Exclusive: Chicago mayor addresses migrant crisis, education, and talks about his family
"How do I say this? It’s hard to accept that your dad is cool!" Mayor Brandon Johnson told FOX 32 Chicago while flashing a proud, paternal grin.
Few fathers are tasked with the kind of daunting responsibilities facing Chicago’s mayor. FOX 32's Scott Schneider sat down this week for a one-on-one with the man who not only leads the nation’s third-largest city, but prides himself on being a doting husband and father.
When we asked Johnson how he feels his first 100-plus days have gone his tone and posture stiffened somewhat as he insisted he feels, "Really good."
"It’s the greatest city in the world. I’ve had the opportunity to move about throughout the entire city from one end to the other and everywhere I go in the city you see the vibrancy," he added. "You see the hopes and aspirations of the people of Chicago and diversity which really reflects the soul of who we are."
Since taking office more than three months ago, Johnson’s days have come and gone in a whirlwind—appearances at conferences, public memorials, and scores of brunches, lunches and dinners all begging the question: how is his family adjusting to the rigors of the office?
"Thank you for asking that," he said. "Look, my wife is my best friend and I love her dearly. We just celebrated 25-years of marriage. Owen my oldest, Ethan my middle child, and Braedyn, our youngest, our daughter, we are all incredibly humbled by the opportunity to serve in this capacity."
"They don’t mind sharing you?" Schneider asked.
"We do have to call an audible (now and then) so our traditional Friday night pizza night sometimes has to get shifted," he said. "It’s been a remarkable journey. I think it’s made us closer as a result of this, and we’ve been made very humble by the opportunity to serve in this capacity."
Mayor Johnson still faces arguably the greatest challenge of his young administration: what to do about the city's ongoing migrant crisis?
The mayor says this is not a Chicago-centric problem, and that other sanctuary cities like New York and Los Angeles are struggling to find adequate housing and to cover the enormous cost of caring for the steady influx of asylum seekers.
FOX 32 asked the mayor how much longer realistically migrants can be allowed to take up space on the floors of Chicago's police stations. Right now, he says, there is no firm timetable for moving them out.
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We also talked about the decision to give children of asylum seekers the opportunity to attend class starting this week at Chicago Public Schools and how that decision might impact the quality of learning. Johnson was quick to call out past administrations for not valuing public education as he does, calling the decision to welcome migrants to classrooms an imperative.
"As a product of public schools, as someone who has taught in the public schools, as someone who sends their children to the Chicago Public Schools, there's no one more vested in the public education system than me, and what I have said repeatedly is that bringing people together to address the needs that families have across the city of Chicago regardless of what zip code you're in, we have to do that," Johnson said.