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September 12, 2007 By Mary Owen A group of disabled protesters staged a blockade within the State of Illinois office building in the Loop for more than five hours Tuesday while their leaders and state officials negotiated issues of concern to the disabled. About 3 p.m., approximately 200 protesters from the advocacy group ADAPT blocked the three main entrances and exits at the Thompson Center, wedging their wheelchairs into revolving doors. Earlier, they blocked escalators in the building and turnstiles and vending machines at the Clark/Lake Chicago Transit Authority station in the center. Several state employees trapped inside the center looked over balconies to watch the protest. Meanwhile, people outside couldn't get in to shop, eat at the food court in the basement or visit any of the state agencies in the 16-story structure. The protesters began blocking elevators and escalators in the building around 11 a.m. At that point, four ADAPT members went to Gov. Rod Blagojevich's office on the 16th floor seeking a meeting with him. They did not have an appointment, and Blagojevich was out of the office all day, state officials said. The blockade ended about 5 p.m. after ADAPT leaders met with Matt Summy, Blagojevich's deputy chief of staff, and Grace Hou, assistant secretary of the state Department of Human Services. The activists obtained promises that the governor would meet with the group before Oct. 17 and that he would not reopen the now-shuttered Lincoln Developmental Center. During his first gubernatorial candidacy, Blagojevich vowed to reopen the state-run compound for developmentally disabled adults in central Illinois but later conceded that it might not be a good idea. The center closed in 2002 after numerous problems of abuse, neglect and mismanagement. ADAPT activists staged a similar protest Monday, blocking the entrances to the American Medical Association building for more than three hours.
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