{"id":31084,"date":"2024-08-18T22:23:00","date_gmt":"2024-08-19T03:23:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/ustower.net\/?p=31084"},"modified":"2024-08-18T22:49:48","modified_gmt":"2024-08-19T03:49:48","slug":"thousands-of-activists-expected-in-chicago-for-democratic-convention-to-call-for-gaza-cease-fire","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/ustower.net\/?p=31084","title":{"rendered":"Thousands of activists expected in Chicago for Democratic convention to call for Gaza cease-fire"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

CHICAGO (AP) \u2014 Thousands of activists are expected to converge on Chicago this week for the Democratic National Convention<\/u><\/a>, hoping to call attention to abortion rights, economic injustice and the war in Gaza<\/u><\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

While Vice President Kamala Harris has energized<\/u><\/a> crowds of supporters as she prepares to accept the Democratic nomination, progressive activists maintain their mission remains the same.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Activists say they learned lessons<\/u><\/a> from last month\u2019s Republican National Convention in Milwaukee and are predicting bigger crowds and more robust demonstrations in Chicago, a city with deep social activism roots.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Who is pro<\/strong><\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

testing?<\/strong><\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Demonstrations are expected every day of the convention and, while their agendas vary, many activists agree an immediate cease-fire in the Israel-Hamas war<\/u><\/a> is the priority.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Things kicked off Sunday on the convention\u2019s eve with a march along Michigan Avenue against the war in Gaza and for abortion and LGBTQ+ rights. The march began in late afternoon and stretched into the night.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Police lined the march route and there were no signs of major conflict. At one point, anti-abortion activists staged a small counter-protest.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Police did not immediately respond to an email asking if there had been arrests more than three hours into the march.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Organizer Linda Loew said even though Democrats have pushed to safeguard reproductive rights at home, the issue is international. They marched in solidarity with people everywhere who struggle for the right to control what happens to their bodies, as well as to protest the money the U.S. spends to back wars<\/u><\/a> that could be used for healthcare, she said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWe believe that the billions of dollars that continue to flow to the state of Israel and the flow of weapons are having an inordinate and horrific impact, but in particular on women, children and the unborn,\u201d she said. \u201cAll of these things are tied together.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The largest group, the Coalition to March on the DNC, has planned demonstrations on the first and last days of the convention.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Organizers say they expect at least 20,000 activists, including students<\/u><\/a> who protested the war on college campuses.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThe people with power are going to be there,\u201d said Liz Rathburn, a University of Illinois Chicago student organizer. \u201cPeople inside the United Center are the people who are going to be deciding our foreign policy in one way or another.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Where are they protesting?<\/strong><\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Activists sued the city earlier this year, saying restrictions over where they can demonstrate violate their constitutional rights.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Chicago leaders rejected their requests for permits to protest near United Center on the city\u2019s West Side, where the convention is taking place, offering instead a lakefront park more than 3 miles (5 kilometers) away.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Later, the city agreed to allow demonstrations at a park and a march route closer to the United Center. A federal judge recently signed off on the group\u2019s roughly 1-mile (1.6-kilometer) route.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Coalition to March on the DNC spokesman Hatem Abudayyeh said the group is pleased it won the right to protest closer to the convention, but he believes its preferred 2-mile (3-kilometer) march would be safer for larger crowds. The group is chartering buses for activists from about half a dozen states.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWe\u2019re going forward, full speed ahead,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The city has designated a park about a block from United Center for a speakers\u2019 stage. Those who sign up get 45 minutes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Philadelphia-based Poor People\u2019s Army, which advocates for economic justice, plans to set up at Humboldt Park on the city\u2019s Northwest Side and will feature events with third-party candidates Jill Stein<\/u><\/a> and Cornel West,<\/u><\/a> plus a 3-mile (5 kilometer) march Monday to the United Center.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Some group members have spent the last few weeks marching the more than 80 miles (130 kilometers) from Milwaukee, where they protested during the Republican convention<\/u><\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cPoor and homeless people are being brutalized, with tents and encampments destroyed and bulldozed away, from San Francisco to Philadelphia to Gaza and the West Bank,\u201d spokesperson Cheri Honkala said in a statement as the group reached Illinois. \u201cThese preventable human rights violations are being committed by Democratic and Republican leaders alike.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

How does a new nominee change things?<\/strong><\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Many activists believe nothing much will change because Harris is part of the Biden administration.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThe demands haven\u2019t changed. I haven\u2019t seen any policy changes,\u201d said Erica Bentley, an activist with Mamas Activating Movements for Abolition and Solidarity. \u201cIf you\u2019re going to be here, you\u2019re going to have to listen to what\u2019s important to us.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Pro-Palestinian protesters in Chicago have been highly visible, shutting down<\/u><\/a> roads to the airport and staging sit-ins at congressional offices. Some are planning their own one-day convention Sunday with third-party candidates.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cRegardless of who the nominee is, we\u2019re marching against the Democrats and their vicious policies that have allowed Israel to kill over 40,000 Palestinians in Gaza,\u201d said Fayaani Aboma Mijana, an organizer with the Chicago Alliance Against Racist and Political Repression.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

It\u2019s unclear if the convention will draw far-right extremists who ardently support former President Donald Trump.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Secret Service Deputy Special Agent in Charge Derek Mayer said last week there are no known specific security threats against the convention.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Is Chicago ready?<\/strong><\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

The convention will draw an estimated 50,000 people to the nation\u2019s third-largest city, including delegates, activists and journalists.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The city says it has made necessary preparations with police and the Secret Service. Security will be tight, with street closures around the convention center.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

To combat traffic concerns, city leaders are touting a new $80 million train station<\/u><\/a> steps from the United Center. They also have tried to beautify the city with freshly planted flowers and new signs. City leaders also cleared a nearby homeless encampment<\/u><\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Police have undergone training<\/u><\/a> on constitutional policing, county courts say they are opening more space in anticipation of mass arrests and hospitals near the security zone are beefing up emergency preparedness.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Authorities and leaders in the state have said people who vandalize the city or are violent will be arrested.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWe\u2019re going to make sure that people have their First Amendment rights protected, that they can do that in a safe way,\u201d Mayor Brandon Johnson told The Associated Press in a recent interview.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

But some have lingering safety concerns, worried that protests could become unpredictable or devolve into chaos.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Activist Hy Thurman protested and was arrested at the infamous 1968 convention<\/u><\/a>. The 74-year-old now lives in Alabama but plans to come to Chicago to protest the war in Gaza.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cIt\u2019s extremely personal for me,\u201d he said. \u201cI see parallels.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker has said that he expects peaceful protests.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWe intend to protect the protesters\u2019 First Amendment rights, and also the residents of the city of Chicago and the visitors to Chicago at the same time,\u201d Pritzker told the AP in a recent interview.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

apnews<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

CHICAGO (AP) \u2014 Thousands of activists are expected to converge on Chicago this week for the Democratic National Convention, hoping to call attention to abortion rights, economic injustice and the war in Gaza. While Vice President Kamala Harris has energized crowds of supporters as she prepares to accept the Democratic nomination, progressive activists maintain their mission remains the same. […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":5,"featured_media":31085,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1154],"tags":[3195,24718,1555,30105,1151],"class_list":["post-31084","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-trending","tag-activists","tag-cefire","tag-chicago","tag-democratic-national-convention","tag-gaza"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/ustower.net\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/31084","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/ustower.net\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/ustower.net\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ustower.net\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/5"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ustower.net\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=31084"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/ustower.net\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/31084\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":31086,"href":"https:\/\/ustower.net\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/31084\/revisions\/31086"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ustower.net\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/31085"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/ustower.net\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=31084"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ustower.net\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=31084"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ustower.net\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=31084"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}