Chicago – August 20, 2024
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.”
Johnson came out as the mayor of the largest city to endorse a cease-fire in Gaza and cast the fateful tiebreaker 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.
