From the Liveblog of
Wednesday, August 21, 2024
4 detained after protesters charge line of cops outside Israeli consulate in Chicago
CHICAGO — Police handcuff at least four people and lead them away from a pro-Palestinian demonstration after protesters charge a line of officers on the second night of the Democratic National Convention.
A small crowd of a few dozen protesters chanted “Let them go!” outside a Chicago skyscraper that houses the Israeli consulate while police penned demonstrators in on the street, preventing them from marching. Officers with wood clubs pushed protesters back, shouting “move.”
Some demonstrators set an American flag on fire in the street as the celebratory roll call for Vice President Kamala Harris took place 2 miles away. Others carried Palestinian flags, while many others wore black and covered their faces.
BREAKING: Heavy clashes, mass arrests as Protesters against DNC push against Chicago Police line outside Israeli Consulate pic.twitter.com/pixV0eKYTp
— Oliya Scootercaster ???? (@ScooterCasterNY) August 21, 2024
A man in Chicago Bulls hat, his face covered by a balaclava, called on protesters to “shut down the DNC.” The group, which is not the same coalition of over 200 groups that organized Monday’s protests, advertised the demonstration Tuesday under the slogan of “Make it great like ’68,” invoking the anti-Vietnam War protests that seized the city during the 1968 Democratic National Convention.
Dozens of Chicago police officers are posted outside the building, where law enforcement had closed down most of the entrances, allowing commuters to come in only one entrance where armed officers were also posted. Many of the building’s shops were closed. Martha Hill, a spokeswoman for the Metra commuter rail service, says train service is running as normal.
