Convention demonstrators: They won't see or hear us in Cleveland

Some groups are particularly incensed by a designated mile-long protest parade route located about a third of a mile from the Quicken Loans Arena, the convention site.

Protest groups with permits will have about 60 minutes to march between 2 p.m. and 5 p.m. on July 18, and between 9 a.m. and 2 p.m. July 19-21 -- hardly prime time for a convention.

"They've proposed this ridiculous march to nowhere that's not within sight or sound of the arena," said Tom Burke, a Grand Rapids, Mich., resident who is organizing a "Coalition to Stop Trump" demonstration. "We know what our rights are."

In addition to the parade route, city officials have designated two parks for protesters' use. And a stage will be set up in Cleveland's Public Square to allow individuals who register up to a half-hour to speak between 9:30 a.m. and 6 p.m.

The designated parade route and permits are required only for people who want to march in a street, city officials said. Sidewalk demonstrations are allowed -- just not in the secure zone immediately around the convention.

Christine Link, executive director of the American Civil Liberties Union of Ohio, said the protest rules and restrictions will have a chilling effect on the ability of demonstrators to exercise free speech during the convention.

Her organization has threatened to sue the city, accusing it of acting too slowly on protest permits.

"These folks can never be seen or heard by the delegates," Link said. "No one is going to be in downtown Cleveland at 9 in the morning."

City officials say their plans strike the proper balance between protecting convention attendees and securing free speech rights.

Questions about security and Cleveland's preparedness emerged after Greensboro, N.C., and Cincinnati police said they weren't sending officers to help with the convention.

"Anybody that wants to come to the city and let their voice be heard in a lawful manner, we're here to assist them," City of Cleveland Assistant Police Chief Edward Tomba said last week. "Anybody that goes sideways and is not following the law, there's going to be consequences and we're going to deal with them, and it's going to be swift and it's going to be very professional, and I can assure you of that."

The permit-seekers vary from Citizens for Trump _ an umbrella organization of several pro-Trump groups _ to the Coalition to Stop Trump to the People's Fightback Center/March Against Racism, a group protesting police shootings in Cleveland.

Ralph King, the Cleveland Tea Party Patriots co-founder who is the local lead for the "Citizens for Trump" permit application, said the group is rethinking its convention plans. The application called for at least 5,000 people, 104 cars or trucks, 100 horses and four motorcycles to march the route.

"Not being in the vicinity of the delegates, right now what we're looking at is: to what level do we want to hold the event?" King said.

He also called the protest parade route a recipe for disaster because groups for and against Trump will be quite close while waiting to march.

"You're opening up your grandma or Aunt Mary to getting her head bust open," he said. "It's going to be chaos."

Burke, who organized protests at Republican conventions in Tampa in 2012 and St. Paul in 2008, said his group might shun protest permits.

"We'll have a family-friendly march with or without a permit -- and within sight of the arena," he said. "We plan on bringing out signs and sound system, and I suspect the police will treat us with respect."

However, Bryan Hambley, treasurer of Stand Together Against Trump, said he's waiting and hoping the city will choose to better accommodate protesters.

He plans to have a July 21 downtown march with 10,000 people and 10 vehicles.

"Our initial intent is to work with the city; show good faith," said Hambley, a Cleveland physician who was escorted from a Trump rally there in March. "I'm hopeful that this is the start of a discussion -- not the end of one."