In August, we wrote a column here about how the killing of Sonya Massey is one of countless instances of violence that Black communities have experienced for centuries. We referenced the brutal history of policing which has included enforcing slave codes, lynchings, and assaulting peaceful civil rights protesters with water cannons and dogs.
The murder of Massey was a terrible reminder to every one of us that this is not just history that we must reckon with but present manifestations in our own city.
We find ourselves in September burdened by additional reasons why our community needs to mobilize to ensure that city and county law enforcement departments, and the political bodies that oversee them, commit to and engage in truly transformational and systemic change now – work that centers justice for minoritized and marginalized communities.
Let us look at IDOT traffic stop data released in July 2024. It shows that for another year, Black and Latino drivers were stopped at higher rates in almost every locality across the state. In Springfield, Black motorists were stopped almost six times more often than white drivers. That’s higher than in the similarly sized cities of Urbana, Peoria, Kankakee, Danville, Naperville, Bloomington, Belleville and Aurora.
Black and Latino drivers are being stopped more often. Statewide, traffic stops were up 12%: Black drivers are more often stopped for equipment and registration violations and they are less likely to be cited. The obvious conclusion is that these stops are pre-textual “fishing expeditions” and likely due to over-policing, i.e. the targeting and surveillance of neighborhoods in which they live.
At a recent Springfield City Council meeting, the police chief conceded that they had begun a policy of “zero tolerance” stops for tinted windows and all other violations. Many of our neighbors were shocked by the aggression displayed by officers in a recent widely distributed video showing their stop of a teen for apparently driving a car with tinted windows. The officers refused to tell the teen why he’d been stopped.
We were troubled by the case of a family with a non-English speaking parent whose child was a victim of a crime. The SPD did not contact the parent for more than a month. Ignoring residents because they speak languages other than English, and not communicating with them is a matter of equity and accessibility that impedes justice for them when they are victimized. Issuing commands in a language a person cannot understand, not having staff trained in the development of cultural competencies and then responding without cultural awareness could have potentially deadly consequences for them.
There can be no organizational structure where an officer such as the deputy sheriff who fatally shot Sonya Massey is entrusted with the safety of the community. There can be no culture where an SPD officer such as Aaron Nichols is allowed to operate for almost 18 years until external anti-fascist sleuths on the internet exposed the deluge of his violent and racist social media posts that glorified Adolf Hitler, white supremacy and hate crimes. There can be no conditions where people die at the hands of staff in police custody in their county jail.
We need local law enforcement leaders who will embrace and not undermine existing laws recognized as essential to reform: Pretrial fairness. Mandatory body cameras. Mental health support for officers and for city residents such as Massey when they call for help.
Recent developments in the formation of the Massey Commission call out for caution. Its leadership and any potential contractors must have training in antiracism transformation, and they must embrace an antiracist praxis. They must be worthy of the mission it has been given. Worthy of the name it has been given. The commission must be vested with the autonomy, authority and the resources it needs to accomplish its difficult task.
People most affected need to be most prominently at the table, Black citizens and other people of color who have been targets of disproportionate policing and racism, including our immigrants and Muslim neighbors. Antiracism, trauma-informed practices, reduction of harm strategies and trust-building must be foundational. Trust requires transparency and communication.
In challenging times, we approach this sober understanding of the enormity of the task with hope and optimism. Here we also rely on our training’s deepest truth: anti-Blackness and xenophobia go hand in hand, and at their core, racism is fighting hard to stay rooted in our systems and institutions. It is through our work, partnerships and community building that our daily tasks can be grounded in love and joy: the healing for which we so deeply long is achieved in community.
Verónica Espina is founder and president of SIAN. Beth Langen is a SIAN co-chair.
