Milwaukee pro-Palestinian protesters outside DNC say neither Harris, Trump deserves support
Numerous groups of Milwaukeeans were among thousands of protesters marching in Chicago to put pressure on Democrats to end aid to Israel, and they seemed energized by the larger platform and national spotlight on their cause.
The turnout near the United Center, where the Democratic National Convention is taking place, was much larger than pro-Palestinian protests in Milwaukee last month, presumably because protesters saw more of an opportunity to be heard, and to pressure Vice President Kamala Harris to take a tougher stance with Israel — or lose protesters' votes.
But many, including the Milwaukee protesters, took the wind out of their own message, saying nothing Harris could do would earn their vote at this point. They planned to vote for a third-party candidate such as Jill Stein of the Green Party.
"The popular opinion right now, especially among young folks, is that we don't want to be stuck in a two-party system that doesn't represent us," said University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee student Kayla Patterson. "At the end of the day, we just can't abide."
Patterson, a member of the Students for a Democratic Society, was part of the protest encampment at UW-Milwaukee this spring. She was ticketed for interrupting a UW Board of Regents meeting earlier this summer, leading to a citation she said has resulted in her being unable to register for fall classes. UWM administrators have been working to set up meetings to address the registration situation, she said.
About 15 UWM students with the SDS group took part in the Chicago march Monday, Patterson said. Organizers gave her a bullhorn to lead chants along the march.
More: UW-Milwaukee temporarily suspends pro-Palestinian groups for 'intimidating' post
Omar Flores was the co-chair of the Coalition to March on the RNC in Milwaukee, a protest that drew about 500 people. He joined a much larger group of protesters in Chicago — although the several thousand that showed up were significantly smaller than organizers' predictions of 20,000 or more.
"Democrats cannot defeat the Republicans without defeating the genocide first," Flores told a crowd in Union Park, about a half-mile from the arena. "If they don't do it, we're going to force them."
He led the group in a chant: "When we fight, we win." It echoes a slogan Harris has used in her campaign.
Ryan Hamann, an organizer with the Wisconsin branch of the Freedom Road Socialist Organization, estimated about 150 to 200 Wisconsinites were at the rally, including about 100 who rode to Chicago on chartered buses.
For Hamann, the march was something of a do-over. He helped organize a march on the DNC in 2020 in Milwaukee, but the COVID-19 pandemic meant the convention mostly moved online.
Four years later, he was in Chicago's Union Park with a new goal: Convince Harris to stop arms shipments to Israel, and do more to end the war in Gaza.
"It really demonstrates this widespread discontent with how things are, and discontent that we don't have a choice when it comes to these politicians," Hamann said, arguing Harris was selected as the Democratic candidate without the input of the American people.
Two Milwaukee activists traveled to Chicago with a different aim. They wanted to draw attention to the dire humanitarian situation in Yemen. They disagreed with recent U.S. airstrikes on Houthi rebel targets in Yemen and argued the bombing campaign created worse living conditions for civilians in the country.
The Houthis, an Iran-backed militia group, have been attacking ships in the Red Sea over the last several months.
Anita Herrezuelo, 24, the chair of Milwaukee for Yemen, said nothing Harris and the Democrats could do now would change her mind. She is disillusioned by U.S. policy on Yemen and Israel.
"Maybe in October, they could've won our vote, but we're in August now," Herrezuelo said. "Neither one of these candidates (Harris and Trump) deserve our votes."
The Israel-Hamas war is personal to Dunya Yasin, 24, a resident of Chicago's Little Palestine neighborhood and a college student. Two of her cousins in the West Bank have been detained by Israel for months.
She works with a group that encourages Arab Americans to register to vote. But it's a "slap in the face" for her community to be encouraged to vote for Harris, she said. She wants the U.S. provide more aid to the Palestinian people and create a plan for the future of Israel and the Palestinian territories.
"It's not only a ceasefire, but an actual plan for Palestine to be free," Yasin said.
Sophie Carson is a general assignment reporter who reports on religion and faith, immigrants and refugees and more. Contact her at [email protected] or 920-323-5758. Tamia Fowlkes is a Public Investigator reporter. Reach Tamia at [email protected]. Follow her on X at @tamiafowlkes.
This article originally appeared on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: Milwaukee protesters at DNC in Chicago call for end of aid to Israel
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