Democratic Convention | ‘A Breath of Fresh Air’

(Chicago) The majestic Chicago Hilton still stands along Michigan Avenue, the emblematic artery of the third American city, and in front of Grant Park, the scene of violent clashes between police and demonstrators during the Democratic convention of 1968.

On Sunday afternoon, the same venue was teeming with proud and enthusiastic Democratic delegates from four states and a territory, preparing to take part in their party’s historic convention, which will open under tight security on Monday with an address by Joe Biden and conclude on Thursday with Kamala Harris’s inauguration speech as the first Black major-party presidential candidate.

Security will be tested in particular on Monday when tens of thousands of pro-Palestinian protesters try to make themselves seen and heard by delegates gathered at the United Center, an amphitheater surrounded by barricades and fences.

But the delegates at the Hilton weren’t thinking about the protests, which are expected to continue through Thursday. They were thinking only about the Democratic convention, whose list of speakers will include Barack Obama and Kamala Harris’ husband Doug Emhoff on Tuesday night, and Bill Clinton and the vice president’s running mate Tim Walz on Wednesday night.

“I was happy and proud to vote for Joe. And now I’m proud and beyond excited to vote for Kamala,” said Crystal Bazarnic, a 56-year-old delegate from Phoenix who was accompanied by a friend from Green Valley, Ariz. “Because my whole community is beyond excited. It’s a breath of fresh air for the party and for the country.”

The Hilton is one of seven major Chicago hotels that will host the nearly 5,000 delegates to the Democratic convention, plus thousands of elected officials, party officials and guests. Through Thursday, the hotel will house delegations from Michigan, Arizona, Iowa, Kansas and the Northern Mariana Islands.

One major hotel not included in the list of seven hotels is the Trump Tower in Chicago.

Joe Biden, with reverence

Several Democratic delegates refuse to mention the former president’s name, referring to him simply as “the former president” or “the other candidate.” They all speak reverently of Joe Biden, for whom they voted in the caucuses or primaries. And they expect the crowd at the United Center to give an emotional reception to a president who showed undeniable and troubling vulnerabilities during the presidential debate in Atlanta.

“It’s going to be huge,” predicted Joe Stutler, a delegate from Cedar Rapids, Iowa, and a veteran of Operation Desert Storm, the official name of the Gulf War.

Several delegates to the Democratic convention have their own stories to tell involving Joe Biden, whose withdrawal from the race transformed the presidential campaign and gave Democrats renewed hope. Laura Dickerson, regional director of the United Auto Workers, is among the group.

“I don’t think people really realize what he’s done for our country,” said the delegate from Detroit, Michigan. “That’s why I can say I would have been as proud to endorse him as I am to endorse Kamala Harris. In my district, he was the first sitting president to walk a picket line. I’ve met him several times. He’s the most union-friendly president we’ve ever had.”

But the unionist admits to recognizing herself in Kamala Harris as a black woman having to deal with racism and sexism.

“In the UAW, I also broke a glass ceiling,” she said. “I’m the first African-American woman to serve on the international executive board in the history of the union. I know sexism and racism and what people think and feel. But someone has to break the glass ceiling. She’s going to do it for all of us.”

A person before being a politician

Keith Williams, for his part, has his own personal experience with Kamala Harris. The 68-year-old chair of the Michigan Democratic Black Caucus recalls pledging his support for a possible presidential bid after hearing a speech in Detroit by the then-senator from California.

He put his money where his mouth is in 2019 when Kamala Harris launched her first presidential campaign.

However, due to a lack of sufficient political and financial support, Kamala Harris ended her first presidential campaign even before the first primaries of 2020.

But she never forgot Keith Williams.

“In 2021, I got a call from a withheld number. A woman’s voice asked, ‘Am I talking to Keith Williams? This is Kamala.’ I always thought of her as a person before she was a politician. Just the fact that she called me proved my first impression. She didn’t have to do that. A lot of people in her position would have forgotten about me.”