Jan. 20--The roots of Chicago's policing crisis are tangled in issues of race, poverty and decades of abandoned neighborhoods -- and must be addressed head-on if the city is to recover, the head of the Chicago Police Board said Tuesday.
Lori Lightfoot, speaking at the City Club of Chicago, described a complicated problem that goes well beyond the recent headlines of officers who have gone "astray" and failed to exercise restraint or respect for the people they police.
Lightfoot acknowledged the "widening gulf" between police and the community and the need to face some hard truths to fix it.
She said policies and practices of the Police Department would have to change, but she did not offer any specifics.
Lightfoot drew on her experience to make a point that race does need to be part of the conversation about policing.
"I became aware of policing in Chicago when I came to this great city in 1996," said Lightfoot, who is black. "As a law student at the University of Chicago Law School, the older black students warned us 'first years' to be careful on the campus and the streets of Hyde Park. University police had a reputation for stopping black students, particularly the men."
The Chicago Police Department has long been criticized for its systemic failures, including failing to root out bad officers and paying out hundreds of millions of dollars over lawsuits alleging excessive force and other misconduct. But the release in November of a disturbing police dash-cam video showing a white officer shoot an African-American teen, Laquan McDonald, 16 times roiled the city, leading to a Department of Justice probe of the department, the firing of police Superintendent Garry McCarthy and weeks of street protests.
In addition to serving as head of the Police Board, Lightfoot also chairs a task force formed by Mayor Rahm Emanuel in recent weeks that is aimed at exploring reform measures.
While she outlined the task force's priorities, Lightfoot concentrated her remarks on the history of neglect, poverty and subsequent violence some Chicago neighborhoods have suffered under for decades.
"These communities often lack hope, and we have to fix that," she said.
Lightfoot said those leading the department through reform must ensure officers on the street are equipped to deal with these complicated social issues.
"Given the myriad of problems plaguing these neighborhoods, the police are ill-equipped to address most of these communities' actual needs," Lightfoot said.
She added that "certain" officers have added to the anger and frustration through their own actions and treatment of residents.
"Those officers ... have not exercised appropriate respect or restraint," she said. "We must fix that as well."
