Good Trouble protest draws 200 to Longfellow Park 

Approximately 200 members of the Oak Park community gathered Thursday evening to participate in the Good Trouble protests, a nationwide movement to commemorate the five-year anniversary of the death of John Lewis a leader of the Civil Rights Movement and to protest the Trump administration. These protests took place from 5 p.m. to 7 p.m. at Longfellow Park. 

Attendees lined both sides of Ridgeland Avenue, protesting as many cars drove by honking their horns in support.  

According to the Good Trouble Lives On website, the day of protests was “a National Day of Action to respond to the attacks on our civil and human rights by the Trump administration.” 

The demonstration was organized by Congregations Networking for Social Justice, an Oak Park faith-based activism group. The group also organized the Hands Off! and the No Kings protests in Oak Park.  

Cynthia Breunlin, the lead organizer, said the goal was to “get recognition for how much the people object to the policies. We are outraged, it’s not political red or blue, we are outraged.” 

Breunlin said that 130 people registered but estimated that closer to 200 people were in attendance.  

“If we don’t do something … this country will become an autocracy, and we will lose the Democratic republic we’ve had for 200 years,” said Mark Podolner, a protester at the event.  

Across the nation, more than 1,500 communities participated in the Good Trouble protests, including demonstrations in Downtown Chicago and other suburbs.  

“We the people object, we care about due process, we care about the rule of law, and no person should be above the law,” said Breunlin.  

The demonstration started in the park at Jackson and Ridgeland with a performance from the Oak Park Raging Grannies, a group that puts a political spin on classic songs. After that, the group moved from the park to Ridgeland Avenue and started chanting.  

One of the protesters, Anya Bida said, “It’s up to us, each of us, we are the change we are looking for.” 

Several attendees called for the removal of President Donald Trump from office. “We want the government to start following the law …  like the Supreme Court to make them follow the law, like to change the Congress in [20]26 and start impeachment proceedings and remove Trump from office,” said a protester who asked to be anonymous.  

During the Civil Rights Movement, Lewis helped organize many marches and protests. He played a vital role in leading the 1965 march from Selma to Montgomery with Hosea Williams. The march, which was later referred to as Bloody Sunday, ended with police brutality incidents against peaceful protesters. According to the National Archives, on Bloody Sunday 58 people, including Lewis, were taken to the local Selma hospital after being attacked by Alabama state troopers. Lewis suffered a skull fracture during the incident.  

Later in his life, Lewis was elected to represent Georgia’s fifth congressional district. He served from 1986 until his death in 2020 from pancreatic cancer, a total of 17 terms. During Trump’s first term, Lewis was strong in the resistance movement.  

Breunlin hoped more lawmakers would take strength from that example. Breunlin said, “We’re waiting for Congress and our representatives to stand up and speak out as we are.” 

The term “Good Trouble” is a reference to a line famously repeated by Lewis. “Get in good trouble, necessary trouble, and help redeem the soul of America.” 

Jonah Clark is a reporter for The Trapeze, the Oak Park and River Forest High School newspaper, and a contributing reporter for Wednesday Journal.