First protest takes off in downtown Chicago an evening ahead of DNC
CHICAGO (CBS) -- A day ahead of the Democratic National Convention, protesters held a rally and march downtown late Sunday.
Bodies Outside of Unjust Laws, a coalition of feminist and LGBTQ+ organizations held a rally on Wacker Drive just east of Michigan Avenue early Sunday evening. While these groups were the organizers, the rally later became one for the pro-Palestinian cause.
A march south on Michigan Avenue followed.
About 200 people were in attendance at the protest as of 5:30 p.m.—holding signs and in some instances Pride or Palestinian flags. By the time the group was ready to march, the crowd had grown to 500 people.
It was estimated that there were more police officers than protesters at the beginning. Police Supt. Larry Snelling was at the scene.
Officers were on bicycles at the scene, ensuring that everyone was kept safe and the crowd was kept together.
Mandy Medley—a leader in Chicago for Abortion Rights and a co-owner of the employee-owned and operated bookstore Pilsen Community Books, and Scout Bratt---a spokesperson for Jewish Voice for Peace and a member of the social justice group Avodah, served as the emcees of the Sunday evening event.
A total of 13 speakers addressed the crowd between the opening and closing rallies for the event.
The protest ended before 10 p.m. Sunday. It remained peaceful throughout, with no arrests reported.
None of the buildings or businesses along Michigan Avenue were boarded up over concerns about civil unrest—though some downtown buildings have been boarded up preemptively.
Former police Supt. Eddie Johnson says department is prepared
The protest Sunday is expected to be dwarfed by protests later in the week, notably the protest by the Coalition to March on the DNC on Monday. This protest and others during the convention will focus on the pro-Palestinian cause.
Former Chicago Police Supt. Eddie Johnson said officers have received proper training for the worst-case scenario in a protest, and crucially, supervisors have also received proper training.
"The supervisors have to, you know, constantly monitor the skirmish lines to make sure the officers are in the right state of mind to be able to deal with protesters," Johnson said.
There have been concerns about whether officers have received proper training to protect protesters' First Amendment rights, or to distinguish peaceful protesters from those who might cause problems. But Johnson said he is confident that both officers and supervisors have received the proper training—in particular the supervisors who need to remove officers whose emotions might be getting too heated.
Johnson added that police need to exercise discretion when it comes to how officers are sent out to respond to a protest. In the case of the Sunday evening protest, officers on bicycles have been on the scene rather than officers in riot gear.
"Here's the philosophy—so a crowd like this, you don't want to come in as the police and agitate them and show them a hard look right off the bat, because what you're signaling to them is that you're ready for a fight, and that's just not the case with this protest group here," Johnson said. "Sometimes, you'll get groups that come in that you know are going to be agitators, that you have to have to show up in the BDUs—the battle dress uniforms and the riot helmets. But a crowd like this—I think that they're playing it correctly."
Johnson echoed a statement by his present-day successor, Supt. Snelling, about what will be tolerated and what will not.
"Remember, there's a fundamental difference between protesting peacefully and rioters—and rioters won't be tolerated," he said.
Johnson also expressed concern about "outside agitators" who might come to create chaos.
However, Johnson said if the protest Sunday night is any indication, things should go smoothly.
"From what I saw tonight, I think it's going to be a very exciting time for the city of Chicago. There's going to be work involved, and you always have to be concerned," Johnson said. "However, if things go like they did tonight, we should be fine."