NYC And Chicago Get Rocked By Teen Riots

Written by Hudson Crozier

What happened: A crowd of mostly teenagers rioted in Manhattan after an online influencer’s giveaway event devolved into chaos, leading to dozens of arrests and injuries.

• Growing trend: This comes as Chicago grapples with “teen takeovers,” a social media trend that led to randomized mob violence, looting, and property damage in April and last week.

Why it matters: Both cities gave lenient treatment to many who were arrested in the anti-police riots of 2020. Due to progressive trends in both cities’ policies, many low-level crimes related to theft and violence are considered too trivial to prosecute. The narrative among local officials is that addressing underlying social issues will decrease crime, rather than punishment.

• Zoom in: Just last month, New York City agreed to pay $13 million to hundreds of protesters who were arrested for rioting during the Black Lives Matter riots of 2020.

Whose problem? Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson scolded a reporter for calling teen rioters a “mob” and said it’s "not constructive to demonize young people who have been starved of opportunities." New York City Mayor Eric Adams blamed bad parenting for Friday’s riot and said it’s “not a policing issue.” Nevertheless, this tolerant approach has failed to stop a growing trend of riotous behavior.