Cho v. DePaul, Pritzker’s Premature Phase 3, Hair and Plant Goals
Hey, dear readers,
How are you doing? Now that spring is officially upon us, we hope you have been frolicking and picnicking to your heart’s content — while maintaining a safe social distance, of course. Your Thursday newsletter team — Associate Editor Meredith Melland and Event Planners Justin Myers and Mikayla Rose Price — has prepared a fresh mix of updates for you, souped up with contributions from Charlie Carey, Lauren Paris and Erica Carbajal.
This week, we’ll fill you in on new outcomes from some lawsuits against DePaul, the fight for patio dining in Illinois and how to cut the chicest chop or pot the perfect plant. Allons-y!
We do this because we think it's an important public service. But if you would like to support this work on Venmo @fourteeneastmag, or tell your friends to sign up for this newsletter — it'd be greatly appreciated.
What’s the latest at DePaul?
A federal judge ruled against DePaul’s claim that Sumi Cho, a DePaul law professor, waived her attorney-client privilege by using her university email account to communicate with her lawyer. In December 2018, Cho filed an initial lawsuit against DePaul with Sumi Cho v. DePaul University, no. 18 C 8012, claiming that she was being paid less than two of her male colleagues — a violation of the Equal Pay Act and Title VII of the Civil Rights Act. Less than a week after the initial allegations, Cho filed a second suit, accusing the university of discrimination, retaliation and breach of contract.
In Cho v. DePaul, the university moved to have Cho hand over emails between her lawyer and her. Attorney-client privilege keeps “communications between an attorney and [their] client secret.” However, the university alleged that she had waived that right by using a DePaul email address. The favorable ruling was made for several reasons — including DePaul permitting those with university emails to use their accounts for reasons that don’t violate its policies. Additionally, the university has access to the account “only in accordance with applicable laws, for legitimate business purposes.” The case is still ongoing.
The Diversity and Inclusion Initiative Grant (DIIG) — a new DePaul program that began this year — will be giving out seven grants by the end of June. DIIG was started to give professors and departments the financial resources needed for things like events, workshops, projects and research that promote diversity and inclusion on campus. Up to $2,000 may be awarded to full-time faculty members who apply. One such grant was given to the College of Liberal Arts & Social Sciences to host a lunch honoring Asian Pacific American month. In total, 15 applications have been approved.
In other news, Nike has been the official outfitter of DePaul sports for over two decades, and it’s not going away any time soon. DePaul announced a multi-year extension of its contract with BSN Sports to continue the brand’s status as the official outfitter for all the university’s sports teams.
What’s happening in Chicago?
Today, 2,268 new known cases of coronavirus have been reported in Illinois. This brings the state to a total of 102,686 confirmed cases since the start of the outbreak. There are
87 additional deaths, bringing the state total to 4,607. In the past 24 hours, 29,307 Illinoisans have been tested for the virus — the highest number of tests to date.
Yesterday, Governor J.B. Pritzker announced that bars and restaurants are allowed to reopen as soon as May 29 — just for outdoor seating. However, this does not include Chicago. Mayor Lori Lightfoot announced today that the city won’t be ready to do so by next week. Lightfoot does envision a quasi-normal summer, hoping that restaurants could reopen “cautiously” in June.
Pritzker’s decision was made after several weeks of pressure from both local politicians and restaurant owners who were concerned about the economic damage that would come from his extended stay-at-home order. Pritzker said he changed his mind after speaking with health officials about the chances of outdoor transmission. Yesterday, he also withdrew his proposal that violating business owners should receive a criminal charge or even jail time. He had changed his mind after receiving criticism from legislatures, as well as speaking with health officials about the risk of outside transmission of the virus.
Originally, bars and restaurants were not supposed to open at all until phase four. Some restaurants that don’t have outdoor seating are contemplating turning their parking lots or sidewalks into dining space.
Phase three officially begins next Friday. So there will not just be looser restrictions for restaurants, but also for sports such as tennis, golfing and boating. Offices and barber shops will also be allowed to reopen.
Adult nightclubs in Chicago and in surrounding states have sued in an attempt to receive a Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) loan. Chicago’s Admiral Theatre claims that the Small Business Association (SBA) “shut them out” of funding. Yesterday, the 7th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Chicago declared that the SBA could not deny a Milwaukee gentlemen’s club a PPP loan just because of their “prurient ineligibility standard.” The Admiral’s loan application is asking to cover 42 of its employees’ paychecks. In the last week, the amount of available PPP funding has increased. The additional funding is returned loans from businesses that could not prove their eligibility.
Cook County’s disaster proclamation was extended until September 30. This allows Board President Toni Preckwinkle to make decisions without the direct approval of the board members for the next 120 days, such as ordering more personal protective equipment for health departments. The proclamation was initially made to also help “municipal, state and federal partners” work together to take proactive measures against the coronavirus.
Other Chicago News:
Three Chicago churches were fined for holding services and Willie Wilson wants to pay it, by Chicago Tribune’s Gregory Pratt.
Pilsen’s underground yoga sessions go virtual, by Block Club Chicago’s Pascal Sabino.
Wicker Park Farmers Market also goes virtual, by Block Club Chicago’s Hannah Alani.
Hair stylists are using Zoom to teach clients how to cut their own hair, by Chicago Tribune’s Hannah Herrera Greenspan.
If you don’t want to watch the news, here are the national headlines to know:
Senators questioned Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell and Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin on the impact of Congress’s relief packages on the economy on Tuesday, from The Washington Post’s Erica Werner, Seung Min Kim and Jeff Stein. Powell said more aid will likely be needed, while Mnuchin defended the White House’s focus on reopening.
Though all 50 states began reopening by Wednesday of this week, another 2.4 million people filed for unemployment last week and brought the total up to nearly 39 million, writes NPR’s Scott Horsley.
President Trump said on Monday that he’d started taking hydroxychloroquine while still testing negative for coronavirus. Health experts cautioned others against this choice because the drug can cause heart and other problems when combined with other drugs, according to Politico’s David Lim and Zachary Brennan.
Teens are struggling with depression and other mental health concerns because school closures across the U.S. have limited their access to peer social settings, reports The New York Times’s Dan Levin. If you’re feeling sad, you’re not alone — check out our support resources below.
The U.N. health agency held its annual assembly this week, which turned into a battle between President Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping on whether countries should support the World Health Organization (WHO) and push for an independent review of WHO’s pandemic operations, according to The Los Angeles Times’s Laura King.
ProPublica heath reporter Caroline Chen explains contact tracing, a method of tracking and alerting people to a virus’s damage, and the surveillance apps that could take it further. For more information on the new technologies and their privacy implications, check out What A Day’s interview with cybersecurity reporter Patrick Howell O’Neill.
Another technology heating up in demand is infrared temperature scanners. Makers are ramping up their production scale, reports The Wall Street Journal’s Eva Xiao.
More colleges are starting to make decisions on reopening their campuses in the fall. Chicago Tribune’s Elyssa Cherney reports that some schools like Notre Dame and Marquette will start classes early to avoid a trapped winter, while Cambridge University announced all lectures will be remote until next summer.
On to better news: a DePaul student achieved her hair goals, and you can too!
During this distressing time, many DePaul students have taken it out on their hair. Every other person seems to be cutting and dyeing their own hair while stuck inside, and the results have been varying. When asked what she thought the biggest mistake people make at home is when doing their own hair, hairdresser Tiffany Paige said “doing it themself at all.”
“People don’t use the right scissors and cut too much, or too lopsided,” she said. Paige also said that if someone is planning on getting their hair dyed professionally in the future, it is better to leave it alone than try to dye it at home in the meantime. “Box dye has metallic dye, so you can’t use professional dye over it. It can give you the wrong color and fry your hair. You can’t get it out.”
Tiffany said there are better ways to ease hair anxiety that won’t damage your hair. To cover up roots, she suggested using powder dry shampoo on light hair and eyeshadow on dark hair. That way, it is covered up, but still washes out. As for alternatives to cutting your hair, she suggested using lots of hairspray. Pinning up your hair more, or styling it in a way you don’t normally, can sometimes help ease some anxiety.
Doing your hair at home doesn’t always end in disaster, though. DePaul student Kelley Sloot shaved her head recently, and the results turned out great. She decided to do it after seeing someone online talking about shaving their head, and one thing they said was, "The fear of looking ugly holds you back from doing so much."
The current state of the world definitely played a part in the decision as well. “I've wanted to shave my head for a long time. When quarantine rolled around and I realized we may be stuck inside for longer than any of us imagined, I figured there would be no better time to do it.”
When asked if she recommends it, she said, “Honestly, I love it. I rarely interact with people in public right now but when I go to the grocery store, at least one person always says something about it. All the responses have been really positive! If you're thinking about a change in your look, I think now is the best time to experiment. If you don't like your haircut or color, we're stuck in quarantine and most summer activities have been canceled so you don't need to worry too much about being embarrassed in public!”
Now is definitely the time to do something creative. If you decide to do your own hair this summer, good luck and have fun!
Photos courtesy of Sloot.
Here’s what students and community members are up to:
📺 Abbas is watching The Last Dance
📺 Liz is watching Narcos
🎧She is also listening to Kali Uchis
🎧Steven is listening to Perfume Genius
🎧 Check out our quarantine playlist that we update every week
With many people getting tired of staring at a screen all day amidst the stay-in-place order, plants are becoming the hottest new thing!
Here’s what people are planting:
Gaby is planting monstera plants and ferns.
Here’s Gaby’s largest monstera plant
Gaby also managed to snag this little baby, which came from a cutting plant in DePaul’s greenhouse.
Nicole has been obsessed with growing tulips ever since the sunny weather season started up in Chicago this spring.
Charlotte has been planting spider plants, which have grown very quickly.
Kiana has been loving her succulents, especially since they require little maintenance throughout the week.
Bored?
Missing all things Disney? Catch some classic Disney World virtual ride tours.
Play some charades with the free “Heads Up” mobile app. It’s addicting, and I’m embarrassed to disclose how much time I spent on it last weekend.
Into puzzles? Check out this list that Chicago Mag put together on deluxe puzzle recommendations.
Get the social distancing movie theater experience at The McHenry Outdoor Theatre that recently reopened. There are special rules in place to ensure safety, so be sure to follow them!
A food festival at home: Check out the Mole De Mayo fest that is normally held in Pilsen this weekend, which is now virtual this year. Celebrate by ordering some mole from a local restaurant and watching the performances.
Overwhelmed?
Check out this list from Stylist on different podcasts to help manage stress and anxiety.
Take a break! Cook, read, watch a movie. Do something that distracts your mind for a little while.
Having trouble sleeping? Check out these sleep story videos by Calm on YouTube
Contact Illinois’ Call4Calm mental health resources. Residents can text TALK for English or HABLAR for Spanish to 552-020 and the state will put them in touch with a counselor.
If it’s late at night: text HELLO to 741741. Crisis Text Line is a 24-hour hotline that serves anyone, in any type of crisis.
Want to help?
Here’s Chicago organizer Kelly Hayes’ mutual aid form to sign up to help
Volunteer with Chicago’s Food Bank
Sign up to do senior wellness checks for My Block My Hood My City
Lost your main source of income?
Here’s where to apply for unemployment and here’s how to apply
Need financial assistance?
Need food or supplies?
Text 312-775-2391 or email LakeviewMutualAid@gmail.com for food, prescription pick-ups, caregiving, medical supplies and more – ”prioritizing folks who are sick, disabled, low-income, elderly, undocumented and Black, Indeginous and/or People of Color”
There we have it, folk! Another week left to history. Thank you so much for letting us take up space in your inbox. Not to get sentimental in an email, but 14 East celebrated our fourth anniversary of publishing this week and we can’t wait to spend another four churning out multimedia journalism for our community!
Speaking of multimedia, you’re all cordially invited to 14 East Live, a live virtual event where writers will tell stories under the theme of “wilderness” on Friday, May 29 at 7 p.m. on Facebook Live! And if you can’t wait for more DePaul news, 14 East will be back with more stories on our website tomorrow.
Remember to take it easy this weekend as we gear up for Week 9. Keep Zooming, keep shining, keep skanking to Carly Rae Jepsen’s new music, and the quarter will be over before you know it.
All the best,
Meredith, Justin, Mikayla, Erica, Lauren and Charlie