WASHINGTON — Pro-Palestinian protesters are looking to puncture the festive bubble this weekend surrounding the White House Correspondents’ Association Dinner — one of the capital’s biggest parties of the year, with attendees including President Joe Biden, top government officials and leading journalists.
“This culture of being invited to rub shoulders with the administration is problematic as is, but only more so now,” said Eman Mohammed, a freelance photojournalist from Gaza who is now based in the U.S. and plans to attend the rally Saturday.
The concentration of lawmakers, media personalities and the president and his retinue in one place have long made the dinner an attractive target for activists looking to take advantage of a high-profile Washington event.
Last year, climate protesters occupied the sidewalks around the hotel and temporarily blocked its main driveway, forcing guests to depart their vehicles early and walk past the picketers into the venue.
The Secret Service, which controls security at any event the president attends, is prepared for any possibility, since Biden has consistently drawn protesters at nearly every public event he has held in the past few months, including at a private fundraiser in New York City in late March with former Presidents Barack Obama and Bill Clinton.
The hotel was the site of the assassination attempt on then-President Ronald Reagan in 1981, an event that led to many changes in presidential security protocols.
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