Yes. Defund the police, but don’t put it on the ballot
Photo credit —Paul Goyette
On the heels of a week that saw a racist attack of one of our own beloved Black-owned businesses and a siege on our government that exposed in stark terms the differences in law enforcement responses to peaceful Black protestors on the one hand and violent white supremacists intent on destroying our very nation on the other hand, it is perhaps more clear than ever that it is time for our Village to take seriously the data put forth by Freedom to Thrive Oak Park and the voices of community and particularly, our Black and brown residents, and take a comprehensive approach to reimagining community safety, as well as, finding ways to improve the accountability of our police, while also reinvesting in non police emergency responses. Communities across the country are examining ways in which they can move away from purely law enforcement-based approaches to public safety to ones that leverage community partners and social service partnerships in hopes of ending police shootings and police violence against people of color, in particular, while also improving safety outcomes.
However, Trustee Dan Moroney has taken the opportunity to turn this issue of vital importance to our community into a political stunt. Instead of supporting the process the Village committed to in the summer and early fall of 2020-—hiring a consultant to evaluate and provide suggestions for improving policing and safety in Oak Park-—Moroney has put forth an advisory referendum question to be placed on the April 6th ballot, stating, "Shall the Village of Oak Park defund its police department?" Trustee Andrews has seconded this motion. According to Moroney, this measure is designed to be a “litmus test” of sorts to “determine residents' appetite to defund police.” (A note here that Freedom to Thrive Oak Park’s stance on a consultant hasn’t changed - we don’t agree that a consultant or even this referendum is needed. We have the data, the public comments, and have even provided suggestions to the board for how we can reimagine community safety in Oak Park. This board needs to act on the information and public feedback already provided, instead of trying to come up with new hurdles the public has to jump over before any action can be taken on this issue.)
If the timing and motivation of Trustee Moroney’s proposed ballot measure seems suspicious, it is. Moroney is running for Village President in the April 6 election. Given that voter turnout for Oak Park’s local elections is typically abysmally low (for instance, Oak Park registered 23.05% turnout for Oak Park voters in the April 2019 election vs. 71.18% voter turnout for the November 2020 elections), it is difficult to imagine that a singular ballot question, with no parameters, detail, or explanation, would do much to gauge residents’ actual views on defunding the police or on alternative non-police mechanisms to improve community safety. Rather, it would appear, that Moroney’s goal is to stir up a contingent opposed to any meaningful change to the Oak Park Police Department’s budget, or changes to its accountability to its community, in hopes of ending further conversation on the issue. At the Village board table, Moroney has stated repeatedly that he is diametrically opposed to any notion of taking money away from policing and using that money to invest in social services. He has shown little regard for public opinion on any issue - whether it be development, traffic signs, or the diversity, equity, an inclusion statement, or policing. (Please see the history of discussion on the following issues: The Albion building, most of the developments that have received criticism from neighbors, traffic signs requested by constituents, the Diversity, Equity and Inclusion statement, funding for the Oak Park Regional Housing Center.)
Our community deserves better. Our Black and brown residents deserve better. The issue of balancing safety with ensuring that all of our residents can live without fear of negative or harmful interactions with law enforcement, while also addressing issues of mental health, substance abuse, equity, and access to housing and food is not something that can or should be reduced to a political stunt to try and fear-monger a way to winning an election. But this is exactly what Trustee Moroney has done. He’s decided to put a referendum on the ballot that would be voted on by a community whose residents are majority white, on an issue that most directly impacts our Black and brown neighbors.
The issue of defunding the police will require difficult conversations, a hard look at the practices and results of the current model of policing, and a commitment to the notion that our community can do better by its residents. It’s beyond time for the Village Board to act on this issue. And if this board refuses to do so, then we hope that Oak Park voters elect new Trustees who will take this issue seriously and actually have the political courage to reimagine community safety in Oak Park.
Please email the Village Board and Clerk at board board@oak-park.us and clerk@oak-park.us with your public comment about this issue, and urge the board to vote No on this referendum question. An example email follows.
Email to the board
To the Village Board and Clerk,
I write to submit public comment regarding the proposed referendum question put forth by Trustee Moroney and seconded by Trustee Andrews. I am in opposition to the referendum question and urge the board to vote no. I urge you to vote no for the following reasons (pick one and elaborate):
The timing, process, and person bringing this forward must be questioned.
We cannot reduce the civil rights issue of this generation to a political stunt
The board already agreed on a process to hire a consultant - why not stick to what the board already agreed upon? (something that Trustee Moroney and Andrews have advocated for previously).
Sincerely,
A concerned constituent
