(NewsNation) — Pro-Palestinian protests continued Wednesday on the third day of the Democratic National Convention with a group of delegates staging a sit-in outside of the United Center in Chicago.
The small group of “uncommitted” delegates demanded that a Palestinian speaker be allowed to address the crowd from the convention’s main stage. Rep. Ilhan Omar, D-Minn., eventually joined their protest.
The sit-in started after families of Israeli hostages held by Hamas in Gaza spoke during Wednesday’s program, pushing for an end to the Israel-Hamas war.
“We know the one thing that can most immediately release pressure and bring calm to the entire region: a deal that brings this diverse group of 109 hostages home and ends the suffering of the innocent civilians in Gaza,” said Jon Polin, whose son, Hersh Goldberg-Polin, is being held hostage in Gaza.
No Palestinian-Americans have been allowed to speak, leading some, including Democratic lawmakers, to accuse party leaders of stifling Palestinian voices.
“Let it be laid bare for the American public to know that the Democratic Party, unfortunately, as of this moment, is choosing to suppress the voices of Palestinian-Americans,” said Abbas Alawieh, an uncommitted delegate from Michigan.
Whether that message landed with other delegates remains unclear, as people leaving the convention appeared to ignore the protests leaving the United Center.
Another large march is set for Thursday, starting at Chicago’s Union Park, less than a mile from the United Center where the DNC is taking place. It’s expected to be the biggest protest surrounding the DNC this week.
Crowds rally on Day 3 of DNC
Wednesday’s protest was nowhere near as chaotic as on Tuesday when dozens of people were arrested following clashes between police and pro-Palestinian demonstrators outside of the Israeli Consulate.
The protest, approved in the eleventh hour, gathered in Union Park.
Around 400 to 500 people gathered with only a permit to demonstrate at the park and not march to the DNC. An organizer told NewsNation they planned to march to the DNC anyway.
“Right now, we’re trying to stop a war. We’re trying to stop a genocide. We’re trying to stop tens of thousands who have already been killed and tens of thousands, potentially, who will be killed,” the organizer said. “And that means we got to try everything. And that means disruptions. That means escalations, put pressure on them. Make it no business as usual.”
A pro-Israel demonstration called “Unity against terror” began at 5 p.m. CT at Park No. 578 less than a mile from the pro-Palestinian demonstration. The demonstration wrapped up after about 45 minutes.
Organizers were aware that the pro-Palestinian group might try to march but said they were confident that police would do their job to keep them safe. About 50 people were gathered.
A Chicago Police Department source told NewsNation that negotiations were happening to prevent a march. Superintendent Larry Snelling was involved.
The pro-Palestinian protesters reached Park No. 578, but police prevented them from entering.
The crowd later dispersed.
Arrests on Day 2 of the DNC
The Chicago chapter of the National Lawyers Guild said at least 72 people were arrested at Tuesday’s protests. Snelling, meanwhile, said during a Wednesday news conference 55-60 were arrested, 22 of whom came from out of town. Three journalists were among those arrested, he said.
Two protesters were taken to hospital, Snelling told reporters, one with knee pain and the other with an issue concerning their finger. Two officers also suffered “minimal, minor” injuries, but refused medical attention, he said.
Snelling praised his officers for keeping protesters back after some charged at a line of police that blocked the group from marching. Some protesters eventually moved past the officers but were pinned in several times throughout the night by police in riot gear who did not allow them to disperse.
A large portion of the arrests happened at the end of the night, as police pinned the remaining demonstrators — some of whom said they were trying to get home — in a plaza and blocked them from leaving.
Members of the Chicago chapter of the National Lawyers Guild called the police response aggressive. A volunteer attorney for the National Lawyers Guild told the Chicago Sun-Times that people were surrounded, corralled and it was “nearly impossible for people to leave.”
“These were people who were attempting to march or press who were attempting to cover that,” the attorney told the newspaper.
Snelling denied police had “kettled” protesters. The mass arrest was declared, Snelling said Wednesday, after officers were physically confronted. He maintained that police were not initiators of any violence and their response was proportional. There were also nasty, explicit things said to some female cops, Snelling said.
Protests didn’t end in the streets. Some demonstrators crashed the “Late Show with Stephen Colbert’s” live interview with former House Speaker and current Rep. Nancy Pelosi. In response, Pelosi said a two-state solution is needed to have peace between Israel and Palestine.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.