Watch a video of the forum (approx. 75 minutes), courtesy of CAN-TV.
Read our synopsis of the forum below.
About the Candidate ForumOn Jan. 21, 2010, Chicago Foundation was pleased to cosponsor the Cook County Board President Candidate Forum and ask the candidates questions no one else was asking. Almost 250 people packed the room to hear how the candidates in the Feb. 2 primary planned to address the issue violence against women, girls and LGBTQ people in our community.
All candidates were invited and four attended: Dorothy Brown (D), Toni Preckwinkle (D), Todd Stroger (D) and Tom Tresser (Green).
We were lucky that our moderator was the editor of the Chicago Reporter, Kimbriell Kelly, who brought out her investigative journalism skills when questioning the panel. Kelly first asked questions compiled by the co-sponsors and then asked questions from the audience. The topics ranged from bullying of LGBTQ students in schools, sex trafficking, the shackling of incarcerated women during labor, funding for domestic and sexual violence services, juvenile detention issues and the Freedom of Information Act.
When asked about what action she will take in her first 90 days to address violence against LGBTQ people, Preckwinkle said, "This crime needs to be taken seriously. We need to focus on incarcerating the offenders, and also providing drug treatment, education and training." She called sexual victimization of LGBTQ youth in juvenile detention "a betrayal of young trust. LGBTQ youth tend to be more vulnerable, and I am concerned about them. Our primary obligation… should be [on providing] better training to our caregivers, and we need to step up our response to allegations of abuse."
In terms of youth trafficking, all four candidates argued strongly that detention should be focused on the trafficker, pimp or john, not the trafficked youth. Tresser said, "We need to keep kids out of jail at all costs. I am in favor of a community solution." Brown argued, "We should find alternatives to detention. We need to provide additional funding to community outreach programs." Preckwinkle said, "We need to punish the johns, not the prostitutes. We need to create an alternative to men and women in the sex trade."
In response to an audience question regarding the progress that President Stroger's administration has made in addressing violence against women and girls, he said that he has worked to make traffickers and johns more accountable by towing their cars and exposing them. He said that the county needs a more "holistic approach for women. Women need more than just offenders being sent to jail. They need services."
Thanks to our cosponsors:
Center on Halsted,
Chicago Alliance Against Sexual Exploitation,
Chicago Metropolitan Battered Women's Network,
Loyola University Chicago and
Rape Victim Advocates. We were proud to be a part of this team that planned a successful event, turned out an impressive crowd, and demanded answers and solutions for the women and girls of Cook County.
NOTE: Loyola University Chicago policy prohibited the use of campaign materials on its premises. The NMPS, SSW, Loyola University Chicago and all other sponsors of the Candidates Forum do not support or oppose any of the candidates. All sponsoring organizations are nonprofit with 501(c)(3) tax-exempt status. This was a nonpartisan event for public education purposes only.