tax resistance – Some Chicagoans are using tax season to protest federal deportation and foreign policy, even as legal and financial risks rise.
Tax resistance is rarely a front-page headline in the U.S., but this tax season it’s showing up in Chicago in a distinctly political form.
A Chicago attorney. Rachel Cohen. says she is refusing to pay federal income taxes as a form of protest against the Trump administration’s deportation campaigns and broader foreign policy. including U.S.. support tied to conflicts overseas.. Her decision fits into a long-running movement of so-called “war tax resistance. ” where participants decline to send federal dollars that they believe fund military action or related government priorities.
Cohen’s approach is personal and deliberate.. Rather than leaving money idle. she put the amount she owed into a high-yield savings account while still paying her state taxes.. In describing the logic behind her protest. she framed it as a question of conscience and risk—whether she could justify giving the federal government money if she believed it would be tied to actions she sees as morally unacceptable.. Her stance also spotlights how tax resistance can become less about money alone and more about forcing a public reckoning with what federal spending represents.
Supporters say interest in the practice is surging nationwide, and local organizers describe tax season as their busiest moment.. Lincoln Rice. a Milwaukee organizer with the National War Tax Resistance Coordinating Committee. said he hasn’t paid most federal taxes since 1998 and described the movement’s training and preparation for what comes next.. Participants are often confronted with enforcement pressures and penalties. including correspondence from the IRS. monthly fines. and—at the most severe end—outcomes like wage garnishment or even prison time.
That risk is part of the calculation for those who choose nonpayment.. It also explains why the movement tends to operate with guidance rather than improvisation: organizers try to help people understand what resistance can trigger legally. financially. and personally.. Even when participants do not seek publicity. the consequences can become a lived experience—something that tests households. careers. and day-to-day plans.
Beyond the courtroom and the IRS. tax resistance also reveals a larger pattern in American politics: civil disobedience is taking new shapes when people feel conventional channels aren’t moving quickly enough.. For many participants. the federal tax bill becomes a visible. annual point of friction—an act that is both intimate and unmistakably national.. In that way. it functions like a protest sign made of paperwork. one that asks the public to confront how federal policy choices translate into individual decisions.
Chicago’s tax resistance story is happening alongside other major policy shifts that are reshaping state and local life.. In Illinois. for example. a change in how the federal government classifies medical cannabis could bring meaningful tax relief for some licensed operators.. The reclassification moves state-licensed medical cannabis from Schedule I—reserved for drugs seen as having no medical use and a high potential for abuse—to Schedule III. which is generally treated as less restricted.. The practical upshot is that certain businesses may be able to deduct operating expenses on their federal returns and face lower barriers for research.
Industry leaders, however, argue that classification alone doesn’t settle the broader debate over cannabis law and federal research priorities.. The tension echoes what tax resistance participants are grappling with: policy changes can shift incentives. but they may not deliver the reform people are demanding.
Meanwhile, Chicago’s cultural calendar reflects a different kind of local pressure—community institutions trying to survive in changing times.. The Berwyn Eagles Club. an indie wrestling venue that has hosted shows for more than two decades. plans to stop after the latest run of events. reportedly following a violent incident during a recent show.. Fans and performers say the club offered budget-friendly access and practical perks like free parking—details that show how local entertainment spaces become part of neighborhood identity.
And on a broader civic level. book lovers in the Chicago area are preparing for a weekend bookstore crawl tied to Independent Bookstore Day. an annual event designed to support small shops that many readers describe as community “third spaces.” Organizers say participation has grown compared with last year. reflecting renewed interest in local businesses even as large retailers continue expanding.
Taken together. these threads—tax resistance. regulatory shifts in cannabis. the uncertain future of a beloved venue. and efforts to keep independent bookstores thriving—point to a recurring reality in the U.S.. right now.. People may disagree deeply on the reasons. but they share a sense that systems are moving faster than institutions and individuals can adapt.. For participants like Cohen, the question is whether refusing federal payment is worth the risk.. For the rest of the city. the more immediate question may be what happens next when protest becomes not just a rally. but a payment decision.