Chicago’s top cop says city will be ready for protesters at DNC but ‘we’re not going to tolerate violence’

Chicago’s top cop on Wednesday said his officers are preparing to walk a fine line during this summer’s Democratic National Convention by allowing protesters to have their voices heard while tamping down any violence or vandalism.

During a City Hall news conference detailing convention planning, Police Supt. Larry Snelling said departmental training has focused on learning from the department’s past failures and building on the successes, like the response to the 2012 NATO Summit.

“We want to make sure that we maintain peace. We’re going to police constitutionally, but we’re also not going to tolerate the violence,” said Snelling, who was joined by Mayor Brandon Johnson and other officials discussing the convention from Aug. 19-24.

Snelling made a distinction between the types of demonstrations that are expected during the DNC and “pop-up” protests that were sparked by George Floyd’s murder at the hands of a Minneapolis cop that gave way to widespread looting and gun violence.

He specifically pushed back on a scathing report by the city’s inspector general’s office that found officers were “outflanked, under-equipped and unprepared,” and that the department “critically disserved both its own front-line members and members of the public.”

“This was a bunch of protesters who converged upon the city,” he said. “There was civil unrest across the entire city. It was violent, there were vehicles burned, officers were attacked, people were murdered in the middle of this. I don’t believe the report accounted for that.”

Snelling acknowledged, however, officers had not been “properly prepared.”

But he noted that the handling of the NATO Summit “proved that our officers could provide a service in a large-scale protest that was completely constitutional,” crediting the use of bicycles, “soft uniforms” and de-escalation tactics.

“We were proactive but what we didn’t want to do is overreact,” he said. “And our officers did not do that.”

The police handling of the Floyd protests was also lambasted by the team tracking the department’s compliance with a federal court order mandating sweeping changes to policies and practices.

Snelling said the department is now working closely with that team to make sure officers have the green light to use certain “tactics” ahead of the convention.

In recent months, Snelling said, officers “have responded in an incredible way” to large-scale protests, like those calling for a ceasefire to the Israel-Hamas war.

“We haven’t seen things get out of control or get out of hand,” he said, “We’re working with organizers to make sure that we have a clear understanding of what those organizers are looking for, what they want, their route.

Looking forward to the DNC, Snelling made a commitment to residents across the city that “your neighborhoods will be safe” even as police resources are stretched.

Asked whether he will request assistance from the Illinois National Guard, Mayor Johnson simply said officials “haven’t made a determination of what else is needed.”

Although the Secret Service will establish the usual perimeter and will secure convention sites at the United Center and McCormick Place, Johnson made a point of saying his handpicked superintendent will be in charge elsewhere.

Johnson is a former paid organizer for the Chicago Teacher’s Union who made his bones in the protest movement. With those roots, he’s not about to be heavy-handed with the protesters who are certain to descend on Chicago.

“The spirit in which I bring to the conversation is, I’ve been someone who’s been a part of large-scale protests,” Johnson said. “In fact, Black liberation is tied to large-scale protest. We just want to make sure that it’s done in a safe and secure area, so that right to assemble doesn’t get taken over by individuals who have other interests.”

Ahead of the DNC in 1996, Mayor Richard M. Daley was determined on ensuring the convention didn’t devolve into chaos as it had under his father in 1968. The younger Daley notably spent millions of dollars to sanitize the city and clean up the route to the United Center.

Johnson said he has no plans to sweep out homeless encampments in the West Loop ahead of this year’s convention.

“My approach toward dealing with the unhoused in the city is not contingent on the Democratic National Convention,” the mayor said. “I do believe that this convention has enormous potential to leave a lasting impact on the city of Chicago, the people of Chicago. That’s what my focus has been on. The DNC did not bring about homelessness. Failed policies have been brought about homelessness.”

“I want it to be emphatically clear that my approach towards the homelessness crisis is a part of my core conviction and values, and that it is not related to whether or not a convention comes to the city,” Johnson said — just as news broke that the Illinois appellate court ruled that votes would be counted on his signature referendum authorizing a real estate transfer tax hike to raise 100 million a year to combat homelessness.

Officials still haven’t designated a specific protest area, where permitted demonstrations have historically been directed for major events. No one explained where that staging area would be located, or what would happen if people show up elsewhere and demonstrate without permits.

The reach and speed of the internet and social media have vastly expanded since the NATO Summit, as evidenced by the teen trends that seemingly crop up out of nowhere and sometimes devolve into violence, as one did last weekend.

Jeff Burnside, the DNC coordinator for the Secret Service, showed reporters a color-coded map of the security perimeter around the Moscone Center in San Francisco when the city hosted the Asian Pacific Economic Forum in November.

He pointed to a green outer perimeter where people could move freely but vehicles would be screened. He then highlighted a smaller red interior zoner where only shoppers, residents and credentialed attendees could gain access.

The specific boundaries of the Chicago map will be finalized in the coming month, after a canvass of residents and businesses within the potential zones.

Typically, events like the DNC and Republican National Convention receive $50 million from the federal government. However, a bill introduced last year by Rep. Mike Quigley, D-Ill, that would increase funding to $75 million for both conventions passed the House on Wednesday.

A vote in the Senate is expected later this week, Quigley said in a statement. During the news conference, Johnson said he’s hopeful Chicago will receive the full amount.

“We will ensure that this event is a success,” the mayor said. “I look forward to our continued partnership to make this city’s [the] best convention yet in the history of this country.”

Contributing: Lynn Sweet