On the day after Chicago was hit with rampant rioting and looting, local Black Lives Matters leaders held a rally in support of the over 100 arrested for the mindless crime spree that included alleged assaults on 13 police officers.
The chaos in Chicago Sunday night erupted after a false story was spread by Black Lives Matters agitators about the police shooting a black child during a foot pursuit Sunday in which a 20-year-old suspect who allegedly had a gun was shot by an officer.
According to Chicago’s ABC 7, some of the stores looted during the rioting included “Macy’s at Water Tower, Gucci, Nordstrom, and other high-end clothing, jewelry and watch boutiques on the adjoining retail corridors.”
These are not the types of stores you’d expect people who Democrats like Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez have said are just desperate for household essentials like bread and milk to target.
But Black Lives Matter Chicago leaders have an explanation for that, explaining during their Monday rally that looting stores like Gucci and Macy’s is actually a form of “reparations”:
The rally was organized by Black Lives Matter Chicago and was held at a police station in the South Loop where organizers say individuals are currently being held in custody. At least one organizer called the looting tantamount to “reparations.”“I don’t care if someone decides to loot a Gucci or a Macy’s or a Nike store, because that makes sure that person eats,” said Ariel Atkins, a BLM organizer, according to NBC Chicago. “That makes sure that person has clothes.”“That is reparations,” Atkins continued. “Anything they wanted to take, they can take it because these businesses have insurance.”
Watch:
Behind Atkins was a sign that advocated for rioters to “loot back” because their futures had already been “looted” from them or something:
A statement posted by Black Lives Matter – Chicago on their website and to their Twitter account went even further (bolded emphasis added):
Others in the media have been quick to condemn attacks on “our city” and play up racialized fears for the city’s white residents. These commentators seem to believe that the immense wealth that has been hoarded in downtown Chicago is in some way all of ours. The South and West sides have seen no benefits to this hoarding. Over the past few months, too many people — disproportionately Black and Brown — have lost their jobs, lost their income, lost their homes, and lost their lives as the city has done nothing and the Chicago elite have profited. When protesters attack high-end retail stores that are owned by the wealthy and service the wealthy, that is not “our” city and has never been meant for us.The Mayor cannot expect people to play by her rules as she refuses to treat them with basic dignity. These protests can only end when the safety and wellbeing of our communities is finally prioritized.
The full statement is below:
If it wasn’t official before, it’s definitely official now: Just as it has become the case in Seattle and Portland, the lunatics are running the asylum in Chicago. And thanks to the feckless Democratic “leaders” in those cities, there appears to be no end in sight to what radical Black Lives Matter agitators and their extremist Antifa allies can get away with.
— Stacey Matthews has also written under the pseudonym “Sister Toldjah” and can be reached via Twitter. —
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