1968 Democratic Convention

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Preview Assignment Given what you know about American history and the late 1960s and early 1970s, write about what you think would happen when police and protestors came together outside the Democratic Convention in Chicago in Use the picture to help inform your thought.

State of the Democratic Party In 1968 the Democratic Party was divided. Senators Eugene McCarthy and Robert F. Kennedy had entered the campaign in March, challenging Johnson for the Democratic nomination. Vice President Hubert Humphrey then entered into the race Johnson, facing dissent within his party, had dropped out of the race on March 31.

Robert F Kennedy Assassinated After Kennedy's assassination on June 5, the Democratic Party's divisions grew.

Two Sides of the Party When it came to choosing a candidate, on one side stood supporters of Senator McCarthy, who ran a decidedly anti-war campaign and who was seen as the peace candidate. On the other side was Vice President Humphrey, who was seen as the candidate who represented the Johnson point of view.

Chaos in Chicago A large number of demonstrators appeared outside of the convention in order to protest the pro-war section of the Democratic Party. Rioting took place between demonstrators and the Chicago Police Department, and the Illinois National Guard.

Size of the Protests and Riots In the end, 10,000 demonstrators gathered in Chicago for the convention where they were met by 23,000 police and National Guardsmen.

Day of the Police Riot August 28, 1968 came to be known as the day a "police riot" took place. The entire event took place live under the T.V. lights for seventeen minutes with the crowd shouting, "The whole world is watching"

End Result Hubert Humphrey was nominated. It was often commented through the popular media that on that evening, America decided to vote for Richard Nixon.

Election Influence The convention helped to influence Americans to vote for Richard Nixon. Nixon supported and increased the intensity of the Vietnam War.

Chicago Seven Page 4 timeline book. In the aftermath of what was later characterized as a police riot by the U.S. National Commission on the Causes and Prevention of Violence, a federal grand jury indicted eight demonstrators and eight police officers. Originally the Chicago Eight, before one of the defendants insulted the judge and was held in contempt of court, and sentenced to 4 years in prison. There then remained seven defendants.

Chicago Seven President Lyndon Johnson's Attorney General, Ramsey Clark, discouraged an indictment, believing that the violence during the convention was primarily caused by actions of the Chicago police. The grand jury returned indictments only after President Richard Nixon took office and John Mitchell assumed the office of Attorney General.

Chicago Seven On March 20, 1969, eight protesters were charged with various crimes and eight police officers were charged with civil rights violations.

Chicago Seven On February 18, 1970, all seven defendants were found not guilty of conspiracy. Two were acquitted completely, while the remaining five were convicted of crossing state lines with the intent to incite a riot, a crime instituted by the anti-riot provisions of the Civil Rights Act of 1968.

Chicago Seven On February 20, they were sentenced to five years in prison. In addition, they were fined $5,000 each. $5,000 in 1970 is worth around $30,663 today.

Chicago Seven On November 21, 1972, all of the convictions were reversed by the United States Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit on the basis that the judge was biased in his refusal to permit defense attorneys to screen prospective jurors for cultural and racial bias.