Chance The Rapper Asks City Council To Halt $95M Police Academy

CHICAGO, IL — Chance the Rapper continued to stump for Chicago schools by speaking out against a proposed West Side police academy that would cost the city $95 million to build. The hip-hop artist voiced his objections to Mayor Rahm Emanuel's plan during public comments at Wednesday's City Cound meeting. But that Grammy Award-winning voice wasn't enough to derail the effort as Chicago's aldermen voted near-unanimously, 48-1, to spend $10 million to buy 30 acres of land in West Garfield Park that would house the training center.

"What are you doing?" Chance asked lawmakers during the City Council's 30-minute window for public input. "I've been asking for money for schools for years and now you have $95 million for a cop academy?"

After speaking at the meeting, Chance joined students from the National Teachers Academy Elementary School outside council chambers. They were there to protest the closing of the school, which is being converted into a high school for South Loop residents.

In a press conference following the vote, Emanuel touted the economic boost the training center could give the West Side, according to the Chicago Tribune. Proponents of the proposed academy also contend that it's part of the city's overall effort to increase training for its police officers following last year's scathing report from the U.S. Department of Justice. In recent years, the Chicago Police Department has been criticized for high profile tragedies, such as the 2015 fatal shooting of Laquan McDonald.

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But Ald. Carlos Ramirez-Rosa (35th Ward), the single dissenting vote Wednesday, said he doesn't think a new academy is the answer to the problems facing the department.

"If you believe $95M should go to West Side schools, programs for youth, jobs, health, and NOT a new swimming pool for cops, now is the time to call/email your Aldermen," Ramirez-Rosa wrote on Twitter before the vote.

Although Chance's appearance at Wednesday's meeting didn't sway votes, the rapper's objections did draw attention to the issue. The proposed academy became a popular trending topic online under #NoCopAcademy on Wednesday.

"THIS WHOLE THING IS ILLOGICAL," Chance wrote on Twitter on Wednesday. "LETS JUST STEP BACK AND FIGURE OUT THE THINGS WE REALLY NEED."

Ultimately, how the financially strapped city plans to pay for the proposed training center is at the heart of the objections by Chance, Ramirez-Rosa and others. Besides the $10 million for the land that was approved Wednesday, the city will use $25 million from the sale of two properties, and officials hope to land another $23 million by selling certain police and fire training facilities, the Tribune reports. But the city will still need to figure out where it will get the remaining $37 million for the project.

Chance's public activism and involvement in local issues is nothing new. Last November, he held a "Parade to the Polls" event, which combined a free concert in Grant Park with a procession to a downtown Chicago polling place. As a ferverent supporter of Chicago Public Schools, he met with Gov. Bruce Rauner in March to discuss what could be done to help the city's schools. While Chance considered the sit-down disappointing, it didn't stop him from using his nonprofit group to create a fundraising program for schools, which he kicked off by donating $1 million to South Side's Westcott Elementary School. So far, the program has raised more than $2 million for arts education initiatives at 20 city schools.

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Clearly, Chance isn't dilettante when it comes to Chicago's political landscape — especially as it pertains to city schools — but his appearance Wednesday couldn't completely escape all of the quirky trappings of modern-day celebrity culture.

"[Y]ou guys have a lot of power, and that’s why I showed up at 8 a.m., because I feel like it’s — maybe if you guys just hear me say it," he said during his address to alderman, according to the Tribune. "I’ll take pictures with everybody afterward if you want me to."

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Chance also addressed Emanuel's absence during the hip-hop star's comments. But the mayor said he wasn't intentionally snubbing the South Side native. Instead, he was handling important business that required a private phone call.

"It’s not when he spoke that I stepped out," Emanuel told reporters following the meeting, according to the Tribune. "I stepped out beforehand. It was actually to call my mother. And I had not called her in the morning, because we had the morning meetings. … Don’t ever be late calling a Jewish mother on her birthday."

More via the Chciago Tribune

Chance The Rapper performs at a community concert he art directed for the Obama Foundation Summit on Nov. 1 in Chicago. (Photo by Charles Rex Arbogast | Associated Press)