-Angelot Ndongmo- 

Cousins!

Speed cameras have been said to be an easy way for the city of Chicago to pay down debt on the backs of both African American and brown people.

Let this sink in:

In the city of Chicago, where there are more than 32% Black and nearly 30% Latinx, they have placed 162 ‘unapproved-by-the-city-council’ speed cameras in 69 “safety zones.” This unfairly targets, affects and takes an excess of money from, black & brown citizens reports The Chicago Tribune.

A spokesperson for the advocacy group Chicago Coalition For Change, dropped some troubling facts highlighting that speed cameras HAVE NOT been approved by the city council, yet they’ve still been placed in the areas where populations of minorities are very high.

Mark Wallace, a spokesperson for Chicago Coalition For Change explains “Red light cameras, photo enforcement have little to no impact on safety and so what they’ve done is, they’ve created a solution for a problem that doesn’t exist.”

Mayor Lightfoot expressed the goal was to reduce deadly crashes, not issue more speeding tickets. They are still waiting for Lightfoot to make good on her promise to “reduce burdens on low-income drivers”.

There are statements from legislators on Chicago Coalition For Change website indicating they are aware speed cameras do not reduce deadly crashes, but that local governments are however “addicted to the revenue” coming in disproportionately from black/brown drivers, to the tune of $11.3 million just from March of this year.

In a time when where people are struggling the most, they have yet to remove the outrageously high numbers of cameras in heavily minority populated areas. They continue to reap in the profits all while managing to sleep very well at night.

Chicago Coalition For Change is looking for more community support to put an end to this treachery and abolish red-light cameras altogether in Illinois.

Cousins were you aware that speed camera targeted minorities?