Chicago has turned into Gotham City, and there's no superhero watching for the Bat Signal.
But instead of just giving in, one Chicago woman defended herself when a punk pulled a gun on her.
On Wednesday afternoon, a student identified only as Maddi was walking home from class around 3 p.m. in the 5600 block of South University Avenue when a masked man approached and attempted to rob her at gunpoint.
"I was just walking home from class and I see a man in a mask approach me," Maddi told WLS-TV. "And he kind of comes towards me, and I think to myself, 'just keep walking,' but then we have an altercation."
NEW: Female University of Chicago student fights off a robber by grabbing his gun as he tried stealing her phone.
21-year-old Madelyn fended off a thug by grabbing his gun and removing the magazine before he hopped into a getaway car with her phone.
The thug looked dumbfounded… pic.twitter.com/6aHKJeZ7st
— Collin Rugg (@CollinRugg) April 19, 2024
Footage shows a struggle as the suspect attempted to snatch Maddi's phone. But instead of complying, Maddi fought back, grabbing at the weapon.
"I'm able to get my hands on the gun," she recounted. Then she did some John Woo or even John Wick-level magic.
"[I get my hands on the gun,] remove the magazine ... and I toss it into the bush," Maddi recounted.
That's right, she not only got the gun, but as she was grabbing it, she tripped the mag release, ripped the magazine out, and had the presence of mind to toss it into a nearby bush.
She and the thief tussled some more, but as he retreated to find the magazine, she made her getaway.
After failing to find the mag, the suspect got into a dark-colored getaway sedan driven by an accomplice and left.
Maddi later admitted her actions were unwise in hindsight. Even without a magazine, the gun could have had a round in the chamber.
"I think fight [instinct] definitely kicked in, but I'm in no way advocating to resist an armed robbery. It was really not the right decision, looking back on it," she said, to WLS-TV.
"I couldn't necessarily really register the threat ahead of me, so [I] definitely wouldn't advocate fighting back," she said. "Losing a life over a phone is definitely not worth it," she said.
The brazen daylight stickup was part of a series of three armed robberies reported on or near the University of Chicago's Hyde Park campus on Wednesday, with two other students also being victimized that afternoon. No one was injured, but the incidents have left many on edge.
"I don't blame the campus. I don't blame the bystander. I don't blame the police -- they did a great job," Maddi said. "I think it's just finding the people who did this attack, because they will do it again."
Some social media users pointed out a young man sitting on the grass watching the entire episode without bothering to even call for help, let alone defend the young woman.
i literally hate this dude. pic.twitter.com/mGxzvh9M44
— Tiffany Fong (@TiffanyFong_) April 20, 2024
Who’s the weakling human male sitting on the ground watching???🙄
— 🇺🇸Brenda🇺🇸 (@SmellyCat2Sunny) April 19, 2024
According to the conservative think tank Illinois Policy, March saw a 7.47 percent monthly increase in total assaults in Chicago, totaling 22,948.
This increase in random violence seems to be particularly targeted toward women, the report says.
Lax Democrat policies on crime, combined with a growing loss of social conscience and a diminishing sense of community responsibility, have left women feeling vulnerable and unsafe.
The bystander's apathetic reaction during the daylight attack is symptomatic of the erosion of civic values and societal attitudes when it comes to defending and protecting women.
While Maddi's self-defense moves may have been risky, many women may be reduced to risky options in blue cities like Chicago, where concealed carry is rare, gun possession highly restricted, and crime out of control.
American women shouldn't have to live this way, and American cities don't have to be this way. But to fix these problems, voters will have to kick soft-on-crime, gun-hating liberal politicians out of office. And they will also have to do something even harder: return to lives based on traditional values, self-control, and personal responsibility -- three things American liberals have been trying to undermine if not destroy for over a century.
