President’s Perspective

Dear CCBA Members & Friends

It is the honor of a lifetime to serve as the President of the Cook County Bar Association (“CCBA”). For over 125 years, the CCBA has served as advocates for justice in the greater Chicago community, the state of Illinois, and the nation. Our members have valiantly worked to mold and shape the law in order to improve the lives of Chicagoans, Illinoisans, and all Americans. Although our members have worked tirelessly, The Future Is US! The work for a fairer and more just, equitable, and harmonious society is not yet done.

The past four (4) years have been challenging for all Americans, especially Chicagoans. Our country has battled four pandemics simultaneously—COVID-19, centuries old systemic racism, overwhelming gun violence, and domestic extremism. COVID-19 devastated the nation and urban communities. Meanwhile, current statistics show that over 1,300 people die from firearms each year in Illinois, with gun violence in some Chicago neighborhoods putting young men at greater risks than U.S. troops faced in Iraq and Afghanistan war zones. All the while, systemic racism and extremism have once again attempted to ravage our nation. The physical, spiritual, and social fabrics of our nation have never before faced so many obslogotacles at once—and through it all, the CCBA has remained steadfast in its pursuit of justice with creative solutions for these issues.