Mayor Brandon Johnson has acknowledged that the failure to communicate his own story has allowed opponents to define him. But it looks like the mayor’s most recent attempt to define himself may have opened up yet another new front in his political war with President Donald Trump.
The Justice Department Monday opened a civil rights investigation into Chicago’s hiring practices a day after Johnson boasted during an appearance at the Apostolic Church of God in Woodlawn about the record number of African-Americans he has hired for top city jobs.
Assistant Attorney General Harmeet K. Dhillon cited the mayor’s remarks in his letter to Johnson informing the mayor of the investigation.
“Our investigation is based on information suggesting that you have made hiring decisions solely on the basis of race,” Dhillon wrote.
During a conversation with the church’s pastor, Bishop Byron Brazier, Johnson pointed out that his budget director, planning and development commissioner and deputy mayor for infrastructure are Black women — and that he has appointed Black men to serve as chief operations officer and senior mayoral adviser.
“If these kinds of hiring decisions are being made for top-level positions in your administration, then it begs the question whether such decisions are also being made for lower-level positions,” Dhillon wrote. “Considering these remarks, I have authorized an investigation to determine whether the city of Chicago is engaged in a pattern or practice of discrimination.”
Trump has waged war on what he called “wokeness” and vowed to eliminate diversity, equity and inclusion programs in public schools, college admissions, corporate and governmental hiring.
In the letter, Dhillon said Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 prohibits discrimination on the basis of race.
The mayor’s office said it is aware of the letter, but is “awaiting the official receipt” of it.
“Mayor Johnson is proud to have the most diverse administration in the history of our city,” the mayor’s office said in a brief statement. “Our administration reflects the diversity and values of Chicago. Unfortunately, the current federal administration does not reflect either.”
Johnson was far more expansive during his conversation with Brazier on Sunday. He noted then that, “Two administrations ago, 70-to-75% of the administration was primarily made up of whites and white men.”
The mayor said he has assembled “the most diverse administration in the history of Chicago,” with 45% of top jobs held by Blacks and 25% by Latinos.
“There are some detractors who will push back on me and say the only thing the mayor talks about is the hiring of Black people,” Johnson said. “No. What I’m saying is, when you hire our people, we always look out for everybody else. We are the most generous people on the planet. I don’t know many cultures that have play cousins. That’s how generous we are. We just make somebody a family member, right? That’s just how we are.”
Ald. Walter Burnett (27th), the City Council dean now serving as Johnson’s handpicked Zoning Committee chair, said he was somewhat surprised that a sweeping investigation would be triggered by Johnson’s remarks.
“I’m like, `Wow. The mayor better be careful what he’s saying. The dude is listening to him,’“ Burnett said, laughing. “With everything going on in the world, why are you concerned about Chicago and our hiring practices?”
Burnett said the people hired by Johnson are “good people” and most are veterans of previous administrations.
“Of course he has some more African-Americans which, I think, is not a bad thing. But he has qualified people,” Burnett said.
In the run-up to Johnson’s mid-term anniversary, Burnett told the Sun-Times that the mayor’s communications stumbles have left Johnson with a narrow path to re-election. He urged Johnson to “get a publicity team together” to “get his wins out there” and “really show people what he’s doing. A lot of people can’t see it.
“I guess with Trump, everything is fair game when it comes to ethnicity, divisiveness and pointing out race,” Burnett added. “Everything is fair game when it comes to our president. That’s just who he is and what he does.”
Burnett questioned what the Justice Department will find, given that the jobs Johnson was talking about are exempt from the Shakman decree banning political hiring and firing.
“Those are at-will jobs. He can hire who he wants to hire,” Burnett said.
“When you look at Trump’s administration, he’s only hired one African-American in his cabinet. That’s what we need to look (at). There’s predominantly white males working for him. What he’s trying to do to the mayor, the mayor can probably do to him.”