RESOLUTION
WHEREAS, Bomb threats were made to eleven Jewish community centers across the nation on February 20, 2017 and a cemetery was vandalized in the St. Louis area; and
WHEREAS, The latest troubling incidents are part of four waves of bomb threats which have been called in to dozens of Jewish Community Centers over the past five weeks; and
WHEREAS, Forty-eight Jewish community centers in 26 states and one Canadian province received nearly 60 bomb threats during January according to the JCCA, an association of Jewish Community Centers; and
WHEREAS, In the wake of these deplorable actions, Jewish community centers across the country have increased security and are holding town hall meetings to calm frightened parents; and
WHEREAS, Law enforcement agencies have heightened their vigilance in seeking to protect the rights and welfare of the Jewish people; and
WHEREAS, The Federal Bureau of Investigation has launched an investigation into the cases; and
WHEREAS, The Council on American-Islamic Relations has offered a reward for information leading to the arrest and conviction of people behind die threats; and
WHEREAS, On February 9, 2017, Pope Francis met with Jonathan Greenblatt, the Chief Executive Officer of the Anti-Defamation League, and issued a joint statement reaffirming Jewish-Catholic relations and denouncing anti-Semitism; and
WHEREAS, Each of us must be active in ending bigoted activity in all its ugly forms that denigrates the Jewish people or any other minority group; now, therefore
BE IT RESOLVED, That we, die Mayor and the members of die Chicago City Council, assembled this twenty-second day of February, 2017, do hereby strongly denounce the vandalism and threats made against those of the Jewish faith; and
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, TheJ a suitable parcbfiient copy of this resolution be presented to the Anti-Defamation League of Chicago. /
Alderman - 14th Ward