49th Ward office closes temporarily after violent threats following killing of Loyola student in Rogers Park

The 49th Ward's office has closed for the rest of the week due to "threats of violence" to the alderperson and her staff following backlash to comments she made after the homicide of 18-year-old Loyola student Sheridan Gorman.

In a letter to constituents Wednesday, Ald. Maria Hadden (49th) announced her office was offering services remotely Wednesday and Thursday before closing entirely Friday due to "threats of violence against myself, my family, and my team."

Hadden said the threats involved "racist, misogynistic and homophobic language" and verbal abuse to her staff was "making it difficult to serve the constituents of the 49th Ward."

Hadden appeared on "Chicago Live" the same day Gorman was shot and killed for an interview that circulated in conservative news cycles and social media groups.

During the interview, Hadden was asked if members of the 49th Ward should be worried about their safety.

"They were just out, people go out to the beach all the time," Hadden responded as she described what she knew from police. "The kids were out doing normal things people do in the neighborhood, and it sounds like this might've been a wrong place, wrong time, running into a person who had a gun, they might've startled this person at the end of the pier unintentionally."

The fatal shooting garnered national attention, including from President Donald Trump, after a Venezuelan migrant was charged with Gorman's murder. The shooting created an increased political discourse regarding immigration enforcement in Chicago, where elected officials have resisted enhanced enforcement tactics.

"Gun violence and immigration policy have been two of the most challenging issues facing our country and our city. Sheridan's murder has become a national story touching on these painful and difficult issues," Hadden said in her newsletter. "I know that people are in pain, and tensions will be high as we work to find solutions to keep everyone in our community safe."

Hadden declined to elaborate on the backlash when reached by a Sun-Times reporter Thursday.

Following the interview, Hadden said her office received "an overwhelming number" of calls and emails, mostly from people out-of-state "who are angry about my comments and Chicago's sanctuary city status."

"Our social media pages have also been inundated with negative reviews and hateful comments. The content of the phone messages and emails that my staff and I have been receiving is explicit and disturbing," Hadden wrote.

An anti-immigrant, anti-sanctuary city protest took place outside the Rogers Park office Tuesday and another was planned for Friday, according to Hadden.

The 49th Ward office was expected to fully reopen Monday.

"I ask that here, in the 49th Ward, we bring compassion, patience, and understanding to debates and discussions we have with our neighbors about this in the coming weeks," Hadden wrote.