Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot (D) defended a haircut she received this weekend despite barbershops and salons being closed due to stay-at-home state mandates.
The mayor was criticized for her actions after previously saying, “Getting your roots done is not essential,” according to the Chicago Tribune.
“I’m the public face of this city,” she said in defense of the haircut. “I’m on national media, and I’m out in the public eye.”
Lightfoot added, “The woman who cut my hair had a mask and gloves on so we are, I am practicing what I’m preaching.”
The mayor said the public is more concerned about real issues concerning the coronavirus.
“We’re talking about people dying here. We’re talking about significant health disparities. I think that’s what people care most about,” Lightfoot said.
Alderman Carlos Ramirez-Rosa criticized the mayor’s explanation for her haircut.
“She is under no obligation to look good on national TV. She is under no obligation to book national interviews. But she is under an obligation to follow and promote social distancing in order to save lives,” he said on Twitter. “This is a bad example for our city.”
Ramirez-Rosa is a frequent critic of Lightfoot, according to the report.
Gov. J.B. Pritzker (D) could not speak on the mayor’s decision to get a haircut but said he had not received one himself since stay-at-home orders were put in place, saying, “I’m going to turn into a hippie at some point.”