Chicago City Wire

McDonald’s CEO Chis Kempczinski gave an address to the Economic Club of Chicago on Sept. 14 where he sentimentally spoke about the company's long history with the city of Chicago and the state of Illinois, but he could not ignore the challenges the current state of Chicago has given the company. This year, crime in Chicago continues to flood headlines and is a primary concern for many politicians, businesses and citizens.

“The truth is it’s more difficult today for me to convince a promising McDonald’s executive to relocate to Chicago from one of our other offices than it was a few years ago, the truth is it’s more difficult for me to recruit a new employee to McDonald’s to join us in Chicago than it was in the past,” Kempczinski said in his address.

“Everywhere I go, I’m confronted by the same questions these days – what’s going on in Chicago?” he said. “While it may wound our civic pride to hear it, there is a general sense out there that our city is in crisis.”

“We have violent crime that’s happening in our restaurants. … We’re seeing homelessness issues in our restaurants. We’re having drug overdoses that are happening in our restaurants,” he said. “So, we see in our restaurants, every single day, what’s happening in society at large.”

“The Chicago McDonald’s annual economic contribution to the city exceeds $2 billion a year. $2 billion a year is the economic contribution of having McDonald’s headquarters” in Chicago. Kempczinski drove his point home by asking those to imagine Chicago without McDonald’s and the impact that would have on the city.

According to crime statistics from the Chicago Police Department, the murder total as of Sept. 18 is 497, down 16% from 2021. Other crimes, specifically motor vehicle theft, are significantly higher. There have been 11,540 counts of motor vehicle theft to date, up 69% from last year's 6,837.

PBR Pac recently has been calling for state’s attorneys to fight back against the SAFE-T Act by vocalizing the impact it will have on communities and by urging their elected state officials to repeal the new law, which goes into effect January 1, 2023. 

PBR Pac spokesman Mike Koolidge provided Prairie State Wire with a response to  Kempczinski’s address.  

"I mean, he's pretty blunt, he says 'Chicago is in a crisis.' Wake up, Lightfoot. And Pritzker. And Foxx. If they're not going to take heed from McDonald's warnings and make massive changes now -- actually prosecuting criminals (Foxx), beefing up police (Lightfoot), repealing the SAFE-T Act (Pritzker), we as citizens need to elect leaders these next elections who will," Koolidge said.

ABC 7 Chicago reports that back in August, Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot proudly announced reports from the city’s crime prevention programs.

“We rank third among 50 U.S. cities for violence prevention programs, services, and policies," Lightfoot said. “And this, to us, is a very big deal. We are grateful for the recognition.”