Kirk snub left sour taste for group
A senator’s duty is to respectfully listen to constituent concerns, seek to understand them, and then take appropriate action. Sen. Mark Kirk and his staff have failed miserably in this matter. In January, a representative from the Catholic Conference of Illinois tried for two weeks to schedule an appointment in February with either Sen. Kirk or a staff member on behalf of the Office of Peace and Justice of the Archdiocese of Chicago to meet with Illinois residents who would be attending the Catholic Social Justice conference In Washington, D.C. The staff failed to respond to numerous phone calls and e-mails.
When 13 of us Illinois residents arrived in Washington for the conference, one agenda item was to meet and visit with our elected representatives, who represent all the people of Illinois, and advocate for civic matters involving justice for all. When we went to Capitol Hill, Sen. Durbin’s staff graciously welcomed us and the senator spoke with us. Rep. Danny Davis happened to be in his office and received us. Reps. Mike Quigley and Jesse Jackson Jr. took a few moments to say hello to us.
At the offices of every other Illinois representative, the staff greeted us, listened to our concerns, took the materials we offered them, and said they would pass the materials onto the respective representative. When we arrived at Sen. Kirk’s office, the staff was meeting in the foyer and a member abruptly took the materials and refused to discuss either our concerns or why they snubbed us. The uncommunicative treatment from Sen. Kirk’s staff contrasted sharply from that of Sen. Durbin, three representatives, and every other staff member.
Thomas E. Long, CSV
Arlington Heights