Chicago Sun-Times: All posts by Nichole Shaw2021-09-13T05:30:00-05:00https://chicago.suntimes.com/authors/nichole-shaw/rss2021-09-13T05:30:00-05:002021-09-12T19:08:51-05:00TLC ‘CrazySexyCool’ tour: Duo makes every show feel like ‘a big old backyard boogie’
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<img class="Image" alt="TLC members Chilli (left) and T-Boz (right) sit in classic 90s fits with a futuristic twist to promote their 2021 national tour, which celebrates their hit sophomore album “CrazySexyCool.” TLC headlines the Chicago Hollywood Amphitheater on Sep. 15." srcset="https://cst.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/25ebeb5/2147483647/strip/true/crop/5556x3118+0+293/resize/490x275!/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fcdn.vox-cdn.com%2Fthumbor%2FmOB0EvZnzEG3QDo5U-BIfGE1fu0%3D%2F0x0%3A5556x3704%2F5556x3704%2Ffilters%3Afocal%282547x653%3A2548x654%29%2Fcdn.vox-cdn.com%2Fuploads%2Fchorus_asset%2Ffile%2F22823286%2FTLC_promo_shoot.jpg 1x,https://cst.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/893ecba/2147483647/strip/true/crop/5556x3118+0+293/resize/980x550!/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fcdn.vox-cdn.com%2Fthumbor%2FmOB0EvZnzEG3QDo5U-BIfGE1fu0%3D%2F0x0%3A5556x3704%2F5556x3704%2Ffilters%3Afocal%282547x653%3A2548x654%29%2Fcdn.vox-cdn.com%2Fuploads%2Fchorus_asset%2Ffile%2F22823286%2FTLC_promo_shoot.jpg 2x" width="490" height="275"
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<div class="Figure-content"><figcaption class="Figure-caption"><p>TLC headlines the Chicago Hollywood Amphitheater on Sep. 15.</p></figcaption><span class="line"></span><div class="Figure-credit"><p>Dennis Leupold</p></div></div>
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<p>The ’90s are making a comeback, and it’s crazy, sexy and cool because TLC is coming to Tinley Park as part of a national tour to commemorate the girl group’s hit sophomore album.</p><p>“This is our most iconic album, so I believe it is <i>the</i> one to be celebrated,” Tionne “T-Boz” Watkins said of the group’s 1994 studio release “CrazySexyCool.” “It was something that had so much good music, that made people feel so good. ... Timing is everything. So, it couldn’t be even more perfect timing, after the [worst of the] pandemic, when everybody wants to get out and party. We wanted it to feel like a big old backyard boogie, where we were just all partying together.”</p><p>TLC’s show here will be one of 18 the group will perform on the trek, joined by Bone Thugs N’ Harmony and surprise special guests throughout.</p><p>Hailing from Atlanta, members T-Boz and Rozonda “Chilli” Thomas said their hope for this tour is to remind women to respect themselves, be proud of who they are and live their life the way they want to. Female empowerment has always been a message the group emphasized, most recognized in hit single “No Scrubs.”</p><div class="RichTextSidebarModule Enhancement" data-module data-align-floatRight><a class="AnchorLink" id="module-090000" name="module-090000"></a>
<div class="RichTextSidebarModule-title">TLC</div>
<div class="RichTextModule-items RichTextBody"><br><b>TLC</b><br><b>With Bone Thugs-N-Harmony </b><br><br><b>When:</b> 7:30 p.m. Sept. 15<br><br><b>Where:</b> Hollywood Casino Amphitheatre, 19100 Ridgeland Ave, Tinley Park<br><br><b>Tickets:</b> $25-$306<br><br><b>Info:</b> <a class="Link" href="https://concerts.livenation.com/tlcs-celebration-of-crazy-sexy-cool-tinley-park-illinois-09-15-2021/event/04005AD1DE1137D4?_ga=2.192296809.2118685680.1630607048-1938213951.1627659688" target="_blank" >concerts.livenation.com</a><br><br><br></div>
</div><p>In all their touring and projects since Lisa “Left Eye” Lopes passed away in 2002 following a car crash, T-Boz and Chilli have remained loyal to the late rapper, never adding a new member or changing their name.</p><p>“We grew up together and we went through life together, all three of us,” T-Boz said. “Even if physically only one of us is standing there, we all represent one another. Unfortunately, we lost our sister. But, we’re still TLC. So in every last, single thing we do, no matter what that is, we will always rep her and you will always feel her presence, especially in concert.”</p><p>Added Chilli, “She can’t be replaced, because no one could fill those shoes. I hate with a capital H when people are on social media and they say, ‘Well, why don’t they just call it TC?’ When you work hard for something and you build something, you just don’t throw it away or change it because circumstances have changed. You move on, find a new normal and make it work.”</p><p>TLC was the first female group to receive a diamond certification from the Recording Industry Association of America — in 2019 for the “CrazySexyCool” album, commemorating sales of more than 10 million copies. That’s a huge feat considering there weren’t streaming platforms in the group’s heyday.</p><p>As the best-selling American girl group of all time (that’s 85 million records sold worldwide), TLC is known for smooth, slinky R&B, killer dance moves and iconic fashion — see: skintight crop tops and baggy wide leg pants. Perhaps what’s more remarkable about the singers’ legacy is that they weren’t afraid to speak their minds, even if it got them into trouble. They raised awareness about significant, albeit controversial, social issues on the national and even global stage, from the AIDS epidemic to sexism to unsafe sex to drug abuse.</p><p>“I want us to be remembered for the things that we stood for, the three strong women that we are, that we stood for what we believed in,” T-Boz said. “And I always want people to recognize that no matter what issues came between us, we never broke up. I think we’re about the only girl group who just never broke up, ever. And most importantly, our lyrical content had no color and no age.”</p><p>TLC symbolize what it means to be strong Black women in a world that so often pits them against each other. Their music lives on in artists like Beyoncé and Chloe x Halle.</p><p>T-Boz fondly remembered the trips she and her grandfather, who lived in Chicago Heights, used to take to pizza parlors in the city. Chilli remembered the iconic Chicago Mix of Garrett’s popcorn, which made her sick on a flight back to California.</p><p>“It’s sick — it’s addictive,” Chilli said. “I’m glad I don’t live in Chicago because I would be a hot mess with that combination of caramel and cheese in my stomach every day.”</p><p>Today, the two artists tour and make appearances while retaining ownership of their income, after recorded accounts of exploitation under previous management. </p><p>On the horizon is a two-hour A&E documentary, scheduled to release late 2022, chronicling TLC’s journey from the ’90s to today and featuring interviews from T-Boz and Chilli.<br></p>
https://chicago.suntimes.com/2021/9/13/22654403/tlc-crazy-sexy-cool-tour-crazysexycool-tboz-chilli-left-eye-hollywood-casino-tinley-parkNichole Shaw2021-09-03T15:40:47.823-05:002021-09-03T18:02:45-05:00CTA employees must get vaccinated against COVID-19
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<img class="Image" alt="The State and Lake elevated CTA station, Wednesday, June 9, 2021." srcset="https://cst.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/e983dbc/2147483647/strip/true/resize/490x275!/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fcdn.vox-cdn.com%2Fthumbor%2Ft8d-HlDiogpdkPgbzrXKm2tNuvA%3D%2F0x0%3A6000x4000%2F6000x4000%2Ffilters%3Afocal%283095x1444%3A3096x1445%29%2Fcdn.vox-cdn.com%2Fuploads%2Fchorus_asset%2Ffile%2F22825817%2Fmerlin_98166654.jpg 1x,https://cst.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/c265307/2147483647/strip/true/resize/980x550!/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fcdn.vox-cdn.com%2Fthumbor%2Ft8d-HlDiogpdkPgbzrXKm2tNuvA%3D%2F0x0%3A6000x4000%2F6000x4000%2Ffilters%3Afocal%283095x1444%3A3096x1445%29%2Fcdn.vox-cdn.com%2Fuploads%2Fchorus_asset%2Ffile%2F22825817%2Fmerlin_98166654.jpg 2x" width="490" height="275"
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<div class="Figure-content"><figcaption class="Figure-caption"><p>The Chicago Transit Authority announced its employees must be fully vaccinated by Oct. 25.</p></figcaption><span class="line"></span><div class="Figure-credit"><p>Brian Rich/Sun-Times file</p></div></div>
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<p>The Chicago Transit Authority announced Friday it will require its employees to be fully vaccinated against COVID-19 by Oct. 25.</p><p>Nearly 11,000 employees work for CTA and must now provide proof of vaccination or face disciplinary action that could include dismissal. </p><p>“Our goal is not to fire anyone. Our goal is to provide everyone with a safe work and travel environment,” CTA spokeswoman Catherine Hosinski told the Chicago Sun-Times. </p><p>The CTA joins the city of Chicago, the state of Illinois and commercial businesses in mandating COVID-19 vaccination. </p><p>“We fully believe that the choice of a vaccination should be up to a person and not forced upon them,” said Keith Hill, Amalgamated Transit Union Local 241 president, who represents bus employees. “We do plan on trying to fight this. Our attorneys went to the circuit court to get an injunction this afternoon.”</p><p>Amalgamated Transit Union Local 308, which represents workers on the CTA L system, did not respond to a request for comment.</p><div class="RelatedList Enhancement" data-module data-align-center>
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<p>“In order for us to continue safely serving the Chicago area, it is now time for the remainder of our workforce to join the nearly 200 million Americans who are fully-vaccinated to help fight off these variants and protect our loved ones and others who cannot be vaccinated,” CTA President Dorval R. Carter, Jr. said in a statement.</p><p>The CTA launched an internal, on-site employee vaccination program in February, making the CTA one of the first major transit agencies in the nation to do so.<br></p>
https://chicago.suntimes.com/2021/9/3/22656334/cta-require-employees-fully-vaccinated-covid-19-coronavirusNichole Shaw2021-09-03T10:41:34.881-05:002021-09-03T10:41:39-05:00Space podcast for kids connects with NASA astronauts
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<img class="Image" alt="NASA astronauts Megan MacArthur (left) and Mark Vande Hei (right) speak with REACH podcast hosts Wednesday morning aboard the International Space Station on Expedition 65." srcset="https://cst.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/f58f1b2/2147483647/strip/true/resize/490x275!/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fcdn.vox-cdn.com%2Fthumbor%2FFVuOB96lC9HJG2Ve7Yfvgtpzlxs%3D%2F0x0%3A3584x2012%2F3584x2012%2Ffilters%3Afocal%281792x1006%3A1793x1007%29%2Fcdn.vox-cdn.com%2Fuploads%2Fchorus_asset%2Ffile%2F22821136%2FNASA_Astronauts_Megan_McArthur_and_Mark_T._Vande_Hei__courtesy_of_NASA_.png 1x,https://cst.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/70f9447/2147483647/strip/true/resize/980x550!/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fcdn.vox-cdn.com%2Fthumbor%2FFVuOB96lC9HJG2Ve7Yfvgtpzlxs%3D%2F0x0%3A3584x2012%2F3584x2012%2Ffilters%3Afocal%281792x1006%3A1793x1007%29%2Fcdn.vox-cdn.com%2Fuploads%2Fchorus_asset%2Ffile%2F22821136%2FNASA_Astronauts_Megan_McArthur_and_Mark_T._Vande_Hei__courtesy_of_NASA_.png 2x" width="490" height="275"
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<div class="Figure-content"><figcaption class="Figure-caption"><p>NASA astronauts Megan MacArthur (left) and Mark Vande Hei talk with REACH podcast hosts Sept. 1 from aboard the International Space Station.</p></figcaption><span class="line"></span><div class="Figure-credit"><p>NASA</p></div></div>
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<p>Space is for everyone. That’s the message a Logan Square couple pushed as they connected with outer space from their apartment closet.</p><p>“A lot of astronauts and NASA employees are sharing their stories of how they began and how it’s not just the top people in their class that get to work for NASA,” said Meredith Stepien, podcast co-host, actress and Adler Planetarium content developer. “Space is for everyone. Nobody owns space.”</p><p>Stepien and her husband, Brian Holden, co-hosts of “REACH: A Space Podcast for Kids,” livestreamed Sept. 1 with NASA astronauts Megan MacArthur and Mark Vande Hei aboard the International Space Station. The astronauts are on Expedition 65, and one of their current experiments concerns regolith, the surface of planetary bodies — terrestrial soil, essentially.</p><p>The experiment takes simulated regolith and prints building materials in the hopes that structures built in space will be just as strong with less than Earth’s gravitational pull. If the experiment is successful, astronauts will be able to build habitats on the moon one day, said MacArthur, an astronaut since 2000 and an oceanographer.</p><p>Along with the in-depth description of current experiments and space exploration came the explanation of what life is like in zero gravity, away from friends, family and fresh food — a response to questions the podcast hosts solicited from their audience before the livestream.</p><p>“The nice thing about being on a spacewalk is that in every direction you look, you can see incredible distances,” said Vande Hei, an astronaut since 2009 and a retired Army officer. “So, there’s these beautiful views — kind of hard to get your head wrapped around the scales that you’re seeing. At the same time, you’ve got to pay very close attention to your job and make sure you stay safe.”</p><p>MacArthur has marveled at the photographs her and fellow astronauts have taken while aboard the station, some of the places they’ve lived and others of phenomena on Earth like large wildfires and hurricanes — which they’ve seen a lot of lately.</p><p>“Those photographs have also helped in emergency response planning, as well as even identifying leaks from oil pipelines, a very valuable resource that was made from [people] living here on the space station for about five years,” MacArthur said.</p><div class="Enhancement" data-align-floatLeft>
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<img class="Image" alt="REACH podcast hosts Meredith Stepien (left) and Brian Holden (right) pose for a promotional photo." srcset="https://cst.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/5fb01e3/2147483647/strip/true/crop/3620x2032+0+1298/resize/490x275!/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fcdn.vox-cdn.com%2Fthumbor%2F5EsQFh-9qhcUQRWFJ5mPm9Xt5Wo%3D%2F0x0%3A3620x4628%2F3620x4628%2Ffilters%3Afocal%281810x2314%3A1811x2315%29%2Fcdn.vox-cdn.com%2Fuploads%2Fchorus_asset%2Ffile%2F22821169%2FREACH_hosts_Meredith_Stepien_and_Brian_Holden_Photo_by_Patriac_Coakley.jpg 1x,https://cst.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/b68561f/2147483647/strip/true/crop/3620x2032+0+1298/resize/980x550!/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fcdn.vox-cdn.com%2Fthumbor%2F5EsQFh-9qhcUQRWFJ5mPm9Xt5Wo%3D%2F0x0%3A3620x4628%2F3620x4628%2Ffilters%3Afocal%281810x2314%3A1811x2315%29%2Fcdn.vox-cdn.com%2Fuploads%2Fchorus_asset%2Ffile%2F22821169%2FREACH_hosts_Meredith_Stepien_and_Brian_Holden_Photo_by_Patriac_Coakley.jpg 2x" width="490" height="275"
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<div class="Figure-content"><figcaption class="Figure-caption"><p>REACH podcast hosts Meredith Stepien (left) and Brian Holden</p></figcaption><span class="line"></span><div class="Figure-credit"><p>Courtesy of REACH: A Space Podcast for Kids</p></div></div>
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</div><p>Much of the podcast hosts’ mission was to bring attention to the responsibilities people on Earth have to protect the planet but also create more equitable futures for later generations. They found that middle schoolers, those of Gen Z or older Gen Alpha, are interested in the ethics of space travel.</p><p>“They are a generation that is particularly more aware of what’s going on in the world, as far as government and social issues, than I may have been when growing up,” said Nate DuFort, co-creator of the podcast and founder of Soundsington Media, which produces it. “Because of the big news items relating to space right now in the modern day space race with millionaires going into orbit, there may be a perception that space belongs to the wealthy. That is absolutely not true.”</p><p>The podcast’s first episode went live in June 2020. DuFort noticed a gap in space exploration learning in his 12-year-old daughter and Stepien, through her work at the planetarium, noticed people of all ages really didn’t know much about what lies beyond Earth. That’s why the podcast was created, to meet children and their parents at home in an accessible, fast-paced learning environment. </p><p>Now, the show has two seasons and over 30 episodes, encouraging kids to find their own sources of information and make smart choices based on real science.</p><p>“Thinking about just what is out there and what we are and how we’re all just connected by this sky and by space, it’s just grounding,” Stepien said. “And it’s a really nice place to go, especially if you’re feeling stressed or worried about our Earthling problems.”</p><p>The episode of REACH featuring NASA astronauts MacArthur and Vande Hei will be released Sept. 14 on Apple podcasts and other streaming platforms.<br></p>
https://chicago.suntimes.com/education/2021/9/3/22652930/space-podcast-connects-kids-nasa-astronauts-international-space-stationNichole Shaw2021-08-29T11:11:17.69-05:002021-08-30T14:25:31-05:00Another formerly homeless vet gets help furnishing his home
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<img class="Image" alt="Mark McKenna tours his refurbished apartment for the first time." srcset="https://cst.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/b3f3e57/2147483647/strip/true/crop/5556x3118+0+369/resize/490x275!/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fcdn.vox-cdn.com%2Fthumbor%2Fru44p-1fuAKD17y7IMHaod1dXc8%3D%2F0x0%3A5556x3856%2F5556x3856%2Ffilters%3Afocal%283664x721%3A3665x722%29%2Fcdn.vox-cdn.com%2Fuploads%2Fchorus_asset%2Ffile%2F22810289%2Fmerlin_100356751.jpg 1x,https://cst.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/c5fe4a0/2147483647/strip/true/crop/5556x3118+0+369/resize/980x550!/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fcdn.vox-cdn.com%2Fthumbor%2Fru44p-1fuAKD17y7IMHaod1dXc8%3D%2F0x0%3A5556x3856%2F5556x3856%2Ffilters%3Afocal%283664x721%3A3665x722%29%2Fcdn.vox-cdn.com%2Fuploads%2Fchorus_asset%2Ffile%2F22810289%2Fmerlin_100356751.jpg 2x" width="490" height="275"
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<div class="Figure-content"><figcaption class="Figure-caption"><p>Mark McKenna tours his refurbished apartment for the first time.</p></figcaption><span class="line"></span><div class="Figure-credit"><p>Brian Rich/Sun-Times</p></div></div>
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<p>A 58-year-old U.S. Navy veteran teared up as he entered his refurbished, one-bedroom apartment, overwhelmed that he finally had furniture. The most exciting thing about his new space: a loveseat and dinner table with chairs, so he no longer has to sit on the floor and eat.</p><p>“I have a couch to sit on, and I don’t have to lay on the floor to watch TV,” said Mark McKenna, who was discharged in 1986. “It’s nice to have something to sit on.”</p><p>The remodel of McKenna’s apartment was made possible by donations from Chicagoans to the nonprofit organization Humble Design. The project was completed in a week and unveiled Friday, as the organization fulfilled its mission to help families — a majority of them led by single mothers — and veterans emerging from homelessness.</p><p>McKenna is the 2,000th client Humble Design has helped nationwide.</p><p>Before Humble Design got involved, McKenna’s apartment was sparse, boxes of his life forgotten in the corners of his Lakeview apartment.</p><p>Now, McKenna says it feels like home, with the hand-crocheted sign his mother made for him displayed on his fridge and his cabinets filled with food from the Lakeview Food Pantry. In his bedroom, iconic Beatles posters hang on the wall above his headboard, a nod to his infatuation with the English rock band.</p><p>Perhaps most precious, though, is the carefully folded U.S. flag, which sits atop his new china cabinet to memorialize his old roommate, who was also a Navy veteran.</p><p>“It’s for my friend Arnold,” McKenna said. “He passed away in 2011 from cancer — melanoma. We were together for 17 years ... I miss him.”</p><p>The renovation project involved four volunteers on site and about 20 at a warehouse where donations are managed. Chicago Humble Design warehouse manager David Whitaker spearheaded much of the design and furnishing process, meeting with McKenna to ensure all his needs — and wants — were met to make his apartment feel like home.</p><p>“It’s peace because I was homeless, too,” said David Whitaker, in reference to his work with Humble Design. “We didn’t have any help back then. But being involved and seeing the end results, it’s moving.”</p><p>Humble Design helps clients in Chicago, Cleveland, Detroit, Seattle and San Diego. McKenna’s apartment is the 406th home to be furnished by the nonprofit since the Chicago chapter was founded in 2017, according to Chicago Humble Design director Julie Dickinson.</p><p>Dickinson’s father, Larry Schuerr is also a Navy veteran, so he was eager to volunteer his work as a contractor.</p><p>“A lot of these guys who get discharged have no family to go home to,” Schuerr said. “When I was in the service, I knew exactly what I was going to wear, I knew exactly what I was going to eat, and I knew exactly where I needed to be. But after you’re discharged, you have none of that structure. I wanted to give him some of that back.”</p><p>Some of that routine and normalcy will return for the first time in a while, as McKenna looked forward to preparing an Italian dinner — likely spaghetti or lasagna — for a friend. And he’ll eat at his dining room table, instead of on the floor.<br></p>
https://chicago.suntimes.com/news/2021/8/29/22645094/another-formerly-homeless-vet-gets-help-furnishing-his-homeNichole Shaw2021-08-25T17:26:03.412-05:002021-08-26T10:00:12-05:00Ex-manager who sued Abbott Laboratories for discrimination loses court case
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<img class="Image" alt="Abbott Laboratories headquarters in Abbott Park, Illinois." srcset="https://cst.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/bcdd4a8/2147483647/strip/true/crop/4189x2351+0+43/resize/490x275!/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fcdn.vox-cdn.com%2Fthumbor%2FNip6w3mzUK9yVYeZLI3KF-0Hb5o%3D%2F0x0%3A4189x2436%2F4189x2436%2Ffilters%3Afocal%282095x1218%3A2096x1219%29%2Fcdn.vox-cdn.com%2Fuploads%2Fchorus_asset%2Ffile%2F22803747%2FABBOTT_03.JPG 1x,https://cst.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/1d72c5f/2147483647/strip/true/crop/4189x2351+0+43/resize/980x550!/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fcdn.vox-cdn.com%2Fthumbor%2FNip6w3mzUK9yVYeZLI3KF-0Hb5o%3D%2F0x0%3A4189x2436%2F4189x2436%2Ffilters%3Afocal%282095x1218%3A2096x1219%29%2Fcdn.vox-cdn.com%2Fuploads%2Fchorus_asset%2Ffile%2F22803747%2FABBOTT_03.JPG 2x" width="490" height="275"
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<div class="Figure-content"><figcaption class="Figure-caption"><p>Abbott Laboratories is headquartered in Abbott Park, Illinois.</p></figcaption><span class="line"></span><div class="Figure-credit"><p>Sun-Times file</p></div></div>
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<p>A former worker for Abbott Laboratories lost her lawsuit against the pharmaceutical giant Wednesday when a jury awarded her no damages in her case that alleged the company had targeted African American workers in a layoff that led to her firing.</p><p>Jacinta “Jay” Downing, the former Midwest sales region manager for the North Shore company, had claimed she was denied promotions and retaliated against even before she was let go in 2015. </p><p>“Although I am unhappy about the verdict, I am happy that I got my day in court,” Downing said after the verdict in federal court was handed down. “I truly believe that everything I testified during court about the actions Abbott participated in was truly discriminatory.”</p><p>Abbott didn’t respond to requests for comment on the verdict.</p><p>In closing arguments Tuesday, Downing’s attorney, Linda Friedman, argued that the company redrew her client’s sales territory and that of other workers of color specifically to target Blacks for firing. </p><p>“It may be a serious and harsh allegation to make, but we are arguing that the realignment was a takedown of Blacks,” said Friedman. “ ... It took down Jay Downing. You won’t find business reasons in these performance management decisions. It’s just unfounded.”</p><p>But attorneys for Abbott said those decisions were based on a detailed record from supervisors who had described Downing as insubordinate, argumentative and not responsive to constructive criticism.</p><p>“Downing knows these are serious accusations,” Abbott attorney James Hurst said. “It’s a pretty powerful damnation of their character ... and she’s willing to do it to win large money sums for damages.”</p><p>Hurst and other attorneys argued Downing’s suit was a sham and that there was no retaliation on Abbott’s part for her claims of gender and race discrimination. Instead, they claim the 2015 reduction in force affected 20 managers at the company, whose races and genders varied. </p><p>The realignment of regional sales territories redrew geography for managers across the country and was based on the guidance of an independent consulting firm. Downing’s territory was altered to add Texas and take away Michigan. </p><p>Abbott attorney Christa Cottrell denied that the realignment was discriminatory, or resulted in a Black woman being given a bad territory that led to subpar performance, because the current Midwest sales manager has met 100 percent of company’s goals and hit her profit margin, too.</p><p>Friedman also argued that leadership at Abbott consisted of powerful white men who were more comfortable with supporting and even promoting other white men at the company, despite people of color outperforming them in sales.</p><p>Downing’s termination came at the behest of Mark Bridgman, the vice president of commercial operations at Abbott, Friedman noted.</p><p>“Abbott’s leadership team looked like this: All white men. This was Mr. Bridgman’s comfort zone,” Friedman said. “Mr. Bridgman decided that she [Downing] lacked ‘executive presence.’”</p><p>Executive presence, Friedman claimed, was code for racial discrimination.</p><p>Downing was Abbott’s manager of the year in 2013 before she received a partial achievement review from her supervisor at the time, Peter Farmakis.</p><p>“Peter Farmakis compiled a 12-point memo detailing what he called Ms. Downing’s facts of gross negligence, dishonesty, flawed personal relationships, unauthorized dealings with clients,” said Friedman. “This 12-point memo was chock full of lies, distortions, racial stereotypes.”</p><p>But the insubordination claim comes from what Abbott attorneys said was Downing’s tendency to authorize deals for clients that she didn’t have the power to do without consulting higher-ups.</p><p>“We were just making business decisions that she didn’t end up liking, which is why we’re in this courtroom,” Hurst said.</p><p>The civil jury was made up of eight people, none of which were African American, according to Downing’s lawyers.<br></p>
https://chicago.suntimes.com/business/2021/8/25/22640372/abbott-laboratories-discrimination-jacinta-jay-downing-racial-gender-linda-friedmanNichole Shaw2021-08-23T14:46:46.565-05:002021-08-23T19:43:20-05:00Faith leaders pray for Rev. Jesse Jackson and his wife, Jacqueline
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<img class="Image" alt="Community activists and faith leaders get signatures for a “get well soon” card for Rev. Jesse Jackson, 79, and his wife, Jacqueline, 77, before a prayer vigil and news conference outside Northwestern Memorial Hospital, Monday morning, Aug. 23, 2021. The Jacksons were admitted Saturday to Northwestern after testing positive for COVID-19." srcset="https://cst.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/3c7320b/2147483647/strip/true/crop/5046x2832+0+266/resize/490x275!/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fcdn.vox-cdn.com%2Fthumbor%2FSNvXkknG90nulALN5smhYf0stGc%3D%2F0x0%3A5046x3364%2F5046x3364%2Ffilters%3Afocal%283195x1692%3A3196x1693%29%2Fcdn.vox-cdn.com%2Fuploads%2Fchorus_asset%2Ffile%2F22800979%2Fmerlin_100276266.jpg 1x,https://cst.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/6c278c2/2147483647/strip/true/crop/5046x2832+0+266/resize/980x550!/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fcdn.vox-cdn.com%2Fthumbor%2FSNvXkknG90nulALN5smhYf0stGc%3D%2F0x0%3A5046x3364%2F5046x3364%2Ffilters%3Afocal%283195x1692%3A3196x1693%29%2Fcdn.vox-cdn.com%2Fuploads%2Fchorus_asset%2Ffile%2F22800979%2Fmerlin_100276266.jpg 2x" width="490" height="275"
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<div class="Figure-content"><figcaption class="Figure-caption"><p>Community activists and faith leaders prayed for the recovery of the Rev. Jesse Jackson, 79, and his wife, Jacqueline, 77, outside Northwestern Memorial Hospital on Monday. The Jacksons were admitted Saturday after testing positive for COVID-19.</p></figcaption><span class="line"></span><div class="Figure-credit"><p>Ashlee Rezin/Sun-Times</p></div></div>
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<p>The Rev. Ira Acree and activists stood outside a hospital Monday, heads bowed in prayer for the recovery of the Rev. Jesse Jackson and his wife, Jacqueline, who were hospitalized for COVID-19 over the weekend.</p><p>The small gathering called for a national day of prayer on Wednesday to honor the Jacksons for their civil rights work and a speedy recovery. </p><p>Jackson, 79, and his wife, Jacqueline, 77, were admitted Saturday to Northwestern Memorial Hospital for COVID-19 treatment. They remained under observation Monday after family said they responded well to treatment.</p><p>“We are ever mindful that COVID-19 is a serious disease, and we ask that you continue in prayer for my parents, as we remain prayerful for yours,” their son Jonathan Jackson said in a statement Monday</p><p>Jesse Jackson, who <a class="Link" href="https://apnews.com/article/north-america-us-news-ap-top-news-physical-therapy-neurological-disorders-8f3f24a221ed47b79ee04b47a789d35a" target="_blank" >has Parkinson’s disease</a>, received his first dose of the vaccine publicly in January to encourage the Black community and others to receive the immunization. His wife has not been vaccinated, according to longtime family spokesman Frank Watkins. He declined to elaborate Monday.</p><p>“When many of us from the various communities of color was skeptical and suspicious about getting the vaccine, it was Rev. Jesse Jackson who took the vaccine to encourage us,” said Acree, a pastor at Greater St. John Bible Church.</p><div class="Enhancement" data-align-floatLeft>
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<img class="Image" alt="A woman signs a “get well soon” card for Rev. Jesse Jackson, 79, and his wife, Jacqueline, 77, before community activists and faith leaders hold a prayer vigil and news conference outside Northwestern Memorial Hospital, Monday morning, Aug. 23, 2021. The Jacksons were admitted Saturday to Northwestern after testing positive for COVID-19." srcset="https://cst.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/bea4b12/2147483647/strip/true/crop/4887x2743+0+258/resize/490x275!/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fcdn.vox-cdn.com%2Fthumbor%2F5nR6RR-dOGyrBvwIkGPTEIDbcik%3D%2F0x0%3A4887x3258%2F4887x3258%2Ffilters%3Afocal%282444x1629%3A2445x1630%29%2Fcdn.vox-cdn.com%2Fuploads%2Fchorus_asset%2Ffile%2F22800980%2Fmerlin_100276248.jpg 1x,https://cst.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/b8b5ce2/2147483647/strip/true/crop/4887x2743+0+258/resize/980x550!/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fcdn.vox-cdn.com%2Fthumbor%2F5nR6RR-dOGyrBvwIkGPTEIDbcik%3D%2F0x0%3A4887x3258%2F4887x3258%2Ffilters%3Afocal%282444x1629%3A2445x1630%29%2Fcdn.vox-cdn.com%2Fuploads%2Fchorus_asset%2Ffile%2F22800980%2Fmerlin_100276248.jpg 2x" width="490" height="275"
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<div class="Figure-content"><figcaption class="Figure-caption"><p>A woman signs a card for the Rev. Jesse Jackson, 79, and his wife, Jacqueline, 77, before community activists and faith leaders held a prayer vigil and news conference outside Northwestern Memorial Hospital on Monday.</p></figcaption><span class="line"></span><div class="Figure-credit"><p>Ashlee Rezin/Sun-Times</p></div></div>
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</div><p>Acree and other leaders prayed for the Jacksons’ recovery and repeated “I am — Somebody,” a poem often recited by Jackson.</p><p>“We are in the great civil rights battle of our lifetime,” activist Eric Russell said. “And it is the guidance and leadership of men like Rev. Jesse Jackson that empowers us, strategically, and gives us strength. So I would say to America, please send a prayer for Jesse Jackson.”</p><p>Jackson was hospitalized earlier this year for an <a class="Link" href="https://apnews.com/article/physical-therapy-chicago-coronavirus-pandemic-jesse-jackson-621a18406cc8ab9fa1398a109848db7d" target="_blank" >unrelated gallbladder surgery</a> but has remained active in the fight for civil rights. Last month, he was arrested for civil disobedience during a sit-in at the Phoenix office of Democratic U.S. Sen. Kyrsten Sinema, who opposes ending the filibuster to pass voting rights legislation.</p><p>Passersby on the street stopped to sign a card Russell put together for the Jacksons, wishing them good health and wellness.</p><p>“Everybody owes Rev. Jackson whether they know it or not,” Acree said. “So, it’s only fair that we show him the same energy he has for us in the fight for equality and justice.”<br></p>
https://chicago.suntimes.com/2021/8/23/22638294/jesse-jackson-jacqueline-hospitalized-covid-prayer-vigil-ira-acree-national-dayNichole Shaw2021-08-18T20:24:27.068-05:002021-08-18T20:25:54-05:00Chicago youth offer public policy proposals in Mikva Challenge town hall
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<img class="Image" alt="Mikva Challenge citywide youth council members meet with experts and city officials to help inform their policy recommendations. In July, students met with Sen. Robert Peters (D-13th) pictured in the middle of the top row." srcset="https://cst.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/6e7b4d4/2147483647/strip/true/crop/924x519+0+14/resize/490x275!/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fcdn.vox-cdn.com%2Fthumbor%2FqO0JEZWRtTcfk_J4eJTLIJBfdMo%3D%2F0x0%3A924x546%2F924x546%2Ffilters%3Afocal%28474x289%3A475x290%29%2Fcdn.vox-cdn.com%2Fuploads%2Fchorus_asset%2Ffile%2F22791000%2FE7Pp_utXoAE3OPX.jpeg 1x,https://cst.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/c8b3210/2147483647/strip/true/crop/924x519+0+14/resize/980x550!/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fcdn.vox-cdn.com%2Fthumbor%2FqO0JEZWRtTcfk_J4eJTLIJBfdMo%3D%2F0x0%3A924x546%2F924x546%2Ffilters%3Afocal%28474x289%3A475x290%29%2Fcdn.vox-cdn.com%2Fuploads%2Fchorus_asset%2Ffile%2F22791000%2FE7Pp_utXoAE3OPX.jpeg 2x" width="490" height="275"
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<div class="Figure-content"><figcaption class="Figure-caption"><p>Mikva Challenge citywide youth council members meet with experts and city officials to help inform their policy recommendations. In July, students met with Sen. Robert Peters (D-13th), pictured in the middle of the top row.</p></figcaption><span class="line"></span><div class="Figure-credit"><p>Provided</p></div></div>
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<p>Chicago youth offered their own public policy recommendations to some of the city’s most influential decision makers during a virtual town hall Wednesday. </p><p>Children and teenagers wrapped up a six-week course through the civic organization Mikva Challenge by presenting proposals on health, education, juvenile justice, public safety and more. </p><p>Cook County Board President Toni Preckwinkle, Chicago Public Health Commissioner Dr. Allison Arwady and Chicago police independent monitor Maggie Hickey were among the officials who backed some of the recommendations from seventh through twelfth graders in the program.</p><p>The kids’ feedback centered on school curriculum, an independent audit of the controversial gunshot detection technology ShotSpotter and an expansion of restorative justice court. </p><p>The Juvenile Justice Council under Mikva addressed suggested a minimum age of 14 for detainment, in addition to alternatives to juvenile detention.</p><p>“We talk a lot about what happens to youth after they get out of the detention,” said Octavio Montesdeoca, a UIC student who took part. “It’s a band-aid on a bullet wound. We need to provide resources before they get into the juvenile system to avoid trauma. We need to be providing community-based alternatives earlier to mitigate people being incarcerated.”</p><p>Mikva Challenge is a national education organization that aims to help youth better understand social and political issues. Kids in the program worked over the summer on citywide and neighborhood youth councils to identify issues affecting their communities.</p><p>“Anyone here that I’ve worked with before — youth and adults — knows that [Mikva] was a great way to keep us Black and Brown guys off the street and keep us occupied with something good, to keep our minds occupied in something positive,” said Emmanuel Hernandez, a Whitney Young High School student.</p><p>Their other approved recommendations included improving transparency in changes to the Chicago Public Schools student code of conduct; bolstering public information campaigns on COVID-19 vaccination, suicide prevention and sexual health education; and introducing a mini-curriculum with lessons related to police reform efforts.</p><p>Mikva Challenge CEO Verneé Green said “active youth voice and participation are essential to creating a more equitable city during a time when we have been faced with unprecedented challenges throughout a pandemic, with social unrest and numerous other unforeseen issues.”</p><p>The organization will hold more programming based on the student recommendations in the fall. <br></p>
https://chicago.suntimes.com/metro-state/2021/8/18/22631262/mikva-challenge-chicago-youth-recommendationsNichole Shaw2021-08-17T17:01:53.443-05:002021-08-17T17:01:55-05:00Snowbirds Monty and Rose leave Montrose Beach; piping plover pair go south for winter
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<img class="Image" alt="Monty the piping plover seen Aug. 13 on Montrose Beach before his long flight to Galveston, Texas." srcset="https://cst.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/cf04c9c/2147483647/strip/true/crop/2500x1403+0+236/resize/490x275!/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fcdn.vox-cdn.com%2Fthumbor%2FgIRrXjkpKNffJt7wjGN91bd0lC8%3D%2F0x0%3A2500x1875%2F2500x1875%2Ffilters%3Afocal%281304x895%3A1305x896%29%2Fcdn.vox-cdn.com%2Fuploads%2Fchorus_asset%2Ffile%2F22788462%2Fmonty_aug13_itani.jpeg 1x,https://cst.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/5e63fca/2147483647/strip/true/crop/2500x1403+0+236/resize/980x550!/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fcdn.vox-cdn.com%2Fthumbor%2FgIRrXjkpKNffJt7wjGN91bd0lC8%3D%2F0x0%3A2500x1875%2F2500x1875%2Ffilters%3Afocal%281304x895%3A1305x896%29%2Fcdn.vox-cdn.com%2Fuploads%2Fchorus_asset%2Ffile%2F22788462%2Fmonty_aug13_itani.jpeg 2x" width="490" height="275"
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<div class="Figure-content"><figcaption class="Figure-caption"><p>Monty the piping plover seen Aug. 13 on Montrose Beach before his long flight to Galveston, Texas.</p></figcaption><span class="line"></span><div class="Figure-credit"><p>Tamima Itani</p></div></div>
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<p>Monty, one half of the Montrose Beach piping plover pair, left Chicago on Saturday for sunny Texas.</p><p>By Sunday afternoon, he was on East Beach in Galveston, spotted by Kristen Vale, the Texas coastal program coordinator for American Birds Conservancy. The trek south is typical for piping plovers, an endangered species, as they seek warmer weather for the winter, <a class="Link" href="https://www.fws.gov/midwest/endangered/pipingplover/pipingpl.html#:~:text=Their%20nesting%20range%20has%20become,plovers%20in%20their%20winter%20range." target="_blank" >according to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service</a>.</p><p>But as for choosing that specific destination?</p><p>“We don’t know why he goes to Texas,” said Tamima Itani, vice president and treasurer of the Illinois Ornithological Society. “In general, the Great Lakes plovers go to Georgia, North and South Carolina, and other places down South. He took off on a north wind, though, which is really favorable for his flight.” </p><div class="RelatedList Enhancement" data-module data-align-center>
<div class="RelatedList-title">Related</div>
<ul class="RelatedList-items">
<li class="RelatedList-items-item">
<a class="Link" href="https://chicago.suntimes.com/2021/7/8/22569421/piping-plovers-monty-and-rose-welcome-baby-chicks" target="_blank" >Piping plovers Monty and Rose welcome baby chicks </a>
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<p>Winter migration is usually more dangerous for piping plovers during their early years, because they have less experience avoiding carnivorous raptors. As a veteran traveler, it appeared Monty had no trouble with the 1,100 mile flight, as <a class="Link" href="https://twitter.com/ChicagoPiping/status/1427617122088325125" target="_blank" >he was spotted in Texas</a> less than 53 hours after he was last seen in Chicago.</p><p>Rose, the plover that nested with Monty on Montrose Beach, has been seen in the Florida Anclote Keys, her usual winter spot, Itani said.</p><p>Monty and Rose don’t have tracking devices, but they do have leg bands, allowing bird watchers to identify them by the band’s color and number, then report sightings to wildlife conservation officials. That’s how Monty and Rose were confirmed to be in their new locations.</p><div class="RelatedList Enhancement" data-module data-align-center>
<div class="RelatedList-title">Related</div>
<ul class="RelatedList-items">
<li class="RelatedList-items-item">
<a class="Link" href="https://chicago.suntimes.com/2021/7/12/22573589/piping-plovers-monty-rose-baby-hatched-lincoln-park-zoo" target="_blank" >Lincoln Park Zoo welcomes baby piping plover</a>
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<p>This year, the pair leaves behind <a class="Link" href="https://chicago.suntimes.com/2021/7/30/22602200/monty-rose-chicks-named-piping-plovers-montrose-beach-imani-siewka-uptown" target="_blank" >chicks Siewka and Imani,</a> who seem to be faring well in Chicago, the latter embarking on local expeditions to other beaches. Imani was seen on <a class="Link" href="https://twitter.com/ChicagoPiping/status/1427618221230862340" target="_blank" >Waukegan Beach</a> on Monday.</p><p>Beachgoers and birders can expect Monty and Rose to show up sometime in April 2022 on Montrose Beach, where they’ve returned to nest for the past three years.<br></p>
https://chicago.suntimes.com/news/2021/8/17/22629505/piping-plovers-montrose-beach-monty-rose-migrate-texas-florida-south-winterNichole Shaw2021-08-13T13:16:55.506-05:002021-08-16T10:20:30-05:00Adam Toledo family picks Wisconsin farm for Adam’s Place, rural refuge for inner-city kids
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<img class="Image" alt="Mother of Adam Toledo who was shot and killed by a Chicago police officer, Betty Toledo, tears up while speaking at a Potosi, Wisconsin, town hall meeting about Adam’s Place on Aug. 11 at the Potosi High School Livens Auditorium." srcset="https://cst.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/6604243/2147483647/strip/true/crop/2880x1616+0+92/resize/490x275!/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fcdn.vox-cdn.com%2Fthumbor%2F9jHqst03LjV6GNPEIWOQL2tSut8%3D%2F0x0%3A2880x1800%2F2880x1800%2Ffilters%3Afocal%28941x743%3A942x744%29%2Fcdn.vox-cdn.com%2Fuploads%2Fchorus_asset%2Ffile%2F22780764%2FScreen_Shot_2021_08_13_at_10.35.57_AM.png 1x,https://cst.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/a4770ff/2147483647/strip/true/crop/2880x1616+0+92/resize/980x550!/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fcdn.vox-cdn.com%2Fthumbor%2F9jHqst03LjV6GNPEIWOQL2tSut8%3D%2F0x0%3A2880x1800%2F2880x1800%2Ffilters%3Afocal%28941x743%3A942x744%29%2Fcdn.vox-cdn.com%2Fuploads%2Fchorus_asset%2Ffile%2F22780764%2FScreen_Shot_2021_08_13_at_10.35.57_AM.png 2x" width="490" height="275"
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<div class="Figure-content"><figcaption class="Figure-caption"><p>Betty Toledo, the mother of Adam Toledo, tears up while speaking at a Potosi, Wisconsin, town hall meeting Aug. 11 about Adam’s Place.</p></figcaption><span class="line"></span><div class="Figure-credit"><p>Captura de pantalla</p></div></div>
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<p>The family of Adam Toledo has settled on a site in rural Wisconsin for Adam’s Place, a nonprofit geared to help at-risk youth escape the dangerous allure of inner-city streets that killed Adam.</p><p>Adam was 13 when he was <a class="Link" href="https://chicago.suntimes.com/crime/2021/4/1/22362227/adam-toledo-little-village-police-shooting" target="_blank" >shot in the chest and killed by a Chicago police officer</a> on March 29.</p><p><a class="Link" href="https://adams-place.org/about" target="_blank" >Adam’s Place</a> will be built on a 70-acre farm near Potosi, Wisconsin, and was chosen by the Toledo family’s attorney, Joel Hirschhorn, for being a three-and-a-half-hour drive from Chicago and two and a half hours from Milwaukee.</p><div class="RichTextSidebarModule Enhancement" data-module data-align-floatRight><a class="AnchorLink" id="module-4f0000" name="module-4f0000"></a>
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<div class="RichTextModule-items RichTextBody"><br><i>Lea este artículo en español en </i><a class="Link" href="https://chicago.suntimes.com/la-voz/" target="_blank" ><i>La Voz Chicago</i></a>, <i>la sección bilingüe del Sun-Times.</i><br><div class="Enhancement" data-align-center>
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</div><p>Adam’s mother, Betty Toledo, and her lawyers held a town hall meeting Wednesday in Potosi to address rumors about the project and answer questions. About 150 people attended.</p><p>“What I really want is to have Adam back, and I can’t do that,” Toledo said at the meeting. “But we can try to help other families protect their sons from all the temptations that took Adam into the streets the night he was killed. We want Adam’s Place to be a safe place for boys to grow up and learn how to be responsible young men.”</p><p>Adam’s Place is modeled after the successful Christian ministry program <a class="Link" href="http://boysfarm.org/" target="_blank" >Boys Farm</a> in Newberry, South Carolina.</p><div class="RelatedList Enhancement" data-module data-align-center>
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<a class="Link" href="https://chicago.suntimes.com/2021/4/5/22369082/adam-toledo-remembered-as-kid-big-imagination-affinity-shows-zombies" target="_blank" >Adam Toledo remembered as kid with ‘big imagination’ and an affinity for shows about zombies</a>
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<p>“I appreciate the opportunity that Adam’s Place could provide youth to learn and grow in a safe and healthy rural environment away from the lure of the street,” Robert Keeney, chairman of the Grant County Board of Supervisors, said in an email.</p><p>Teachers, parents, neighbors to the farm and three Grant County board members were among those attending last week’s community meeting. Many were concerned with the potential of gang violence being brought to their community and the lack of resources available to accommodate incoming students. The Chicago Sun-Times reviewed a recording of the meeting.</p><div class="Enhancement" data-align-floatRight>
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<img class="Image" alt="Elizabeth Toledo and son Adam are pictured in this family photo." srcset="https://cst.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/fecc203/2147483647/strip/true/crop/1600x898+0+147/resize/490x275!/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fcdn.vox-cdn.com%2Fthumbor%2Fk9BCl4Bcuo0utZ6xwz7uUwVZxQ8%3D%2F0x0%3A1600x1192%2F1600x1192%2Ffilters%3Afocal%28800x596%3A801x597%29%2Fcdn.vox-cdn.com%2Fuploads%2Fchorus_asset%2Ffile%2F22416838%2FScreen_Shot_2021_04_02_at_2.36.36_PM.png 1x,https://cst.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/a872aca/2147483647/strip/true/crop/1600x898+0+147/resize/980x550!/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fcdn.vox-cdn.com%2Fthumbor%2Fk9BCl4Bcuo0utZ6xwz7uUwVZxQ8%3D%2F0x0%3A1600x1192%2F1600x1192%2Ffilters%3Afocal%28800x596%3A801x597%29%2Fcdn.vox-cdn.com%2Fuploads%2Fchorus_asset%2Ffile%2F22416838%2FScreen_Shot_2021_04_02_at_2.36.36_PM.png 2x" width="490" height="275"
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<div class="Figure-content"><figcaption class="Figure-caption"><p>Betty Toledo and Adam</p></figcaption><span class="line"></span><div class="Figure-credit"><p>Cortesía</p></div></div>
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</div><p>“We are not taking kids who are in gangs, because sadly we cannot help them,” Hirschhorn said. “We’re taking those kids who are at the edge, who are being lured by the street. We are hoping to intercept these kids and introduce them to a rural environment before their lives result in the tragedy that the Toledo family has had to endure.”</p><p>Boys at Adam’s Place will be between 10 and 14 and enroll in the Potosi School District, attending classes beginning in August 2022. Potosi has a population of about 2,600 people and one elementary school, middle school and high school.</p><p>“While we have our own issues and problems just like everywhere else, we’re really excited about what we have going on here in the Potosi area, and will do our due diligence to understand the students that are coming in and make sure that we have any needed resources to meet the needs of those students,” Potosi School Supt. Kurt Cohen said in an interview.</p><div class="RelatedList Enhancement" data-module data-align-center>
<div class="RelatedList-title">Related</div>
<ul class="RelatedList-items">
<li class="RelatedList-items-item">
<a class="Link" href="https://chicago.suntimes.com/2021/5/25/22453071/adam-toledo-family-nonprofit-founded-adams-place-farmland-fundraising-at-risk-youth" target="_blank" >Toledo family announces Adam’s Place, a rural sanctuary for at-risk youth</a>
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<p>Plans for Adam’s Place include a small welcome center and administrative office, a barn, a 5,000-square-foot, split-level home for up to 10 adolescent boys and an attached apartment for family.</p><p>The purchase of the farm on Dutch Holly Road was completed July 2. A zoning application to accommodate a multiple family home and facility space will be submitted by Hirschhorn. He hopes construction can begin in early spring.</p><p>“We’re here to put into this community, we’re not here to take out,” Hirschhorn said. “We’re not seeking public funds. This is a $2.5 to $3 million project. We will be employing at least seven people, who will hopefully be from this community.”</p><p>So far, $330,000 has been raised.</p><p></p>
https://chicago.suntimes.com/2021/8/13/22623517/adam-toledo-family-wisconsin-farm-adams-place-refuge-inner-city-kidsNichole Shaw2021-08-11T15:25:12.374-05:002021-08-11T21:31:18-05:00Cook County announces Project Rainbow to address pandemic learning losses
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<img class="Image" alt="Cook County Board President Toni Preckwinkle announces new early education initiative Project Rainbow, a county-led effort to address children’s learning gaps exacerbated by the pandemic, on Wednesday at the George Dunne Cook County Building downtown." srcset="https://cst.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/c108b6b/2147483647/strip/true/crop/2245x1260+0+119/resize/490x275!/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fcdn.vox-cdn.com%2Fthumbor%2FlhiK-SGiVsvbmcMHkVglljgQ12w%3D%2F0x0%3A2245x1497%2F2245x1497%2Ffilters%3Afocal%28965x444%3A966x445%29%2Fcdn.vox-cdn.com%2Fuploads%2Fchorus_asset%2Ffile%2F22776705%2FLEARNINGLOSS_081221_01.JPG 1x,https://cst.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/36d9ec1/2147483647/strip/true/crop/2245x1260+0+119/resize/980x550!/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fcdn.vox-cdn.com%2Fthumbor%2FlhiK-SGiVsvbmcMHkVglljgQ12w%3D%2F0x0%3A2245x1497%2F2245x1497%2Ffilters%3Afocal%28965x444%3A966x445%29%2Fcdn.vox-cdn.com%2Fuploads%2Fchorus_asset%2Ffile%2F22776705%2FLEARNINGLOSS_081221_01.JPG 2x" width="490" height="275"
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<div class="Figure-content"><figcaption class="Figure-caption"><p>Cook County Board President Toni Preckwinkle talks about Project Rainbow, a new early education initiative.</p></figcaption><span class="line"></span><div class="Figure-credit"><p>Nichole Shaw/Sun-Times</p></div></div>
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<p>Cook County has created an education program aimed at helping fill a three-month learning gap brought on by the pandemic.</p><p>Project Rainbow is <a class="Link" href="https://www.cookcountyil.gov/sites/default/files/service/81121-project-rainbow-policy-brief.pdf" target="_blank" >an early education initiative</a> that plans to roll out free and accessible video content and repurposed learning materials via the county television channel and a new county app. The content was created and mostly paid for by 24 partner organizations.</p><p>“Project Rainbow speaks to the county’s efforts to bridge the digital divide in advanced digital equity, with nearly a quarter of the households in Cook County lacking access to broadband,” Cook County Board President Toni Preckwinkle said Wednesday. “We’ve been through a storm with the pandemic upending life as we knew it. But after a storm, always comes the rainbow.” </p><p>The program is expected to provide a long-term approach to supplement in-person instruction and overcome the educational barriers experienced by children 3 to 6.</p><p>Erickson Institute, one of the project partners, said immigrants and children of color are less likely to have access to quality early childhood education programs and these same students are less likely to have home internet connections.</p><p>“We know that online learning is never going to replace in-person schooling,” said Alan Mather, president of Golden Apple. “But in these difficult times, for parents to have tools to engage their children and for children themselves to be engaged, this is vital. So we are happy to be able to provide these lessons that professional actors will be performing.”</p><p>Golden Apple teachers designed the curriculum for the project and aligned it to meet state standards. Lessons that will be available are accessible to those in special education as well as dual-language learners. </p><p>The project was the idea of Nick Shields, communications and public affairs director for the Cook County president’s office, who saw firsthand the effects the pandemic had on his three children.</p><p>“In the weeks and months ahead, we will disrupt how the local government uses its current television station,” Shields said. “Through this free initiative, we’re looking to inform, inspire, and impact our children and families in the most positive way. As our content library grows, powered by a curriculum created by teachers, young learners will be able to practice their ABCs and so much more.”</p><p>Some of the content being made available will feature instruction about the county’s forest preserves and what lives in them; first steps of financial literacy; the galaxy and how it works; and even a little Shakespeare. Previews of <a class="Link" href="https://youtu.be/Al4KH6P3XF8" target="_blank" >Forest Preserves of Cook County Wild and Wonderful: Fish</a>, <a class="Link" href="https://youtu.be/gtCUxsVUV5g" target="_blank" >Bringing Brookfield Zoo to You: Nocturnal</a> and Chicago Botanic Garden’s <a class="Link" href="https://lnks.gd/l/eyJhbGciOiJIUzI1NiJ9.eyJidWxsZXRpbl9saW5rX2lkIjoxMDEsInVyaSI6ImJwMjpjbGljayIsImJ1bGxldGluX2lkIjoiMjAyMTA4MTEuNDQ0MTMyMDEiLCJ1cmwiOiJodHRwczovL3d3dy55b3V0dWJlLmNvbS93YXRjaD91dG1fbWVkaXVtPWVtYWlsJnV0bV9zb3VyY2U9Z292ZGVsaXZlcnkmdj1xLXhINFNSUXJyYyJ9.sK7_uPEF2fWi9cpvwrVX8Khjss7LbvUNbZE72amTcOc/s/1557393761/br/110737111981-l" target="_blank" >Maria’s Nature Notebooks</a> are available on YouTube.</p><p>Project Rainbow programming will air on Cook County’s cable channel at 10 a.m. and at 4 p.m. Monday through Friday, beginning Thursday, Aug. 12. The app, which was developed by students on the University of Chicago TechTeam and advised by app experts at Microsoft, will be made available on Google Play and Apple in the coming weeks.<br></p>
https://chicago.suntimes.com/education/2021/8/11/22620571/cook-county-project-rainbow-pandemic-learning-lossesNichole Shaw