Hundreds of demonstrators converged Monday on downtown Milwaukee to protest around the Republican National Convention, following through on their long-standing plans to rally outside the site despite the assassination attempt on former President Donald Trump.
The protests were peaceful, as organizers had promised they would be. Only two people were arrested.
A wide range of organizations and activists gathered in a downtown park outside the Fiserv Forum's security perimeter to listen to speakers ahead of a street march coordinated by The Coalition to March on the RNC. The coalition, comprised largely of local groups, supports abortion and immigrant rights and is pressing to end the war in Gaza.
The atmosphere was festive, with music playing over loud speakers, a man strumming a guitar and vendors selling T-shirts and buttons supporting both Republicans and Democrats. One protester wore an orange prison jumpsuit with a giant Trump cutout for a face. Activists carried signs that read, “Stand with Palestine,” “We Can No Longer Afford the Rich,” and “Defend and Expand Immigrant Rights.”
At one point a group of demonstrators got in an argument with counter-protesters who denounced LGBTQ+ rights, Muslims, Black Lives Matter and women.
Counter-protester Rich Penkoski of Stillwater, Oklahoma, bellowed through a bullhorn that women should go home and make sandwiches for their husbands. The demonstrators eventually walked away from the counter-protesters as police looked on.
At noon, the demonstrators set off on the march around the arena's security perimeter in temperatures approaching 90 degrees Fahrenheit (32 degrees Celsius), chanting “Hey-hey, ho-ho, Republicans have got to go” and “This is what democracy looks like." Many carried Palestinian flags.
Marchers passed within a block of Fiserv Forum on the edge of the arena's security zone before returning to the downtown park where they began. The Milwaukee Police Department estimated the crowd at between 700 and 800 people.
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The Philadelphia-based group Poor People’s Army, which advocates for economic justice, marched later Monday.
Perennial Green Party presidential candidate Jill Stein addressed the group, calling for less military spending and larger investments in public education, social housing and health care. She didn't mention the assassination attempt.
Cheri Honkala, 60, said she traveled to Milwaukee from one of the poorest districts in Pennsylvania to “send a strong message to all politicians” that people living below the poverty line “are not surviving.”
Honkala said she was nervous after the attempted assassination of Trump about potential encounters with law enforcement officers and counter protesters while she marches with the Poor People’s Army. But she said she wasn’t deterred.
“The climate is definitely a scary one," she said, "but you know what’s scarier? Not saying anything.”
Milwaukee police said two people were arrested Monday as of 9:30 p.m. One was cited for disorderly conduct after police said he intentionally disrupted protesters and the other person was arrested after police said she intentionally blocked a vehicle check point.
By Monday night, the streets of downtown Milwaukee were largely quiet.
At one of the convention’s main entrances, a sole anti-Trump protester stood holding a sign, telling those entering the arena to “enjoy the clown show.”
Anthony Marlow, a retired sanitation worker, said he had spent the day protesting the convention, arguing at times with Trump supporters.
“I want them to know they are not welcome in this great city,” he said. Referencing Trump’s reported denigration of Milwaukee weeks earlier, Marlow said Trump doesn’t appreciate Milwaukee.
The attempted assassination of Trump on Saturday night in Pennsylvania prompted widespread calls to improve security and raised questions about Trump's safety in Milwaukee — he arrived in the city on Sunday — as well as that of other convention-goers.
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U.S. Secret Service Director Kimberly Cheatle said Monday that the Secret Service and other law enforcement agencies have “reviewed and strengthened” the convention security plan and they will continuously adapt their operations as needed. She added that the Secret Service also has made changes to Trump's security detail. She didn't elaborate.
A heavy police presence in the city was assured, with officers from multiple jurisdictions providing security. Pentagon officials said 1,700 National Guard troops, mostly from Minnesota, Wisconsin and North Dakota, were on active duty at the convention as well. Milwaukee officials and federal authorities have repeatedly said their priority is safety and insist they've made free speech accommodations.
Many activists are using the experience in Milwaukee to prepare for the Democratic National Convention in Chicago next month. That event is expected to draw even more people, and Chicago police have been undergoing training on constitutional policing and preparing for the possibility of mass arrests.