CHICAGO – As attendees filtered out of the Democratic National Convention Thursday on its final night, they were met with the chants of pro-Palestinian protesters calling for the party to do more to end the war in Gaza.
The group yelled “ceasefire now” and “Shame on you,” as one woman folded a campaign sign for the Kamala Harris/Tim Walz ticket over her head.
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David Peterson, 50, said he wanted to show up to advocate for Palestinian voices, especially inside the convention.
“Everybody who speaks up is going to save a life,” he said. “This is an opportunity, a window of opportunity.”
The protests in the convention's final hours ended much like they began earlier this week — largely peaceful with a family-friendly atmosphere.
As Harris accepted the Democratic presidential nomination on the DNC stage, a final large-scale protest ended on a hopeful note. Occupying the road under the train tracks on Lake Street for close to 30 minutes, demonstrators roared: “We’re young, we’re strong, we’ll rally all night long.”
Only a few dozen protesters lingered late Thursday near Union Park, clashing briefly with police. The small group had planned to march toward the convention center but was blocked by rows of police in riot gear who shouted “move back” as they pushed into the group. Several of the protesters surged forward, with some swinging wooden signs down on the officers.
Officers put handcuffs on one activist who was waving a big black flag on a busy street. Another officer rolled up the flag and took it away. Demonstration leaders soon instructed remaining protesters to go home.
At Union Park ahead of the march, the grassy field teemed with Palestinian flags, and a speaker system played Palestinian dance songs. The gathering was organized by the Coalition to March on the DNC, a group of more than 200 organizations that also ran a similar event on Monday night.
The march began with a crowd of thousands that slowly snaked through residential areas surrounding the United Center. Some wore red T-shirts that said “Not In Our Name” while others held signs that said “End U.S. Aid to Israel.” Pausing along the march route to turn toward the convention center, they chanted: “DNC, you will see. Palestine will be free.”
There was heavy police presence as protesters walked the blocks by the United Center, including at the spot where a small group of activists breached an outer perimeter fence earlier in the week. In addition to police on bikes along the route, about 100 officers in riot gear and more than 20 law enforcement vehicles followed the marchers.
As protesters slowly approached Union Park where the rally began more than two hours earlier, the marchers shook tambourines and chanted over the rumble of drums and the train overhead: “I believe that we will win.”
Protesters attempted to call attention to what they see as a lack of Palestinian voices within the arena hosting the DNC. Standing at the edge of the crowd, Lisa Pint, a 61-year-old volunteer wearing buttons in support of the Democratic ticket of Harris and Tim Walz, said she wanted to see the protest as a “neutral” observer. But after speaking with an activist, Pint said she’d come to the conclusion that a Palestinian voice should have been represented on the convention stage.
“I didn’t think of it until a protester said it. It’s a good point,” said Pint, a nurse in the Chicago suburbs. “I’m very strong for Kamala and Walz, but they should have been included.”
Leaders of an “Uncommitted” movement, which garnered hundreds of thousands of votes in Democratic primaries across the nation in protest of the Israel-Hamas war, expressed frustration ahead of the convention when weekslong negotiations to secure a speaking slot for a Palestinian American at the DNC stalled.
Chicago police said Thursday they would not changing any of their tactics and were ready for a final night of pro-Palestinian demonstrations outside the Democratic National Convention, after a peaceful march that resulted in no injuries or arrests.
On Wednesday night, more than 2,000 pro-Palestinian protesters marched peacefully past a park where pro-Israel demonstrators had gathered earlier. That demonstration came a day after violent clashes between police and protesters led to 56 arrests at a much smaller, unsanctioned protest outside the Israeli Consulate in downtown Chicago.