Chicago, IL Chicago Alliance Against Racist and Political Repression

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The National Alliance Against Racist and Political Repression was founded in 1973 in Chicago, Illinois to mount organized action against unjust treatment of individuals because of race or political beliefs. Its founding grew out of the struggle to free Angela Davis from a racist frame-up on murder charges surrounding the aborted attempt by Jonathan Jackson to free his brother, George Jackson and the Soledad Brothers in 1970. The Chicago Branch, now the Chicago Alliance Against Racist and Political Repression (CAARPR), continues to struggle for justice with a focus on the following goals.

Free Innocent Prisoners

Over the years the NAARPR has successfully campaigned for the release of many persons falsely charged and sentenced to death or to long prison terms. Currently the Chicago Branch is working to get a new trial for Mark Clements and his exoneration of a crime he did not commit. Beaten into a confession, which he repudiated at his trial as an adult when he was sixteen years old, Clements was given a life sentence and has been in prison for 26 years. The Clements case is an example of a lot of what's wrong with the current system.

Expose the Prison Industrial Complex

The NAARPR has been in the forefront of the struggle against the prison industrial complex, one of the fastest growing industries in the country, yielding over 40 billion dollars annually for major corporations. Its profits depend on the incarceration of more than two million people-mostly African Americans-and most of them for non-violent crimes. Through public forums and leaflet distributions, the NAARPR contributes to public awareness and attempts to stimulate action to end this situation.

End Executions

The U.S.A. has more people on death row than any other country in the world. The NAARPR works with other organizations in a campaign to end the death penalty. The moratorium in Illinois has helped thrust this issue on the national agenda, resulting in the introduction of several National Death Penalty Moratorium bills in Congress.

Secure Health Care for Prisoners

The NAARPR-Chicago is working to hold the Illinois Department of Corrections (IDOC) and the County Jails across the state to the standard of the Eighth Amendment to the U. S. Constitution, which bans cruel and unusual punishment. The U. S. Supreme Court has held that denial of medical care to people in the custody of penal authority violates this ban. We are working in Illinois on a Prison Medical Care Project that seeks two goals:

1. Intervene directly through legal and political action to compel IDOC to address urgent crises in medical care when we are aware of them.

2. Gather a sufficient number of medical records and complaints from prisoners throughout the IDOC in order to build a strong civil rights class action in the U.S. District Court and compel a system-wide solution to this problem.

Establish Civilian Control of Police

From its inception, the NAARPR began an ongoing campaign to put a stop to police crimes -committed with impunity-- primarily against the poor and people of color. Model Legislation to establish a Civilian Police Control Board that holds police officers accountable for their actions has been drafted and circulated. At the same time we are cooperating with other groups that have drafted ordinances to achieve the same goal of police accountability to the citizens of the city of Chicago.

Support Affirmative Action

Defending and extending affirmative action programs to end racism and genocide practiced against African American, Native American, Latino, and other 3rd World peoples in the United States, is another theme of the NAARPR's work. The organization also fights against acts and decisions that limit Black representation in the elected bodies of city, state, and federal government.

Human Rights Award

The Chicago Branch of the NAARPR has established a Human Rights Award. It is presented annually to individuals who have made outstanding contributions to the cause of justice and human rights. Among past recipients are Jane Bohman, Executive Director, Illinois Coalition Against the Death Penalty; Lawrence Kenon, Civil Rights Attorney; George Ryan, former Governor of Illinois, Rev. Juan Y Reed, Vicar, St. Martin's Episcopal Church; Constance Howard, Illinois State Representative, proponent for expungement of prison records; Jonathon Peck, Project Director with the Southwest Youth Collaborative; and Rudy Lozano, Jr., Executive member, 22nd Ward of Chicago Independent Political Organization.

The National Alliance Against Racist and Political Repression maintains other active branches in Kentucky and Nevada.