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GLENCOE, Ill.�Three somber-faced representatives of the U.S. Congress March 24 peered into the eyes of white Highland Park, Ill., cops who told "unbelievable tales" of the discriminatory process plaguing police departments across the nation called "racial profiling."

The officers said they used code words like "sombrero" to refer to Hispanic drivers and a "load of coal," cop talk for a car full of Blacks.

Most shocking to the congress persons and the Rev. Jesse L. Jackson, founder of the Rainbow/PUSH coalition who called for the meeting to take unofficial testimony that will lead to a broader official congressional hearing, was the explanation of the unwritten "NUT" ordinance. NUT stands for "No Niggers Uptown", officers told the panel. Some officers said they learned about the racist practice of keeping Blacks out of the Highland Park business district directly from Chief Daniel J. Dahlberg.

"What happens is you�re sold a package � that this is the way to the top," officer James Coursey told the panel, referring to the practice of breaking the rules and being a "good ol� boy."

"You don�t have to buy the package, you don�t have to participate, but if you don�t you will not be promoted, you will not get special positions, you will not get advanced through the ranks," he said.

Officer Coursey said traffic enforcement through racial profiling had become the "tool for those who can�t think and follow their own thoughts. Most every police officer that was a field-training officer has become a sergeant or some type of advanced rank. The message they�re sending to young police officers is racial profiling is good � condoned � rewarded," he said.

The panel consisted of Rep. Danny K. Davis (D-Ill.), Rep. John Conyers (D-Mich.), the ranking minority member of the House Judiciary Committee, Rep. Maxine Waters (D-Ca.) and Rev. Jackson.

The officers had just returned from Washington, D.C., with Rev. Jackson where they told their stories to members of Congress and U.S. Deputy Attorney General Bill Lann Lee. Rep. Conyers has introduced the Law Enforcement Trust and Integrity Act of 2000 (H.R. 3927) that will address issues of police accountability.

Rev. Jackson and members of Congress have called for the Department of Justice to investigate the allegations and to provide protection for the officers, some of whom have received death threats. Highland Park is an area north of Chicago where high profile Blacks like former Bulls basketball star Michael Jordan and former Bears Super Bowl star Dave Duerson live.

"I witnessed something I thought I�d never see," Rep. Waters told the audience gathered in the basement of St. Paul AME Church here. "That is white officers coming to Washington, D.C., to break the code of silence and reveal things" Blacks have always complained about.

"You have documented and put a face on this problem. But I have not been able to sleep (since hearing the officers� testimony) because I worry about your safety," she told the officers, some of whom have filed a lawsuit against the department.

Sgt. Jerry Larson, who is not a member of the lawsuit, confirmed the tales of altering police reports to lower crime statistics, missing firearms and harassment of suspects. He explained how officers were instructed to position their cars perpendicular to Highway 41, a main thoroughfare from Chicago to Milwaukee, Wisc., that runs through Highland Park, and shine their bright lights. This allows the officers to see into oncoming cars and identify the race of the occupants. Cops also would park on hills and peer through binoculars to determine the race of drivers they wanted to stop.

"The importance of my testimony is I�m simply a witness," said Sgt. Larson, a veteran of 16 years whose wife also is an officer on the Highland Park force. "I�ve been involved in (administrative) meetings and the philosophy. We�re breaking some tough ground here.

"African Americans or Hispanics brought into the station in handcuffs are treated differently. There are winks and pats on the back. I have no joy in saying these things, but hiding this would be more embarrassing than exposing it and dealing with it.

"I was exposed to too much that I didn�t care to see," he said.

Affidavits supporting the cops� charges have been filed by 22 current or former Highland Park police department employees.

Rodney Watt, the officer who broke the case open by coming forward, said he has observed supervisors give Nazi salutes to two Jewish officers on the force. He was taught that Blacks and Hispanics can be stopped for no reason because he can "create probable cause at the typewriter."

Officer Watt said he was hired as the number one recruit by the force and has a Masters degree, but he lives in fear now and has received death threats. He said he complained to the chief about the illegal practices but was laughed at. He met with Highland Park City Manager David Limanari at his home in April 1999 and was assured that the problem would be looked into. Instead, he said he began to come under investigation and was suspended for 30 days for insubordination.

The officers also complain that an investigation by former U.S. Attorney Thomas Sullivan, who was hired by the city to look into the alleged wrongdoings, has been sabotaged by leaked information, and they no longer cooperate with the inquiries.

"It�s been a struggle to convince other officers to come forward because they see the intimidation and harassment I face," he said.

One of the most gripping testimonies came from Carolyn Ledford, a Highland Park resident of 24 years, who called racial profiling an "ongoing nightmare" for her family and described being approached on more than one occasion by officers with their guns drawn. Still traumatized by one incident, she said an officer approached her and said "b��, stay in the car." She could not bring herself to say the expletive.

On the other hand, another Black couple who has lived in Highland Park for 31 years, told The Final Call they have never had trouble from the police.

"I believe (the allegations), but it has never happened to us," said Dorothy Baskerville, who walked from the meeting with her husband Jack.

The couple said there were five Black families in Highland Park when they move to the city. Now there are 25 families, they said, theorizing, "the greater the number, the greater the concern" by cops.

U.S. Senator Russ Feingold (R-Ill.), in a statement read during the meeting, said that while most officers fulfill their duties without engaging in improper practice, "racial profiling is practiced by misguided individual officers."

"When racial profiling is encouraged and taught by police management, it is particularly insidious and undermines not only freedom but trust between the community and its local law enforcement agencies," the statement said.

Sen. Feingold is a co-sponsor of the Traffic Stops Statistics Study Act, companion legislation to Rep. Conyers� bill that would direct the Attorney General to analyze existing traffic stops data and conduct a study of traffic stops based on a sampling of jurisdictions.

Deputy Attorney General Bill Lann Lee said the Justice Department is actively investigating 11 major cities for patterns of racial profiling by their police departments.

"The feeling among minority groups is they can�t and don�t receive equal justice," Rep. Davis told The Final Call. "In traffic court there�s �just us,� in the courtrooms there�s �just us,� in the county jails there�s �just us.� Not justice, but �just us,� " he said.

"We know that racial profiling goes on all over America. The revelation of this speaks to the courage of the law enforcement officers themselves. They�re the true heroes and sheroes as we try to change the culture of policing," Rep. Davis said.

Photo: Among those attending the federal hearing were; Con. Danny Davis, Rep. John Conyers, Rep. Maxine Waters and Rev. Jesse Jackson.