Anna Vlasits never thought she would be organizing a protest, let alone putting one together in a few weeks that’s expected to draw hundreds of people Friday. But with uncertainty surrounding federal funding for labs across the country, the University of Illinois Chicago scientist and mother of two felt she had no choice.
“I think it’s more urgent now, I think because of the way that the government is enacting changes in policies, which is fast and furious,” said Vlasits, who covered a similar protest during the first Trump presidency when she worked as a journalist for Wired.
One main difference, Vlasits said, was that the 2017 March for Science had about a four-month lead time, whereas this time around, organizers did not feel like they could wait four months…