Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot clashed with a group of teens as she tried to enforce a local stay-at-home order.
According to the Chicago Tribune, the mayor went to the East Garfield Park neighborhood on Saturday to give a press conference on the ongoing concerns about social gatherings in the city. Lightfoot gave a stern warning to people attending large parties and disobeying social distancing guidelines.
“If you act like a criminal and you violate the law and you refuse to do what is necessary to save lives in this city during a pandemic we will take you to jail, period,” she said.
The mayor later walked to a group of teens who were hanging out at a playground across the street, telling them to go home.
“Let’s move on, move on, move on,” she said. “You want to take this virus back to your house, get your momma sick?”
The group responded with anger.
"Y'all overdoing it," one person said. "Y'all need to find a cure, talking about go home. You go home."
A social media user posted a video of the incident, saying Lightfoot was "being condescending."
"Why didn’t you have a real dialogue with them instead of being condescending? Your PR stunt with tik tok don’t make you cool with the youth if you don’t approach us with respect," the Twitter user wrote. "That’s why lil Bro roasted you. You want 2 save their lives show them U care, PERIOD!"
.@chicagosmayor why didn’t you have a real dialogue with them instead of being condescending? Your PR stunt with tik tok don’t make you cool with the youth if you don’t approach us with respect. That’s why lil Bro roasted you. You want 2 save their lives show them U care, PERIOD! pic.twitter.com/iCP1VfTszQ
— GoodKidsMadCity (@GKMC18) May 3, 2020
Other social media users defended the mayor, saying she was right in enforcing the order.
"She has been telling everyone to stay inside since this s**t started. People are not listening, and instead of admonishing them for not doing what she asked, you’re calling her condescending???" one person wrote. "It’s no wonder cases continue to rise and our skinfolk are dying in greater numbers."
She has been telling everyone to stay inside since this shit started. People are not listening, and instead of admonishing them for not doing what she asked, you’re calling her condescending??? It’s no wonder cases continue to rise and our skinfolk are dying in greater numbers.
— Death By Koolaid ???????????????????????????????????????? (@d3athbyk00laid) May 3, 2020
A dialogue ????. They know what’s right but they chose not to follow the rules. Corona is hitting the black community hard bc of mindset like that. Stop always wanting someone to baby the community
— The Real Lucci (@LanvinLucci) May 3, 2020
How would you approach these young people who aren't complying with the stay at home order, thus endangering all our lives, including theirs? I confess I'm angry they aren't doing so already, so I might not do as good a job as the mayor did. What do they need to do what's right?
— Rachel, Essential Wker Democrat ???? & Snark Jedi ???? (@VozdeRaquel) May 3, 2020
lol bro was ignorant and disrespectful as hell. All she did is tell them they have to go home. What’s wrong with that? She’s showing them she cares by being out there telling them to go home. Not many mayors are out in the community trying to convince people to stay in.
— Dora Carroll (@Dora_e_Carroll) May 3, 2020
According to WTTW, city officials found six large parties that were planned in recent days with invitations going out through social media. Officials said they discovered parties with more than 100 people, and the groups were forced to disperse, but no arrests were made.
“You absolutely must stay at home. And that means your home. Not somebody else’s home. Not an Airbnb. Not some party place. You need to stay at your home. That’s what this means,” Lightfoot said during her press conference. “Going to a party now during this pandemic while Chicagoans are still dying every day is a height of foolishness.”
