Page 5 - June2020 FOP Magazine

CHICAGO LODGE 7
Official Magazine
President’s Report
FRATERNAL ORDER OF POLICE CHICAGO LODGE #7
EXECUTIVE BOARD
JOHN CATANZARA
President
Michael Mette
First Vice President
Daniel D. Gorman
Second Vice President
Fernando Flores
Third Vice President
Greg Bella
Recording Secretary
Jim Jakstavich
Financial Secretary
Dennis McGuire
Treasurer
Kevin Graham
Immediate Past President
Sergeants-at-Arms
Nenad Markovich Frank Quinn III Daniel Sheehan
Trustees
Harold Brown John Capparelli Pablo Claudio Frank J. DiMaria David DiSanti Mark P. Donahue Patrick Duckhorn Tom Fitzpatrick Dan Goetz Ken Hauser Tim Lonergan Brock Merck Steve Olsen Monica Ortiz Dan Quaid Ron Shogren Daniel G. Trevino
Field Representatives
Andrew Cantore Rob Noceda
Why it was such a ‘Big Meeting’
Looking out from the podium to see how members filled the hall at the FOP and overflowed into the bar area is a scene I will never forget. The first general meeting for our new administration attracted standing-room-only attendance. Two and a half hours after the 7 p.m. start, Lodge 7 members were still hanging around waiting to step up to the microphone to ask questions, speak out about our many issues and challenges and express their support.
We walked away from this meeting knowing we have a great start toward achieving one of the most important goals for our new administration: all the new faces finally getting involved in Lodge business.
Obviously, we are beyond blown away with the support across the board. I think the turnout is a result of not having a general meeting in several months, as well as the outreach targeting Lodge 7 members. We’re serious that we want more diverse voices at these meetings, not just on Facebook. Word is spreading that there is something different about this FOP, and people want to see what it is.
The best part of the night came at the end of the meeting. I had asked members to hold their questions until the end. I had been speaking for an hour and when I opened it up for questions, nobody stepped up to the mic at first. Then, the line formed and we spent the next 50 minutes answering questions.
You name it, and there were questions about it. Members asked for clarifications related to the riots, discipline, the stance on kneeling and the contractual gamut. There were legal ques- tions, and, of course, questions about the Bobby Rush incident.
Transparency was big, too. I’m not, nor have I ever been, the guy who says, “I’ll get back to you.” If I have an opinion, I’m going to share it. We are going to give you the information, and that was quite refreshing to people in the room.
The only uncomfortable part was that a lot of members were coming to the microphone just to say thanks that they have a voice behind them. I had to reiterate that this is not a one- man show. I’m only the megaphone putting out the message. There are so many great people behind the scenes making all this happen.
They are responsible for raising your voice and enabling the response we have made to the City, the Department, the media and the public that they are not going to bully us into submis- sion. Some of what you have been hearing and reading from me are thoughts I’ve had in my head for more than a decade. Now, I have a platform to voice them that happens to coincide with a rise in anti-police sentiment like we have never seen before.
In the back of my mind, I keep telling myself that somewhere out there a member is think- ing, “Why isn’t this Lodge speaking up for me?” This meeting was an opportunity to confirm that they don’t need to be afraid to speak up and participate. We don’t want people to suffer in silence. That includes members calling us out if they think something is wrong.
We can take criticism. That is the way to make it better. It’s all about having an open dia- logue. Members will see that if we give it some time, the goals and direction of our Vision Team will address the concerns and problems of the past.
This isn’t their dad’s FOP anymore. The historical knowledge and the work of our retired members have shaped the things we want to do. They will help us become better versions of ourselves.
This version of the FOP is never going to capitulate to the mayor, the Fifth Floor or anybody
JOHN CATANZARA
CONTINUED ON PAGE 6
CHICAGO LODGE 7 ■ JULY 2020 5