After the debacle of the 1968 Democratic National Convention, Chicago has worked hard to contain demonstrations and protests so they don’t upstage the scripted political theater of events — but the city just stumbled a bit in those efforts.

So far, city officials have taken a hard stance against activists seeking permits to demonstrate during the Democratic Convention this August, denying requested protest routes of three groups in the last month alone.

But due to a technicality, the city was forced on appeal Monday to allow one of those groups to march nearly right up to the United Center’s front doors.

The Poor People’s Army was granted its permit after the city failed to respond to the application within its own 10-day deadline. The Philadelphia group regularly protests at Republican and Democratic conventions.

Of course, that doesn’t mean it’ll be anything like the mayhem of ‘68.

“We’ve always organized the largest marches, and they’ve always been peaceful,” said Cheri Honkala, spokeswoman for Poor People’s Army. “They’ve always said, ‘You can’t do that.’ And we’ve always done it.”

Scott Olson, Getty

But another group says the city’s overall stance to contain the demostrations could backfire.

“The city’s hard-line response sets up the very chaos that they say they want to avoid,” says Andy Thayer of the group Bodies Outside of Unjust Laws, which is planning its own protest.

For now, an administrative judge’s ruling allows the Poor People’s Army to march on Aug. 19 from Humboldt Park to the “public sidewalk in front of the United Center” on Madison Street, according to the application.

The United Center is where thousands of delegates are planning to gather from August 19 to 22 to nominate President Joe Biden for reelection.

The city should not worry about traffic disruptions and lack of police officers, as noted in the city’s initial permit denial letter, Honkala said. Their group has protested peacefully before, she said.

Ronnie Reese, Mayor Brandon Johnson’s press secretary, said he was unaware of the permit issue.

But a city spokesperson acknowledged receiving the Poor People’s Army application and issued a statement saying “the City has agreed to accept the original permit application not withstanding any modifications required under federal law.

“The permits issued by [the city Transportation Department] do not account for any federal restrictions that may be implemented during the DNC.”

‘Not our first rodeo’

Another group — the Coalition to March on the DNC — was denied a permit late last month to march to a small park near the United Center.

The group expected resistance from the city. But they’re confident they’ll eventually get their permit to protest.

“This is not our first rodeo,” coalition member Joe Iosbaker told reporters Tuesday outside City Hall. “We’re going to put so much pressure on the city, they will give us a permit.”

The coalition represents at least 10 groups, including the U.S. Palestinian Community Network and Black Lives Matter Chicago. It filed parade permits that were denied on Jan. 22 and Feb. 1.

Pat Nabong/Sun-Times

The group wants to march on Aug. 19 from Union Park to a small park at Washington Boulevard and Wolcott Avenue, near the United Center, where delegates will meet to vote on the party’s presidential nominee. But the city’s Transportation Department, which processes parade permits, denied that request.

The city’s denial letter proposed an alternative route on Columbus Drive in Grant Park. But the coalition says that is too far away to deliver its message.

“It’s beyond insulting, but it’s not surprising,” said coalition member Erica Bentley. She’s also associate director of Mamas Activating Movements for Abolition & Solidarity.

The coalition plans to appeal the city’s ruling, Iosbaker said. The group will argue that the city must allow them to protest within “sight and sound” of the convention. That’s the legal basis on which other protest permits have been granted before, Iosbaker said.

The other activist groups received denial letters with almost the exact wording as the Coalition, Iosbaker said.

‘Fearful of riots’

The third group — Bodies Outside of Unjust Laws — said it plans to march whether they get a permit or not.

The group, which advocates for reproductive and LGBTQ rights, was denied a permit and last week lost its appeal before an administrative judge. Thayer said they plan to take the case before a state court.

Pat Nabong/Sun-Times

The group plans to march outside the Water Tower on Michigan Avenue on Aug. 18, hoping to get attention from the convention’s thousands of delegates. City officials also proposed they take an alternative route through Grant Park.

“A 15-minute walk in the park is what the city deems as a reasonable alternative to protesting at the DNC,” Thayer said. “It’s just absurd. If the city is not prepared to accommodate reasonable First Amendment activities and host the DNC, they should never have signed up to host the DNC in the first place.”

Thayer said he was upset with Johnson’s administration, given the mayor’s history of activism as a former paid organizer of the Chicago Teachers Union.

The Chicago Police Department likely denied the permits, which go through the transportation department but must be signed off by several others, Thayer said.

“They’re already fearful of riots. They’re just setting themselves up for more by not negotiating with the groups,” he said.