CHICAGO — The protests outside the Democratic National Convention, entering its second day, have already far outnumbered the demonstrations in Milwaukee a month ago, when former President Donald Trump accepted his party’s presidential nomination at the Republican National Convention. The biggest reason protesters have turned out: the war in Gaza.
While the Democratic Party formally embraces a two-state solution, according to the party platform released this week, progressive elements within the party have long expressed frustration with President Joe Biden over the issue, claiming he hasn’t sufficiently pressured Israel to cease the attacks it has leveled on Gaza in the 10 months since the Oct. 7 attack.
Trump, meanwhile, has issued many notable criticisms of Hamas. He said last week that if he is elected he would “deport pro-Hamas radicals,” and he has encouraged Israel to “finish the problem” in eliminating Hamas.
Vice President Kamala Harris has expressed support for a cease-fire, while Trump hasn’t.
Still, Republicans didn’t face the same ire at their convention, and the reason protesters in Chicago said they showed up here, instead, is to hold the party currently in power accountable.
Protesters said they were more enthusiastic about showing up at the Democratic convention, which kicked off Monday, for a variety of reasons. Most prominently, they include the progressive protesters’ belief that they may have a far more viable path to persuading a Harris-led ticket to enact meaningful policy change over the war in Gaza. But many also said they’re angry with Democrats because they believe that as the incumbent party, they hold more responsibility for the war than Republicans right now.
“I want to push the Democratic Party on a lot of issues,” said Jacob Smith, 32, a software engineer who traveled from Detroit and attended Monday afternoon’s protest, at which several thousand people marched. He listed “stopping the genocide in Gaza” and achieving a “permanent cease-fire” as chief among them.
He said he felt both parties were “equally beholden to special and corporate interests.”
“They’re both basically right-wing parties at this point,” he said, adding, “But in general Democrats are a little better than Republicans.”
Smith said he hasn’t decided whom he wants to vote for yet, and he wouldn’t offer whom he’s considering, other than that it “won’t be Trump.”
Smith said he felt it was more important to protest the Biden-Harris administration because “it’s the administration that has aided and abetted an ongoing, visible genocide.”
“The country is run by Democrats right now. This is happening on their watch,” he said.
Smith said he was hopeful that Democratic Party leaders would be more likely to listen to such protest efforts “because progressive voters are part of their base — maybe they’ll be more likely to listen to us” than Republicans.
Smith didn’t attend any of the far smaller protests at the RNC.
“Obviously, protesting Republican policies is a good thing,” he said, “but how much of a policy change is it really realistic to expect would happen that way.”
“It’s about efficacy in a lot of ways,” Smith added. “Where are your actions going to be most effective?”
Lauren Pineiro, 24, a restaurant worker from Florida, also joined the smaller protests at the Republican convention.
“I was happy to protest against Trump and the racist reactionary agenda of that party. But I think the reason why it was smaller is just because the Democrats are in power right now, and they’re the ones that have been overseeing this genocide,” she said. “I think that’s why people feel more strongly to come here, even though a lot of people do care about fighting back against Trump’s agenda.”
Fred Schein, 76, a lifelong Chicago resident, said, “Trump is a fascist, and I would never vote for him, but the Democrats are the ones in power during this war.”
He said that while this year’s protests are centered on the war in Gaza, “they also are really wrapping in quite a lot of issues,” he said, listing reproductive rights, climate change and immigrant rights as a few examples.
Annie Weiler, 28, a marketing manager from Knoxville, Tennessee, said she hoped the protest effort would help guide the Harris campaign to pivot not just on tone but also on policy when it comes to the war in Gaza.
“Right now, Kamala Harris still has the option to help stop funding this war,” she said.
“I am a Democrat, but it is hard to support Kamala Harris when she is openly supporting Israel in this conflict,” Weiler added.
Sean Parmelee, 36, marched Monday with a sign that read, “We’re trying to help you, Kamala.”
He means it earnestly.
“I’m voting for her — but many people here are not,” said Parmelee, a Chicago resident. “Honestly, she is making it very hard for them.”
“Look at all this energy. She can have it all if she chooses,” he said.
Parmelee said he’s protesting because pushing for a cease-fire and an arms embargo on Israel “is the right thing to do.”
“And it’s the right strategy for Kamala Harris,” he said.
As Parmelee spoke, a protest organizer wielding a megaphone led the crowd in a loud chant of “Harris, Harris, what do you say, how many kids have you killed today?”
Sydney Loving, 29, a teacher from Dallas, said she was protesting now at the Democrats’ convention instead of at the Republicans’ last month because she sees the Biden administration as “the architects of the genocide in Gaza.”
“It’s just that simple fact — they’re the ones who are in office, writing the checks, who are sending the missiles and all this stuff,” Loving said.
Mariana Espana, 17, a student in Chicago who will be old enough to vote by Election Day, said she was here to help push Harris specifically to “act on a cease-fire for Palestine” because “it’s such a tragedy to see these kids dying.”
“I personally support Kamala. A Trump presidency would be a disaster. But I feel it’s important to push Kamala to push for a cease-fire,” she said.
“I think it would help her campaign, because it would help rally this wing of the party,” she said.
