Perhaps Some Non-Chicago Judges Will Listen

The Executive Committee of the Friends of Meigs Field has been meeting every week since the 'Midnight Massacre at Meigs' on March 31. (Before that, they met every two weeks since the mid-1990s.)

They write, "We have been pursuing a variety of strategies at the federal, state and local levels. We have had considerable success in public opinion. A brand-new poll published Monday by the Chicago Tribune shows that a wide majority of every segment of the population disagrees with Mayor Daley's actions. 

How would you have answered?

The Chicago Tribune poll asked the question: Mayor Daley ordered the destruction of Meigs Field runways. He said this was to safeguard downtown Chicago from possible terrorist attack. Did you approve or disapprove of his action?

The results? Disapprove: 65%; Approve: 24%; No opinion: 12%. [The Trib didn't mention that Hizzoner Jr. also recanted that reasoning, after Secretary Ridge blew the bogus explanation out of the water --ed.]

Jon Hilkevitch, the Tribune's aviation writer, had a look at the demographics. Few liked what the mayor did; and fewer still believe there's a threat. He wrote Monday, "Disagreement with the mayor reached across party lines and transcended race, sex and income.

"Among Democrats, 57 percent disapproved of Daley's action, as did 74 percent of Republican voters polled in the metropolitan area. Sixty-eight percent of white suburban women said Daley did the wrong thing. Seventy percent of voters surveyed in the six-county region said there was no greater chance that a terrorist attack would occur in downtown Chicago because of Meigs. Only 17 percent of Chicago voters and 16 percent of suburban Cook County voters said Meigs created a greater chance of an attack. Seventy-three percent of white voters in the poll and 62 percent of black voters said the existence of Meigs did not pose a greater terrorist threat. Most men (75 percent) and women (65 percent) polled said Meigs did not increase the chances of terrorism, though more women had no opinion on the issue." [emphases added]

Friends of Meigs Not Giving Up

The organization wrote, "Some of our strategies may be long shots, but the two previous successes we achieved saving Meigs in 1997 and in 2001 were also long shot victories.

"To successfully pursue any of these strategies, we will need further time.

"On the legal front, our lawyers have been working on an appeal to the Illinois Supreme Court, asking an immediate halt to further action to close Meigs. We are seeking your URGENT financial contribution now so we can file the appeal immediately, and be prepared to pursue the appeal if the Court does act favorably to us. The full appeal will cost Friends of Meigs Field nearly $100,000. We have very little time to file it."

It's Not Just About Meigs; and the Precedent is Important!

"I cannot emphasize enough the importance of this appeal to efforts to preserve Meigs Field," Rachel Goodstein, President of Friends of Meigs Field continued. "As things currently stand, there is nothing preventing the City of Chicago and the Chicago Park District from further demolition of the airport. The Temporary Restraining Order we won in April has been lifted. The Aircraft Owners and Pilots Association have withdrawn their federal suit. We need to move quickly, and we need to raise funds in order to do so."

"If we let Meigs Field close, no airport in America is really safe. Anti-airport groups are watching what happens.  Please help us in this fight for aviation so we can all say that in this year of the Centennial of Flight together we won and Saved Meigs Field!"

Please consider giving the largest gift you can, even if you have contributed in the past.

FMI: www.friendsofmeigs.org/defense