Protests at Democratic Convention Remain Peaceful

Through the first day at least, the 2024 Democratic National Convention (DNC) was nothing like the 1968 DNC.

Protesters upset with the United States’ role supporting Israel in the war in Gaza had invoked the chaotic 1968 convention as a backdrop for planned 2024 protests—a comparison several media outlets amplified. There are similarities: both conventions are taking place in Chicago amidst a spring and summer that saw widespread protests on college campuses. The Democratic Party also had an unusual nomination process in which the presumed nominee quit the race relatively late in the election cycle.

Reports from day one of 2024, however, reveal a mostly peaceful, relatively small scale protest—far different from the constant violent clashes between police and protesters that resulted in hundreds of arrests and scores of injuries in 1968.

The only minor incident reported on the first day of 2024—which was expected to be the heaviest day of protest—was when a throng of protesters broke through a fence, the outer perimeter of the security zone. Police officers were able to cut the protesters off, surround them, and usher them out of the secure zone. There was pushing and shoving, but no injuries reported, and authorities repaired the fence.

Approximately 200 protesters attempted to set up a tent city in Union Park, which is the closest large open space to convention activities, but police chased them away.

The Chicago Tribune reported that “four to six people had been arrested” on Monday.

“At no point was the inner perimeter breached, and there was no threat to any protectees,” police said in a statement Monday evening.

According to the Associated Press, “organizers had hoped at least 20,000 people would take part in Monday’s rally and march, but it appeared that only a few thousand were present, though city officials declined to give a crowd estimate.”

It remains to be seen if the protests will grow in numbers or influence, with some expecting at least a minor disruption when U.S. Vice President Kamala Harris is scheduled to accept the nomination on Thursday.

Meanwhile, U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said Israel has accepted the latest proposal to continue cease fire discussions. Blinken called on Hamas to do the same, while noting that there were many “complex issues” remaining that required “hard decisions by leaders.”