Throughout the last several months we have seen an uptick in acts of disturbing anti-Semitic graffiti and flyering in our community. Last night, we were notified that someone placed more anti-Semitic posters on vehicles in Bucktown. Hate has no place in our society, much less in our neighborhood and we need to stand up to whatever form of hate tries to express itself in our community. Our 14th District Police officers are looking into the incidents, and we are also working with the Chicago Commission on Human Relations (CCHR) to counter any hateful speech. The CCHR has been very helpful responding to these hate incidents and we will be canvassing the area with them this Wednesday to help share information.



If your vehicle or home was targeted, we ask that you please file an incident report with the Chicago Commission on Human Relations. We have documented many of the flyers, and are gathering more information for CPD and the CCHR.



Thanks to those of you who sent pictures and notified our office. If you have video related to these incidents taking place from early Monday around 2:00 to 2:30 a.m., please share with the CCHR or CPD, especially if you live on or near the 1600, 1700, or 1800 blocks of Honore, Wolcott or Winchester. It has been reported that the man was wearing black. As with any crime, information shared by community members could help us find the person responsible for these acts.



How to file a discrimination complaint with the Commission on Human Relations-



There are many ways to file your discrimination complaint:



In person at the Commission's Office (740 North Sedgwick, Suite 400, Chicago, IL 60654)
Online via the Commission's website
Email, Mail, or fax
CCHR Email: cchrfilings@cityofchicago.org

Phone: 312.744.4111, Fax: 312.744.1081





In December, the City Council and the CCHR worked together to update the city’s hate crime ordinance. Hate crime incidents have risen dramatically over the past few years and are the highest we have seen in decades.



The updated ordinance does a few things:



-Establishes an accessible reporting system through 311, as well as via the 311 mobile and online applications.

-Enhances reporting requirements for City agencies. This will give us better data to understand the scope of the problem and take effective action against it.

-Adds a formal definition of hate incidents to the Municipal Code. These non-criminal acts often serve as precursors to more dangerous hate crimes and are important data points that need to be captured to prevent hate from escalating into violence.



If you have any concerns, please give us a call at our ward office, 773-248-1330, email info@ward32.org, or feel free to reach out directly to the CCHR. I appreciate your efforts to help fight back against such hate in our city.



Thank you,

Alderman Scott Waguespack