New Chicago Board of Ed. President to remain despite calls for his resignation over antisemitism

Jewish groups and Chicago officials are calling for the resignation of Chicago’s new education board president, Rev. Mitchell Ikenna Johnson, due to his “disturbing” comments about Jews and Israelis, as first revealed by Jewish Insider this week.

The problematic comments include social media posts such as “I have been saying this since October 2023. People have an absolute right to attack their oppressors by any means necessary” and saying that people should “stop blaming Hamas.”

He also accused Zionist Jews of being Nazis.

28 Chicago alderpersons penned a joint letter on Wednesday calling for Rev. Johnson’s resignation, citing his “antisemitic and pro-Hamas comments.”

“The thousands of Jewish families who send their kids to Chicago Public Schools deserve representation who values them and does not express hate towards the Jewish community,” the letter continued.

The alderpersons blamed the appointment of Rev. Johnson on Mayor Brandon Johnson, who himself has been accused of making antisemitic and pro-Hamas comments, and, just this week, came under fire for declining to mention that the victim of a shooting was Jewish.

The letter adds that, earlier in October, Mayor Johnson told reporters that his appointees would be thoroughly vetted before being sworn in, with the alderpersons saying that this makes it clear “that did not take place.”

Both the signees and the Jewish groups StopAntisemitism, Anti-Defamation League (ADL), and American Jewish Committee (AJC) referenced Rev. Johnson’s “disturbing” statement about his Jewish colleagues being “drunk with Israeli power” and threatening that they will “live to see their payment.”

The letter concluded that Rev. Johnson’s comments are “abhorrent, inexcusable and disqualifying from public service.”

However, Rev. Johnson said that he would not resign.

Jonathan Greenblatt, CEO of the ADL, said that the appointment of Rev. Johnson was “offensive and insulting to a Jewish community reeling from the attacks of this weekend and increased antisemitism over the past several months.”

The Consulate General of Israel to the Midwest condemned Rev. Johnson, calling the appointment “appalling.”

“It is incomprehensible that someone with these antisemitic views was appointed to lead the Chicago public school system, designed to promote education, coexistence and inclusion,” the consulate added.

Responding to criticism and calls for him to resign, Rev. Johnson said on Wednesday that he was “deeply sorry for not being more precise and deliberate” in his comments, and acknowledged that his comments could be “construed as antisemitic.”

He also said he would work to protect all students.

Rev. Johnson's suitability for public office

The Jerusalem Post also discovered that Johnson was previously disbarred from Ohio in 1998, meaning he was prohibited from practicing law on account of “engaging in conduct involving dishonesty, deceit, fraud, or misrepresentation.”

The Post read the ruling of Cleveland Bar Assn. v. Johnson, which found Johnson guilty of “neglect of entrusted legal matters and failure to assist in an investigation.”

The case explains that Rev. Johnson received $1000 from a client in order to hire an economist as an expert witness. However, Johnson never hired the witness and the client’s request for a refund was never met.

NBC 5 also reported that Rev. Johnson recently had a lien (imposition to secure the payment of a debt) placed on his house for non-payment of child support, which was later released, as well as a lien issued for non-payment of a water bill at his home.

Questioned on this matter by a City Hall reporter for the Chicago Tribune, Rev. Johnson said: “You’re asking me a question which you know is politicized. … That’s a silly question.”

“The point is we don’t discuss personal issues.”

He told the reporter, “I was suggested for this position because of my leadership capacity and my ability to get things done. … I wasn’t hired to be an accountant, and I wasn’t hired to be a lawyer.”

Currently, the appointment of the Chicago mayor does not require approval from the City Council.

Mayor Johnson's response to Chicago shooting incident

This new scandal comes amid the furore that followed Mayor Johnson’s refusal to state that the victim of a shooting earlier this week was Jewish.

An Orthodox Jewish man was shot on Saturday by a Muslim man who shouted “Allahu akbar.” The victim was on the way to the synagogue.

The Chicago Police Department has charged the attacker with 14 felonies. However, he has not been charged with a hate crime.

Mayor Johnson did not make a statement on the incident for several days, but when he did, he did not mention the nature of the crime. In his statement, he simply gave “heartfelt thoughts” to the “victim and his loved ones from this weekend’s shooting incident.”

This comes despite the fact that on 16 October 2023, when a Palestinian American child was killed, Mayor Johnson referred to it as “a despicable hate crime” and a “reminder of the destructive role of Islamophobia.”

The Israeli consulate in Chicago called it the “latest example of the antisemitic hate that pervades the inner circle of Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson.”

“We expect that Mayor Brandon Johnson will disavow this inflammatory rhetoric and make a commitment to combating antisemitism in Chicago, in both words and actions.”

ADL Midwest director David Goldenberg said, “Mayor Johnson’s statement was empty and falls flat in the Jewish community.”

Chicago alderman Debra Silverstein, who is the only Jewish Chicago alderman, responded to Mayor Johnson’s statement saying, “The victim was a Jewish man, who was wearing traditional Jewish garb, walking to a Jewish place of worship on the Jewish day of rest.”

“Don’t erase his identity, and don’t try to minimize the fear and anxiety my community feels after this attack. We’re scared, and we need to know that our mayor has our back.”

Silverstein also criticized Kennedy Bartley, a top aide to the mayor, in an interview with Chicago Magazine.

“Two days after Hamas attacked Israel, she tweeted, ‘From the River to the Sea, Palestine will be free. Amen.’ And then, during the ceasefire resolution meeting, she was a part of the gallery that heckled me.”

In a conversation with the Post this week, Silverstein said the Chicago Jewish community was on high alert and affirmed her commitment to fighting for their safety and security.