WHICH WARD IS WHERE AND WHY?

(Kathy's random Chicago ward map)

Today I am starting out with some census demographics before I delve into the body of the story.

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the population of the country from the 2010 census is broken down as follows:

White persons not Hispanic- 63.7 %

Persons of Hispanic or Latino origin- 16.3%

Black persons-12.6%

Asian- 4.8%

Persons reporting two or more races- 2.9%

American Indian and Alaska Native person- 0.9%

Native Hawaiian and other Pacific Islander- 0.2%

(It adds up to 101.4% but who am I to argue with the government?  It is probably because Hispanics may be of any race, so also are included in applicable race categories and people report in more than one category.)

 

Females are 50.7% and male are 49.3% of the total country's population of 308,745,538.

The characteristics of Chicago‘s population  do NOT mirror those of the country as a whole except for gender, where females comprise 51.5% of the city. The total population is 2,695,598.

White persons-42%

Black persons- 36.8%

Persons of Hispanic or Latino origin- 26%

Asian persons- 4.3%

Persons reporting two or more races- 2.9%

American Indian and Alaska Native person- 0.4%

Native Hawaiian- 0.1%

(Again more than 100% but that is because of some double reporting)

According to the U.S. Census American Community survey, the breakdown of the largest European ancestries in Chicago is:

·                    Irish: (201,836)

·                    German: (200,392)

·                    Polish: (179,868)

·                    Italian: (96,599)

·                    English: (60,307)

Now you have the figures to examine, as I get to “the rest of the story  Because I have many readers outside the Illinois geographic area, I need to diverge a bit first with an elementary political education of how the City of Chicago is governed. Chicago is divided into 50 wards.  Each ward elects an Alderman to represent it in City Council.  The ward boundaries are changed every 10 years according to the census, and the process is called “redistricting.” Each ward is supposed to have approximately the same population. The boundaries are drawn and determined by the ethnic background of residents – they tend to resemble the scribbling of a two year old child.  Each ward is a self-contained area, but the shape is changed every 10 years to include or exclude certain populations.

Since there are 50 wards in Chicago and the population is currently determined at 2,695,598, that would mean that each ward should have approximately 53,911 residents contained within it.  Boundaries are cut and pasted from one ward and attached to another to conform with the population changes.

Chicago currently has 20 black wards, 13 white wards, 11 Hispanic wards and six wards with a “majority minority” mix of Hispanics, blacks and Asians.  Last week, the City Council’s Black Caucus revealed their proposed new ward map, which would include 19 majority black wards.  They would give up the 2^nd ward, represented by white Alderman Bob Fioretti.  The city has experienced a 182,000-person drop in Chicago’s black population and a growth of about 25,000 in the Latino population.  The Latino Caucus does not like the proposal that the Black Caucus wants because they feel that it does not give them enough new wards.  But if the Hispanic growth is 25,000, then that would only give them enough population for ½ of a ward.

Fran Spielman wrote in the Sun- Times, “The Hispanic Caucus is demanding as many as six more wards to reward Latinos for their 25,000-person population gain over the last decade. The Black Caucus map includes just two more Hispanic wards ­— the 10th and 23rd. Both are currently represented by veteran white aldermen: John Pope (10th) and Mike Zalewski (23rd).”

What does not make sense to me is that if the population of a ward is supposed to represent the population of the city EXACTLY by the percentages, then there should be 21 white wards, 19 black wards and 13 Latino wards.  That adds up to more than 50 wards, so some maneuvering would have to be done.

But what about women aldermen?  There had been 19 and now there are only 15.  If women comprise 50% of the city’s population, why aren’t there 25 female aldermen?  I know it doesn’t logically fit in quite the same way – because we all know that in the city, people naturally tend to segregate themselves by race, but definitely not by gender – making it easier to actually put on a real map.  But I am writing this, so I can say what I want to!

If we look at European ancestry in Chicago, then there should be four Irish wards, four German wards, etc.

One could make the case for all sorts of different groups having representation by the percentages but the bottom line question is, “Why should there be quotas by race only?”

Re-mapping should not be based on race, religion or ethnic background but solely on the population within a ward to have all Aldermen represent about the same population of PEOPLE! Citizens should be voting for the best candidate for the job, and that has nothing to do with the color of one’s skin; but solely on their qualifications to serve.

Haven’t we moved beyond making decisions based on race?  Haven’t we reached the point where people should ”not be judged by the color of their skin, but by the content of their character.”  I guess we have to keep dreaming, Dr. King.