More than a dozen protesters, some affiliated with the Sunrise Movement, repeatedly stopped the DNC forum proceedings throughout the first 30 minutes. After five individual interruptions, six more protesters surged toward the stage, attempting to unfurl a banner, before they were forcibly removed.
The moderators — MSNBC hosts Jen Psaki, Jonathan Capehart and Symone Sanders-Townsend — grew visibly frustrated by the frequent outbursts, even as they readjusted questions to address climate change.
“If anyone else feels the need to disrupt, please stand up and do it right now,” Sanders-Townsend said.
But the protests continued — becoming so distracting that some of the DNC chair candidates vented their annoyance. Jason Paul, a longshot among the eight contenders, accused the protesters of “hijack[ing] the whole evening” and turning “this into scream night at the DNC.”