The Democrat National Convention this week in Chicago is beginning with a lot of hypocrisy.
“The 2024 Democratic Convention in Chicago will show America what Democrats stand for,” states the DNC website.
On close inspection they are.
Indeed, over this past weekend, just before the start of the convention, 26 different shooting incidents claimed 30 victims, five of which succumbed to their wounds in the Democrat-run city; in fact, since the beginning of the year, 364 people have been murdered on Chicago’s mean streets.
While the stars of the show—Vice President Kamala Harris (D) and her running mate, Minn. Gov. Tim Walz (D)—will be onstage calling for all types of restrictions on our right to keep and bear arms, including outright bans on some common firearms, Chicago’s criminals are continuing to harm people.
Just how dangerous is it? According to the Illinois Policy Institute (IPI), the number of violent crimes in the city grew to its highest level in a decade in 2023. Two of the largest factors were a decade-high 30,501 instances of vehicle thefts and carjackings and 22,569 cases of assault. Unfortunately for lawful Chicagoans, the number of violent-crime arrests actually dropped.
Robbery was another major problem for Chicago residents last year. According to the IPI, the city saw more robbery victims in 2023 than in any year of the past decade. That represents a 29% jump from the previous year, with one robbery victim for every 250 residents. And while crimes surged, robbery arrest rates hit a 23-year low at a paltry 5%.
Living in Chicago is so dangerous, in fact, that one Chicago police dispatcher recently suggested that a distraught caller purchase a firearm to protect herself and her family. In that May 18 incident, a Chicago mother confronted two home invaders. Six 911 calls and four hours later, Chicago police finally arrived at the woman’s home. Of course, the intruders had left hours earlier.
During one of her six calls for help, she said, “The dispatcher also asked me if I would consider defending myself … if I had a weapon or considered getting one.”
Unfortunately for her and other citizens, buying a gun in Chicago—like in the rest of Illinois—isn’t exactly a simple process. First, a Chicagoan has to obtain a state Firearm Owner’s Identification (FOID) card. To acquire that, you must have proof that you are an Illinois resident, apply for the FOID card, submit an application online, pay a fee, pass a background check, and then wait for the state to issue the card. If a resident manages to jump through all the hoops, there’s a 72-hour waiting period after the gun is purchased.
Unlike in many of the besieged neighborhoods where gunfire is a several-times-daily occurrence, the downtown area where the convention is being held is covered with law-enforcement officers; in fact, the entire Chicago Police Department (CPD) is scheduled to work during the four-day convention.
Additionally, a wall has been built around the DNC by the U.S. Secret Service and federal, state, and local law enforcement. This “restricted perimeter” extends around both the United Center, the convention’s main venue, and the McCormick Place Convention Center where other events will be held.
The makeshift wall is made of metal fencing and vehicles, including snow plows, and only “credentialed or ticketed individuals” will be allowed inside the DNC perimeter. By carefully vetting each potential visitor to the area, Democratic officials are trying to put a happy face on a troubled city.
The city’s revolving door of justice is, of course, at least partly to blame for much of the crime in Chicago. Far-Left Chicago prosecutors have been turning dangerous criminals loose instead of holding them until their trial dates for several years. And, in September of last year, Illinois eliminated cash bail entirely, a change that has resulted in even more dangerous criminals being turned right back onto the streets.
On June 3, an attack on two Chicago police officers marked the 19th time already this year that a suspect turned loose on pretrial release attempted to kill or killed someone while awaiting their court date. Derrien Johnson was on pretrial release for two felony gun cases when he allegedly fired several shots at a passing police car on June 3. After reviewing surveillance footage, police recognized Johnson and arrested him.
In addition to crime, Chicago is also expected to have tens of thousands of demonstrators descending on its downtown area during the convention. How the CPD will deal with this situation remains to be seen. Vice President Kamala Harris’ running mate, Tim Walz, showed a reckless disregard for the law in Minneapolis in 2020. The burning, looting, and other violence that then-Gov. Walz allowed to continue marked a dark period in that city’s history.
While additional police on the street during the DNC might make it seem safer than it is, the city’s gun-control-promoting politicians need to learn that freedom is not a problem that needs to be solved, criminal activity is.
