September 12, 2003 | by Fran Spielman, Frank Main
As the Rev. Jesse Jackson makes a vocal push for Mayor Daley to add an African American and a woman to a short list of finalists for police superintendent, Latino politicians have been quietly working in support of a Hispanic candidate.
U.S. Rep. Luis Gutierrez (D-Ill.) and 21 other elected officials have sent a letter to the mayor saying he should pick Winnetka Police Chief Joseph DeLopez, a Hispanic and one of three finalists from a field of 23 applicants.
“I would be partial to DeLopez because he is Hispanic, but I would support whatever choice the mayor makes,” said Ald. Daniel Solis (25th), one of those who signed the letter. “I am Hispanic and would be proud if Chief DeLopez is selected.”
Solis blasted Jackson for calling on the mayor this week to include an African American and a woman on the list of finalists he considers for top cop.
Jackson contends Chicago Police Deputy Supt. John Richardson torpedoed the selection process when he backed out last week at the 11th hour. Richardson, who plans to retire and is building a home in the suburbs, is black and would have been among the top three finalists, officials say.
Daley has insisted he will not reopen the process, which was conducted by the Police Board after a nationwide search.
“The last time, there was not a Hispanic in the top three, but most Hispanic leaders respected the process,” Solis said. “I understand his feelings of wanting an African American represented, but it is not the fault of the mayor.”
The other two finalists are Phil Cline, named acting superintendent when Terry Hillard, who is black, retired Aug. 15, and Garry McCarthy, a high-ranking official with the New York Police Department. Cline and McCarthy are white.
The Latino politicians told Daley in their letter that their constituents deserve the same “dignity and respect” as others, noting that Hispanics turned around the “declining population trend” in the city’s last census and kept the city from losing federal assistance dollars.
The Hispanic community should “be rewarded by having one of its sons lead the police force,” the letter said.
Daley has long enjoyed overwhelming support in the Hispanic community, even though the number of Latinos in his administration has dropped.
Gone are Gery Chico, Chicago Board of Education president; Ray Orozco, Chicago fire commissioner; Daniel Alvarez, head of Human Services, and Matt Rodriguez, Chicago’s first Hispanic police superintendent, who was forced out of office because of a scandal involving his friendship with a convicted felon.
Chicago Police officer Jerry Negrete Jr., president of the Latin American Police Association, said his group will not endorse any finalist, saying they all appear qualified.
“We’ll back the mayor, whoever he chooses,” he said.
Meanwhile Thursday, an African-American group called Bringing About Reform announced support for Cline. About 300 members voted to endorse him Tuesday at a South Side church.
“The majority expressed the opinion that race was not a factor,” said Derrick Mosley, a community activist and founder of the group. “They were more interested in minimizing crime and violence … Phil Cline’s track record speaks for itself. They like what he is doing to curb the gang problem.”
Under Cline, the department has sent an elite team of 100 officers into the Harrison District to crack down on both serious and petty crime in an attempt to reduce homicides in the violence-plagued West Side neighborhood.
At a news conference with the mayor to tout the city’s efforts to boost security after the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks, Cline declined to comment on the controversy surrounding the superintendent selection process.
The other Latino politicians who signed the letter were: Democratic state Senators Miguel Del Valle, Iris Martinez, Martin Sandoval and Antonio Munoz; Democratic state Representatives Edward Acevedo, Susana Mendoza, Cynthia Soto, William Delgado and Maria A. Berrios; Cook County Commissioners Joe Berrios, Roberto Maldonado and Joseph Mario Moreno; Aldermen Ray Suarez (31st), George Cardenas (12th), Ricardo Munoz (22nd), Manuel Flores (1st), Rey Colon (35th), Ariel Reboyras (30th) and Billy Ocasio (26th), and Frank Avila, a Water Reclamation District commissioner.
Recent Comments