The statement below can be attributed to the ACLU of Illinois:
 
“Like all caring residents of Chicago, we share the shock and sadness at the recent gun violence and loss of life in the City. Our thoughts and condolences are with those killed or hurt as a result of this violence.
 
A group of Chicago City Council members now are calling for action by the Mayor and Chicago Police to stem the shootings. In past summers, similar calls have been met with the implementation of ineffective policies, including police officers flooding Black and Latinx communities  –  often dressed in quasi-military gear  – and arrests of Black and Brown men. This same performative approach has been tried time and time again. And it has failed. Moreover, years of repeating these failed policies has contributed to biased and violent policing in the City and has destroyed trust between police and communities on the South and West sides.
 
This could be a moment for fundamental change. Rather than simply repeating ineffective and alienating practices of the past, it is a moment for adopting evidence-based police strategies that actually address public safety problems, creating real avenues for community input into policing and investing in social services that reach the root causes of gun violence. In short, it is time to be bold and real – and to refuse the same old failed policies. 
 
Leadership requires curiosity and the courage to admit that past approaches have been wrong. Simply flooding communities of color with militarized police and arresting people – strategies that do not change the arc of violence and drive wedges between the police and the community – is not leadership. We can do better.”