Chicago Voting Rights Advocates to Honor John Lewis with Candlelight Vigil and Weekend of Action
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE July 16, 2026
Chicago Voting Rights Advocates to Honor John Lewis with Candlelight Vigil and Weekend of Action
Local partners join national "Good Trouble Lives On" Weekend of Action, organized nationally by the Transformative Justice Coalition, and call for passage of the John Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act
CHICAGO, IL - On Friday, July 17, Chicagoans will gather for a John Lewis Candlelight Vigil to honor the life, legacy and unfinished work of Congressman John Lewis and to launch a weekend of voter registration and voting rights events across the city.
Lewis reminded the nation, "Never let anyone - any person or any force - dampen, dim or diminish your light." From July 17-19, communities in Chicago and nationwide will answer that call as part of the national Good Trouble Lives On Weekend of Action, organized nationally by the Transformative Justice Coalition.
"Congressman Lewis carried the moral thunder of the movement into the halls of power, but he never let us forget that democracy lives or dies in the hands of ordinary people,” said Betty Magness, Political Director of Rainbow PUSH Coalition. “As the Rainbow PUSH Coalition, we are gathering to honor those who fought before us and to make clear that our generation will not accept silence, fear or surrender as the price of participation. Future generations will judge what we defended, and we intend to defend the right to vote.”
The Chicago vigil and weekend events come at a moment when voting rights are under renewed attack. Organizers point to the Supreme Court decision weakening the Voting Rights Act of 1965, voter purges across the country and recent federal raids/searches involving the Ohio Organizing Collaborative, an organization that supports voter registration work, as signs of a broader effort to intimidate voters and silence civic participation.
"The League of Women Voters of Chicago has spent more than a century registering voters, educating the public and defending access to the ballot because nonpartisan democracy work is essential civic infrastructure,” said Jane Ruby, president of LWV Chicago. “This weekend is a reminder that remembering John Lewis means acting on his legacy. We do not only inherit history; we make it, and the choices we make now will tell future generations what we were willing to accept and what we refused to normalize."
The vigil will be both a remembrance and a call to action. Participants will honor the generations who fought, organized, marched, bled and voted to make American democracy real, while making clear that this generation is now writing its own chapter.
"Good trouble is not a slogan to us. It is a responsibility,” said Kathy Tholin, Board Chair, Indivisible Chicago Alliance. “Across Chicago, people are organizing, registering voters and showing up because the right to vote is the hinge on which every other right turns. Congress must pass the John Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act and restore the protections millions of Americans deserve.”
The question before us is not only what history we remember, but what history we make now: what we will accept, what we will resist and what future generations will say we did when voting rights were on the line.
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About the Organizers
The Transformative Justice Coalition is the national organizer of the annual Good Trouble Lives On Weekend of Action, mobilizing communities to honor Congressman John Lewis and advance voting rights, civic participation and equal access to democracy.
The local partners for the vigil are: RainbowPUSH Coalition, Indivisible Chicago, League of Women Voters of Chicago, Chicago Women Take Action
Event Details
What
John Lewis Candlelight Vigil
When
Friday, July 17, 2026 | 6:30pm CST
Where
Eastside of Dusable Lake Shore Drive across from Clarence F. Buckingham Memorial Fountain
301 S Columbus Dr
Who
Rainbow PUSH Coalition, Indivisible Chicago, League of Women Voters of Chicago, Chicago Women Take Action, Transformative Justice Coalition
Weekend Events
Voter registration and voting-related events will continue July 18-19 across Chicago. See schedule: GTLO Voter Registration 7/18
Voter Assistance
To register to vote, check voter registration or get voting help, call 866-OUR-VOTE (866-687-8683).
Organizers are asking Chicagoans to attend the vigil, share the weekend schedule and encourage anyone who needs to register to vote or check their registration to call 866-OUR-VOTE (866-687-8683).
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