Former Democratic congresswoman Tulsi Gabbard has called for the resignation of the Democratic mayor of Chicago, Lori Lightfoot, after Lightfoot promised to never give interviews to white reporters and defended her racism by invoking her sexual identity as a black lesbian.
“Mayor Lightfoot’s blatant anti-white racism is abhorrent. I call upon President Biden, Kamala Harris, and other leaders of our county—of all races—to join me in calling for Mayor Lightfoot’s resignation,” Gabbard wrote on Twitter Friday. “Our leaders must condemn all racism, including anti-white.”
Gabbard’s remarks drew outrage from black supremacists and left-wing outrage, who raged in the replies of the tweet. Ultimately however, Gabbard’s post received over 22,000 likes in an hour, signifying an overwhelmingly positive response.
Mayor Lightfoot's blatant anti-white racism is abhorrent. I call upon President Biden, Kamala Harris, and other leaders of our county—of all races—to join me in calling for Mayor Lightfoot's resignation. Our leaders must condemn all racism, including anti-white.
— Tulsi Gabbard
(@TulsiGabbard) May 21, 2021
“I have been struck since my first day on the campaign trail back in 2018 by the overwhelming whiteness and maleness of Chicago media outlets, editorial boards, the political press corps, and yes, the City Hall press corps specifically,” Lightfoot said in a letter to the press earlier this week. “Indeed, there are only a handful of beat reporters of color in the City Hall press corps. While there are women of color who sometimes cover my administration, there are zero women of color assigned to the City Hall beat. Zero. I find this unacceptable and I hope you do too.”
“Hire reporters of color — and especially women of color — to cover Chicago politics, and City Hall in particular,” Lightfoot’s rant continued. “If you only have a white reporter covering City Hall, make sure there’s a person of color working with them as well.”
Lightfoot’s racist remarks have drawn a mixed reception from the media, with some outlets insisting that they are in fact diverse enough to meet Lightfoot’s tastes, while others agree and depict her as a strong black lesbian fighting racism by refusing to answer questions from white journalists.