Alderman Edward M. Burke (14th)
introduced an ordinance Wednesday seeking to curb searches at O'Hare International
Airport, following the release of federal report that blamed racial profiling
for many of those searches.
The measure seeks to ban strip searches
on city property, 'unless performed by medically trained personnel who
are licensed as either physicians, physicians assistants or registered
nurses.'
Aldermen Leslie Hairston (5th),
Freddrenna Lisle (6th), Virginia A. Rugai (19th),
Dorothy Tillman (3rd) and Arenda Troutman (20th)
joined Alderman Burke in sponsoring the proposal.
The aldermen took the action following
the April 10th release of a General Accounting Office report
that found that African-American women were singled out disproportionately
at U.S. airports for intrusive searches - strip searches or air X-rays
-intended to catch contraband or drug smugglers.
'Racial profiling is an intolerable violation
of the rights of these women who have been subjected to strip searches
at O'Hare Airport, 'Alderman Burke said. 'This activity will not be tolerated.
The federal government is a tenant at O'Hare Airport and must abide not
only by the letter, but the spirit of the law.'
The aldermen also introduced a resolution
condemning the actions of the U.S. Custom Service.
The resolution reads as follows:
WHEREAS, THE City of Chicago is
a home rule unit of government pursuant to the 1972 Illinois Constitution,
Article VII, Section 6 (a); and
WHEREAS, pursuant to its home rule
power, the City of Chicago may exercise any power and perform any perform
function relation to its government and affairs including protecting the
public health, safety and welfare; and
WHEREAS, the General Accounting
Office has fund that the U.S. Customs Service conducts strip searches and
X-rays black women travelers at a greater rate than other travelers and
WHEREAS, the City Council of the
City of Chicago finds these practices to be deplorable and outrageous and
based on the probable discriminatory racial profiling; now, therefore
BE IT RESOLVED, that we, the Mayor
and members of the Chicago City Council assembled on this twelfth day of
April, 2000 do hereby condemn the U.S. Customs Service for its current
practices and urge an immediate halt to racial profiling and discriminatory
strip searches.