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Contact: Kareem M. Irfan [Chairman, CIOGC - Ph.: 847.867.4304; chairman@ciogc.org]

PRESS RELEASE
Chicago - Wednesday, May 22, 2002

ONGOING POLICE DIALOGUE WITH SIKHS, MUSLIMS PAY DIVIDENDS FOLLOWING SEPT. 11 TERRORIST ATTACKS
TRAINING VIDEO DEVELOPED WITH COMMUNITY FEEDBACK BEING SHOWN AT AIRPORT TRAINING SESSIONS

For Immediate Release

In the wake of the Sept. 11 attacks, Supt. Terry G. Hillard and other top Chicago Police officials began meeting with leaders of Chicago-area Sikh, Muslim, Orthodox Greek and Middle Eastern community groups who voiced concerns about racial profiling and a spike in hate crimes immediately following the terrorist attacks.

The honest and up-front dialogue that has marked the private meetings is now beginning to yield positive and tangible results. Those results include a commitment by the Chicago Police Department to supplement ongoing diversity training with specific instruction about religious and ethnic customs as it pertains to individuals of Middle Eastern descent.

"As a police department, we recognized there was a gap in our understanding of these cultures," Supt. Hillard said. "Based on that, we convened this group and started gathering input from the community. The result has been a new training initiative and lots of positive dialogue."

"With security concerns paramount in current times of turmoil, it is critical to have strong elements of trust and understanding between our law enforcement agencies and the communities they serve," added Kareem M. Irfan, Chairman of the Council of Islamic Organizations of Greater Chicago. "Supt. Hillard's forums accomplish that objective and are worthy of replication across the country. Chicago's Muslim-American community is proud to play a role in the forums and to help build these lines of communication."

One result of the ongoing talks is a new 12-minute training video, featuring forum participants who explain the significance of their religious garments and customs while offering helpful tips for avoiding misunderstandings during searches at airports.

"By participating in the training video, Chicago's Muslim-American community is committed to helping educate and train our police officers so they are able to respond effectively when they encounter sensitive religious and cultural situations," Irfan said. "The airport training video is designed to help dispel misperceptions, as well as bridge cultural gaps and misunderstandings."

The video is currently being used to train officers assigned to work airport security on behalf of the Transportation Security Administration. The video will augment the four hours of training officers are receiving in preparation for their new responsibilities. Additional diversity training videos are being developed for department-wide distribution.

Hillard and other police officials have met with members of the Multicultural Forum twice since Sept. 11. A third private meeting was scheduled for Wednesday at the Central District Police Station.

"Building solid, lasting relationships with members of our diverse communities goes further than simply doing the right thing. It's our obligation," Hillard said at a press conference prior to the group's meeting Wednesday. "In a city as diverse as Chicago, we have many different cultures that view the police from varying perspectives. As police officers, the onus is on us to understand those perspectives so we can better serve and protect our communities."

The new outreach to the Middle Eastern and Indian communities was prompted by a sharp increase in hate crimes in Chicago following the Sept. 11 attacks. During that month alone, the number of hate crimes based on national origin jumped nine fold from the previous year, to more than 40. The majority of victims in those cases were of Middle Eastern descent or Muslims.

The attacks also led to controversial searches at local airports of Muslims, Sikhs and others wearing prominent religious garments, prompting Hillard and religious leaders to develop a forum where the community could speak candidly about how the police were doing their job in the face of new security measures. Additionally, the forums have provided an opportunity for police to educate themselves about how to better communicate with people of different cultures.

The meetings are modeled after the citywide diversity forums Hillard initiated in the Spring of 2000 as a way to improve communication and build partnerships between police and Chicago's minority communities.

The citywide forums function as problem-solving workshops and are convened every other month to assess progress and address new concerns.

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