6 Chicago aldermen urge Lightfoot to drop vaccine mandate for city employees
CHICAGO - A half dozen Chicago alderpeople are leading the charge against Mayor Lightfoot's vaccine mandate for city employees, urging her to drop it.
They all signed off on a letter to the mayor, delivered Wednesday. But as the deadline to get the shot draws near, Mayor Lightfoot is showing no signs of backing down.
"We think it's wrong to force a mandate down peoples' throat without any negotiation," said 38th Ward Alderman Nick Sposato, one of the authors of the letter along with Aldermen Curtis, Tabares, Cardona, Napolitano and Gardiner. "We're not meaning to attack the mayor, but this is going on all over the place: the governor, the president, it's every state, it's every city."
The letter reads in part, "an individual must make their own decision as to whether to vaccinate, and accept personal responsibility for their decision."
Lightfoot argues vaccines are the safest way to stop the spread of COVID-19.
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The alderpeople leading the charge are either former city workers themselves (police officers or firefighters), or represent wards with high numbers of city employees.
The city's police union continues to fight the mandate as well.
"We will never entertain that idea, of a mandate," said FOP President John Catanzara in a recent Youtube Video. "As a coalition, the four police unions are going to continue to fight it."
The mayor's office is not budging, saying Oct. 15 remains the deadline for city workers to get vaccinated.