It's interesting that Ald. Richard Mell (33rd) made this quote at a remap hearing at DePaul University on Wednesday:
“I don’t think anybody likes either one of these maps,” said Ald. Richard Mell, (33rd), chairman of the council’s Rules committee, which is in charge of the remap, at a public hearing Wednesday at DePaul University.And you know he's right. I'm sure many here in the Sixth Ward are thrilled with either map. This is a difficult year because of the population changes most of the Black population leaving Chicago and an increase in Latino in this city. Also most of the population are clustered around downtown Chicago.
Anyway, a deal is in the works.We already posted a story about Ald. Howard Brookins (21st) who just so happens to be the Chairman of the Black Caucus of the city council:
According to Howard Brookins, 20th Ward alderman and chairman of the black caucus, the only obstacle left is a lawyer to confirm the map can withstand a lawsuit. “There is an understanding and once there is an opinion to the legality of it, we think a deal will be reached,” Brookins says.The legal issue. I've read that the MBC proposal is gaining favor but it could be challenged even if the city council votes in the affirmitive:
That would add the eight members of the Latino caucus to the 32 aldermen already in support of the Map for a Better Chicago – or 40 aldermen, leaving Map for a Better Chicago proponents needing to pick up just one more vote. Brookins says he is “confident that there will be sufficient enough aldermen” to get to 41 votes.
The Latino caucus is a bit more cautious. Victor Reyes, head lawyer for the caucus, said that given the request for a legal opinion it would be “difficult” to have the Latino caucus on board in time for the next City Council meeting, which is on Wednesday.
Plus, it is not a sure thing that the Map for a Better Chicago passes legal muster. The map probably adheres to the 1965 Voting Rights Act, which protects the representative interests of racial minorities. There will be the 13 majority Latino wards and 18 majority African-American wards. But it might deviate too much from the “one man, one vote” rule. Many wards on the far South and far West sides have up to five percent fewer than the median 53,912 people in each ward. Many far North Side wards have up to five percent more than the median.What map would you support? Is there a map you would like to submit to the city clerk so that the city council could actually consider it?
With perhaps these deviations in mind, the Mexican American Legal Defense Fund released their own “Equitable Map” with much smaller deviations. MALDEF – which is independent of the City Council Latino caucus – could be poised to take legal action.
“They have positioned themselves in a good way if that’s the way they go,” says Paul Sajovec, chief of staff for Ald. Scott Waguespack (32nd) – who supported the Taxpayer Protection Map and has not taken a position on the potential compromise map.
Maybe I'm missing something here, but how does Alderman Sawyer plan to vote? Last I looked, it was the citizens of the 6th Ward who got him elected. I don't recall a run from the incumbent Alderman in the Black Caucus to endorse and support his candidacy in his run-off with Lyle.
ReplyDeleteIf Alderman Sawyer plans to vote to support the Black Caucus map at the expense of the voters who got him elected in the 6th Ward, then I say he should be a ONE TERM ALDERMAN!
Anyone who would support that incompetent, ego tripping, imperialist
acting, brainy smurf, Alderman Brookins, should go by the wayside. This
new map would so hideously impact Chatham voters by making our home and automobile insurance go up because we would not have enough of the middle class communities in the ward any longer. It would make Chatham, given the other blights we are now fighting, unattractive beyond compare in our efforts to get younger families to move here.This is an aging ward, people, with most people over 55 years of age living in the ward.
As for Brookins, I hope someone will start the drive to assist voters in his ward for PAYBACK! The kind of PAYBACK SUPPORT to make sure he loses his office. Oh, so you Alderman Brookins plan to give 9th Ward Alderman Beale part of the 6th Ward to be fair. As well as a piece to Brookins' ward too! This is the kind of slick move that will eventually cost Brookins any ambitions he has for a bigger office in the future.
If 6th Ward voters are paying attention, they should know Brookins has always taken issue with the strength and independence of the 6th ward voter. He has never liked that we question his motives across the Dan
Ryan if they don't seem to be firmly fitting with the community.
I am hoping none of us forget this if his recommended map gets approved! I'm hoping black voters in the old 6th Ward, as we are splintered via this new map, remember to dog him the rest of his career. This has nothing to do with being equitable as much as it has to do with helping incompetents like Beale stay in office. Though ultimately, he will probably lose anyway.
And is it true that Beale is so scared of folks in our ward that he has
asked that the blocks Richard Wooten live on stay in the 6th Ward so he won't be challenged in the next aldermanic election he runs in?
All in all, I will be sicken if Sawyer sucks up to the Black Caucus and bends over to kiss Brookins' ring. If he does, heed this warning, Alderman Sawyer–– Find another office to run for because the rest of us remaining in the 6th Ward will be gunning for YOU! And rightly so!
P.S. It's time for black voters to stop licking the boots of the professional, black career alderman. It's time for us to vote for only 25 alderman and see how the whole political landscape shakes up! These people are in it only for their own benefit. And ultimately, that's why black communities have been on the demise. This is not a slick white boy move for 25 alderman, as much as it is a new day move that removes the blinders from the eyes of black voters who are still wanting to believe that the Black Caucus is really concerned about our lives.
It's a New Year, let's seek a New Beginning!
Alderman Sawyer voted against the map. Full statement will be sent to the blog.
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