Father Michael Pfleger St. Sabina Gun Control Anti-Gun Dan Ryan
Previous Post
Next Post

Father Michael Pfleger loves the spotlight. The Windy City anti-gun priest has earned his reputation for hot air and left-wing social justice work. Along those lines, he plans a Saturday morning protest to disrupt Chicago-area holiday weekend commuters by shutting down the Dan Ryan Expressway (I-90/I-94).

Alienating apolitical motorists will never win them over to your cause. But don’t tell the attention-seeking “priest” that. In the words of Napoleon, “Never interfere with your enemy when he is making a mistake.”

The leftist activist priest claims to support peace but sometimes encourages violence. Especially when it comes to law-abiding gun owners. However in Illinois, good guy gun owners have frequently pushed back, blunting the effectiveness of Pfleger’s camera-ready antics.

Father Michael Pfleger St. Sabina Gun Control Anti-Gun Dan Ryan

So now, the pastor wants to block traffic on an Interstate to force a dialogue between his followers and political leaders.  Really. In effect, for their protest, they want to hold commuters hostage.

From the Chicago Tribune:

Reckless Anti-gun Protest To Shut Down Chicago Expressway Saturday Morning
Image via Chicago Tribune

In a show of defiance Tuesday, activist and South Side Catholic priest the Rev. Michael Pfleger, the Rev. Jesse Jackson and others ripped up a statement from Illinois State Police warning of arrests if they moved forward with an anti-violence march that will shut down a portion of the Dan Ryan Expressway this weekend

“When people keep ignoring you, you take it up a notch, and we are moving to one of the main arteries in the city to say we are not going to have business as usual,” Pfleger said during a morning news conference. “We are going to continue to take it up a notch until we get responses.”…

Just like taking hostages in a bank robbery, holding commuters hostage will guarantee a response from authorities.

Reckless Anti-gun Protest To Shut Down Chicago Expressway Saturday Morning

At the same time, the Catholic priest clearly knows how to play the media. He provided the reporters some high drama by tearing up the warning he received from the Illinois State Police. Then Pfleger had an innocent 15-year-old girl deliver his demands for him.

Rieonna Holmon, 15, said she and others are demanding to meet with Gov. Bruce Rauner, Mayor Rahm Emanuel and other elected officials — along with those running for office — to discuss solutions to gun violence.

“You can’t keep saying it’s just gang violence because at the end of the day it’s still gun violence,” she said. “At the end of the day, it’s still innocent human beings dying because of a stray bullet.”

The group gathered Tuesday morning at St. Sabina Catholic Church, where Pfleger is pastor, wants elected officials to work to provide better jobs and better schools on the city’s South and West sides, pockets of which are plagued by violence.

Regardless of the wisdom of a 15-year-old, gang violence remains gang violence. In spite of the teen’s claims, we know guns don’t cause violence any more than spoons cause obesity. Naive adolescent teenagers may not know better. Especially in a city where barely one in four school students can read at grade level.

Meanwhile, the Illinois State Police have said they will not tolerate any protest shutting down Interstates. Also from the Tribune.

At an unrelated news conference Tuesday morning, Illinois State Police Director Leo Schmitz said his officers plan to physically prevent people from walking onto the Dan Ryan. The agency has jurisdiction over the expressway.

“We’re not looking to arrest people. I mean if people break the law, we may have to arrest people. But that’s not what our goal is here,” he said. “That’s not our goal. Our goal is to save lives whether it be the young children or people in the city or motorists. We just don’t want anybody to get hurt.”

Time will tell if the Illinois State Police keep the Dan Ryan Expressway open. It all depends upon the turnout of people willing to face arrest. And how many media outlets show up to record Pfleger’s attempt to foment chaos and anarchy.

Previous Post
Next Post

72 COMMENTS

  1. Isn’t the act of shutting down the interstate an act of terrorism? Illinois State Police don’t be afraid of using tear gas and night sticks on these people because they’re only one step away from adopting the tactics of ANTIFA.

    • “Isn’t the act of shutting down the interstate an act of terrorism?”

      It would certainly be called such if a group of Pro-Gun demonstrators performed such an act.

    • I say fire up the bulldozers. Or wait, Illinois? I know they have those massive snow plows up there that suck in the snow and blow it off to the side. Send a few of those in for good measure. Might as well put down salt too, after it’s all said and done.

        • Fry: What if the main ingredient in Slurm is people?!

          Leela: Oh, they already have that. It’s called Soylent Soda.

          Fry: Really? What does it taste like?

          Leela: Oh, it varies from person to person.

        • Great answer to the problem,” bring on the scoops ” But I as a Christian I have to say this. Just because someone wears a collar or stands in a pulpit doesn’t mean he’s a Christian by any means, and should be removed from his or her position in the church. The church doesn’t give you the right to spew your personal beliefs while hiding behind the banner of GOD.

    • No, my understanding of the various definitions of terrorism is that they all involve intentional violence and most of them, death, for political reasons or gain. Stopping cars, while I think it’s foolish, is not terrorism. It could be considered more a riot since it is disruptive.

      • Just read an article about a guy that used an armored vehicle to stop traffic on a bridge near the Hoover Dam. One of the charges was terrorism. But of course, the idiot will likely spend the rest of his life in prison regretting doing it on the Arizona side of the bridge instead of the Nevada (blue state) side.

  2. These anti-gun Chicago morons need to realize the facts of the matter. They live in one of the worst gun control filled States hands down and they still have an enormous amount of violence and murders with firearms. You think that they would actually wake up and smell the coffee and realize that gun control doesn’t work for criminals that’s the definition of the freaking word criminal someone who doesn’t follow the law and yet they want to pass more and more restrictive gun laws. This will do nothing to stop their violence problem however it will affect the Second Amendment rights of every law-abiding citizen that is hampered by these tyrannical laws. With restricting our constitutional rights as Citizens you are actually in acting slavery upon the citizens of the states that have these ridiculous anti-second Amendment laws.

    • I officially left Illinois yesterday, moved to a free state.
      They dont care that the BS laws dont work. The whole point of the laws not working is so they can pass more laws until law abiding citizens are unarmed subjects. Then they have complete control.

    • What these protesters really need to understand is that Chicago commuters don’t have a lot of patience for this kind of thing. It isn’t going to end well. Hopefully Rev. Pfleger will be around to administer last rights to those that were willing to die for the cause.

  3. Block the freeway to protest guns? Next they’ll boycott yogurt to end war? Or wear mismatched socks to end hunger?

  4. Ways to prevent gun violence? Have all the democrats stop shooting each other.
    Guns do not commit acts of violence. This is a stupid terminology.

    • Can we please not be dicks? Hoping people get run over and killed for blocking traffic really makes us look like dicks.

      • if you stand in the middle of the interstate where im driving, im damn sure not stopping. ive seen how that turns out. i aint even turning my cruise control off, ima hit your ass at 74 mph

        • “Play stupid games, win stupid prizes.”

          And in honor of that sentiment, here’s a Trump protester getting shot in the nuts by a cop for kicking a tear gas cartridge back at the cops :

      • Because people give a hoot about some random New Yorker? Get back to work you have lots of money to raise for your state government

      • Can we please not be dicks? Hoping people get run over and killed for blocking traffic really makes us look like dicks

        sorry the gun control advocates tend to wish (and commit) violence much more readily.

        And this guy CREATING a danger to innocent motorists.

  5. in the case of a unplanned or unpermitted protest that blocks a MAJOR travel route

    The leadership should be held100% accountable for the bill and any loss incurred by those stuck in the traffic…including spoilage and worker overtime or lass of biz
    then be 100% responsible and punishable for anyone who is injured by the protest (aka accidents caused by it blocking the road) and libel for any deaths that happened because rescue equipment can not reach the person or get them to a hospital in time!

    then part 2 if the numbers of drivers blocked exceed the protesters by a factor of 2X –then they can vote to REMOVE protesters via democratic majority rule …in other words…BEAT THEM till they move or toss them off the highway or blocked bridge!

    but if you have a permit via the local police–all of the above is on them as normal!

    • The leadership should be held100% accountable for the bill and any loss incurred by those stuck in the traffic

      Just send the bill to Snuffy’s Bishop.
      That’ll teach him to keep his so-called clergy in line.

      • There is not standard of “in line”. They are so hard up for personnel they won’t bench anyone. Or certainly won’t for political stuff will just ignore or rationalize. See the head nut job now in the main office in Rome.

  6. Is it not contributing to the delinquency of a minor by encourage and organizing for a minor to break the law?

  7. Move, bitch! Get outta the way! 😎

    Seriously though, I wish people would leave the major highways alone. Many people, myself included, do not have proper bumpers on their vehicles. A man sized object would cause significant damage to the radiator. Maybe we could pay a couple of truckers to clear the way.

  8. Where’s the great mediator and “community organizer”? Now more than ever Chicago needs Obama and he’s AWOL.

  9. When I travel from Virginia to Wisconsin (to visit kin), I avoid Chicago like the plague. Although it is a bit out of my way, I go west from Indianapolis on I-73 to Bloomington-Normal, IL, and pick up I-39 north to the IL-WI border. There isn’t much traffic, it’s a quick drive, relatively speaking, and you only have to pay one toll after you get back on I-90 near the WI border. And NO Chicago. So if you’re going north to Wisconsin, that would be the way to go. I’ve never been to Chicago/Cook County without there being major roadwork screwing things up, lots of traffic, and oh! those tolls.

    How this guy became a priest is beyond me – and the church must be desperate to keep him. No common sense and he seems to have given up on saving souls in favor of becoming a left-wing SJW and a major pain in the keester. Kind of like his brother in crime, Jesse Jackson.

    • Oh yeah the Illinois tolls will bankrupt you…I live in ILLinois and avoid them like the plague. May the bad fadda’ get what’s coming to “him”-get ’em ISP!

  10. Ah yes, the good father that employs men as bodyguards who are ILLEGALLY carrying guns. We should definitely listen to him.

    Good news is: unlike Chicago PD (and it’s political cronies), the ISP don’t feel the need to play around with Pfleger.

  11. This guy is such a phony!!!! Just wants his face plastered on the TV cameras!! If he really wanted to make a statement, why in hell doesn’t he lead his protest through the bad neighborhoods where this crap seems to be more prevalent???? Isn’t he the perfect example of a hypocrite!!! I wouldn’t trust this guy as far as I could throw him!! And what about all the extra law enforcement that will have to be pulled from other areas or pull overtime just to keep traffic from running this moron down??? I’d arrest his ass if it were up to me…..his antics will disrupt and impede the flow of traffic, and if traffic on other days of the week is any indication, motorists will NOT be happy if they have to be diverted to routes that will increase travel times. Give it up, Father…if you can actually call yourself that!!! Welcome to the hellhole of Chicago!!

  12. Isn’t this the same guy that had his armed security gaurd busted for carrying a gun without one of those fancy permits? Yeah, pretty sure that’s this guy. Look it up. Funny as hell.

  13. Don’t they already have laws against random discharging of weapons in the neighborhoods? Perhaps these folks would be better serving their flock by reminding their parishioners about the consequences rather than trying to cut to the front of the line with their imaginary blame.

  14. Back when Democrats were Democrats , 1968 Chicago (come to think of it, the party was unraveling already with the riots), Hizzoner Richard J. Daley said, “The policeman isn’t there to create disorder; the policeman is there to preserve disorder.” (Confirmed my memory with wikipedia.) One wonders whether the city would be better off with the old mayor back in office.

    • Ah yes, I remember the riots so well. I was 12 at the time, and it was on the news every night. Hizoner was mighty pissed at all the shenanigans. He’s sit in the convention hall with the most amazing scowl on his face! I also seem to recall (but was young) that The Boss didn’t have much nice to say about the press either. He was actually yelling when he said what you quoted.

  15. Mercer county Illinois just became the 30th county in Illinois to vote to become a firearms sanctuary county. Screw this religious demagogue. His place in Hell is already reserved.

  16. someone should just perform a citizens arrest on him for being a pedestrian in the roadway, obstructing traffic, reckless conduct, mob action, just to name a few.

    • want a laugh?
      imagine a plainclothes officer conducting a lawful arrest for all the things you mentioned. And then the rev’s armed security thugs get involved because they think the person doing an arrest is just some regular schmuck they think they can get away with roughing up.
      There’s no part of this idea that doesn’t amuse me.

  17. If Father Pfleger wants to argue whether it’s “gang violence” or “gun violence”, I propose an experiment. We’ll put all the gang members over at his place, and all their guns over at mine, and we’ll see which place has less violence.

  18. That expressway goes through the really bad side of Chicago. When I used to have to travel it there was almost always an ambulance trying to works its way through traffic. I hope nobody loses their life in the back of an ambulance stuck in traffic because of a protest suffering from gun shot/knife wounds, heart attack, or stroke.

    The police need to clear the Dan Ryan in very short order. Tempers will flare and there will be road rage incidents, maybe even shootings. People drive like freaking maniacs on the Dan Ryan.

  19. Why won’t he protest against all the priests, bishops and cardinals who were (are) pedophiles who the Catholic Church rotated to keep them hid?
    Guess it’s not important.

  20. fake ass priest needs to read his own book… never once does God blame the tool of the sin, just the sinner… God doesn’t blame the tree of knowledge that Adam and Eve ate from, or the rock that killed Abel…. God didn’t take an axe to the tree he kicked Adam and Eve out of the garden…he didn’t atomize the rock Cain used on Abel, he messed up Cain and kicked him out…

  21. I thought churches needed to stay out of political stuff. Shouldn’t this pseudo god squadder lose his non profit status?

  22. So, exactly how does the thought process run when planning something like this? Is it:

    “We need a way to win people over to our cause and stop people getting shot. What should we do?”

    “Let’s block a major interstate and cause road rage!”

    “Great idea! Okay, that’s the plan!”

  23. Quote: “Father Michael Pfleger loves the spotlight.”
    I cannot understand why any of you, including the person who posted this story, would call that person “father.” We should only call our actual biological father, father. And God, of course, but that is it, as far as I am concerned.

    Michael Pfleger, a catholic pastor who lives in Chicago… would be a whole lot more appropriate, in my honest opinion. None of these idiots should be shown any respect by the people that they are attacking and calling terrorists.

  24. Why can’t the church do something about this man’s antics? The church stopped him in the past, whats wrong with Blaze Cupish? Surely he can stop this man from being an over zealous, sinner. Pride and egotism, sure sings of a sinner!

  25. Were any of these left wing anti gun rights types who seemingly saw fit to block a PUBLIC ROAD, creating who knows what sort of danger to the public safety arrested? None were? Pardon me for asking but HOW COME?

  26. The cookey, crazy, delusional, irrational, looney tunes clergy of the Catholic Church at play once again. I mean, seriously, who does this Pfledger think he is? What an absolute douche bag! That old cretin Pfledger has been perched too high for too long and he needs to shut his trap. His ignorance is staggering. His inane, imbalanced, far left views only contribute to further enhance intolerance and disharmony in society. After nearly 40 years bellowing at the same pulpit Pfledger ought to know by now that his idea of a perfect little world ain’t gonna happen. Never. So, Fr. Pfledger why don’t you just bite the bullet and accept reality. Shut the f up with your foolish rants, stunts and hamming it up with the media. You’re an old man now. Slow down and smell the roses, smile at the sunshine and be glad you’re alive; and just live and LET live. This is the only life we get so don’t waste it being such a dick.

LEAVE A REPLY

Please enter your comment!
Please enter your name here