A window is shattered at a Timberland store along Michigan Avenue after it was looted on August 10, 2020 in Chicago, Illinois. (Scott Olson/Getty Images)
Chicago continues to brace for more looting as business owners fear the long-term impact of the unrest.
The Wall Street Journal reported that hundreds of looters responded to posts on social media and descended on Chicago’s upscale Magnificent Mile and other shopping areas early Monday.
People smashed windows, stole from stores, and clashed with police.
The looting was touched off by a shooting that happened around 2:30 p.m. Sunday when Chicago police attempted to confront a man matching the description of a person seen with a gun.
The man ran and shot at pursuing officers, police said. Officers fired back and wounded him. The man was hospitalized and is expected to recover.
But the looting has left its toll on business owners, who have fought to survive the stay-at-home orders brought on by the coronavirus and looting in late May triggered by George Floyd’s death, according to the Chicago Sun-Times.
The newspaper noted businesses now may be reluctant to rebuild, fearing they won’t be protected. People may not feel safe shopping, dining, and going to the theater downtown.
“There’s a limit to how many times retailers are willing to be kicked,” said Rob Karr, president of the Illinois Retail Merchants Association. “It will be difficult after retailers who have invested millions in reopening to have to do it again.”
And Jack Lavin, president of the Chicagoland Chamber of Commerce, said: “The more incidents we have like this, the more perception grows of the Central Business District being unsafe.”
Source: https://www.newsmax.com/us/chicago-violence-police-looting/2020/08/11/id/981620/
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