Latinos accuse black alderman of racism

Leticia Espinosa:

Latino residents of the Northwest Side Cragin neighborhood are accusing their African-American alderman of racism after she attributed a growing problem with rats to the ward's rising Latino population.

Aldo Morua of the 2300 block of North Lockwood Avenue said the Northwest Neighborhood Federation initially approached Ald. Emma Mitts (37th) to arrange for the trash to be picked up at least twice a week, saying residents' garbage bins are not sufficient and the service is not consistent.

Morua became more upset when he read a letter about his request that Mitts sent to Michael Picardi, commissioner of the city's Department of Streets and Sanitation.

"Due to the enormous amount of Latinos that reside in District 37, including many families living in the same home, the amount of trash and rodents have increased immensely," read the letter, dated Aug. 12.

"The letter is racist, and we want Mitts to apologize to the community," Morua said.

Mitts explained that the letter was written by one of her employees, but the alderman said she accepted responsibility since she had signed it.

Mitts added that the letter was "not written with the intention of offending anyone but to address the request for additional garbage service requested by the Latino community."

Martha Corona, who has lived for 10 years in the 2100 block of North Lorel Avenue, said she freezes her discarded food to avoid attracting rats in the trash bins and streets.

Corona said such a practice is "common among neighbors interested in conserving a clean neighborhood."

Matt Smith, spokesman for the city's Department of Streets and Sanitation, said that in May the city assigned an additional garbage truck to District 37. He said that after receiving the letter from Mitts, the city also dispersed an additional worker.

Ald. Ricardo Munoz (22nd), whose own district is 80 percent Hispanic, said Mitts' letter had a racist connotation.

"She says if you are Latino, you are dirty. It's irresponsible for her to fault the community for something that is her responsibility," Munoz said. "She is not doing her job. From my experience I can say that if the trash is picked up once a week and residents can count on a sufficient number of trash cans, the problem will not exist."

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