Alderman Schulter Calls For Public Awareness Ads

Alderman Gene Schulter (47) called for a partnership between the City of Chicago and the local media outlets in alerting families about the new curfew time.  Mayor Richard Daley proposed moving Chicago's curfew for people under seventeen back thirty minutes.  The new curfew, that passed City Council on February 6, 2008, requires people under seventeen to be off the streets by 10:00 pm on Sundays through Thursdays and 11:00 pm on Friday and Saturdays.  The goal of Mayor Daley's proposal is to protect children and teenagers by getting them to safe areas earlier in the evening.

Alderman Schulter was a strong supporter of this proposal but believes that, in order for the new curfew to be effective, a strong public awareness campaign is necessary.  In a resolution presented to the City Council on March 12, 2008, Alderman Schulter called on all major media outlets in the City to "provide public service announcements alerting Chicago families of the change in curfew hours in print, on the radio, and on television."  The resolution further called on local media to "partner with the City of Chicago in working to eradicate teen violence by providing ongoing information regarding safety information and information regarding family-centered events that will keep our children protected from violence."

"The curfew change is a great step in protecting Chicago's young people.  Unfortunately, unless parents know that the City is trying to help keep our kids safe, it won't be as effective as possible," states Alderman Schulter.  "We need the local media to help us by spreading the word on the new curfew hours and offering information on family friendly events."