DNC Builds Wall Around Convention Center Amid Chicago Protests

A “wall” has been built around the National Democratic Convention in Chicago, overseen by the U.S. Secret Service, and federal, state and local law enforcement.

The “restricted perimeter” extends around both the United Center, and convention’s main venue, and the McCormick Place Convention Center where other events will take place.

The security measures follow the threat of mass pro-Palestinian protests at the convention and come a month after the attempt to assassinate Donald Trump at a political rally. In July, Trump-appointed District Judge Brett Ludwig ruled that demonstrators could not cross a “hard” security perimeter while protesting at the Republican convention in Milwaukee.

Only “credentialed or ticketed individuals” are being allowed inside the DNC perimeter, protected by a makeshift wall made of metal fencing and vehicles, including snow plows.

According to the Secret Service, two tiers of security came into effect on Friday around both the United Center and McCormick Place Convention Center. The first and widest of these is a “vehicle screening perimeter,” into which vehicles are only be allowed to enter via certain entrance points though pedestrians remain unimpeded.

Closer in, there’s a “pedestrian restricted perimeter” where access is only allowed for “credentialed or ticketed individuals, such as convention attendees or volunteers,” who must pass through dedicated checkpoints.

Tens of thousands of demonstrators are expected at the DNC, which takes place from August 19 to 22, many of them angry over the Biden administration’s response to the ongoing Israel-Hamas war. Campaign group March on the DNC has organized two major demonstrations targeting the event on August 19 and 22, both of which start at Union Park.

On Sunday night a welcome party for DNC delegates held at the Navy Pier Ballroom was disrupted by a number of pro-Palestinian protesters.

Video and photos showing metal fencing being constructed around DNC sites, taken by both professional media outlets and private citizens, has gone viral on social media outlets.

And conservatives have mocked the wall, comparing it to the anti-migration border construction Donald Trump pledged during the 2016 presidential election.

Ahead of the 2016 presidential election Trump vowed to build a “big, beautiful wall” along the U.S.-Mexico border in a bid to block irregular migration. However according to a Wall Street analysis during Trump’s presidency only around 500 miles of border fencing was constructed along the roughly 2,000 mile Mexican border, much of which was to replace preexisting structures.

Trump has once again made combating illegal immigration a key pillar of his 2024 presidential campaign, with U.S. Customs and Border Protection having recorded about 8.1 million migrant encounters along the Mexican border between Biden’s inauguration and June 2024.

Conservative leaning commentator Blaire White shared a photograph of fencing being put together on X, with a DNC banner in the background, adding: “The DNC is building a wall to keep hostiles out before they tell you that walls don’t work to keep hostiles out.” White’s post received more than 6,700 reposts and was viewed over 630,000 times.

The ‘Wall Street Silver’ X account, which has 1.4 million followers on the platform, shared a graphic showing fencing being constructed along with the caption “Democrats are suddenly pro walls.” They added: “What are they expecting at the Democrat National Convention in Chicago?”

Separately the ‘amuse’ X account, which has over 380,000 followers, shared a local news report showing a physical barrier being constructed around one of the convention sites using fencing and a number of snow plows.

They wrote: “In a move that would be laughable if it weren’t so hypocritical, the Democratic Party is set to erect an impenetrable wall around their convention venue in Chicago and require photo ID from everyone who wants to attend. Yes, you read that correctly. The very party that has spent years branding walls as racist and denouncing voter ID laws as discriminatory is now embracing both when it serves their interests.”

Newsweek contacted the Democratic National Committee for comment via the online inquiry form on its official website on Monday outside of regular office hours.