Chicago (USA), Aug 18 (EFE).- The city of Chicago has been sealed off since Sunday with a strong police presence and security cordons on the eve of the start of the Democratic National Convention on Monday and due to the forecast of protests with thousands of demonstrators against the role of the United States in the conflict in Gaza.
A strong presence of Chicago Police, both state and federal, has been deployed since today in the vicinity of the United Center and McCormick Place, where the Democratic Party will hold the conclave that will formalize, with the final acceptance speech, the candidacy of Vice President Kamala Harris to the White House in the November elections on Thursday.
Some 50,000 people attended this first fully in-person convention since the Covid-19 pandemic, including thousands of party representatives, volunteers and journalists from around the world.
Security measures have been extended throughout the city for fear of a repeat of the scenes of the famous 1968 Democratic convention, where protests against the Vietnam War left one dead, hundreds arrested and moments of police violence in a year of great political tension.
Several demonstrations are expected this week against the role of the administration of US President Joe Biden in supporting Israel during the conflict in Gaza, which has already claimed 40,000 civilian lives, according to health authorities in the Palestinian enclave, and is an unprecedented humanitarian tragedy in 10 months of war.
The Coalition to March on the DNC has called for protests on Monday and Thursday, and hopes to draw more than 20,000 people from across the country to call for an end to the war in Gaza.
Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson, who has a long history of progressive activism, has said he will guarantee the right to protest during the Democratic convention, after organizers of the main rally sued the city for not allowing them to have a stage and speakers and march closer to the United Center.
Chicago faces a long week of road closures, traffic and possible riots, but with a Democratic National Convention inside the United Center that will show unity after Biden’s withdrawal from re-election.
It is expected that among the guests at this political conclave there will be celebrities and top-notch artists, which could further complicate the logistics of this congress. EFE
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