A shortage of places to live is one reason Generation Z has grown cool on Chicago

There’s a reason, besides the weather, Generation Z would rather live in “cool” cities like Austin, New York, Boston or San Francisco.

Chicago, and Illinois, just aren’t in tune with their needs, especially when it comes to housing.

Consider the city’s lack of foresight when it comes to anticipating what will happen with the federal moratorium on rental evictions ends on July 25th. This order, which says landlords with federally backed loans can’t evict tenants, covered about 70% of rentals in the country. State bans, like the one we have in Illinois that is set to expire July 31, likely have protected the other 30%.

Of course, some tenants are still paying their rent. But many can’t. According to Apartment List, 32% of people missed their July payments (both rent and mortgages).

Most experts, ourselves included, predict there will be an avalanche of eviction lawsuits when these moratoriums expire. Many mayors in progressive cities, like Boston, Philadelphia, Denver and Los Angeles, have protected their residents by issuing city-wide eviction moratoriums. Boston’s mayor signed an order last week that halts evictions until the year’s end.

We call on Mayor Lightfoot to issue a city-wide eviction moratorium for Chicago.

We also call on the city to provide more support to tenant relief organizations. One study found that 90% of landlords have a lawyer, while only 10 percent of tenants do. When tenants have legal help, they win 75 to 90% of eviction disputes.

Whatever lawmakers decide to do, we hope renters in Chicago find affordable legal services to help them with landlord disputes. Having a lawyer in your phone’s contact list is just as important as having a doctor to call when you are sick. Eventually, you’ll need one.

Patricia Lamberti
Editor In Chief,
Court Buddy Blog

Not all scars are physical

We all want to see schools reopen. We also know that strict social distancing mandates will be necessary to ensure safety. This could, however, result in serious unintended consequences.

Human beings are social animals. One wonders about the emotional and mental health effects on students, especially young children, of constantly having to mask their faces — their identities and emotions — from one another, absorbing a lesson daily that other people are to be shunned and avoided.

I have no answer to this conundrum. I fully understand the necessity for many of these mandates. But it’s an issue that needs to be addressed honestly and openly. Not all toxins (and not all scars) are physical. As vigilant as we must be about our children’s physical health, we must also take into consideration their psychological and emotional well-being.

David G. Whiteis, Humboldt Park

Save the Postal Service

The survival of the U. S. Postal Service is threatened by the Trump administration, yet it was never intended to turn a profit. To eliminate this service for political purposes would be absolutely criminal. Hard-copy communication will forever remain an incomparable event. One of my greatest pleasures and memories as a soldier was mail call.

Many Americans still consider some documents to be legal only if a hard copy exists. Signatures — not e-signatures — will always seem more authentic.

Support the Postal Service as we do other non-profitable services.

Saul Holmes, Chatham