September 21, 2020
To Alderman Christopher Taliaferro,
Honorable Chairman of the Public Safety Committee,
I am writing this letter as a formal request that you schedule a hearing on Civilian Oversight and Police Accountability as soon as possible and no later than the December City Council Meeting, scheduled for December 16th, 2020. Many of us have been asking for over a year to hold a hearing on the two police accountability ordinances so that the legislative body can deliberate, debate, and ultimately vote on the two pieces of legislation, CPAC and GAPA.
Before I took office, many whom I now call colleagues worked in coalition with advocacy groups to go into the communities of our city and then draft prescriptive solutions. Upon taking office, myself and many of the newly elected members of the Council came in with the goal of making this part of our public discourse. It is time for that conversation to happen. Regardless of where we individually stand on this issue, we all put the safety of our constituents as the top priority. We respect each other as colleagues to have this conversation and our city demands it.
It is my firm belief that in order to build any semblance of trust between the communities that are most impacted by police violence and those entrusted with their safety, we need a system that holds the bad actors accountable. The people of Chicago deserve a Civilian Oversight and Police Accountability Commission that is elected by the public. The design of our current system requires it as intended, according to the Office of the Inspector General, and the fact that we have not had this conversation after the murder of George Floyd that led to the civil unrest across the nation is truly shameful.
I am asking that we hold a hearing rather than having members of the City Council calling for a Special Meeting of the body to take up these matters. We owe it to the public safety of our city, especially during these times.
Sincerely,
Alderman Andre Vasquez
Alderman – 40th Ward
Ald. Daniel La Spata – 1st Ward
Ald. Pat Dowell – 3rd Ward
Ald. Leslie Hairston – 5th Ward
Ald Roderick Sawyer – 6th Ward
Ald. Susan Sadlowski Garza – 10th Ward
Ald. Stephanie Coleman – 16th Ward
Ald. David Moore – 17th Ward
Ald. Jeanette Taylor – 20th Ward
Ald. Mike Rodriguez – 22nd Ward
Ald. Byron Sigcho Lopez – 25th Ward
Ald. Roberto Maldonado – 26th
Ald. Jason Ervin – 28th Ward
Ald. Felix Cardona – 31st Ward
Ald. Scott Waguespack – 32nd Ward
Ald. Rossana Rodriguez-Sanchez – 33rd Ward
Ald. Carlos Ramirez- Rosa – 35th Ward
Ald; Emma Mitts – 37th Ward
Ald. Michele Smith – 43rd Ward
Ald. James Cappleman – 46th Ward
Ald. Matt Martin – 47th Ward
Ald. Maria Hadden – 49th Ward
Ald. Debra Silverstein – 50th Ward
PDF available here –Request for Hearing_ CPAC_GAPA 9.21.20