Earlier this year Chicago’s Mayor Lori Lightfoot thought it would be a good idea to discriminate against white journalists. She claimed there was not enough diversity amongst the journalists so she would only be allowing journalists of color to interview her one-on-one. She ended up holding 6 interviews over a two-day span with only people of color before she was called out for her blatant discrimination and a judge asked her if her discriminating policy was still active. She said no. But in an interview with the NY Times’s Kara Swisher, Lightfoot Lightfoot claims she would discriminate against white people again.
Lightfoot: “I gave exclusive interviews. And we do get to choose who we talk to in exclusives. I gave exclusive interviews with journalists of color, right? One 24-hour period and it was like people’s heads exploded. I had journalists saying, does the mayor think I’m racist? No, it’s not about individuals.
It’s about systemic racism. It’s about calling it like I see it and challenging the heads of the media companies here in town to do a better job of bringing journalists of color, women into the fray. That’s what this is about. And so, yeah, I could have been quiet and sat back and said, well, I don’t like this. I think they could do better, but kept it to myself. But why should I? If not me, who?
I have, I believe, a responsibility. These are issues that I care deeply about. And what I heard from most journalists of color and particularly Black journalists, thank you, mayor. We’ve been trying to have these conversations in our newsrooms with our producers, with our president. And we couldn’t get traction until now.”
Swisher: “Would you do it again?”
Lightfoot: “I would absolutely do it again. I would absolutely do it again. I’m unapologetic about it because it spurred a very important conversation, a conversation that needed to happen, that should have happened a long time ago. But I don’t want just a conversation. I want results. I want to see these networks, these companies, these producers, the decision-makers take this seriously because it’s a serious issue.”
According to the 2019 census Chicago is 50% white, yet the Lightfoot here would rather cater to minorities. She is a public servant and is supposed to be serving the people of Chicago, not discriminating against certain residents because of their race.
dan