Open Letter to Boys & Girls Club of Chicago.

To: The Boys & Girls Club of Chicago

Cc: Mimi LeClair

From: The youth of #NoCopAcademy and of Chicago        

Of course we want investments in young people. But this isn’t it.

For Black youth from the West and South Sides of the city, police are a frequent source of our trauma. From the oversurviellence of our communities, to the day to day contact we make with them in Chicago Public Schools, to seeing our family targeted in the streets and tortured in police stations and jails. Police are not a source of safety for us. So, adding a Boys & Girls club, which are meant to be sanctuaries for Black and Brown youth, on the site of a cop academy is absurd. As the Boys and Girls Club of Chicago, you say you want to “ provide members with emotional, educational, physical, and cultural resources that allow them to enjoy their childhood and thrive in adulthood.” But we already know the opposite is what will happen.

Why are Black youth only given resources from the city when they are tied to more policing? When the #NoCopAcademy campaign surveyed West Garfield Park residents, 95% of community members said they wanted investments made into something other than the Chicago Police Department. It is frustrating to see the city pretending to meet the demands and dire needs of residents, when it is actually sinking even more funding into the department that kills them on the regular.

The young people who need these after school resources the most will be alienated from the Boys & Girls Club of Chicago because of the lack of safety that comes with interacting with police on a daily basis. Police are already in our homes, in our schools and our streets. We don’t need them in our after school programs as well. We need money for housing, we need money for our schools and money to fund our futures all over the West Side and an investment into a cop academy isn’t an investment into the futures of Black youth.

This is $8 million being invested in PR for the police. Not for young people.  

Anthony Alvarez was 22 years old and Adam Toledo was nothing more than a child, only 13 years old at the time of his murder by CPD earlier this spring. This Boys & Girls club center announcement is damage control for these murders along with all the other misuages of law carried out by the Chicago Police Department. More and more people across the city of Chicago are recognizing the need for change the very way we define safety—not as punishment and control, but sharing resources and building community.

For Lightfoot and the CPD, this move is a PR strategy to ease those rising tensions between the general public and police. Black and Brown youth are being used as props that are dangled in front of the media and it’s sad that the Boys & Girls club is a willing participant. Now the mayor can paint any opposition as the antagonistic individuals trying to stop progress by opposing the cop academy and its new ornaments; without actually addressing our concerns for how to achieve meaningful safety. We know that police are reactionary, not preventative.Community centers with after school programs are preventative and restorative. Young people need after school programs that nurture our passions, without becoming photo ops for the police state.

This cop academy club is disrespectful to our ancestors, to the lineage of liberation struggles folks like Fred Hampton and the Black Panthers led on the West Side in the 60’s, and to all of us who have been demanding resources be brought to our communities in the form of funding for schools, housing programs, community centers, and after school programs for decades. West Side youth have been marching, protesting, and demanding real investments be made in our lives for years! But we know this Boys & Girls club is an investment in the police, not us.

Shame on you, Boys & Girls Club.  If you really support Black youth, stop collaborating with the police and build this club somewhere it can actually serve us – without strings (or cops) attached.  

Sincerely,

Destiny H., 19
Avery S., 18
Dontay G., 21, East Garfield
Mahogany, 21, South Shore
Laila R.L., 19, Humboldt Park
Christine J., 20, North Lawndale
Jalen K., 20, Albany Park
Asha E., 20, Hyde Park
Kayla M., 20, Summit
Zaria B., 21, KTown (Westside)
Chris H., 37, Humboldt
Gwendolyn., 45, Austin
Sandra Y., 48, Westside
Ling Y.
Alyicia K.
Cristal B.,
Abigail W.,

Veronica Rodriguez

Marlenne Garcia

Diana Guzman Rivera

Citlali Pérez

Karina Martinez

Alyssa Befumo

Andrea Mendiola

Esmeralda Montesinos

cristal bedolla

Sydney Pauta

Alycia Kamil

Ling Young

Deyana Atanasova

Robert Vanecko

Rachel Brustein

Jason Guthartz

Jennifer Diaz

Nancy Rodriguez

Jamie Cernek

Iris Postma

Tony Alvarado-Rivera

Trinity Thompkins

Erin Marie Barker

Jocelyn Nelson

Karlyn Gorski

Dejashana Boyd

Liz Gomez

William Smiljanić-Pérez

Subrianakhem Kheperu

Jung Yoon

Tanvi Singh

Aiyana L

Milo Chicago

jesse florell

Frances Harris

Ariana Guzman

Madeline Wright

Leila Gutierrez

Sam Andrews

Mary Kate Clancy

Jahnavi Tipparaju

Jennifer Nava

William J. McInnes

Malcolm Grossman

Amaris Edwards

Damaris Rodriguez

Lillia Staverosky-Andrules

Juanita Garcia

lucy hoying

alexsandra gomez

James Callerstrom

Enrique Mendoza

Zyhier Justice

America Campos

Daniela Aponte

Micheal Roman

Ivy W.

nancy meza

Tony M

Loreen Targos

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Bettina Johnson

Jessica Ogwumike

Tyler He

Leigh Mabry

Adrian Rivera

Olivia Liu

Hilary Tackie

Nazaret Castillo

Benjamin Hart

ShelLynn Beasley

Erica Chu

Maria Guevara

Monica Trinidad

Lisa VanAusdall

Sydney Ray

Abbey Hambright

Georgina Leal

Marisa Lazar

Angelica Contreras

Naomi Borowsky

Anna Evans

Simon Crow

Gaerin Warman-Szvoboda

cori blum

Navjot Heer

August Hupp

Crislin Christian

Rachael Perrotta

Tori Larsen

tai Ramirez

John Ott

Asha Edwards

Molly W

Anna K

Sara Zhang

Mercedes Cervantes

Angel Benitez

Jesse Nicolaus

Vivian Miltner

Rebecca Gross

Jacquelynn Charles

Ashley McCaw

Victoria Cervantes

Russell D.

Fullamusu Bangura

Jordan Barnes

Damaris Estrada

Gwen Ashworth

Frances Bartolutti

Sergio Ruiz

Carolyn Emma Twilley

Joseph Deng

Eric Barbour

Carol Hansen

Andrew Cantrell

Mia Combs

Ana Alcantar

Nazareth Castro

Esmeralda Delagarza

Jermaine Wright

Amarin Young

Michelle Molina

Andrea Cote

darien R Wendell

Maddox Schnur

Christopher Walsh

Daniela Jaime

Kevin Lilly

sana malik

Cristen Jenkins

Grace Rhee

Manu Mishra

Chaeyoon Lee

Edith Tovar

Shweta Moorthy

Alaina Dulecki

Miguel Bautista

itzel Velazquez

jayla padilla

Tonantzin Reyes

Maggie Connelly

Gisselle Salgado

Rafael Cervantes

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Nicho Schwister

Arianne Rodriguez

Megan Chaney

Leslie Layman

Courtney Thompson

Henry De Luca

Emily Hall

Kristiana Rae Colón

Sophie Zbesko

Veronica Tirado

Ándrea Férnanda Serrano

Nicholas Mayor

Modesta Marquez

Luebertha Jones

Jennifer Lemasters

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Kathryn Ganas

Gabriela Iturralde

Nicole Marroquin

Evon Kong

Kee Taylor

Eliana Sigel-Epstein

Micah Smith

Elsa Rodriguez

Sharon Alvarado

Eduardo Cordero

Dakota Sillyman

jolie plucinski

Cara Ugolino

Elizabeth Buerger

elyse melero

Melissa Borda

Charlotte Wagner

Vivian Wheatley

Shelley Miller

Beatrice Ebijimi

Tre Nowaczynski

Takyla Hull

Makayla Houser

Angelica Medina

Theo C

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Brandon Cloyd

Yesenia Chavez

Asha Clark

Eleonora Benedetti

Alex Milinazzo

Adrian Hadlock

Eric Torres

Emily Chiu

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Adamari Corro

Alexis O’Connor

Zach Coan

Elisa Armea-Warren

Molly Dull

Heaven Moore

Jamey Arnold

Roger Messner

Samir Muhammad

Heather Phillips

Melanie Brezill

Jessica Rodriguez

Erika Perez

Lindsey Butler

Kelli Naff

Tyra Owens

Avery Sims

Aidan Moss

Matthew Graville Bricker

Carlos Trejo

Evelyn Ellerbrock

Symone D

adilene barragan

Catherine Jackson

A. Gaston

Isaiah Fabre

Vivian Zamora

tori berrios

Lena Budinger

Isabel Cervantes

Daniela S

Ileen Cervantes

Rudy Calderon

Gabriela RodrigueZ

Teressa Catrambone

Claire De Leon

Naomi Castro

Matthew Henry

Lucas Herzog

Angelica Cleveland

Camille Kett

Elizabeth Topel

jo gonda

Marissa Pratscher

La Tasha Pollard

Justin Wettstein

Katie Donovan

Eric O’Hara

Lily Terzis

Jackie Bustamante

Allena Bradley

Edwin Merida

Meghan Sullivan

James Ruml

Zianni Feggins

Kara Carrell

Sarah Hates That Vegan Techer

Margaret Degnan

Lauren Dixon

Katie Igielski Welch

Jalessa Bryant

rani gordon

Marian Tsikalas

chloe villegas

Caira Conner

Nell Maggio

Jessica Lopez

Dhara Patel

Julia Rademacher-Wedd

Miguel Rodríguez

Devon Carson

Michaela Zollicoffer

Lulu Martinez

Michael Workman

DooHyun Kim

Kobey Davis

Rochelle Cousineau

Nolan Deckard

Liz Sheridan

Adriana Tapanes

Kimberly Wasserman

Isaac Csstelaz

Mary Hungerford

Ana Zuluaga

Phoebe Moritz

Celeste Ramovic

Grace Montemar

Hannah Mae Mirek

Sasha Solov

Rachal Brooks

Sarah Glazer

Marina Silva

Jamie Chichester

Alex Miller

Gia Rivera

Mary Kenah

Frank Macaluso

Keith Helt

Alkebuluan Merriweather

Noelle Young

sun catayong

Kyle Szydlo

Meredith Metzger

Stacy Burns

Sophia Salinas

James Pruitt

Sasha Diaz

Caleb Butler

Rachel Galan

Miguel Gutierrez

Alice Sherlock

James Cavallero

Artemis Jones

Zachary Crewse

Nigel C

John Hale

Irán Cerritos

Sarah Pelletier

Jessica Deschenes

Garyn Maxwell

Julia F

Amber Luczak

Gianna Rivera

SERGIO RENATO Freitas

Dennis Perkins

Raquel Rodriguez

Ujima People’s Progress Party

Nathaly Urbina

Malcolm Wiggins

Christian Cole

Isabel Chavez

Ahnika Franklin

Natalie Dunn

Michael Russo

Kate Humphrey

Maia Martine-Tetzloff

Antoinette Allen

Briana Douglas

Spencer May

Nicole Mignano

Adam Kaluba

Viva Freedman

Madison Holmes

Leida Mendoza

Ryan Richardson

Morgan Diehl

Gabriella Acevedo

Veronica Lee

Jones Graf

Jesus Vazquez

Kayla N

Angela Nea

Anel Yanez

Adriana Martinez-Smiley

Kari Lehman

Elena Ramsey

Nora Aguirre

Jamari Holmes

Natalie Bernard

Stephanie Heinz

Marie Snyder

Shara Shrestha

Alejandra Hernandez

Dylan McCloskey

Emily Kim

Karina Chavez

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Nasir Pouncey

Anson H

Raquel Paniagua

Ismael Paniagua

Addison Rea

Jernesha Walls

Lucky Lissana

Lee Rhyanes

Berry Zhang

Nida Hasan

Amy Huske

Jordan Alcantar

Amber Drane

karina karbo

Anisa Codamon

Arianna Ponce

Jacqueline Hardin

Chelsea Guzman

Crista Noel

Jalon Bristol

Ruth Bentkowski

Mary Fredendall

Elizabeth VanderLaan

Jayden Gjurecech

Lily Stuart

Alli Brackley

Steve Elenich

Hannah Matthews

Zoe Edwards

Sylvester Bracey

CHIMAEZE CHIMA

Cesaire Talom

Valeria Avila

Jaylen Carr

Chaz C

Nicole Arenth

Melissa Caldwell

Nathan Weidman

Emma Liu

Megan Cornwall

Samantha Mattox

Jonny Rice

Violet H

Corey Meyers

Kayla Cain

Kim Nim

Wiktoria Choryńska

Tekena Travis

Hannah Jones

Lorianne Walters

Shelly Summers

Fabiola Cuevas-Flores

Kristin Lansdown

Nya Colling

gigi mohamed

Me Me

Jaquie Campos

Julia Estornell

Lisa Leechington

Diana Aleman Romero

Mahlet Yared

Seth McCool

Haley Minnick

Penny W

Ava Van Hofwegen

Zoe Edington

Emma Hicks

Sloan Felton

Abby McKenna

Hailey Allen

Anthony Ray

Karla Dejesus

Zain Murdock

Alysha Rashid

Ernest Bell

Vanani Vasundhara

Eliza Gonring

Zucchious Rosal

Carina Sandoval

Paulene Pas

Kristoffer Stokes

Alice Cottingham

April Rose

Jacquelyn Rodriguez

Hattie Grimm

Jasmine Singh

Dylan Garibay

Eglė Malinauskaitė

Himani Soni

Elaine Thomas

Emalia Graham

Sophia Howell

Summer B

Zed A

Khaled Mansour

Randy Van gorder

Alexis Ratti

Jonah M

robert greene

Amy Setzer

Allison Mirek

taylor bradshaw

Eduardo Hernandez

Bri’Yon Watts

Sarah Shlemon

Maya Farrar

Christopher Barr

Viktor Mead

Maddie Guerrero

Eva H

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danielle tyra

Neeti Shenoy

Stuti Nair

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Atom Penney

Em Shee

Elise C

Andreia Regina Ferreira De Castro

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hannah brody

Brandon Smith

Jamie Erdheim

Tarik Campara

Alyson Giordano

Muna Razeq

Vanessa Oniboni

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Lara Azar

Alfred Gbenjen

Isabella Cook

Allison Smith

Delaney Armstrong

M Castro

Amanda Shephard

Ingrid Kocjan

Erica Griesbaum

Cory Klopfenstein

Madison Pappalardo

Michaiah Mitchell

Ellie Kleiman

Lois Vasquez

Keala Uchoa

John Barr

Bee Shorn

Amy Staneff

Jana Fern

Alex Neal

Brandon Murillo

Gretchen Sterba

Penelope Padilla




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