A coalition planning to protest at the upcoming Democratic National Convention in Chicago has struck a last-minute deal with city officials, satisfying many of the group's demands with a stage and sound system at Union Park, only blocks from the security perimeter.
“We won what we needed to win,” Hatem Abudayyeh, a spokesperson for the coalition said.
The agreement includes a stage, a sound system and portable toilets to be placed in the park. It does not include tents, which the city previously said could be used to hide the activities of the protesters.
Although the Republican National Convention attracted approximately 3,000 protesters to Milwaukee, the DNC could attract tens of thousands of protesters, owing to Democrats currently being in power at the executive level, with protesters hoping to influence current policy issues like U.S. support for Israel in the Israel-Hamas war.
“We don’t know the exact number, but it’s going to be big,” Abudayyeh said. “I believe that it could end up being the largest protest in the history of Chicago for Palestinian rights.”
Protesters said the deal was made possible because of a direct appeal to Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson, who was a union organizer before he was a politician.
“The superintendent and I have made very clear is that we want to protect their rights in an environment that allows their voices to be maximized and heard,” Johnson said Friday morning while unveiling the new CPD helicopter that will be used during the convention.
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Former First Deputy Superintendent Anthony Riccio helped draft the Chicago Police response to the NATO protests in 2012, and is now the director of public safety for Monterrey Security.
Riccio said he appreciates the training and preparation the current administration has put into its DNC preparations, while offering a piece of advice: continue to support the men and women who will be working out there.
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“Let them know you have their backs,” Riccio said.
