The Crusader looks back at a wild year where Trump dominated the headlines, but Mayor Brandon Johnson, Dolton Mayor Tiffany Henyard, Michael Madigan and Rapper Sean P. Diddy Combs were not too far behind
As Mayor Brandon Johnson struggled in 2024, Donald Trump flourished. The former president orchestrated one of the greatest political comebacks in American history. He insulted Blacks, Haitians and Latinos. Two people tried to kill him. The government sued him several times. He became the first president ever convicted of a crime. Despite the pressure and setbacks, Trump defied the odds, silenced critics, and shamed the media as he was re-elected president of the United States of America in 2024. Now, the 75 million people who didn’t vote for this man brace for the worst as he prepares to take office once again with gazillionaire Elon Musk.
Black America felt the sting of not just Trump’s victory but also Vice President Kamala Harris’ loss. There was so much hope and excitement about Harris making history as the nation’s first Black woman president. Her presence thrust Chicago into the spotlight in 2024, with the Democratic National Convention and the Alpha Kappa Alpha sorority’s national headquarters on Stony Island.
President Joe Biden prepares to leave office with low approval ratings despite a strong economy and declining inflation. He cancelled billions in student loan debt but failed at curbing the migrant crisis.
In 2024, Dolton Mayor Tiffany Henyard was busy creating a mess with the FBI on her back. They got former Alderman Ed Burke, who in 2024 was sentenced to just two years in federal prison and given a $2 million fine after he was convicted of 13 counts of racketeering, bribery, and extortion. Michael Madigan may be next, as his trial wraps up in 2024.
With Sean P. Diddy Combs in jail, Sonya Massey’s killer waiting for his fate, and Eileen O’Neill Burke becomes Cook County’s new State’s Attorney, the Crusader looks back at the stories that dominated 2024 and those that set the stage for an interesting 2025. JANUARY
MAYOR JOHNSON STRUGGLING WITH 21 PERCENT APPROVAL RATINGS
Rocked by a migrant crisis that has many concerned about the city’s future, only 21 percent of Chicago voters approve of Mayor Brandon Johnson’s leadership during his eight months in office, according to a recent poll.
Among the unhappy voters are Black males. Only 14 percent of them approve of Johnson’s leadership in his first term in office. Many Blacks criticized the attention given to migrants while many citizens in Black neighborhoods are struggling.
On January 22, Johnson held closed-door meetings with 25 mayors of suburban towns to ask for help as Chicago’s migrant population swelled to 34,000. Over $351 million has been used to house the migrants, and by the end of the year, the population was over 51,000. Dozens of city-run shelters have closed, and the last one at 1310 N. Elston Avenue is scheduled to close on New Year’s Eve.
FEBRUARY
MAYOR JOHNSON KEEPS PROMISE TO CANCEL SHOTSPOTTER
Faced with pressure from activists and the media, Mayor Brandon Johnson kept his campaign promise on February 13. He announced that the city would end the controversial ShotSpotter service after the summer and the Democratic National Convention.
It was a victory for activists and community leaders who opposed ShotSpotter. They pointed to studies that argued that the surveillance gunshot detection system was a waste of money as it led to over-policing in Black and Latino neighborhoods. In September, the City Council passed an ordinance to keep ShotSpotter and put it in the hands of the police superintendent, but Johnson vetoed it.
FULTON DISTRICT ATTORNEY FANI WILLIS IN NATIONAL SPOTLIGHT
On February 15, Judge Scott F. McAfee began hearings to determine whether Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis should be disqualified from prosecuting former President Donald Trump and 18 co-defendants for racketeering and other crimes related to the 2020 presidential election in Georgia. Trump and his lawyers said the case should be dismissed because Willis had a personal relationship with lead prosecutor Nathan Wade.
Citing insufficient evidence, McAfee found no conflicts of interest and ruled that Willis should remain on the case. On December 19, the Georgia Court of Appeals ruled that Willis and her office were to be removed for an appearance of impropriety. Willis’s office announced it would appeal the decision to the Supreme Court of Georgia the same day.[51]
MARCH
BURKE WINS DEMOCRATIC PRIMARY FOR COOK COUNTY STATE’S ATTORNEY
Burke narrowly beats Clayton Harris III in the Democratic Primary by just 1,571 votes in the race that took two weeks to call. A University of Chicago professor, Harris was chosen by Cook County Board President Toni Preckwinkle after Kim Foxx announced she would not seek a third term. Burke soundly defeated Bob Fioretti in the General Election.
In another race, State Representative Mary Flowers of the 21st District, Illinois’ longest-serving Black legislator at 38 years, was ousted after a feud with House Speaker Chris Welch. He raised $1.3 million to support political newcomer Michael Crawford, who beat Flowers at the polls, taking 69 percent of the vote.
During the Primary election, Chicago voters rejected the Bring Chicago Home referendum, which included Mayor Brandon Johnson’s real estate transfer tax hike to raise $100 million to help Chicago’s homeless population.
FBI RAIDS P. DIDDY MANSIONS IN BEVERLY HILLS AND MIAMI
Sean “Diddy” Combs’ Beverly Hills and Miami Beach mansions were raided by federal agents on March 25. A federal indictment said narcotics and more than 1,000 bottles of baby oil and lubricant was found at both homes.
The indictment also said the items, along with guns and ammunition, drugs, and lubricant, were part of violent and elaborate sex events dubbed “Freak Offs” that Combs “arranged, directed, masturbated during, and often electronically recorded.” It said he sometimes arranged to fly the women in and ensured their participation by procuring and providing drugs, controlling their careers, leveraging his financial support, and using intimidation and violence.
APRIL
FBI RAID DOLTON VILLAGE HALL UNDER EMBATTLED MAYOR TIFFANY HENYARD
FBI officials raided Dolton City Hall to serve subpoenas for records related to the alleged corruption by members of the town government. It’s the latest development to rock Dolton with Mayor Tiffany Henyard, who, throughout 2024, has been in the national spotlight with her flashy and abrasive leadership style. Her Village meetings were often chaotic, with residents demanding that she resign.
In June, Henyard cancelled an interview with the Chicago Crusader.
Henyard is accused of dining at lavish steakhouses and spending nights at five-star hotels at the expense of Dolton’s taxpayers. Village trustees expressed concern that the Village was not meeting its financial obligations.
In August, former Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot, who was paid to investigate Henyard, found that Dolton’s general fund balance was $3.65 million in debt. The fund had more than $5.6 million in April 2022, when Henyard took office. That same month, the village’s board of trustees voted to freeze spending on village credit cards.
Fenia Dukes, the mayor’s former assistant, filed a civil lawsuit against Henyard and Trustee Andrew Holmes after they took a $20,000 taxpayer-funded economic development trip to Las Vegas. There, Dukes alleges Holmes had non-consensual sex with her after dinner and a stroll on the Las Vegas strip.
Henyard is also the Supervisor of Thornton Township, which experienced similar problems with her leadership in 2024. The township has no budget for 2025 and will operate on the 2024 budget to stay open.
VIDEO SHOWS CHICAGO POLICE FIRING 96 SHOTS AT DEXTER REED
Body cam videos of Chicago police officers killing 26-year-old Dexter Reed after firing 96 shots at him in 41 seconds. The video sparked calls for an investigation as the head of a city police watchdog agency questions whether officers lied in their account of the fatal shooting on the West Side.
The shooting happened on March 21 after five officers from Chicago’s tactical unit pulled Reed over for a traffic stop at 3836 W. Ferdinand St. in Humboldt Park. The Civilian Office of Police Accountability (COPA) said the officers in the unmarked cruiser claimed Reed wasn’t wearing a seatbelt. However, leaders and COPA officials questioned how police could see from a distance whether Reed was wearing a seatbelt through tinted windows.
In November, questions were raised in the case when the city quickly settled with the family for an undisclosed sum.
JOHNSON PUBLISHING COMPANY BUILDING UP FOR SALE AGAIN
3L Real Estate, the owner of the former Johnson Publishing Company building that was once the headquarters of Ebony and Jet magazines, put the 11-story structure back on the market after spending $37 million to rehab and convert it into 150 apartments.
The firm bought the building in 2017 for $10 million after a developer wanted to demolish it.
The former chairman of Johnson Publishing Company sold the building to Columbia College in 2010 on the advice of CEO Desiree Rogers. The company then sold Ebony and Jet in 2016 and filed for bankruptcy in 2019.
MAY
CPD DECISION NOT TO DISCIPLINE OFFICERS TIED TO OATH KEEPERS UNDER REVIEW
Chicago Police Superintendent Larry Snelling’s decision not to discipline nine police officers tied to the right-wing extremist group the Oath Keepers is being reviewed by Chicago Inspector General Deborah Witzburg, who called on Mayor Brandon Johnson to keep his campaign promise.
Witzburg had slammed previous CPD investigations into officers linked to the Oath Keepers and two other extremist groups, including the Proud Boys and Three Percenters.
Months after the mayor’s decision not to fire the officers, the Chicago Crusader, the Chicago Defender, N’DIGO magazine, and TBT News joined over a dozen organizations urging Johnson to fire the officers. Johnson and Snelling remain silent on the issue.
VIDEO AIRS HOTEL VIDEO OF SEAN “DIDDY” COMBS ABUSING WOMAN
In the surveillance video, rapper and hip-hop mogul Sean “Diddy” Combs grabs, shoves, drags, and kicks Cassie Ventura at a hotel in 2016. Combs’ behavior in the video substantiates allegations Ventura made in a federal lawsuit that was settled in 2023.
Two days later, Combs apologized for an incident he’d previously denied. He said he took full responsibility and was “disgusted” by what took place.
DONALD TRUMP BECOMES FIRST U.S. PRESIDENT CONVICTED IN COURT
Donald Trump became the first former American president to be convicted of felony crimes after a New York jury on May 31 found him guilty of all 34 charges in a scheme to illegally influence the 2016 election through a hush money payment to a porn actor who said the two had sex.
Trump sat stone-faced while the verdict was read, and cheering from the street below could be heard in the courthouse’s 15th floor hallway.
Trump’s sentencing was scheduled after the November 5 election but was delayed after Trump won the race for the White House.
On December 17, Justice Juan Merchan refused to throw out the case after Trump’s lawyers said a U.S. Supreme Court case granted their client immunity from punishment.
JUNE
BIDEN’S DECLINING MENTAL ABILITIES AT DEBATE SPARKS CALLS TO DROP OUT OF RACE
In a pivotal and critical event in the 2024 presidential race, President Joe Biden and former President Donald Trump held their first and only debate broadcast by CNN in Atlanta. After a question regarding the national debt, Biden trailed off the subject and appeared to lose his train of thought, saying: “Making sure that we’re able to make every single solitary person eligible for what I’ve been able to deal with … the COVID … Excuse me, with dealing with everything we have to do with … look … if we finally beat Medicare.” While Trump was talking, Biden often stared unblinking into the distance with his mouth agape.
Biden’s poll numbers dropped after the debate, and top Democrats panicked, calling for him to drop out of the race. For Republicans, the debate confirmed that Biden was too old and mentally unfit to hold the highest office in the nation.
JULY
TRUMP CELEBRATES AS HIGH COURT GRANTS BROAD IMMUNITY TO FORMER PRESIDENTS
With federal lawsuits charging him with inciting the January 6 insurrection on the U.S. Capitol, former President Donald Trump got a break when his conservative U.S. Supreme Court, in a 6-3 decision, gave former presidents broad immunity from prosecution. The ruling said former presidents are entitled to absolute immunity from prosecution for official acts that rely on core constitutional powers, taken while in office, presumed immunity for other official acts, and no immunity for unofficial acts.
On July 15, Federal Judge Aileen Cannon dismisses Trump’s classified documents case. In a 93-page ruling, Cannon said the appointment of special counsel Jack Smith violated the Constitution. She did not rule on whether Trump’s alleged mishandling of classified documents was proper or not.
NATIONAL REPUBLICAN CONVENTION HELD IN MILWAUKEE
The 2024 Republican National Convention was held at the Fiserv Forum in Milwaukee in July. On the first day, Trump chose Senator JD Vance from Ohio as his running-mate. Many Republicans did not like Vance, a Yale Law School graduate and former Marine who grew up while his mother struggled with drug addictions.
BIDEN DROPS OUT OF PRESIDENTIAL RACE, ENDORSES VP KAMALA HARRIS
After weeks of pressure from fellow Democrats and wealthy Hollywood donors, President Joe Biden announced his withdrawal from the 2024 presidential election on July 21. Momentum for the Democratic Party slowed as Biden trailed Trump in national polls after his disastrous debate performance. Campaign donations from Hollywood’s elite dried up.
However, momentum shifted for Democrats when Biden endorsed Vice President Kamala Harris after he withdrew from the race. Organizations held huge fundraisers during Zoom meetings, including one for Black men led by Roland Martin. In the first several weeks after Biden dropped out, Harris raised $300 million.
Congresswoman Nancy Pelosi, former House Speaker, and former President Obama initially wanted a Democratic Primary to choose the candidate. Harris won the Democratic nomination and raised a record $1.5 billion in three months.
NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF BLACK JOURNALISTS INVITES TRUMP TO CONVENTION
The National Association of Black Journalists sparked a backlash after inviting former President Donald Trump to be interviewed at its annual convention at the Chicago Hilton on July 30. The invitation made global headlines, and one NABJ official resigned from the organization in protest.
During the 45-minute interview, the former president criticized ABC News journalist Rachel Scott, who asked Trump why Black voters should trust him after he made numerous racist comments in the past.
SONYA MASSEY KILLED IN HER HOME NEAR SPRINGFIELD BY WHITE DEPUTY
Massey, a 36-year-old Black woman on July 6, was shot and killed in her home by Sean Grayson, a white deputy in Sangamon County.
Earlier that day, Massey called 911 about a possible prowler. Grayson and an unidentified deputy searched Massey’s home but found nothing. The deputies requested her ID inside the house, and Massey began searching for it. Body cam video shows Grayson shooting Massey three times after he asked her to remove a pot of boiling water from the stove.
Following the shooting, Grayson was fired and charged with three counts of first-degree murder, among other charges. Sangamon County Sheriff Jack Campbell retired after calls from Black leaders and Illinois Governor J.B. Pritzker to resign. Grayson was expected to be released from jail while awaiting trial, but the Illinois Supreme Court said he must stay behind bars while the court considers his release.
TRUMP SURVIVES ASSASSINATION ATTEMPT DURING RALLY IN PENNSYLVANIA
While giving a speech at an open campaign rally near Butler, PA, Thomas Matthew Crooks stood on the roof of a nearby building and fired eight rounds from an AR-15-style rifle. Trump was shot and wounded in his upper right ear. Crooks was shot dead by the Secret Service’s Sniper Team.
One day after, Kimberly Cheatle, the director of the Secret Service, was grilled and asked to resign during a House Committee on Oversight and Accountability. She was replaced by James M. Murray, a former Secret Service agent who built a career in law enforcement.
Two months later, on September 15, Trump survived a second attempted assassination at West Palm Beach Golf Club. Ryan Wesley Routh was hiding in the bushes with an SKS-style rifle. He was 300 to 500 yards away from Trump and allegedly pointing his weapon through the fence line before an agent spotted him and fired a shot. Routh fled the scene and was caught on Interstate 95. He was charged with possession of a firearm by a convicted felon and possession of a firearm with the serial number removed. Routh has pleaded not guilty.
AUGUST
DEMOCRATIC NATIONAL CONVENTION HELD AT UNITED CENTER IN CHICAGO
Riding a wave of momentum, over 50,000 delegates traveled to Chicago for Kamala Harris, the first Black woman presidential candidate, and her running mate, Minnesota Governor Tim Walz. At the United Center on the West Side, former first lady Michelle Obama gave a rousing speech that drew loud cheers and applause. Her husband Barack spoke, as did Oprah Winfrey, President Joe Biden, Governor J.B. Pritzker, and Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson.
With Chicago expecting between 20,000 to 25,000 protestors, federal, state and local law enforcement officials worked together as barricades surrounded the perimeter of the United Center.
Many protests occurred at nearby Union Park. Chicago Police Supt. Larry Snelling said 74 arrests were made over the four days of the convention.
SEPTEMBER
HARRIS VIEWED AS WINNER IN ONLY DEBATE AGAINST TRUMP
The long-awaited and much-hyped nationally televised presidential debate between Vice President Kamala Harris and former President Donald Trump was held at the National Convention Center in Philadelphia.
With undecided voters in key swing states at stake, the debate was viewed as a critical moment for both candidates, especially for Harris, who many people did not know or her stance on key issues impacting America.
Though occasionally evasive, Harris appeared polished and well-informed on domestic and foreign issues. Trump seemed to be angry almost throughout the debate. He made a false claim that Haitian immigrants in Ohio were eating their neighbors’ cats and dogs.
SEAN “P. DIDDY” COMBS ARRESTED IN NEW YORK ON SEX CHARGES AND PROSTITUTION
Combs was arrested in Manhattan on September 16 at a New York hotel on charges of racketeering conspiracy, sex trafficking by force, and transportation for purposes of prostitution. He pleaded not guilty to the charges.
Federal prosecutors have accused him of “creating a criminal enterprise” in which he “abused, threatened, and coerced women and others around him to fulfill his sexual desires, protect his reputation, and conceal his conduct.”
Since his arrest, Combs has been held at the Metropolitan Detention Center. In November, he was denied bond for the fourth time after Judge Arun Subramanian rejected his lawyer’s proposed $50 million bail. Subramanian stated there was “clear and convincing evidence” of Combs’ violent tendencies and a significant risk of witness tampering. The decision was influenced by evidence from a 2016 incident involving Cassie Ventura and text messages that prosecutors presented in court.
About 120 accusers have come forward with sexual misconduct allegations against Combs.
OCTOBER
NEW YORK CITY MAYOR ERIC ADAMS INDICTED ON CORRUPTION CHARGES
FBI officials said that in 2014 when Adams was Brooklyn Borough president, he sought and improperly accepted valuable benefits, such as luxury international travel from wealthy foreign businesspeople and at least one Turkish government official seeking to gain influence over him. By 2018, officials said Adams—who had by then made known his plans to run for Mayor of New York City—not only accepted but sought illegal campaign contributions to his 2021 mayoral campaign from foreign nationals, as well as other things of value. As Adams’ prominence and power grew, officials said, his foreign-national benefactors sought to cash in on their corrupt relationships with him, particularly when it became clear that Adams would become New York City’s mayor in 2021. Officials said that after his inauguration as mayor of New York City, Adams soon began preparing for his next election, including planning to solicit more illegal contributions and granting requests from those who supported his 2021 mayoral campaign with such donations.
BOARD MEMBERS RESIGN AS MAYOR JOHNSON SEEKS TO FIRE CPS CHIEF
On October 4, the entire seven-member Chicago Board of Education, without explanation, resigned in a stunning move that cleared the way for Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson to fire CPS CEO Pedro Martinez, who refused the mayor’s request to take a loan to cover a pension payment and hammer a deal with the Chicago Teachers Union. Johnson later appointed seven replacements who fired Martinez on Friday, December 20, whose attorney reportedly filed a lawsuit before the board’s decision. The move was made before the board’s 10 newly elected members take office in January.
NOVEMBER
TRUMP RE-ELECTED PRESIDENT AFTER WINNING ALL SEVEN SWING STATES
Former President Donald Trump was re-elected in a stunning victory after he swept all seven swing states to defeat Democrat Kamala Harris.
Trump won the Electoral College 312 to Harris 226 and the popular vote. His latest victory came after polls showed that the race would be much closer than what happened on election night. It was a painful defeat for Harris and millions of supporters, many of whom were left speechless as they watched the election returns rom the campus of Howard University, where Harris canceled plans to speak.
JUSSIE SMOLLETT CONVICTION THROWN OUT BY ILLINOIS SUPREME COURT
The Illinois Supreme Court on November 21 overturned “Empire” actor Jussie Smollett’s conviction on charges that he staged a racist and homophobic attack against himself in downtown Chicago in 2019 and lied to police.
In a 5-0 decision, the Court dismissed the conviction and agreed that a special prosecutor should not have been allowed to intervene after the Cook County State’s Attorney’s Office initially dropped charges in exchange for a fine and community service.
DECEMBER
PRESIDENT BIDEN ISSUES PARDON FOR SON HUNTER BIDEN
Despite promises that he would not intervene, President Joe Biden, on December 1, issued a full and unconditional pardon for his son Hunter Biden, who was convicted of illegally buying a gun and for tax evasion. Insiders say President Biden wanted to protect his son before President-elect Donald Trump takes office.
In a post on Truth Social, Trump called the pardon “Such an abuse and miscarriage of Justice!” He brought up the January 6 rioters, some of whom he has suggested could be pardoned when he takes office.
Reverend Jesse Jackson, Sr., stepped up his calls for President Biden to pardon his son, Jesse Jackson Jr., who’s making a comeback with several public appearances, including filling in for WVON 1690 after longtime radio host Perri Small who retired on November 15.
DANIEL PENNY ACQUITTED IN MURDER OF BLACK HOMELESS MAN ON SUBWAY
A jury in New York acquitted Daniel Penny of criminally negligent homicide after he applied a chokehold that killed Jordan Neely on a subway on May 1, 2023.
Days before the verdict, the judge in the trial dropped a second-degree manslaughter charge after the mostly white jury remained deadlocked during deliberations.
Less than a week after the verdict, Penny sat in a suite with President-elect Donald Trump and Vice President J.D. Vance to watch the historic Army-Navy football game.
MAYOR JOHNSON’S 2025 BUDGET NARROWLY PASSES AFTER PROPERTY TAX INCREASE SCRAPPED
After eliminating a controversial property tax increase, Mayor Brandon Johnson’s $17.3 budget narrowly passed the City Council on December 16 and ended six weeks of turmoil and averted a government shutdown.
The Council voted 27 to 23 to approve Johnson’s 2025 budget that included no property tax hikes, which was first proposed at $300 million, then reduced to $150 million before Johnson brought it down to $68.5 million. With opposition still strong at that point, Johnson was forced to scrap the property tax increase one day before the final vote to get his budget passed or start a new year with no city services and a big stain on his leadership that had a dismal approval rating of just 14 percent.