Chicago ‘Indivisibles’ host summit Sunday at Malcolm X College

The Indivisible Chicago group – part of a national “indivisible” movement spawned by Democrats in the wake of the election of President Donald Trump – is hosting a summit Sunday at Malcom X College.

Organizers said about 1,000 people will attend the Indivisible Chicago Summit at Malcolm X College, 1900 W. Jackson Ave.

The panels include a session on Millennials in Politics and another on turning out the vote. Even though the summit is taking place before the March 20 Illinois primary – and as early voting is already taking place, organizers are looking ahead to the November general election.

“Our goal is to flip the House,” said Lauren Tucker, the director marketing and community relations for the Chicago Indivisible group, a reference to the Republican controlled House of Representatives.

The Millennials in Politics include three aspiring elected officials:

• Bushra Amiwala, 20, is a DePaul University sophomore studying marketing. She’s a Cook County Commissioner hopeful running in the Democratic primary from the north suburban 13th district, where the incumbent is Commissioner Larry Suffredin.
• Ugo Okere, 22, a Loyola University senior majoring in political science and social work, has announced his candidacy for 40th ward alderman in next year’s election.
• Nicole Johnson, 28, lives in Englewood and is eying a run for the 20th ward. She currently works at Teamwork Englewood as a data and communications manager.

Another panel, “How You Can Make a Difference in the 2018 Midterms” includes representatives from a variety of groups aiming to turn out the vote: Adrienne Lever, Swing Left; Catherine Vaughn, Flippable; Angelica Magana, Voto Latino and Stevie Valles, Chicago Votes.

The original Indivisible groups were formed nationally after Trump’s election when three former congressional aides published an “Indivisible Guide” that spread online. The guide has served as a strategy framework for local activists looking to influence their members of Congress.

Tucker said Indivisible Chicago is not taking sides in any of the March 2o primary contests in Illinois.

“There’s a lot of things that upset us about the election, but at the end of the day, rallies are not enough. Summits are not enough,” Tucker said.

“We have to get out the vote.”