I was there . . .
Anita Cameron
Chicago, 1992
Anita Cameron reads her narrative.
Ah, Chicago! I remember that action well. Chicago is my hometown, and it was the
first time in four years that I had been back since moving to Colorado.
On Sunday, a Mother’s Day action was planned, but ADAPT learned that Louis
Sullivan, Secretary of Health and Human Services, was in town. We certainly
weren’t going to snub the gift that the ADAPT gods had placed before us!
Sullivan was in Chicago to give the commencement address to two graduating
classes at the University of Illinois at Chicago Circle – which happens to be my
alma mater! I was excited to be one of the 30 or so ADAPTers who made it into
the UIC Pavilion. We went in undercover, which for us, meant not showing our
ADAPT T-shirts. The rest of us were outside leafleting the folks who were going
in for the ceremonies.
Once inside, we unfurled our huge banner that read “State Schools/Nursing Homes:
Hell No We Won’t Go”. That banner hung across the stage for a while – maybe
twenty-minutes or more that I can remember. Of course, the majority of us got
kicked out immediately, but a few – Bob Kafka, myself, and a couple of others
managed to stay inside. When Sullivan began speaking, we began chanting and
disrupting his speech. I remember Bob Kafka and me scooting on our butts down
the steps to try to get onto the stage, but we were picked up and booted out.
Later, when it came time for Sullivan to leave, it got tense because we were
getting around the barricades that the police had set up. Every time the cops
thought they had security set up, there were ADAPTers popping up around and
behind their barricades. I thought Spitfire was a goner when she dove under one
of those barricades and between an officer’s legs; that cop was SO mad!
Eventually, Sullivan had no choice but to dash through a courtyard to his
limousine. It had to have been the longest dash of his life!
The next day, we visited the regional office of HHS. Our procession was over two
blocks long; it was amazing to see! Once we got there, we were met with the
ubiquitous, infamous police barricades. The office part of the building was shut
down, but the mall part was open. Since we couldn’t get into the office area of
the building, we didn’t allow anyone else to get in either! Finally, about 20
ADAPTers got into the office area of the building and demanded a meeting with
the Regional Director of Health and Human Services. Meanwhile, it was getting
tense outside at the barricades, and we took a couple of street intersections.
At last, the Regional Director met with ADAPT right in the street, and heard
from many of us why attendant services is so important, and why we didn’t want
to be in nursing homes. After much go-around, she agreed to call Louis Sullivan
to set up a meeting, but of course, he refused, as he doesn’t meet with
“militants and radicals.” We then took over the entire area for the rest of the
day, declaring it a nursing home; no one could come or go without ADAPT’s
permission.
Tuesday, we headed over to the American Medical Association’s national
headquarters. We marched down State Street, chanting loud and proud. I noticed
people in the small apartments along the way leaning off their balconies,
chanting with us. ADAPT hit the AMA because they wouldn’t do anything concrete
to support ending the institutional bias in long-term care. When we got there,
the building was closed (hmmm, I wonder why?), so ADAPT surrounded the building
and declared it a nursing home.
As I was helping a new guy to block the intersection, an officer came over to
stop us. The young man was spastic, and accidentally kicked the cop, who decided
that since I could walk (at that time, I wasn’t using a wheelchair) and talk,
that I would be arrested, instead. There were four of us busted: Rona Schnall,
Arthur Campbell, Mike Auberger, and me. We were taken to jail, where we spent
most of the day.
Wednesday, ADAPT went over to the State of Illinois Building. Illinois folks
were facing a crisis in community-based services, which, due to budget issues,
were being cut and capped. One of our demands was to meet with Gov. Edgar to
urge him to expand, rather than cut services. We held a press conference
outside, where local folks told their stories. We then went inside to get to the
Governors office, but Security hindered us, so we took over the first floor
elevators, escalators, and entrances, effectively shutting down the building.
Eventually, about 20 ADAPTers made it up to the Governor’s office, some climbing
16 flights of stairs! Though Gov. Edgar was out of town, he definitely learned
about what happened, and felt the power of ADAPT!