1968 Democratic National Convention

The 1968 Democratic National Convention of the Democratic Party was held at the International Amphitheatre in Chicago, Illinois, from August 26 to August 29, 1968. Because U.S. President Lyndon B. Johnson had announced that he would not seek re-election, the convention was to select a new presidential nominee to run as the party's candidate for the office. The keynote speaker was Hawaii Democratic Senator Daniel Inouye. 

Vice President Hubert Humphrey and Maine Senator Edmund S. Muskie were nominated for president and vice president.

The convention was held during a year of violence, political turbulence, and civil unrest, particularly riots in more than 100 cities following the assassination of Martin Luther King, Jr. on April 4. The convention also followed the June 5 assassination of the Democratic presidential hopeful New York Senator Robert F. Kennedy of New York. Both Kennedy and Minnesota Senator Eugene McCarthy of Minnesota had been running against the eventual Democratic presidential nominee, Humphrey. Another candidate was South Dakota Senator George McGovern.

Chicago Mayor Richard J. Daley intended to showcase his and the city's achievements to national Democrats and the news media. Instead, the proceedings became notorious for the large number of demonstrators and the use of force by the Chicago Police Departtment during what was supposed to be, in the words of the Yippie activist organizers, “A Festival of Life.” Riots and protests took place between demonstrators and the police, who were assisted by the Illinois National Guard. The disturbances were well publicized by the mass media, with some journalists and reporters being caught up in the violence. The network newsmen Mike Wallace and Dan Rather were roughed up by the police inside the halls of the convention.

References

Other websites
1968 Democratic National Convention  at Smithsonian Magazine
Chicago '68: A Chronology
Chicago '68: An Introduction, by Dean Blobaum (2000)

Democratic National Convention
Category:1960s in Chicago
Category:United States presidential nominating conventions
Category:Democratic Party (United States)
Category:August events