United States Vice President Kamala Harris closed off the four-day Democratic National Convention (DNC) by accepting the party’s nomination as the presidential candidate come time for voting in November, and giving a closing speech.
“You can always trust me to put country above party and self. To hold sacred America’s fundamental principles. From the rule of law. To free and fair elections. To the peaceful transfer of power,” Harris said, closing out the speech on Aug. 22.
Yet, the final day of the convention also marked issues involving lack of coordination for the event itself, as there was limited seating for mass media teams, delegates, and Congress members.
“We were told that somebody took our seats, that multiple people took our seats. We have eleven delegates that are uncommitted from Minnesota, and I think it’s ridiculous that we’re told that those seats are gone. Less than an hour away from confirming they don’t have a space on stage for a Palestinian either,” an unidentified Palestinian protester said in passing.
Outside the United Center and in nearby areas such as Union Park, participants also witnessed a multitude of protests centered around the Israeli/Palestinian crisis. Those protests carried into the arena itself, with delegates in support of Palestine locking arms and roaming the halls looking for a response to the lack of acknowledgement and representation. As reported by PBS News, the Uncommitted National Movement claimed negotiations aimed at securing a Palestinian American speaker at the convention stalled; leaders with the organization “say a Democratic National Committee official called and delivered a firm response: ‘The answer is no.’”
Meanwhile, the parks and streets near the exits of the DNC were surrounded by police, who monitored protestors as they chanted for a “ceasefire now,” or called out, “No justice, no peace.”
“I don’t know why it is such a conflicting view. It’s very obvious that the Israeli government is violating international law on a daily basis, and their soldiers are constantly showing this, but unfortunately both Republicans and Democrats get paid lots of money from pro-Israeli groups like AIPAC (American Israel Public Affairs Committee), and it makes them have decisions based on the money versus what’s the right thing to do,” veteran John Green said.
The war itself continues to remain a divisive conflict, and Harris devoted a segment of her acceptance speech at the DNC to the ongoing conflict.
“President Biden and I are working to end this war such that Israel is secure, the hostages are released, the suffering in Gaza ends, and the Palestinian people can realize their right to dignity, security, freedom, and self-determination,” Harris said.
For more photos, check out Sebastian Alarcon’s slideshow “Protests in and out of DNC highlight frustrations over Palestine, leadership.”
