“We’ve had more than our share of downtown mass arrest incidents going back over a decade. This is not new,” Ald. Brian Hopkins said. “What is new is to have it happen three days in a row.” Activist Raul Montes went as far as urging Gov. JB Pritzker to activate the National Guard or declare martial law if the so-called takeover events continue.

“Here’s the other thing, Mr. Johnson. You are not the only messenger, and if Americans start seeing your mayoral statements as progressive propaganda, they’ll stop listening to you or believing what you say…Johnson’s statement, and where it placed its emphasis, likely has already cost the city real money that Johnson is going to have to replace with higher fees and taxes. If you were a conference organizer weighing different cities this spring, would that statement have made you more or less likely to choose Chicago?”

Mayor-elect Brandon Johnson acknowledged shortly after his election that “bringing people together around a holistic approach of how we address public safety … will be the test of my leadership.” Johnson’s victory was made possible by winning the lion’s share of votes on the city’s South and West sides, home to Black and Latino Chicagoans who live in neighborhoods that are among the city’s most violent and have the highest rates of crime.

“Suddenly a mob of teens between 16 and 18-year-olds began climbing and hitting our truck,” she said. “We even saw them get on top of a bus.” The husband was treated at a hospital for cuts; but his wife says the injuries are more emotional than physical.

In the statement, CPD said its top priority is the safety and well being of residents and visitors – including the city’s youth. “We encourage our young people to be safe and responsible as they enjoy their weekends, but anyone engaged in criminal activity will be arrested and held accountable,” the statement read, in part.

“I have to lock the doors, because otherwise – who knows?” said Jesus Delvalle, manager of Cantina on Madison – located in the Mallers Building at 69 E. Madison St. “They might come in here and start shooting people.”

Greg Hinz: “If recent developments are an indication, our collective crystal ball is still foggy. All we know for sure is that it will be the quintessential bumpy ride, with a step back, a step forward, scream, yell and repeat. And that’s not even counting the excitement Chicago’s new mayor, Brandon Johnson, is likely to bring.”

“Everyone is welcome and encouraged to enjoy all that Chicago has to offer including the popular downtown area,” the department said in a statement Sunday, in the aftermath of a “Teen Takeover” promoted on social media that sent tourists running for cover. Chicago police said “criminal activity will never be tolerated” in the city.

But the Chicago area’s industrial appeal is still something to behold. The real estate firm Colliers said in 2022, the area led the nation in net industrial leasing, with 40.6 million square feet absorbed. Colliers said the demand allowed rental rates to increase 14% during the year. Most of the action was in big-box warehouses that sprawl near Interstates 55 and 80. But Colliers said rent hikes were greatest in so-called “infill” city sites.

“Let’s take this bold progressive movement around these United States of America,” Mayor-elect Brandon Johnson said in his victory speech. Our Revolution, an activist group which grew out of Sanders’ 2016 White House bid, said it activated its 90,000 members in Chicago an average of three times each to urge them to vote for Johnson, and made 100,000 phone calls in St. Louis.

The people of Chicago are 31.4% White, 28.7% Black, 29.9% Latino and 6.9% Asian, according to the 2020 U.S. census. But approximately 34% of Lightfoot’s appointees are White. Another 31.5% were Black, while 27% were Latino and 6% were Asian.

Mayor Lori Lightfoot said, “Here’s the thing: the vast majority of the young people that came downtown came downtown because it was great weather and an opportunity to enjoy the city. That’s absolutely entirely appropriate. There were a few that came with different intentions, and they have and they will be dealt with, but I’m not going to use your language, which I think is wrong, to say that it was mayhem.”

Labor groups and Democratic operatives are nevertheless flexing over the defeat of candidates they opposed during races that took place near Chicago, which received hundreds of thousands of dollars in support from state Democrats and the attention of Democratic Gov. JB Pritzker, and in Wisconsin. Conservative board hopefuls also saw mixed results in Missouri and Oklahoma.

“Ultimately, though, it may not be the inconveniences of closing businesses that Chicago leaders are so upset about. Rather, it may only be that they are embarrassed. Each fleeing business adds another crack in the unstable foundation of the leftist narrative that they are the ‘solution’ and everyone else is the problem.”

“What’s striking about the transition team revealed April 12 isn’t so much that they are ardent progressives whose main professional experience is in the spheres of union governance and grassroots activism….No, what really stands out is how little actual government experience is shared among the five people Johnson is surrounding himself with at this critical juncture. Also noteworthy: The team’s résumés contain little in the way of experience running a business or even working in the private sector.”

New Trier reiterated its commitment to “equity” (i.e., DEI) by announcing plans to hold an “Equity Summit” this summer for all New Trier feeder districts. New Trier board members and administrators uniformly affirmed their commitment to push New Trier’s DEI/equity work “down” into every North Shore elementary school, with Superintendent Paul Sally noting this is “K-12 work” “just like English and Math,” and “up” into each North Shore home. Meanwhile, New Trier’s test scores have fallen 17 points (reading) and 11 points (math) since 2017, while spending per pupil has increased 37% since 2010.