The Un-United State of America

By Scott Galindez, Reader Supported News

23 July 16

 

f you had been on the streets of Cleveland this week, you would have witnessed a country being torn apart at the seams by … Americans. Members of the KKK and right-wing hate groups clashing across police lines with progressives and liberals of all races. Then there were the folks from Westboro Baptist Church and other religious fanatics telling everyone that they were going to Hell.

Divisions on the right and the left were on display. People with the same long-term goals were arguing about how to achieve them. Yes, I did say the left too. There was no one unifying event that sent a strong message to the Republicans convening in the city, and they too did not have an event that showed any unity.

Donald trump and Hillary Clinton ... Really? Two extremely divisive figures are vying to lead our country. I know Jill Stein is running, but the system is rigged against anyone who isn’t a Democrat or a Republican. That goes for Gary Johnson too.

I am sitting at an outdoor cafe on 4th Street in Cleveland. The mood is tense. Hare Krishna drums can be heard as people mill about. It is a narrow street that leads to the arena where Donald Trump is about to accept the Republican nomination. There are hundreds if not thousands of people passing by. Some supporters of “The Donald” and many protesters. There are also some here to just witness the spectacle.

Twenty-four hours ago, the festive atmosphere was shattered when police and protesters clashed during a flag-burning by the Revolutionary Communist Party. It was timed to take place amidst hundreds of Trump supporters on their way to the convention. Eighteen arrests were made, and for a brief time there was a melee with police tackling protesters and holding back delegates who wanted to implement their own justice.

Overall it has been an uneventful week. The big excitement was Ted Cruz being booed and Melania Trump getting caught plagiarizing. I heard that the Texas delegates came to blows. Members of the KKK had urine thrown on them by protesters, and that’s about it. I think there were under 50 convention-related arrests in Cleveland.

The week started for me on a high note. The People’s Peace and Justice Conference got off to a great start with a rousing speech from the Rev. Jawanza Colvin. Colvin closed with a litany of motions that he would like put in a party platform.

On Day 2, we went to a rally of black nationalists and Cornel West. Former New Black Panther Party leader Malik Shabazz was a lead organizer of the event. “Mr. Trump is an uncouth racist. But it’s not just Mr. Trump,” Shabazz told about 200 protesters on hand. “It’s an indictment on America. That a racist can be a hair away from being in the White House is an embarrassment for America.”

Shabazz wasn’t enthused by presumptive Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton either. “Hillary Clinton and her slick, sly politicized speech … she isn’t that much better,” Shabazz said. “She’ll just kill you nicely.”

Day 3 was Sunday, and the mood was shattered by news of the shooting in Baton Rouge. I was reflecting on Day 2 and realizing that Dallas and Baton Rouge will not be isolated incidents. I was in a downtown that had had police from all over the country patrolling. That night there was a concert with Mary Mary and the Roots. Cornel West spoke, and to my surprise so did Jim Brown. Their words on the killings were perfectly timed.

Day 4 for us was Day 1 of the convention. In the streets, Prophets of Rage led the largest demonstration of the week as thousands rallied to protest Donald Trump’s candidacy and to "End Poverty Now, March for Economic Justice.” Anti-poverty activists and performers spoke from a stage in an empty lot on East 45th Street. The crowd continued to slowly build as word got out that Prophets of Rage, the new Super group formed by Rage Against the Machine guitarist Tom Morello, would perform a pop-up concert there. Public Enemy’s Chuck D, who is part of the newly formed group, shouted “The party is over!” as the group started their set. Following the concert they marched with the crowd to Perk Plaza near the convention site. Morello said they were not there “to speak to Donald Trump but instead to provide wind in the sails of the anti-poverty movement.”

On Tuesday and Wednesday we spent a lot of time in Public Square, where people on all sides of the issues shouted at each other and accomplished nothing. There were no highlights; it was disunity at its best. You can look at our raw footage and see for yourself what happened. That brings us back to tonight.

Tonight Donald will tell everyone that he is our voice. Most of us know who he is really talking to. Let’s add it up: Birthers, he speaks for them, all right. Anti-Muslim groups, he speaks for them. People who don’t like Mexicans, he speaks for them. Racists like David Duke ... Trump is okay with David Duke when the South is voting like he was days before super Tuesday, but not okay with them when it hurts his campaign. Still, he speaks for them. The 1% of which he is a member, he speaks for them. Let’s be clear, Donald Trump is the establishment. They are uneasy with him because they don’t control him, but they know he is one of them.

I have higher hopes for the streets of Philadelphia and the events around the Democratic Convention. There will be a unifier there who really is my voice. And I am trying hard to be his voice. On to the next phase of the political revolution.

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Scott Galindez attended Syracuse University, where he first became politically active. The writings of El Salvador's slain archbishop Oscar Romero and the on-campus South Africa divestment movement converted him from a Reagan supporter to an activist for Peace and Justice. Over the years he has been influenced by the likes of Philip Berrigan, William Thomas, Mitch Snyder, Don White, Lisa Fithian, and Paul Wellstone. Scott met Marc Ash while organizing counterinaugural events after George W. Bush's first stolen election. Scott will be spending a year covering the presidential election from Iowa.

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