Walgreens didn’t abandon Chicago’s South Side. We let crime drive them out

Walgreens didn’t leave the South Side of Chicago because they hate Black people. They left because we made it impossible for them to stay.

Just recently, another Walgreens shut down on Cottage Grove, and once again the public conversation turned in the wrong direction. People started blaming the company, blaming corporate greed, blaming everything except the conditions on the ground that made staying there untenable. But businesses do not keep stores open out of charity. They stay where people shop...