Chicago mayor, police chief call DNC a success
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Supt. Larry Snelling talking to Coalition to March on the DNC organizers on Aug. 19 ahead of the group's march at Union Park. Photo: Carrie Shepherd/Axios
Local officials are ecstatic and self congratulatory over the success of this week's DNC, touting tangible benefits gained and catastrophe averted.
Why it matters: The largely positive image of the city that beamed across the world through national and international news outlets could help boost tourism, create more jobs and improve our global reputation.
State of play: Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson and police superintendent Larry Snelling said during a press conference on Friday that CPD was focused on not reliving past failures.
- "If the 1968 convention went down in history as the example of police brutality, then the 2024 convention will go down as the example of constitutional policing," Johnson said.
Yes, but: There were still some confrontations between marchers and CPD. Snelling said 74 people were arrested throughout the week.
The other side: "CPD has no right to take credit for the work we did when they spent months threatening us with mass arrests as well as trying to stop us from getting permits and limiting the amenities we could use to keep people safe," a spokesperson for the Coalition to March on the DNC told Axios.
- "Our marshals deescalated many tense situations while police only instigated problems. We demand community control of police and for any charges against protesters to be dropped."
Reality check: Snelling and Johnson may have called this year's police response a success compared to the violence in 1968, but the real question going into last week was whether it would be a repeat of 2020 when protesters and CPD clashed after the police murder of George Floyd in Minneapolis.
- The Chicago Inspector General, the city's watchdog, called the department's response in 2020 a failure, saying CPD was "under-equipped and unprepared."
- There will most likely be scrutiny in coming weeks on whether CPD officers' actions this week were in compliance with their federal order for reform.
Behind the scenes: Other city leaders backed up Johnson's boasts about the gleaming Chicago visitors saw this week.
- Ald. Walter Burnett told Axios: "I was in the box with the mayor [Wednesday night] and all kinds of mayors came in and movie stars and every one of them was raving about how great Chicago looks ... and how good of a job we've done with the convention, and they were very impressed."
The intrigue: Johnson was defensive when asked for specifics of how the city would benefit from the DNC glow, only saying that the good work is "already happening."
What they're saying: "Here's the thing, those individuals who were provocating or wishing that there would be chaos, these are the individuals who justify January 6. These people are dangerous," Johnson said. "We're grateful that we brought this country together, because that's what it's really about Chicago, uniting this city, as well as uniting this country and really setting a marker of how democracy has to exist around the globe, and Chicago, we did it."
What we're watching: A more complete economic impact report on the DNC as it becomes available.