Political parallels between 1968 and 2024 as the Democrats return to Chicago

 

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The whole world is watching.

They want to see what unfolds this week in Chicago as Democrats convene their quadrennial political convention and anoint Vice President Harris as their 2024 standard-bearer.

But, the mantra "the whole world is watching" is from 1968.

That was a battle cry from demonstrators who descended on the Democratic convention in Chicago in 1968. They brawled with delegates, reporters and police. The war in Vietnam raged. And anti-war protesters wanted the world to know how they felt. So what better opportunity to converge on the Democratic convention and air their grievances – often within the view finder of a television camera.

The 1968 Democratic convention  was the most volatile in American history.

Democrats hope to avoid such controversies this year. But with raucous, anti-Israel protests raging on college campuses and across the nation all spring, that may be tough to avoid. Moreover, this highlights the schism in the Democratic Party over the Middle East.

As they said in 1968, the world is watching.