Weekly Chicago News Roundup: John Catanzara is Just Saying Things

Hi — I’m H. I’m a burnt-out organizer. This is a Chicago news roundup. It’s how I keep track of the 3000 niche municipal stories that happen in Chicago.

Well — it’s how I keep track of the ones that matter.

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Hello,

It’s Thursday, 7/13. The weather is COLD but at least it’s not a tornado. Why did you all go outside during that thing?

Today in Movement History: Jean-Paul Marat, a radical Montagnard in the French Revolution, got murdered in his bathtub. There’s a famous painting about it. RIP.

Explainer: John Catanzara is Mad Again

Chicago Police Union President John Catanzara loves to make threats that won’t happen.

Remember the “blood in the streets” and the “hundreds” of police officers supposed to walk off the job if Brandon Johnson was elected?

Today in threats from Catanzara: suing the city because police officers don’t get enough paid leave.

The catalyst for Catanzara’s lawsuits is Johnson and Chicago Public Schools’ recent announcement that school employees would get up to 12 weeks of paid paternity leave.

The Chicago Police Department has a flexible leave policy that includes taking 365 days off every two years.

As mayoral aide Jason Lee, a spokesperson for the administration said, “???” — because when has the CPD ever allowed for, let alone asked, for more outside institutional oversight?

Yes, by the way, you read that right, CPD has 365 days off every two years. No, I can’t make sense of it either — let me know if you’ve got a good hot take on this.

Wait, What?: Catanzara threatening to sue the city is particularly wild when you remember that the city is constantly paying out lawsuits (over $250M) bc of CPD misconduct.

It’s also wild when you remember that there’s a federal investigation into the department’s conduct with many legal mandates CPD is far from meeting.

Over 11,000 people have filed complaints against the department as part of these c (by the way, only 7% of any formal complaints against the police receive any kind of disciplinary action).

Since the other hot story about Chicago police officers right now is that they’re under investigation for alleged sexual misconduct with migrants, “not enough paid leave” feels like a wild focus for CPD. But hey — that’s John Catanzara!

Police Misconduct: Misconduct is a funny word. It’s vague. It implies benign misuse, like this weird Reddit story where a guy broke a million-dollar piece of equipment because no one trained him.

The word misconduct technically describes why the CPD keeps getting sued, but it obscures what CPD misconduct looks like in practice.

CPD misconduct in practice often means torture, abuse, wrongful imprisonment, and conspiracy.

At any rate: there’s no comparison between teachers’ getting 12 weeks of parental leave and the CPD’s black box parental policy.

This kind of anti-CTU rhetoric has always been part of Right Wing talking points (shoutout to Illinois Policy).

But since Johnson has been elected, there’s been a slew of attacks that focus on the Chicago Teacher’s Union as a group that gets special treatment from the administration.

We will see more of this.

Stuff I Read That I Liked This Week:

Alex Nitkin at Illinois Answer Project wrote about what a progressive income tax looks like in other cities and how Chicago could follow suit.

Chima Ikoro at The Triibe explored what makes for an effective public safety and engagement program — beyond

Meme Center:

Imani, Chicago’s resident piping plover, has friends now.

Do not let the news cycle push you into a romantic relationship you’re not ready for, Imani.

What to Do This Week:

Events, actions, and paid opportunities. Send me yours so I can include it.

+ RIGHT NOW Starbucks workers are on strike — they’re holding a Midwest Solidarity action in front of the Greektown Starbucks.

+ Teamsters are rallying and prepping for a potential strike on Friday at 8:30 on 1400 S Jefferson.

+ Respair Media and Eve Ewing are producing a new podcast on economic security — it launches July 14th and 15th.

+ Are you going to Netroots this weekend? Say hi!

Question of the Week:

What are your favorite summer and winter bars in Chicago?

Let me know your answer in the comments.