Jussie Smollett Says He’s Moving Forward After Settling With City of Chicago

Jussie Smollett is speaking out after striking a pretty sweet deal with the Windy City to close his hate crime hoax situation there … and he’s ready to put this behind him, while getting a few parting shots in.

The “Empire” star says … “What I have to do now is move forward. I will continue creating my art, fighting passionately for causes I hold dear and defending my integrity and family with the name of truth.”

TMZ broke the story … Jussie donated $50,000 to charity to settle a civil lawsuit the City of Chicago filed against him seeking restitution for the expense of investigating his 2019 hate crime hoax.

Jussie says he’s grateful to have the resources to defend himself because so many people do not have that same privilege.

As a result, Jussie says he’s donating an additional $10,000 to the Chicago Torture Justice Center, an organization he says provides resources to communities “healing from the violence of the Chicago Police Department.”

Jussie says the donation is in honor of those who “are backed into corners to take deals or confess to crimes they did not actually commit.”

He says Chicago officials “wanted my money and wanted my confession for something I did not do. They have received neither.”

Jussie’s initial $50,000 donation is to the Building Better Futures Center for the Arts in Chicago … an org focused on mental health, art, music and acting training for underprivileged youth in Chicago.

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BBF CEO Pamela Blackman says … “This remarkable gift is more than a contribution. It’s a powerful investment in our youth during a very critical time in the world. This donation strengthens our ability to provide access to high quality education assistance, career training, mentorship, and creative space for the next generation of Chicago changemakers.”