STEVE INSKEEP, HOST:
The location of the Democratic Convention invites comparisons to history.
A MARTÍNEZ, HOST:
The 1968 convention in Chicago included anti-war protests, which police brutally suppressed. Many protesters and police were injured on live TV. This week, protesters have returned, opposing U.S. backing for Israel in its war against Hamas in Gaza.
(SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED RECORDING)
UNIDENTIFIED PROTESTER: (Chanting) We don't want to (inaudible) this war.
UNIDENTIFIED PROTESTERS: (Chanting) We don't want to (inaudible) this war.
INSKEEP: OK, so how are police doing this time? NPR's Martin Kaste covers police, and he has that angle for us this morning. Martin, hi.
MARTIN KASTE, BYLINE: Good morning, Steve.
INSKEEP: So how did police do? And how was the confrontation with protesters?
KASTE: Well, the police superintendent here, Larry Snelling, started the day yesterday sounding pretty optimistic. He's talked about having a respectful working relationship with the leaders of the protest and looking forward to supporting the marchers' right to free speech without a problem. And for much of the day, that was, in fact, the case.
INSKEEP: For much of the day.
KASTE: Yeah. Well, the march started out with a few thousand people moving in an orderly fashion with hundreds of bicycle cops flanking them as they went. It all seemed very choreographed. But then they got to this small park just north of the United Center, where the DNC is being held, and there things went sideways. I brought a little tape to capture that scene here.
(SOUNDBITE OF SHAKING FENCE)
KASTE: There you can hear that's the tall steel fencing that forms the outer security perimeter for the DNC. You don't get past that without credentials and security check. But a group of mass protesters just went for it. They pulled down several sections and then started calling other protesters to follow them through. And then they started going for the interior fence, shaking that, and that's when the police caught up with them. It was kind of a surreal moment, the cops closing in on them from opposite ends, everybody sandwiched between these two fences. And even the Chicago Police superintendent, Snelling, was right in there with them.
INSKEEP: OK, so I'll just emphasize we're hearing lots of different perspectives on the Democratic Convention, different perspectives over time on the protests. What you're focused on this morning is the police and how it looks to them. How did they manage this challenge of allowing free speech while also keeping order as they see it?
KASTE: Well, compared to Chicago Police in 1968 or even 2020, they were pretty restrained. They could have arrested a few dozen people in there for breaching that security zone. But they ended up arresting only a handful, and the police stayed calm while this was happening. Everybody was watching them, of course. Superintendent was right there. But even as protesters were lobbying sticks over the fence and other objects over, kind of onto their heads, they were calm. Then they became very strict after, though. They cleared that park of tents and protesters. So you get the sense here that they also are worried about losing control of the situation if they give too much.
INSKEEP: What did the protesters at large say about the relatively small number who went through the fence?
KASTE: Well, some of them stayed in the park to support the ones who'd gone through. Many more, though, continued on with the original march. And then I talked to Alice Farley (ph). She's - she was sitting on a bench near the fence. She looked a little deflated. She's from New York. And she cares deeply about the Palestinian cause. But I asked her if she thought this incident would change any minds in the convention.
ALICE FARLEY: They won't see that. They're back in there. The only thing is you'll get one little three-second flash on the news about it, like, a bunch of rowdy people, not the people who have been talking about this for 10 months, if not 47 years.
INSKEEP: Is it true that the protesters were largely invisible to the convention-goers?
KASTE: Well, this is a big site. Hard to see things from inside there. After the arrests, I went around to the other side, saw a bunch of delegates lined up for security. None of them had heard or seen any of this.
INSKEEP: NPR's Martin Kaste, thanks so much.
KASTE: You're welcome.
(SOUNDBITE OF MUSIC) Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.
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