ACLU has problems with Lightfoot's curfew order for minors

Visitors walk past the Cloud Gate sculpture in Millennium Park on June 15, 2020 in Chicago, Illinois. Photo credit Scott Olson/Getty Images

By Rachel Pierson

(WBBM NEWSRADIO) — The ACLU of Illinois is criticizing Mayor Lightfoot’s new curfew for minors following a fatal shooting near “The Bean” over the weekend.

“This is an over-broad announcement that paints all young people as potential criminals,” Alexandra Block, senior supervising attorney for criminal legal system and policing for the organization, said Monday.

She said the mayor’s curb on unaccompanied youths runs the risk of “eroding the trust between the Chicago Police Department and young people who want to gather downtown to enjoy the public amenities that the city has to offer.”

There are also several unanswered questions following the decision, Block said.

“Who is going to enforce it? How long would it be in effect? What authority is there to enforce it? What resources is it going to pull from other areas of the city?”

Lightfoot said young people under 18 will not be allowed in Millennium Park without a responsible adult after 6 p.m. Thursday through Sunday, while the weekend curfew for minors is being moved back to 10 p.m.

The mayor didn’t offer details on how the rule would be enforced but said police involvement will be a last resort.

Block, the ACLU official, tells WBBM Newsradio her biggest concern is how the city will make sure its enforcement of the curfew isn’t racially biased.

“The mayor's announcement really made it sound like young minorities are not welcome downtown and in Millennium Park in particular,” she said. “I have significant concerns about racially disproportionate enforcement. I would like to know how the city is going to ensure fairness and evenhandedness.”

Block said the ACLU of Illinois will ask the City of Chicago for the mayor's legal justification.