Brandi Macon won't stand for the death of her good friends.
"I was so sad," Macon said. "I was hurt. How could they do this?"
The 29-year-old Chicago native and 12-year soap opera watcher plans to protest Tuesday against the recent cancelation of her favorite soaps, "All My Children" and "One Life to Live." She joins about 35 equally frustrated supporters at 10:30 a.m. in front of ABC's State Street home in Chicago.
It's part of a string of protests by fans across the country in New York, Austin and Los Angeles.
"It came with no warning," Macon said of the cancelations. "How dare you do this to our family."
Macon started watching soaps with her mom in 1999, back when Dixie Martin of "All My Children" developed heart problems and refused to confide in the love of her life. Macon found her mom roped into the storyline and yelling at the TV, "Dixie, get it together!"
Since then, "All My Children," along with "One Life to Live" and ABC's "General Hospital," became part of her life. Thanks to three hours of daily recordings, Macon knows the shows' characters like her (heavily dramatized) best friends.
"People think it's just a TV show, but these characters become such a part of your life," said the 29-year-old Chicago native. "We laugh with them, we cry with them. When somebody dies, we feel it. It's important to us."
Last week, the death knell sounded for two of them. "All My Children" and "One Life to Live" were canceled in favor of an evolving daytime lineup on ABC.
Viewers banded together under a Protest ABC Across America Facebook group. Some vowed not to watch the network. Others plan to turn out Tuesday to protest.
The group even started reaching out to sponsors, and soon after, Hoover pulled its ads. Macon calls it a movement. About 2,500 Chicago-based fans joined her Facebook group and other groups boast more.
"It's growing every day," she said.
