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"Every person has a right to dignity, safety and equal treatment
under the law," the governor said. "The Commission on Discrimination
and Hate Crimes will fight hatred and intolerance at the source, to
help stop racism and discrimination where it starts." The
commission will also work with educators throughout Illinois to
confront issues of discrimination and hate and will ensure that
prosecutors swiftly and appropriately respond to hate-motivated
crimes and incidents. They will also be involved in implementing
their recommendations by working with the governor's agencies, the
General Assembly, the business community, the social service
community and other organizations.
In 2003, a total of 272 bias-motivated criminal incidents were
reported in Illinois. Of the incidents, 151, or 55.5 percent, were
motivated by racial bias; 45, or 16.5 percent, were religious bias;
sexual orientation bias accounted for 37, or 13.6 percent; ethnicity
or national origin bias was the cause of 36, or 13.2 percent; and
gender, age or disability bias was connected to three, or 1.1
percent.
The membership of the commission consists of a chair and 20 to 30
members, all appointed by the governor. Members may include, but are
not limited to, people who are active in and knowledgeable about the
following areas: law enforcement, the criminal and civil justice
system, education, human rights, business and industry, arts and
culture, social services, and religion. Each year by March 30, the
commission will submit a report to the governor and the General
Assembly.
The governor has appointed the Rev. Willie T. Barrow to chair the
commission. Barrow, an author as well as a minister at the Vernon
Park Church of God in Chicago, serves on the Rainbow/PUSH Coalition
Board. She is also a lifelong civil rights activist, having fought
against school segregation in her Texas hometown as well as working
as a field organizer for Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. during the 1950s
and '60s and now with the Rev. Jesse Jackson.
"Hate crimes require that the subjects need to be educated as to
their purpose as a human being for being here," Barrow said. "Once
we understand that God created all of us -- black, white, brown,
polka-dot, whatever sex or color -- we are all God's children. We
need to communicate to educate."
State Rep. Larry McKeon, D-Chicago, will also serve on the
commission.
"It is an honor and a privilege to be appointed by the governor
to this very important commission," McKeon said. "Discrimination and
hate crimes are intertwined and will not be tolerated in Illinois. I
commend the governor for establishing this commission and look
forward to further protecting the rights of all Illinoisans."
The governor also proclaimed Aug. 28 as Emmett Till and Mamie
Till Mobley Day in Illinois and named Chicago's 71st Street bridge
the Emmett Till Memorial Bridge to honor the 50th anniversary of the
lynching of Emmett Till and his mother's courageous effort to share
his story with the world, which sparked a renewed call for justice
and freedom during the civil rights movement.
"The heinous and hate-filled slaying of Emmett Till still haunts
Americans and continues to inspire social justice today,"
Blagojevich said. "We must honor and remember this dark day in
history and recognize all those who have used this tragic incident
to teach others that violence, intolerance and racial prejudice are
the true evils of society and can never be accepted."
The Emmett Till Memorial Bridge crosses over the Dan Ryan
Expressway and connects the two sides of Emmett Till Way, Chicago's
71st Street. Signs bearing the new name will be installed on each
end of the bridge next week.
In 1955, 14-year-old Emmett Till was slain after he spoke to a
white woman in a local store in Mississippi. Mamie Till Mobley,
Emmett Till's mother, insisted the public see what her 14-year-old
son's killers did, despite the severe disfigurement of his body.
More than 50 thousand people attended the funeral, and Jet Magazine
published a picture of the disfigured corpse, which circulated in
newspapers around the world.
The effect of Mamie Till Mobley's courageous defiance sent shock
waves of grief and outrage across the nation and enflamed racial
tensions that sparked the civil rights movement to extend equal
protection of the law to black men and women. Just 100 days after
Emmett's death, Rosa Parks refused to give up her seat to a white
passenger on a Montgomery city bus and was arrested for violating
Alabama's bus segregation laws.
A number of commemoration and remembrance events were scheduled
in Chicago, including a benefit musical "Music for Emmett";
performances of "The Face of Emmett Till," a play co-authored by
Mamie Till Mobley; and the 50th anniversary Hands Across Emmett Till
Road celebration on 71st Street.
"These events are a fitting way to remember a sacrifice that no
one should have to make," concluded the governor.
The creation of the Commission on Discrimination and Hate Crimes
continues Blagojevich's commitment to equal and respectful treatment
for all of Illinois' citizens.
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In June 2005, the governor signed
Senate Bill 287, which makes it a hate crime to use
electronic communications to harass or threaten someone because
of their race, color, creed, religion, ancestry, gender, sexual
orientation, physical or mental disability. In addition, the
bill provides that a hate crime is committed when an individual
interrupts, with the intent to harass, the telephone service or
electronic communication service of another person.
[to top of second column in this article] |
- The governor recently released the racial profiling study
performed by the Illinois Department of Transportation in
coordination with the Northwestern University Center for the
Public Safety. The study found that minorities are more likely
to be pulled over than whites for a traffic stop and two and a
half times as likely to have their car searched when pulled
over. In response to the study, the governor introduced a number
of specific initiatives to address the disparities found in the
study, including:
- Increased sensitivity training for police officers --
specifically, training that deals with consent searches.
- Bringing in a team of national experts to perform further
analysis of the data and to make recommendations for combating
racial profiling.
- Creation of a task force of community leaders, elected
officials and civic groups that will focus on solutions and
implementation of recommendations.
- Making the data collection and profiling study permanent, to
ensure that progress made between 2004 and 2008 is maintained.
- This year, the governor also signed
House Bill 917, which makes it a civil violation to coerce,
intimidate, threaten or interfere with an individual's right to
fair housing. The law protects individuals from interference in
housing transactions and protects them from discriminatory
actions, including racial slurs and hate crimes.
The other appointees to the Commission on Discrimination and Hate
Crimes are:
- Sgt. Kelly Henby, Illinois State Police
- Gail Purkey, Illinois Federation of Teachers
- Ertharin Cousin, executive vice president and chief operating
officer, America's Second Harvest
- Laura McAlpine, Coalition for Education on Sexual Orientation
- Karen Lennon, co-owner, ILight Technologies
- Ann Kalayil, adjunct professor, Sociology Department, DePaul
University
- Howard Kaplan
- Denise Gordon, assistant to the city manager for community
relations, Champaign
- Rev. Ronald Webb, Shiloah Baptist Church, Chicago
- Richard Hirschhaut, project director, Illinois Holocaust Museum
- Lonnie Nasatir, regional director, Anti-Defamation League
- Alan Spellberg, assistant state's attorney, Cook County
- Sgt. Anthony Scalise, Civil Rights Section, Chicago Police
Department
- Claudette Marie Johnson, chief of protocol, Nation of Islam
- Anne Devoud, child psychologist
- Heather Sawyer, senior staff attorney, Lambda Legal
- Gilberto Romero, Illinois state director, League of United Latin
American Citizens
- Ernestine Jackson, equal opportunity associate, city of
Bloomington
- Rev. Hubert Bankhead, Second Missionary Baptist Church, Centralia
- Shannon Kenney, Coalition for Education on Sexual Orientation
Text of proclamation:
WHEREAS, August 28,
2005 marks the 50th anniversary of the brutal murder of Emmett Till,
a Chicago native; and
WHEREAS, while
visiting his uncle during the summer of 1955, Emmett Till, only 14,
was whisked away in the dead of night by white men who tortured and
killed him only because he was an African American; and
WHEREAS, returned
to Chicago for burial, Mamie Till Mobley, Emmett Till's mother,
insisted the public see what her 14-year-old son's killers did,
despite the severe disfigurement of his body. Accordingly, his
post-mortem photographs circulated around the country; and
WHEREAS, the effect
of Mamie Till Mobley's courageous defiance sent shockwaves of grief
and outrage across the nation, and enflamed racial tensions that
sparked the Civil Rights Movement to extend equal protection of the
law to black men and women; and
WHEREAS, the cruel
and selfish slaying of Emmett Till still haunts Americans and
continues to inspire social justice today:
THEREFORE, I, Rod
R. Blagojevich, Governor of the State of Illinois, do hereby
proclaim August 28, 2005 as EMMETT TILL AND MAMIE TILL MOBLEY DAY in
Illinois in honor and remembrance of this dark day in history, and
in recognition of all those that have used this tragic incident to
teach others that violence, intolerance, and racial prejudice are
the true evils of society and can never be accepted.
[News release from the governor's
office]
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