Full Text of HR0018 100th General Assembly
HR0018 100TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY |
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| 1 | | HOUSE RESOLUTION
| 2 | | WHEREAS, There were 77 murders in Chicago in November 2016, | 3 | | bringing the total in 2016 to 682; and
| 4 | | WHEREAS, The total number of shootings in Chicago in 2016 | 5 | | as of December 1, 2016 was 3,319 and the total number of | 6 | | shooting victims as of December 13, 2016 was 4,177; and
| 7 | | WHEREAS, In 2015, the number of violent crimes in Illinois | 8 | | was 49,354; and
| 9 | | WHEREAS, The State of Illinois has seen a horrid outbreak | 10 | | of violent crime, seen daily on the streets of Chicago and | 11 | | other municipalities of this State; and
| 12 | | WHEREAS, The citizens of the major cities of our State see | 13 | | killings on a regular basis; and
| 14 | | WHEREAS, The fallout of the Great Recession of 2008 is | 15 | | still being felt in many parts of this State, as indicated by | 16 | | unemployment, foreclosed homes and businesses, abandoned | 17 | | properties and vacant lots, and a desperate need for economic | 18 | | development; and
| 19 | | WHEREAS, In Illinois, there are high levels of unemployment |
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| 1 | | and broad declines in healthcare, deteriorating | 2 | | infrastructure, and shrinking pensions and retirement savings | 3 | | as workers in all fields of education, healthcare, and public | 4 | | safety are laid off as a result of a financial crisis they did | 5 | | not create; and
| 6 | | WHEREAS, Unemployment in the neighborhoods of Chicago and | 7 | | other inner cities is at 30% or higher, with limited economic | 8 | | opportunities and underserved, overcrowded, and | 9 | | technologically outdated schools; and | 10 | | WHEREAS, In 1967, the report of the Kerner Commission | 11 | | stated that "To pursue our present course will involve the | 12 | | continuing polarization of the American community and, | 13 | | ultimately, the destruction of basic democratic values. The | 14 | | alternative is not blind repression or capitulation to | 15 | | lawlessness. It is the realization of common opportunities for | 16 | | all within a single society"; and
| 17 | | WHEREAS, The City of Chicago has seen a year of gun | 18 | | violence among the worst in the history of the City, with 400 | 19 | | people killed, a 15% increase over the previous year; on | 20 | | average, a person is shot every 2.8 hours; and
| 21 | | WHEREAS, As a State, we need to find new strategies and | 22 | | tactics and come up with solutions that protect our citizens |
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| 1 | | from the scourge of violent crime, recognizing that enacting | 2 | | the same policies that we have passed the last half century and | 3 | | expecting different results is, by definition, insanity; and | 4 | | WHEREAS, Article V, Section 8 of the Illinois Constitution | 5 | | provides that the Governor shall have the supreme executive | 6 | | power, and
shall be responsible for the faithful execution of | 7 | | the laws; and | 8 | | WHEREAS, Under that authority, the Governor should declare | 9 | | a state of emergency in areas of the State where violent crime | 10 | | is a serious problem and deploy State agency resources to | 11 | | combat violent crime; therefore, be it
| 12 | | RESOLVED, BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE ONE | 13 | | HUNDREDTH GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that we | 14 | | urge the Governor to declare a state of emergency in areas of | 15 | | the State where violent crime is a serious problem and deploy | 16 | | State agency resources to combat that violent crime; and be it | 17 | | further
| 18 | | RESOLVED, That a suitable copy of this resolution be
| 19 | | forwarded to the Governor of the State of Illinois.
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