Mayor Emanuel also apologized to lawmakers for last year’s shooting of a black teen, Laquan McDonald, by a white Chicago police officer saying, “Laquan McDonald’s death was totally avoidable”.
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“The mayor knows that he’s in trouble, said Ald”.
Emanuel acknowledged that the first step on the journey of rebuilding trust in police within the community was for the city to confront his failings, and that the first step to take was his.
In response to Emanuel’s speech, Rev. Jackson said action will be the true determinant of whether Emanuel’s “impassioned” speech holds water.
The same day, protesters flooded the streets of Chicago, calling fro Emanuel’s resignation.
In his morning address, Emanuel said the city’s facing a “defining moment on the issue of crime and policing, and even the larger issue of truth, justice and race”. The 13-month gap from the incident until the charge and video release was too long for some, who accused police and Emanuel of a cover-up.
Some 200 protesters also gathered outside council chambers during Emanuel’s special address to the city council and demanded to be granted entrance.
Mayor Rahm Emanuel says it’s an unacceptable that there are parents in Chicago who feel they must warn their children to be wary of police officers. These include setting up a task force to review police accountability, the appointment of a new head of the agency that handles police misconduct and searching for a new police superintendent. Municipal corruption in Chicago didn’t begin with Rahm Emanuel and it won’t end with him. Evans is an African-American officer who’s been with the Chicago police 29 years.
“We have read the studies and articles on racial profiling, the lack of diversity in our police ranks across the country, and the disproportionate levels of enforcement towards people of color”, he said.
Chicagoans are outraged that the video showing the fatal police shooting of Laquan McDonald was withheld for under a year, and despite Emanuel’s apology earlier today for that and promising a serious look at the Chicago Police Department, many are blaming him and demanding he leave his position.
Emanuel spoke at a special city council meeting to talk about it. He says he’s trying to restore trust and confidence in the police department as well as his own leadership.
Emanuel lamented Wednesday that young people join gangs “in search of self-worth” and because they don’t see hope for a better life, saying, “We as a city must and can do better”.
The demonstration later shut down State Street as protesters marched through Magnificent Mile, one of the city’s major shopping districts.
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Emanuel has been engulfed in a media firestorm since a video was released two weeks ago showing the 2014 death of Laquan McDonald.
