Despite smaller crowds, activists at Democrats’ convention call Chicago anti-war protests a success

CHICAGO (AP) — As far as Chicago’s storied protests go, the numbers outside the Democratic National Convention were unremarkable. But organizers say they did something leaders inside didn’t: Make the war in Gaza part of the agenda.

The stakes were high for Chicago. Despite hosting more political conventions than any other American city, comparisons to the infamous 1968 convention, when police clashed with protesters on live television, were hard to shake. And one small unsanctioned protest that resulted in dozens of arrests and tense police standoffs didn’t help.

But organizers who won the right to protest near the United Center, and police, who spent more than a year preparing, say they were successful in broadcasting different narratives about the nation’s third-largest city.

“This is a very large contingent of people who are not willing to stand by quietly while people who are committing genocide are in our city,” said student organizer Liz Rathburn. “We showed the world that.”

Expectations for massive protests in Chicago — which came a month after the Republican National Convention in Milwaukee — were high. The largest protest in Milwaukee during the convention was roughly 1,000 people.

<bsp-list-loadmore data-module="" class=«PageListStandardB» data-gtm-region=«RELATED COVERAGE» data-gtm-topic=«No Value» data-show-loadmore=«true» data-gtm-modulestyle=«List B»> <bsp-custom-headline custom-headline=«div»> RELATED COVERAGE </bsp-custom-headline> <bsp-custom-headline custom-headline=«div»> AP Week in Pictures: Global </bsp-custom-headline> <bsp-custom-headline custom-headline=«div»> Bagent leads Chicago to 34-21 preseason win over Chiefs; Bears’ Coleman taken away on a stretcher </bsp-custom-headline>