Farhad Khoiee-Abbasi

Farhad Khoiee-Abbasi protests in Chicago's Daley Plaza, across the street from City Hall.
Protesting across the street from Union Station in front of CDW Plaza.

Farhad Khoiee-Abbasi is a public protester who has become known in Chicago as "the FBI sign guy,"[1] and sometimes as simply "The Sign Guy".[2] He has also gone on hunger strikes.[2]

Background

In 2006, Khoiee-Abbasi began standing near the northwest corner of Daley Plaza outside of Chicago City Hall, holding a sign that read "FBI Agent Chris Saviano, stop raping my wife!"[1] Soon, he added other signs to his board, most of which denounce former Chicago Mayor Richard M. Daley, former U.S. Attorney General Alberto Gonzales,[3] and George W. Bush, and make a number of odd statements in broken English.[4] He stands outside of city hall every weekday, from about 6:00am until about 3:00pm. He has also been photographed holding his signs on Capitol Hill in Washington D.C., and in New York's Times Square.

In 2011[5] he started loudly blowing a plastic whistle at regular intervals.

Coverage

Little is known about Khoiee-Abbasi beyond his physical appearance (typically a groomed, well-dressed man who always wears expensive suits and ties), the information on his signs, from flyers he passes out from time to time, and what court documents say about him. It is known that he was involved in extended and contentious divorce proceedings.[6] He generally remains silent when questioned by anyone.[1][7] He has also used signs asking Barack Obama to spare his only child.[2]

Khoiee-Abbasi has become a popular fixture among photographers on flickr, and in blogs.[4]

By October, 2011, Khoiee-Abbasi had stopped wearing his suits and ties and started wearing several layers of hoodies, with an outer shirt containing yet another anti-FBI protest message.[8]

References

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 Selecman, D.L. "Dan's people: One-on-one with the FBI sign guy". Reservoir Magazine.
  2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 Boose, Greg (17 April 2009). "The Sign Guy Goes on Hunger Strike". The Huffington Post. Retrieved 12 July 2010.
  3. ↑ Grier, Peter. "E-mail trail shows power struggle behind US attorneys' firings". Christian Science Monitor. Archived from the original on 24 March 2007. Retrieved 12 July 2010.
  4. ↑ 4.0 4.1 Chicagoist. "FBI Stop Raping My Wife". Chicagoist.com. Retrieved 2007-11-09.
  5. ↑ Erickson, Mark. "From Church Pew to Daley Plaza, the Tragic Descent of Chicago’s Troubled “Sign Guy”". Eat Portland Blog. Retrieved 19 March 2015.
  6. ↑ Clerk of the Circuit Court of Cook County. "Case Information Summary for Case Number 2004D010691, PETITION FOR DISSOLUTION OF MARRIAGE". Cook County Circuit Court. Retrieved 2007-11-09.
  7. ↑ Bond, Eston. "The Chris Saviano effect". hyalineskies. Retrieved 2007-11-09.
  8. ↑ Malooley, Jake (October 12, 2011). ""The Sign Guy" at Daley Plaza". Time Out Chicago. Retrieved 24 October 2011.