'My constituents are really, really scared': Chicago alderman gets feedback from residents on rising crime
CHICAGO (CBS) -- A creative Chicago alderman is fed up with criminals using weapons to terrorize her neighborhood.
So she's challenged residents to use different kinds of weapon to fight back: keyboards, pens and paper. CBS 2's Noel Brennan takes us to the far North Side.
"The 50th Ward is one of the most diverse wards in the city of Chicago."
On the far North Side, an alderman finds a simple way to get a read on her community. She asks her ward to write.
"Maybe now it's close to 150 because they keep coming in," said 50th Ward Alderman Debra Silverstein.
"Our family has lived in this neighborhood close to 50 years. In the last few months, we've experienced more crime than in the past 50 years," wrote one resident. "I never in a million years would've thought I would feel that way about our North Side neighborhood."
The paper read "Car robberies every night and actual cars stolen several other times in our block. This needs to stop."
"We have seen an uptick in crime and it's very, very concerning to us in the 50th Ward," Silverstein said.
Alderman Debra Silverstein (50th) sent a newsletter on Monday, asking to hear from neighbors about the impact of recent violence. The kind of violence that takes the life of an 18-year-old just sitting in his car. The shooting in West Ridge on Sunday is the latest deadly example.
"We had one child killed in Warren Park over the summer. We have had three homicides in October," Silverstein said.
Police data shows violent crime in West Ridge jumped 38% from 2021 to 2022.
"These homicides that have been happening are not the norm for our neighborhood. and I want the police superintendent, and I want the mayor to pay attention to us up here. And I want some more resources. And I want this neighborhood to get back under control again," Silverstein said.
The alderman does not hide how she feels.
"I'm angry and I'm frustrated and my constituents are really, really scared," Silverstein said.
The effect on her neighbors is spelled out on paper.
"This neighborhood used to be safe to walk around at night," wrote one resident.
"Now I have to think twice before letting my kids walk around outside alone," added another resident.
Alderman Silverstein said she plans to give all the letters to Mayor Lori Lightfoot and Chicago Police Superintendent David Brown. She's also requested a meeting with them.