Dear Neighbors,
Various social media posts are being disseminated which claim to be promoting specific violent calls to action throughout the city, including Lincoln Park. Many of you have seen these posts.
I share the view of the mayor that these are dubious (in fact copied from posts in other cities) and are an attempt to stoke fear. This is what Mayor Lightfoot said this afternoon:
"We are actively investigating that. We are aware of it.
The superintendent and his team are actively investigating that. And we will put that down. And we are investigating the people who are spreading that over social media. And when we find them, we will bring them to justice.
That's not protected speech. That's trying to foment violence. And we are not going to tolerate it."
I agree and I am encouraging people to not spread this information. Please stand strong for our community and don't contribute to fear by sharing unsubstantiated information
. Please stay home and keep your family home today so that the police can focus their resources where they are most needed.
There is an active police presence in Lincoln Park today, and we expect that to continue throughout the day and night.
Protecting Against Fires and Potential Damage
As you know, there has been some damage to our local businesses, and we want to prevent any more. There have been some reports of trash bins being set on fire.
You can help prevent your bins from being used in this fashion this if you are able to relocate them or wet down the trash in your bin. I encourage you to do this.
We recommend taking preventative measures if you are a business, as we recommended in an earlier newsletter, including:
- removing valuables
- doing preventative boarding up
- securing dumpsters
- removing street furniture, planters, etc. from the street
Staying Updated and False Reports
I will continue to keep you updated about developments, but also recommend that if you are able to tune in to the mayor's daily briefings--it is an opportunity to hear directly from her and the police department about the strategies they are implementing throughout the city, and to address the never ending rumors about what is happening in the city. You can watch on the Mayor's
Facebook and
Twitter pages.
Case in point: Rumors about animals having been released from the Lincoln Park Zoo are not true. The zoo confirms that there have been no thefts, break ins, or any similar incidents on the grounds. As I said previously, confirming information before sharing it is critical to protect people and try to keep more from panicking.
Phase 3 Business Reopening
At today's press conference Mayor Lightfoot discussed how this weekends events will impact plans for the Phase 3 reopening: "Of course I'm concerned about businesses all over the city who were preparing and saw the additional resources that they were putting into opening up their businesses, community groups, and that many were ready to start fully engaging again. And for many of those people, all of that effort, all of those resources, were reduced to kindling or went down in flames. So we need to continue our outreach...and then, and only then, can we make a determination about whether we're ready on Wednesday."
I am in regular discussions with the mayor and her team regarding the progress and will continue to let you know if there are any updates as preparations continue for the Phase 3 openings.
Standing Up For Our Community
We all have a role to play in keeping our community safe. We appreciate the emails and calls we get from you when you observe something unusual. Please know that we check out the social media posts as quickly as possible, and also that we are aware of them. Please stay tuned to our newsletter so we can get you information.
