Almost 500 people braved 20-degree weather to protest the Century Theatres in Evanston, Ill., a suburb just north of Chicago and home of Northwestern University.
The Nov. 22 protest condemned Cinemark CEO Alan Stock, who made a donation of $9,999 in support of Proposition 8, the measure that amended the California state constitution to define marriage as a union between a man and a woman, thus eviscerating the right of LGBT people to marry. Cinemark is the parent company of Century Theatres.
The reason behind the peculiar donation amount is simple: Anyone who donates $10,000 or more would get listed on the Proposition 8 top donors list. Stock did not want anyone to find out he made the donation.
The group formed one picket line on each side of the entrance and urged theater patrons to boycott the theater. Police were present at the request of the theater, so that people were not prevented from going into the theater.
Following two hours of militant protesting along with dropping temperatures, protesters marched half a mile to the main campus of Northwestern University, passing through the dormitory area.
Demonstrators were prevented from going any farther by the police, who threatened to arrest anyone who set foot on the campus. After a few tense moments, the marchers turned around and marched back to the theater. The two picket lines were reformed and protesters picketed for another hour.
The demonstration marked the third Saturday in a row that the Chicago LGBT community and their supporters have protested Proposition 8. The Gay Liberation Network and others organized the protest.
