As I opened my computer and prepared to click on the Zoom link for this year’s ACLU National Advocacy Institute, I felt very anxious about what was to come. Automatically muting my mic and deciding on whether or not to show my face or just my profile picture, I was greeted by this amazing voice. This person was so thrilled to speak to us youth about social justice issues that have been plaguing our minds and was actually willing to listen. 

Amber Hikes - ACLU Chief Equity & Inclusion Officer, our keynote speaker for the first night, and a proud queer black woman - left me with a lasting statement that has stuck with me and will definitely follow me once camp is over. After expressing how saddened she was due to the fact that this year’s summer programming is only virtual this year, she said “crisis creates opportunity.” At first, I was skeptical about what that really meant. Now I am starting to see opportunities everywhere I look. 

I admit that I was also upset at first that this year’s Institute couldn't be in person, but it was an honor to attend the Institute under the Alex McCray scholarship from the ACLU of Illinois, so I can flourish in my learning of social justice and change. Amber stated that before this pandemic that what we are going through has created opportunities for my fellow peers and myself that I would probably not have concerned myself with in the past. Mostly everyone I know has been practicing and preaching for social distancing in order to flatten the curve, but I had never thought about the people who are already alienated from our society. 

Prison reform has been a hot topic for years, but now the COVID-19 crisis has given the topic a whole new opportunity. Before the Summer Institute, I wasn't aware of the inhumane conditions in prison that people have to live in, and the lack of communication between inmates and their officers. As an inmate, it is physically impossible to social distance and protect yourself from COVID-19 when you are living in a cell the size of a parking space. 

Now that the Summer Institute has come to an end, I will be putting prison reform in my sights and helping as many incarcerated people as I can. COVID-19 is a crisis that has given people many different opportunities to help and my job as of now is to make sure I fight for the rights of incarcerated people to ensure their chance of surviving this pandemic, and to protect them from cruel and unusual punishment like the 8th Amendment of the U.S. Constitution promised. 

The following statement can be attributed to Camille Bennett, Director of the Corrections Reform Project, ACLU of Illinois: 

“As counsel for youth in custody of the Illinois Department of Juvenile Justice (DJJ), we hope today’s announcement is a further step forward to creating a humane and rehabilitative environment for young people in DJJ custody. It is encouraging that today’s announcement focuses on bringing youth closer to home, and matching each youth with services they need.

And it is especially appropriate to hear the Governor, Lieutenant Governor and Director will center this work on racial equity and inclusion, addressing the real harm that has been experienced by Black and Brown youth who are by far the most affected by our current system.  

We filed the R.J. lawsuit eight years ago when the more than 1,000 youth held by DJJ faced harsh conditions. DJJ facilities were filthy. Young people – including some with serious mental health needs – were locked in cells for 22 or 23 hours per day. Staffing was inadequate and the education program was woeful.   

Today, DJJ population has fallen below 100, solitary confinement has been eliminated, and educational, mental health and rehabilitative services have improved.  

What remains true is that while in DJJ custody, a 14- or 15-year-old can still spend their night in a locked cell, month after month, hundreds of miles from their family and the only neighborhood they have ever known. We commend Governor Pritzker, Lieutenant Governor Stratton and IDJJ Director Heidi Mueller for recognizing the need to bring these young people closer to home and committing to a plan to make this a reality. We also commend the dedicated youth advocates from across the state who have spoken out and worked hard to change this system. 

Now the real work begins. We look forward to continuing to working with DJJ to creating a system that truly seeks to recognize and develop the potential in young people committed to their care.  

Today’s announcement also reminds us that we can make big changes in the State of Illinois. We look forward to working with the Governor and his Administration to achieve change to policing in our state as well as fundamental reform of the criminal legal system.”

Two men repeatedly ticketed for seeking help to survive from motorists stopped at a Downers Grove intersection can continue their lawsuit against the Village and six individual police officers for violating their rights under the First Amendment, according to U.S. District Court Judge Robert W. Gettleman. The ruling came yesterday in a lawsuit filed by Michael Dumiak and Christopher Simmons in August of 2019. 

Responding to the ruling, Mr. Simmons said, “Homeless people still have a voice. I ask for help because even though I work, I don’t make enough to support myself.” 

“This is a great win for Mr. Dumiak and Mr. Simmons,” said Rebecca Glenberg, a senior staff lawyer at the ACLU of Illinois and one of the lawyers for the two men. “The judge found that Downers Grove police officers violated our clients’ rights—and should have known at the time that their actions were unconstitutional. The ruling makes clear that virtually all laws targeting panhandling violate the First Amendment.  All such laws should be repealed.”  

The suit challenges an Illinois statute and Downers Grove ordinance that make it a misdemeanor to solicit contributions, employment, business or rides from passing vehicles. Downers Grove repealed its ordinance in response to the lawsuit, but claimed that they did not have to pay damages to Mr. Simmons and Mr. Dumiak for violating their constitutional rights. 

Judge Gettleman rejected officers’ claims that they deserved to be excused from the lawsuit (granted qualified immunity) because they did not violate any clearly established First Amendment law.  He noted that the “officers started enforcing the statute and ordinance against plaintiffs in 2018. First Amendment law at that time was clearly established: a speech restriction targeting panhandling discriminates based on content and survives muster only when supported by a compelling justification. The statute and former ordinance fall short.”

Mr. Dumiak and Mr. Simmons sued following repeated arrests for asking for help when they panhandled in Downers Grove. The men stood on a raised median strip seeking donations from people in vehicles stopped at the intersection of Butterfield and Finley Roads. They were charged under the Illinois vehicle solicitation law, which prohibits their requests for help but does not prohibit similar activities such as gathering petition signatures or distributing leaflets. It also allows municipalities to exempt charities from enforcement, even as local officials enforce it against individuals who as for money they require for basic essentials.  

Diane O’Connell, Community Lawyer at the Chicago Coalition for the Homeless says, “We are pleased with this ruling because it affirms not only the First Amendment rights of our clients, but also that law enforcement and municipalities can’t discriminate against a person’s speech just because they are poor or homeless. Everyone has the right to ask for help.” 

With Judge Gettleman describing the state law as “flagrantly unconstitutional,” Mr. Dumiak and Mr. Simmons can now proceed in court.