CHICAGO —The announced closure of a longtime Walgreens location in Chicago’s Chatham neighborhood is the latest example of how failed soft-on-crime policies are hurting working families, seniors, employees, and entire communities across Illinois.

According to Walgreens executives, the store at 86th and Cottage Grove lost more than $1 million last year and faced theft rates four times higher than the company average. The company also reportedly spent roughly $400,000 annually on security while employees endured repeated threats, thefts, and attacks.

The closure reflects the real-world consequences of the extreme policies championed by Lt. Governor Juliana Stratton and her political allies. Retailers across Illinois and the country have increasingly cited organized retail theft, repeat offenders, and deteriorating public safety conditions as reasons for closures, increased prices, locked merchandise, and reduced investment in urban communities.

“Juliana Stratton’s ‘Illinois Blueprint’ is making life harder and more expensive for everyday Illinoisans,” said Republican U.S. Senate candidate Don Tracy. “When politicians refuse to hold repeat offenders accountable, businesses close, neighborhoods lose essential services, workers lose jobs, seniors lose access to pharmacies, and families pay more for everything from toothpaste to groceries because retailers are forced to close or pass on the cost of rampant retail theft.”

The Walgreens closure has sparked backlash from activists who credibly say the loss of the store will create a “prescription desert” in a community with many senior citizens and residents who rely on nearby access to medications and household necessities.

“Sadly, this is what happens when politicians prioritize pro-criminal social justice experiments over common sense public safety,” Tracy said. “Shoplifting is not a victimless crime. It raises prices on working families, drives businesses out of communities, and leaves vulnerable residents behind.

“We cannot build strong communities when businesses have to spend hundreds of thousands of dollars on security just to stay open. Illinois families deserve safe neighborhoods, thriving neighborhood businesses, and leaders willing to back law enforcement instead of making victimhood excuses for shoplifting, disorder, and the resulting food and pharmacy deserts.”

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