Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot speaks to guests at an event held to celebrate Pride Month at the Center on Halstead. (Photo by Scott Olson/Getty Images)
OAN Newsroom
UPDATED 5:45 PM PT – Friday, June 11, 2021
Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot (D) is being sued by a Daily Caller journalist for racial discrimination. Reporter Thomas Catenacci is one of two white journalists that were denied interviews of Lightfoot after she announced a new policy granting interviews to only “journalists of color.”
Catenacci reportedly filed the suit last month. On Monday, the mayor’s attorneys argued there is no proof the policy she announced was in effect. Although, attorneys for Catenacci responded saying there is no evidence that the policy was not in effect.
Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot talks to reporters after meeting with House Democrats at the state Capitol, in Springfield, Ill. (AP Photo/John O’Connor, File)
However, at a press conference on Friday, Lightfoot argued the policy does exist and was a necessary part of diversity and inclusion. “The fact the City Hall press corps is overwhelmingly white, has very little in the way of diversity, is an embarrassment,” said Lightfoot.
The mayor also said she “started a long overdue conversation about diversity in newsrooms.” Lightfoot said she kickstarted discussions because she has concerns regarding the “mostly whiteness and maleness” of the city’s news outlets.
