Protesting steals spotlight at RNC Wednesday

Wednesday brought new drama to both the inside and outside of the Quicken Loans arena in Cleveland.

From Sunday through Tuesday, police reported just five arrests, including three protestors who climbed a flagpole to hang a banner protesting fracking.

However, that number skyrocketed to 18, due to a number of scuffles between protestors and police, including one that involved a flag burning.

And Trump’s scheduled appearance on Thursday evening is only expected to bring even more demonstrators to downtown.

Not every gathering involving yelling and loudspeakers.

Some involve silent prayers or simply the displaying of signs.

Chelsea Byers came all the way from Los Angeles to fight for women’s rights through Code Pink.

Despite frequent arguments, she is unwavered.

“They can sit here and tell me all sorts of hateful hurtful things, and I’m just going to keep dancing and fighting for my rights,” she said with a smile.

Cleveland police expected protestors.

They just didn’t know how many.

Police Chief Calvin Williams said Wednesday, “We had no estimates or expectations on the number of protestors. Whoever shows up shows up, and we’re prepared to deal with it.”

Officers most often hang out on the perimeter of protests, only intervening as a way to de-escalate any tension that arises.

The most common tactic for separating groups is a bike.

CPD purchased quite a few of them in preparation for the event.

“They are effective in not only getting to locations, but being effective in separating out people and making sure there’s a physical barrier between groups, making sure people are safe,” said Williams.

The City of Cleveland created designated areas for both protesting and marching.

For the most part, the protestors and marchers have complied.

They hope that holds through Thursday night.