Up to 100,000 gather in Madison Saturday
The tractorcade arrives in Madison Saturday morning before the rally on March 12, 2011. Photo by Ryan Findley.
Madison police estimated Saturday’s rally at the Capitol to be the biggest yet, with between 85,000 and 100,000 marching at the capitol in protest of Gov. Scott Walker’s budget policies. That number could be higher; according to Michael Garvin, a ThirdCoast Digest Facebook fan, “you had to go to warming centers, all the food venues to see how many people were there. The emotion was off the gauge, the chanting reached proportions that rival any NFL stadium.”
Highlights of the day included speeches from the 14 Wisconsin Democrat Senators who returned Friday afternoon from Illinois; 50 or more tractors representing the Farm Workers Union circling Capitol Square; words from actor Tony Shaloub, who’s sister is a Green Bay public school teacher; Jesse Jackson and a diverse cross-section of Wisconsin citizens from all over the state.
Special thanks to Ryan Findley and Lucky Tomaszek for their images. Thanks to WisPolitics for the video.
MONDAY ON TCD: What’s next in the battle over Wisconsin’s economic and ideological future?
