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Read the press release here.

Students Protest Rauner Donors At Chicago Symphony Orchestra Performance

By Alex Nitkin | April 3, 2016 11:53am | Updated on April 6, 2016 10:53am
 Students protest at the Chicago Symphony Orchestra, 220 S. Michigan Ave.
Students protest at the Chicago Symphony Orchestra, 220 S. Michigan Ave.
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IIRON Student Network

THE LOOP — Student activists from universities all over the city packed into the Chicago Symphony Orchestra concert hall Saturday to demand that Gov. Bruce Rauner's top donors "push" him to pass higher education funding, according to a news release.

The protest targeted wealthy philanthropists like Sam Zell and Ken Griffin, who have donated millions of dollars to the orchestra and to Rauner's Super PAC, Turnaround IL. 

“We are calling on Mr. Zell, Mr. Griffin, and [philanthropist James] Crown to invest in the common good as they have invested in the arts, so that we can enjoy an economy that works for all of us, and not just a wealthy few," said Alex Ding, a student organizer from the University of Chicago, the release said.

In November, the same group held a similar protest outside the Waldorf Astoria Hotel, where Griffin lives. 

No arrests were made and no tickets were issued at Saturday's protest, according to Officer Jose Estrada, a Chicago Police spokesman.

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