Hundreds of protestors spilt onto the streets of Philadelphia yesterday to protest the Democratic National Convention and support Senator Bernie Sanders after the revelation of emails showing DNC officials seemingly trying to put a stop to the Vermont Senator’s campaign for the Presidency in favor of Hillary Clinton.
The Democratic National Convention opened yesterday afternoon with the main protests occurring just outside the security zone in FDR Park and at City Hall downtown. No incidents or arrests had been reported as of the afternoon, with officials citing the heat as their primary concern. Police Commissioner, Richard Ross, said the protests had so far been entirely peaceful. It is expected that 50,000, including immigration protestors, will descend on Philadelphia every day over the course of the convention, though that figure had not been reached on Monday.
The Republican National Convention was hosted in Cleveland last week. It passed with no major incidents and friendly interactions between police officers and activists. Around 100 protesters gathered at City Hall rallying for the Equality Coalition, many supporting Bernie Sanders and critical of the Democratic National Convention. Cory James, a 22-year-old from Flint, Michigan, noted that he could never vote for Hillary Clinton and that he felt the Democratic Party was less interested in supporting him than it was corporate interests.
100 people also attended an immigration rally demanding that the DNC consider policies that help immigrants and shut down deportation centers for the undocumented.