Photo of protestors at Donald Trump rally in Chicago, by Charles Rex Arbogast/AP
Protestors at Donald Trump's rally Friday night raised their voices in opposition of the reality television star and Republican presidential candidate, chanting Kendrick Lamar's "Alright" during an event at the University of Illinois at Chicago.
The massive rally broke into chaos when organizers announced around 6:30 p.m. local time the event—which was scheduled to start at 6 p.m.—had been canceled due to "security concerns."
Although the GOP frontrunner was spared from any outbursts by skipping the event, as many as 8,500 attendees were left to themselves in the UIC Pavilion, with limited security or crowd control efforts in place.
By the time law enforcement arrived, multiple fights had broken out as the scene quickly descended into turmoil, with both Trump supporters and protesters taking aim at each other physically and verbally.
Trump, who is already a constant figure on cable news, called in to CNN, MSNBC and Fox News, seemingly glossing over the severity of tonight's events: “I just don’t want to see people hurt,” he told MSNBC in a phone interview explaining why the rally was canceled. “We can come back and do it another time."
The chaos at Friday night's rally comes as violence has become increasingly more common at Trump's events, including a St. Louis brawl which left at least one man bloodied with dozens others arrested.
Another Trump supporter was arrested and charged with assault Thursday after multiple videos showed him punching a protestor who was walking by him at a rally in Fayetteville, N.C.
Trump, who has previously encouraged his fans to "knock the crap" out of naysayers at his events, defended recent events during a CNN Republican debate on Thursday night, citing his supporters' "tremendous passion and love for the country ... There is some anger. There’s also great love for the country. It’s a beautiful thing in many respects."
Should Trump win the bulk of the delegates in this Tuesday's five primaries, many political pundits believe he could seal the GOP nomination and be one step closer to actually becoming the President of the United States—in real life.
#TrumpRally protesters chant "We gonna be alright" after announcement of a Trump no-show. pic.twitter.com/FXce08oWzI
— Chicago Reader (@Chicago_Reader) March 12, 2016