CHICAGO (WBBM NEWSRADIO) — In a lawsuit filed Wednesday, Good Kids Mad City, an Englewood-based nonprofit, said Chicago’s citywide curfew prevents them from engaging in planned peacekeeping activities this Halloween and is a violation of their First Amendment rights.
In May 2022, Chicago City Council voted to move the city’s curfew up one hour. It prohibits anyone under the age of 18 from being outside of their house after 10 p.m.
Every Halloween, the nonprofit does what it calls "cop watching" in Hyde Park, where members monitor public police interactions with youth in hopes of preventing police violence.
Good Kids Mad City members, though, said they won't be able to "cop watch" this year due to the city's curfew, as the majority of its members are under 18.
The group's lawsuit seeks relief from the curfew so its members can "continue its peacekeeping and police accountability work."
On Thursday, Mayor Lori Lightfoot was asked by reporters to comment on the lawsuit. She suggested the city’s curfew does nothing to block the events planned by Good Kids Mad City.
“I’ll let the court and the lawyers decide it, but there’s nothing that prevents people who are actively engaged in going to events, staffing events, [or] from being out in the city,” Lightfoot said. “The curfew ordinance doesn’t stop that.”
The organization said the lawsuit comes after the city refused to amend the curfew to accommodate the nonprofit's Halloween plans.
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