Are we soon to witness 1968 all over again, where violence wracked the Chicago Democratic National Convention in the lead-up to the November presidential vote?
Many pundits have predicted exactly that, taking into account the George Floyd riots in the summer of 2020 and the ongoing pro-Hamas demonstrations roiling campuses across the nation. RedState’s Andrew Malcolm and Ward Clark have both delved into the issue before:
Déjà vu?
1968 Again? Protesters Also Aim to Gather in Chicago for Joe Biden’s Nomination
Democrats Fear Their 2024 National Convention May See Repeat of Violence in 1968
But let’s examine some numbers to get a better sense of the chances of chaos overtaking the Second City when Democrats meet there in late August to formally certify the decrepit incumbent President Joe Biden as their standard-bearer for the ’24 election.
Unlucky 7s?
Two numbers, both starting with “7,” trigger red flags:
Over 70 organizations have joined a coalition called “March on the DNC” and plan to protest President Joe Biden for being “complicit in the genocide” of Palestinians, a spokesperson for the group told Time Magazine. Despite the federal government granting $75 million to the city for security measures, Democratic Chicago Alderman Raymond Lopez told the Daily Caller that the incoming gatherings are “raising some serious concerns.”
Radicals are not exactly hiding their intentions to cause disorder in Chi-Town:
We have a clear message to @POTUS & the whole DNC establishment, including @GovPritzker who shamefully has not called on a Cease fire yet. If war criminal Netanyahu is allowed to attack Rafah with our tax dollars, we will reject the DNC in Chicago #PermanentCeasefireNOW https://t.co/L3cTiwy6hH
— Alderman Byron Sigcho Lopez for the 25th Ward (@SigchoFor25) February 14, 2024
“We will reject the DNC in Chicago?” What exactly does that mean? It doesn’t sound peaceful, that’s for sure.
Chicago has already seen plenty of unrest long before the convention gets underway, as Alderman Lopez points out:
“We’ve seen that these protests are not necessarily going to be contained just to the area where the Democratic National Convention happens. We have seen routinely on Fridays and Saturdays, weekend takeovers of our downtown district, our central business district, to Lakeshore drive — which is one of the main thoroughfares along the lakefront — and if those protests are in those areas, or worse, are happening in neighborhoods, that’s going to be a severe disruption that our police department quite frankly won’t be able to manage because they already have been having difficulties because of attrition and lack of response to hiring efforts.” [Bolding mine.]
The potential problem is one entirely of the Democrats’ own making, and should bedlam descend upon the Windy City this summer, they will deservedly take the blame. They lauded the purposeless (and depraved) “P-Hat” protests after Trump was inaugurated in 2017, they egged on the deadly, destructive George-Floyd BLM anarchy in 2020, and they’ve been celebrating the pro-Hamas mobs as just good people exercising their First Amendment rights instead of calling them out as the vandalistic, violent, antisemitic hooligans they so often are.
If you’re able to, chip in now to the @MNFreedomFund to help post bail for those protesting on the ground in Minnesota. https://t.co/t8LXowKIbw
— Kamala Harris (@KamalaHarris) June 1, 2020
I had the honor of seeing the Columbia University anti-war encampment firsthand.
Contrary to right-wing attacks, these students are joyfully protesting for peace and an end to the genocide taking place in Gaza.
I’m in awe of their bravery and courage. pic.twitter.com/yC6hcBMwCP
— Ilhan Omar (@IlhanMN) April 25, 2024
If we do see the convention roiled by turmoil and, God forbid, violence, and if disgusted Americans vote Trump into the Oval Office just as they voted in Richard Nixon in a ’68 landslide, many critics won’t be able to help themselves and will think, the “chickens are coming home to roost” for Dems.
