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PROPOSED RESOLUTION
HONORING THE LIFE AND CONTRIBUTIONS OF MADELYN DUCR?
WHEREAS, Madelyn Brenda Ducr?, affectionately known as "M.D.", a longtime police and local government watchdog in Evanston, died on August 2, 2020. She was seventy-seven; and
WHEREAS, Madelyn was born in 1943, in Bonfouca, Louisiana. She was the fourth of seven children and eldest daughter of the late Joseph Leroy Ducr? and Mary Pearl Morgan Ducr?. She grew up on family-owned land in Slidell, Louisiana and attended St. Tammany Parish public schools. She was a bold and curious child, traits that carried through to adulthood; and
WHEREAS, Madelyn moved to Evanston when she was 18 years old for a modeling job. She married Donald Gibbs, Sr. and had six children. She lived in Evanston for the rest of her life. Ducr? also adopted her 2-year old grandson after her oldest son died in 2005; and
WHEREAS, in 1999, Ducr? earned a double bachelor's degree in criminal justice and sociology from Northeastern University. She went on to volunteer in the Cook County juvenile justice system and served as a court monitor, especially for hearings involving Evanston kids; and
WHEREAS, Ducr? got involved in police oversight and social justice after watching her sons and grandsons treated poorly by law enforcement, said cousin Albert Gibbs. For her, family was always a driving force; and
WHEREAS, Ducr? was a co-founder of Community Police Action Committee, which evolved into the Citizens Network of Protection. CNP helps residents with legal issues, provides educational programs, and promotes police accountability, transparency and oversight, among other services. CNP co-founder Betty Ester remembered working with Ducr? and how her sense of humor poked through their serious work. An effective networker, Ducr? would try to determine who she knew that might be able to help on different issues; and
WHEREAS, Madelyn's daughter LaTonya Gibbs remembered her mother as "very direct, but not in a mean way." Her ...
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