September 20 - 26, 2021 Vol. 29 No. 37
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$1.10 goes to vendor
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Arts & (Home) Entertainment
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SportsWise
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Cover Story: Chicago's budget
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We are replacing our usual calendar with virtual events and recommendations from StreetWise vendors, readers and staff to keep you entertained at home! The SportsWise team shares their NFL predictions.
Eatwise
EatWise returns! EatWise allows vendors to dine out and share their experience with our readers. In this first post-COVID edition, vendor Steven Riggs visits Art of Pizza on State Street in the South Loop neighborhood. Looking at the upcoming FY2022 City of Chicago budget, both Mayor Lori Lightfoot and the Right to Recovery coalition see the $1.9 billion dollars in federal COVID relief as a once-in-ageneration amount of money for a once-in-a-generation crisis. Lightfoot wants to use half the federal money to pay down city debt, to steward the money in case Chicago faces another crisis and to use it only for "catalytic" community expenditures. The Right to Recovery coalition says that using all the money against poverty in Chicago is itself an investment. We give equal space to both budget views.
From the Streets
Families remember Vietnam MIAs.
The Playground THIS PAGE: Mayor Lori Lightfoot (City of Chicago Office of the Mayor photo).
Dave Hamilton, Creative Director/Publisher
dhamilton@streetwise.org
StreetWiseChicago @StreetWise_CHI
Suzanne Hanney, Editor-In-Chief
suzannestreetwise@yahoo.com
Amanda Jones, Director of programs
ajones@streetwise.org
Julie Youngquist, Executive director
jyoungquist@streetwise.org
Ph: 773-334-6600 Office: 2009 S. State St., Chicago, IL, 60616
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ARTS & (HOME) ENTERTAINMENT RECOMMENDATIONS Since being stuck inside, which shows have you been watching? Which movies? Have you read any good books lately? Any new music releases have you dancing in your living room? StreetWise vendors, readers and staff are sharing what is occupying their attention during this unprecedented time. To be featured in a future edition, send your recommendations of what to do at home and why you love them to Creative Director / Publisher Dave Hamilton at dhamilton@streetwise.org
Multimedia Performance!
'Tijuana' by Lagartijas Tiradas al Sol Based on the filmed social experiment "Tijuana" by Lagartijas al Sol, Lázaro Gabino Rodríguez depicts overlooked social issues in Mexico through visual and multimedia performances. In sum, the film "Tijuana" showcases Lagartijas Tiradas al Sol temporarily moving to Tijuana and becoming a part of the community. Lagartijas Tiradas al Sol creates a new identity and a new job in a sweatshop to address what democracy is like for someone working a minimum wage job. Lázaro Gabino Rodríguez acts out the movie on stage while highlighting the social and political issues that many residents in Mexico face. Part of the Destinos 2021 - 4th Chicago International Latino Theater Festival. The Chicago Latino Theater Alliance (CLATA) invites everyone to watch Lázaro Gabino Rodríguez’s performance at the Mexican Fine Arts Center Museum, 1852 W. 19th St., on September 23 from 7:30-9 p.m. Tickets average $25 and can be purchased at Eventbrite.com.
Interactive Ballet!
(HOME) ENTERTAINMENT
‘72 Seasons’ The Chicago Manual Style presents “72 Seasons,” an interactive ballet that pulls inspiration from the Japanese calendar to represent Chicago’s landscape and different passages of time. The ballet itself represents the micro-seasons or kō, that take place in the city. "72 Seasons" wants to inform people that more than four seasons exist and that nature and society are constantly changing. The main goal is to break the traditional way of viewing nature and get involved rhythmically and visually. Choreographer Brendan Fernandes invites the city to engage with the dancers at the Lurie Garden in Millennium Park, 201 E. Randolph St., from 1-3 p.m. on September 25 and October 23. “72 Seasons” is a free public event that takes place just in time before fall comes.
A Chicago Tradition!
Puerto Rican Festival For over 50 years, the Puerto Rican Festival has celebrated and honored the Puerto Rican community. Everyone is invited back for another year of music, dancing, food, and celebrating Puerto Rico’s culture and history. Here, you can learn more about the customs and cultures that are important to many Puerto Ricans. This festival takes place over four days in Humboldt Park, 1301 N. Humboldt Drive. From September 23-24, the festival will go from 3-10 p.m. and, from September 25-26, the festival will go from 12-10 p.m. Festival officials ask that everyone wear a mask, regardless of vaccination status.
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Your Own Art!
Grab and Go: Chicago Mini Canvas Art Harold Washington Library Center, 400 S. State St., invites you to pick up a free mini canvas grab-and-go kit on September 21 from 9 a.m.-8 p.m. The library wants you to embrace your inner artist by showing Chicago pride for your neighborhood and community. Each grab-and-go kit includes a mini canvas, paint, and brushes. If interested, please go to the 8th-floor reference desk inside the library and ask them for a grab-and-go kit. This event is part of the One Book, One Chicago program. This program explores the theme of neighborhoods and communities courtesy of Eric Charles May's book "Bedrock Faith." The book discusses how one boy tries to bring his neighborhood together in Parkland, Chicago. For more information on the Grab and Go art kits or "Bedrock Faith," please visit chipublib.org.
Hippity-Hop!
Bunny Yoga Celebrate the first day of fall with bunnies! On September 22, Cuddle Bunny invites you to participate in its annual Fall Equinox Bunny Yoga from 7:15-8:15 p.m. at its headquarters at 2901 N. Clark St. This intention-setting yoga class will help you release the past, start the transition into a new season, and cuddle with bunnies while doing so. This class is open to any level of yoga expertise. During this class, you will go over beginner stretches and maybe even learn some new ones. This is a BYOM (bring your own mat) and socially-distanced event. Cuddle Bunny asks everyone to wear a mask, regardless of vaccination status. Tickets can be purchased at cuddlebunnyccc.com for $20 under the Events Calendar section on their website.
Chill Out!
Sensory-Friendly Morning The Museum of Contemporary Art Chicago invites visitors of all ages to its Sensory-Friendly morning on September 26 from 10-11:30 a.m. The MCA recognizes that some neurodivergent people may get overwhelmed by loud and crowded spaces. The lights in the lobby will be dimmed, and there will be quiet spaces available for people who may need some alone time or a break. The event will take place before the museum opens. It is a free event, but the MCA highly recommends purchasing a ticket to preregister a spot. To buy a ticket, go to mcachicago.org.
In-Person Comedy!
CAMP Comedy Show CAMP is back in person for the first time in over a year on September 20. This comedy show is full of jokes, pranks, and lots of laughs. Summer Camp energy is the inspiration for CAMP the Comedy Show. Just like summer camp, there will be talent shows, pranks, and games. It is a place for performers to unleash their creative sides. CAMP Comedy Show is available online for $10 or in person for $15. Doors open at 7 p.m., and the show starts at 8 p.m. at Lincoln Lodge, 2040 N. Milwaukee Ave. For more details about CAMP and to purchase tickets, please visit tinyurl.com/ CAMPSHOW920.
Smooth Jazz!
Hyde Park Jazz Festival The Hyde Park Jazz Festival is back for its 15th anniversary. South Side Chicago invites fellow jazz lovers to listen and explore different local jazz musicians for free on September 25 from 1-10 p.m. and on September 26 from 12-7 p.m. Even though it is a free event, the festival does encourage a $5 minimum donation. The festival consists of 30 live jazz artists scattered throughout Hyde Park, Kenwood, and Washington Park. Because of the pandemic, the festival is asking everyone to wear a mask, regardless of vaccination status. They are also encouraging non-vaccinated attendees to get a COVID test at least 48 hours before arriving. See a full schedule and locations at hydeparkjazzfestival.org
You Better Work!
SASHAY: A Late Night Queer Comedy and Drag Extravaganza The Laugh Factory presents SASHAY: A Late Night Queer Comedy and Drag Extravaganza. SASHAY guarantees that this show is unlike any other you may have seen before. There will be audience-based lipsync competitions, stand-up comedy, games, and drag shows. Local Queer comedians and drag queens will present their best jokes and their best outfits. It is multiple mini-shows put together to showcase each comedian's creative, unique, and quirky side. Come all comedian and drag lovers to the Laugh Factory, 3175 N. Broadway, on September 24 at 11:30 p.m. SASHAY is a free comedy show, but still requires you to register online at Eventbrite.com.
-Compiled by Paige Bialik
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Vendors Russ Adams, John Hagan and Donald Morris chat with Executive Assistant Patrick Edwards.
Donald: This is a very exciting time, because, at this particular moment, the NFL system is running relatively smoothly in regard to COVID-19 issues. So, let’s get to it, fellas. Russ, how’re you leaning this NFL season?
SPORTSWISE
Russ: Thank you, Don. All right…gonna keep this meat ‘n’ potatoes: In the NFC North, I have the Green Bay Packers at 1, our Chicago Bears at 2. In the NFC East, I have the Dallas Cowboys pulling it, with the Philadelphia Eagles in a strong second; the NFC West, I have the Seattle Seahawks topping the division, and the Los Angeles Rams rounding out their 1-2 punch. Lastly, for the NFC conference, in the NFC South, the defending champs Tampa Bay Buccaneers—the Tom-Brady-led Bucs—lead the pack, the New Orleans Saints the next best there. John: I like it, Russ. Let me get out my NFC picks before you go on over to the AFC. So, my four—just the leaders—are the Packers in the North, the Washington Football Team in the East, the Rams in the West, and, yes, the Tom-Brady-led Buccaneers in the South. Patrick: Y’all have a couple of differences up in there, but not too-too different. Quick and simple, mine are as follows: our very own Chicago Bears at the top of the NFC North, the Cowboys in the East, the Rams in the West, and, as with the rest of you,
the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in the South. Donald: The Bears, huh? Patrick: Yep. As much as I see Green Bay over there, I can see them also having some sorta breakdown, what with the Aaron Rodgers issues going on. He could have something to prove and be able to come up with his usual magic, but I don’t know. Plus, I believe Andy Dalton might not be as bad as we think; rather, not as unworthy as many are labeling him, alongside the dynamic rookie Justin Fields. Donald: Okay, that’s not that bad an argument. Me, myself, I’m jumping to the end of my picks: I’m going with Tom Brady and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers to repeat. The man is, literally, a machine. He ain’t real. Russ: I know, right!
Donald: I do like Dallas to do some different things this season—especially in regard to winning the big games. I think their quarterback, Dak Prescott, is on the comeback. I mean, he’s always been pretty good, but never good enough to carry Dallas over their playoffs humps. With his new—very lucrative— contract, he might be feeling real good about things. John: All right, so out of the AFC, I have the Baltimore Ravens out of the North, the Kansas City Chiefs out of the West, the Buffalo Bills from the East, and the Tennessee Titans out of the South. Russ: So, this one’s easy for me: To everything you just said, I give you a “ditto.”
to the Cleveland Browns over the Ravens. I feel it’s their time. Donald: That’s not a bad choice. They were pretty close last year. Patrick: All right, fellas, so who do you have to ascend to the top of the world this season? Russ? Russ: Kansas City Chiefs, baby. Donald: Tampa Bay Buccaneers. It’s Tom Brady, folks. Patrick: Agreed, Don: I’m going with the old-timer as well. Tampa Bay for me as well. Last word, John? John: L.A. Rams over the Kansas City Chiefs.
John: Smart man, you are. Patrick: Now, I’m going with a pretty similar lineup; however, I’m leaning in the North
Any comments or suggestions? Email pedwards@streetwise.org
THE ART OF PIZZA ON STATE STREET by Rivka Benjamin
Steven Riggs has been a vendor with StreetWise for over 10 years now. As a big fan of cheese ‘n’ sausage pizza, Steven often eats at the ‘Art of Pizza’ pizza shop. It's near his location on State Street. Steven first thought when trying their pizza was “Oh My G-d”. He was shocked at how tasty the pizza was, especially for the price. During all of his visits he has tried the cheese slice, pepperoni slice, and of course, the cheese 'n' sausage slice. Although there is more variety on their menu, Steven likes to stick to the pizza when stopping in for lunch. His mom, however, tried the sub sandwich when they went together. She really liked it, and even saved the leftovers for dinner.
Steven Riggs
What really impressed him was the kindness of the people there, the cashier and the owners. Steven always notices Danny and the other owners offer ice water to people who are homeless on hot days, and sometimes a slice of pizza. THE ART OF PIZZA ON STATE STREET Steven recalls one very hot and humid summer day recently. He was working really hard, sellLocation: ing as many magazines as he could at his loca727 S. State St. tion. He stopped into the pizza store to catch his breath since he was feeling faint. Danny, Price Range: whom Steven calls "one of the nicest guys," Under $10 / per person asked if he was okay and offered some water. “Ice water and a slice of pizza would be nice,” Hours: Steven responded. Danny didn’t flinch, and Sunday - Thursday brought him what he asked for, like a regular 11 a.m. - 11 p.m. customer. He was warm, inviting, and friendly. Steven said he felt quite humbled in that moFriday & Saturday ment, and began to tear up. 11 a.m. - midnight In general, he said the atmosphere is extremely clean, friendly and inviting. There are always conversations going on between multiple tables, no matter how far they are from each other. The customers speak about current events, how tasty the pizza is, and Steven often speaks about StreetWise. Sometimes, people will buy magazines form him on the spot when they hear about it (although that isn’t his goal). “Overall, it was GREAT!! I would highly recommend this place for the food, people, and atmosphere. If you’re ever in Chicago, stop by. Trust me, it’ll be a memorable experience. If you’re out of town, you will be back for this!” The Art of Pizza on State Street: Steven Riggs with employee; interior; a slice of stuffed crust.
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The Mayor's budget plans by Suzanne Hanney
Mayor Lori Lightfoot wants to use up to half of Chicago’s $1.9 billion in federal COVID relief money to pay down debt in her FY2022 budget presented September 15, but “it’s not ‘either/or;’ it’s got to be both,” she said about using the money in underserved neighborhoods. An opposing plan is the “Right to Recovery” ordinance that would use all the American Rescue Plan (ARP) funds for reopening mental health clinics, crisis response services, homelessness assistance, and more. The proposed ordinance is supported by 13 members of the 50-member Chicago City Council. (See pages 10 and 11.) “You could allow this ordinance out of [the] Rules [Committee], call it for a vote,” Caitlin Brady, spokesperson for the Right to Recovery coalition, yelled at Lightfoot during a public empowerment forum August 12 at Truman College. “There is nothing at all that is requiring her to roll this money into the budget process,” Brady said afterward. “And in my mind, it is evil to be sitting on $1.9 billion while people are facing evictions, facing utility shutoffs and being forced back to work without childcare.” Lightfoot responded to Brady that, “there is a budget process.” At both the public meeting and a press briefing August 11, Lightfoot said that she doesn’t want to spend the ARP money all at once, “because this is a once-in-a-generation amount of money for a once-in-a generation crisis…to spend every penny of these ARP funds without any regard for the long-term fiscal consequences would be utterly irresponsible, ineffective, and leave us with nothing if, God forbid, another crisis strikes our city.”
However, the Chicago Sun-Times said in November that borrowing for the plan will be paid by tax increment financing, a bond issue backed by property tax and/or sales taxes and interim financing in anticipation of future state and federal funding. Civic Federation President Laurence Msall questioned how the city could take on the additional debt without a new source of revenue. Since September 2020, the city has also used $35 million in CARES (Coronavirus Aid, Relief and Economic Security) Act funding and $1.3 million from Chicago funders to rapidly rehouse 1,000 individuals. Lightfoot’s administration also became the first to invest in anti-violence initiatives, Norman Kerr, director of the Mayor’s Office of Violence Reduction, said during the public empowerment forum. The $50.8 million allocation includes: • violence interruption programs for individuals at the highest risk of violence, services for victims, coordination of services for residents returning from prison; • legal and counseling services for families impacted by domestic violence; • capacity building for mom and pop community-based organizations;
Besides dealing with persistent budget shortfalls and pension fund demands, Lightfoot said she “recognizes the real hurt in our community,” and that “when we spend the money, it has to be in ways that are catalytic, not just for this season, but for years to come.”
• place-based interventions such as the West Garfield Plaza and Roller Rink;
Lightfoot presented her case during both the media briefing and the public engagement forum that she has already made catalytic investments to help underserved communities. She cited her INVEST South/West initiative, which will coalesce $750 million in public funding along with corporate, community and philanthropic investors over the next three years to build 12 commercial corridors, affordable housing and streetscapes in: Austin, Auburn-Gresham, Bronzeville, Greater Englewood, New City, North Lawndale, Humboldt Park, Greater Roseland, South Chicago and South Shore.
• youth violence reduction for those at highest risk in the form of “choose to change” programs and summer jobs.
Her five-year, $3.7 billion capital plan, she said, will allow the city to repair roads, bridges and tunnels over multiple construction seasons, “instead of lurching from year to year without a plan.” Simultaneously, the project is bringing goodpaying union jobs.
• non-law enforcement response for individuals experiencing a mental health crisis;
Meanwhile, the $60.6 million mental health budget of the Chicago Department of Public Health (CDPH) includes $8.5 million for 32 programs that expand trauma-informed services to youth, adults and families in 34 high-need communities, regardless of ability to pay. CDPH has also invested in its five mental health clinics to extend hours, launch a child and adolescent services program and a telehealth program that delivered 17,000 units of service during the pandemic. The Department of Housing provided emergency rental assistance to 9,000 households impacted by COVID-19 and pledged $252 million for the creation and preservation of 5,800 affordable rental units. The Chicago City Council also
passed a new Affordable Requirements Ordinance that expands requirements for developers downtown, in neighborhoods with little affordable housing, and in those with more than 20 percent displacement of low-income residents.
We’ve gotta help families.” Pastor Alvin Richards of West Englewood, who was at the table and who has worked with the mayor, added “she wants to give them hope from birth, which I thought was very powerful.”
Lightfoot said her priorities for the upcoming budget will be continued resources to connect residents to the COVID-19 vaccine and to health care. Budget outreach earlier this summer also showed her that people want to feel safe and be safe.
Youth funding, mental health services and violence prevention were on most people’s agendas at the forum, so police would have to be reduced from its current 40 percent of the budget in order to fit it all in, said John Cruz-Barcenas during the public comment period.
Police funding will increase to provide resources to recruit the next generation of police officers from across the nation and across Chicago in a way that reflects the city’s diversity. Two pilot programs have similarities to the “Treatment, Not Trauma” ordinance proposed by progressive members of the Chicago City Council. Clinicians would lead, with police support, in one program. Clinicians and experts on opioids would work without police assistance in another pilot led by CDPH.
“We simply cannot keep doing what we’ve been doing because it doesn’t work.” Barcenas advocated the Peacebook ordinance promoted by Good Kids Mad City, which would provide a resource directory of wraparound services and jobs to reduce youth incarceration. He also called for the “Treatment, Not Trauma” ordinance and for a nurse, librarian and counselor at every Chicago Public School (CPS, which has a separate budget). He said Malcolm X had encouraged students of government to come up with ideas because, “we are discouraged with the old, established politicians. We want new, more militant faces.”
Lightfoot promised to “disrupt the root causes of violence” that lead people to bad situations. “We have to give them a different set of values, different opportunities, so that they do not feel their destiny is ordained,” she said about youth when she sat down at a table during the public forum. “People that have no hope don’t fear anything because they don’t feel their life matters.
“Well, mayor, the new, more militant faces are here. We’ve done our study, done our analysis and these are our suggestions. Whether you choose to listen to them will be yours and your administration’s legacy.”
LEFT: Mayor Lori Lightfoot mixes with participants at the public empowerment forum on the FY2022 budget at Truman College. (Suzanne Hanney photo) CENTER: John Cruz-Barcenas calls for a resource directory of alternatives to youth violence and the “Treatment, Not Trauma” mental health alternatives to police response ordinance. (Suzanne Hanney photo) RIGHT: David Zverow of Rogers Park tells Mayor Lightfoot that affordable housing is a critical need. His clients are mostly refugees who spend 75 to nearly 100 percent of their money on housing, so that they must go to food pantries. (Suzanne Hanney photo)
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Right to Recovery coalition challenges mayor's budget by Suzanne Hanney
The Right to Recovery Coalition would agree with Mayor Lori Lightfoot that $1.9 billion in federal COVID relief is “a once-in-a-generation amount of money for a once-in-ageneration crisis.” Lightfoot wants to use up to half the American Rescue Plan (ARP) funds in her FY2022 budget to pay down debt (see pages 8 and 9), but 13 members of the 50-member Chicago City Council would use it all to alleviate poverty in the wake of the pandemic. “The debt she says is due we don’t actually have to pay this year,” said Matthew Cason, treasurer and policy chair of the Chicago Democratic Socialists of America (DSA) regarding the Chicago Rescue Plan Fund 925 ordinance. Other supporters include United Working Families, the Chicago Coalition for the Homeless, Chicago Teachers Union, SEIU Local 73 and SEIU Health Care of Illinois and Indiana. “We’re using ARP funds to invest in our city and our people, whereas debt repayment is not an investment,” Cason said. “That’s what’s setting us up for the future.” He envisions some blend of the Chicago Rescue Plan and Lightfoot’s budget being passed by the Chicago City Council this month or next. Childcare expansion, at $376 million, is the largest line item in the proposed Chicago Rescue Plan, because it is the No. 1 need they discovered, encompassing 7 percent of an average family’s income, Cason said. Their program would either fund people who earn more than the threshold for public reimbursement (roughly $2,874 monthly before taxes for a single mother of one) or be run as a universal program in 10 of Chicago’s 77 community areas, still to be determined. Water Debt Relief, $206 million, is the next biggest allocation. “Who has water debt? Low-income Black and Brown families on the South and West Sides,” Cason said. Some of them owe just a couple hundred dollars, but others have bills in the thousands. Cason blamed faulty infrastructure: leaks inside homes or in pipes connecting to city water mains. One in 6 Chicago residential water accounts was past due at the end of 2019: $341 million in unpaid bills, according to data the Chicago Water Management Department provided to Circle of Blue, a center for reporting on water issues. The
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problem has grown alongside the cost of water and sewer service since 2011. WBEZ found that revenue from water and sewer rates increased 68 percent between 2011 and 2019. Mayor Rahm Emanuel introduced a rate hike phased in over several years to fund infrastructure. A second increase in 2016, also phased in over several years, went to the municipal workers’ pension fund. Lightfoot introduced Chicago Utility Building Relief (UBR), the nation’s first debt forgiveness program, in April 2020. UBR provides a 50 percent reduction in water, sewer, and water-sewer bills; no shut offs or debt collection on city utility billing, and debt forgiveness after a year of payments. In January, Lightfoot announced that $8.9 million in debt forgiveness had been set aside for UBR. The city had already halved the bills for 8,539 participants. Maxica Williams is a grassroots leader with Chicago Coalition for the Homeless (CCH), a mother of two daughters age 15 and 13 and a son, 12. Williams had Stage III cancer in 2015 and was homeless from 2016 until the beginning of this year. The Right to Recovery ordinance, by providing stable housing and homelessness assistance, would be investing in the community, she said. Thanks to the federal McKinney-Vento Act, Williams’ children were able to receive transit cards and other supports to remain in the top Chicago Public Schools where they had been since Head Start, even though the family went from shelters and transitional housing on the southwest side to farther south in the 100s, then up north near Wrigley Field and finally back south to Chicago Housing Authority permanent housing. School remained the one, calm, constant in their lives. The result was that her eldest was salutatorian of her 8th grade class and her two younger children remained on the honor roll. CCH gave laptops and the Chicago Connected program provided high speed internet to enable remote learning during the pandemic. Wraparound services included a psychologist on staff and budgeting classes, because when you’ve been doubled up with friends, sometimes you forget how, Williams said. They received Link cards, storage for their possessions and a rental truck when they moved, access to free furniture and even a sewing class, which took her mind
Right to Recovery Key Provisions Childcare Expansion: $376 million Water Debt Relief: $206 million Housing Assistance: $192 million Violence Prevention: $117 million Reopening Mental Health Clinics: $100 million Vaccination Funding: $50 million Guaranteed Basic Income Pilot: $50 million Youth Employment $45 million Small Business Relief: $40 million Arts & Cultural Support: $20 million
off the cancer. She made a quilt and pillow shams.
After a crisis with police and a mental health co-responder, a person could be taken immediately to a public mental health clinic, but Mayor Emanuel closed six of 12 community mental health centers and privatized another in 2012.
“It’s having all these things, just making sure when the city budget is passed, the Right to Recovery is passed, because it is an important protection the most vulnerable could not recover without. The utility shutoff is getting ready to end; medical debt forgiveness and some kind of guaranteed cash payment could actually help us recover from COVID 19. This is a specific means to end some very harmful living situations that have been going on in the city, such as being homeless and doubled up.”
The Right to Recovery ordinance would reopen the seven clinics plus 12 more for a total of 24, Dr. Carrillo said. Although Lightfoot campaigned on a promise to spend $25 million to reopen them, she has not. Instead, she allocated $8 million to 32 nonprofit providers.
Crisis response services and Reopening Mental Health clinics, funded at $100 million, go hand in hand, said Arturo Carrillo, PhD, LCSW. People with untreated mental illness are 16 times more likely to be killed by police than other civilians stopped by law enforcement, according to a 2015 study by the nonprofit Treatment Advocacy Center. One in 4 fatal police encounters results in death for someone with severe mental illness.
“The problem is, if we don’t create preventative services and continuing care, people will continue to cycle through crisis situations. It’s putting a Band-Aid™ on the cancer,” Dr. Carrillo said. The city should be the provider because it can centralize management.
The reason, Dr. Carrillo says, is that police are trained to give orders and subdue people by force, while mental health professionals deescalate the situation and stay calm. It’s the difference between restraining a drunken man’s knees to his back until he dies or offering him a sandwich and water until he is happy. Mental health professionals meet people where they are.
“Each has its own dysfunction. It’s just a hodge podge. We’ve called every one of those centers to find out what kind of services they provide.” Lightfoot said at the public forum August 12 that erasing mental health stigma is now the barrier to treatment. Dr. Carrillo said their research proves otherwise, that availability remains the issue. “Not only do people say there is not enough mental health access, they say they don’t know the city operates them.” In a survey of 45 of Chicago’s 50 wards, 90 percent of respondents said they would seek out a public mental health center, but they didn’t know they existed.
“No nonprofit can do that. We wouldn’t expect nonprofits to do the job of the Fire Department. With ARP we have a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity that this mayor seems to want to waste. We could have a mental health center in every ward that would cost a small fraction of what is available in federal relief dollars; 5 percent of the $1.9 billion could establish the whole system both for crisis response and mental health access.”
LEFT: Arturo Carrillo,PhD, LCSW, at an Oct. 20, 2020 demonstration outside City Hall in favor of the Treatment, Not Trauma ordinance, which would use mental health clinicians instead of police in some response situations. (Suzanne Hanney photo) RIGHT: Caitlin Brady of the Right to Recovery Coalition tells Mayor Lightfoot to use all $1.9 million in COVID relief money for an alternative, poverty relief plan during a public empowerment forum at Truman College. (Suzanne Hanney photo)
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Families Remember Vietnam War MIAs 'H by Stella Kapetan
There are 29 Vietnam War servicemen from Illinois classified Missing in Action. In honor of POW/MIA Recognition Day on Sept. 17, the families of two local Vietnam MIAs shared memories of them and the effect their absence has had on those who love them. Joan Tomoff asked her brother David if she could drive him to the military base where he would ship off for Vietnam. “He said, 'You can drive me, but you can’t cry,'" she recalled recently from her Arizona home. “My mom and his fianceé cried. I told him ‘I’ll take you, and I won’t cry.’ And I didn’t cry until he left.” It was the last time she saw him.
FROM THE STREETS
2nd Lt. David William Skibbe was born on Oct. 22, 1946, and raised in northwest suburban Mount Prospect. He and Joan, three years his senior, lived with their parents William and Ruth and younger siblings Janet and Bill. “He always wanted to be a soldier,” Joan said of David. “He always played like he was a soldier. My mother said, ‘He was only 4 years old, but you can tell he’s the leader of the neighborhood.’”
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On March 2, 1970, David was 23 and leading a seven-man reconnaissance patrol in in Quang Thoung Duc Province, South Vietnam, when they engaged in battle with the enemy. He was shot in the leg, and a medevac helicopter was called to pick him up. A jungle penetrator – a cable device – was lowered from the helicopter, and David’s comrades strapped him to it to be hoisted onboard. He reached about 100 feet and had cleared the trees when the cable snapped, and he fell to the ground. Miscommunication between the helicopter crew and ground troops resulted in each thinking he was safe with the other. After the rest of the men were evacuated, it was discovered David was not with them. A crew was sent to try to locate him, but heavy enemy fire prevented them from landing. Later, an intensive ground search involving hundreds of men was conducted, but neither David nor his remains were found. He was classified Missing in Action. His status was later changed to Killed in Action - Body Not Recovered after it had been determined he could not have survived the 100-foot fall and that personnel aboard the helicopter did not see his body move after he landed on the ground, according to a military document in the Library of Congress. “I remember going out in the backyard and wailing,” Joan said of her reaction upon learning that her brother was missing. “I couldn’t stand it.” She said they were “happy, optimistic” kids who often spent time together, both with neighborhood children and just the two of them, despite their personality differences – he was assertive, she was shy. They joined in games of ball in the street, basketball in a neighbor’s driveway and went sledding. One of her favorite memories is when she was 7, and 4-year-old David kept her company going door to door selling the 20 Chicago Daily Newspaper subscriptions she needed to receive a free bicycle and they stopped in one home for a cup of hot
The Skibbe Family Above: David Skibbe's Prospect High School senior photo (courtesy of Joan Tomoff ). David Skibbe as a Marine (Michael W. Preston photo). Right: David (L) and Joan Skibbe (R) with their parents and baby sister. (courtesy of Joan Tomoff ) Joan Tomoff, David Skibbe's sister (courtesy photo).
chocolate. She often babysat and always let him stay up past his bedtime to play cards with her. They engaged in typical sibling rivalry she calls “recreational fighting” except when they were alone. “We never fought when our parents weren’t around,” she said. Their mother, who is 99, and their father believed for a while that David could be alive but came to accept that their son died, and his body will not be found. Joan has always thought he died when he fell in the jungle. The day after hearing the news that David was missing, Joan was feeling unwell due to her pregnancy. "I couldn’t feel sorry for myself,” she said. "I went to the park. I enjoyed being in nature. I enjoyed being alive. If he had to die, I was going to live my life. That is a gift he gave me.” Leonard “Lonnie” Lewandowski Jr. grew up with his parents Leonard Sr. and Virginia, his older brothers Steven and Dennis and younger sister Irene at 1612 W. Beach Ave., near Ashland avenue and Division street, in a three-flat where his aunts, uncles and cousins also lived. Lonnie’s family lived in the coach house since they were the largest. Connie Kraly is Lonnie’s younger cousin by 11 months and lived near the family. “Lonnie and I were close,” she said. “We got along really well.” She said that her brown-haired, hazel eyed, athletically
He Always Wanted to be a Soldier'
The Lewandowski Family Leonard "Lonnie" Lewandowski Jr. - Guard and captain of high school football team (DePaul College Prep, formerly Gordon Technical High School photo). Leonard "Lonnie" Lewandowski Jr. High School senior photo (DePaul College Prep, formerly Gordon Technical High School photo). Connie Kraly, Lewandowski's cousin, with her husband Russ. (courtesy of Connie Kraly).
built cousin was popular in the neighborhood. “He was a good-looking kid. All my girlfriends wanted to date him. He loved to laugh and do things to make other people laugh,” by telling jokes, fake tripping and performing silly dives into the lake. Lonnie was a 20-year-old Marine rifleman when on Oct. 19, 1966, he and two others were participating in a rest and relaxation program at the Cua Viet River in South Vietnam and received permission to go swimming at a nearby beach. They then disappeared. Although their clothes and shoes were found on the riverbank, no one saw them swim, drown or be captured. Despite a three-day search and rescue operation, neither they nor their remains were found. No information on their fates has ever been discovered. The government told the family the men drowned. “When they said he drowned, I didn’t believe it,” Connie said, adding that no one in the family did. She said he was an excellent swimmer and spent many days in the water near her home in Round Lake where her family eventually moved. “He was very athletic, always moving.” He shared this penchant for sports with his brothers. “Lonnie wanted to do everything his brothers did,” Connie said. “Lonnie’s mom said, ‘He thinks he can do everything they do.’ There were many baseball games on the corner lot. They could throw a football over the house.” Lonnie used his football skills as guard and captain of his Gordon Technical High School football team. He was also close with his sister
and made sure she was always included in activities. “He was very protective of her,” Connie said. “She always looked up to him.” After Lonnie went missing, Connie’s grandmother discouraged her from mentioning him to his family, especially his mother, for fear it would upset them. “She said, ‘Don’t talk too much about it and make her cry. It’s very hard for them.’ You didn’t know what to say or what you could do.” The regular visits from the Marines were so upsetting that Lonnie’s father had to ask them to not return unless they had definite news. Connie said stress caused his hair to go from sandy brown to white within one year. Lonnie’s mother died on his birthday, having always held out hope he would one day return to her alive. “Now she’ll know for sure where he is,” Connie heard someone say at her wake. She said when Lonnie’s father was asked if he if thought his son was alive, he responded: “I doubt it. Knowing him he wouldn’t be cooperative,” believing his son was captured by the Viet Cong, then killed when he refused to divulge information. Connie agrees with his theory. Fifty-four years after her cousin went missing, Connie shared how she would like him to be remembered: “He believed in God, his family and his country and being of service to people and being a nice guy. I think he would have been everybody’s brother.”
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Vendor a. Allen: the rivers can become more exciting
As of right now, today, it is what it is. The lake and the rivers are two different bodies of water. The lake is so to speak, "luxury." When we think of living near the lake, we're speaking of a privileged population. To live on the lakefront, you're somewhat special, because you'll have access to beaches, boats, fishing and summer fun. To have access to this type of lifestyle, you're considered fortunate and most of the time you'll have to pay more for rent.
INSIDE STREETWISE 14
But now when we speak of the Chicago rivers, we think these places have not been considered places for the elite or well to do yet. But with a little bit of incentive, the rivers can become more exciting. The rivers have a lot of potential: canoeing, kayaking, bike paths, riverwalks, restaurants, tours, water taxis, condominiums. Much like downtown, many historical, social and economic activities can be added to the infrastructure of the rivers. The water can take you a long way. Look where it took Jean Baptiste Pointe du Sable, the founder of Chicago. The rivers are not expensive to live near now, but can easily become expensive if a lot of innovative ideas are invested into their 150-miles of "coastline." As of now, it is what it is: inexpensive to live near the riverfront. A Water Taxi travels on the Chicago River (photo courtesy of Wirestock).
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Streetwise 9/6/21 Crossword
To solve the Sudoku puzzle, each row, column and box must contain the numbers 1 to 9.
Sudoku
4 1 5 2 9 7 7 2 6 4 9 7 3 8 1 5 2 5 3 9
62 Impish 65 “Bolero” composer 67 Maple genus 68 French noodle? 69 Popeye’s gal 70 Undertaking 71 God offended by Daphnis 72 Went white
8 Created 40 Centrist mentally 41 Dashboard 9 JFK’s gauge daughter 42 Part of a 10 Brest friend thunderstorm 11 Scorsese’s 45 Favorite first 3D film 48 Henpeck 12 Footnote abbr. 50 “Hud” Oscar 13 Repair winner 19 Shed 51 Defective 22 Arid 53 Evanesces 25 Flying geese 54 Little row formation Down 55 Type of type 27 Not guzzle 56 Cans 1 Sheet of ice 28 Helpers, 59 Like Darth briefly 2 Bandung Vader locale 29 Summary 60 “Scream” star 3 Humdinger 30 Spin Campbell 4 Sprinted 31 Goldbrick 61 Coaster 32 Auspices 5 Scraps 63 Perturb Copyright ©2021 PuzzleJunction.com 6 Hollow 33 Needle 64 W.W. II inits. 34 Miscalculated 66 ___ provençale 7 Kind of race
©PuzzleJunction.com
lastSudoku week's Puzzle Answers Solution
Solution
7 9 4 1 5 2 3 6 8
3 2 1 4 8 6 9 7 5
6 8 5 7 3 9 4 1 2
1 7 2 3 9 4 8 5 6
5 4 9 8 6 1 2 3 7
8 3 6 5 2 7 1 9 4
Crossword Across
©2021 PuzzleJunction.com
Copyright ©2021 PuzzleJunction.com
PuzzleJun
4 2 9 6 1 5 3 7 Solution 8Sudoku 9 6 2 1 7 4 5 8 3 7 5 6 2 4 8 3 9 1
Find your nearest StreetWise Vendor at
1 Health resort 4 “Moby Dick” captain 8 Fleece 13 Organ knob 14 Late-night host 15 Rich dessert 16 Fork-tailed flier 17 Lined up 18 Possessed 19 Water supplier 22 Acquired relative 23 Miner’s find 24 Wetland 27 Dissenting vote 28 Canadian capital 32 Wife, in Cologne 33 Missed the ©2021 PuzzleJunction.com mark 34 Sleep spoiler 11 Broke bread 60 Defense’s 35 Crane fly 12 River to the excuse 39 Hammer’s Mississippi 61 Knight fight partner 62 Tempo 13 Spot 40 Side dish in 20 Falchions, e.g. 63 Brewer’s need India 64 They, in Trieste 21 Historical 41 Old dagger period 65 Storm center 42 City on the 24 Crow Danube Down 25 Paddles 44 Conducted 26 Bubble source 47 Nave bench 29 Tackle 1 Breastbones 48 Bolivian export 30 ___ el Amarna, 2 Chubby 49 Christopher of Egypt 3 Sleep disorder “Superman” 31 Cherish 4 Jai ___ 51 Mary Shelley 32 Kind of collar 5 Daughter of character Cronus 33 Periphery 55 Pago Pago’s 6 Auth. unknown 34 Wedding vows place 7 Pooch, to some sites 58 Comic strip 35 Finito 8 It’s a wrap “___ & Janis” 9 Wolf’s sound 36 From the top 59 Barley beards 37 Thai river 10 Sea eagle
38 39 42 43 44 45 46 48 50 51 52 53 54 55 56 57
Winner’s cry Recipe amt. Routing word Present from birth Wiggle room Give expression to Slow on the uptake Characteristic ___ du Dales, cycling event Watch chains ___ Kringle Annexes Musical mark Articulate Draft choice Soccer star Hamm
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How StreetWise Works
Our Mission
Orientation Participants complete a monthlong orientation, focusing on customer service skills, financial literacy and time management to become a badged vendor.
Financial Literacy Vendors buy StreetWise for $0.90, and sell it for $2. The profit of $1.10 goes directly to the licensed vendor for them to earn a living.
Supportive Services StreetWise provides referrals, advocacy and other support to assist participants in meeting their basic needs and getting out of crisis.
S.T.E.P. Program StreetWise’s S.T.E.P. Program provides job readiness training and ongoing direct service support to ensure participants’ success in entering the traditional workforce.
THE PLAYGROUND
To empower the entrepreneurial spirit through the dignity of self-employment by providing Chicagoans facing homelessness with a combination of supportive social services, workforce development resources and immediate access to gainful employment.
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