Chicago’s fight over tipped wages for workers saw the city’s Democratic mayor challenge the city council and liken the restaurant industry to “slavery.”
Mayor Brandon Johnson called on Chicago residents to “challenge the city council not to do stuff like take wages away from black and brown people,” as he spoke to reporters after the Chicago City Council failed to override his veto of a policy that would phase out the subminimum wage for tipped workers.
“You just watched the entire city council, in transparency, try to take wages away from the very people who are part of an industry that has its ties to slavery is hiding from that,” Johnson said. “I am boldly declaring that we need reparations in this city, and that’s why I’m funding it.”
(Video Credit: Fox 32 Chicago)
“Johnson’s comments came in response to a question from a person who claimed that Johnson’s Reparations Task Force was not in compliance with Illinois state law, which mandates that all public bodies hold public meetings. Johnson denied the assertion that his task force, which he launched in June 2024, was not being transparent with the public,” Fox News reported.
“I’m a black man in America calling for the reparations of black people,” Johnson responded. “There is no hiding or escaping that. I’m taking a bold statement here.”
Restaurant owners have opposed the city’s phaseout of the subminimum wage, a policy that would raise base pay for workers to the full minimum wage by 2028. They reportedly warn that profits could shrink for businesses in the industry and that costs will rise, which will affect jobs.
Johnson’s slavery and tipped wages remark drew more attention to the issue, and a spokesperson from his office doubled down, saying this was common practice for “white employers in the South” following the Emancipation.
“Today, many Black workers, particularly women, continue to rely on tips and subminimum wages to support themselves and their families,” the spokesperson said in a statement. “The institutionalized reliance on tipping remains a uniquely American phenomenon, and Mayor Johnson is proud to be a leader in the movement to ensure working people across the country receive the dignity and respect they deserve in the workplace, and have the ability to support themselves and their loved ones in a system that has historically denied them fair and stable wages.”
Tipping originated following the abolition of slavery. After Emancipation, many white employers took cues from the sharecropping system and refused to pay Black workers—forcing them to rely entirely on tips to support their families.
The institutionalized reliance on tipping… https://t.co/sLHBomu7h3
— Chicago Mayor’s Press Office (@ChicagoMPO) April 17, 2026
Social media weighed in on the mayor’s remarks.
This dude is out of his mind
— Clown World ™ 🤡 (@ClownWorld) April 17, 2026
Chicago’s mayor claiming restaurants have “ties to slavery” so they owe reparations? 😂
Restaurants. In 2026.
Meanwhile his city’s got record murders, failing schools, businesses bolting, and streets full of tents and needles.
This isn’t governance — it’s professional…
— Grace Vera (@grace_vera01) April 18, 2026
How this guy got elected, should be carefully studied. Chicago elected the most racist politician we’ve seen in a long time. No plans for the City, always White-man Bad !
— Kingcool (@kingcool68) April 16, 2026
Slavery-adjacent in **Chicago**?
I need to check my Civil War history books.— President Doctor (@LDreeniatnuom) April 18, 2026
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Originally from New York, Powers graduated from New York University and eventually made her way to sunny South Florida. Powers also contributes to BizPac Review.
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