DOJ Probing Chicago Over Potentially Discriminatory Hiring Practices

The Department of Justice (DOJ) has launched a civil rights investigation into the city of Chicago for potential racial discrimination in hiring after the city’s mayor publicly touted the number of black leaders he elevated to positions of power.

On Monday, the DOJ’s Civil Rights Division sent a letter to Democratic Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson, saying it believes city officials have made employment decisions based on race in potential violation of Title VII of the Civil Rights Act. The investigation was prompted by Mayor Brandon Johnson’s comments on Sunday during a visit to the Apostolic Church of God on Chicago’s South Side in which he emphasized the race of top appointees in his administration and said that part of his motivation for hiring them is to “ensure that our people get a chance to grow their businesses.” (RELATED: Trump DOJ Sues Chicago Over Sanctuary City Law)

DOJ Letter to City of Chicago by melissa on Scribd

“You ‘highlight[ed] the number of Black officials in [your] administration,’ … You then said that you were ‘laying’ these positions ‘out’ to ‘ensure that our people get a chance to grow their business,’” Assistant Attorney General for Civil Rights Harmeet Dhillon wrote to Johnson.

“I have authorized an investigation to determine whether the City of Chicago is engaged in a pattern or practice of discrimination. If these kind of hiring decisions are being made for top-level positions in your administration, then it begs the question whether such decisions are also being made for lower-level positions.” Dhillon continued.

Johnson’s remarks at the event, which included a comment that black Americans are “the most generous people on the planet,” sparked backlash from critics accusing him of racial preference, while others defended his comments as merely “showing the people of Chicago that he has a government that looks like their city.”

“Employers that discriminate against people on the basis of race and use quotas in hiring that are in no way justified, public sector employers, will be getting inquiries from us, and so that’s a new priority that wasn’t being done before,” Dhillon told the Daily Caller News Foundation during a sit-down interview in April. Investigating potentially racist government hiring policies and practices is a “top priority” of the DOJ’s Civil Rights Division, Dhillon reiterated in a statement to the DCNF on Tuesday.

Mayor Johnson disputed the DOJ’s claims, describing the probe as a “divisive tactic.”

“Mayor Johnson is proud to have the most diverse administration in the history of our city. Our administration reflects the diversity and values of Chicago. Unfortunately, the current federal administration does not reflect either,” Johnson’s office said on Monday. The mayor’s office did not respond to the Daily Caller News Foundation’s request for comment.

Not all responses from Johnson’s own party have been positive, however.

“Hearing what he said and seeing this investigation, taking part, unfolding today, I think validates the concerns that many people have that this isn’t a mayor for everyone,” Democratic Chicago Alderman Raymond Lopez posted on X.

Lopez, who has been a vocal critic of the mayor’s policies including his approach to addressing illegal immigration, previously stated that Democratic leaders’ refusal to establish a working relationship with the Trump administration would “hurt the people they pretend to care about.”

In 2024, Johnson committed $500,000 in public funds for a Reparations Task Force to study the “legacy of slavery, Jim Crow Laws, and other discriminatory policies” and create a “comprehensive roadmap” for reparations. Meanwhile, the city is grappling with the consequences of its sanctuary policies, spending big on services for illegal immigrants while also facing rampant crime and underperforming public schools. Nearly 80% of Chicago residents have an unfavorable view of the mayor, according to a February M3 Strategies poll.

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