'Powder keg': Massive security presence on display in Chicago amid signs of trouble

CHICAGO — Local and national law enforcement officials are ready for battle ahead of this week’s Democratic National Convention, and their presence is, seemingly, everywhere on the ground and water and in the air.

While national party leaders, local officials and the thousands of delegates descending on Chicago are hoping for peace, everyone is braced for violence.

A technician adjusts a solar-powered security camera tower outside McCormick Place in Chicago on Aug. 18, 2024. McCormick Place is hosting many of the daytime events associated with the Democratic National Convention. (Dave Levinthal / Raw Story)

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Tens of thousands of protesters are expected in Chicago’s streets this week, ranging from far-left Gaza advocates to — potentially — far-right supporters of former President Donald Trump, the 2024 Republican presidential nominee.

A fleet of tow trucks stand at the ready outside security barriers at Chicago’s United Center for the Democratic National Convention. (Matt Laslo / Raw Story)

“I'm seeing the signs of that being a powder keg right now,” John Booras — a former police officer in Chicago’s suburbs and current candidate for U.S. House Illinois District 3 — told Raw Story.

Powder keg or not, Chicago Police — aided by dozens of other local, state and federal law enforcement agencies — are making their presence known at most every turn.

On Saturday and Sunday, Raw Story reporters walked and rode their way through Chicago for a first-hand look at how police were preparing.

A half-dozen Chicago Police officers stand watch outside the Ashland "L" Train station on Aug. 18, 2024, near the United Center, where the Democratic National Committee's evening events are being conducted. (Dave Levinthal / Raw Story)

For the past couple days, tourists visiting the city’s iconic Magnificent Mile — a street that boasts the likes of Gucci, Cartier and Armani — have been greeted with large patrols of roving bicycle officers and a heavier police presence than what’s typical for the glitzy main drag.

Snowplows are being deployed as extra layers of security across Chicago for the Democratic National Convention. (Matt Laslo / Raw Story)

Joining the bike cops are motorcycle cops, horse cops and yes, boat cops on Lake Michigan and the Chicago River.

Overnight, while those tourists were sleeping — or clubbing — the city’s security apparatus quickly expanded, as concrete and steel barriers were erected in several key areas where Democratic National Convention activities are scheduled.

Chicago Police officers fill up their motorcycles during their patrol Sunday afternoon. (Matt Laslo / Raw Story)

Three miles south of downtown — just past Grant Park (home of Lollapalooza), the Field Museum (home of the largest Tyrannosaurus rex on record) and Soldier Field (home of da Bears!) — is the McCormick Place Convention Center where the party is throwing a public "DemPalooza" fest for those without official convention credentials.

It’s locked down, Chicago-style.

A Cook County, Ill., bomb squad truck is parked outside McCormick Place in Chicago on Aug. 18, 2024. McCormick Place is hosting many of the daytime events associated with the Democratic National Convention. (Dave Levinthal / Raw Story)

It’s off-season for the city’s expansive fleet of intimidatingly large, rusty and seemingly immovable snowplows, so they’re being deployed as an extra layer of security — on top of the other extra layers of security — on the city’s snowless summer streets.

All the seemingly makeshift security upgrades from the Chicago Police Department have an ominous feeling about them to Booras, who was working as a part-time police officer in suburban Chicago during the George Floyd protests in 2020.

A Mutual Aid Box Alarm System decontamination truck from the Illinois Emergency Management Agency drives around the perimeter of McCormick Place in Chicago on Aug. 18, 2024. McCormick Place is hosting many of the daytime events associated with the Democratic National Convention. (Dave Levinthal / Raw Story)

"When you have to create borders that are two blocks away … we didn't have these precautions, even back then. We weren't afraid of people the way that CPD and security is afraid of what's coming now,” Booras said. "Where there's smoke, there's fire. For them to do this, there are credible threats coming through."

Federal agents running a security checkpoint near the United Center on the afternoon of Aug. 18, 2024. (Matt Laslo / Raw Story)

But snowplows can only cover the square footage they occupy and law enforcement wants to be everywhere. And they will be with the assist of security cameras, drones, helicopters and air quality sensors.

While many delegates are staying downtown in and around McCormick Place, the convention itself is some three miles away from Chicago’s lakefront at the United Center — home of the Chicago Bulls and Blackhawks — which has also been fortified in recent days.

United States Capitol Police patrol the streets around the United Center Sunday. (Matt Laslo / Raw Story)

Sunday law enforcement officials were seen circling the United Center in a helicopter whose doors were ominously open.

With this year’s Democratic National Convention stretched across the city, there are also troops of bike cops out by the United Center, along with many long gun-wielding federal agents.

A law enforcement helicopter circles the area around Chicago’s United Center Sunday evening ahead of the Democratic National Convention. (Matt Laslo / Raw Story)

The attempt on Trump’s life last month ahead of the Republican National Convention in Milwaukee is still fresh on the minds of all the officers assembled in Chicago for the Democratic National Convention, where Vice President Kamala Harris is scheduled to accept her party’s nomination on Thursday.

Chicago snowplow turned security barrier. (Matt Laslo / Raw Story)

President Joe Biden, who withdrew from the race in mid-July, is scheduled to speak at the convention Monday. Thousands of other dignitaries, government officials and state and federal lawmakers will be in attendance.

Local and national law enforcement officials and security contractors setting up concrete and steel barriers downtown Chicago at 2 am Sunday morning. (Matt Laslo / Raw Story)

"Now, those threats don't always materialize. Fewer are the moments of Butler, Pa., and what happened with Trump there. Way more often do they actually succeed, get it right, stop things before they happen. That's the standard,” Booras told Raw Story. “So, it's highly likely that you won't see the horrific violence that maybe is being threatened erupt, but again, that's not something that I would choose to be around if I didn't have to."