Racist emails show Chicago official joked about 'safari' tour to see violence in black neighborhoods
In a city scarred by a deep and troubling history with guns, a supervisor in the scandal-plagued water department used his city email account to negotiate firearms deals and make light of deadly Fourth of July violence in black neighborhoods by offering "Chicago Safari" tours, a new watchdog report revealed Monday.
The latest development in the ongoing investigation, which the Tribune first disclosed in May, emerged as Inspector General Joseph Ferguson detailed how ousted district water superintendent Paul Hansen emailed with individuals over personal purchases or sales of at least four firearms and five cars.
Those emails about firearms started the investigation over his use of a government account for personal business, which is against city rules. And it quickly spread to other emails sent by Hansen, who is white and the son of a former alderman, to other water department bosses, according to City Hall sources.
In his quarterly report, Ferguson revealed a fresh string of anti-black emails sent to multiple high-ranking water department workers that touted a fake "Chicago Safari" package. It cited the number of shootings during a July Fourth weekend and guaranteed tourists would observe "at least one kill and five crime scenes" and also see "lots of animals in their natural habitat."
Read more: http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/local/politics/ct-chicago-water-department-report-met-0718-20170717-story.html
