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Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson clapped back at critics by comparing fiscal responsibility with supporting slavery, opening himself up to even more backlash.

City leaders are decrying the Democrat mayor’s “dictatorship tone” as he continues to defiantly stand his ground on school spending, likening his detractors to those in the confederacy during slavery.

“I’m a man of my word, and that means bold leadership in a moment that doesn’t nibble around the edges and look for incremental gain,” Johnson said at a South Side church on Monday.

“Our people in this city are tired of political leaders that want the status quo to nibble around the edges, and then when children don’t get what they deserve, they blame the very communities that they’ve divested in. Not on my watch,” he said during the press conference.

(Video Credit: CBS News Chicago)

“And then the so-called experts, the so-called fiscally responsible stewards are making the same argument. When our people wanted to be liberated and emancipated in this country, the argument was, ‘you can’t free black people because it would be too expensive,’” Johnson said.

“They said it would be fiscally irresponsible for this country to liberate black people,” he continued.

“And now you have detractors making the same argument of the confederacy when it comes to public education in this system,” Johnson said. “These are the people who package these gimmicks, lied to our people, stole money from our people, refuse to pay into the pension system, left the taxpayers with the bill, and for me to fix it.”

Johnson’s hand-picked school board announced their resignation en masse last week.

“Sources said the board refused to fire the Chicago Public Schools Chief Executive Officer Pedro Martinez or to take out a $300 million high-interest loan to pay pensions and fund teacher raises being sought by the Chicago Teachers Union,” CBS News reported.

Martinez was placed in his position by Johnson’s predecessor, then-Mayor Lori Lightfoot, in 2021. Johnson introduced six new nominees for the school board during Monday’s press conference.

“The city leaders have long resisted investing in our children. I am no longer going to accept the status quo,” Johnson said. “We have schools right now who do not have dollars for buses to take their kids to sporting events. We have a system right now that can’t adequately bus children to the very spaces that they say they believe in, and so that is why I was elected to fight and fight I am.”

“I’m confident that these new candidates will work to lead CPS into the world-class school system that our children deserve,” the mayor said. “I will continue to nominate Chicagoans who are dedicated to meeting the needs of our students.”

But Johnson is facing resistance as criticism grows over his strong-armed style and as 41 members of the City Council signed a letter calling out Johnson’s “blatant coup.”

“The City Council can have as many hearings as they want,” he said. “There’s only one person who has the authority by state law to make appointments, and that’s the mayor of the City of Chicago—and that’s me.”

“This whole dictatorship tone that the mayor is proposing is not a good tone, especially when you’re looking at us at some point to pass your budget,” said Alderman Gilbert Villegas (36th), “because there’s going to be give and take.”

“To blame everything from slavery to the second coming of Jesus as to why he has the authority and is offended by anyone questioning that is remarkable to me,” Ald. Ray Lopez (15th) said, according to CBS News.

Frieda Powers
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