CLEVELAND — “No justice, no peace” could be heard reverberating throughout the Public Square.
Police officers flanked crowds of demonstrators on each side of the street as people made their way through the Square in downtown Cleveland on Monday afternoon. The first major rally kicked off with hundreds of protesters flooding the streets, attracting crowds and chanting anti-Trump sentiments.
The Minnesota Immigrant Rights Action Committee led the march, and members said they were in Cleveland to protest presumptive Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump, as well as racism, deportation of immigrants, border walls and Islamophobia in the U.S.
Participants held handmade signs reading “Defend Black Lives Matter” and “Trump Terrorizes,” all while chanting “The whole damn system is guilty as hell.”
According to the group’s website, the official demands of the march are: “Dump Trump, Say No to the Republican Agenda, Stand Against Racist, Anti-Immigrant and Anti-Muslim Attacks and We Demand Peace, Justice and Equality.”
The “Dump Trump” demonstration, however, was not part of the original list of groups permitted to march during the convention, but demonstrators said they would make sure the protest was carried out peacefully.
Committee leader Kait McIntyre, 27, said the group was fighting “up until the last minute” to receive approval from the Cleveland Mayor’s office to march.
“We wanted to get within sight and sound of the convention,” she said. “We wanted to get our voices heard and we have the right to make them see us.”
McIntyre said she was in Cleveland this week to oppose the Republican nominee, as well as fight against racism and inequality in the United States. Other participants carried a large red banner at the front of the march, as well as a flag with a Monarch Butterfly, reading, “FREEDOM,” and “NO BORDERS.”
An inflatable sex doll with “Trump Pence 2016” scribbled onto its pelvic region and a blonde wig glued to its head trailed demonstrators throughout the march as well.
However, the Dump Trump demonstrators and other, separate marchers seemed to blend together at times, confusing observers and sending mixed messages. A small group of anti-vaccine activists trailed the larger movement, as well as another group aiming to protect the voices of all marchers.
A team of human rights observers from Amnesty International USA dressed in bright yellow tee shirts shadowed marchers throughout the afternoon, aiming to protect the First Amendment rights of all wishing to make their voices known.
Spokesman Eric Ferrero said it was the first time the organization has come to a political convention in the U.S., but believed it was necessary for the group to be present at the RNC in Cleveland, as well as the Democratic National Convention next week in Philadelphia.
He said there is an ongoing “heated rhetoric on both sides,” and the group aims to protect those who wish to take to the streets, regardless of their message.
The Dump Trump activists concluded their march in the Veterans Memorial Square, calling for all communities to work together to fight racism and inequality.
No arrests were made in relation to the march and the protest remained peaceful until the end.
“There was no violence here today,” said McIntyre.
