Week of March 7 | Vol 1 • No 30 • www.cstweekly.com
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Congresswoman Robin Kelly (pictured) is hosting her fifth annual Housing Expo at Prairie State College on March 10. The event is held every year to provide counseling and information about housing assistance programs and home buying.
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Congresswoman Kelly Bringing Housing Expo to Prairie State College More Inside Community > PAGE 3
w Northlight Theatre continues its 2017-18 season with The Beauty Queen of Leenane TRAVEL > P2
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stweekly@citizen6news advertising@cstweekly.com www.cstweekly.com Northlight Theatre continues its 2017-18 season withCitizenNewspaper6/ The Beauty Queen of The Unethical Treatment of Henrietta Lacks Still Lingers In Healthcare Vacation Home Rentals: For First-Timers tion Home Rentals: TipsTips For First-Timers Leenane South Suburban Students Honored For Quick Thinking In Dangerous Situation
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ARTSCENE
Northlight Theatre continues its 2017-18 season with The Beauty Queen of Leenane Northlight Theatre, under the direction of Artistic Director BJ Jones and Executive Director Timothy J. Evans, continues its 2017-18 season with The Beauty Queen of Leenane, written by Martin McDonagh and directed by BJ Jones. The Beauty Queen of Leenane runs March 15 – April 22, 2018 at Northlight Theatre, 9501 Skokie Blvd in Skokie. The press opening is scheduled for Friday, March 23, 2018 at 8pm. This Tony Award-winning dark comedy is set in the provincial Irish town of Leenane. Forty-year-old spinster Maureen Folan lives with her manipulative aging mother Mag, stuck in a caretaking relationship that has them both seething with resentment. When a romantic encounter finally sparks Maureen’s hopes for an escape from her dreary existence, Mag’s interference sets in motion a chain of events that is as tragically funny as it is terrifying. “I find Martin McDonagh’s sense of humor adolescent and amusing; I love his ability to shock for shock's sake, and I relate to his quirky characters built on a landscape of loneliness and isolation. From the fable like period piece of The Cripple of Inishmaan, through the Leenane trilogy with a side trip to the gory Lieutenant of Inishmore, he has remained true to his own stylistic voice,” comments BJ Jones. “My attraction to The Beauty Queen of Leenane is McDonagh's style: theatrical fireworks that light up a dark landscape and reveal even darker crevices, much like the Burren region of western Ireland. So many of his works echo Synge, Beckett, and in more modern synchronicity Tarantino and even Letts. With the gifted artists Kate Fry and
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Wendy Robie, I take on this overdue date with McDonagh's seminal masterpiece.” The cast of The Beauty Queen of Leenane includes Kate Fry (Maureen Folan), Nathan Hosner (Pato Dooley), Casey Morris (Ray Dooley) and Wendy Robie (Mag Folan). The creative team includes Todd Rosenthal (Scenic Design), JR Lederle (Lighting Design) and Andre Pluess (Sound Design). The stage manager is Michelle Medvin. Northlight’s production of The Beauty Queen of Leenane is supported in part by Freddi Greenberg and Dan Pinkert, The Elizabeth F. Cheney Foundation, and Tom Stringer Design Partners. The Box Office is located at the North Shore Center for the Performing Arts, 9501 Skokie Boulevard, in Skokie. Box Office hours are Monday-Friday 10:00am-5:00pm, and Saturdays 12:00pm-5:00pm. On performance days, the box office hours are extended through showtime. The Box Office is closed on Sundays, except on performance days when it is open two hours prior to showtime. Curtain times are: Tuesdays: 7:30pm (March 20 only); Wednesdays: 1:00pm (except April 4) and 7:30pm; Thursdays: 7:30pm; Fridays: 8:00pm; Saturdays: 2:30pm (except March 17) and 8:00pm; and Sundays: 2:30pm (except April 1) and 7:00pm (March 18 and April 8 only). Northlight is continuing its popular special event series in conjunction with each production. All events are free. For more information, visit northlight.org or call the box office at 847.673.6300.
TRAVEL
Southwest Airlines Continues Partnership With GenHERation To Help Inspire Young Women DALLAS- Southwest Airlines Co. (NYSE: LUV) announced recently that it will be continuing its partnership with GenHERation for the second year. GenHERation is a community where companies and young women are brought together for career development and networking opportunities. Working together, Southwest Airlines® will connect its female Leadership with members of GenHERation to help inspire the next generation. "Southwest is excited to continue our partnership with GenHERation throughout 2018," said Julie Weber, Southwest's Vice President of People. "At Southwest, we are dedicated to empowering younger generations with the tools and skills they need to succeed. Through our various partnerships and programs, we are committed to building the talent pipeline for our future."
During 2018, Southwest will work with GenHERation to create innovative ways to support members of the GenHERation community as they begin to embark on their future careers. To help empower these
young women, Southwest will host various networking events, career exploration opportunities, and skill-building activities in collaboration with GenHERation. "We love working with Southwest to highlight their talented female leaders and share career opportunities with our members," said
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Katlyn Grasso, founder and CEO of GenHERation. "Through our partnership with Southwest, we have been able to connect young women in our network with Southwest Employees in meaningful ways. Together with Southwest, we will inspire the next GenHERation of women leaders." Additionally, Southwest will once again host Discovery Days in 2018. Discovery Days allows young women the opportunity to come to the Southwest Airlines headquarters and learn more about the Company. Members will also interact with female Leadership and experience what it's like to Live and Work the Southwest Way. By continuing its work with GenHERation, Southwest is exemplifying its commitment to connect People to what's important in their lives.
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COMMUNITY
Congresswoman Kelly Bringing Housing Expo to Prairie State College
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By: Katherine Newman
Congresswoman Robin Kelly is hosting her fifth annual Housing Expo at Prairie State College on March 10. The event is held every year to provide counseling and information about housing assistance programs and home buying. “I’m excited to once again offer my constituents information on a wide-range of housing issues, from refinancing and first-time homebuyer incentives to property tax reassessments and the impact of the new GOP tax bill on Illinois homeowners. This event is an important opportunity for me to connect the people who I serve with real resources to improve their lives,” said Congresswoman Kelly. This year will be a little different than past Housing Expos according to Alan Banks, program director for Congresswoman Kelly. This event will focus less on loan modification and more on programs that assist with catching up on bills, home buying, and investment property management. “As we continue evolving this program based on attendee feedback, we’ve added requested programming geared toward investors interested in revitalizing neighborhoods through investment properties,” said Congresswoman Kelly. There will be a speaker to talk to attendees who have already become investors by default or are looking to purchase investment properties. Being an investor by default is when a person cannot sell their house and they instead decide to put it up for rent and that makes them an investor, according to Banks. “A lot of time, there are no programs out there to assist investors in fixing their home up or purchasing an investment property. This year we will have someone talking to investors about
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various products and things that are out there to assist them,” said Banks. Vendors like The Community and Economic Development Association of Cook County (CEDA) will be onsite to help people who are having problems paying their gas and electric bills. “We have a host of individuals that will help with all realms of housing so if your bills are high and that’s causing you to have some struggles within your household, we will have people there to help,” said Banks. Neighborhood Housing Services of Chicago (NHS) and South Suburban Housing Center (SSHC) will be at the event discussing how to qualify for Illinois’s Hardest Hit Program that helps homeowners who are having trouble paying their mortgages. “NHS and SSHC have the Hardest Hit Program which helps individuals in the event that they are behind on their mortgage they will help them up to $25,000 to get caught back up. That’s a program where a person doesn't have to go through the loan modification process, but still does get back on track,” said Banks. The event will start with a panel discussion with representatives from several of the various vendors. The discussion will revolve around home buying, grant programs, property taxes, credit scores, and neighborhood investment programs, according to Banks and the Housing Expo Flyer. After the panel, everyone will return to their respective booths at the expo to have one-onone discussions with attendees. The Housing Expo will be happening at Prairie State College, 202 S. Halsted St., in Chicago Heights on Saturday, March 10 from 8:30 a.m. - noon.
POLITISCOPE
The US Census Bureau keeps confusing race and ethnicity If you were walking down the street, what race would strangers automatically assume you were? “Street race” – what race you look like, based on your skin color, facial features and more – is an important aspect of a person’s Nancy López experiences. For example, research shows that a person who’s Hispanic but perceived as light-skinned does not experience the same level of discrimination as a Hispanic person who’s seen as darker-skinned. However, the U.S. census does not clearly capture these differences. In past surveys – and in the upcoming 2020 census – the Census Bureau boils complex information on race, ethnicity and ancestry into just
two questions: “Are you of Hispanic, Latino or Spanish origin?” and “What is your race?” As a sociologist who specializes in research on social inequalities, I believe this way of capturing race and ethnicity undermines the country’s ability to serve vulnerable communities. Without reliable data, it’s difficult to track whether Americans of different colors and backgrounds receive equitable opportunities in housing, voting, employment or education. Confusing race and ethnicity Every 10 years, the U.S. Census Bureau undertakes a count of the U.S. population. Since 1790, this has included some sort of data on race and ethnicity. Ahead of the 2020 census, there has been much debate over potential formats that would have
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combined “race” or “origin” in one question. Proponents argued that doing so would provide granular data on the ancestries of all groups and reduce the high number of Hispanic origin people who check off “some other race.” Opponents argued that this would have made it much more difficult to track inequalities in the Latino community, because the census would no longer capture race separately from other aspects of a person’s national origin or ethnic background. On Jan. 26, the Census Bureau announced that it would keep longstanding questions on Hispanic origin and race separate for the 2020 census. The suggested format, unlike others before it, links specific origins under each race box. For example, under the “White” race box, the survey lists sample CONTINUED ON PAGE 4 www.cstweekly.com
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FOOD
Recipe for Relief: A Culinary Event to Benefit Hurricane Survivors Impacted by Hurricane Maria (CHICAGO, IL) - Chicagoland Chefs will come together on Wednesday, March 14, 2018 to support the restaurants, hospitality, and tourism in Puerto Rico that were all impacted by Hurricane Maria. A Recipe for Relief: A Culinary Event to Benefit Hurricane Survivors will be held at The Lakewood located at 1758 West Lake Street in Chicago from 6 PM to 9 PM. Tickets are $75 per person and include event admission, tasting stations from participating restaurants, and an open bar. "When Hurricane Katrina hit New Orleans in 2005, Chicago's food community really pulled together to raise money at our first Recipe for Relief benefit," says event chair and chef/owner of Heaven on Seven Jimmy Bannos. "Now, Puerto Rico needs our help and once again some of our city's greatest chefs are coming together to put on an amazing event and raise money for this important cause. Attendees will be treated to some of the best food our city has to offer, all under one roof!" Each participating restaurant will host a station and will provide a tasting dish. Participating includes: Autre Monde - Dan Pancake Birrieria Zaragoza - Jonathan Zaragoza Boltwood - Brian Huston Currency Exchange Cafe - Lamar Moore Duck Inn - Kevin Hickey Eden - Devon Quinn Gale Street Inn - Liborio Martinez GT Prime Steakhouse - Giuseppe Tentori Heaven on Seven - Jimmy Bannos Katana - Jason Chan May Street Cafe - Mario Santiago Osteria Ottimo - Patrick Concannon Piccolo Sogno - Tony Priolo Prosecco - Mark Sparacino River Roast - John Hogan Spiaggia - Tony Mantuano
Terzo Piano - Carolina Diaz The Purple Pig - Jimmy Bannos Jr. The Roost Carolina Kitchen - Joe Scroggs The Wit Hotel - Nathan Sears Urban Belly - Bill Kim Wishbone - Joel Nickson Proceeds from the event will go to benefit the Kingbird Innovation Center (KIC). KIC is an incubator affiliated with the Tony Santana International School of Hospitality and Culinary Arts at the Universidad del Este in Carolina, PR.
The EDA funded incubator focuses on the development of food, hospitality and tourism businesses. This event is sponsored by Agency360, BBJ Linen, Hall's Rental, Heaven on Seven, Illinois Restaurant Association, Paramount Events, RJ Designs, Sound Investment, The Purple Pig, The Lakewood, VIP Valet, and WPI Event Partners, Inc. For information on this event, please visit Facebook, Eventbrite, or their Go Fund Me page.
The US Census Bureau keeps confusing race and ethnicity
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ancestries such as German, Irish, English and Italian. The “Black” race box suggests “African American, Jamaican, Haitian, Nigerian, Ethiopian, Somali, etc.” Respondents can mark one or more race boxes. Although this is a step in the right direction, the chosen wording is still problematic. With the exception of the race box for “American Indian,” not a single other race box contains a Hispanic origin ethnicity. This will create confusion for many. National origin doesn’t predict race By not including a single Hispanic origin group under the “White” or “Black” race box, the 2020 census inadvertently contributes to the false idea that people of Hispanic origin are all of the same race or color. But Latin America and the Caribbean were the site of European colonization of Native American communities and the enslavement of Africans forcibly transported to the Americas. There are white, black and Native American Hispanics. The American Community Survey, an annual survey administered by the Census Bureau to over a million households annually, already asks a separate question advertising@cstweekly.com
on ancestry. From my conversations with census designers, I understand that they are mechanistically reporting the ancestries most commonly reported for a given race in this survey. But, in doing so, they may inadvertently contribute to the falsehood that ethnicity predicts one’s race. The logic behind correlating nationalities with designated racial groups just does not hold. Are all South Africans and Canadians white? Aren’t Asian people who were born and raised in France ethnically French? Following this logic, all national origins should be associated with a given race. If this is the case, where should we list “American” ethnicity? More importantly, this approach may unintentionally contributing to the false and dangerous idea that some racial groups are the more “authentic” representatives of a given national origin. National origins and race should never be linked. Census designers have also argued that including a space for ethnicity under each race box gives everyone an opportunity to recognize their unique ethnic origins. For example, anyone checking their race as stweekly@citizen6news
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white can designate that they are of German or Irish background. This approach might appear to be equal, but it doesn’t take into account how color affects people seen as brown or black throughout history. Research shows that Hispanics who appear European or white are less likely to experience voting or housing discrimination. They also outearn their darker-skinned counterparts who are at the same level of education, of the same ethnic background or even in the same families. In short, your multiple ancestral, geographic or ethnic origins may not matter as much as your “street race” when you show up to look at an apartment or apply for a job. Former President Barack Obama, for example, was chided for not checking both the white and black race boxes and instead marking his race solely as “Black” on the 2010 census. Critics argued that he was denying his European ancestry. My guess is that Obama understood that these data are used to examine CONTINUED TO PAGE 6
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NEWS
Mayors Urge Lawmakers to Put Home Rule Referendum on Ballot By Lisette Gushiniere
Municipalities with home rule status can adopt any policy unless prohibited by state law. Non-home rule municipalities can only adopt policies for which expressed authority by state law is provided, according to an IIllinois Municipal League press release. The press release outlines other advantages. Home rule municipalities have greater opportunities for local self-governance, enhanced services for the health, safety and welfare of residents and options to lessen the reliance on property taxes. This ultimately allows local leaders and their constituents to craft creative solutions for their communities at a time when the state is either cutting or withholding funds it owes to municipalities, the press release continued. "From time to time, it makes sense to revisit older laws and have a public discussion about whether it's time to change them," Hutchinson said. “This is certainly the case with respect to home rule eligibility and its adaptation in the Illinois Constitution in 1970, a time when the vast majority of small municipalities looked quite different than they do today. Surely we can all agree that the landscape in Illinois is different today than it was nearly 50 years ago." "The Village of New Lenox was able to refund 75% of its property tax revenue to our taxpayers in 2017 because of our community's home rule authority," said New Lenox Mayor Tim Baldermann. “The flexibility offered from our village's home rule powers enabled us to pay for municipal services and
Mayors across Illinois are calling on the General Assembly to pass a resolution that would put a referendum on the November 2018 ballot to grant home rule status to 169 municipalities across Illinois. There are 1,298 municipalities in Illinois. According to Brad Cole, executive director of the Illinois Municipal League, 215 municipalities have home rule status. Home rule municipalities in south suburban areas include Chicago Heights, Glenwood and Lansing, among others. A complete list of municipalities with home rule status can be found on the Illinois Municipal League’s website. The website also includes a complete list of potential home rule communities including Blue Island, Crestwood, Crete, Dixon, Flossmoor, Frankfort, Homewood, Lynwood, Matteson, Richton Park, Sauk Village, Steger and Worth. If placed on the ballot, constitutional amendment (SJRCA9), sponsored by Sen. Toi Hutchinson (D-Chicago Heights), would allow Illinois voters the opportunity to lower the population threshold for home rule status. Currently, communities can become home rule either automatically when they reach a population of more than 25,000 or by local referendum. The amendment would lower the threshold to more than 5,000. Given the present economic climate in Illinois, Cole said the Illinois Municipal League believes home rule status would be good for municipalities.
infrastructure in different ways, primarily through sales tax revenue, while also eliminating unpopular fees like vehicle tags and licenses." The IIllinois Municipal League added in its released statement, municipalities large and small face many of the same challenges; however, those without home rule authority lack the necessary tools to address these issues. Non-home rule communities are only allowed limited governance options despite the reality that Illinois law imposes added financial and administrative burdens on communities with 5,000 or more residents. "Home rule authority would allow Macomb to provide financial stability to our residents and our budget without being increasingly reliant on property taxes," Macomb Mayor and Illinois Municipal League (IML) first vice president Michael Inman said. "In today's environment, non-home rule municipalities are dealing with higher costs and more mandates while being given less state-shared revenue. This proposal gives us the tools we need to address local needs in a fiscally responsible manner." For additional resources on the expansion of home rule eligibility, visit iml.org/homerule. The Illinois Municipal League’s Home Rule vs. Non-Home Rule (What’s Best for Your Municipality?) manual is also available online at www.iml.org/publications. The expansion of home rule authority is just one of 15 proposals on the IML 2018 State Legislative Agenda.
The US Census Bureau keeps confusing race and ethnicity CONTINUED FROM PAGE 4
inequalities that have much more to do with “street race” than with whatever ethnic, familial or genetic origins one may have. In Latin America and the Caribbean, where there’s still a strong racial hierarchy, a number of countries are beginning to separate questions on race from questions on ethnicity and origin from questions on national origin or ethnicity. New questions for advancing justice Where do we go from here? It’s too late to change the wording for the 2020 census, but it’s worth imagining what the 2030 census might look like. As the U.S. population becomes increasing more diverse, measuring injustice along the color line will be more important than ever. More complex questions would clarify that when we are asking about race we are asking about color, and that when we are asking about ethnicity we are
asking about national origins, familial or ancestral origins. That could go a long way toward improving researchers’ and activists’ ability to document social inequalities faced by visible minorities – those most likely to suffer discrimination. In my view, a truly ethical and equitable census would educate the general public about the difference between race or color and ethnicity. It would also include at least three separate questions: one on Hispanic origin, one on race or color (or what I call “street race”), and another on familial or ancestral origin or ethnicity. The Census Bureau is currently discussing a potential separate question on Middle Eastern and North African origin in the 2030 census. If the 2030 census designers do decide to test this question again, I hope they maintain it as separate from the race on the questionnaire. This would allow researchers to examine if
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people of this geographic origin, who mark their race as white, experience the same levels of residential segregation as those who may check “Black” or another race. The difference between street race, ethnicity and ancestral origin is real and tangibly shapes people’s experiences with injustice. Flattening these differences in our federal, state and local data will impede equitable opportunities in voting, housing, employment, education and health care. Smarter questions could advance justice and equity and help create a more perfect union for all. Nancy López is the Director of the Institute for the Study of "Race" & Social Justice at the University of New Mexico (UNM) and an Associate Professor of Sociology at UNM.
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NEWS
The City of Harvey along with Harvey-Dixmoor School District 147 honored the six students from Rosa Parks Middle School at a recent city council meeting. The students were honored for their courage and bravery when they found a loaded gun near the school and acted quickly to notify the principal. Photo Credit: Willie Buie
South Suburban Students Honored For Quick Thinking In Dangerous Situation By: Katherine Newman The City of Harvey along with HarveyDixmoor School District 147 honored the six students from Rosa Parks Middle School at a recent city council meeting. The students were honored for their courage and bravery when they found a loaded gun near the school and acted quickly to notify the principal. On the morning of Feb. 20th, six students found a loaded semi-automatic weapon in a grassy area near the entrance of the Rosa Parks Middle School. The students devised a plan for three of them to go into the school and get help while the other three stayed with the weapon to make sure all of the other kids were safe and couldn’t touch the weapon, according to a media release from the City of Harvey. “These young people are really heroes. More importantly, it was really a teachable moment from a state, national, and global
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perspective when you have young children like that making some critical decisions in a split second. What they did when they decided to have three watch the gun while three went to alert the principal was just a phenomenal decision and I certainly applaud them,” said Mayor of Harvey, Eric Kellogg. Mayor Kellogg arranged for the students to ride with a police escort from Rosa Parks Middle School to the city council meeting at Harvey City Hall. “Chief Greg Thomas and I escorted the superintendent, the board president, and the children from Rosa Parks Middle School. We put lights and sirens on and escorted the kids in a heroes parade and they really enjoyed it,” said Kellogg. The students were formally honored at a recent city council meeting where they received a recognition from the Mayor, Harvey-Dixmoor School District 147 Superintendent Johnetta Miller, and School
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Board President Bonnie Rateree along with a plaque of honor. “When you have six students making these types of decision and choices it speaks to their parents, the school system, the city that they live in. What happened at the city council meeting was a collaborative approach to recognize some outstanding young men and a young lady who made the right choice to do the right thing who had a convicted heart to make the right decision,” said Kellogg. Kellogg was impressed by the bravery of the students and attributes their ability to make good choices to the positive influences in their lives and the community. The community coming together to honor the students would not have been possible without significant efforts from the superintended and the board president, according to Kellogg. The reason for a gun being near the school is still under investigation.
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