Kennedy Says Emanuel's Plan Forces Out Black Chicagoans

CHICAGO, IL — Illinois gubernatorial candidate Chris Kennedy went after Mayor Rahm Emanuel Wednesday, accusing him of being part of a "gentrification plan" that's forcing black people out of Chicago. Kennedy said funding cuts across-the-board have hit minorities the hardest. He also said violence is driving many out of the city.

"I believe that black people are being pushed out of Chicago intentionally by a strategy that involved disinvestment in communities being implemented by the city administration," Kennedy said during a press conference about Chicago violence. "And I believe Rahm Emanuel is at the head of the city administration and therefore needs to be held responsible for those outcomes."

Kennedy said people are being forced to leave the neighborhoods they were raised in.

"I believe this is involuntary that we're cutting off funding for schools, cutting off funding for police, allowing people to be forced to live in food deserts, closing hospitals," he told reporters. "The city is becoming smaller, and as it becomes smaller, it's becoming whiter."

Mayoral spokesperson Matt McGrath said Kennedy is ignoring the progress the city has made.

"It's sad to see Chris Kennedy joining President Trump and Governor Rauner in using cynical, politically motivated attacks about Chicago's communities for his own personal gain," McGrath said in a statement.

"His divisive comments today are a direct assault on one of the city's great strengths—our diversity—and they ignore the work being done in neighborhoods across the city—and in conjunction with community leaders and residents–to improve the quality of life for everyone who calls Chicago home."

Kennedy's comments were made at a West Side church. He was joined by Chicago congressman Bobby Rush and Danny Davis, as well as Kennedy's running mate, Ra Joy. All three have lost family members in Chicago shootings.

Nate Pendleton, father of 15-year-old Hadiya Pendleton, was also at the conference. Hadiya Pendleton was gunned down one week after performing at President Obama's second inauguration.

Charles Rex Arbogast/Associated Press