The conviction of Chicago Police Officer Jason Van Dyke for the murder and aggravated battery against Laquan McDonald raises the question of changing the structure of policing in Chicago to a new level. The people of Chicago expect action by our civic leaders to correct a situation in which Black and Brown people are wantonly killed by police while seemingly countless homicides take place unsolved. Clearly, “reform” is on the agenda, and we need the members of the City Council need to take a stand.
On October 23, 2018, at 10:00 am on the 2nd Floor of City Hall, Alderman Carlos Ramirez-Rosa (35th) will join with other Aldermen and community organizations to announce that they will invoke City Council Rule 41 to bring this ordinance to the floor for a vote.
The people have spoken In hearings across the city – the Mayor’s Task Force on Police Accountability, the City Council Public Safety Committee, and the U. S. Department of Justice. The people want democratic community control of the police, such as that embodied in the pending ordinance establishing an all-elected Civilian Police Accountability Council (CPAC). In addition to the hearings, over 55,000 people have signed postcards to their aldermen demanding passage of this bill.