Good afternoon. The meeting will will start momentarily.
Can everyone please take their seats
and silence their phones?
The meeting will start very shortly. Thank you.
Good morning everyone. The council will come to order.
Order. Madam Clerk, please take a quorum roll call.
The quorum is now open. The quorum is now open.
Please use your Eev device. The quorum is now open.
If you need support, please raise your hand. It is now open.
All right. I will now call those
who have not used their Eev device.
Alderwoman do not present. Alderman Robinson.
Robinson is present. Alderman Hall. Hall is present.
Alderwoman Harris Harris is present.
Alderwoman Coleman. Coleman is present.
Alderman Osha. OSHA is present.
Um, alderman Ccho Lopez Present, CCHO Lopez is present.
Alderman Burnett not present.
Alderman Irvin not present.
Alderwoman Cruz, not Alderwoman.
Cruz not present. Alman Irvin.
Alderman Irvin is present.
Alderman Roal not present.
Alderman Cardona Cardona is present.
Alderwoman Rodriguez
Sanchez not present.
Alderman Viegas Viegas is present.
Alderman Podo Podo is present.
Alderwoman Nugent Nugent is present. Alderman Vasquez.
Vasquez is present. Alderman Lawson not present.
Alden Martin not present.
Alderwoman Cruz, I see you. Cruz is present.
Anyone else walk in? Okay.
The Quorum vote is now closed.
There are 43 members that are present. We have a quorum.
Um, there is one Al Alder Burnett has requested
to participate in today's meeting remotely
for reason stated in Rule 59.
Can I get a motion once his presence is confirmed, uh,
for remote participation?
Can we confirm Alderman Burnett's presence?
Alman Burnett? I don't see
him. I don't see him.
He's not on very well.
Well, then we'll just keep moving right along.
Um, at this point, um, we will stand
for the Pledge of Allegiance.
I pledge allegiance
To the flag of the United States of America,
and to the republic for which it stands,
one nation under God, indivisible, with liberty
and justice for all.
Uh, please remain standing for our invocation,
which will be delivered today by Dorothy Caldwell, chaplain
for the Chicago Sky.
Good morning. Good morning.
Ecclesiastes three says, for everything there is a season
and a time for every matter under the sun.
And he has made everything beautiful in his time.
Father God, we bless you this morning.
Oh God, father, we thank you Lord for your grace,
your mercy, your goodness, your kindness.
Father, we thank you Lord for this new day.
Father, we arrest this atmosphere right now for your glory.
God, we pray in the name of Jesus Lord,
as you have ordained each one
to be standing in posture in this time
and in this season, Lord, that you ordained them
for such a time as this.
And Father, I pray in the name of Jesus, Lord,
that your presence, Lord, will not only rule in this place
but God, Lord, that your kingdom will come
and your will will be done in Jesus' name.
God, I pray, oh God, for the wisdom of heaven
to be upon our mayor,
to be upon each council member in the name of Jesus.
Father, I pray that your will will be done, God, Lord,
that you will establish Lord, what?
Those things that will bring forth your, your glory Lord,
that will bring forth justice, Lord,
that will bring forth mercy.
God. Lord, that will bring forth love in Jesus' name. God.
Now I pray, oh God, father Lord, that you will minister
to each heart, God, Lord, that you will cause our hearts
to be tuned into you.
Lord, I pray that your Holy Spirit will dwell in this place
in Jesus' name.
Now, God, I pray that you will rule, that you will reign
and that you will have your will
and let your kingdom be established in this
place and in this city.
In Jesus' name we pray. Amen.
Amen. You may be seated. Thank you
for the special meeting.
Um, and clerk, please read the call of the,
of today's special meeting.
The following call for a special meeting
of the city council was filed in my office on Monday,
March 31st, 2025 at 4:18 PM Ladies
and gentlemen, I hereby call a special meeting
of the City Council of the City of Chicago
to be convened at 10:30 AM on Monday, April 7th, 2025,
and the City Council Chamber
and City Hall for the sole purpose of one,
considering the appointment of the Alderman
of the 35th Ward,
replacing Carlos Ramir Osa, who has resigned.
And two, considering resolution, amending the resolution,
identifying the chairman, vice Chairman
and members of the standing Committees of the City Council
of the city of Chicago for the 2023 to 2027 term
to include the new 35th Ward Alderman replacing Carlos
Ramirez osa, who has resigned very to the years.
Brandon Johnson, mayor.
Thank you, Madam Clerk. Now this is the portion
of the meeting for public comments.
The council will now begin the public comment period,
which is limited to a maximum of 30 minutes.
Each speaker is limited to three minutes.
Speakers cannot yield
or transfer their time to another speaker.
Any written comments that have been submitted will be posted
and made available for automatic review.
Our first speaker, this af this morning is Jody Whitaker.
Jody Whitaker is not present.
Our next speaker is Robert Castillo.
Good morning City Council Mayor Johnson. Morning.
Uh, my name is Robert Castillo.
Uh, for most of my 57 years, I have lived in Logan Square.
I currently live there and I work in Logan Square
and I'm here to support the appointment of Anthony Cazada
as our next alderman of the 35th Ward.
Excuse me. Um, I also serve on your advisory council
for LGBTQ issues.
And as I said earlier, representation matters
and I'm proud to see another out LGBTQ plus member
of the city council.
Um, take a seat
and sadly I'm sad to see him leave the Cook County Board,
but I wholeheartedly support Anthony
and look forward to working with him in the future.
Thank you. Thank you very much for your comments.
Our next speaker is Ward j Lingus.
Good afternoon, city Council. Good afternoon, mayor.
Good afternoon. I am Lawrence j Legas.
I am the founder of Logan Square.
Logan Square concerns citizens.
I am a pragmatist activist
with a large list of accomplishments.
I am not a pop-up activist, as many
of you see that come here.
They're just pop-up activists.
I am looking out for the hurting for the middle class,
the voiceless that needs support in this
Logan Square 35th four.
But in the city of Chicago
that has a very high increase in violent crime.
And as pragmatist activists, we need to stand up
to the elected officials that are not doing their job,
that are soft on violent crime.
And that is one issue that I ask not to vote for Anthony,
due to the fact that he's very weak on violent crime
and he loves every property tax increase
that he sees, he votes for.
The corruption that happens in Cook County are is coming
to the city and from the city it's going to DC.
So it's, it's a whole circle.
And that is reason is I put my name in
as a candidate for the 35th Ward.
With my 40 years as a resident, my 25 years as a 35th ward,
uh, resident, I was voted, I was, uh,
moved from the 35th Ward to the 32nd Ward
through redistricting the fact with all my accomplishments
for youth advocate, for mental health awareness
for environment with the Chicago River.
I currently live at the Gateway into Logan Square,
where the river meets diversity.
And I am the only activist in the 35th Ward that has
cares about the river, the environment.
I'm the only activist in the 35th Ward
that cares about violent crime.
And Mayor, I would ask
that you support the eight o'clock curfew
because the criminals, they go the path to least resistance.
And in Logan Square we're seeing a lot of the increase
of youth violence is
because there's one, uh, area that they're getting a lot
of pressure and then they go to other areas.
So that's one reason why I'm asking not to vote for Anthony,
because he will wait and, and ignore the problem
and not be a true leader and stand up to the real problem.
'cause right now we have a clown show that's going on,
and one way we could turn around not the 35th Ward to say no
to him, is remove 50% of these older persons.
They're not, not willing to stand up for
what their wards need.
We could cut the budget, we could save it
because the Chicago Teachers Union,
the corrupt Chicago teacher union is breaking our city.
So the way to do that is we get rid of a lot of the,
you know, the incompetent leaderships.
And I'm sorry for the many that are here. But
Thank you very much for your comments.
Our next speaker is Devon Carson.
Our next speaker is Connie Hernandez.
Hello there. My name is Connie Hernandez.
Uh, thank you for this time.
Um, I would like to voice my support for Anthony Joel Sada
to be appointed the next 35th Ward, um, Alder person.
Um, as I spoke to before,
I've known Anthony for a long time.
I am an organizer with United Neighbors of the 35th Ward.
Um, we are a people powered organization.
We talk to neighbors every day
to get them involved in issues
and give them autonomy over the decisions
that are made in their ward and their lives.
Um, Anthony, as a Cook County commissioner has shown, um,
that his, he has immense care
and goes out of his way
to involve the people in his district to involve them in,
um, decisions even outside of, you know, the voting process,
elections every few years.
Um, he's always like knocking doors.
He has, um, coffee hours, he to bring people in,
even if they can't vote, um,
or are disillusioned with government he wants to listen to,
is constantly talking to neighbors.
Um, he has also lived in the ward for a long time.
Um, and I'm excited to see him transition into the 35th
Ward office, um, to bring that governance, um,
that democracy into that position.
Um, UN 35 hosted our own endorsement session in which, um,
we allowed, uh, anyone who wanted to submit, um,
a questionnaire for consideration
for our organization to endorse them.
Um, Anthony was the only person
that submitted the questionnaire on time.
Um, and then because he has such a long history in the
community as an organizer, um,
and has built relationships, personal relationships
with people that live in the ward during
that endorsement session, um, the community
and our membership voted to endorse him, um,
because we, the community want him
as our 35th ward alder person.
Um, so I hope that, um, you'll also go
through the formal process of endorsing him.
Um, love you Anthony.
He is a compassionate, intelligent, um, diligent leader.
Um, thank you for your time.
Thank you. Thank you very much for your comments.
Our next speaker is Twan Sims.
Excuse me, Taiwan Sims.
Um, good morning committee council for the thousands
of people that were in Daily Plaza.
I wonder why they not marching for the children
that now use the l still for a sanctuary.
I wonder why they not screaming at William J. Kelly
who was often screaming at you
or trying to get some type of clout or whatever it is
and calling it the violent young, black, violent,
whatever it is, team takeover, an incident
that took place downtown,
but specifically speaking to a nation of people.
The mayor looked like them, but the mayor used no power.
But I was kind of relieved when you did speak afterwards,
but that's the after effect.
We need immediate representation here in Chicago
for the issues that we dealing with.
You taught housing, I'm still homeless,
but we have at 8 25, a gentleman by the name of Corey Hughes
who told me that in 2022 when the new arrivals, that's
what y'all call 'em, the illegals were bought over here,
that in one week he had them housed and working.
I've been speaking at this mic for how long.
I'm sure many of the committee people or committee
or what do they call y'all, not all the persons, all the men
and women can give you a timeline.
Enough is enough. Enough
of not holding our representation accountable enough
of this whole argument with what's happening in Washington
when we are here in Illinois
and in Chicago, enough with the people that sit high up
causing issues.
And the backwash comes down to the constituents
because y'all wanna show y'all sales powerful
against the president, right?
It's Trump, Trump, Trump, Trump, Trump.
But what about Chicago? Chicago, Chicago, Chicago?
What about the residents?
What about residents like me that need help
that's been screaming at this podium,
at this microphone for help.
What about two 3D 7, 9, 5, 9, 7, the case of my young child?
What about the case that I have with
Ms. Williamson over there,
or the domestic relations department?
Y'all have not addressed anything,
but I'm sitting here in this room every day
watching y'all exchange land parcels,
watching y'all make decisions towards the Chicago.
That's what become a junk though,
that's decreasing in value.
But you represent us, sir.
We need stability in our representation, not
that sideways madness.
And so while y'all argue with Doge or Elon Musk
and Donald Trump, we take the backlash, the $4 billion
that comes here annually.
This is the argument, right?
The finances that won't, that we won't receive in the city
that we need here in the city.
So that 830 million that she said that there'll be no
fault in it's so much fault.
So we'll see you in 20 years, sir,
when you won't see you next year though.
Thank you very much for your comments.
Our next speaker is Mark Hubert.
Thank you Mr. Mayor. Counsel.
Um, I already did my tight two minutes the first time,
so I'm just gonna riff a little bit.
Um, 'cause we all know this is somewhat important,
but performative, that decisions have already been made.
Many of you aren't even paying attention to the speakers.
Um, so why are we here?
We're here to make the better the world a better
place for all of us.
And I think that Anthony is gonna be a great voice to come
to the table to talk with all y'all when you figure out, try
and figure out how to solve problems.
I appreciate you Mr. Mayor.
I appreciate your budget address.
'cause you laid it on the line. You said this city
has a problem raising money.
It's been limited by the state in terms of
how it can raise revenue.
And if we wanna solve problems, problems,
solutions, cost, money.
We got people talking about how Chicago's all violent
and it's violent, violent, violent.
And their answer is more violence.
And I respect the people
who put on the uniform to serve and protect.
I think the vast majority of them want to serve and protect.
But we all know that the root of our problems is poverty,
is the lack of mental health, is the lack of the kind
of health services that would make a healthy community.
And then the violence goes away
because people are gonna be less angry.
So coming back to Anthony, I've known Anthony now
for over 10 years
and he amazes me at his ability to understand situations
and his ability to pull people together
and have conversations.
And you may not agree with him,
but I'll tell you, you'll enjoy the conversation.
And hopefully, hopefully people enough people can come
together to make some decisions, to solve problems.
So I stand for Anthony
and I wish all of you the best of luck,
all parts of the people.
Thank you very much. Our next speaker is George Blake.
Born.
Anyway, the games that people play,
racism is the big problem here in the city of Chicago.
Racism, nepotism,
corrupt, shun.
I was amazed what the federal government say.
We are not going to indict to lease
the whistleblower because everybody going
to start blowing whistles.
Michelle going to go
and some of you all down, you're going to go,
is a reason why the federal government says we are not going
to indict police.
There's a reason why. And this man used this term n****r.
And some of these blacks have accepted his apology.
But if I go with three minutes, throw him out,
lock him up, the put it out, n****r,
why would you accept that?
That apology? This is a
apo here.
It's disgraceful here. It's corruption here.
And the way that the government is going to bring
blue down is to kill two birds with one stone,
with one of these.
Going to tell on the other one.
I asked my mother, why would you,
how can you kill two birds for one stone?
It's going to happen. Dodo happen here.
It's going to happen.
We have black faces in high places
selling black people out, out.
And we have fallen in love with our enemy.
And our enemy look like us.
In our God, we must trust in our God
true to our God and our native land.
Africa. We are a black people enslaved in America.
Enslaved in America. America owes us.
We don't owe America nothing. Where is go red?
Where is flip red?
This cat say, make America great
again or make America great?
Was she ever great? Was she enslaved black people?
Racism, it's a problem. Here, take my picture.
Make it go viral. Racism is a problem here.
All you got faces and high faces selling your people out.
I'm sorry, I used the word n***a.
I forgive you. Love your nappy hair,
your big nose and your
black. Thank, thank
You very much for your comments, your honor.
There are no further speakers
who have timely signed up for the
Public speaker Very well. Thank you
very much. Uh, I believe
that Alderman Burnett has arrived virtually.
Um, Madam Clerk, could you confirm
Alderman Burnett, are you there?
Yes, I am. Very
Well. Can I get a motion
to approve the remote participation?
Um, it's been moved. Is there a second?
All those in favor signify by saying aye.
Any opposed, say nay.
In opinion of the chair, the ayes have it.
Thank you very much. Now for the special meeting agenda
as set forth in the letter calling for this special meeting.
Uh, the only item
or items up today for con for for consideration,
it's an appointment for the vacancy in the 35th Ward
al dramatic vacancy
and a resolution that also amended the membership
of various city council committees to
include the new 35th Ward Alderman.
These items were heard this morning in the rules Committee.
And so as a matter of proper procedure, I would ask
that the chair of the rules committee, uh,
present her committee reports.
The chair recognizes Chairwoman Harris.
Thank you Mr. President reporting
for your committee on committees
and rules, which met earlier today, Monday,
April 7th, 2025 at nine 30.
The committee recommends the passage of the following items.
Item one is a report approving the appointment
of Anthony Ada as the alderman of the 35th Ward.
Mr. President, after remarks, I move
that the council concur, uh,
in the appointment by a roll call vote.
Very well. Do you wish to speak
or do you wish to be preserved? As last I'll
Be preserved as last.
Very well. The chair will be the last
speaker on these items.
Chair recognizes auditor Jesse Fuentes.
Thank you Mr. President.
I stand in support of disappointment.
Uh, Anthony Joy Sala is a community organizer.
He is a lifelong Avondale resident.
Uh, but more importantly, he understands the in ins
and out of aldermanic work, working
under former alderman Carlos, Ram Rosa,
but also Anthony's a convener.
If you've worked with him in any capacity,
whether he was a staffer for the office, an organizer
with UN 35 or in his capacity as commissioner, you know
that despite your political ideology
or where you come from in the city of Chicago, he respects
who you are and he's willing
to have any difficult conversation.
I mean, half of the Cook County Board is here today
supporting Commissioner Anthony Sala,
But we only have one vacancy.
Don't get any idea.
I know that as the 35th Ward alderman,
he's not only gonna work with every single colleague
that's here in this chambers, but he is gonna go above
and beyond to make sure that we can be collaborative,
have critical discussions, and move this city forward.
We know it's very difficult political times.
Um, and when there is difficult political times,
we need people who are willing to bring folks together,
willing to critically listen.
Uh, no matter what your standing
or position is on any single matter, I believe
that Anthony's gonna bring that forward.
He's a friend of mine as Cook County Commissioner, which 95%
of the 26 Ward sits in.
Uh, he has been nothing
but a great partner bringing every single resource
that the county has to offer
to residents across the 26 ward.
Whether those were property tax appeals, uh,
exemption support,
or whether that was, uh, taking field trips
to the forest preserve and bringing all of the goodness
that the county has to offer to our residents.
Uh, he will do the same for every 35th Ward resident.
And, you know, here's the fact.
Anthony was overwhelmingly elected by residents
of the 35th Ward as Cook County Commissioner.
People support him. They believe in him.
Today we have residents
and organizers that are supporting this appointment
because they've watched him do the job.
He's a good legislator, a good advocate,
and a good organizer.
And this, uh, council will be lucky to have him.
Uh, congratulations.
Thank you. The chair recognizes,
the chair recognizes Alder Ramirez.
Julio Ramirez.
Hi everyone. Good afternoon.
I wanna say good afternoon, Juanes to this huge diverse box
that people can't even fit in the beautiful sight to see.
And I really wanna thank all the community members
who have been here today.
Anthony, you build community,
community always surrounds you.
And I wanna give you some friendly support from the
southwest side of Chicago, the best side, uh, in competition
with the northwest side forever.
Um, but you have accomplished so much.
Uh, you come from humble beginnings,
but you have a fierce heart and you've carried a lot
and you've accomplished a lot.
Um, not only on a local level,
but obviously through your county work.
Um, you know, I was thinking about you this morning on
how I can best describe you and your intensity.
And I really love basketball.
So if Anthony was on a basketball team
and this was the second half, he would be full court press,
like, really intense.
And I really love that about you.
And so selfishly, I'm really happy
that you're gonna be my colleague here.
Um, but I think it benefits everybody
that you're gonna bring a fresh perspective, um, a fresh way
of doing things and building sort of those relationships,
um, along the way.
And so, as part of the Nineties Babies Caucus,
we now appoint you as the youngest member of City Council.
So, uh, happy Appointment Day, Anthony,
and I'm so very proud of you.
Congrats. Thank you.
Chair recognizes Alderman David Moore.
Thank you Mr. President, uh, for this opportunity to, uh,
speak on this, um, appointment.
Let me start out by just saying, um, words matter.
Um, words matter.
And one of the things I do, I teach, when I'm speaking
to youth, I always tell them life is about
choices and consequences.
I always tell 'em, life is about choices and consequences.
And I always tell them
to make sound decisions, make good choices.
Because even if you begin to sometimes weigh your choices,
you may say, well, um,
the worst thing I can do if I sneak out the house
is I may get a whooping.
I may get my cell phone taken, I may get put on punishment.
You, you, you try to look at all those, um,
possible consequences to your choices.
But there are always things that's called unknowns in
there that I tell them.
And, um, that unknown you just never know about.
So you sneak out the house and your mom catch you.
You knew that for a fact that she's gonna whoop you.
You knew for a fact that you're gonna get on punishment
and you knew for a fact
that your phone was gonna take it taken away.
But you didn't know for a fact while she was hollering
and screaming at you that she got so stressed out,
she had a heart attack and died.
Choices matter and all of them have consequences.
Um, lemme first by saying that, um, alderman, uh,
remembers Rosa did a great job representing his ward.
Whether you agree with some of his policies
or anything like that, he did a great job
of representing his constituents.
And I am a strong believer, I am a strong believer
that any alderman has a right to have a voice
and making sure that their predecessor is someone
that they can put there
or advocate for that will continue the work
that they're done until
otherwise elect people of that, um, of that ward, see,
see different or see the same.
And so, um, that's not this situation.
Um, here, um, there's a scripture in Psalm 38 18
that said, I confess my iniquity,
I am sorry for my transgression.
Um, second Corinthians says, for godly grief
produces repentance.
That leads to salvation without regret.
That leads to forgiveness without a regret.
Whereas worldly grief
or worldly confession produces death.
Where you're going, David, everyone has, um, an insult level
and everybody's insult level is different.
In this case, it wasn't so much, um,
what you said, as much as how the apology
or lack of an apology in my opinion, um, came out.
So for me, as as we start and, and,
and we go through this thing,
because it, it, it, it, it matters.
Word beginning Dana, Danny, a ala, debating,
if I should go visit my n***a, Anthony Zeda,
excuse you, that's my n***a.
Go visit Fat Nose Danny. Laughing my ass off.
He is your n***a. You are right.
So can he be my semi n***a? Laugh out loud.
Words matter, Anthony.
Barely semi, but I'll allow it.
I look for ways to forgive people, especially
young people when they've made youthful mistakes.
I look for ways, um, to forgive,
but a lot of people hear this word
and it, it is become so, it's just accepting
that other people are like, oh, well, well,
but substitute that.
And I'm apologizing.
Say I'm sorry up front if I offend anyone,
but substitute it for anything you want.
Um, excuse me, that's my s**c. Excuse me.
That's my k**e. Excuse me, that's my G***o.
Now, other people may use terms
amongst themselves all the time, all the time,
but when someone else does it, it is, it is cut somewhere.
Whether it cuts some young person, it cut, it cuts a group
of people, it cuts.
But we have to look for ways to forgive you all
because people do make mistakes.
And I'm always open to that.
And I appreciate this commissioner without me saying
anything, reaching out to me
and saying, Hey, alderman,
this has happened when I was young and I made a statement.
Yeah, send me over that statement.
I'm, I'm, I'm, I'm looking for a statement.
And then this is what I see earlier this week,
and this is from March 23.
Earlier this week, someone identified an inappropriate tweet
I wrote nine years ago when I was
18 and still in high school.
I regret having written it, listen to I regret
having written it.
Not that I'm sorry for saying those words, not
that I'm sorry to a group of people.
This is my insult level.
I regret I have written it.
When it was brought to my attention,
I immediately deleted it,
thanked the individual who flagged it.
If so, it could be appropriate action.
Now I'm seeking 35th Ward Alderman.
And I got another opportunity
after I announced my intent
to seek the 35th Ward automatic appointment.
A tweet from 2014 that I deleted two years ago resurfaced.
I would like to take this opportunity to express again,
my deep regret for making a mistake as a high school student
and take full responsibility.
I don't feel that, sorry.
I don't feel I am sorry. Regret.
And, and as I told people,
and I give my example here, is
if I was to have an opportunity to have an affair with
Beyonce and Jay-Z, catch me
and shoot me in my behind
and people interview me, alderman,
how do you feel about this?
What I regret being in that hotel room with Beyonce.
I regret that Jay-Z came in there,
but you'll never hear me say I'm sorry for sleeping
with Beyonce because I wouldn't be really.
But I regret that that happened.
And so it's a difference between regret
writing something down and being godly.
Sorry, godly, sorry
for hurting a group of people.
'cause I don't know what kids are looking at this.
I, David Moore have an insult level.
And, and, and, and I, and I, and I and I,
and I will say this, um, to the commissioner, use
my opposition in terms of what I'm saying
as a growth opportunity.
Don't take it as anger. Use it as a growth opportunity.
Because when you, sorry about something, in my opinion,
it just comes out.
I don't have to dress it up.
But when I write something down
and I'm intently writing down
and I'm intently not writing, I'm sorry
and I'm intently using certain words,
that's what got me.
Not so much the other stuff.
Because as Reverend Cla is said,
please don't spit in my face
and then tell me it's raining, don't do it.
And that's the way I felt about the apology.
And so for me, on behalf of the resident of 17th Ward is as,
as much as I know, um, my former colleague, um,
has put somebody together and, and,
and helped mold somebody to, um, take on his, um, um,
take on after him and, and serve his community.
Um, I wish I could, but
because I have an insult level today, I cannot, um,
support this appointment.
Thank you. Thank
You. The chair recognizes
Alderman Burnett.
Thank you, Mr. President and, and,
and, uh, members of the council.
So I just wanna say I thank God
that the past doesn't equal the future.
Uh, when I was about Anthony age, I made a mistake.
And I thank God that the people in my community,
the city council, the governors
and folks from all over, um, forgave me for
what I did when I was a teenager.
A lot of folks make, uh, mistakes when they were teenagers.
Um, it appeared that even with this situation, it was a,
a means of endearment.
Uh, it wasn't even toward an African American person.
Uh, it's unfortunately, it's unfortunate that folks take,
take things that happen in our culture, a lot
of negative things that happen in our culture,
and they use it in a, in a different manner
because a lot of folks follow our culture,
whether it's rap music or these sayings
or whatever the case may be to be cool.
And, and a lot of young people, uh,
influenced by these things.
Um, I just wanna say the commissioner came to me.
Uh, he spoke to me, uh, probably was one
of the first ones he called.
And I was very impressed. I accepted his apology.
I understood it, you know, from, you know,
having made a mistake myself, uh,
when I was 17, 41 years ago.
Uh, and again, thank God the past doesn't equal the future.
Does that mean he don't like African Americans?
'cause he called a Latino guy his n***a.
You know, I mean that's, I mean, I don't, I don't get it.
But we not gonna argue about that.
What I can say is my colleagues,
my county commissioners from my district, each
of them called me in support of Anthony
to tell me how great he is.
Matter of fact, one of my county commissioners even told me
how he as a younger person mentored them
to be a county commissioner
and how they rely on him with all of his knowledge
and his resources to be able to get into their position
and do a great job for, for our community.
So I just wanna say thank you Anthony.
Uh, he's been on several committees.
Uh, a myriad of other elected officials from across Cook
County has called in support of Anthony from, you know,
from the top to the bottom, from black, white, you know,
Hispanic, uh, all types
of folks have called in support of Anthony.
Anthony, I look forward to working with you.
I think you are a very impressive young man.
Uh, when I see you, I see one of my young, one
of my sons, right?
Uh, who is very active in the community, who's creative
and who is very well read and well smart.
I just wanna say I commend, um, this appointment, uh,
and I support this appointment. Mr. Mayor. Thank you.
Thank you. Chair recognizes Alderwoman Taylor.
Okay? He calls the other n***a,
he calls himself, n***a all the
Gonna take silence.
Could you please remove him from the, the,
That's this My, oh this, it's here.
I'm like, what is this going on? Here
Is you.
So that's a clip. Okay? Just please, thank you.
Just order here please.
And my apologies, I didn't know
where it was coming from. Okay, it's
Fine. Thank you.
Please continue. Alder woman Taylor, please.
So I played that clip
because we talk about the power that that word has.
And as a black woman, it is different from me than
what it is for a black man.
And so I was told it ain't what they call you.
It's what you answer to.
And so he made that mistake when he was, he was a kid.
We've all said stuff that we don't agree with.
I don't think that that takes away from his community
actually picking him to be in that space.
And so that I, I've been called a n***a
by one of our coworkers.
It was my first time speaking on the floor after I spoke.
I had this like anxiety attack and I walked out
and one of my coworkers was standing on the other side of
that door and said, who do that n***a thinks she is?
I wasn't surprised. I didn't report it. I wasn't her.
'cause I know what y'all think of us.
I know that's how y'all feel, but those are your feelings
and you're entitled to 'em.
And so why I don't agree with what was done.
I do understand he was a kid. I'm a eighties baby.
We didn't have Facebook and Twitter and X
and all of that where you record some
of the silly stuff we've done and said.
And so I won't say
that I wasn't offended by what was saying.
'cause of course that word bothers all of us.
But taking outta content, it was clear he was going back
and forth with a friend of his.
He's entitled to it shouldn't have never been on social
media, but it is what it is.
But him saying those words,
don't make me think he gonna vote against my interest.
Don't think I won't have an ally in here.
Don't think that he won't vote for things
that are great for my community.
And so while some of us are heard by what he said,
I'm not gonna take away from people's feelings.
You're entitled to 'em. But I wasn't.
And so, Anthony, you got my support.
I know you as a Cook County commissioner, I know you
as a person standing on the front
line fighting to what's right.
And so we all make mistakes.
And so I hope you learn from him
and I hope that you make sure that you move in the direction
that's safe for all of us.
'cause what you said was unsafe.
It could have gotten somebody hurt.
But I know that's not who you are
because of my relationship with you.
And so I'll say it again.
We, we say it all the time amongst us.
It's not okay for y'all to say it. It's not.
We know what that word was intent for.
We know how it was made up for a racial slur. We know that.
And so don't say it ain't your place.
Now what we say to each other is black people that's on us.
'cause I'm sure there are plenty of
things you all say to each other.
And so let let's make it clear and what why was not okay.
This is where we are. And we, in the world
where racism is right in our face,
you all don't hide it anymore.
You all don't make it a secret.
Let's not act like he not the only person
on there talking about n***a.
And the thought that we having this whole debate about it,
we just had a whole debate last month doing black history
month about what an art exhibit.
I ain't hear nobody say nothing. Then what, what,
what was the, what was the defendant then?
And so like, we gotta be very careful about
what we talk about that offends people.
And if the man apologize whether you agree with it or not.
'cause I get a lot of apologies. And apologies are like,
you know what, to me, you just said it,
you say it 'cause it's convenient.
We will know if he literally means it by the way he works.
Thank you, Mr. President. Thank
You. The chair recognizes
Alder la Spota.
Thank you so much, Mr. Thank you so much, Mr. President.
I'm glad to stand in support of this appointment.
I, I've had the privilege to know Anthony
for close to 10 years now.
I've had the opportunity to know him
and work with him as a Cook County commissioner.
I had the opportunity to know him
and work with him as award staffer and as an organizer.
But more than anything, I, I had the opportunity to know him
and work with him before there was any title
or salary to his name.
And his empathy
and his integrity is something
that he has always carried with him.
I think as we're talking about this moment, I think both
of us have had a lot of learning experiences in both
of our lives around accountability, around the difference
between our intention of our actions
and the impact of our actions.
I've had the opportunity to grow from my experiences
and I know that he has as well.
And as older woman Taylor was saying, if he had not
grown in the last 11 years,
if he was not a different man today than he was then the box
of people behind him
and behind us now would look a lot different than he does.
The folks speaking for you today, with you today vouch
for your character and for your solidarity.
And that is why I am so glad
and privileged to welcome you
as a partner in governing our community together
and in governing the city together.
Thank you. Thank you, Mr. President. Thank
You. The chair recognizes
Alder woman Cruz.
Thank you, Mr. President.
I also rise in support of the appointment of Anthony Casada.
Um, not only he is my commissioner, um,
but he is also the Commissioner of the 30th Ward.
And, uh, working with Commissioner Casada has been
a true partnership.
You uh, he has built an outstanding team who, him
and his team has always gone above
and beyond to serve the residents of the eighth district.
You have been there for when times
that we were in a difficult situation to help residents.
You have showed up with either a call,
you have showed up to the office.
So again, you and yourself always go upon it beyond
and always been there to cooperate with the, with us
and doing a lot of different events.
And I wanna speak to that and, you know, your work ethic
and how understanding you are,
how you're committed, how you follow up.
And those are the things that we wanna see
also in city council.
And I think you'll be outstanding, um,
as you have been doing with, with your work.
But also there's times that we have disagree.
There's times that we are both on different end of a,
a subject or something that is very important.
But something that we hear, hear often is the ability
for Anthony to give you the opportunity
to understand your point of view, but also to hear him out
and come out to something that we both agree.
But we have done it with a lot of respect
and at times we have ended in different, um, oppositions,
um, or views on certain topics.
But something that a lot of people said here is,
he will have, he will take the time to hear you out,
but more, more than just hear you out.
It's really understand your point of view as well.
So I appreciate that a lot about you.
Um, again, in the work that you have
and the help that you demonstrated also for, for my staff
as well, when, um,
times we were also learning about the process, you, um,
and your department were there.
But again, we, yesterday in an event, somebody reached out
to me and, you know, who was a critic of the prior alman,
but said it was, she was hopeful
and really po looking at a positive view
of Anthony Casada coming into this role.
And I think that's what we're gonna see a lot is, um,
everybody, you know,
most people being excited for him to be here.
But again, I just make sure that everybody knows, um,
his work ethic and everything he does
and how he will also change things here in city council.
So I look forward
to our partnership again at a different level.
But thank you for what you have done so far for, for all
of us and all the residents of the 30th board.
Thank you. Thank you.
The chair recognizes Alderman, Mike Rodriguez.
Thank you Mr. President.
Uh, first and foremost, I wanna welcome, uh, to our chamber,
uh, commissioners, uh, Bri Lowery, Scott Stamps and Steele.
Uh, I spent some time at on the county side,
uh, some years ago.
And I know the work is, uh, very heavy over there.
And um, I know that you are very familiar
what leadership is like and what colleagues you have
and how difficult it is to build relationships,
to build working groups, to work together,
to achieve so much change.
And it signifies so much to see you all here today.
From the south side to the north side to the west side,
representing the suburbs
and the city of Chicago all here for one purpose to support
a leader like Anthony, Joel Casada, commissioner Casada.
You know, the fact is we sat on a committee together,
a countywide committee together, Anthony.
And it was in that committee where I knew
and I learned firsthand about your work ethic.
I learned firsthand about your putting your money
where your mouth is when it comes
to investing in working class people,
to investing in the least of us,
to bring out the most of us.
And the fact is, I believe
that you will sit honorably in this chamber.
I do believe that you will sit honorably, honorably,
you will serve honorably.
And today, my friend, is a good day for the city of Chicago.
Today is a good day for your family.
Today is a good day for your mentors and those around you
because this day culminates in a person who's grown,
a person who's ready to lead, a person who's ready
to join this chamber and offer
so much new energy and vibrancy.
That's what you represents.
That's the person that I know
and that's the person that I'm excited
to welcome into Chicago City Council.
Mr. Presidents, thank you for this appointment,
I think is a stellar one.
And I stand with you, Romano.
Thank you. The chair recognizes Alder Vazquez.
Thank you very much, Mr. President.
Um, I also stand, uh, in support of our soon
to be colleague, uh, Alder person Anthony Casada.
Uh, I've known Anthony now he's like eight
or nine years, uh,
as we all started organizing, uh, around the same time.
Uh, I, i like many people, like most people,
we don't start out perfect.
Uh, we grow through our relationships
and through exposing ourselves
to people that are different from us.
Uh, and I think it's been, uh, an example of that growth,
uh, to see Anthony in leadership.
Now, uh, we've also seen folks who've been appointed
to this council who may not have the most experience.
Thankfully everybody that's been appointed
as I've been here have been top notch.
Uh, they've been really good examples in the last term.
But to have somebody who's also worked at a ward office
that understands the services is really great
for the constituents, regardless of someone's ideology
or what someone, uh, may serve.
They're here to provide the service
for anyone that needs it.
And I think that's important.
So the people in the 35th Ward, uh, get
to see leadership that doesn't skip a beat.
Uh, I think it's also a lot of opportunity to have someone
almost reset the table here
as we have new blood into this council
to have the opportunity to bring people together
who may not have engagement with each other as colleagues.
And I think this'll be a good opportunity for Mr.
Casada to set that example, to have those conversations.
Um, we have a lot of tough decisions coming
before this council in this next term
or this term I should say.
We have budget votes, we have a lot of things
that we may not agree on.
And the more we engage, the
better we're gonna be as a council.
And so I would, uh, challenge, uh, uh, soon
to be Alderman Casada as I would challenge anyone,
anyone coming to this council to take opportunity
to have those, that engagement, to have those conversations
with us, to bring people together who may not agree, uh,
'cause we're all gonna need it and the
city will need it as well.
So, uh, stand in support and thank you for
The opportunity. Thank you Mr. President.
Thank you.
The chair recognizes Alderman pdo.
Thank you Mr. President Anthony.
Me Anthony is one of my three, uh,
cook County commissioners.
So, um, I wouldn't say we work a lot together.
We have a casual relationship, but it's a good relationship.
As we all know, Anthony's way over here
and Nick pdo iss way over here.
But we can still work together.
I feel I consider him a friend.
We don't go out drinking or hanging out
or watching a ball game or anything like that,
but we have a working relationship and I appreciate that.
But all I wanted to say, the
main thing I wanted to say, uh, Mr.
President, is I could care less
with the Cook County Commissioners say about supporting him.
I could care less what his
colleagues say about supporting him.
And I could care less what some
of the people in the gallery say about not supporting him.
Alls I care about is what you say. It is your choice.
I'm a big believer it is your choice
to pick whoever you want for whatever reason.
So therefore I support your choice for Anthony Casada.
Thank you, Mr. President. Thank
You. The final two speakers,
unless there's anyone else that wishes to speak.
Okay, the chair recognizes Alderwoman Clay.
Thank you Mr. President.
I didn't think you were gonna call on me so quick,
but I appreciate that.
Uh, good afternoon, Anthony. Welcome to the gauntlet. Okay.
Um, I wanted to just first off say
that this is a beautiful moment for any young person.
This is a beautiful moment for any young person
who is thinking about running
and representing their communities and their government.
Um, this is a beautiful moment
for anybody who's ever grew up in poverty, to be at the helm
of the seat of power to represent your community
in a thoughtful way.
Um, I also wanna say that this is a huge opportunity
for the 35th Ward.
Y'all, y'all been putting in work over there.
And I wanna say that publicly
because as a community of organizers, it's not always
as easy to just walk into a seat of power.
It takes real blood, sweat, and tears.
And this is the culmination of that moment.
I also think that this is a teachable moment.
I think that this is a really, really
personal teachable moment that a lot of us need
to just hold space for.
Um, as the youngest black Woman Caucus member,
um, it gives me great pleasure to be on this floor
with you all because my great grandparents
who fled the South kid
and called n****r their grandchild now has the opportunity
to be at the seat of power in the city of Chicago.
Right? Um,
because, uh, the only conversation
that we're having here is not about who you are as a human,
as a man, as an organizer.
Um, this is about a really traumatic word
in the black community.
And I want us to have a moment
because to Taiwan's point, if there were any other words
that were stated, we wouldn't even
be having this conversation.
This wouldn't even be something that we would be voting on.
And so I wanna just have that reality
that this word still carries immense trauma
in the black community.
Now, as my family has tried to do
what my mom says all the time is turn sugar into
or turns into sugar, okay?
We try to use it as a term of endearment.
We've tried to kind of blur lines on what it means
to be called that word.
But we have folks
where this word carries deep trauma.
Every every black person in this
room has been called a n****r.
And they can tell you how it raises the hairs on the back
of their necks because of the ancestral trauma
that's within their word.
Now, that does not take away from the fact
that you are a brilliant, smart, amazing human.
You've just made us have a uncomfortable conversation
as a family where we have to assess what does
that word mean for us?
Because to Alder woman Taylor's point, it's not
what they call you, it's what you answer to, right?
So I wanna use this as a teachable moment.
I want to use this as a teachable moment so
that our communities can understand that we are tied
by a accord black and brown communities.
You all, I want you to know that we need the same things.
We need affordable housing, we need great schools,
we need safe communities.
All of us need these basic principles.
And what I'm asking as you enter the gauntlet
that I've been asking all my colleagues, is
that we work together to unite our communities.
This isn't an opportunity to point fingers and place blames
'cause everybody has a mistake moment.
What this is an opportunity for us to do is
to use this moment to say, Hey,
what are you doing in your community
that will also benefit my community?
And how can we push that forward?
One of the worst things to be called on this floor,
y'all, is a uncle Tom.
I hear it in the back of my neck every single time I sit in
this beautiful seat, nobody wants
to be called an Uncle Tom
and saying they're not putting their people forward.
That they are not putting their people in a better place
than where they were left.
Right? And I know that you coming on
to this, get used to that.
I know you coming on to this with some real power
behind you, but I really want to use this
as an opportunity not to bash you for making some mistakes.
That's not the point.
The point is to use this moment to say,
I'm coming with open arms.
I'm coming with working hands to, to bridge the gap
between our communities to build bridges instead
of continuing to make it seem like we're always at eyes.
I'm a mommy, my mom, my baby will be five in three weeks.
Uh, and she's half Dominican.
So I know how this word is used
interchangeably in the culture.
I'm in it now. What I'm telling you is
this should not be why we're having this great
debate on this floor right now.
It should be about how are we working together.
And so I just wanna extend that olive branch.
This is in no way shape, form
or fashion given anybody else who is not in the culture
the opportunity to say that word
or think that they can use it and have no repercussions.
That's not that at all.
What we are saying is that we hear you, we appreciate you,
and we want to work with you.
So with that, I say I appreciate you Mr.
President for this appointment. You have my support. Thank
You very much. The chair
recognizes Alderman Gardner.
Thank you Mr. President.
Um, I stand against this appointment.
Um, and to be clear, um, I first want
to thank Carlos Ramirez, Rosa for the 10 years
that he spent in this council.
We disagreed on many things, but I am appreciative
and respectful of the service that you have given the city.
And I wish you well in your new position.
I also think Anthony Cazada
is gonna be a good public servant.
I do. I think you're a good individual.
I I believe you when you say that you regret
what you have done, and I take that as your word.
And I think we should all be able to make mistakes
and be forgiven for our mistakes.
I just wonder if I made the same mistake
if this room would be as forgiving.
Nope. About you, Gabe say that.
I wonder if somebody who looked like me
and had moderate political views like me,
I wonder if this room would embrace me the way
that you're embracing Anthony Cazada right now.
I wonder if there would be an alderman that would introduce,
uh, a legislation to have me censored, censored
and get 20 other aldermen to sign onto it
because of the words that I said or spoke.
I wonder, I wonder if that's, that's what would happen
until we can, I'm not voting against
your appointment because of you.
I'm voting against the hypocrisy in this room.
And until we could start treating people equally
and being just as forgiving to other people
who make mistakes, I'm a no.
I vote against it and I'm calling it out.
My colleague, alderman Clay just said,
this is a teachable, teachable moment.
I, I agree. It is a teachable moment.
It should be a teachable moment for everybody in this,
in this room to simply ask ourselves, do we treat all, all
of us equally and fairly?
You know, I the past five years have been, you could say,
challenging for, for myself.
My family had a lot of
allegations thrown at me, many false.
He had protests outside my office,
called me every name racist, homophobic, transphobic,
every phobia you can imagine.
He, he's it, he's it.
And people holding signs, black lives matter.
I wanna tell me how much Black Lives matter.
And then a day later, within 24 hours,
they're the same people who call my wife's employer to try
to get her fired, who just so happens
to be an African American woman.
But we don't wanna let that secret out
because we wanna still go with the
narrative that somehow some way
He's racist.
So once again, I'm not voting against you, Anthony.
I think you're a good human being. I do.
And I take you at what your word you
say you regret what you did.
I'm sure you do. I'm sure we all have
made mistakes in our lives.
I'm sure we all did things or said things that we regret.
And I think we should all be given the same grace
that Anthony's given today.
Amen. But I also think we should call it the
hypocrisy in this room when we know damn well that people
who look like myself wouldn't be given the same type
of grace and latitude to make those same mistakes
to no thank you. Good
Job. The chair
recognizes all woman mi.
Thank you Mr. Chairman
and I stand to, um, support you Anthony.
Before I knew that you had used the N word,
you had called me and I accepted and said I moved forward.
Um, knowing that you're taking the place of Carlos
and the, the way, uh, the issue came out
with Auman Ramirez and myself.
We have been working together since then.
I tell you every step of the way, even uh,
during the election, uh, he and I met up
and walked in the community.
You serve as a part of the district of the eighth district,
uh, in Ed, part of the 37th Ward.
And um, I'm looking forward to you still keeping
that same commitment to work along with me
when I was a child growing up.
You know, they used to say a lot of words.
I'm old school, they could call you
everything out of the book.
But you know what we did put our hands on our hips
and said, sticks and stones may break my bones,
but words would never hurt me
because those are words that what we was called
as we were growing up
and we had to get past being called words
that try to make us feel like we was less than.
Now lemme say this, just so you know,
n****r was a word that came outta
slavery where whites would always call the
black folks n*****s.
So it was a translation. I had to look it up.
And as I was younger reading to keep from being offended
by it, anybody could be a n****r.
'cause n****r was something that was bad
and it didn't have a color to it.
It's the word that whites choose
to call black folks was a n****r,
but it didn't represent who you was.
Hispanics, Polish, Jewish, anybody could be a n****r.
It is not about a color.
But if I was to words bother me,
I promise you I wouldn't be standing here as ottoman.
'cause I probably got called everything from my community
folks, some who like you, some who don't like you,
that don't make you be who you are,
but those are some, what you did was put it in writing.
See, now you got another level here.
You gonna say something that may be derogatory?
You certainly don't want to put it in, right?
So that's something that you have to make sure
that never happened again,
because I have interracial family members
and I know that they could talk both language
and they don't mean nothing by any of it,
it just the way they talking
and communicating with one another.
But there are folks who are still sensitive about
using the n****r word.
We was called n*****s Negroes.
We done moved on up the ladder.
Now we black, now we are African Americans.
I can give you all kind of names you've been called it.
Don't make no difference as long as you treat me right,
treat me as a human being.
And that's the way you should feel as you represent,
uh, your constituents.
It's not a color, it's a human being.
And you want to treat them right
and treat them the way you wanna be treated.
That's the most thing I can give you outta this.
Treat folks the way you wanna be treated
and you will be all right.
But I'm looking forward to collaborating with you
and developing that relationship
with you here in the council as we move forward on policy
and moving this great city forward.
So thank you so much. Thank you Mr. Mayor.
Thank you. The chair recognizes Alderwoman Silverstein.
Thank you, Mr. President.
Um, I stand here today
as the only Jewish alderman on the city of council,
and I stand here today representing the largest
Orthodox Jewish community in the city of Chicago.
And I stand here today, um,
because I have made, um, lots of friends
and spoke, spoken to a lot of
mainstream Jewish organizations throughout the
entire city of Chicago.
And I have to tell you that the entire mainstream
Jewish community feels alienated in the city of Chicago.
And, um, at this point, I cannot support, um,
somebody who has been at anti-Israel
and antisemitic events.
And so for that reason, I will be voting no.
Our final two speakers are Alderman Robinson and Alder
and Chairwoman Harris, unless there are any
other alders that wish to speak.
All right, our final two,
the chair recognizes Alderman Lamont Robinson.
Mr. Mayor, thank you.
There are four women in my life who
I respect tremendously.
And Mr. Mayor, when they vouch for somebody, I have
to take a moment and really listen in to them.
Um, my mother, who doesn't know the commissioner
that sits in the box a day,
but there are three other women, two
of these women in this body who I respect tremendously.
Chairwoman Harris, chairwoman Doo, who was not with us.
And then lastly,
cook County Board President Tony Preckwinkle, who
the reason that I spent six years in the Illinois General
Assembly and now replacing her as alderman.
When she calls, I do listen.
And when she vouches for someone,
that means a lot to me.
When I look at the box, I see my friend
and mentor, commissioner Lawry.
I also see someone
that since the 1960s as
been doing his part to bring justice to the city
of Chicago as well as bring the black
and brown community together.
Frank Chapman, commissioner,
you brought Frank Chapman to the party today.
Unbelievable. That says a lot about your character.
Somebody who is 80 something years old,
who looks like he's 60, that's been at the forefront
of all fights, between two disfranchised communities
that are still separated.
And a lot of this separation is
what we're talking about today.
So I agree
with Alderman Clay that this is a teachable moment.
I was talking to my cousin, who is an eighth grader headed
to Whitney Young about this
device that Alderman Taylor,
I'm an eighties baby that we didn't have.
And so this teachable moment is to our young people
that we have to be careful what we say
and what we put out in the universe.
And so Commissioner, I look forward to working with you
because our young people need to understand
what they say is important
and it lives with you forever.
And so I know that you've apologized
and I believe I know where your heart is
because of the people like Frank Chapman and Bill LA
and Cook County Board President Tony Preckwinkle
and my friend Kevin Morris behind you.
But my ask of you, commissioner, is that
you help this body move forward.
Citizens of the city of Chicago that have been kissed
by Nature's Sun are hurting.
We don't need more folk to
derail our movement for black and brown folks.
We need people that are gonna stand up
and move this city forward for two
disfranchised communities.
And so Anthony, I look forward to working with you to move
our communities forward.
And so that is my ask of you.
And from my understanding, I know
that the will is there to be able to do so.
And so congratulations. Thank you, Mr. Mayor.
Our final speaker from the city council,
be the chair of rules committee.
The chair recognizes Chairwoman Harris.
Thank you, Mr. President.
Um, it's evident that we're in pain as a city as you listen
to everybody's remarks.
And um, I just think that as a city council,
uh, we are, we're in pain.
And so I think that it's been, uh,
a real robust conversation on listening to everybody
and how they felt about some things that were said, uh,
that are part of a public record, um,
and how they come back to bite you in the butt,
as my mom would say.
So I'm looking forward to us moving forward
as a city council, um, learning how to work together
on issues to, uh, grow our city council.
The process by which Commissioner Casada got here is
that his community supported him in this.
Uh, he was represented by organizations
and groups across his entire ward for the support for him
to leave his commissioner seat to become their alderman.
Um, a very, to me, a very robust process that they went
through as a ward to make sure
that they would get the candidate that they of their choice.
So today I will be supporting, um,
commissioner Anthony Ada, um,
and I request a roll call, vote on it.
Very well. Thank you for all of our speakers today.
All those spoken to this item.
So there's a motion on the floor by Chairwoman Harris
for the appointment of the 35th Ward.
Automatic vacancy replacing Carlos Ramirez.
Rosa, who has resigned.
At this point, members of this body
should use their Eev device
because a roll call has been requested.
All right, the voting is now open. The voting is now open.
Please use your Eev device. The voting is now open.
If you need support, please raise your hand.
The voting is now open.
Just hit refresh.
All right, I will now call on those
who have not used the Eev device.
Um, Alderwoman Coleman not present.
Alderman osha Alderman OSHA is a yes.
Alderman Mosley not present. Alderman Burnett?
Yes, Burnett is a yes. All right.
Everyone has voted the role the core,
or I'm sorry, the vote is now closed.
Thank you Madam Clerk. There are 32 yays
and there are 11 nays.
So this matter has passed Altman Mitchell on a motion
to reconsider
Mitchell on a motion to reconsider Mr.
PI move to reconsider the vote.
All those in favor of the reconsider reconsideration
of this vote signify by saying aye.
Any opposed? Say no. This motion fails. Uh, Mr.
Quesada, please come to the DAAs.
The oath of office will be administered
by the Honorable Thomas m Donnelly, judge
of the Circuit Court of Cook County.
Please raise your right hand and repeat after me.
I, Anthony Joel Cazada.
Do solemnly swear I Anthony Joel Casada do solemnly swear
that I will support the Constitution of the United States,
that I will support the Constitution of the United States
and the Constitution of the state of Illinois,
and that I will faithfully discharge the duties
of the office of Alderman, of the office of Alderman,
of the city of Chicago, of the city of Chicago, according
to the best of my ability,
according to the best of my ability.
Congratulations.
Congratulations again, alderman Quesada.
Welcome to the City Council.
Do you wish to address this body? Yes, ma'am.
Leave from the body to allow our newest
member to address the body.
Good afternoon and thank you Mayor Johnson.
Members of the City council, distinguished guests
and members of the public and the people of Chicago.
My name is Anthony Joel Casada, and I'm honored
and humbled to accept the appointment to serve as alderman
of Chicago's 35th Ward.
The 35th ward's neighborhoods have shaped me
and continue to inspire me every day.
Before I go on, allow me
to recognize my guest this afternoon,
commissioners Bill Lowry, Scott Britton, Keisha McCaskill,
Kevin Morrison, order review, commissioner Samantha Steele,
former Alderman and Park District CEO, Carlos Ramirez, Rosa,
my brother Michael, my sister Samantha, my niece Nora,
Hilda Fontani, Joyce Brody, Lenny Brody, Frank Chapman,
Joe iOS, baker, Andrew Schneider, Nilda, Esparza,
Nataki Rhodes, Graciela Guzman, Caitlyn Brady, the members
of the 35th Ward's, IPO, United Neighbors of the 35th Ward,
and our longtime Logan Square residents.
Thank you so much for being here today.
I wanna thank the 35th Ward Committee
and Alder woman, Michelle Harris, for their time
and commitment to the Aldermanic selection process.
I also want to thank the many 35th Ward residents
who have supported me throughout this process,
including our independent organization.
I also want to thank the other applicants who stepped up
and put their, their names forward
to be considered for this appointment.
I look forward to working with you all
and our neighbors to advance our wards
and city's collective interests.
Last I want to recognize someone who has been a mentor,
a friend, and a trailblazer, former alderman
and now Chicago Park District superintendent,
general superintendent Carlos Ramirez.
Rosa Carlos led our ward with a deep commitment to justice
for 10 years in this council.
And I'm proud to build upon the foundation
of progressive good governance.
He helped lay in the 35th Ward
and even more proud that he'll continue serving our city
with dedication and compassion in his new role.
Please give him a huge round of applause.
Now allow me to tell you a little bit about myself.
I was born and raised in Logan Square at a time when the
neighborhood was still primarily
immigrant and working class.
I'm the son of two immigrant parents.
My father immigrated from Mexico
and my mo, my mother immigrated from Costa Rica
and they worked multiple jobs to support our family.
I'm joined today by my brother,
my sister, and my beautiful niece.
As I introduced earlier growing up,
I learned from my parents and our neighbors
that a community can thrive when people from diverse
backgrounds care for each other,
even under challenging economic circumstances
and poverty like which impacted my family.
The 35th Ward and the city of Chicago are made up
of diverse communities and families,
but we share common values
and concerns inspired by the diversity of
and values of our neighborhoods.
I've always believed that we can have elected leadership
that does more to advance our shared compassionate values.
That is why I'm so proud to have had the opportunity
to serve our community.
I've had the honor of serving our ward
and city in many ways.
First as a community organizer,
and then as the neighborhood services director in the 35th
Ward office for over six years
where I oversaw infrastructure improvement projects
and assisted thousands of residents
with accessing city and social services.
I was elected in 2020
as the 35th Ward Democratic Committee person.
And most recently I was elected
and served as Commissioner
of Cook County's eighth District for two years.
In each of these roles, I built coalitions, expanded access
to critical services
and fought for policies that prioritize working families,
whether it was working
to help build 100 affordable housing units at the Lucy
Gonzalez Parsons Apartments in Logan Square.
Defending immigrant families from deportation,
standing alongside tenants
and tenants unions for housing justice
or delivering property tax transparency
and relief at the county.
I have always fought to bring people together
to address our shared concerns.
I've always believed that the guiding principle
of government must be to do the greatest good
and to improve the wellbeing of everyone,
especially the most vulnerable in our communities.
As commissioner, I've worked alongside my colleagues
to increase funding to our Cook County health system
and create dental health units across multiple clinics.
As vice chair of the Labor Committee, I worked
with our Board of Commissioners
to pass the paid leave ordinance, expanding benefits
for workers in Suburban Cook County.
And more recently, I passed legislation
to ensure intergovernmental collaboration
between Cook County
and the city of Chicago to address violence
against the trans community.
As a community organizer, neighborhood services director,
democratic committee person
and county commissioner, my work has always been informed
by my own and my neighbor's lived experiences
from families being displaced by rising rents
and a lack of affordable housing options
to people sleeping under viaducts
or trains to seniors forced to sell their homes due
to increased property taxes from students at our
neighborhood schools who don't have the resources they need
to succeed and deserve to the neighbors
who can't access mental healthcare
or are forced to choose between medicine and groceries.
These are the daily realities many
Chicagoans are experiencing daily.
I know them deeply and I'm committed
to fighting every day alongside all of you so
that no one in our communities is left behind.
In the 35th Ward, I will continue
to support our community driven zoning
and development process because local zoning decisions
should be made alongside residents to meet local needs.
I'll work diligently to protect
and build affordable housing while working to pass reforms
to our property tax system to provide relief
to struggling homeowners.
I'm also deeply committed to improving
and modernizing our public transit system, not only
to drive economic development in our neighborhoods,
but also to reduce our city's carbon footprint
and combat climate change.
I'll also work with all of our stakeholders
to improve public safety
by implementing data-driven strategies
and investments that create safer neighborhoods
for everyone, and especially against
folks who are discriminated against.
I am passionate about many more issues
and I look forward to working on them all with you.
And I know that this work is difficult
and that there are many challenges ahead,
but I also know that if we come together,
we can accomplish amazing things
and deliver the results all Chicagoans
deserve to my colleagues.
I look forward to building meaningful
relationships and to collaborating.
Collaborating to meet our community's diverse needs.
To the people of the 35th Ward know
that I will be an alderman who listens, organizes,
and governs alongside you.
It is an incredible honor to serve as our next alderman,
and I look forward to
all the great things we will do together.
And to my fellow Chicagoans at this moment, now,
more than ever, we need to stand shoulder
to shoulder rooted in solidarity.
Let me say that again. We need to stand shoulder
to shoulder in solidarity.
I believe in Chicago, the city that raised me
and made me the leader I am today.
And I know that when we come to together,
we can build a Chicago where no one is left behind,
where every person, no matter their income zip code
or where they were born, has a chance not just
to survive, but to thrive. Let's get to work.
And thank you very much.
Uh, Mr. Madam Clerk, uh,
will you please add Alderman Quesada to the roll call
for the purposes of today's quorum?
And of course now our Sergeant at arms, will you please,
uh, escort Alderman Quesada to the 35th Ward.
Seat
chair recognizes Chairwoman Harris.
Thank you. Item two is a substitute resolution amending
the resolution, identifying the chairman, vice chairman
and members of the standing committees of the city council
of the city of Chicago for the 20 23 24 term to include,
um, Anthony Cazada replacing Ramirez Rosa, who has resigned
and adding Alderman bill to the budget committee.
Mr. President, if no one wishes to speak,
I move the adoption of this resolution
by the first most favorable roll call Previa
previously applied to item one on the committees on
committees of rules, and, uh, the ruse committee report
and associated unsuccessful motion to reconsider
Chair recognizes Alderman sdo,
The president. I'm
just looking for a clarification.
I voted against this in committee, but then
after I voted against it, I heard there's a commitment
to reorganize the committee.
I don't believe I supported Anthony.
I believe we're putting too much of a burden upon him
with those, all those committees and those tough committees.
I think the committees need to be or reorganized.
But now I believe Madame Chair, there is a commitment
to reorganize the committees.
I do. Um, I'm asking everybody to send in, right?
Okay. Yeah, their request. Request says nothing then fine.
But I just wanted to re-clarify.
Voted no in committee, but now I am voting yes in
counsel. But thank you. Very
Well. Thank you. Thanks you for the clarification.
Very
Well. Hearing no ob ob other
objections
and seeing no other hands sole ordered.
Mr. President, that concludes my
Report. Very well, thank
you. The chair recognizes Alderman Mitchell
on a motion to adjourn Mr.
President, there being no
further business before this body. I move that we
Adjourn hearing no objection.
So ordered this meeting is adjourned.