There is a risk of unrest during the Democratic National Convention (DNC) in Chicago, leading to serious violence that could spill over into the suburbs, officials told The Daily Caller.
More than 70 groups plan to join a coalition called the Democratic National Convention to protest President Joe Biden’s “complicity” in the genocide of Palestinians, a spokesman for the groups said. Said TIME magazine. Despite the federal government giving the city $75 million for safety measures, Democratic Chicago Councilman Raymond Lopez told the Daily Caller that future rallies “raise serious concerns.”
“People are not coming here to have a peaceful protest. They are coming here to bring back a badge of honor, or some kind of badge of shame, that was hurled at them by the police’s weapons and say, ‘Look, here are my bruises. Here is my broken arm. Here is my cracked head from fighting and leading the resistance in Chicago,'” Lopez said.
“We must be prepared for anything as Democratic Socialists on City Council and other individuals have openly advocated for forming organizations without authorization, organizing protests and counter-protests, and preparing for an event even bigger than 1968, one of the most politically dark chapters in the history of this city.”
Lopez specifically singled out fellow Democratic Councilman Byron Sigcho-Lopez, a member of the Chicago Council Democratic Socialists Caucus, who has voiced support for anti-Israel activists.
Sigcho Lopez did not respond to The Daily Caller’s request for comment by time of publication.
Sigcho Lopez attended a rally in March calling for a ceasefire in Gaza and protesting Biden’s handling of the war, where someone burned an American flag. according to “A group of Chicago aldermen criticized his attendance and called for an apology,” he told ABC 7 Chicago.
“I was certainly there, but I didn’t know this was happening until I got there. There were also photos circulating accusing people of burning the flag, which is not only false but malicious,” Sigcho Lopez responded. “The most American right we have is our First Amendment rights.”
Sigcho Lopez also called for the cancellation of the Democratic National Convention in protest of America’s continued support for Israel: “We will opt out of the DNC in Chicago if we allow war criminal Netanyahu to use our tax dollars to attack Rafah,” he tweeted in February.
We have a clear message president The entire Democratic National Committee organization; Governor Pritzker Shamefully, we have yet to call a ceasefire. We will veto the Democratic National Convention in Chicago if we allow war criminal Netanyahu to use our tax dollars to attack Rafah. #PermanentCeasefireNow https://t.co/L3cTiwy6hH
— 25th Ward Councilman Byron Sigcho Lopez (@SigchoFor25) February 14, 2024
During the 1968 Democratic National Convention in Chicago, tens of thousands of demonstrators took to the city’s streets to protest the Vietnam War.
History at the scene of police and protesters clashing Explained At the time, many protest groups applied for permits to rally in the city’s Lincoln Park, but only one received permission, but thousands still gathered.
This year’s tournament could be marred by similar rebellion.
A Chicago Department of Transportation (DOT) spokesperson told the Daily Caller that at least seven groups had been denied permits to demonstrate near the United Center.
“All applications were denied after a review by multiple city departments to identify potential conflicts and safety issues and assess the availability of resources needed to support the gatherings,” Erica Schroeder, public affairs director for the Chicago Department of Transportation, said in a statement.
Organizers said they would march in the city with or without a permit, and have sued the city on First Amendment grounds, according to Time magazine.
Protesters plan The coalition plans to hold marches on both the first and last days of the convention. Hatem Abdaye, a spokesman for the coalition, told TIME that they want Biden to “stop funding and arms sales to Israel.”
The city suggested a different location, four miles away from the convention center, for protesters to air their grievances, according to TIME, but Lopez warned that all signs point to protesters spilling into the city and potentially overwhelming police.
“We know that these protests are not necessarily limited to the area where the Democratic National Convention is being held. We regularly see weekend occupations on Fridays and Saturdays in the downtown area, the central business district and Lake Shore Drive, one of the main roads along the lakefront. If protests were to take place in these areas, or even worse, in neighboring areas, it would create significant disruption that the police department frankly would not be able to handle, as the department is already struggling with staffing cuts and unresponsive hiring efforts.”
Republican Illinois Rep. John Cabello offered a similar outlook for the future.
“Unfortunately, I think emotions will run high and things will change,” Cabello told the Daily Caller. “I think there will be arrests. I think anyone who tries to disrupt our democracy should be arrested if they try to stop that. I’m a Republican, but the Democrats should have a convention where they have the right to do what they need to do. If someone wants to stop that, I think they need to be arrested and have their books thrown out.”
Pro-Palestinian activists have urged voters to support alternative voting options, such as “independent,” in the Democratic presidential primary because of Biden’s handling of the war. In Michigan’s February election, more than 100,000 voters, or 13.3%, voted “independent.”
In March, another 48,000 people voted “independent” in Washington’s Democratic primary.
Biden is also facing backlash from donor countries over his decision to withhold aid to Israel if it breaks his red line on Rafah, and internal staff have criticized him for backing Israel, according to Axios.
In January, 17 anonymous Biden staffers letter They called for a ceasefire, implored the president to end unconditional military aid to Israel and “end the situation of apartheid, occupation and ethnic cleansing” that they say Israel is perpetrating.
Since the Hamas terrorist attack on Israel on October 7, a wave of pro-Palestinian demonstrations has swept across the country, especially on university campuses. Students and faculty at many universities, including the University of Southern California, Columbia University, Yale University, and the University of Michigan, have occupied campuses, vandalized property, and clashed with police, resulting in tense standoffs.
Lopez likened the wave of protests to a dress rehearsal for the party convention. (Related article: More than half of those arrested at campus protests were outside agitators, report says)
“I fully respect the United States Constitution, the First Amendment, and the freedom of assembly,” Lopez continued. “It’s a God-given right of every American. But we have to be clear about one thing. If protesting requires fortifications and weapons, then you can’t possibly have a peaceful assembly. There are ways in which you can allow free speech, and there are ways in which you shouldn’t allow protesting.”
