The Department of Justice launched an investigation into Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson’s hiring practices, just one day after he celebrated his office’s diversity during a media event.
In a letter sent to Mayor Johnson on Monday, the DOJ said it would open an investigation into whether his office has violated Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, which prohibits race-based discrimination. The letter references comments Johnson made during an interview at a south side church Sunday, in which he touted his administration as the “most diverse” in Chicago’s history.
“In your remarks made yesterday at the Apostolic Church of God in Woodlawn, you ‘highlight[ed] the number of Black officials in [your] administration,’” wrote Assistant Attorney General Harmeet K. Dhillon. “You then went on to list each of these individuals, emphasizing their race.”
The letter specifically highlights comments Johnson made, noting that Chicago’s budget director, chief operations officer, and other high-level officials are Black.
“Considering these remarks, I have authorized an investigation to determine whether the City of Chicago is engaged in a pattern or practice of discrimination as set forth above,” Dhillon wrote. “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.”
The investigation comes as President Donald Trump’s administration seeks to roll back diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) initiatives within the federal government and at institutions across the country. It also comes as Trump’s administration is ramping up arrests of elected officials, including Milwaukee County Judge Hannah Dugan, Newark Mayor Ras Baraka, and U.S. House Rep. LaMonica McIver (D-NJ).
Dugan was arrested and charged with allegedly helping a man evade immigration agents. Baraka and McIver were arrested and charged after they visited an Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) facility in New Jersey. A federal trespassing charge against Baraka was dropped on Monday, while McIver is charged with assaulting law enforcement.
On Tuesday, Johnson said his office would not be “intimidated by the tyranny from the federal government.”
“My administration reflects the country, reflects the city. His administration reflects the country club,” Johnson said of Trump, as reported by WTTW.
The mayor’s office workforce is 30% white, 34% Black, 24% Latino, and 7% Asian American, according to data released by the mayor’s office on Monday.
Johnson said Trump’s administration is “more interested in creating division” in the U.S. than inclusivity.
“This administration has obviously demonstrated a great deal of animus and disdain towards what is sensible about our country, that’s the diversity of our country,” Johnson said. “I’m very proud of the fact that we have one of the most, if not the most, diverse administrations in the history of Chicago.”
The Chicago Teachers Union also issued a statement Tuesday condemning the investigation and comparing it to Jim Crow-era policies.
“The families Black Chicagoans come from didn’t flee the Jim Crow South to have a White House reinstate it in 2025 nationwide,” wrote CTU Local 1 President Stacy Davis Gates.
Gates said the people of Chicago should be proud of Johnson’s administration for “crafting a representative government instead of one built on patronage or corporate influence” and added that “those who attack Black excellence do so because they pale in comparison.”
“Jim Crow and the Klan ended our country’s first Reconstruction. Reagan and the backlash reacted to the second,” Gates stated. “Our generation is being tasked with leading the third reconstruction, and Donald Trump and his cronies will not be the ones to turn us back now.”
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