As the migrant issue continues to strain finances, Chicago residents criticized progressive Mayor Brandon Johnson for proposing a property tax increase during a city council meeting.
P-Rae Easley, host of the "Black Excellence Hour" podcast, has gone viral for her angry comments, Breitbart News reported.
"Typically, I'm here, and I'm fussing. I want to say thank you to the city council. Our mayor is embarrassing us around the world, and you all took the power back from him to say the city of Chicago is out of the business of funding illegals," she said, donning a red MAGA hat.
Easley said later in an interview that the main issue for Chicago residents is their "bottom line," indicating concern about household budgets.
New data shows the Windy City has spent $574.5 million on migrants, joining New York City, Boston, and Denver.
"We're not going to work to pay for illegals. They chose to come here illegally, and we don't allow people to feast off of their criminality," Easley said during the interview, pushing forward the "America first" agenda.
Johnson stated last month that "Black families" are also included in President-elect Trump's mass deportation threats, alongside "new arrivals and undocumented families."
The statements infuriated Easley, who referred to them as "very disrespectful." He criticized them for their negative impact.
"Our people are not immigrants. We are migrants, of course, in the very literal sense because our grandparents came here during the Great Migration," she said.
"This is why we're really pushing for an end to race. Because when you say Black, that can mean anybody…. There are Black people who will be deported, but that has nothing to do with the American people. Our goal is to get this border closed and to get every unnecessary expense off of the budget lines in the city of Chicago. We can't afford it anymore."
There is a $1 billion budget gap that Johnson is attempting to close before the year ends.
At the city council meeting that took place on Monday, other attendees did not hold back when they addressed the mayor: "I got a great way what we can do with this budget. First, let's start with cutting off illegals getting free everything, free housing, free schooling, free food. Yeah, let's start with that. That'll save us a lot of money," said a woman wearing a "Chicago Flips Red" shirt
"Let's start there. Then, let's start with you. Your salary. You are going down in history as the worst mayor in America. Let's start with cutting yours. You're making too much money," she continued.
Another resident, an immigrant who entered the U.S. legally, said she feels "very, very embarrassed for what my other fellow Latin American citizens are doing in this city on behalf of the people that work, on behalf of the people that pay taxes, on behalf of the people that contribute to the city."
She continued, "I like to make clear that not everyone is the same. These people came with a wide door open, and they feel entitled to many things that nobody has. There are U.S. citizens suffering from poverty," she said. "There are U.S. citizens on public aid, and these people are here just enjoying the benefits, becoming delinquents, and they have no consequences."
