Mayor Johnson addresses fight against crime in Chicago at roundtable discussion
Mayor Brandon Johnson, Chicago police officers, and community violence intervention groups gathered in the Pullman neighborhood on Wednesday for a roundtable discussion on their collaborative efforts to fight crime.
The focus of the discussion was about what went right in 2025 to keep crime numbers down – with a nearly 30% reduction in murders – as well as what they need to do moving forward to continue that trend.
Johnson said this was not a victory lap, saying his administration wasn't there to take all the credit for the decrease in crime, but to figure out what they need to do to see numbers continue to drop.
"We are far from done," Johnson said.
His team, officers from CPD's 5th District, and community violence intervention groups said communication, collaboration, and coordination are the three keys to success in reducing crime.
"As long as we have that communication, it allows us to detect the problem, try to come up with a common goal or solution, and that's the main part," said William Edwards, program manager at Acclivus, Inc., a community health organization based on the Near West Side.
The efforts include a high level of coordination and communication, Johnson said.
"Today, we're going to discuss what worked last year, and what more we can do this year to maintain that progress," Mayor Johnson said. "Another couple of quick notes — Deputy Mayor Gatewood has often described what my administration believes in. That's the power of the impact of our CVI groups — partnerships that are gaining strength as we continue on this journey of building the safest most affordable big city in America."
Edwards said the city's drop in crime in recent years has been made possible by leadership like he's seen in the 5th District police station, and their partnership with community violence intervention groups like Acclivus. The organization, a community health organization focused on violence prevention, was founded in 2010.
"This is probably, by far, the first that we've had a police administration that, in my opinion, have seen the community as an asset and not as an adversary, and they've worked to build relationships," said Acclivus community and civic engagement director Bamani Obadele.
Edwards said he understands those who have gone down the wrong path, because he was once there.
"I come from the Robert Taylor projects; so I grew up in the environment, so I understand. The people know me," he said. "Those relationships allow them to talk to me in ways that they wouldn't talk to law enforcement. So now they know that I can relate to them, they can open up and talk to me a little more."
Officers at the roundtable said they learned at CPD headquarters about the work of CVIs like Acclivus.
"Going to the workshops and learning some of the smaller tidbits we didn't know about CVI; the license to operate, the things that we wouldn't have known unless we went to the workshop," one officer said.
After multiple attacks on the CTA this past weekend, Johnson said that safety on the CTA is near the top of the list of challenges in Chicago, and that his administration is working to do better.
How is Johnson planning to move forward to make sure that people feel safe?
"Reducing violence is not limited to reducing shootings and homicides. Again, these folks around this table, we're trying to transform communities. If violence is less in a community, but people don't have meaningful jobs or access to healthcare, that association with violence is still material," he said.
One of the officers at Wednesday's discussion said, from their perspective, they had to understand to see people as people first and vice versa when it comes to the community viewing officers.
They said having that open conversation with community violence intervention groups helps them understand how to address their communities they serve.