West suburban schools move concert from Symphony Center due to fears of chaos
CHICAGO (CBS) -- A concert involving elementary and high school students from multiple west suburban schools has been moved from Chicago Symphony Center to Oak Park and River Forest High School due to worries about unrest downtown again this weekend.
The concert was to be held Friday evening at Symphony Center, 220 S. Michigan Ave. It was to involve band, orchestra, and choir students form the Leyden High Schools – East Leyden in Franklin Park and West Leyden in Northlake – as well as Franklin Park School District 84, Rhodes School District 84.5 in River Grove, Rosemont Elementary School District 78, and Schiller Park School District 81.
About 2,000 tickets have already been purchased by school families and the school community, a letter to students and families noted.
But the school districts believe Symphony Center is too close to Millennium Park and are concerned that more unrest like what happened last weekend could be coming.
"We have been actively monitoring the situation unfolding in downtown Chicago over the past couple of weeks, given the proximity of Millennium Park to that of the Chicago Symphony Center location. We have coordinated with local law enforcement agencies and what we know at this time is that there is a reason to believe that active demonstrations may occur in Millennium Park this weekend," school district officials wrote. "No specific actions have been confirmed, however, a city curfew has been put in place and local law enforcement agencies are putting plans in place to address a potential situation."
The letter did not specify what was meant by a "city curfew."
Officials did announce this week that the teen curfew in Millennium Park would be enforced this weekend and it started two hours earlier Friday than in the past, and an earlier 10 p.m. citywide curfew for teens was approved last year. But there is no citywide curfew like the one instituted during the height of unrest in Chicago following the murder of George Floyd by Minneapolis police in 2020, nor any discussion of plans for one.
Still, the school districts concluded that the concert must be moved for safety reasons.
"The safety and security of our students, staff and families is our top priority. To that end, we have collectively determined that changing the venue location for this evening's event is the most proactive, appropriate action we can take to help keep our school community safe. Therefore, the event will no longer take place at the Chicago Symphony Center and will instead take place at Oak Park River Forest (OPRF) High School (main entrance, door 4)," officials wrote. "We understand the disappointment that this action may cause and are grateful for the patience of our students and families as we navigate the changing circumstances in Chicago."
In downtown Chicago, preparations are under way in hopes of preventing a replay if the shootings, beatings, robberies, and vandalism that happened last Saturday night – all in large crowds of mostly teens.
Chicago Police have been doing training exercises to simulate the conditions of last weekend, with the goal of controlling situations. This weekend, senior ranking officers will be on the ground – and they will be taking command of situations.
Chicago Public Schools also sent an email to parents encouraging them to tell their children "to spend time with a few friends rather than gravitating toward large gatherings."