A man recording a TikTok video was arrested for allegedly shoving South Side Ald. Gregory Mitchell on Monday morning in the lobby at City Hall, authorities said, in the second altercation involving a City Council member this past week.
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The 47-year-old pushed another man, later identified by sources as Mitchell, 54, in the neck area and was taken into custody, Chicago police said.
Charges were still pending as of Tuesday afternoon. But the 47-year-old’s wife identified him as the man who had been arrested, and said the 7th Ward alderman reached for her husband first because he was filming Mitchell for a TikTok video and Mitchell wanted him to stop.
The Tribune is not naming the man who allegedly pushed Mitchell because he has not been charged.
Mitchell declined to comment on the interaction to a reporter Tuesday, but before walking away he complained about people recording him without asking.
The alleged attack is the second time in the past week that an alderman has reportedly faced a physical skirmish, after Ald. Julia Ramirez, 12th, was cornered last week by a crowd protesting Mayor Brandon Johnson’s tentative plan to erect winterized tents to house migrants in her ward.
In response to questions about Mitchell’s alleged attack Monday, a mayor’s office spokesperson issued a statement condemning the recent violence against political figures, without naming Mitchell or Ramirez or discussing the incidents.
“These type of acts against public servants are undeserved and unconscionable, and a dangerous precedent for elected officials whose job it is to be accessible and engaging with their constituents,” spokesperson Ronnie Reese wrote. “Violent acts against an elected official, or against any Chicagoan, are unacceptable and must be condemned.”
Both altercations reportedly touched upon the sore subject of whether the city’s efforts to care for a growing population of asylum-seekers is straining city resources for residents.
The wife of the man arrested for allegedly pushing Mitchell told the Tribune their family was recently evicted from their Rogers Park home and now stay at a homeless shelter.
The wife wasn’t at City Hall on Monday, she said. But her friend said she witnessed the struggle between Mitchell and the man, who fashions himself as a content creator.
The friend said the man was recording Mitchell on the lobby floor as the alderman spoke with a woman concerned Black veterans were missing out on resources that were going to migrants instead. A video posted on TikTok shows the two conversing in front of the elevators until Mitchell notices the phone camera.
“You’ve got to ask me to do that kind of stuff,” Mitchell said, blocking the camera with his arm. A male voice, purportedly the man’s, said that Mitchell is a “public servant,” to which Mitchell responded, “Nah, I’m a man too, brother. You will respect me as one.” Then Mitchell is seen grabbing the phone before the video cuts off.
“That’s when (he) defended himself and pushed (Mitchell) like that,” said the friend, who frequently speaks during the public comment period at City Council meetings. “He’s been coming down here fighting for housing. Him and his wife, and they have a daughter with special needs, have been out here fighting for housing. … It’s not fair. It’s not fair at all.”
The Tribune requested a copy of a police report of the incident, but the Police Department has not provided one. No other details of the incident were immediately available.
Last Thursday, tensions also flared as hundreds of residents gathered on the Southwest Side to protest against the proposed encampment near 38th Street and California Avenue. When Ramirez arrived at the protest, dozens of protesters surrounded her, shouting angrily and pushing toward her, prompting police to intervene and escort her and an aide into a squad car.
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