{"id":77826,"date":"2025-07-20T11:08:08","date_gmt":"2025-07-20T11:08:08","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/77826\/"},"modified":"2025-07-20T11:08:08","modified_gmt":"2025-07-20T11:08:08","slug":"burnett-family-embraces-tradition-of-civic-responsibility","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/77826\/","title":{"rendered":"Burnett family embraces tradition of civic responsibility"},"content":{"rendered":"

The editorial \u201cAld. Burnett and the divine right to bequeath your political office to your progeny\u201d<\/a> (July 13) overlooks important facts about the Burnett family\u2019s long-standing commitment to public service and community empowerment. Framing this as \u201cnepotism\u201d may be an easy argument, but it misses the deeper truth. This isn\u2019t a family business \u2014 it\u2019s a family tradition rooted in civic responsibility and a shared purpose of helping others.<\/p>\n

Walter Burnett Jr.\u2019s family has long believed public service is not about privilege \u2014 it\u2019s about purpose. His mother volunteered with the Jesse White Tumbling Team for many years, dedicating her time to youth development and community support. Before I entered public service myself, I worked closely with Walter\u2019s father in and around Cabrini-Green, helping families and strengthening our neighborhood from the ground up. That kind of commitment isn\u2019t manufactured. It\u2019s passed down through generations.<\/p>\n

Walter inherited values of empathy, hard work and accountability. And for nearly three decades, he has applied those values to drive real progress in the 27th Ward: stronger businesses, safer streets and expanded opportunity.<\/p>\n

I\u2019m proud to serve as godfather to his son, Walter \u201cRed\u201d Burnett. Like his father and grandparents, Red shares a deep desire to uplift others, protect the vulnerable and build a better future. That drive isn\u2019t political calculation. It\u2019s using his Fordham University education and firsthand experiences, molded by a family that leads through service. Like so many young people today, he\u2019s realizing that it\u2019s his time to step up and give back.<\/p>\n

I am proud of him for throwing his hat into the ring to be considered for this position.<\/p>\n

While he was raised in a family that sees public service as a noble calling, he will be judged not by his last name but by what he brings to the table. I believe Red has the tools, the heart and the drive to be an outstanding alderman.<\/p>\n

\u2014 Jesse White, former Illinois secretary of state<\/p>\n

CPD\u2019s use of force<\/p>\n

The Tribune\u2019s uncritical acceptance (\u201cReport: Uptick in CPD use of force,\u201d<\/a> July 15) of the Chicago Police Department\u2019s absurd explanation of a 33% increase \u2014 hardly an \u201cuptick\u201d \u2014 in the use of force by officers in 2024 that were internally reviewed badly misses the scrutiny needed in a matter so serious.<\/p>\n

The notion that the increase is due solely to officers more often filling out required reports when they use force is, simply, unbelievable. Additional forms cannot explain away a 36% increase in officers\u2019 use of deadly force \u2014 primarily, shooting people \u2014 from 44 incidents in 2023 to 60 incidents in 2024.<\/p>\n

CPD should undertake an audit, using body-worn camera footage, to determine the rate at which officers filled out required use-of-force forms across years. Without such a rigorous study, CPD\u2019s assertion that additional reporting is the sole cause of the massive increase in force reports is conjecture at best. And it does not match the experiences of residents across many neighborhoods and communities in our city.<\/p>\n

CPD leadership apparently would rather try to spin and explain away the failures of the department to live up to the requirements of a federal court consent decree to bring much needed changes, including reducing the instances where officers use force, than make genuine efforts to comply with the decree.<\/p>\n

After six years, the city is only in compliance with 16% of the decree\u2019s requirements. This is hardly progress.<\/p>\n

CPD has not earned the trust necessary to explain away an increase in the use of force as simply being about data collection. And journalists should not accept such claims without more confirmation and considering the full context of policing in Chicago.<\/p>\n

\u2014 Alexandra Block, director,\u00a0Criminal Legal System and Policing Project,\u00a0American Civil Liberties Union of Illinois<\/p>\n

Preserve communities<\/p>\n

I agree with Danny Villalobos regarding his May 13 op-ed (\u201cThe Southwest Side isn\u2019t a suburb. Stop zoning it like one.\u201d<\/a>) stating that the Southwest Side is like a suburban community \u201cfrozen in time.\u201d That is exactly how the residents living there want it to remain.<\/p>\n

There are many diverse neighborhoods in the city. Villalobos points out that people have been \u201cpriced out of the North Side and the increasingly unaffordable outer Loop neighborhoods.\u201d That is one of the many reasons why zoning policies must not be changed.<\/p>\n

History repeats itself. Villalobos writes: \u201cAccessory dwelling units (ADUs), two-flats and four-flats are basic forms of housing in many parts of the city.\u201d These dreaded changes will eventually make the Southwest Side too expensive, as evidenced in the North Side and the outer Loop area, and destroy the neighborhoods that residents love.<\/p>\n

Why not concentrate efforts in a positive manner by focusing on developing many of the blighted neighborhoods that exist in the city? Destroying low-density single-family homes in pristine, unique neighborhoods is not what people want. Southwest Side residents choose to remain living in a slice of the suburban lifestyle within the confines of our beautiful city.<\/p>\n

Chicago has been referred to as a big city with a small town heart. Let\u2019s keep that heart beating and be able to enjoy the best of both worlds.<\/p>\n

\u2014 Cathleen Bylina,\u00a0Chicago<\/p>\n

Community development<\/p>\n

President Donald Trump recently signed into law the so-called One Big Beautiful Bill. At my organization, we mourn the ways the bill will negatively impact so many of the communities we serve. Yet, one silver lining in the legislation is the enhancement of Opportunity Zones, or OZs.<\/p>\n

The Chicagoland Opportunity Zones Consortium brings together nearly 30 nonprofit, private and public sector partners to advance OZs throughout the Chicago area. Our mission is to bridge the gap between OZ investors, community-development real estate projects and local businesses by facilitating connections, providing education and offering technical support.<\/p>\n

To date, the COZC has collected information that shows that OZ investments in Chicago have generated positive outcomes, including:<\/p>\n