Quote · Up First from NPR
The growing movement to secede from Illinois and become the 51st state
Where this was said
The Best-Case Scenario: Secession as a Pressure Valve
At 19:43 · chapter starts 19:30
Owen's most optimistic read of New Illinois is not that it succeeds, but that it forces a conversation. In the cases he's studied, when regular political channels fail, the credible threat of leaving compels the dominant power to reopen the social contract. O'Neill uses the metaphor Rascoe offers — a check engine light — and agrees it's already blinking. [1] — Dr. Kenneth Owen "Even if New Illinois never becomes a state, the threat of secession might force a renegotiation of the Illinois social contract. Dr. Kennet…" 19:30 LaShawn Ford, a Chicago Democrat in the state legislature, is the evidence: he spoke at a New Illinois conference in 2023 and describes himself as the movement's one Democratic interlocutor. Ford opposes the split, arguing the rural funding relationship with Chicago is too valuable to sever. But his willingness to show up at all represents exactly the kind of productive tension Owen describes.
Even if New Illinois never becomes a state, the threat of secession might force a renegotiation of the Illinois social contract. Dr. Kenneth Owen has seen this pattern before: when regular politics fail, the threat of leaving can force a conversation that actually moves things forward.
Chicago Democrat LaShawn Ford is the only state legislator who took New Illinois seriously enough to speak at their conference — while still opposing secession. His diagnosis: the divide isn't Chicago vs. downstate, it's rich vs. poor. But his solution, a progressive wealth tax, is a non-starter for rural conservatives.
