City Government

The city of Chicago has many parts. There are neighborhoods. Each one is different. In each neighborhood, citizens want to have a good place to live. Good neighbors help each other. They keep their block clean. They call the police if there is a problem. 

Each neighborhood is a part of a ward. The city is divided into wards. There are 50 wards. Each ward has an alderman. That is someone voters choose. The alderman meets with people from the ward. The alderman’s job is to help them. 

A person may tell the alderman about a problem. For example, the person may talk about litter. If the streets are dirty, people can try to keep them clean. But it is easier to do this if people throw their trash away themselves. 

Sometimes there is a problem with gangs. People complain to the alderman about it. They are afraid of the gangs. They want to stop the trouble. The alderman can work with the police to help. Sometimes the 
gang members just need help. They are afraid, too. They are afraid of the other gangs. 

Aldermen try to improve things in their community. They may get a new library. They may get a new park. To get those, they have to ask the city government. They call the transportation department if there is a problem with buses. They call the street department if there is a problem with streets. 

The aldermen meet together twice each month. The Mayor is in charge of the meeting. They talk about problems. They make plans. They vote on changes. Some of those changes will be laws. Then everyone in every ward will have to follow them. 

Citizens choose the alderman. They elect this person. They choose the mayor, too. Some people do not vote. They think it is not important. But it is important. It is how to get things done.