45 years ago today. September 24, 1969. Two sides of town, two groundbreaking moments, and two infamous stories that live on to this day.
In 1968, the youth of Chicago gave the Democratic Party a welcome that they would not soon forget. Amidst all the fracas and police riots, several people were arrested. More than a year later, on September 24, 1969, 8 of them were brought up on charges, and the circus was all set to go.
This was where the flippant and authority-challenging Abbie Hoffman would run headlong into the Hon. Julius Hoffman, with all the showboating, disrespect, and theatrics that you could imagine. This was where Bobby Seale, after going through two different lawyers, eventually found himself bound and gagged in the courtroom, and soon thereafter dropped from the case. This was where Judge Hoffman seemed hell-bent on obtaining justice his way and his way only, going so far as to briefly jail two lawyers who were ill prepared, and even threatening to detain the jury until they reached a verdict. This was the trial that featured legal professionals, experts, and counter-culture luminaries all sharing the courtroom. This was where the outside of the courthouse was just as much of a circus as inside, with the roster including such groups as infamous 1970s terror group The Weather Underground. This was the trial that cemented the Chicago Seven's place in history. This was a trial for the ages.
But this wasn't even the most pressing thought on the minds of many Chicagoans 45 years ago today. For that, we must turn to the North Side and the type of heartbreak that strikes sports fans but once in a generation. We must turn, to the 1969 Chicago Cubs.
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