The Tragedy of Chicago

America: be warned by the chaos of the Windy City

Chicago’s upcoming mayoral election devolves into a carnival of radicalism run amok.

The embattled incumbent, Lori Lightfoot appeals to the oldest trick in the big city Democrat playbook, dealing the race card…from the bottom of the deck. Lightfoot shamed voters on the heavily black South Side: "any vote coming from the South Side for somebody not named Lightfoot is a vote for Chuy Garcia or Paul Vallas. If you want them controlling your fate and your destiny, then stay home. Then don't vote."

The flailing Lightfoot sent the not-so-veiled message that the black citizens of Chicago better not even consider supporting non-black candidates, not the Mexican Congressman or the Greek guy. That Greek guy, Paul Vallas, presents himself as the supposedly moderate, pro law-and-order candidate in the race.  

But alas -- Vallas, too, felt compelled to run hard and fast to the extreme Left. When Florida Governor Ron DeSantis recently traveled to Illinois at the invitation of the Fraternal Order of Police, Vallas tried to outflank even Lightfoot on the Left, declaring: “there is simply no place in Chicago for a right-wing extremist like Ron DeSantis, and I am disappointed in FOP leadership for inviting him to speak to officers.”

Well, so much for a centrist lane in Chicago politics. Consider the lunacy of castigating the most successful governor in America, even as Chicago descends into the danger and deprivation of a Third World city, in the middle of America? Adding to the contrast, the Florida of Ron DeSantis has emerged as a prime destination for the masses of disgruntled citizens fleeing the madness of Chicago.

Just how bad are things in Chicago?

Well, consider the educational failures. Within the public schools, a staggering 33 schools do not have a single student who can do math at grade level. Not one child!

Looking at the system as a whole, only 21% of Chicago Public Schools high school juniors are proficient in math -- and the same paltry percentage in reading. Those numbers have dropped markedly since the lockdowns, which is not surprising given that Lori Lightfoot inflicted some of the cruelest and most unscientific lockdown measures in America during the pandemic.

But guess what? As poorly as Chicago students measure up vs. basic expectations, they overwhelmingly graduate. The public schools system there boasts of a high, and climbing, 83% graduation rate. Even an observer who is non-proficient in math can quickly ascertain the massive disconnect here.

Not surprisingly, then, far too many young Chicagoans turn to wasted lives of unproductive behaviors and violent criminality. Last year in 2022, Chicago once again claimed the dubious title of the murder capital of America with nearly 700 homicides. For comparison, that’s 300 more murders than Los Angles even though L.A. has over a million more people. The crime incidence is so bad that in 2021 there were 400,000 urgent calls to 911 that had no police available to respond, including 1,300 active shootings and 14,000 domestic abuse calls.

Even when lives are not ended tragically because of violence, the overall eroding quality of life in Chicago’s poor neighborhoods stands out as a shocking scandal. According to data from the NYU School of Medicine, Chicago has the largest life expectancy gap of any city in America. The average longevity for the tony, high-rise neighborhood of Streeterville near Lake Michigan is 90 years old. Just miles away in predominately black Englewood, life expectancy is only 60 years old.

These dire problems of Chicago should not be dismissed as peculiar to the Second City, or only contained to the biggest cities in America. Chicago represents perhaps the worst example of Leftist, statist failures, admittedly. But Chicago also provides a frightening foreshadowing into where the Democrats will take America on a countrywide basis, if we let them. For example, the national U.S. murder rate just hit a 20 year high, and keeps climbing.

Moreover, Chicago is the literal and figurative heart of America. This once-great metropolis, the “city of Big Shoulders” descends into urban tragedy, ruined by incompetent and corrupt radicals. As such, Chicago provides an important warning for the rest of America.

As the national Great Sorting accelerates, millions, like me, flee the problems of places like Chicago. As political and cultural refugees in the red states, we must learn well the tragic lessons of Chicago’s decline.