Defend ECPS! Defend Civilian Oversight!

The Chicago Alliance Against Racist and Political Repression would like to register our concern that alderpeople Desmon Yancy, Silvana Tabares, and Peter Chico want to have a special hearing in the City Council. Their objective is to interfere with the process of selecting the next superintendent of police. 

In our movement for community control of the police, we have waged a significant political struggle for five decades to put in place an ordinance, Empowering Communities for Public Safety, which created the Community Commission for Public Safety and Accountability. In order to get even this modest level of community input over law enforcement policies in our city, we crossed rivers of blood caused by police violence. Furthermore, the City of Chicago has shelled out over a half billion dollars in settling civil cases against the police for numerous cases of torture and violence.

The City Council routinely signs off on multi-million-dollar settlements in civil court against the police, and why is that? Because they have no legal or logical defense for the police. Literally, we have been paying out of taxpayers’ pockets for a police force that commits heinous crimes against the people of this city. That is why we have a commission. That is why we passed the law Empowering Communities for Public Safety, after tens of thousands of people in Chicago demanded that such a law be passed. 

Now we have a moment of truth as it’s time to execute that law in selecting a new superintendent of police in response to the retirement of the present superintendent, Larry Snelling. There’s already a process created by the law that we passed: CCPSA conducts a search, comes up with candidates, goes through a vetting process, and makes recommendations to the mayor to select these candidates. 

That’s the law, but for obvious and odious political reasons, members of the City Council and at least one member of CCPSA, former president Anthony Driver, don't want to execute the law. 

It is very clear why: they don’t want the existing mayor to appoint the next superintendent of police because they believe after this election, we’ll have another mayor. They prefer that mayor do it. 

Yes. It’s just like it sounds. It’s not only against Mayor Johnson, but it’s against the very democratic process that we fought for and established to do these things. If we make a concession on this, then we’re giving ground to those who would prefer to see this new structure eliminated altogether. 

These alderpersons have the gall to portray themselves as friends of the people. No, you are not friends of the people. You are, in this moment, enemies of the people. And we urge all of our allies and our entire movement to come out against this, to oppose you in the public arena and in City Hall.

Signed –

Frank Chapman

Educational Director

Field Organizer

Chicago Alliance Against Racist and Political Repression