senator.

Court Watch is a volunteer program founded in 2007 to observe and bear witness at detained immigrants’ hearings in Chicago. While Illinois passed legislation that banned immigrant detention within our state beginning in 2022, deportation cases are still processed in the Chicago Immigration Court nearly every weekday for immigrants - including Illinois residents - who are jailed in Wisconsin, Indiana, Kentucky, and other states.

Court Watch volunteers attend as many of these hearings as possible (most hearings are currently conducted online via Webex). We partner with legal organizations and pro bono attorneys, highlighting problems we observe and cases where unrepresented detainees are in need of legal help. 

If you're interested, simply send an email as instructed at https://www.icirr.org/fsn. You’ll hear back from Jack Lloyd, who runs the program, setting up a Zoom information session. If you’re still interested, you will sign up to be a trainee court watcher during a session that Jack is also watching. As you’re watching, you’ll chat with Jack with any questions. You can do this more than once if you feel you need more training.

From the Chicago Alliance Against Racist and Political Repression

For at least the past two months, the Broadview ICE Staging Facility has been used as a de facto immigration detention center. The Broadview ICE Staging Facility is meant to hold detained immigrants for up to twelve hours. In the past two months, there have been reported and confirmed cases of detainees held in the facility for far longer, some for more than a week. 

The facility was not designed to house detainees for even a night; it does not have beds or showers. ICE detention standards require three hot meals a day to be provided to detainees; at Broadview, detainees report receiving one meal.

Urge States Attorney Eileen Burke and Attorney General Kwame Raoul to close the Broadview Ice Facility.  Use the CAARPR Immigrant Working Rights Committee’s easy online form. 

From national Indivisible

Date: Wednesdays, July 30 and August 13, 2025
Time: 8:00 - 9:30 pm (Eastern time)
Location: Virtual, join from anywhere
Register➜

Across the country, authoritarian forces are getting bolder and more dangerous. Trump and his allies are not hiding their agenda: mass deportations, rollbacks of civil rights, weaponized courts, and full-scale attacks on our democracy. We don’t have to wait until it’s too late. We can stop this. But it’ll take all of us—not just on single days of mass action, but through sustained organizing in our communities.

That’s why this summer, national Indivisible is launching One Million Rising—a national effort to train one million people in the strategic logic and practice of non-cooperation, as well as the basics of community organizing and campaign design. This is how we build people power that can’t be ignored. You’re invited to join in—and lead. Sign up to get trained.

Session 1 (last week): The Moment & Your Mission - held last week: Get oriented to making meaning of this moment and the role you can play in coordinated strategic action. MISSED IT? Watch here. (Note: The recording begins a little after the actual session began.)
Session 2: How to Make it Happen - Wednesday, July 30: This train-the-trainer session is how we get to one million. Learn not just our strategy, but how you can train others and get them on board. You'll host your first community resistance gathering after this session.
Session 3: What Now? - Wednesday, August 13 You'll be onboarded to basic campaign design and learn how to implement it locally as well as get plugged into our next national campaign work. Your second community resistance gathering will move this action forward.
Each session runs from 7:00-8:30 pm, CT.

Seven Illinois US Representatives co-sponsored a bill that would ban immigration agents from wearing masks. It also imposes standards for Department of Homeland Security agents to identify themselves and wear visible uniforms or insignias identifying themselves as members of the department.

The proposal, known as the No Secret Police Act of 2025, would amend the Homeland Security Act of 2002, the law that outlines the Department of Homeland Security’s functions and authorities.

 Is your US Representative on this list?

·        Jesus “Chuy” Garcia

·        Delia Ramirez

·        Jonathan Jackson

·        Danny Davis

·        Sean Casten

·        Raja Krishnamoorthi

·        Janice Schakowsky

If not, give your rep a call/email and urge them to sponsor this bill.  Find your rep here.

Take a moment to feel sad and angry.

Then, pull yourself together and get ready to fight back. You are not alone!

• Find like-minded friends and neighbors at the next Indivisible Lincoln Square Meet and Greet.  Join us on Tuesday, July 22, 2025 from 7:00-9:00 pm at the Oakwood Bar & Grill, 1959 W Montrose.  RSVP here.

• Find more like-minded friends at the family friendly Chalk the Walk: Independence park on Saturday, July 15, 2025 from 9:30-11:30 am. 

• Write postcards by yourself if you are an introvert or with friends if you are an extrovert.  Email pat@indivisiblechicago.com for details.  While the postcards are FREE, you will be responsible for postage and mailing the cards on the appropriate date. 

• Plan to attend the next mass mobilization on July 17 withGood Trouble Lives On. Good Trouble Lives On is a national day of nonviolent action to respond to the attacks posed on our civil and human rights by the Trump administration and to remind them that in America, the power lies with the people. On July 17, the anniversary of Congressman John Lewis’s passing, we’re taking action across the country to defend our democracy and carry forward his legacy of Good Trouble.

• Get your creative juices flowing for the protest sign-making party on Tuesday, July 15, just in time for the Good Trouble Lives On protest.  Email us at ilsmembers24@gmail if interested. If there is enough interest, more parties will be organized. 

Throughout the lead-up to No Kings Day, you’ve heard reference to 3.5% rule -- the observation by social scientists that few authoritarian governments have withstood 3.5% of their population mobilizing against them.  The 3.5% is a historically important target -- but not a magic number. 

Erica Chenoweth -- the scholar who developed the rule -- agrees, and in fact has written: “Other factors -- momentum, organization, strategic leadership, and sustainability -- are likely as important as large-scale participation.”

Pod Save America interviewed Professor Chenoweth about her findings on their June 15, 2025 podcast.  This in-depth interview starts at minute 4:50.