Burlingame, California – Hundreds of protesters against Donald Trump gathered outside the hotel where the California GOP convention was scheduled to be held on Friday. The Republican front-runner had to enter the reunion through a side door accompanied by his staff members.
The diverse groups yelled slogans such as “racist, sexist and dump the Trump,” and some were carrying Mexican flags and bandanas. Police officials were at the scene trying to avoid violent altercation between supporters and protesters.
Demonstrators also formed a human chain by sitting on the pavement across the street near the hotel, while barricades were set up to avoid the group to enter the hotel, although they tried but failed due to police officials, as reported by the New York Times.
Once Trump got to the convention to address conservative activists in one of the most progressive regions of the country, he joked and commented that the entrance was not the easiest he has ever made and added that “it felt like I was crossing the border.”
One Trump supporter said he was allegedly kicked, punched and spit on by some of the protesters in the scene, even though he refused to get any medical attention at all. Chris Conway, 51, was wearing a cap with the Republican front-runner’s slogan “Make America Great Again.” Police were concerned for his safety and pulled him over hedges outside the hotel and away from the crowd, as reported by CNN.
Organizing the protest
Ever since the visit from Trump was announced, activist groups like the Anti Police-Terror Project, Black Lives Matter Bay Area, Black Youth Project 100 Bay Area and the BlackOUT Collective, have been organizing the protest on social media. Several peculiar artefacts like a Trump-piñata were brought by some members.
“Donald Trump represents the vile underbelly of American democracy by where black people are both disenfranchised and disregarded,” commented Robbie Clark, an organizer with Black Lives Matter Bay Area.
There were also people like Adrian Olivares, a 23-year-old college student who was draped in a Mexican flag. He said that he was there to support his people and his father with the main goal of displaying his flag as loud as he can.
Source: The New York Times