CHICAGO – Last month, the Illinois Department of Public Health released its plans for COVID-19 vaccination rollouts in 2021. State Senator Robert Peters (D-Chicago) and State Representative Kam Buckner (D-Chicago) issued the following statement in support of the classification of inmates and prison staff into a higher priority category:

“COVID-19 has been tearing through Illinois prisons virtually unchecked, which puts the people incarcerated within them, as well as the support staffs who keep them running, at a much greater risk of contracting the disease. Prison conditions do not always afford the opportunity to socially distance, so providing vaccines for these individuals is likely the best way to prevent the spread of coronavirus.

“No one deserves to be at a higher risk of contracting a life-threatening disease simply because of their station in life or because of where they work. Ensuring the quick and efficient distribution of the COVID-19 vaccine to prison populations and staffs is the moral thing to do, and we fully support IDPH’s plan to do so.”

The full version of IDPH’s vaccine plan can be found here.

SPRINGFIELD – State Senator Robert Peters (D-Chicago) was sworn into his first full term in office today as the 102nd General Assembly officially began.

“This has been a trying year for many of us, so I do not take for granted the responsibility given to me by the people that I represent to look out for their best interests,” Peters said. “We are at a crossroads in our society, and I am confident that the 102nd General Assembly will be able to deliver real safety and justice to our communities and establish a world where everyone can be made whole.”

Peters joined the Senate in Jan. 2019, following the resignation of Sen. Kwame Raoul, who had been elected to serve as Attorney General the previous November.

The 102nd General Assembly serves until Jan. 11, 2023.

SPRINGFIELD – The Illinois Senate passed a sweeping criminal justice reform package Sunday as part of a larger plan authored by the Illinois Legislative Black Caucus to rid Illinois of systemic racism. The package included the elimination of cash bail, an issue for which State Senator Robert Peters (D-Chicago) has been fighting for years.

“For too long, people in this state have spent time in jail only because they could not afford to pay their bail,” said Peters, who was recently elected Chair of the Senate Black Caucus. “The end of that practice is near. I’m thrilled that ending cash bail was part of the package we passed today, and I look forward to similar action from the House.”

CHICAGO – At a meeting of the Illinois Senate Black Caucus earlier this week, State Senator Robert Peters (D-Chicago) was unanimously elected by his colleagues as the new caucus chair.

“I am honored and humbled to have been elected by my colleagues as the new chair of the Senate Black Caucus, and I want to thank them for trusting me with this important position,” Peters said. “The list of issues facing Black communities in our state is long and relentless, and I am excited to lead our caucus as we fight to win real safety and justice.”

Peters takes over as chair following a tumultuous summer, during which the murders of George Floyd, Breonna Taylor and others by police sparked a nationwide movement of protests against police brutality and systemic racism.