Everyone knew this moment would have to come. Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel, having fired who he could fire, finally came forward with an emotional speech to the City Council Wednesday morning, saying, “I take responsibility for what happened because it happened on my watch.” Emanuel denounced the 2014 officer-involved killing of Laquan McDonald and two subsequent police killings caught on video. “The first step in that journey is my step, and I’m so sorry,” Emanuel said.
The speech comes amid a period of turmoil for the Chicago Mayor’s office, as the council has called for drastic changes in the police accountability system and activists converged on City Hall even as the speech was delivered. The Department of Justice opened a federal investigation into the department at the behest of several officials, including Illinois Attorney General Lisa Madigan, but as of one week ago faced opposition from Emanuel.
Emanuel’s speech to the City Council signaled a complete reversal of that stance, as he forcefully outlined a five-point plan to address the city’s policing issues. The first step was the indictment of officer Jason Van Dyke for first-degree murder in McDonald’s death. The second and third steps involve federal investigation into both the incident and general policing practices. The fourth step involves an ACLU study of city policing practices. The fifth is a mayor-appointed task force, led by Chicago Police Board Chair Lori Lightfoot and advised by former Massachusetts Gov. Deval Patrick, that will review Independent Police Review Authority disciplinary decisions and procedures, as well as appoint compliance officers in the department.
These steps make for a more comprehensive reform plan than several cities have, but they are still too little, too late. Despite the police superintendent’s firing and the IPRA chief’s resignation, the office of Cook County State’s Attorney Anita Alvarez and Emanuel’s own office have managed to avoid scrutiny. A slew of decisions—from the $5 million in hush money to McDonald’s family to the curious timing of new video releases—have eroded the credibility of both offices. How can a mayor be trusted to lead the city in reform efforts, when he claims to have not even seen the video that sat for a year and started this recent firestorm?
Where were Emanuel and Alvarez a year ago, when McDonald was killed? Where was Emanuel’s rhetoric that “no citizen is a second-class citizen in the City of Chicago” when citizens of Chicago were subject to kidnapping in police black sites like Homan Square? Emanuel’s office continues to point fingers at every person and body except itself, even under the guise of accepting responsibility. There are only two possibilities: Either the mayor’s office was incredibly and extraordinarily ignorant of an ongoing culture of police abuse, or a conscious decision was made to look the other way. Emanuel has called for the resignation of subordinates in this scandal, citing both ignorance and corruption.
What does that precedent say about his own office?