News & Commentary

The following statement can be attributed to Khadine Bennett, Advocacy and Intergovernmental Affairs Director of the American Civil Liberties Union of Illinois:

As legislators prepare to consider much-needed legislation to reform policing in Illinois, new polling released today shows that 9 out of 10 (91%) Illinois voters are strongly supportive of legislative efforts that hold police accountable for misconduct.

Since the 1970’s, the steep increase in Illinois’ incarcerated population has been driven primarily not by any rise in crime, but by the drastic escalation in the length of sentences imposed by elected officials. As a result, more people spend more of their lives incarcerated than at any point in our state’s history.

Contact Tracing works backwards from someone testing positive for COVID-19 to identify anyone they may have come in contact with, possibly exposing them to the disease.

Right now, mandatory minimum sentencing laws are extremely punitive to people in Illinois and routinely deny judges in our state the flexibility to craft individualized sentences. Even a man convicted of a nonviolent crime like selling drugs can be required to spend the rest of his life in prison, not because the judge determined that was a fair sentence, but because of a law passed by legislators who knew nothing about the circumstances of the case or his potential for rehabilitation.

Kate Holt, a Springfield woman, filed a complaint last week charging that the state’s capitol is violating state law by denying insurance coverage for physician-directed care for employees who are transgender. The charge recounts how Ms. Holt was denied coverage for medication prescribed by her physician - medication covered for other employees who are not transgender - after she was employed by the City of Springfield beginning in February 2020. The denial is a clear violation of Illinois’ Human Rights Act, according to the charge. 

Illinois still sends too many people to prison - and gives too many people felony records that follow them for life - for crimes that are often just the symptoms of poverty, addiction, and mental illness. Like a young woman in Chicago, who had her dreams of a career in medicine dashed after pleading guilty to simple drug possession. Or a teenager facing the prospect of prison after being caught stealing a winter coat from a Target store.

Tools like Amazon Ring’s doorbell system are often touted as a solution to safety concerns. But the reality hiding behind this seemingly simple tool reveals a much darker, deeper, and growing network that uses our privacy as currency.

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!”