Resident urges Village of Manhattan to add Illinois hate-crime statute to local law

A resident urged the Village of Manhattan board to adopt the Illinois hate-crime statute into the village code during public comment, citing recent incidents of slur use, removal of pride flags and alleged tampering with a child’s medication.

Erica Alts, speaking during the public-comment portion of the meeting, said the school and some families had not treated repeated slur use at the junior high as hate speech and called for municipal authority to address the behavior. "I would like for you to figure out how to incorporate the Illinois hate crime statute into the village law," Alts said.

Alts described multiple episodes she said indicated a broader community problem: two junior-high students shouting slurs near her house, a parent blocking outreach on social media, removal of pride flags from homes, and a report that someone recently interfered with a child’s life‑saving medication. She said those incidents prompted her to press for stronger local protections so affected residents would know the community would act.

Alts also invoked a high‑profile, out‑of‑jurisdiction homicide to underscore the risk of escalation: she noted a fatal stabbing of a 6‑year‑old in Plainfield about 16 months earlier and said, "So the hate is real and it's closer than you think." She asked the board to consider ordinance changes "preferably before somebody is majorly harmed."

Police leadership acknowledged the public comment and said the department would follow up on complaints. The police chief told the board, "With the public comments, we hear you and, we will continue to investigate and work on those as well, and see through all that." The chief did not provide details on any specific open investigations during the meeting.

The board did not take immediate action at the meeting to amend ordinances or adopt the Illinois statute; no formal direction to draft language was recorded in the meeting minutes.

Community members and board members who raised the issue during public comment urged the village to consider working with school officials and other partners if the board pursues ordinance changes.

Ending: If the board directs staff to draft an ordinance or request legal review, that action would appear on a future agenda; no such directive was recorded at this meeting.