Former Chicago alderman looks at suburban corruption

A longtime professor of political science at the University of Illinois at Chicago, Dick Simpson has spent his career documenting the “corruption tax” paid by all Illinois citizens when politicians use public resources for private gain.

In his sixth corruption report, Simpson focuses on the suburbs, emphasizing they are not immune from the many faces of corruption: political officials with ties to organized crime, police misconduct, nepotism, and bribery and theft from government agencies.

The former Chicago alderman will discuss his report, as well as the reforms needed to clean up Illinois’ broken political system and how Illinois residents can take back their government, during a forum at 7 p.m. Monday, Oct. 1, at Elmhurst College.

“Although Chicago grabs the headlines, our entire metropolitan area is harmed by corruption,” said Constance Mixon, director of Elmhurst College’s Urban Studies Program, a sponsor of the forum.

“Graft does not stop at the city boundaries. It is ordinary citizens who bear the brunt of corruption, who directly experience it, and who suffer from it.”

The Citizen Advocacy Center is a co-sponsor of the event.

“This is an outstanding opportunity for people concerned about the current dysfunctional state of our political system to learn how we can work together to strengthen democracy at the local level, where citizens in a representative democracy can have the greatest impact,” said Terry Pastika, executive director and community lawyer for the center.

A copy of Simpson’s report can be viewed at www.elmhurst.edu/urban.

“Elmhurst College is proud to partner with the Citizen Advocacy Center to help provide our local citizens with the tools needed to counter corruption and more effectively engage in the civic life of our communities,” Mixon said.

“Green Grass and Graft: Corruption in the Suburbs” will be presented in the Founders Lounge of the Frick Center, 190 Prospect Ave., Elmhurst. Admission is free.

After the forum, Simpson and Mixon will sign copies of their book “Twenty-First Century Chicago.” Published in 2011, the book takes a fresh look at Metropolitan Chicago today, during a pivotal point in the region’s economic, social, political and governmental history. Copies of the book will be for sale.

For details about the forum, contact Constance Mixon at (630) 617-3569 or mixonc@elmhurst.edu, or Terry Pastika at (630) 833-4080 or tpastika@citizenadvocacycenter.org.