Prairie State Wire

While Beverly Miles' Democratic primary campaign for governor may have been largely unknown by the electorate, the Democrat has been making waves in the late election season by throwing her support behind GOP gubernatorial candidate Sen. Darren Bailey.

Miles said among the issues that have turned off the Black community to Gov. J.B. Pritzker are quality-of-life issues, such as skyrocketing crime, failing schools and high taxes. She also questioned the controversial SAFE-T Act, which will send many of those awaiting criminal charges back into communities. 

In addition, she said, despite the toll the War on Drugs took on the Black community, Pritzker gave recreational marijuana licenses in those communities to “rich white people,” cutting out the Black community from the coveted business licenses, creating rancor in the community.

“The reason I ran is because the gun violence across the state of Illinois, unemployment is still high and property taxes are still high,” Miles told Prairie State Wire.

“From where I sit, when J.B. Pritzker ran the first time, the promises he made to the state of Illinois and especially marginalized communities, he lied," Miles said. "The bottom line, he lied. He didn't keep his promises. So as far as me campaigning against him, I'm not campaigning against him. I am speaking on what's true. I'm speaking factually.

“J.B. Pritzker has pandered to the Black community, and he spent a lot of money in the Black community, and I don't think he wants the Black community to know the link.”

“(He tried to) have me or kicked off the ballot or fired from my job so that I could not run against him. And I believe that's why he's fighting hard to have the air taken down because he doesn't want Black people to see the real J.B.

“In my community, he spent a lot of money. He courted our community through our elected officials and pastors and street people. And he paid them a lot of money to support him. But I just think it's all about working hard to prevent people from knowing the real J.B. Pritzker. So I just think this is what it's all about. He doesn't want the truth about him to come to the surface, especially, especially when it comes to the Black vote.

“Cook County is the largest Black voting bloc and I truly believe that Darren Bailey – and don't get me wrong, I am not pro- or anti-Bailey and I'm not pro- or anti-J.B. I am pro what is in the best interests of marginalized community. And I truly believe that right now, Darren Bailey is picking up. A lot of people are looking at Darren Bailey in a different light. And I truly believe that Darren Bailey is going to pick up a lot of votes from the Black community. And don't get me wrong, I'm not. I'm not. I'm a lifelong Democrat.

“But I think Black people are more conscious. I think Black people are paying attention, especially when it came to the marijuana license. When J.B. Pritzker, he lived in our community talking about this is going to be the opportunity to make the ones right where Black and brown people went to jail for selling marijuana. We can make this right. We can give you inclusion. And the first time around, no Black person got a license. The license went to all rich White people and that started Black people looking at J.B. from a totally different lens. And now there's a lot of conversations about are we going to vote for him again? Are we going to allow him to lie to us again? So that's why I believe he's doing everything he can to keep Black people from learning the true him.

“I question the timing of the SAFE-T Act. Why during election season bring this deal out? And I questioned the motivation behind it. Again, I think now when he failed through the cannabis industry, this is a new tactic to exploit our community once again. We're going to let all of these low-level offenders out of jail. But then when you let them out of jail, what diversion programs have you put in place? Have you thought it has that?

“J.B. did not want to run against anyone Black. Look at what he did to Richard Irvin and Robin Kelly, as well. He’s been consistent with his tactics. Consistent with how he handled Black people for the Black votes.

“As an Army veteran, I swore to defend democracy, and participating in government is all about democracy. People have a right to run and J.B. Pritzker took that from me. He's still trying to take it. There was a big media blackout on me, and he's still trying to have this media blackout on what he did for the sake of running unopposed, or running by himself or having a clean image.”

Miles mounted a shoestring campaign against Pritzker – a self-funded trust fund billionaire. That was little covered by traditional media in what she deems a media "blackout.”

In the campaign, Miles was challenging the nation’s wealthiest active politician, which has its own set of obstacles. Pritzker’s net worth is around $3.6 billion, which puts him third on the list of all-time wealthiest in the United States.

As Miles was trying to make inroads in the Black community seeking support for the June 28 primary, she quickly found all of the local activists used for signature drives had been hired at twice the going rate by the Pritzker campaign.

Due to Pritzker's massive influence, Miles said her challenge to the governor’s political machine was met with overt and covert tactics against her.

Prizker first responded by trying to have her removed from the ballot. She spent thousands of her own dollars to pay for legal bills to survive the attempt.

Pritzker also torpedoed a debate being held by the League of Women Voters in which the group extended an offer to Miles to debate Pritzker, but quickly rescinded it and canceled the event after alleged pushback from Pritzker’s campaign.

Then, Miles insists, Pritzker was behind her firing at Hines Veterans Administration Hospital.

Her campaign even received a complaint from Proviso Township – where House Speaker Chris Welch is based – in which the complaint from a lowly municipal employee was presented by Scott Erdman, better known as Kanye West’s Chicago attorney.

That story took on a life of its own when the Pritzker campaign was able to bully NBC and WGN into removing an ad from Pritzker’s primary opponent, Miles, in which she accused Pritzker of her politically motivated firing.

The incident is one of several in recent weeks in which Pritzker has sought to silence opponents, including this website and newspaper.

Miles is a Clarksdale, Mississippi, native who lives on the West Side of Chicago.

She is a nurse practitioner who holds two master's degrees. She held positions as command and general staff, as well as an advance nurse leadership course.