CHICAGO—Whilehistory unfolded in Chicago at the 2024 Democratic National Convention, thousands ofprotesters also converged on the city to express their concerns and demands, especially regarding the ongoing Israel-Gaza war.
As delegates, party leaders and politicians delivered speeches and remarks over the four-day convention at the United Center on August 19-22 to celebrate and acknowledge Vice President Kamala Harris formally accept the Democratic nomination for president, voices of dissent were undeterred by the pomp and circumstance of the occasion.
Protesters gathered three minutes away from the United Center at Union Park with strong messages of “End the Genocide in Gaza” and “Stop Funding Genocide.” The Final Call interviewed several demonstrators representing a diverse, cross-section of people.
Gabe, who did not want to give his last name, is a Chicago resident and stated, “I am here to support Palestine because Palestinians have been oppressed for centuries. They have lived under apartheid and occupation and people there have no basic rights and American taxpayers (pay) for it.”
He added, “I am a public school teacher and it is offensive to me that the American government is spending money when our schools are essentially bled dry, year after year. The children go without the basics.”
Stephen Watts from Nashville agreed. “It is so important for us to have community control of our resources but instead we have been giving resources to Israel against the will of the American people,” said Mr. Watt.
Anna Acosta belongs to the Chicago Teachers Union. She stated, “I am here because I strongly believe in the humanity of Palestinians. They are my family, and we’re in the struggle for sovereignty. What is taking place in Gaza is horrible in that it is happening on our watch.”
Dennis, who also did not want to give his last name, traveled from Los Angeles to protest and make his voice heard. “I am here because I feel strongly about there should be a ceasefire and the United States should not be giving any weapons to Israel. It is rather apparent that Israel has a major stake in American politics. We’re watching genocide take place in real-time, I think it is atrocious,” he said.
Steve Hawthorne is from Wheaton, Illinois, located about 25 miles west of Chicago. “I could not miss this opportunity to bring this word, ‘shalom,’ this complete well-being to the Middle East. Shalom is a Hebrew word which translates to freedom from hunger, freedom from illness, freedom from war.”
John Trott had a message for everyone through his shirt which read, “Jesus Wasn’t White.” Mr. Trott, who is Caucasian and from Chicago, explained that his purpose for protesting was “to stand for the reality that all human beings are made in the image of God.”
“Oppression of any human group by other human groups is an evil we need to work together to eradicate (it),” he told The Final Call.
Jodie Evans is co-founder of the anti-war activist group Code Pink: Women for Peace, based in Washington. She had a message for the Democratic Party.
“We are here to call for peace, to ask the Democrats to stop sending weapons all over the world, to stop creating disharmony all over the world, quit raping the planet. … It is our tax dollars that fund people being killed every day. The Democrats are guilty of genocide,” she argued.
Owen Urbanski from Omaha, Nebraska had a short and simple message. “I just want the genocide to stop. This is why I am here; it pains me to see innocent people being slaughtered,” said Mr. Urbanski.
“The Democratic Party insists on being an active hand in oppression of Palestinians. The Palestinians are here, we are not leaving, we will not let you continue to destroy our country,” said Reem Elkhaldi who traveled from Florida. She is of Palestinian descent. She and her family immigrated to the U.S. when she was eight years old.
Mark Stimson from Memphis stated, “We have to make a stand against the Democratic Party. Innocent people are being killed and our tax dollars are funding their genocide.”
“We are here not with any illusions that we are going to pressure the Democrats, they are really beholden to the interests of the ruling class,” he said in part.
“In alignment with the Jewish Torah, I am in opposition to the entire occupation in Palestine. I am in opposition of the decades of the oppression of the Palestinians and because of my Jewish faith, I seek to see a peaceful resolution and return of the land to its Indigenous inhabitants. Proper financial restitution, and a complete stop of the cruelty that we are all horrified by,” said Simcha from Indiana.
According to several media reports, protests were largely peaceful though there were a few incidents. There was also a protest by a group of pro-Palestinian, anti-DNC demonstrators who were confronted by Chicago Police August 20 outside the Israeli Consulate downtown.
ABC 7 reported that a crowd of about 200 protesters attempted to break through a police bike line and clashed with officers but were unable to break through the barriers.
“Hundreds of Chicago police officers in riot gear, face shields, and with batons surrounded the group in an effort to get the protesters to disperse, at times forcing them onto the sidewalk,” the news station reported.
The city reportedly was expecting a protest turnout of 20,000 – 25,000 people during the convention. The numbers were fewer than expected but thousands still came out.
On Aug. 23 Chicago Police Supt. Larry Snelling said there were a total of 74 arrests over the four days of the convention, reported cbsnews.com.
(Shawntell Muhammad can be contacted at [email protected].)
