R&I ~~ MJM
CHICAGO — Shattered glass and other debris from looted stores was still being cleaned up Tuesday after a wave of violence tore through the city’s upscale shopping districts.
To some experts, the unrest — in which more than 100 people were arrested and 13 police officers were injured — represents long-simmering frustrations finally boiling over. Others say the violence was opportunistic in nature, criminality spilling into the streets.
The tumult occurred early Monday, hours after a police shooting in the South Side neighborhood of Englewood. Officers responded to a call about a person with a gun, the police department said. The officers said they attempted to confront a man matching a description of the suspect when he ran off, firing at the police.
The officers fired back, hitting the man, who is said to be 20 years old. He was taken to a hospital and is expected to survive, according to Chicago police Superintendent David Brown.
“This wasn’t an organized protest. It was an incident of pure criminality,” Brown said Monday. “Criminals took to streets with confidence that there would be no consequences for their actions. I refuse to let these cowardly acts hold our city hostage.”
Mayor Lori Lightfoot, who took office last year, said the wave of property damage and looting was “criminal.”
“We are waking up in shock this morning,” Lightfoot said, adding that the melee “had nothing to do with protected First Amendment expression.”
David Stovall, a professor of Black studies and criminology at the University of Illinois at Chicago, said the uprising sent a clear message.
“This put everybody on notice that folks have had enough,” he said. “They are saying this is what it means to be poor, hungry and fed up, and if we’re really not ready to address the foundational issue of housing, health care and employment, this is what we’re going to do.”
FoundingFrog
Article URL : https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/looting-chicago-was-long-time-coming-some-experts-say-n1236303