Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson is being shredded online after claiming Tuesday that it is foolish for people to think that “we can arrest our way to safety,” as the city continues to be plagued by a series of “teen takeovers.” The incidents, which involve large groups of adolescents flooding streets and public areas at night, have raised serious safety concerns, and in some cases, have even led to fatal shootings.
🚨 JUST IN: Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson is being RIPPED for telling America, "we can't arrest our way to safety" during teen takeovers
— Eric Daugherty (@EricLDaugh) May 26, 2026
WTF?!
"We ask police officers to do TOO MUCH."
Is he serious? He thinks the current Chicago crime wave is police being "TOO TOUGH" on thugs… pic.twitter.com/9wiFGUafJh
"We believe that we can arrest our way towards safety," the mayor of Chicago said. "We're wrong. We ask police officers to do too much. At some point, adults have to work hard to help raise their children. And that's what we're calling for in this moment."
Mayor Johnson, unfortunately, isn’t entirely correct, especially when it comes to the immediate response needed to address the problem. While mass arrests may not solve the root cause of these incidents, that doesn’t mean they aren’t a necessary first step. If people break the law, there must be consequences for their actions.
There are broader issues that can and should be addressed, strengthening families, improving education, and ensuring parents take responsibility for their children, but those are long-term solutions, not immediate ones. The citizens of Chicago, along with residents of other major cities dealing with these teen takeovers, deserve at the very least a basic sense of law and order, even if it doesn’t fully solve the underlying problem.
More broadly, Democrats have made it a hallmark of their politics to avoid enforcing certain laws out of a sense of compassion, and in some cases, as with Johnson, by arguing that enforcement does not address the root of the problem. Their approach has not only spectacularly failed to provide any real solutions, but has done more to endanger the people they represent, and is increasingly being recognized by many as plainly misguided.
🚨WHAT ON EARTH?!!!!
— Matt Van Swol (@mattvanswol) May 25, 2026
Hundreds of cars were vandalized in Chicago after police broke up a "teen takeover" and kids began fleeing by JUMPING ON CARS AND SMASHING WINDSHIELDS!!!
WHERE ARE THE PARENTS OF THESE KIDS???!!!!!!!
THIS HAS GOT TO STOP!!!!!! pic.twitter.com/n59199CtGL
TEEN TAKEOVERS: An 18-year-old is charged with attempted murder after allegedly hitting five Chicago police officers while they were trying to disperse rowdy crowds. pic.twitter.com/ItDt0wmM6W
— FOX & Friends (@foxandfriends) May 26, 2026
This is the scene early this morning in Little Village before a mass shooting occurred.
— Libs Of Chicago (@Libs_OfChicago) May 25, 2026
Four ppl were shot, none of them fatally.
• 14-year old male shot in right arm
• 16-year old female shot in left calf
• 18-year old female shot right ass cheek
• 16-year old female shot… pic.twitter.com/lZa5rQhAjg
This comes as cities across the country have been forced to deal with similar “teen takeovers,” including in Washington, D.C., where U.S. Attorney Jeanine Pirro announced just weeks ago that the parents of children involved would also face prosecution.
Unlike Mayor Johnson, it’s a more practical two-fold approach, focusing on immediate enforcement through arrests while also addressing longer-term issues and incentivizing the decline of parental neglect.
Starting today, my office will aggressively prosecute parents under D.C.’s curfew law.
— US Attorney Pirro (@USAttyPirro) May 15, 2026
To parents, you must supervise your kids or face criminal consequences. Law abiding taxpayers should no longer have to pay for the chaos caused by parental neglect. pic.twitter.com/caZ0S43ZKa
Editor’s Note: The American people overwhelmingly support President Trump’s law and order agenda.
Help us fight back against the Democrats and Soros-backed DAs that refuse to enforce our laws to hold criminals accountable. Join Townhall VIP and use promo code FIGHT to receive 60% off your membership.
Join the conversation as a VIP Member