Dispirited convention protesters regroup
was going to get the nomination, but we still had our hopes and dreams,” English said. “But they were crushed yesterday.”
Four people arrested by the Secret Service on Tuesday appeared in federal court Wednesday and were released on their own recognizance. The four — the first to be taken into custody since the convention opened — were arrested after they scaled a barrier at the Wells Fargo Center. Shortly before, about 100 disgruntled Sanders’ supporters staged an unexpected sit-in in the convention’s media tents after Hillary Clinton won the nomination late Tuesday.
Lawyers representing those ar- rested questioned why protesters were relegated to FDR Park. “What good are First Amendment rights if you’re in the middle of a forest protesting?” one asked.
For more than two hours Wednesday at a rally outside the Municipal Services Building in Center City, voter after voter and Sanders delegate after Sanders delegate climbed the stage, shouting into a microphone as members of the crowd clapped and cheered, thrusting signs into air. “Bernie got screwed!” read one. “Keep the Movement Moving!” read another.
The crowd swelled to about 400 by 3 p.m. As music blared during intermittent water breaks — including songs “Power to the People” by John Lennon and the Plastic Ono Band and “Revolution” by the Beatles — the energy was decidedly resolute. Supporters who attended were not ready to support the status quo or the establishment, they said. Not ready to fall in line.
“The lesser evil is not lesser enough to not make our voices heard,” said Ivan DelSol, of Clinton. Wearing a giant poster of Bernie’s head attached to his backpack — DelSol said he was voting for Jill Stein.
A group from Westboro Baptist Church arrived at the rally at about 2 p.m., prompting police to form a line separating the two groups.