“These are the enemies of the people and we have to go after these m—–f—–s,” said a protester wearing a black mask and sunglasses.
At the opposite end of the street, several dozen pro-Israel demonstrators emerged from behind a police barricade, adding to the tension.
Minutes later, the pro-Palestinian protesters were again confronted by riot police lines, where officers gave another order to disperse.
Later, the police officers tried to move the protesters away from the consulate to other streets through the narrow paths created by the walls where the officers were riding bicycles.
It didn’t work: Protesters regrouped and began marching through downtown Chicago on an improvised route.
They marched through some streets where traffic was not interrupted, and at one point they swallowed a taxi with passengers inside.
After several blocks, police officers dressed in riot gear began to gradually stop the group of protesters at various intersections.
On several occasions, riot police would halt the progress of the protest, escort members of the media through the crowd, make a handful of arrests, and order the remaining protesters to leave before allowing the dwindling crowd to move forward.
It culminated at the corner of Monroe and Canal streets, where police decisively broke up the protest, ordering people to disperse one last time before arresting many of the remaining protesters.
Israel’s Consulate General in the Midwest said late Tuesday that it was “horrified to see the violence during the protest in front of our offices.”
“This is pacifist and completely against the spirit of the DNC,” the statement said. “This minority does not represent the bipartisan overwhelming majority of Americans who strongly support Israel.”
The consulate said it was “disappointed by the mayor’s continued support of anti-Israel protests in Chicago, particularly during the DNC, and his continued disregard for the city’s large pro-Israel and Jewish community.”
He also expressed his gratitude to the law enforcement officers who protected the city during the congress.
It is the second day that protesters have clashed with the police. On Monday, between 3,000 and 6,000 protesters arrived at the DNC’s kickoff march to the Coalition to March. The protest was largely peaceful, except when dozens of protesters stormed a barricade at the closest point to the convention arena. The DNC 2024 Joint Information Center said in a statement that more than 10 people were arrested.
On Tuesday, Snelling said police were “busy” managing the protests.
Those involved in Monday’s breach are not representative of the march as a whole, he said.
“Within this protest, there were people who just wanted to exercise their First Amendment rights,” he said.