On the first day of the Democratic National Convention, Mayor Brandon Johnson on Monday skirted a question about recent remarks in which he described the war in Gaza as “genocidal,” while reiterating his call for an end to the conflict.
Speaking at a news conference on the city’s safety preparations, Johnson did not directly address an article published Saturday in the progressive magazine Mother Jones, where he was quoted saying: “What’s happening right now is not only egregious, it is genocidal,” in reference to the war in Gaza between Israel and Hamas.
Nor did he respond to a suggestion that such a stance could be at odds with his role as host mayor of the blockbuster event, where Chicago will celebrate Vice President Kamala Harris as the Democratic nominee for president. Instead, the mayor stressed that he had also condemned Hamas’ Oct. 7 attack on Israel.
“You can condemn terrorism and call for peace. It’s actually very customary within our tradition here in Chicago. Dr. (Martin Luther) King (Jr.) called for that,” Johnson said. “People across America are calling for that, for the immediate releasing of hostages, the end of these acts of terror and the end to this war. And I will continue to stand by that position because it is the moral position.”
The war in Gaza, where Gaza health officials say more than 40,000 Palestinians have been killed, has been the impetus for roiling protests targeting the Biden-Harris administration in Chicago and nationwide.
Johnson came out as the mayor from the largest city to endorse a ceasefire in Gaza and cast the fateful tie-breaker in a City Council resolution backing that stance in January, but he has refrained from labeling the conflict as a genocide until now. His stance against Israel’s conduct in the war could present a thorny juxtaposition for the progressive mayor as he rolls out the red carpet for the political leaders that pro-Palestinian groups say are helping to perpetuate the conflict through U.S. aid to Israel.
How the mayor has reacted to the Middle East conflict’s impact has earned him plaudits from the left but ire from pro-Israel groups and critics who say he should be focused on issues at home instead of foreign policy. Johnson has not shied away from his support of the protesters who have vowed to make noise at the DNC, frequently reminding the public that before he occupied the 5th floor of City Hall, he had been arrested as an organizer for the Chicago Teachers Union.
Last week, a protracted dispute between protest groups at the DNC and the Johnson administration concluded with the mayor himself intervening to ensure a permit for stages and sound equipment, an extraordinary move that signaled loyalty to his activist roots. An organizer said the mayor called to promise, “We’re gonna make this happen. I’m gonna make sure that everybody’s rights are protected.”
But the coalition of activist groups said they were still unsatisfied with route restrictions ahead of a Monday evening march that is scheduled to begin near the the United Center, signaling the difficulties in trying to accommodate protests for the DNC host mayor.
This spring, the Johnson administration at times contradicted itself while navigating how to react the pro-Palestinian tent encampment protests across Chicago campuses. Chicago police cleared one such demonstration at the School of the Art Institute of Chicago, to outcry from Johnson’s progressive allies, before refusing to intervene in another sweep at the University of Chicago.
The question of whether the mayor can embrace the antiwar movement while hosting the DNC has come up before amid concern over whether pressure on the Biden-Harris administration over Gaza could harm efforts to defeat GOP nominee Donald Trump in November.
In March, one of Johnson’s top allies in City Council landed himself — and the mayor — in heated controversy when he was seen speaking in front of a charred American flag at a pro-Palestinian rally outside City Hall that called for the DNC to be canceled. Ald. Bryon Sigcho-Lopez later beat back a censure vote from his colleagues, but not before another round of scrutiny over whether Johnson’s inner circle is too extreme and divisive.
Now, Sigcho-Lopez has been tapped as the mayor’s next chair of the powerful Zoning committee. The 25th Ward alderman said Sunday following Johnson’s Mother Jones interview: “This is a genocide, and I’m glad Mayor Johnson has called it for what it is, and I hope our nominee and Democratic Party does the same.”