Rev. Jesse Jackson condemned scenes in Chicago in which throngs of people were seen breaking into high-end retailers and exiting with clothes and jewelry.
Jackson, on Monday, admonished those who used a time of unrest sparked by the coronavirus pandemic and the death of George Floyd as cover to rob stores in the city brazenly on Sunday night.
“This act of pillaging, robbing & looting in Chicago was humiliating, embarrassing & morally wrong,” tweeted Jackson. “It must not be associated with our quest for social justice and equality. #DrKing, #MedgarEvers & #JohnLewis, our martyrs, cry together in shame.”
This act of pillaging, robbing & looting in Chicago was humiliating, embarrassing &morally wrong. It must not be associated with our quest for social justice and equality. #DrKing, #MedgarEvers & #JohnLewis, our martyrs, cry together in shame. #StopTheViolence #SaveTheChildren pic.twitter.com/UxTJYVq51l
— Rev Jesse Jackson Sr (@RevJJackson) August 10, 2020
Chicago police reported looting and violence on Sunday night, and videos circulating on social media revealed how the city devolved into anarchy at points before officials were forced to raise the bridges above the Chicago River to ward off more looters from entering the downtown area.
Jackson said civil rights icons such as Martin Luther King Jr. and Medgar Evers would “cry together in shame” if they witnessed the actions of residents who used cars to break into storefronts, including Apple, Tesla, and Christian Dior. Jackson also shared a tweet by Pastor Tavis Grant, which stated that the looting was “beneath our dignity as people.“
Looters attacked stores along Chicago’s “Magnificent Mile” street, and images from the Midwestern hub showed completely wrecked storefronts and trashed parking lots the next morning.
