Mayoral candidates square off again, addressing issues most important to Black Chicagoans
CHICAGO (CBS) -- Early voting is now under way in all 50 wards across the city, and as more voters head to the polls, Chicago's mayoral candidates are stepping up efforts to win their support.
Another mayoral forum was held Monday night, this one with a focus on issues that matter most to Chicago's African American community – from criminal justice reform to supporting schools on the South and West sides.
All nine candidates – Kam Bucker, Jesus "Chuy" Garcia, Ja'Mal Green, Brandon Johnson, Sophia King, Mayor Lori Lightfoot, Roderick Sawyer, Paul Vallas, and Willie Wilson.
NBC 5 hosted the forum, which was also sponsored by WVON, the Business Leadership Council, the Chicago Urban League, and NABJ Chicago. NBC 5 anchor Marion Brooks and WVON's Matt McGill moderated the forum.
The first question posed to all the candidates was how to invest in communities to keep Black Chicagoans from leaving – given that the 2020 Census showed Chicago had lost 85,000 Black residents.
Green said the more accurate way of putting it was that Black families have been "kicked out of Chicago."
"When they knocked down the project buildings and promised to set aside thousands of units, we didn't get those units," Green said.
He said as mayor, he would invest in housing, increase the affordable housing supply, and encourage home ownership.
Buckner took aim at Mayor Lightfoot and her INVEST South/West program, an initiative to stimulate development on the city's South and West sides. He called INVEST South/West "smoke and mirrors," and said what is really happening is "egress South/West" in the form of Black Chicagoans leaving in droves.
Wilson said the problem is crime and a lack of public safety.
"The first thing we have to do is make crime illegal again – make all neighborhoods safe," he said.
Johnson also took aim at the mayor.
"People have lost confidence in this administration, because she's broken every single promise – and she continues to mislead the people of Chicago," Johnson said.
Johnson said the mayor had accused him of calling for a 3.5-percent income tax on those who earn $100,000 or more – when in fact, that is not part of his plan.
The mayor fired back, "If he doesn't agree with taxing people over $100,000, say right now here that you will never support such a plan."
"I just said that, Madame Mayor. I just said that to the people of the city of Chicago," Johnson replied.
Vallas said the departure of Black Chicagoans could be blamed on both public safety issues and poor quality of schools. Sawyer called for a better use of the Tax Increment Financing program in which property tax revenues are supposed to pay for improvements in blighted areas, but which are often put into use in wealthy parts of the city.
The candidates were also asked specifically about the city's West Side and how they would work to lift that rea out of poverty. Tiffany Walden, editor-in-chief of The TRiiBE, noted that the West Side has experienced disinvestment since the uprisings following the assassination of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. in 1968 – and noted that a resident of East Garfield Park only has a median income of $23,000 per year, compared with a citywide median of $62,000.
Sawyer brought up the Wadsworth Elementary School in Woodlawn, where migrants are now being housed, and Mayor Lightfoot telling those migrants that if they got work permits, they would have jobs guaranteed.
"I want to make that same guarantee to the people of the West Side and the South Side," Sawyer said. "Let's make sure that those on the West Side that are willing and able, that want to work – let's get them to work."
Buckner said the West Side has been neglected for far too long, and has not seen true investments since the unrest of 1968 left it blighted.
"I've talked about making sure there is somebody in City Hall specifically charged with the task of development in that community," he said.
In a new topic yet to be seen in the mayoral debates up to this point, the candidates were asked about how to recruit more Black officers to the police force.
"You get real diversity when you recruit directly from the military," Vallas said.
"It's a $115,000-per-year job. It has benefits. It has insurance. It has all of those things. It's a livable job," said King. "But we've been demoralizing the entire crew of officers."
"New leadership can make that change – a police superintendent who lifts up the next generation of leaders," said Garcia.
Also addressed was the issue of cash bail. All the candidates spoke in favor of eliminating cash bail as a matter of criminal justice reform, but some candidates – including Mayor Lightfoot – warned that dangerous and violent offenders cannot be set free.
"I think the concern is who is getting out on bail, and the concern is especially around community safety. Right now today, there are about 1,900 people charged with things like murder, attempted murder, using a gun int eh commission of a violent felony, who are walking the streets on electronic monitoring when nobody's monitoring them," the mayor said. "That's just in the sheriff's program."
At the start of the debate, each of the candidates was asked about a potential fault or criticism. Green was asked how he had the confidence to lead the city and "swim with the sharks" at the young age of 27.
"I've been doing the work for many years already, and if we talk about experience, I'm willing to put all of the results that I've garnered for the communities against all of the political records of everybody here combined," he replied.
King was asked why she opposed the old Michael Reese Hospital site for a Chicago casino. She noted that her Bronzeville constituents did not want a casino at that site, and emphasized that a casino would have had a negative effect on underresourced communities.
Buckner was asked about two DUI convictions he has received – one of them while an elected official.
"I've had very clear con versations with the people of Chicago about my past mistakes – and not only have I owned them, but I've been accountable as well," he said.
Wilson was asked whether the events at which he has given away free gasoline and groceries amount to buying votes. He characterized them as acts of charity and altruism.
"Chicago needs help," he said. "We're not going to sit by and wait until the city does something if we can help."
Johnson, whose campaign has received strong backing from the Chicago Teachers Union and other public employee unions, was asked if he would remain independent rather than beholden to those interests. He said he was prepared to be mayor for the whole city and all its people, with a budget plan seeking equity and justice.
Noting that he received the endorsement of the Fraternal Order of Police, Vallas was asked about his stance on the shooting by Chicago Police Officer Jason Van Dyke that killed Laquan McDonald – which the FOP had initially called a justifiable shooting.
"If you recall, I was pretty outspoken on this issue four years ago in terms of condemning those involved," Vallas said. He said he had even expressed before that he thought the punishment for Van Dyke was insufficient – which cost him support.
Sawyer was asked about his strength as a mayoral candidate after being forced into a runoff in his most recent bid for reelection as alderman. He won the runoff by 11 percent.
His answer was, "This is all learning experience, and we're going to get better by learning from our mistakes and our challenges."
Noting that Garcia often touts his relationship with the late Mayor Harold Washington, the moderators noted that Black Chicago does not feel like it has felt heard from Latino leadership since Washington died in 1987. He was asked if he would make a commitment to the interests of Black Chicago, much as Washington made a similar pledge to defend the interests of the Latino community.
"Most certainly," he said. "I have been committed to the empowerment and advancement of all people in Chicago – especially Black and brown," he said.
And the moderators noted that Mayor Lightfoot has been accused of being combative and confrontational – and her approval rating is only 22 percent. She pointed the trauma of the pandemic.
"We are coming out of one of the most disruptive, traumatic experiences that people of our generation experienced," Lightfoot said. "The pandemic upended everything – our certainty about tomorrow."
Meanwhile, it was Johnson who took most of the attacks Monday, both from Lightfoot and Green. As the candidates answered questions about public safety, Green said he was dealing with the trauma of the violence in Chicago firsthand while Johnson was not.
"Brandon Johnson, please stop lying about the lived experiences, because you don't have any – and I'm actually living them each and every day, and you are a fraud," Green said. "So please stop lying to the public and the city of Chicago."
Johnson retorted, "As a public school teacher here in Chicago, I've looked into the lives of young people int the eyes of young people who have lost hope."
Lightfoot returned to an accusation that Johnson wishes to defund the Police Department.
""But what safe cities in the U.S. do is they don't defund the police, as Mr. Johnson has been the architect of, has wrapped his arms around," Lightfoot said. Noting, that Johnson has said he plans to promote more officers to detective with a goal of solving more crimes, Lightfoot said the promotions of those officers would mean less officers on the streets – and less safety – unless more officers were hired.
"The mayor again is just being deceptive," Johnson said in response.
The city says more than 41,000 ballots have already been cast by mail at early voting sits. Election Day is Tuesday, Feb. 28.
