Annual Prayer Breakfast Focuses On Aftermath Of Laquan McDonald Case
CHICAGO (CBS) -- The continued tension over the fatal police shooting of Laquan McDonald was a hot topic Friday morning at an annual prayer breakfast attended by some of the state's leading politicians, business leaders, and clergy.
For 52 years, business, government, and religious leaders have gathered for the Chicago Leadership Prayer Breakfast.
Cook County Board President Toni Preckwinkle said she wanted to talk about race and class.
"Profound racism continues to plague our society. It's reflected not just in who is detained or incarcerated, but who is shot and killed by the police on our streets," she said. "I've lived in Chicago for 50 years. I've always believed that the police could shoot and kill people with impunity."
Preckwinkle said a prayer breakfast is the perfect time for a call to action to deal with issues of race and class, prompting applause from the crowd in the Grand Ballroom of the Hilton Chicago Hotel on Michigan Avenue.
"The mayor and others have been critical of people in the black and brown community for not coming forward when terrible things happen; yet we have to be equally critical of the police who, when bad things happen, cover up [and] perjure themselves. We are surely in a time of crisis," she said.
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Gov. Bruce Rauner agreed that Chicago is facing a crisis.
"This breakfast is occurring at one of the most important times in the history of Chicago," he said. "We also have a breakdown today, a tragic breakdown, in the institution of public safety; a lack of faith and a lack of trust. It is the most essential element for it to function."
Rauner said some of the most essential elements to restoring that faith are prayer, communication, and coming together to find solutions.
