In what was reported to be the first of many demonstrations being organized by CODEPINK Madison, a demonstration was held in Milwaukee on June 8 for the two-day convention of the state Democratic Party, June 8-9. About 10 protesters intervened on Saturday, June 8, during Sen. Tammy Baldwin’s address, “calling for the defunding of Israel’s military and accusing the senator of being complicit in genocide,” according to the Cap Times, a a newspaper and news agency based in the capital, Madison.
At the same time, about 70 demonstrators stood across the street from the convention at the Potawatomi Casino and Hotel in Milwaukee, holding signboards against U.S. policy in Gaza, and some waved Palestinian flags. In Madison, about 60 demonstrators gathered in a circle on June 8 under the Capitol Rotunda in a silent vigil, with a Palestinian flag and banner reading, “Silent Vigil 4 Rafah, Biden This Is Our Red Line,” on the floor in the center of the ring.
The protests were triggered by the decision of the Democrats’ convention to table two of three resolutions calling for a ceasefire in the Israeli/Hamas conflict. On June 9, the delegates will consider policies to be included in the national Democratic Party platform.
“One [resolution] called for ‘an immediate ceasefire in Gaza,’ a second resolution called for ‘an immediate and permanent ceasefire in the Israeli/Hamas conflict, the funding and facilitation of desperately needed humanitarian aid to Gaza and a concerted effort to reach a two-state solution to the broader conflict,’ and a third proposal called to “change leadership in Israel,” Cap Times reported.
