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As reported at the March 24 general membership meeting, con- tract negotiations needed a new kick in the ass. So I decided to text the mayor directly and ask for a one on one meeting.
As anybody from our committee who has been at a contract ne- gotiation session can attest, the conversations almost always seem to go nowhere on the City’s end. They listen, they take notes and it’s just almost like lip service. We try to have subsequent conversa- tions on what they’re asking for, back and forth. But again, coming to agreements and understandings has been like pulling teeth.
So I thought, Let’s at least come in and sit down and have a con- versation one-on-one, keep the clutter out of it and maybe we can get some movement here.
The text was:
“Ms. Mayor, these negotiations and the resulting back and forth in the media is not moving the needle very much. It seems more practical to possibly sit down, one-on-one and try and knock out
some of the major issues if possible. Please let me know if you have interest or not.”
I do know this: It triggered a response. She usually responds right away and I know she responded. It just wasn’t to me right away. It probably was to the people who might be telling her a different ver- sion of reality and be like, “What the hell is this guy sending me this stuff for? What does this mean? I thought there was progress.”
I guess she was a little caught off guard by my direct approach and the implication that not much has been done in negotiations. Our goals include having a conversation about adding a fifth year to our proposal. Otherwise, by the time this gets ratified, it’s going to be expired, which is pretty damn stupid. Along with adding the fifth year, we’re going to talk about our proposals for mental health resources and working with EAP, as well as increasing the wellness screenings that I discussed last issue.
Let me put it to you this way: We haven’t played all our cards yet.
Coming to a district near you this summer, all fall and even through part of the winter is the Lodge 7 mobile kitchen. We are preparing to deploy a 32-foot trailer that will be equipped to hold barbecues and community events and provide aid to officers throughout the state and even the country.
We saw that this Lodge was a vacuum in that the membership was not a priority like we thought they needed to be. So we talked about ways to make that happen. And not only by going to roll calls, but by doing barbecues and being out to support members. And if we can combine those, even better.
So we came up with the idea to purchase a trailer. It’s better than standing in front of a roll call and giving a speech. If you can have smaller conversations multiple times with coppers who are coming to eat, it’s more personal. They feel like you actually give a shit, that you’re talking with them and not to them.
As part of the federal Payroll Protection Program last year, we got funding to keep the staff employed during the pandemic. It was enough money to buy a 32-foot mobile kitchen without having to take the money out of dues.
The idea for this really comes from something I learned from my grandmother. All she ever did was cook, and she taught me how food brings people together. It’s harder to disagree with somebody
or hate somebody when you’re having a meal together and conver- sation on top of it. You kind of highlight more of what you have in common under those dynamics than focusing on what differences there are.
So we’re going to use this to boost members’ morale, promote fraternalism, have discussions and bring the information directly to you. It’s also going to be used for community functions. We’re not going to go out and just pull up to a street corner and feed random people.
However, at some point we have to realize that the community is our key to changing this narrative. We must do a better job of reach- ing out and being a little more human. How we see that going is very simple. Dr. Willie Wilson has been phenomenal in cooperating with us at facilitating meet and greets.
I don’t know how it’s going to look specifically, but I could tell you whatever community outreach we do is going to be with cooper- ation with Dr. Willie Wilson. Wherever we set something up, we’re going to want the district law enforcement officers to show up, eat, shoot the shit and meet the citizens in the street. Because I assure you, the people showing up to those functions will be the people that like the police in their neighborhoods.
President’s Report: Report Shorts Text Booking
Let’s roll to roll calls and beyond
Last Words
About HB 3653, the criminal justice reform bill...
The chiefs, the sheriffs and the FOP are working on language for a bill to begin undoing some of this crap. I think it’s safe to say some of it, hopefully the majority of it, gets traction. There’s a thirst for a solution, even from the people who voted yes for the original bill, because tthey realize not only how ill-conceived the legislation was,” but how ridiculous their vote was. So they’re looking for an escape hatch and they know that we’re going to provide it.
We’re going to stick with the stuff that has direct impact on our mem- bers, with decertification, criminal charging and qualified immunity be-
ing the top priorities. Just because we don’t attack the rest of it doesn’t mean we agree with it. The way decertification is worded now is not very friendly. Not being able to review body cams will be the second priority.
About the Lodge 7 Memorial...
National Police Week has been postponed till October. As such, our memorial is postponed to October as well. The four names that are going on there were all COVID deaths, and out of concern for the families, we don’t want to force them to come to a ceremony that is going to be con- gested, because of the pandemic component. So we’re going to post- pone ours to the week before the national.
CATANZARA CONTINUED FROM PAGE 5
There is hope. We must let people know, especially with those two suicides, that whether it’s a dog or a cat or something or someone, they can help you face your problems in a very healthy way.
That picture was taken at Montrose Beach. I had Bruce for eight
years at that point. He was suffering from cancer in three different spots. I took him to the beach in the morning, gave him a dozen donuts, then took him to the vet to put him down.
Bruce continues to give me strength every day. And that’s what the focus of our efforts to increase mental health awareness is all about. We need to be strong. For each other.
6 CHICAGO LODGE 7 ■ APRIL 2021