The National Association of Letter Carriers rallied in downtown Chicago on Sunday to protest the potential privatization of the United States Postal Service.

The rally, which involved hundreds of letter carriers, postal workers and supporters gathering at Federal Plaza, was one of more than 200 that took place nationwide over the past weekend.

Here's what we know about the demonstrations.

Why are letter carriers protesting?

The move came days after Postmaster General Louis DeJoy sent a letter to Congress announcing his plans to cut 10,000 workers and billions of dollars from the USPS budget. DeJoy said in the letter that he intends to solve the service's "big problems," such as misallocated pension liabilities, by working with the Department of Government Efficiency .

The letter sparked fears that the service would be privatized , as rumors of a potential merger with the Commerce Department spread.

The postal service currently funds itself without taxpayer dollars through the sale of postage stamps and products but warns that any changes could result in limited access, reduced services and increased costs.

Where were demonstrations held in Illinois?

What is DOGE?

The Department of Government Efficiency , also known as DOGE, was created by President Donald Trump in an executive action on his first day in office. The department's goal is to modernize the Federal government to "maximize governmental efficiency and productivity," according to the order.

Tesla and SpaceX founder Elon Musk, who has often appeared as the face of DOGE, has previously touted promises to cut the federal budget by trillions of dollars.

Who is the head of DOGE?

Though Trump named Musk the head of DOGE a week after his presidential victory in November 2024, the White House swiftly shifted gears in a February court filing by saying the tech billionaire isn't in charge of or employed by DOGE.

Instead, the White House named former U.S. Digital Service official Amy Gleason as the acting DOGE administrator.