though protests, meetings, events, mixers had been taking place all weekend, monday was the first actual day of the democratic national convention.

our hotel, the hilton doubletree valley forge, served as home for the week for not only the hawaii delegation, but also idaho, utah, north and south dakota, and west virginia. they’re delegations were similarly sized to hawaii….

starting on monday (July 25, 2016), all the delegations met first thing in the morning for breakfast to hear welcome messages from some of the delegations and presentations from speakers they had invited (hawaii’s was on thursday). the breakfasts were really the only time, aside from sitting together at the convention, when the entire delegation was together, so it was a great time to develop a comradery. we also received our credentials for the day at that time.

we had gotten word a day or two before that bernie sanders had scheduled an event/meeting for all of his delegates at the philadelphia convention center. of course, the bernie delegates were thrilled, especially given that there weren’t many, if any, from hawaii that had previously had the opportunity to see him in person.

the event was scheduled for just after noon, so we had to get ourselves organized for the day; once we left the hotel, it wouldn’t be possible for us to return before arriving at the wells fargo center for the 4pm opening gavel. though there were hourly shuttles from the hotel to the convention center, monday we decided to use the city’s public transportation system to get into the city. a nearby train took us to a station where we caught the subway.

once in the city, others made their way to the convention center while, as the hawaii point person for progressive democrats of america, i made a quick detour to a nearby marriot, where i met briefly with a staffer to collect stickers and other materials to share with other bernie supporters and like-minded people i met. then i raced back the three or four block back to be there in time to hear bernie speak.

bernie had publicly endorsed hillary two or three weeks prior, but there were still a lot of his followers that were disappointed and angry with that decision and that anger was expressed at that meeting on monday.

i was stunned, myself, with the strong reaction from so many in the room; that bernie sanders, the hero to so many, would have been booed by his own people would never have occurred to me as a possibility. to witness it first hand made me a bit angry. little did i know, this was just a glimpse of things to come as the week went on.

among the speakers on monday that proceeded the senator was rosario dawson. i’d her clips from her here and there over the last several months, but her assessment on monday of the campaign and the work that still needed to be done going forward was without doubt among the best i’ve heard:

And they booed her too….

by the time the event was over, it was time for delegates to make their way to the wells fargo center for the convention’s opening gavel. there were shuttles transporting delegates, but some of us chose again to use the city’s fabulous public transportation as there’s a subway line that ends right at the wells fargo center.

we’d been told security would be tight and take some time, but we passed through quickly and with no trouble. the five minute walk from the security checkpoint to the entrance of the center was exciting as our anticipation built for the events of the evening.

among them was the passage of the most progressive platform the dnc has ever had and a new rule limiting the influence of super delegates on nomination process in future presidential races: two huge victories for bernie sanders and his supporters.

once inside, it wasn’t long before the official business of the convention began.

as the evening proceeded, there were loud boos and chants in protest of some of the speakers who blatantly ignored the bernie campaign, their efforts, or the fact that no roll call vote for the nomination had taken place; though hillary’s nomination was a foregone conclusion, many bernie delegates, including myself, felt strongly the dnc and clinton-surrogate speakers made no effort to acknowledge the work of the senator’s campaign, nor made any overtures of unity. whether this was meant as an intentional slight, or was simply a short-sighted tone-deaf ignorance, it only served to enrage and embolden the bernie delegates toward protests and angry outbursts.

for my party, i only booed once during the evening’s proceedings; the woman (whose name i can’t recall) who conducted opening prayer referenced hillary clinton in her benediction. i found it highly inappropriate. otherwise, though i shared the anger of my fellow bernie delegates, i didn’t join in on “bernie” chants and persistent and prolonged boos, as i didn’t believe it served the interests or messaging of our long-term goals.

following the votes of the day, the agenda proceeded with various speakers until the primetime hour came and bernie sanders spoke to the crowd. of course i think he did a fantastic job and witnessing his speech in person was absolutely one of the highlights of my time at the convention. unfortunately, his speech to the convention was also met with boos when he again encouraged his supporters to transfer their efforts and energy to the election of hillary clinton in november. as he ended his speech and exited stage left, he did receive a standing ovation, cheers, and tears….

first lady, michelle obama was the last speaker for the first day. she gave a rousing and inspiring speech, definitely one of the best of the entire convention.

by the time the convention was gaveled into recess, it was 11:30pm. delegates scrambled for busses back to their respective hotels. hanging back to make sure all our delegates knew where to go, i boarded the last bus back and made it back in time for one beer and a bowl of clam chowder which served as a very late dinner.

it had been a good, exhausting first day of the convention, with only small frustrations, but as i crawled into bed i had no idea what was in store for tuesday, convention day two.