Chicago Democrats allow anti-Israel protesters to march, while prohibiting pro-Israel Jews
During the Democratic National Convention in Chicago this week, citizens will gather to express their support for Israel and protest against the abuses of Hamas.
However, the Jewish gathering will not be participating in a march. Instead, they will convene on a small private lot several blocks away from the convention as thousands of pro-Palestinian protesters take to the streets.
Their request for a permit has been denied by Democratic Mayor Brandon Johnson.
While pro-Palestinian protesters have been accommodated and even received recognition from President Joe Biden in his convention speech, the Jewish protesters are only able to meet on a private lot provided by a generous owner.
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</aside>Despite pro-Palestinian protesters straying off permitted routes and breaching security fencing, it is reported that the Jewish protesters will be confined to this private lot under the supervision of the Chicago Police Department.
Additionally, while pro-Palestinian and pro-abortion protesters have been granted permission to march, Planned Parenthood is celebrating Vice President Kamala Harris’s nomination with free abortions, the Jewish protesters are unable to march with images of the Hamas hostages in Gaza.
Josh Weiner, co-founder of Chicago Jewish Alliance, confirmed that the group was denied permits and will walk around approved protests to “make their presence felt.”
He noted that “pro-Palestine protesters have been granted multiple permits, including a march, which appears to favor one side.”
For Chicago residents like myself, the treatment of the pro-Israel protesters at the DNC is both ironic and disturbing.
More than four decades ago, Nazis marched through Skokie, Illinois, despite the large population of Holocaust survivors in the predominantly Jewish city.
The Skokie case is known as a pivotal moment for free speech, allowing a small group of anti-Semites and racists to march despite public opposition. The Nazis were outnumbered 70-1 by counterprotesters and soon faded into obscurity.
Now, Jewish marchers are being prevented from marching through Chicago, presumably because it would be “too disruptive.”
The city’s approach is transparently hostile towards the Jewish protesters.
The Johnson administration worked closely with Democratic leadership on convention plans. Despite the Jewish groups submitting their permit request in June, they were denied while pro-Palestinian protesters were allowed to march.
The city delayed the permit request process and later claimed the Jewish groups did not apply in time when they had renewed their requests multiple times. The groups accused the city of not responding to their repeated efforts to address the permits.
However, Hatem Abudayyeh, executive director of the Arab American Action Network, stated that the mayor expressed his support: “The mayor has always backed the protest movement. The protest movement is what got him into City Hall. . . . He said, ‘I understand that struggle. Because I am part of a national liberation struggle as well.’
It was evident that many Democrats did not want Jews to march.
Unfortunately, such treatment is not uncommon for Israel supporters. In one instance, a Columbia professor had his school access card deactivated because his presence might anger anti-Israel protesters.
In another case in England, a Jewish man was told he could not walk on a street because “you are quite openly Jewish,” which may incite pro-Palestinian marchers.
The treatment of the Jewish groups outside the convention in Chicago starkly contrasts with the speeches inside the convention. Speaker after speaker proclaimed the party as the defender of the Constitution and free speech.
Yet, in this celebration of constitutional freedom, the actual exercise of those freedoms by unpopular groups is not tolerated.
In a matter of five decades, Jewish groups have become too controversial to march. The Israeli-American Council has chosen to host a Hostage Square display on private property after waiting in vain for a march permit.
For many of us who experienced the Skokie controversy in 1978, the irony is profound. While Nazis could march in Skokie, Jewish marchers will not be allowed in Chicago.
Jonathan Turley is the Shapiro Professor of Public Interest Law at George Washington University and the author of “The Indispensable Right: Free Speech in an Age of Rage” (Simon & Schuster).
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