TVC E. When Bernie Sanders offered his official nomination of Hillary Clinton for the presidency Tuesday evening, dozens of ‘Bernie or Bust’ delegates rejected the Vermont senator’s convention floor concession.
Even as Sanders called to “move that Hillary Clinton be selected as the nominee of the Democratic party,” his devotees staged a disruptive walk-out from the convention floor, marching through the Wells Fargo Center arena and plunking down at a media tent outside.
Bernie Sanders fans are staging a walkout now after Hillary Clinton is nominated.
AdvertisementMany of the protesters had taken a symbolic vow of silence ahead of the action, symbolizing what they felt was the Democratic National Committee’s conspiracy of “silencing” pro-Sanders supporters. After a few minutes of yes-no questions, protester Christopher VanderStouwe said “dozens” of social media groups had planned the protest over the previous days, in the hopes that Sanders-supporting delegates would be able to air their grievances with the DNC.
“We have, like, messengers that are supposed to be being interviewed and the rest of us are silenced,” VanderStouwe said, but “some people decided to speak on their own anyway.”
It was several minutes after the initial entrance of protesters until the pounding of state troopers could be heard outside stalls reserved for members of the press, by which time protesters had taken up shop in the B Tent, the central tent home to foreign press, USA Today, the Huffington Post and other outlets covering the convention.
AdvertisementMultiple uniformed state patrol officers declined repeated requests for comments regarding whether there had been a plan in place for such a protest.
Jeffrey Rabinovitch, a lieutenant with the Philadelphia police department, said “the plan is in progress”.
