Duckworth Meets with Criminal Justice Leaders on Chicago’s West Side

[CHICAGO, IL] — U.S. Senator Tammy Duckworth (D-IL) met with criminal justice leaders in Chicago’s Tri-Taylor neighborhood today to discuss efforts to effect positive change and help achieve justice in Cook County communities. Duckworth was joined by several officials including Cook County Public Defender Sharone Michell Jr., West Side Justice Center Founder and Board President Brendan Shiller, Safer Foundation CEO and President Victor Dickson, Equity and Transformation Founder and Executive Director Richard Wallace as well as Yaacov Delaney, who serves as Director of Lt. Gov. Juliana Stratton’s Office’s Justice, Equity and Opportunity Initiative. Photos from today’s event are available here.

“There is no doubt that systemic racism exists in our nation’s criminal justice system,” Duckworth said. “Our country will never reach its full potential if we continue to fail to acknowledge the role that institutional racism and white supremacy has played in our country’s history or their impact on Black and Brown Americans. We must confront and learn from our history so we can overcome these injustices, which is one reason I’m glad to work with local changemakers and support much-needed legislation like the Police Training and Independent Review Act, the George Floyd Justice in Policing Act and the John Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act.”

Duckworth recently re-introduced the Police Training and Independent Review Act, which is cosponsored by 18 of her Senate colleagues and would create a financial incentive for states to require training for law enforcement officials on fair and impartial policing as well as best practices for working with members of the community with disabilities or mental health conditions. It would also encourage communities to use independent prosecutors to investigate law enforcement officials’ use of deadly force.

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