If the Laquan McDonald video was never released to the public, then Mayor Rahm Emanuel would have never made any changes within the Chicago Police Department. Why did it take the killing of a young African American man for Rahm to do something? Superintendent McCarthy was fired, one of the city attorney's stepped down, the head of Independent Police Review Authority (IPRA) resigned, and several African American Police staff were promoted to higher level positions.
There were many issues in Chicago before the release of the Laquan McDonald video. Now the embattled mayor is trying to get another chance to prove his commitment to the people. Why would anyone listen to a mayor who covered up a killing to win his re-election bid? If the city attorney, the head of IPRA, and Superintendent McCarthy knew what was going on with the Laquan McDonald killing, then the mayor also knew what was happening. The blame goes to the leader of the pack for the misconduct of his team. The cover up was managed from the top down. Select CPD officials along with State's Attorney Anita Alvarez worked in concert from the very beginning to make sure that the video was not released until both election cycles were over.
If a person is forced to make changes, then the changes are not sincere. Mayor Emanuel should be ashamed of himself considering that he depended on the African American vote to win office. The mayor has also been going out of his way to appear in pictures with African American people to make himself look good or feel accepted. This appears to be another futile attempt to win the people over. Several protestors have organized demonstrations in front of the mayor's house in an attempt to have the mayor step down.
Governor Bruce Rauner has also criticized the mayor for his inability to improve public safety in Chicago. Some of the mayor's supporters probably believe that this issue will go away one day, but the people will continue to fight for mayor Emanuel's resignation.
How many people think that the mayor would stand by their sides if they broke the law or found themselves in a compromising position? Most politicians will not even consider standing up for one of their colleagues or supporters in a moment of adversity whether the person is guilt or not. Effective political leaders make tough decisions to move the people forward and not sit on a time bomb before addressing specific issues that could taint or destroy their legacy.
Mayor Rahm Emanuel had a golden opportunity to stand like a champion when Officer Jason Van Dyke killed Laquan McDonald, but instead he chose to save face instead of bringing the issue to light whether it cost him the election or not. If the mayor would have brought the issue to light, then he would have been respected as one of the greatest leaders of our time. He probably would have won the election by a landslide.