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PROPOSED RESOLUTION
CALLING FOR THE WEEK OF SEPTEMBER 25, 2016 TO BE DECLARED "CIVILITY WEEK"
WHEREAS, 70 percent of Americans believe that incivility in America has risen to crisis levels; and,
WHEREAS, the lack of civility in our national and local discourse threatens the foundations of our democracy; and,
WHEREAS, our tone and level of civility has an impact on our children; and,
WHEREAS, incivility on social media has led to nearly a quarter of children becoming victims of cyber bullying; and,
WHEREAS, incivility in the political rhetoric has increased in recent years; and,
WHEREAS, 2016 has been a national election year in the United States of America; and,
WHEREAS, all election years bring with them a special responsibility on the part of public officials to take extra care with their rhetoric and public statements; and,
WHEREAS, 2016 has proven to be unique among American election years in the willingness of certain candidates to employ extreme and caustic statements in an effort to galvanize public attention and interest; and,
WHEREAS, the Cook County Board of Commissioners has, in recent years, provided other governmental entities and the community at large with a fine example of collegial government and bipartisan cooperation, with plentiful examples of cooperation between members of both political parties; and,
WHEREAS, policy debates in Chicago and Cook County including, but not limited to such subjects as law enforcement, race relations, gun violence, taxation, and economics, are extensively covered in local and national media; and,
WHEREAS, the designation of the week of September 25, 2016, the last week of September, as "Civility Week," is an appropriate and fitting way to call attention to the need to perpetuate positive and courteous relationships among elected officials, so that Cook County may continue to provide an example to other forms of government in the region, state, and nation and serve as an example for those we...
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