CHICAGO – State Senator Omar Aquino (D-Chicago) issued the following statement after a video of a woman being harassed by a white man for wearing a Puerto Rican flag shirt as an officer for the Cook County Forest Preserves stood just steps away:

“It’s unacceptable that an officer would sit idly as a woman is verbally attacked for displaying her Puerto Rican heritage on her shirt. There is no room for this type of racist behavior at our forest preserves, and there is especially no place for women or minorities to feel unsafe with an officer present.”

“As a person of Puerto Rican heritage, I am especially offended and disappointed by the lack of support the woman received. My hope is that both the officer and her harasser face the proper consequences for their actions.”

SPRINGFIELD – Governor Rauner vetoed legislation today that would end Illinois’ participation in the controversial Interstate Voter Registration Crosscheck Program, which is used to detect voters who are registered in more than one state. Critics say the system is a cybersecurity liability and has been used as a tool to blatantly oust valid names from voter rolls in other states.

The legislation, Senate Bill 2273, would have required Illinois to use the Electronic Registration Information Center (ERIC) instead of Crosscheck. ERIC uses tougher security protocols and more information to guarantee that personal information is correct and safer from hacking.

State Senator Omar Aquino issued the following statement in response to the Governor’s veto:

“By issuing this veto, Governor Rauner has effectively traded the personal information of Illinois voters for political advantage. The Crosscheck system is a cybersecurity liability, which puts millions of Illinois voters’ personal information at risk of being stolen.