Are the DNC protests a made BY media event?
Comparisons to the 1968 DNC convention protests are feckless
Opinion
Chicago city officials along with the higher ups in CPD are wringing their hands and fretting over the possibility of what awaits parts of the city when the Democratic National Committee (DNC) kicks off at the end of this week. The primary concern is the threatened protests by pro-Palestinian groups. Some estimates are the number of protesters could reach 10,000. Countless news stories have made comparisons to anticipated violence, associated with the protests and what happened here when the Dems convene in 1968
At best it is a false analysis and one fueled primarily by the news media. The stark difference between any protests coming this week and those 56 years ago lies in the fact that then the situation being protested, primarily the Vietnam war, impacted Americans of every ilk. Neurosurgeons, silk stocking law firm attorneys, college presidents and many other elite professionals got the same news as the school janitor, hospital orderly and downtown doormen-the war had taken their sons’ lives. Most news reporting failed miserably to put the planned event in context of the actual one in 1968.
It was a reality that few could escape. Day after day there were news accounts of another young man, or group of men, who would never be back to sit on the porch with friends or argue over a foul call in a pick-up basketball. It was a near-impossible task to find someone who friend or family member died in the war, or came home with limbs missing, So, when it was time to protest, people descended on the Democratic convention as it was the party in power.
Nor can we overlook the fact that then-Gov, Otto Kerner was teetering on the brink of resignation, while today Gov. JB Pritzker made the short list to be the vice president running mate for Kamala Harris. There should be no surprises if Pritzker has the National Guard at the ready if he doesn’t like the direction the protests are taking.
Today, the number of Americans directly impacted by the Palestine-Israeli conflict is miniscule compared to the numbers in Vietnam. The war and devastation over there is real, but it doesn’t and won’t affect the vast majority of Americans the way 1966, 67 and 68 did. That translates to the protests planned for the DNC will not be as impactful or violent or out-of-control as the Vietnam era protests. Folks coming from every corner of the country to protest a war thousands of miles away that doesn’t directly impact them is not likely.
The news media, eager for THE story, has given a fleeting mention to the differences in the times when we juxtapose these protest situations. That has caused readers and viewers to buy into the narrative of how horrible these planned protests will be. The situation is reminiscent of Chicagoans debating whether the snowstorm of ‘67 was worse than the storm of 78.