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Mayoral candidate Lopez vows to reverse Chicago’s anti-Arab and anti-Muslim insurance policies
CHICAGO: Mayoral candidate Raymond Lopez Wednesday denounced Mayor Lori Lightfoot’s concentrating on of the Arab and Muslim group as “disgusting and tasteless,” and vowed to launch a probe into her actions which has price a whole bunch of job losses and hundreds of thousands in revenue and tax income.
Lopez added that his administration would restore the group’s festivals and cultural presence in America’s second largest metropolis.
Final June, a activity pressure of inspectors and police forcibly closed greater than 150 Arab- and Muslim-owned companies in what critics referred to as a misguided effort by Lightfoot to crack down on street-gang violence. As a result of many of the shops are open 24 hours a day, street-gang members would usually run into them in the midst of the evening to flee police when violence passed off.
Lopez, the one Hispanic who has introduced his candidacy within the February 28, 2023 Chicago election, made these feedback throughout a stay radio interview on “The Ray Hanania Present” which broadcasts stay on the US Arab Radio Community and is sponsored by Arab Information.
“I’m completely a buddy to the Arab group not simply in phrase however in motion and I’ll proceed to be that buddy,” Lopez stated, including he would work with Arab People to convey again the Arabesque Pageant which was closed by former Mayor Rahm Israel Emanuel in 2011, and was certain Lightfoot’s discriminatory insurance policies would additionally finish.
“That simply reveals how tone deaf and clueless Lori Lightfoot is in addressing the number-one concern within the metropolis of Chicago which is the out-of-control crime and violence that we see, and guilty the house owners of fuel stations and shops just because that’s the place the crime ended up at, of their parking heaps or subsequent to them of their sidewalks. That was an entire miscalculation on her half. I feel personally she felt the Arab group could be a simple group to focus on within the Black group as a result of she was simply fueling the fires that exist with the animosity that’s in some neighborhoods.”
Chicago has seen a surge in street-gang gun-related homicides throughout Lightfoot’s three years in workplace and the mayor has been unable to cease the rise.
Lopez joined Arab companies final September to denounce the mayor’s actions, forcing her to reopen all of the shops the next day after many have been closed for greater than three months.
“All of the violations, the complaints and questions vanished in a single day,” Lopez noticed, after the Arab group held a press convention to show her actions.
“We all know the Arab group is simply as integral as any immigrant group. This week we’re celebrating the Polish group, my Mexican group … we did the Irish group in March. We’re all a part of the material. And to only pull on one thread and say they’re the issue is disgusting and tasteless to say the least.”
Lopez additionally promised to work with the Arab and Muslim group to revive the annual Chicago Arab pageant, Arabesque, which was shut down by Lightfoot’s predecessor Emanuel in one in every of his first official acts after turning into mayor in 2011.
Emanuel then proceeded to shut the Chicago Arab Advisory Fee and excluded Arabs from his administration. Lightfoot had promised to work with Arab People throughout her marketing campaign to succeed Emanuel, however did nothing when she was elected mayor in Might 2019.
“We all know that the Arab group and the Arab voter is oftentimes taken without any consideration. I for one grew up with Arabs in my neighborhood … We got here up collectively in highschool. I’m no stranger to the Arab group. And I stay up for once we can have the Arab pageant once more and we are able to have fun, which is what I imagine … is the quintessential Chicago nature, to have fun our ethnic range to ask all communities to style our meals, hear our music and luxuriate in our good firm,” Lopez stated.
“And there’s no cause that the Arab group can’t be the identical a part of that custom because the Mexican group, the Chinese language group that (have) their festivals … the Korean group and so forth and so forth like so many communities all through town. We have to get again to celebrating our range as a result of really that’s the one factor that all of us have in frequent. We’re all from all over the place. There isn’t any cause to discriminate and decide sides. We will stay below one roof and luxuriate in one another, and we are going to try this once more quickly.”
Lopez stated “there ought to be a spot for everybody on the metropolis authorities desk” and they need to really feel welcome as is the case now in Chicago.
“And the hundreds of thousands of {dollars} that you already know that these closures price not solely town of Chicago however (additionally) the small enterprise house owners who have been impacted, and for no cause aside from (to) attempt to discover one thing improper, attempt to discover one thing to write down a ticket on, attempt to discover one thing to justify this motion. Authorities shouldn’t be within the enterprise of victimizing folks simply to create a story,” Lopez stated.
Lopez acknowledged the closures price town of Chicago hundreds of thousands of {dollars} in misplaced tax revenues for gasoline and gross sales. It additionally resulted within the layoff of a whole bunch of staff who labored on the Arab-owned shops.
Hassan Nijem of the American Arab Chamber of Commerce stated that lots of the Arab-owned fuel station house owners misplaced on common $70,000 a month in revenues. Lots of the shops have been closed for 2 to 3 months and have by no means been reimbursed by town for the misplaced revenue.
Lopez stated he would be a part of different aldermen together with Gilbert Villegas and Silvana Tabares in conducting a public discussion board on Monday, Might 9, at Chicago’s Islamic Neighborhood Middle of Illinois to probe Lightfoot’s actions towards Arab and Muslim enterprise house owners.
He additionally stated the Chicagoland information media must do a greater job scrutinizing Lightfoot’s actions together with towards minority teams like Arab People.
Lightfoot has declined requests for interviews from Arab Information.
The Ray Hanania Radio Present is broadcast on the US Arab Radio Community and sponsored by Arab Information stay each Wednesday at 5 p.m. EST in Detroit on WNZK AM 690, in Washington D.C. on WDMV AM 700. It’s rebroadcast on Thursdays at 12 midday in Chicago on WNWI AM 1080.
For the podcast and extra info on the radio present go to: ArabNews.com/rayradioshow.
Hearken to the Ray Hanania podcast right here.
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