Downtown Chicago is safe for once as city is flooded with cops for Democrat convention (but there's already been one stage invasion)

Hundreds of police and pro-Palestine protesters have descended on Chicago as the Democratic National Convention kicks off.

Downtown has both been overwhelmed with  cops - some heavily armed - who have been patrolling the streets as protesters fight to be heard.

'This is the most that we'll ever see in one setting, which is crazy, but I feel like it's a good reason that it's a lot of police out here, because there's so many people just in one area,' Chicago local Ayanna Tucker told DailyMail.com 

Very few Donald Trump supporters showed up, but large, organized pro-Palestine rallies started on Sunday and are expected to continue all week.

Activists already caused a scene at a welcome event for DNC delegates at the Navy Pier's grand ballroom, having sneaked in earlier.

One woman wearing a mask ran on to the stage and shouted about genocide while a handful of other infiltrators yelled 'free, free Palestine'.

'150,000 people have died, we are funding a genocide and the Harris-Biden administration keeps sending money to Israel,' she said, before security dragged her away.

Protesters mobilized on Telegram, telling each other to join the rally outside Navy Pier and complaining police were 'surrounding peaceful protesters on all sides'.

'CPD with us here outside little do they know we're inside too,' one of the activists who sneaked inside wrote, adding a laughing emoji.

Those outside yelled slogans and waved Palestinian flags while a wall of police and security separated them from an exclusion zone.

Jinan Chehade, a pro-Palestine activist and lawyer, set the tone by screaming 'Welcome to Hell Week!' during a speech outside Navy Pier. 

Some chanted 'DNC go home! Or we're gonna bring the war home!' and some carried a banner reading 'Killer Kamala Gazas Speaking'.

As police blocked their approach, protesters turned on them, chanting 'Piggy piggy go home, or we'll bring the war home' and throwing bottle and trash at them.

By nightfall, the protest moved on to the Hilton hotel, where delegates and Democratic Party honchoes were staying.

Some of the marches were permitted ahead of time, moving along a 1.5 mile route through The Loop under the watchful eye of police. 

Other groups like Behind Enemy Lines, which describes itself as 'anti-imperialist', wanted the whole convention canceled and refused to be in the organized marches - arguing for 'actively confronting the convention' instead.

'We think that their whole convention is illegitimate and criminal, and people should treat it that way,' group leader Michael Boytetold the New York Times.

In addition to local police, members of the Illinois National Guard were mobilized and seen patrolling in camouflage uniforms.

Local businesses and workers said they were struggling to navigate the road closures and exclusion zones and complained the wasn't enough notice.

'Wow, this is like crazy. A lot of important people are gonna be here, and we are happy that they're gonna be safe,' Michael Tenniswood told CBS.

'But, yeah, it does feel like a police state with all the big walls going up and everything. It's a little crazy.'

Some businesses resorted to closing down and boarding up their shopfronts in case the protests got out of hand.

Thousands of activists are expected to converge on Chicago this week for the DNC, hoping to call attention to abortion rights, economic injustice and the war in Gaza.

Though Vice President Kamala Harris energized crowds of supporters as she prepares to accept the Democratic nomination, progressive activists maintain their mission remains the same.

Activists say they learned lessons from last month's Republican National Convention in Milwaukee and are predicting bigger crowds and more robust demonstrations in Chicago, a city with deep social activism roots.

Demonstrations are expected every day of the convention and, while their agendas vary, many activists agree an immediate cease-fire in the Israel-Hamas war is the priority.

Things kicked off Sunday on the convention's eve with a march along Michigan Avenue against the war in Gaza and for abortion and LGBTQ+ rights. 

The march began in late afternoon and stretched into the night.

Pro-Palestinian protesters in Chicago have been highly visible, shutting down roads to the airport and staging sit-ins at congressional offices. 

Some are planning their own one-day convention Sunday with third-party candidates.

'Regardless of who the nominee is, we're marching against the Democrats and their vicious policies that have allowed Israel to kill over 40,000 Palestinians in Gaza,' said Fayaani Aboma Mijana, an organizer with the Chicago Alliance Against Racist and Political Repression.

The convention will draw an estimated 50,000 people to the nation's third-largest city, including delegates, activists and journalists.

The city says it has made necessary preparations with police and the Secret Service. Security will be tight, with street closures around the convention center.

To combat traffic concerns, city leaders are touting a new $80 million train station steps from the United Center. 

They also have tried to beautify the city with freshly planted flowers and new signs. City leaders also cleared a nearby homeless encampment.

Police have undergone training on constitutional policing, county courts say they are opening more space in anticipation of mass arrests and hospitals near the security zone are beefing up emergency preparedness.

Authorities and leaders in the state have said people who vandalize the city or are violent will be arrested.

'We're going to make sure that people have their First Amendment rights protected, that they can do that in a safe way,' Mayor Brandon Johnson told The Associated Press in a recent interview.

But some have lingering safety concerns, worried that protests could become unpredictable or devolve into chaos.