The ACLU of Illinois today responded to the City of Chicago’s announcement of a security plan for Election night and beyond. The following can be attributed to Colleen K. Connell, Executive Director of the ACLU of Illinois:
 
“This election season has been extraordinary – marked by millions of Americans waiting for hours to vote early and millions of others voting by mail. Still other Americans have encouraged those waiting to cast their ballot with advocacy, music, dancing and even cookies and pizza. In this difficult time, the American people have come together to fight the pandemic, challenge blatant voter suppression and make their voices heard.
 
These voices will not fall silent on Tuesday. In the wake of the election, millions Americans will continue to exercise free expression – including some who will gather together in the streets of Chicago. Some will celebrate the election’s outcome; others will communicate their disappointment; and still others will want to articulate their vision of policies that make our neighborhoods and our country better. No matter the message, these are voices of Americans who have a yearning and a right to come together and be heard. 
 
The City of Chicago recently announced plans for these gatherings after the election. Above all else, any such plan must be based on welcoming all voices on to Chicago’s iconic streets and plazas to share their messages — not on silencing dissent through curfew, restrictions of transportation to and from protests, or policing that harms people. This requirement that government respect the rights of Americans to assemble and speak is embedded in our Constitution, and it is the process for improving our country. 
 
Let’s count every vote and then celebrate freedom to assemble and to speak!”

When the ACLU of Illinois founded the Next Generation Society in 2015, our goal was to bring together a diverse group of people united by a common commitment: to support the essential work of the ACLU. For a century, the ACLU has fought tirelessly to hold America to its promises. And over the last five years, the Next Generation Society has played a critical role in that fight. We have grown into a vibrant and vital part of the ACLU’s efforts to protect protestors’ First Amendment rights, reimagine policing, uphold reproductive freedom, preserve privacy, and much more.
 
Activism and engagement have been central to Next Gen’s identity and impact from the start. Next Gen members have organized and participated in ACLU fundraising and events, taken to the streets, championed legislative initiatives, and served as cooperating attorneys and volunteers. When the Trump Administration issued the Muslim ban, Next Gen members showed up at O’Hare Airport to protest.

When the administration ramped up surveillance on social media, Next Gen organized to share actionable guidance about protecting your privacy. Next Gen board members organized the benefit concert RiseUp and launched an annual celebrity-chef dinner, with the proceeds funding the ACLU’s work.

When the ACLU needed additional resources because of the unprecedented number of attacks on our rights, Next Gen launched the Freedom Fund, an ambitious campaign to raise $1 million dollars for the ACLU over five years. And thanks to the commitment of its members and supporters, Next Gen is now able to fully fund an ACLU staff attorney position each year. 
 
On the eve of a consequential election, we must remain focused on the challenges we will face regardless of the outcome. As crucial as this election is, its outcome will not automatically fix policing, reform the broken criminal legal system, or end our prison-industrial complex. It will not end the siege on reproductive rights in the courts. And it will not reunite the 545 children who still remain separated from their parents by the Trump administration’s cruel family separation practice because their parents have not been found.
 
The hard work is just beginning. We will need the ACLU and the Next Generation Society not only to undo the many harms of the Trump Administration, but to rebuild our country and finally realize its unmet promises of equality and justice for all. In the end, we believe the promise of America – our values, our democracy, and above all, our shared humanity – is worth fighting for.

We want to thank every member of the Next Generation Society for helping the ACLU in this fight. We will stand on the front lines, together, as long as it takes for America to fulfill its promise to all its people.

The statement below can be attributed to Karen Sheley, Police Practices Project Director, ACLU of Illinois: 

"The release of the footage surrounding the shooting death of Marcellis Stinette and the wounding of his girlfriend Tafara Williams by Waukegan police underscore the need for a reckoning on policing in Illinois. It is imperative that there be a full, fair and independent investigation of the shooting death of yet another Black man at the hands of police in our state. A 7-month-old child has lost her father and there must be a public explanation of precisely what occurred followed by appropriate consequences. 

It is especially troubling that the officer who fired the fatal shot failed to activate the body-worn camera that was provided by the Waukegan police. Five years ago, in the wake of the tragic shooting of Michael Brown in Ferguson, Missouri, law enforcement agencies implemented the widespread use of body worn cameras for officers – so that the public would have an independent, neutral recording of police interactions with members of the communities they serve.  That purpose and the goal of transparency is undermined when officers fail to follow the rules for the use of cameras.

Sadly, there are no consequences for officers in Illinois who do not follow guidelines for the use of body cameras. That must change. State law should mandate consequences for officers who do not use their cameras in line with the law. 

We join all those grieving with Mr. Stinette’s family, and wishing well for Ms. Williams and their child. Their pain has been experienced by too many Black families across our nation in the wake of police violence against Black people. It must end. Black Lives Matter."