Is the presence of Democratic Socialists in City Council really much change?

The concession by Deb Mell of her defeat for re-election to her City Council seat (the one held previously by her father since 1975) has some speculating about the significant change our aldermen will undergo.

RAMIREZ-ROSA: Head of new 'caucus?'

Particularly with the fact that this means there will now be six (out of 50) of the city’s aldermen choosing to use the political label of “Democratic Socialists” to identify themselves – rather than straightforward Democrats.

YET I CAN’T really see significant change in the ways of the City Council. Other than that there may be a few more loudmouths willing to refuse to speak in lock-step with the desires of the mayor.

Then again, with this new mayor who will take over May 20, these not-quite Democrats may well wind up being Lori Lightfoot’s biggest allies. Unless they decide they just want to be outspoken opponents of anybody who happens to be mayor.

Much of my own feeling about the idea of Democratic Socialists in the City Council is based on the fact that most of these so-called radicals (five of the six) are going to be members of the Latino caucus.

Jeannette Taylor, the new alderman of the city’s 20^th Ward on the South Side, is an African-American woman. She’s the lone exception.

OTHERWISE, THIS DEMOCRATIC Socialist movement appears to be something that is a part of the Latino segment of Chicago. It could mean that paying attention to the Latino caucus will be the thing to do for individuals who want to see government officials who can’t get along.

GARCIA: If they challenge Chuy, that's radical

Yet that isn’t a radical idea.

If anything, the idea that Latino politicos aren’t a single, unified voice is nothing new at all. It is the reason why Latino political power and influence isn’t anywhere near as strong in Chicago as it should be.

The city’s Latino political people have always been something to be split into two groups – known informally as the Daley-type aldermen and the activist-type aldermen.

BASICALLY, THERE WERE those people of Latino ethnic origins who made the effort to become a part of the city’s government establishment – figuring that to become part of the system would ensure that the Spanish-speaking enclaves those officials represent would get their fair share of the municipal pie.

MELL: No more!

They were the ones who would ally themselves with the former Mayors Daley and be supportive – figuring that they weren’t a strong-enough entity on their own to be able to resist.

Then there were the activist types – the ones who figured that being too close to the Daley or their backers would merely prevent them from trying to advance their own goals for their communities.

If anything, watching the Latino caucus throughout the years has always been an adventure in political infighting, and seeing how the two groups would try to undermine each other’s efforts. Come Elections Day, they’d each be endorsing opponents to the other side – with hopes they could knock off some incumbents and shift the balance to their side.

NOW, IT WOULD seem that some people who would have been outspoken proponents of this latter-type group are giving themselves the formal label of Democratic Socialists – which, simply put, believes in the social freedoms of Democracy while thinking that the business principles of capitalism undermines any effort to achieve a Democratic society

Although there are times I wonder if the people who spew such rhetoric have merely spent too much time in their youths wearing those t-shirts with pictures of Che Guevara on them – without truly comprehending who Che was or what he meant.

I also think that those people who focus too intently on the “socialist” part of the label are missing the point – as I suspect the real Communists of the world would view the Democratic Socialists as the ultimate hostile enemy.

So is Socialism spreading to City Hall? Most likely, not really!

IT’S MORE LIKE the outspoken portion of the Latino caucus has given itself a new label, and has one ally amongst the council’s Black caucus. As far as the partisan split of the technically non-partisan aldermen, it is one Republican (Anthony Napolitano) along with the six (incumbent Carlos Ramirez Rosa, 35^th Ward, Daniel La Spata, 1^st Ward, Byron Sigcho-Lopez, 25^th Ward, 33^rd Ward, who beat Mell, Rossana Rodriguez-Sanchez, Andre Vasquez, 40^th Ward, and Taylor) Democratic Socialists.

Still likely to be the same nonsense at City Hall

Which means that 43 of the aldermen still identify themselves as standard-issue Democrats. Most of whom can’t “play nice” with each other – meaning the City Council still has potential for political chaos, just like usual.

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Democratic Socialists too complex for entity that thinks its purpose is to pick up trash and plow winter snowfall?

It was the running joke of dealing with the Chicago City Council – you’d go to the alderman from the ward up around O’Hare International Airport, interview him, then say you’d spoken to the council’s Republican caucus.

ROSA: Senior of Democratic Socialist caucus

That literally was it.

THE CHICAGO CITY Council was a 49-1 partisan split between Democrats and Republicans. And if one wants to be honest, the Republican wasn’t that different from his Democratic aldermanic colleagues.

It’s the reason that people studying the aldermanic ranks for factions wind up becoming obsessed with race – that often was the breakdown that mattered in figuring out how aldermen would behave.

Particularly back three or so decades ago in the days of Harold Washington, Eugene Sawyer and the beginning of the Richard M. Daley era.

But things have changed, particularly with this now-complete election cycle. What with the development of the presence of the Democratic Socialists of America managing to get some of their supporters elected to City Council seats.

AMONGST THE COUNCIL ranks that takes over next month will be Jeanette Taylor in the 20^th Ward, Bryon Sigcho-Lopez in the 25^th Ward, and Andre Vasquez in the 40^th Ward.

SANDERS: 1st Dem Socialist most heard of

Along with the chance that Rossana Rodriguez of the 33^rd Ward will ultimately prevail in her bid to dump Deborah Mell from the aldermanic seat her father held for so many decades before her (a race that will go down to the final vote count of every single absentee ballot that can be dredged up).

They go along with Daniel LaSpata of the 1^st Ward, who won election outright back on Feb. 26. And Carlos Rosa of the 35^th Ward, who managed to win re-election. He’s no longer the lone Democratic Socialist in the Chicago City Council.

All of which means the council could have six Democratic Socialists in its ranks. Not even close to being able to control things – but enough people to raise up a stink on so many issues that they will be able to force the establishment Democrats (43 in number) to have to listen to them.

OCASIO CORTEZ: Most outspoken?

OR ELSE RUN the risk of seeing the City Council devolve into a clown show of ineptitude. Although some would argue the council has been in such a state throughout much of its history. What else would be new?

Now I know some people are going to overly emphasize the “Socialist” part of the label – and may even come up with distortive rhetoric about Communists taking over the City Council.

Although the one positive aspect of Rep. Bernie Sanders of Vermont becoming so politically prominent is that it has forced people to figure out just what a Democratic Socialist is. And that many people are intrigued enough by the concept to give them a chance.

While others see the outspoken nature of Rep. Alexandria Ocasio Cortez of New York and become offended at her very presence. While some take joy in the irrational outbursts she provokes amongst conservative ideologues.

PERSONALLY, I’M NOT inclined to think any of the City Council’s Democratic Socialists will develop as prominent a public profile as the congresswoman from the Bronx borough of New York – who actually has a growing number of her supporters upset with her for becoming such a nationally-prominent figure that she’s forgetting just where she came from!

Not ready to march the streets of Chicago. Not yet, anyways!

But I have no doubt the ideologues amongst us will still manage to use the new caucus as a reason for their rants. Although it could be a good thing if it forced those ideologues to knock off the irrational rants that try to claim every Democrat is a Communist at heart.

Then again, that’s not likely to occur. Rationality is not all that common – particularly amongst those in our society these days who approve of the Age of Trump in which we now are engaged.

But it’s bound to stir up some feisty debates in our City Council – with the Democratic Socialists taking up the theoretical argument that Capitalism is incompatible with Democracy and the freedoms it purports to give us. Which will really tick off those people who think the purpose of our municipal government is to pick up the trash and plow the streets during the winter months.

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