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Racism In Mount Greenwood Target Of Upcoming Prayer Vigils, Workshops

By Joe Ward | November 11, 2016 6:30pm | Updated on November 11, 2016 6:31pm
 Ald. Matt O'Shea (19th) and Supt. Eddie Johnson talk about improving race relations in Mount Greenwood after black youths had to cancel a planned protest amidst threats.
Ald. Matt O'Shea (19th) and Supt. Eddie Johnson talk about improving race relations in Mount Greenwood after black youths had to cancel a planned protest amidst threats.
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DNAinfo/Joe Ward

DOWNTOWN —  With racial tension spiking in Mount Greenwood and at Marist High School, the neighborhood will hold prayer vigils, town hall meetings and workshops in hopes of improving race relations in the area, city and police officials said Friday.

Ald. Matt O'Shea (19th), Police Supt. Eddie Johnson and Marist Principal Larry Tucker met with members of Black Lives Matter Youth at CPS headquarters Friday to discuss ways to improve the tension that spiked with the police killing of a black man in the area and racist texts from Marist students that followed the shooting.

"I was caught by surprise and I'm saddened by it," O'Shea said about racial tension enveloping Mount Greenwood. "Today, I hope we can turn the corner."

City officials had offered the meeting to the Black Lives Matter group, all black high school students, after CPS had asked them not to attend a planned rally outside Marist Friday. The girls had received death threats in advance of their planned protest, they said. (Marist, a Catholic high school, canceled classes Friday, even though the protest was called off.)

RELATED: Mount Greenwood Race Relations In Spotlight Again After Fatal Shooting

A protest tentatively planned for Sunday was also called off, though not necessarily due to to the threats against the girls, Supt. Johnson said, but to allow for a more productive dialogue.

"Everyone in Chicago has a right to have their voices heard," Johnson said. "You want to be sure the venue you chose has the most impact. They have an opportunity now to act on race relations in this city."

Black CPS students had planned to protest outside Marist Friday after a group of students used racial slurs in text messages. The messages were largely in response to the police killing of Joshua Beal, who was shot by off-duty officers following a confrontation in Mount Greenwood in early November.

CPS students make signs in support of classmates who received threats after planning to protest at Marist High School in Mount Greenwood Friday. [DNAinfo/Joe Ward]

A protest outside Marist, 4200 W. 115th St., will likely take place in the near future, but officials are hoping to diffuse the situation with its series of meetings and vigils before holding any protests.

"A lot of us know people at Marist," said Eva Lewis, student at Payton College Prep. "We reached out and said, 'Are you OK?' and they said 'no.' They said they felt in danger."

The students said their planned action outside Marist was to show support with the frightened minority students of the largely white school.

"We're not trying to be harmful," said Maxine Aguilar, a student at Jones College Prep. "We just want to show solidarity."

O'Shea did not provide specifics on the town halls and vigils that will be held, but the students said they could take place as early as next week. Johnson said the department has agreed to host workshops for officers to learn more about the Black Lives Matter movement, though it is not clear when those will take place.

St. Christina, a Catholic church in Mount Greenwood, will hold a  candlelight vigil Saturday night to help the community heal following the tension.

The vigil comes a week after a 25-year-old black man, Joshua Beal, was shot and killed Saturday by off-duty police in Mount Greenwood. Black Lives Matter activists went to console family of Beal later that day and were met by people holding a "Blue Lives Matter" flag and yelling at them to get out of the neighborhood.

Protests followed on Sunday where black activists said they encountered '60s-style racism as they clashed with demonstrators supporting police. Another protest was held Tuesday night, when police tried to get black activists to board a bus and leave the neighborhood in fear for their safety.

Johnson said he didn't agree with the language used by many in the pro-police crowd but said their right to free speech would not be impeded.

"Anytime you protest you should use the appropriate language," Johnson said. "Everyone has a right to their opinion. What I do take sides with is when it becomes something that can escalate to physical violence. That's when it become a concern to me."

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