New ward maps, mission statement feedback and confirmation hearings
And a TV show that centers Black narratives and history
Hey y’all! It’s your newsletter team –– Francesca, Justin, Robin, Grace and Cam –– hoping that you’re having a lovely and autumnal start to your week. Before we get into the news, we’ve got some 14 East related updates:
Another Public Newsroom! This is actually Pueblo at 14 East’s first ever Public Newsroom, and it’s going to be oh-so-special. Jose Olivarez, author of Citizen Illegal, and Kevin Coval, author of People’s History of Chicago, will be joining the Pueblo team to talk about building power through poetry and creativity. You definitely, definitely, don’t wanna miss this event on October 28 at 6pm.
More info can be found at the Eventbrite page or on Pueblo’s social media.
And in case you missed it, 14 East and Pueblo published our 2020 Voting Guide last week! Check it out, print it out, share it with your friends and family for all of your voting how-to’s (in Spanish, too!)
Now, let’s get into some news.
What’s happening in Chicago?
Soon, the city’s 50 wards will be redrawn, a process that an alliance of community groups is demanding should be made more public and transparent.
There is a long history in Chicago of behind-the-scenes ward map drawing between aldermen and the city’s mayor, resulting in wards that are gerrymandered to benefit incumbents and appear lopsided and zigzagged.
In June 2019, Mayor Lori Lightfoot announced her support for an independent citizens commission to draw the new ward map in an interview with WTTW, along with increasing transparency of the ward-drawing process, something that is made all the more possible by the fact that Ald. Ed Burke (14th), a long-standing perpetuator of the backroom ward-drawing process, is fighting corruption charges.
However, last Thursday, Lightfoot did not reaffirm her original support for the independent commission, just for a process with “fulsome engagement from residents” and increased transparency. Madeleine Doubek, the executive director of CHANGE Illinois, one of the organizations pushing for a fully transparent and independently run ward redistricting, told Block Club Chicago that she hopes the mayor will “uphold her previous commitment to an independent commission.”
“We certainly believe in and have advocated for independent commissions, but at the very least, the bare minimum expectation that we have and everyone in the city of Chicago should have is that the redrawing of the wards happen after meaningful public input in public, in a transparent and accountable way,” Doubek told Block Club.
The 2020 election is going to be a constant news cycle from now until voting day, and we all remember the turmoil of the March 17 Illinois primary as the COVID-19 pandemic began shutting down cities across the world and hundreds of poll workers backed out of their positions to protect their health.
However, this time around things should go a little bit smoother. The state’s 108 election jurisdictions have been preparing for months, and a number of Chicago-area polling locations are expected to be better off than they were in March.
Pay has been increased for poll workers, outreach has been aggressive, and thanks to a temporary new law signed by Governor J.B Pritzker, November 3 is now a government and school holiday statewide, allowing people as young as 16 as well as teachers and city workers to sign up to work the polls.
According to the Chicago Tribune, more than a quarter of this year’s poll workers in Chicago are between ages 16-24, as opposed to a typically older demographic of poll workers, who are more vulnerable to the coronavirus. Although the pandemic remains an unpredictable situation, officials are feeling hopeful.
“Obviously, the big concern is if the virus somehow takes another turn for the worse, will we start losing people like we did back in the spring?” Adam Johnson, chief deputy clerk in west suburban DuPage County, told the Chicago Tribune. “But as of right now we’re on a good trajectory.”
Other Chicago headlines
Happy Indigenous Peoples’ Day … is what some Illinois officials hope everyone will be saying next year. The bill, which was shelved earlier this year, proposes that the state no longer recognize Columbus Day but, rather, Indigenous Peoples’ Day. “To continue the myth of Columbus and to ignore the atrocities he committed against Native people further perpetuates and erases the rich history of Native people,” said Les Begay, treasurer of the American Indian Center. Read the full story from the Sun-Times.
Positive COVID-19 tests hit a new high this week, surpassing numbers from the April and May. However, it may be because testing is more readily available. Read more from the Chicago Tribune.
Community members with El Paseo Community Garden in Pilsen celebrated after the city approved the expansion of the garden onto a city lot. The lot being used as a community garden is an especially big win to community members in Pilsen where lots are normally sold to developers which, those native to Pilsen say, contribute to gentrification, reports Mauricio Peña of Block Club Chicago.
32 organizations have contributed a total of $8 million to increase mental health care on the West Side. “The city’s grant will help Healthcare Alternative Systems bridge those gaps and improve service for uninsured people, who comprise about 30 percent of the group’s patients,” reports Pascal Sabino of Block Club Chicago.
What’s happening at DePaul?
Three students have tested positive for COVID-19 and recently been on campus, according to emails sent by DePaul Community Health. Two of the students were last at the Theatre School during the week of Oct. 5, while the third was at the Ray Meyer Fitness Center on Oct. 2. This brings DePaul’s total case count to 14 since August 7.
The Board of Trustees wants your input on DePaul’s mission statement. Students, faculty, staff and alumni are encouraged to read the mission statement and fill out a short survey, which guides users through questions structured around personal interpretations of the statement and where improvements can be made. This survey is being partnered with a series of open discussions throughout the fall centered around current campus issues.
Any college student aspiring to one day find themselves in a classroom teaching ages from preschool to high school knows about the student teaching requirement — one of the final milestones to complete before receiving qualifications for the workforce. However, with COVID-19 shutting down many Chicago area schools and taking away the opportunities needed for student teaching, DePaul’s College of Education has been rethinking this requirement to make sense during the pandemic.
Cue DePaul Open Windows (DePOW) — a university program in which education students can be paired up with children of DePaul faculty members to receive credit that would normally be pursued in a classroom. Students work with the kids in enrichment activities through online activities aimed to encourage creativity and aid in their in-school learning. So far, the program has been met with positive reviews from faculty while providing a vital alternative for education students finishing up their degrees.
If you don’t want to read the news, here’s the headlines to know.
Over 7.8 million people in the United States have been infected with COVID-19 since the start of the pandemic, and 214,800 have died, per the New York Times. Cases are the highest they’ve ever been since March 1 in North and South Dakota, Montana, Wisconsin, Nebraska and Utah, and cases are lowering in Texas, Puerto Rico, Florida and Georgia, which all saw recent spikes.
Confirmation hearings for Amy Coney Barrett, President Trump’s pick to fill the vacancy on the Supreme Court left by the late Ruth Bader Ginsberg, have begun, and not without protest. NPR’s Data Farrington notes that health has been a major focus of protests on the Hill, particularly surrounding the Affordable Care Act, abortion and reproductive rights access, and COVID-19. This also comes as Sen. Mike Lee, a Republican Senator from Utah, attended the hearing in person without wearing a mask – after he announced he tested positive for COVID-19 on October 2.
Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, Director-General of the World Health Organization, said today at a press conference that attempting to curb the coronavirus through herd immunity, which banks on a community becoming immune to a disease after inoculation or exposure, would be “simply unethical.”
A militia group in Michigan planned to kidnap Gov. Gretchen Whitmer, federal and state law enforcement announced on Oct 8, before outlining the charges set against 13 men involved in the plot. Lawmakers, law enforcement and critics of Gov. Whitmer have posited that it was due to her handling of the pandemic within the state, which mandated closures and masks, according to the Detroit Free Press.
President Trump is back on the campaign trail only a week after his hospitalization at Walter Reed Medical Center for COVID-19, speaking to supporters in Florida tonight, according to NPR’s Ayesha Rascoe.
Your Educational Resource of the Week
Hello again, here's your resource for the week. Have you ever wondered about what it means to grapple with the past, present and future of Blackness? Do you ever wonder what a world would look like when Black people are centered in their own narratives with a sci-fi, afro-futurism twist? Then check out HBO's Lovecraft Country as it takes you through mysticism and the reality of Blackness in America. If you want a companion podcast, check out HBO's official Lovecraft Country Radio podcast on Spotify and Apple. You can also check out my favorite, The Safe Negro Podcast Show, under the For All Nerds Podcast umbrella. Both are hosted by Black people analyzing the themes of Black horror, sci-fi and futurism with literary criticism and pop culture views throughout.
Resources for Returning Students
773-325-7290 and deanofstudents@depaul.edu
The Dean of Students’ Office provides a variety of resources like the Student Emergency Assistance Fund (SEAF) and academic assistance.
Provides financial assistance to students.
Located in the Lincoln Park Student Center, the student food pantry is free and available to all students during limited hours. DePaul ID required for access.
Provides funding for projects led by faculty, staff and student groups.
An online portal linking students to all sorts of virtual events on campus.
A database created by the Illinois Department of Health of all testing centers in the state.
The Chicago Queer Exchange is a network of individuals across Chicago working in collective unity to help those within the LGBTQ+ community. It offers a wide variety of services from cheap furniture to emergency housing and more.
I-Share is a network between libraries across Illinois that allows for reciprocal lending of books and materials to students, even if they don’t attend the college or university they’re borrowing from. DePaul recently updated their I-Share protocol in light of the university physically reopening.
Mental Health Resources
At Open Counseling, there’s a list of people and non-profits with counseling services available for free or low cost.
The Center on Halsted offers behavioral health, anti-violence and educational resources for LGBTQIA+ youth.
This document is a resource for Black people experiencing racial trauma. This master list includes specific resources as well as protesting tips and donation links.
This link is a directory of Black therapists in Chicago
This link is a directory of Black therapists in Chicago who provide services for under $75
Here’s 7 virtual mental health resources supporting Black people right now, including Chicago-based community organization Sista Afya’s support groups
And the Trans Lifeline’s Peer Support Hotline is a resource operated by transgender and nonbinary staffers for the trans community: 877-565-8860.
The Center for Religion and Psychotherapy in Chicago is a nonprofit that provides affordable, sliding-scale counseling. Call (312) 263-4368 extension 9081 to schedule an
Where to Access Food in Chicago
Freefood.org has a running list of free food resources for those in need.
Brave Space Alliance has a crisis food pantry for Black and trans individuals in need. If you would like to request assistance from Brave Space Alliance, fill out this form.
This spreadsheet highlights businesses and locations providing food. There are also links to donate to these organizations.
Check out the Greater Chicago Food Depository for food banks or donate.
Free Resources for Non-Black Allies
The NPR podcast “Code Switch” tackles a diverse array of topics centered around racial identities and racism in America.
Reading guide of texts about race. All PDFs are free.
Here’s a guide to protest safely during the pandemic
Here’s the ACLU’s Right to Protest guide for Illinois
If you think someone you know has been arrested – call the Chicago Community bail fund at 773-309-1198 to locate them (you need to know their birthdate and full legal name)
Want to increase your awareness about environmental racism, racism in the medical field or another specific subject? Here’s a database by activist and artist Angelina Ruiz, which details reading lists over a range of subject matter pertaining to race.
That’s it for this week’s newsletter! As always, thank you for reading, and we’ll see you next week.
Stay safe and healthy,
Francesca, Cam, Justin, Robin and Grace