Political convention attendees are accustomed to hot air, but this is another matter: hard-core supporters of Senator Bernie Sanders are reportedly planning to stage a “fart-in” at the Democratic national convention in Philadelphia later this month, to protest the party’s policy platform and its nomination of Hillary Clinton for president.
Cheri Honkala, an organiser with anti-poverty group the Poor People’s Economic Human Rights Campaign, told US News and World Report that she had been stockpiling tins of beans sent from to her organisation’s Philadelphia headquarters by supporters, with donations wafting in from as far away as Texas and Wisconsin.
Mr Sanders officially endorsed Ms Clinton this week, saying his progressive vision for “a transformed America” would be “best served by the defeat of Donald Trump”. But many of the Senator’s followers remain unhappy about the choice between Mr Trump and Ms Clinton. “It’s like they're reality-show characters, two villains who can’t be trusted,” Ms Honkala said.
While the donations include navy, pinto and lima beans, Ms Honkala said baked beans would probably be the most popular with those taking part in the malodorous protest, who will eat the beans with hot dogs at designated feeding locations in Philadelphia, before being sent into the convention hall to unleash their collective flatulence on the unsuspecting delegates.
Dr Walter Tsou of the group Physicians for Social Responsibility, who lives in Philadelphia and plans to pass wind on the convention floor, said he was not satisfied with the Affordable Care Act and wanted to press for further healthcare reform. “The fart-in is to raise attention about things that really stink in our society,” he said.
Ms Honkala’s organisation also intends to protest at the Republican convention in Cleveland next week, but has no plans for a fart-in there. Perhaps one Trump is enough.
