The CEO of McDonald’s has described Chicago as a ‘city in crisis’ as the state of Illinois announces what has been dubbed online as its ‘Purge’ law.
Chris Kempczinski, Chief Executive Officer for McDonald’s, said the fast food giant is battling against a wave of violent crime, homelessness and drug overdoses that have plagued its restaurants in Chicago – where its headquarters are - since the pandemic.
Addressing the issue in a keynote speech at the Economic Club of Chicago on Wednesday (14 September), Kempczinski called on the city’s officials and business leaders to help tackle the issue - explaining how McDonald’s is having to encourage employees that it is safe to return to the downtown area and ride public transport after lockdown lifted.
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According to the Wall Street Journal, he said: “Everywhere I go, I’m confronted by the same question: ‘What’s going on in Chicago?’”
Kempczinski added: “There is a general sense out there that our city is in crisis," before going on to say that McDonald’s intends to remain in Chicago, where he and his family currently reside.
“We see every single day in our restaurants what’s happening at society at large,” Kempczinski said.
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“It’s not going to be something that McDonald’s can solve on its own. We need to be able to do it with the public sector as well.”
The CEO also said he foresaw ‘more challenges’ as he looks ‘out at 2023’, saying: “As I look out at 2023, I see more challenges. We are heading to probably hopefully a minor recession in the U.S., probably a more significant one in Europe.”
The news comes amid news of Illinois’ controversial Safe-T Act, which comes into effect in January 2023 and is designed to reform the state’s bail system by eliminating cash bail for a number of crimes.
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Other states including New Jersey and New York have passed similar legislation curtailing the use of cash bail for pretrial detentions, but Illinois is eliminating it entirely - with social media users dubbing the move the ‘Purge’ law.
The nickname is a reference to 2013 horror film The Purge, in which all criminal activity is allowed for a chaotic and terrifying 12-hour window.
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Jess Hardiman