GoodKids MadCity to host youth-led Chicago mayoral town hall
CHICAGO (CBS) -- Some youth activists in Chicago are hoping to make their voices heard in the upcoming mayor's race.
Leaders of GoodKids MadCity announced Monday they are hosting a mayoral town hall on Wednesday at Northwestern Law School.
They are also calling for the City Council to pass the so-called Peace Book Ordinance they created to stop the violence in the city. The group also wants to lower the voting age to 16.
The Peace Book Ordinance would create a new Office of Neighborhood Safety tasked with drafting a long-term comprehensive plan to address violence, and set aside approximately $100 million in city funds to staff it with at least 19 employees, including a commissioner empowered to coordinate the city's efforts to address gun violence. It also would set up a 16-member advisory commission to provide the office with guidance and oversight, and divert 2% of the Chicago Police Department's budget to fund violence prevention programs.
"We don't want to call ourselves GoodKids MadCity. If we get a mayor who truly cares about Black and Brown youth, and communities who are invested in our neighborhoods, then we will remove our name and rename ourselves GoodKids GreatCity," said Miracle Boyd, a youth organizer with GoodKids MadCity.
Organizers said five of the nine mayoral candidates have agreed to attend the town hall – Ald. Sophia King, Ald. Roderick Sawyer, Cook County Commissioner Brandon Johnson, Illinois State Rep. Kam Buckner, and community activist Ja'Mal Green.