Chicago Police Officer Mohammad Yusuf is taking on the city to change his race on official records, highlighting a complex debate on identity and discrimination within public institutions. His lawsuit claims that the Chicago Police Department (CPD) has recently allowed officers to amend their gender identity on departmental records to reflect their lived experiences better. The suit was filed in federal court last week and seeks similar recognition for racial identity changes.
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Yusuf, a 43-year-old officer with two decades of service in the CPD, wishes to change his racial designation from “Caucasian” to “Egyptian and African American,” reflecting his identity. However, the department’s policies have not permitted such a change, sparking a federal civil rights lawsuit against the city. According to Yusuf, the refusal is a matter of personal identity and affects his professional advancement within the department. His lawsuit claims that the department’s promotion system, which purportedly benefits minority candidates, has repeatedly overlooked him in favor of others despite his high qualifications and excellent performance on promotional exams. He alleges that this has significantly impacted his career, with promotions often going to less qualified candidates based on their racial identity.
Yusuf’s complaint details his experience with the department’s promotional system, emphasizing that despite scoring in the top tier for the sergeant’s exam in 2019, he has seen over 75 merit promotions to sergeant, with fewer than five going to Caucasian-identifying candidates. He argues this pattern of promotion bypasses highly qualified candidates in favor of others based solely on race, contrary to the department’s supposed race-neutral policy, as reported by Fox News.
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When Yusuf joined the force in 2004, only three race options were available: Caucasian, Black, and Hispanic. Since then, the department has expanded its racial categories to include over nine designations. Despite this progress, Yusuf contends that a “blanket prohibition” against changing an officer’s race remains, effectively denying him the opportunity to align his official records with his true identity. Further complicating Yusuf’s case is the department’s request for a DNA test to consider his race change request, a condition not imposed on gender identity changes. After submitting a genetic test from “23 and Me” that confirmed his heritage, the department ultimately deemed it “not possible” to change his race on official records.
