Art activism, Illinois Real ID extension, and the latest for the World Cup
plus Uber’s $10 million settlement with the city
Welcome back to ‘In the Loop’! It’s your newsletter team — Kate, Hailey, Sam, Faith, Chinyere, Isabella, Lauren, Monique, Bridget and Emily — back after a short break.
Today, we’re looking into art activism, introducing the newest position at the College of Computing and Digital Media and providing the newest update to Illinois’ Real ID requirement. You’ll also find a quick recap on the ongoing FIFA World Cup and DePaul basketball.
If you want to show support for 14 East and ‘In the Loop,’ we invite you to donate directly to our newsroom. Whether it’s a one-time contribution or a monthly gift, every cent helps us build a newsroom that serves you, our readers, and we get 100% of your donation.
Check out our website for more stories this Friday. Until then, let’s get to today’s news.
Art Activism and its Effectiveness
By Hailey Bosek and Sam Freeman
The defacement of the Abraham Lincoln Statue in Chicago is a recent example of activists damaging art to call attention to a problem.
Behind the Chicago History Museum, a statue of Abraham Lincoln was vandalized on Indigenous Peoples Day on October 10 by an anonymous group to draw attention to the negative history of the 16th president of the United States.
The statue was smeared with red paint on the coat and hands, and “Dethrone the Colonizers,” “Land Back” and “Avenge the Dakota 38” were spray painted in blue at the base.
The messages at the base referenced a massacre of 38 Dakota men in 1862 after the U.S.-Dakota war. Lincoln was asked to review the conviction of 303 men, and signed off on the execution of 38. The Dakota 38 was the largest mass execution in United States history, and the anonymous group said it wanted to draw attention to this incident as a part of its anti-colonialism efforts. Photos of the defaced statue can be found here.
According to Block Club Chicago, the group also wrote that they sought to “tear down the myth of Lincoln as the great liberator and expose his complicity in the genocide of Indigenous peoples and theft of their lands.”
Within the week, the paint was cleaned from the site. Some hues of red paint on Lincoln’s shoulders remain as well as discoloration where the messages were painted at the base.
Recent Events
The defacement of statues has been a common occurrence for political activists to draw attention to problematic figures or events. As of late, the destruction of art and paintings have become a more popular form of protest. As climate change activists have targeted museums and famous paintings to draw attention to the climate crisis. The increase of these famous paintings became a target for activists when two protestors from the activist group “Just Stop Oil”, threw two cans of Heinz Tomato Soup on the famous Sunflowers by Vincent Van Gogh.
“We are using these actions to get media attention because we need to get people talking about this now,” said the Just Stop Oil protests Phoebe Plummer in a TikTok video. This sentiment is shared by the president of the American Indian Association of Illinois, Dr. Doreen Weise.
“Activism draws media, and as someone once told me, any media is good media, because we’re invisible,” Weise said. “We want to be visible.”
Activism and art
With the vandalization of the Lincoln statue and several other artworks, it raises the question: is art activism effective?
The graffiti on the Lincoln statue was intended to draw attention to the Dakota 38 massacre and critique the president who signed off on it.
“Maybe the point is not to convert anybody or to wake up anybody. It’s to get the microphone basically, and that I have a big sympathy for,” said Mark Pohlad, an art history professor at DePaul University and a Lincoln expert.
According to David Maruzzella, Collection and Exhibition Manager at the DePaul Art Museum, some forms of art activism are more effective than others.
“The question, to my mind, isn’t ‘should we or should we not vandalize art?’ but rather something like ‘why do we appear to value art more than the planet?’ This is why I found the Van Gogh action interesting: the work wasn’t harmed (since it was protected by glass), but it nonetheless provoked such a dramatic response!,” Maruzzella said.
Maps
The Chicago Monuments Project is an organization that works to address unacknowledged history related to Chicago’s monuments and provide a way to recognize Chicago’s racial history. The committee created a report that includes a list of statues under review for potential removal. The listed sites can be viewed via this map.
Read more about art activism this Friday at fourteeneastmag.com.
DePaul News
By Faith Hennig
DePaul Christmas Broadcast
Christmas at DePaul returns for its 15th year in Lincoln Park this holiday season and those near and far are able to enjoy it. Blue Demons will be able to listen to classic Christmas music performed by the DePaul Community Chorus and an orchestra of students from the School of Music through a live broadcast. Local air dates are Dec. 16 at 8 p.m., Dec. 24 at 5 p.m. and Dec. 25 at 1 p.m., on WTTW Prime. More information regarding broadcasts can be found here.
CDM’s New Director of Innovation
DePaul’s College of Computing and Digital Media department welcomes Josh Tsui as its new director of innovation. As a filmmaker, developer and designer, he has taken over as the department's first ever director of innovation for the Jarvis Student Center for Innovation and Collaboration, a new space for tech and community in the Loop Campus.
Remembrance of Floyd Cooley
DePaul remembers the life of Floyd Cooley, a recently retired member of the DePaul School of Music. His passing came on November 25 at the age of 74, after a battle with a serious illness. Cooley’s life will be remembered by the DePaul community for his active involvement in the DePaul Brass Program and his excellent work among colleagues and students alike.
Lastly, here is your weekend sports update (Dec. 2-4)
DePaul's Men’s Basketball team beat Loyola 78-72 on Saturday
DePaul's Women’s Basketball team beat Butler 78-72 on Sunday.
Chicago Headlines
By Chinyere Ibeh
Former CTA employee charged with stealing $350,000+ from retirement plans — Ayanna Nesbit was the former clerk for the CTA’s retirement plan and she allegedly created and received several false payment requests from many retirement plans. She has been charged with five counts of wire fraud. Nashima Malik of WGN has the full story.
Uber has to pay millions to Chicago restaurants — According to a $10 million settlement agreement with the city, Uber has to pay local restaurants that were affected and provide them free services. The ride-share company had listed restaurants on their UberEats and Postmates apps without permission and charged extra commission fees. The city also alleges that the company participated in deceptive advertising practices. Uber denies the allegations and any wrongdoing. Chicago Tribune’s Talía Soglin reported on the situation.
Chicago’s new district police councils aim to build trust between residents and officers — The three-member councils were introduced by an ordinance that calls for the councils to meet at least once a month. One or more of the members on each council will participate in both quarterly and annual meetings. Fran Spielman from the Chicago Sun-Times has the details about the councils.
The deadline to get your Illinois Real ID has been extended yet again — The deadline was set for May 3, 2023 after many pandemic-related extensions. According to the Department of Homeland Security, the deadline has been moved to May 7, 2025. NBC News explains why yet another extension has been implemented.
Boiler Room employees are shocked by its closing and are scrambling to find work — The pizza restaurant had closed without much warning to its employees. Due to this, employees are struggling to find new jobs and pay their bills. Owner Russ Grant defended the restaurant’s closing, saying he tried his best to keep the restaurant open despite financial struggles. Mina Bloom reports on the story for Block Club Chicago.
National Headlines
By Isabella Ali
While the U.S. is out of the World Cup... – Others are moving on to the quarter-finals. For the first time since 2010, South Korea reached the knockout stage but lost to Brazil today. Kylian Mbappé of France scored two goals against Poland yesterday and is having the “competition” of his dreams. Speaking of France, after winning against Poland, they secured a quarter-final match and will face England on Saturday. Let's hope the knockout round brings about more surprises. Click here to see more World Cup news.
The U.S. to relocate tribes facing flood risks – The Biden administration will give $75 million to three tribes in Alaska and Washington to relocate from coastal areas and rivers to higher ground. Biden stated that the tribes are “at risk of being washed away" by climate change-related sea level rise. Eight other tribes will receive $5 million each to plan and prepare for relocation. For more information, check out this press release by the U.S. Department of the Interior.
Iran’s morality police under review – Iranian authorities are reviewing the country's mandatory headscarf rule for women, according to Attorney General Mohammad Jafar Montazeri. Additionally, he suggested that the morality police, who uphold the law, are being disbanded in Tehran, although this was denied by state-run media. Iran is currently experiencing nationwide protests as a result of the death of Mahsa Amini, who died after being detained by the morality police. For more, Siavash Ardalan and Marita Moloney of BBC have the story.
G7 alliance sets price of Russian oil at $60 per barrel – The European Union, the G7, and Australia decided to limit Russian oil prices at $60 per barrel last week. The objective is to keep up the pressure on Moscow as the Ukrainian conflict rages on. But Russia, the third-largest oil producer in the world, declared that it opposed the cap and threatened to cease exporting oil to any nation that supported it, including the U.S. Today is the deadline for the restriction to take effect. Jamey Keaten of AP has the news.
Hey, Check This Out!
With Featured Columnist Lauren Sheperd
Hello everyone and welcome back to the newsletter after a much needed hiatus. I think I’ve finally recovered from finals, so I’m excited to get back into doing recs for you all. This week, I have an immersive Chicago experience for you to try. Let’s get into it!
A couple of weeks ago, I ventured to the Willis (Sears) Tower with a couple of friends to try the new Color Factory exhibit there. Color Factory Chicago is the third Color Factory location in the U.S., with the first being in Soho in New York City. Color Factory Chicago opened last spring and features art from Liz West, Christine Wong Yap, Tomislav Topic and Chicago native Edra Soto. Though I had already been to the Color Factory in New York, my experience at the Chicago location was worth another visit. Not only did the Chicago museum include classic Color Factory exhibits such as the ball pit at the end, but it also included new exhibits that I had not seen before, some of which were Chicago inspired. Color Factory also has great photo ops and even gives you a printed QR code you can scan at certain places in each room to get photos so you can focus on your friends and having fun rather than your phone.
While Color Factory is worth it to me, it is a bit pricey and each ticket goes for about $40. However, you can easily spend two hours in the museum, and your ticket comes with a couple of snacks along the way. The immersive elements of each room will also keep your attention the entire time and will connect you more with the people you go with.
The next time you’re looking for a unique way to spend your day, hop off the L at the Quincy stop and make your way over to Color Factory Chicago. And make sure to wear neutral colors!
Resources
Need resources regarding cooling centers, rental assistance, abortion access, COVID-19 testing and vaccines or mental health? Check out our complete list here.
That’s it for today! See you next Monday.
The 14 East Newsletter Team