There are times when it is simply unfair to second-guess the tough decisions cops must make

I am proud that members of Chicago churches, newspapers, nonprofits, and corporations are speaking out about the growing violence in our city and about the decades of segregation of minorities, especially Black people, from housing, education, and economic opportunity. And I cannot imagine the sadness engulfing the Toledo family after the shooting of 13-year-old Adam.

But I am concerned at what I see as the overly simplistic, developing consensus that blame for the current violence lies solely with the men and women of the Chicago Police Department.

I’ve known a number of those men and women. The ones I’ve known, both minority and white, are, in my view, good people. But it is also true that they work in a culture that is still very much prejudiced against people of color, and punishes members who dare to speak truth against any fellow officer. That culture must change.

At the end of the day, gangs, guns, and drugs will continue to proliferate and Chicago will always need an armed police force of men and women willing to leave the safety of their own (often safer) neighborhoods to spend their nights in some of the most violent parts of the city, to protect families like the Toledos, and to run down dark alleys chasing guys with guns who ignore repeated warnings and then stop dead in their tracks, turn, and start to raise a hand to either surrender or kill the officer. That officer will have to make a decision in a fraction of a nano-second.

In those situations, unlike the situation involving Derek Chauvin in Minneapolis, we have no right to second-guess those officers. I think that’s the “deal” they made with Chicago when they took an oath to do what they do.

As Chicago continues to speak out in response to the violence in our city, I pray that it will involve the police community in those conversations, and respect the sacrifice they and their families make for our families.