DNC in Philly: How Philly Came Through
Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton plays with balloons during a celebration on stage during the final day of the Democratic National Convention in Philadelphia, Thursday, July 28, 2016.
A week ago today, the madness started.
No one knew how Philly would fare when the Democratic National Convention came to town. On convention kickoff night, multiple attempts to rile the crowd at the mention of Philly didn’t go over so well. The reaction to Mayor Jim Kenney‘s shoutout to Philly during his remarks was less than favorable.
But several days have passed since the DNC in Philly, and the clouds have lifted (if not literally). Before everything returns to normal, let’s take a second to pat ourselves on the back. Here’s why:
There were no major issues between protestors and Philadelphia police.
Only 11 protestors were arrested last week, and it’s because they scaled a security fence and breached a Secret Service zone permitted only for those with credentials. The protestors knew what they were doing. And police knew to promptly arrest them without issue.
Otherwise, 103 people received $50 citations, thanks to a policy the city put in play shortly before the convention that decriminalized nuisance crimes. In a time when relations between police and the community are notably tense in America, this is a success story.
When out-of-town reporters and others bashed Philly on Twitter, Philly fought back.
Yes, Philly was heavily criticized on Twitter during the DNC, but some residents weren’t having any of it.
SEPTA provided, for the most part.
The best way to get to the convention last week was decidedly SEPTA. The Broad Street line was crowded at times – but let’s face it, people will always find something to complain about with SEPTA. All things considered, public transportation ran fairly smoothly – perhaps even smoother than cabs, Uber and Lyft. The only exception was the temporary decision to cut service between Oregon Station and the AT&T station (the one closest to the Wells Fargo Center) to all but those with convention credentials.
Protestors put on a good show.
The T-shirts were amazing. Someone dressed in a giant rat suit. There was a 51-foot inflatable joint. And in the most impressive display, hundreds of people formed a “Great Wall of Love” to thwart Westboro Baptist Church protestors, toting hilarious signage in the process.
No one parked on the Broad Street median.
Believe it or not, it’s true. Even if it didn’t last long.
This guy couldn't wait to park in the middle of broad again pic.twitter.com/tXJheOsJU4
— Amy (@AmyLeighP) July 29, 2016
The city made history.
For the first time, a major party selected a woman as its presidential nominee. And Hillary Clinton returned the love. In a post-DNC speech Wednesday, Clinton praised Philly.
Follow @ClaireSasko on Twitter.
