At least seven people were killed and 47 others wounded in shootings across Chicago during the Labor Day weekend, police said on Monday.
The victims ranged in age from 14 to 50, according to local reports. Police logs reviewed by ABC News showed at least 32 separate shooting incidents from late Friday through midday Monday.
The first fatal shooting came Friday night when a 43-year-old man was gunned down during an argument on South Eberhart Avenue. Police said the suspect fled after firing several rounds. Investigations into other incidents are continuing.
The holiday violence has sharpened a political fight between the White House and local leaders. President Donald Trump renewed his threat to send federal agents and National Guard troops into Chicago, blaming city officials for failing to curb gun violence.
“Better straighten it out, FAST, or we’re coming!” Trump warned in a social media post aimed at Illinois Governor JB Pritzker.
Pritzker, a Democrat, called the plan “illegal, unconstitutional and un-American,” repeating his earlier rejection of federal deployments in the state. Mayor Brandon Johnson also pushed back, telling a rally of protesters downtown that Chicago would resist any outside intervention.
“This is the city that will defend the country,” Johnson said, drawing loud cheers from crowds waving blue-striped Chicago flags.
The rally was part of nearly 1,000 “Workers over Billionaires” demonstrations held nationwide on the Labor Day holiday. But in Chicago, the tone was more pointed as residents bristled at Trump’s promise to target their city, echoing deployments already under way in Los Angeles and Washington DC.
Despite its reputation, Chicago has recorded falling homicide rates in recent years. City crime data shows killings are down from their 2020 peak. Yet a 2025 University of Chicago survey found nearly half of residents still feel unsafe in their neighbourhoods at night.
The bloody holiday weekend has again placed the nation’s third-largest city at the centre of debate over crime, politics and federal power — with both sides digging in ahead of the next flashpoint.
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With inputs from Reuters