When Americans turned on their television sets to watch the Democratic National Convention in August 1968, they instead saw images of chaos in Chicago. Anti-war protesters and police clashed numerous times during the convention. On August 28 in what would become the most televised confrontation, police entered a gathering of 10,000 protesters, swinging nightsticks and pushing the crowd back off the street. Throughout the ensuing confusion, a distinct chant could be heard from the crowd: "The whole world is watching. The whole world is watching." And thanks to television cameras and still photographers, they were right. Nearly 83 million Americans watched the events on television, and the images quickly traveled around the globe.
"Hello Democrats Welcome to Chicago," 1968
Using the good press of "The City That Works" and his political clout, Mayor Daley had persuaded the Democratic Party to hold their 1968 presidential convention in Chicago. A buoyant Daley boasted that the city knew how to throw a national political party convention--23 of the previous 56 had been held in Chicago.
See also: Democratic Party; Political Conventions; Political Culture; Daley's Chicago; Year Page: 1968
Protesters Gather in Grant Park, 1968
Protesters gather in Grant Park near Columbus and Balbo on August 28 preparing for a march on Michigan Avenue.
See also: Park Districts; Plan of Chicago (Digital Essay); Waterfront; Antiwar Movements; Daley's Chicago; Grant Park; Political Conventions; Year Page: 1968
Democratic Convention Protests, 1968
Protest organizer Tom Hayden, furious over a brutal, unprovoked police attack on Rennie Davis, voiced the protesters' frustration and anticipated what would happen: "This city and the military machine it had aimed at us won't permit us to protest. . . . Therefore we must move out of this park in groups throughout the city and turn this excited, overheated military machine against itself. Let us make sure that if blood is going to flow, let it flow all over this city. If gas is going to be used, let that gas come down all over Chicago. . . . If we are going to be disrupted and violated, let this whole stinking city be disrupted and violated."
See also: Antiwar Movements; Daley's Chicago; Police; Political Conventions; Year Page: 1968
"We Support Mayor Daley," 1968
Post-convention polls showed a great majority of Americans approved of the Chicago policemen's use of force and Mayor Daley's strong stand against disorder. Ironically, Mayor Daley, a political and economic liberal who believed that government had an obligation to foster a more equitable society, became a hero to Americans who shared few of Daley's core beliefs.
See also: Police; Political Conventions; Racism, Ethnicity, and White Identity; Daley's Chicago; Year Page: 1968
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The Electronic Encyclopedia of Chicago © 2005 Chicago Historical Society.
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