Small Businesses Shut Down to Stem Crime

By: John Semmens

In a desperate effort to try to reduce violent crime in Chicago, Mayor Lori Lightfoot has launched a campaign to shut down convenience markets in high-crime areas. A Special Task Force comprised of Police Officers and City Inspectors has been ordered “to find license and permit violations that can be used to put these public nuisances out of business.”

Most of the targeted businesses are owned by Arabs, Asians, or Blacks. One owner who spoke anonymously for fear of retribution complained “they are making us scapegoats for the gang violence that plagues the City. This misguided scheme will have no impact except to harm the only local businesses that provide services in neighborhoods where the gangs operate.”

The Mayor was unfazed by the prospect of neighborhoods losing the services of local small businesses, saying “only good will come of that. As the pandemic has shown, people can get all the merchandise they need from Amazon or Walmart. There is no economic need for these small time operators. Those who insist on the convenience of local businesses can move to low-crime areas. As the high-crime neighborhoods become vacant the crime will disappear.”