Melinda G.
@melindag.bsky.social
I write, read, enjoy good beer, spend time with my humans & cat, and try to hold pockets of hope where I find it.
Defend marginalized people. Trust science. Mask up.
Defend marginalized people. Trust science. Mask up.
Reposted by Melinda G.
My bus driver just called out the people watching videos on speaker and I think we should make him mayor
November 18, 2025 at 2:32 PM
My bus driver just called out the people watching videos on speaker and I think we should make him mayor
Reposted by Melinda G.
615 of the estimated 3,000+ detained immigrants who were kidnapped in Chicagoland during Midway Blitz are expected to be eligible for bond this week. The Midwest Immigration Bond Fund shows up for people in detention who need bond, but it costs, at minimum, $1,500 per person. Pls help them.
A Midwest Bond Fund Is Helping Detained Chicago Immigrants Return To Their Families
The Midwest Immigration Bond Fund launched in 2020 to provide bond assistance to people navigating the complex immigration legal system. That mission has become more difficult under the second Trump a...
blockclubchicago.org
November 17, 2025 at 10:08 PM
615 of the estimated 3,000+ detained immigrants who were kidnapped in Chicagoland during Midway Blitz are expected to be eligible for bond this week. The Midwest Immigration Bond Fund shows up for people in detention who need bond, but it costs, at minimum, $1,500 per person. Pls help them.
Reposted by Melinda G.
Here in Broadview, outside Chicago, a large group of faith leaders & protesters have gathered this morning outside of ICE’s detention center.
This looks like one of the largest protests on Beach St. in weeks, where the city of Broadview is still enforcing a small “free speech” zone. It’s packed.
This looks like one of the largest protests on Beach St. in weeks, where the city of Broadview is still enforcing a small “free speech” zone. It’s packed.
November 14, 2025 at 3:11 PM
Here in Broadview, outside Chicago, a large group of faith leaders & protesters have gathered this morning outside of ICE’s detention center.
This looks like one of the largest protests on Beach St. in weeks, where the city of Broadview is still enforcing a small “free speech” zone. It’s packed.
This looks like one of the largest protests on Beach St. in weeks, where the city of Broadview is still enforcing a small “free speech” zone. It’s packed.
Reposted by Melinda G.
I will also add:
I can do this for evictions in Illinois too, if SNAP benefits being cut off or the government shutdown means you can't make rent.
I can do this for evictions in Illinois too, if SNAP benefits being cut off or the government shutdown means you can't make rent.
If you're arrested in Illinois for the means by which you acquire food for your family because of the government shutdown or loss of SNAP benefits, I can represent you pro bono. Email me at sheryl@weikallaw.com. As always, I will take as many cases as I can.
November 9, 2025 at 4:54 PM
I will also add:
I can do this for evictions in Illinois too, if SNAP benefits being cut off or the government shutdown means you can't make rent.
I can do this for evictions in Illinois too, if SNAP benefits being cut off or the government shutdown means you can't make rent.
Reposted by Melinda G.
Easily several hundred people have packed into this plaza in Chicago's North Center tonight in response to ICE abducting a daycare worker early this morning.
This is a neighborhood that has largely been spared until now from the "Midway Blitz" terror campaign. But everyone knows someone affected.
This is a neighborhood that has largely been spared until now from the "Midway Blitz" terror campaign. But everyone knows someone affected.
November 6, 2025 at 12:48 AM
Easily several hundred people have packed into this plaza in Chicago's North Center tonight in response to ICE abducting a daycare worker early this morning.
This is a neighborhood that has largely been spared until now from the "Midway Blitz" terror campaign. But everyone knows someone affected.
This is a neighborhood that has largely been spared until now from the "Midway Blitz" terror campaign. But everyone knows someone affected.
ARE YOU FUCKING WATCHING?
They abducted a daycare teacher today, amid screaming and terrified children.
What the fuck is happening and how are people still unaware of the consistency with which this is being replicated across Chicagoland (and other places)?
They abducted a daycare teacher today, amid screaming and terrified children.
What the fuck is happening and how are people still unaware of the consistency with which this is being replicated across Chicagoland (and other places)?
The video now rapidly circulating (which also does not have a date or time marked) does not blur this poor woman's face. Here's one that does:
wgntv.com/news/chicago...
wgntv.com/news/chicago...
November 5, 2025 at 3:58 PM
ARE YOU FUCKING WATCHING?
They abducted a daycare teacher today, amid screaming and terrified children.
What the fuck is happening and how are people still unaware of the consistency with which this is being replicated across Chicagoland (and other places)?
They abducted a daycare teacher today, amid screaming and terrified children.
What the fuck is happening and how are people still unaware of the consistency with which this is being replicated across Chicagoland (and other places)?
Reposted by Melinda G.
Mamdani: "New York will remain a city of immigrants, a city built by immigrants, powered by immigrants, and as of tonight, led by an immigrant."
SAY. THAT. SHIT!
SAY. THAT. SHIT!
November 5, 2025 at 5:59 AM
Mamdani: "New York will remain a city of immigrants, a city built by immigrants, powered by immigrants, and as of tonight, led by an immigrant."
SAY. THAT. SHIT!
SAY. THAT. SHIT!
Reposted by Melinda G.
Sure you laugh now but how many people can say they lost two NYC mayoral elections in the same year?
November 5, 2025 at 2:14 AM
Sure you laugh now but how many people can say they lost two NYC mayoral elections in the same year?
Reposted by Melinda G.
ATTN: if you’re on the sandwich guy jury, my Signal is in my bio. I’d love to talk after the trial. I’ll keep you anonymous. Please share widely.
November 4, 2025 at 4:43 PM
ATTN: if you’re on the sandwich guy jury, my Signal is in my bio. I’d love to talk after the trial. I’ll keep you anonymous. Please share widely.
Reposted by Melinda G.
Northside Chicago peeps, the ICE/CBP convoy has been spotted around the Lincoln Park Costco.
Please patrol your neighborhood and alert laborers at worksites, and landscapers who are removing leaves. The ones I've talked to were not aware of the situation
Please patrol your neighborhood and alert laborers at worksites, and landscapers who are removing leaves. The ones I've talked to were not aware of the situation
November 4, 2025 at 5:51 PM
Northside Chicago peeps, the ICE/CBP convoy has been spotted around the Lincoln Park Costco.
Please patrol your neighborhood and alert laborers at worksites, and landscapers who are removing leaves. The ones I've talked to were not aware of the situation
Please patrol your neighborhood and alert laborers at worksites, and landscapers who are removing leaves. The ones I've talked to were not aware of the situation
Reposted by Melinda G.
I am so upset.
Last week Time Magazine solicited a piece from me on Zohran Mamdani & anti-Muslim hate. I pitched a framing re the dehumanization of Muslims & how Mamdani’s inclusive, socialist campaign in its content resists that. They agreed. I wrote the piece. 1/
Last week Time Magazine solicited a piece from me on Zohran Mamdani & anti-Muslim hate. I pitched a framing re the dehumanization of Muslims & how Mamdani’s inclusive, socialist campaign in its content resists that. They agreed. I wrote the piece. 1/
To be asked to write about racism only to be racially aggressed in the editing process is a new level unlocked I have to say.
November 3, 2025 at 9:35 PM
I am so upset.
Last week Time Magazine solicited a piece from me on Zohran Mamdani & anti-Muslim hate. I pitched a framing re the dehumanization of Muslims & how Mamdani’s inclusive, socialist campaign in its content resists that. They agreed. I wrote the piece. 1/
Last week Time Magazine solicited a piece from me on Zohran Mamdani & anti-Muslim hate. I pitched a framing re the dehumanization of Muslims & how Mamdani’s inclusive, socialist campaign in its content resists that. They agreed. I wrote the piece. 1/
Reposted by Melinda G.
Shouting this thread from the rooftops. There are so many white Chicagoans whose impressions of the neighborhoods that house the geographic and demographic majority of the city are just an accumulation of assumptions and other people's stories. That has consequences.
Most ppl know that Chicago (home of modern urban segregation) is a very segregated place but I don't think most outside Chicago (+many Chicagoans!) understand how the *distances* involved and *depth* of segregation mean most white ppl have ZERO visibility into many Black and Latine neighborhoods
+
+
October 25, 2025 at 2:53 PM
Shouting this thread from the rooftops. There are so many white Chicagoans whose impressions of the neighborhoods that house the geographic and demographic majority of the city are just an accumulation of assumptions and other people's stories. That has consequences.
Reposted by Melinda G.
IDK what that means going fwd but it is a Very Big Deal that people with a lot of wealth and political power suddenly feel a personal stake in this issue
It's VERY important that it translates into *solidarity* rather than the usual crime/policing "keep this unpleasantness contained to Over There"/
It's VERY important that it translates into *solidarity* rather than the usual crime/policing "keep this unpleasantness contained to Over There"/
October 25, 2025 at 2:23 PM
IDK what that means going fwd but it is a Very Big Deal that people with a lot of wealth and political power suddenly feel a personal stake in this issue
It's VERY important that it translates into *solidarity* rather than the usual crime/policing "keep this unpleasantness contained to Over There"/
It's VERY important that it translates into *solidarity* rather than the usual crime/policing "keep this unpleasantness contained to Over There"/
Reposted by Melinda G.
I have already heard/seen a huge difference. Ppl usually proud of being neutral/apolitical saying THIS is new and bad and different
It's not and they're wrong but what IS different (and possibly very good) is their awareness and engagement and willingness to be publicly identified with opposition
+
It's not and they're wrong but what IS different (and possibly very good) is their awareness and engagement and willingness to be publicly identified with opposition
+
October 25, 2025 at 2:19 PM
I have already heard/seen a huge difference. Ppl usually proud of being neutral/apolitical saying THIS is new and bad and different
It's not and they're wrong but what IS different (and possibly very good) is their awareness and engagement and willingness to be publicly identified with opposition
+
It's not and they're wrong but what IS different (and possibly very good) is their awareness and engagement and willingness to be publicly identified with opposition
+
Reposted by Melinda G.
For most white people, the ICE surge existed only on social media - IF that
Not in their social networks, not within miles of many
It's different now. Lincoln Park is densely-populated and a many (most?) white people in Chicago know someone who lives near where fed agents gassed the neighborhood +
Not in their social networks, not within miles of many
It's different now. Lincoln Park is densely-populated and a many (most?) white people in Chicago know someone who lives near where fed agents gassed the neighborhood +
October 25, 2025 at 2:17 PM
For most white people, the ICE surge existed only on social media - IF that
Not in their social networks, not within miles of many
It's different now. Lincoln Park is densely-populated and a many (most?) white people in Chicago know someone who lives near where fed agents gassed the neighborhood +
Not in their social networks, not within miles of many
It's different now. Lincoln Park is densely-populated and a many (most?) white people in Chicago know someone who lives near where fed agents gassed the neighborhood +
Reposted by Melinda G.
No, kidnappings have also not stopped at NYC's immigration court or in L.A. & D.C.
Corporate media apparatus will continue treating this all as disparate events rather than a national emergency
Children will go to bed without their parents tonight. Let's keep talking about that stupid video.
Corporate media apparatus will continue treating this all as disparate events rather than a national emergency
Children will go to bed without their parents tonight. Let's keep talking about that stupid video.
October 20, 2025 at 5:53 PM
No, kidnappings have also not stopped at NYC's immigration court or in L.A. & D.C.
Corporate media apparatus will continue treating this all as disparate events rather than a national emergency
Children will go to bed without their parents tonight. Let's keep talking about that stupid video.
Corporate media apparatus will continue treating this all as disparate events rather than a national emergency
Children will go to bed without their parents tonight. Let's keep talking about that stupid video.
Reposted by Melinda G.
Waking up every morning and checking the kidnapping report alongside the weather is not a thing anyone should have to do.
October 20, 2025 at 2:48 PM
Waking up every morning and checking the kidnapping report alongside the weather is not a thing anyone should have to do.
Reposted by Melinda G.
every adult should know how to craft something. i use that loosely: cook a meal, do a bit of DIY, sew a button, grow a plant.
if there is nothing in this world that you can make yourself... why. what are you doing
if there is nothing in this world that you can make yourself... why. what are you doing
Do you have any extremely niche, but serious, ethical stances?
October 17, 2025 at 1:15 PM
every adult should know how to craft something. i use that loosely: cook a meal, do a bit of DIY, sew a button, grow a plant.
if there is nothing in this world that you can make yourself... why. what are you doing
if there is nothing in this world that you can make yourself... why. what are you doing
I was hoping someone was finding a way to track this. The treatment is inhumane no matter who they’re grabbing.
But I’m so sick of people pretending that citizens aren’t getting snatched up in this, too.
But I’m so sick of people pretending that citizens aren’t getting snatched up in this, too.
NEW: The government does not track how often immigration agents grab citizens. So ProPublica did.
We found more than 170 such incidents since the start of the second Trump administration. Our tally — almost certainly incomplete — includes nearly 20 children, two of whom have cancer.
We found more than 170 such incidents since the start of the second Trump administration. Our tally — almost certainly incomplete — includes nearly 20 children, two of whom have cancer.
More Than 170 U.S. Citizens Have Been Held by Immigration Agents. They’ve Been Kicked, Dragged and Detained for Days.
The government does not track how often immigration agents grab citizens. So ProPublica did. Our tally — almost certainly incomplete — includes people who were held for days without a lawyer. And near...
www.propublica.org
October 16, 2025 at 6:31 PM
I was hoping someone was finding a way to track this. The treatment is inhumane no matter who they’re grabbing.
But I’m so sick of people pretending that citizens aren’t getting snatched up in this, too.
But I’m so sick of people pretending that citizens aren’t getting snatched up in this, too.
Reposted by Melinda G.
@nlgchicago.bsky.social is trying to raise $10k to fund ongoing legal support for protesters. They've had to cover long shifts at Broadview, and their volunteers have been repeatedly assaulted by police in the process. More info with ways to donate here: instagram.com/p/DP36ITJja-W/
October 16, 2025 at 2:35 PM
@nlgchicago.bsky.social is trying to raise $10k to fund ongoing legal support for protesters. They've had to cover long shifts at Broadview, and their volunteers have been repeatedly assaulted by police in the process. More info with ways to donate here: instagram.com/p/DP36ITJja-W/
Reposted by Melinda G.
School safety patrols are forming all over Chicago. I helped organize a training last night in one of the last neighborhoods you might expect. People are furious, and they’re done feeling helpless.
I gave up my lunch hour today to stand on a street corner in my neighborhood as school was letting out to try and make sure the government didn't fuck with the kids or their families as they walked home, so that is where things are at right now in this country.
October 15, 2025 at 12:25 PM
School safety patrols are forming all over Chicago. I helped organize a training last night in one of the last neighborhoods you might expect. People are furious, and they’re done feeling helpless.
Reposted by Melinda G.
They shot a reverend in the head with pepper balls for calling on them to redeem themselves. "I have not seen them cross the line yet" means the line doesn't fucking exist.
October 14, 2025 at 4:13 PM
They shot a reverend in the head with pepper balls for calling on them to redeem themselves. "I have not seen them cross the line yet" means the line doesn't fucking exist.
Reposted by Melinda G.
It now appears the federal agents have left the intersection, after deploying more gas into the crowd. Still working to sort more details.
Feels almost trite at this point to bring up the federal court's restraining order, which included language meant to rein in agents' use of chemical weapons.
Feels almost trite at this point to bring up the federal court's restraining order, which included language meant to rein in agents' use of chemical weapons.
A confrontation between community members and militarized federal agents appears to be unfolding on Chicago's southeast side, near the intersection of E. 105th St and S. Ave. N.
Details still emerging. From what I've seen federal agents have deployed at least one can of some kind of gas.
Details still emerging. From what I've seen federal agents have deployed at least one can of some kind of gas.
October 14, 2025 at 5:47 PM
It now appears the federal agents have left the intersection, after deploying more gas into the crowd. Still working to sort more details.
Feels almost trite at this point to bring up the federal court's restraining order, which included language meant to rein in agents' use of chemical weapons.
Feels almost trite at this point to bring up the federal court's restraining order, which included language meant to rein in agents' use of chemical weapons.
Reposted by Melinda G.
Developing: per photographer Matthew Kaplan and others on scene, neighbors are currently facing dozens of Border Patrol agents on the east side. Feds have been all over the area, some kidnappings confirmed. Saw one gas canister deployed on FB live earlier.
October 14, 2025 at 5:14 PM
Developing: per photographer Matthew Kaplan and others on scene, neighbors are currently facing dozens of Border Patrol agents on the east side. Feds have been all over the area, some kidnappings confirmed. Saw one gas canister deployed on FB live earlier.
Reposted by Melinda G.
That fire comes from love, but sometimes, we need a moment to self-regulate, so we don't lose ourselves in it. If this moment is stretching you out or burning you up, please take care of yourself. Fortify yourself, honor your needs, and maintain your relationships. There's a lot more of this ahead.
October 12, 2025 at 9:49 PM
That fire comes from love, but sometimes, we need a moment to self-regulate, so we don't lose ourselves in it. If this moment is stretching you out or burning you up, please take care of yourself. Fortify yourself, honor your needs, and maintain your relationships. There's a lot more of this ahead.