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AUSTIN WEEKLY news
La Shawn K. Ford: Why the country needs to reform the Electoral College,
Vol. 30 No. 47
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November 30, 2016
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austinweeklynews.com
@AustinWeeklyChi
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Also serving Garfield Park
PAGE 10
Meet Bernard Headley, page 3
Bailed out in time for the holidays Willie Wilson frees hundreds of inmates in Cook County jail before Thanksgiving By IGOR STUDENKOV Contributing Reporter
Bryce Leslie made no bones about it – he was addicted to painkillers and he needed help. He just didn’t think he should have been stuck in jail for months, before he even had a chance to go to trial, simply because he couldn’t afford to pay bail. But thanks to Dr Willie Wilson, Leslie was only locked up for five days. As of Nov. 16, the self-made millionaire and former mayoral and presidential candidate bailed out 204 detainees who were in Cook County Jail for minor, non-violent offenses. And on Nov. 24, he and Rev. Marshall Hatch, pastor of the New Mt. Pilgrim Missionary Baptist Church, 4301 W. Washington Blvd. in East Garfield Park, teamed up to give WILLIE WILSON them all free Thanksgiving meals, with Wilson giving each person who showed up $200 in cash. He promised to give them more money if they show up for their court dates, and he intends to keep bailing out non-violent detainees using his own funds and whatever funds he and his allies manage to raise until the State of Illinois reforms the bail system. Under the current laws, when a person is arrested, they or their families must pay at least 10 percent of their bail to get out of jail. See BAILED OUT on page 4
WILLIAM CAMARGO/Staff Photographer
PREPPING FOR WORK AHEAD: A staffing agent for Apple One, left, conducts a mock interview for a community member who attended a job and resource fair hosted by Above and Beyond Family Recovery Center in Garfield Park on Nov. 18.
W. Side nonprofit hosts job, life fair
Above and Beyond paired with staffing firm Apple One during the one-day event By MICHAEL ROMAIN Editor
Gail S. Bussie, 57, arrived in front of the Above and Beyond Family Recovery Center, 2942 W. Lake St. in Garfield Park on Nov. 17 — one day before a job and resource fair the nonprofit was set to host. “I showed up yesterday like this,” said Bussie, who was dressed in a black power suit. “I was the first in line, but it was the wrong day. I offered to spend the night.”
Bussie was among more than a dozen people who flocked to Above and Beyond to receive job training skills and go through mock interviews offered by the Chicago staffing firm Apple One. Siri Hibbler, Above and Beyond’s director of housing and job readiness, said the Nov. 18 event was designed to introduce the nonprofit’s free services, which include substance abuse treatment, housing readiness and skills development, to the general public.
For Bussie, a trained medical transcriptionist before her career was disrupted by automation, the event was a chance for her to build her confidence in what, for job-seekers of all backgrounds and experiences, is proving to be something of a brave, new world. “I’ve been out of the workplace for too long,” said Bussie. “I’m here for something part-time or full-time. I want a real
Austin Chamber of Commerce on the move... 773.854.5848 • www.austinchicagochamber.com
See JOB FAIR on page 9