Chicago Board of Education President Rev. Mitchell Johnson resigns for anti-Semitic social media posts, Mayor Brandon Johnson says
4 mins read

Chicago Board of Education President Rev. Mitchell Johnson resigns for anti-Semitic social media posts, Mayor Brandon Johnson says

CHICAGO (WLS) — A week after being sworn into office, the Chicago school board president resigned Thursday amid controversial social media posts.

The video in the player above is from a previous report.

The now-former Chicago Board of Education president, the Rev. Mitchell Johnson, apologized for the posts Wednesday, but more troubling information emerged Thursday, prompting further calls on him to resign.

ABC7 Chicago is now streaming 24/7. Click here to watch

Conspiracy theories involving 9/11 and anti-women posts were enough for Mayor Brandon Johnson to call for Reverend Johnson’s resignation. The move comes after Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker and nearly 40 aldermen called for Reverend Johnson’s resignation, with many questioning why the mayor appointed him in the first place.

Chicago council members are demanding to know how Reverend Johnson was tapped to become Mayor Johnson’s pick for Chicago school board president.

“I always want to ask if the review process is important to all of us,” 25th Ward Ald. Byron Sigcho-Lopez said.

“I think a normal person would think, the average person would think, that a simple social media search would have shown this and automatically disqualified him,” 11th Ward Ald. Nicole Lee said.

Rev Johnson openly admitted in a radio show posted on his Facebook page that he is a regular user of social media. Several of his posts included anti-Semitic sentiments and conspiracy theories surrounding 9/11, both topics he addressed on the radio show.

“I believe the Israeli government is engaged in genocide,” Pastor Johnson is heard saying on the show. “The way these towers were built, they could have withstood an airplane slamming into the side of them.”

In addition, an anti-women post was discovered.

Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson released the following statement Thursday:

“Today I asked Chicago School Board of Education (BOE) President Reverend Mitchell Johnson for his resignation, and he resigned, effective immediately. Reverend Mitchell Johnson’s statements were not only hurtful but deeply troubling. I want to be clear: anti-Semitic, misogynistic, and conspiratorial statements are unacceptable. My administration is committed to the mission of transforming our public education system. It has become clear that his continued participation in the BOE would impede the important work we need to do for our schools by identifying a qualified individual who shares our commitment to educational excellence and who will serve with an unwavering commitment to the values ​​that we value deserve to protect and provide the students of Chicago Public Schools with our North Star The Board of Education meeting on Friday will continue as scheduled under current BOE bylaws. “

Rev Johnson’s dubious background did not emerge overnight. A day after he was sworn in as Chicago school board president last week, the mayor stood with him when questions were raised about why the Rev. Johnson was permanently barred from the Ohio Bar. Before that, 41 alars asked the new board to appear in the municipal council, but they refused.

“I certainly believe that if we had had the opportunity to have them in front of us, we would have been able to ask some of these questions before they were installed as full board members,” Ald. Lee said.

As of Wednesday afternoon, after the anti-Semitic posts surfaced, the mayor continued to support the Rev. Johnson, repeatedly refusing to answer whether his office knew about the social media posts before he was named.

“It seems like it’s about having people in position who share Chicago’s values,” Mayor Johnson said.

Governor Pritzker released the following statement earlier Thursday:

“Any person charged with governing the Chicago Public School Board must exemplify focused, inclusive and steady leadership. The views expressed in the current chairman’s post — anti-Semitism, misogyny, fringe conspiracy theories — clearly do not meet that standard. We owe it to to our students, families and teachers to provide the highest quality education, and that starts at the top by setting a positive example of kindness and inclusion Given that he has failed to live up to these values, I believe it is in the best interests of our schools and our children for the chairman to resign.”

Rev Johnson’s resignation follows the entire previous board of education resigned amid Mayor Johnson’s reported wants to oust Chicago Public Schools CEO Pedro Martinez.

READ MORE | Mayor Johnson announces new interim nominees to the Chicago Board of Education

This is news. Check back with ABC7 for updates and reaction.

Copyright © 2024 WLS-TV. All rights reserved.