One Juror’s Ordeal: The Chicago Seven Conspiracy Trial

Fifty years ago, on Sept 24, 1969, the Chicago Conspiracy Trial opened to decide the fate of eight protesters arrested during the 1968 Democratic Convention. The trial was a political, legal and historical landmark that lasted for almost five months, becoming known as the Chicago Seven trial when one defendant, Bobby Seale, accused Judge Julius Hoffman of racism and demanded a separate trial. Jean Fritz was a juror who kept a journal during five long months of sequestration, recording her own thoughts about the case as the trial progressed.

Jean’s daughter, Marjorie Fritz-Birch, an Edgewater resident, has curated an exhibit on display at the Edgewater Historical Society using the materials her mother saved – newspapers, videos, letters, interviews and her journal. Join us at the Budlong Woods Branch Library as Marjorie recounts the story of one woman’s ordeal and her bravery in standing up for what she believed was right.

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