SSW 11.25.20 - BoSS 2020

SOUTH SIDE WEEKLY

BEST OF THE SOUTH SIDE

T

his year of crisis has really put into perspective the people and places that matter to us, hasn’t it? For the first time in the eight years that we’ve been doing the Best of the South Side, the writing process has been simultaneously painful and sobering as we mourn our losses and count our blessings.

We weren’t shocked when we heard that the neighborhoods worst hit by COVID-19 were Black and brown and poor, and that our institutions were ill-prepared to care for us. But hopefully we also realized, if we didn’t already know, that we are essential parts of the city and we make it run.

When college students left their campuses, downtown workers went back to the suburbs, and out-oftowners went home, Chicagoans were left to their own devices in all their glory. The pandemic reminded us that we’re vulnerable and that only we keep us safe.

South Siders found a variety of ways to heal, whether it be through neighborhood mutual aid groups, unity marches, homemade cooking, repurposing a school bus, making music, medicinal teas, stocking a fridge, painting rocks, rediscovering a local park … we’re figuring it out.

In this issue, we uphold the ways that South Side residents have worked against the odds to ensure a better life for themselves, their families, and their city. #BoSS2020

The South Side Weekly is an independent non-profit newspaper by and for the South Side of Chicago. We provide high-quality, critical arts and public interest coverage, and equip and develop journalists, photographers, artists, and mediamakers of all backgrounds.

Editor-in-Chief Managing Editor

Volume 8, Issue 1 Jacqueline Serrato Martha Bayne

Senior Editors Christian Belanger Christopher Good Rachel Kim Emeline Posner Adam Przybyl Olivia Stovicek Sam Stecklow Politics Editor Jim Daley Education Editors Ashvini Kartik-Narayan Michelle Anderson Literature Editor Davon Clark Contributing Editors Mira Chauhan Joshua Falk Lucia Geng Matt Moore Robin Vaughan Jocelyn Vega Tammy Xu Jade Yan Staff Writers AV Benford Kiran Misra Jade Yan Data Editor

Jasmine Mithani

Director of Fact Checking: Tammy Xu Fact Checkers: Abigail Bazin, Susan Chun, Maria Maynez, Elizabeth Winkler, Lucy Ritzmann, Kate Gallagher, Matt Moore, Malvika Jolly, Charmaine Runes, Ebony Ellis, Katie Bart

archer heights & west elsdon 4

gage park 51

avalon park & calumet heights 7

hyde park & kenwood (online)

back of the yards 12

la villita 53

beverly & morgan park 16

mckinley park 57

bridgeport 21

north lawndale 60

brighton park 25

pilsen 64

bronzeville 27

pullman 67

chatham 30

roseland 69

The Weekly is produced by a mostly all-volunteer editorial staff and seeks contributions from across the city. We distribute each Wednesday in the fall, winter, and spring. Over the summer we publish every other week.

chicago lawn & west lawn 33

south chicago 73

chinatown 36

south loop 76

Send submissions, story ideas, comments, or questions to editor@southsideweekly.com or mail to:

clearing & garfield ridge 40

south shore & woodlawn 79

east side & hegewisch 43

in memoriam 83

Visuals Editor Mell Montezuma Deputy Visuals Editors Shane Tolentino HaleyTweedell Photo Editor Keeley Parenteau Staff Photographers: milo bosh, Jason Schumer Staff Illustrators: Mell Montezuma, Shane Tolentino Layout Editors Haley Tweedell Davon Clark Webmaster Managing Director

Pat Sier Jason Schumer

South Side Weekly 6100 S. Blackstone Ave. Chicago, IL 60637 For advertising inquiries, contact: (773) 234-5388 or advertising@southsideweekly.com

englewood 47 Cover Illustration by Grae Rosa

ARCHER HEIGHTS & WEST ELSDON

Compiled by Dixon Galvez-Searle Neighborhood Captain HANNAH FARIS

W

henever somebody asks me to describe my neighborhood of Archer Heights, the phrase that comes to mind is “tucked away.” We are bordered to the north by the enormous bridge covering both I-55 and the Sanitary and Ship Canal, to the east by the unending freight tracks of the Corwith Intermodal Facility, and to the west by a blocks-long industrial yard (or by wide and well-traveled Cicero Avenue, depending on who you ask; as someone who's only lived here for ten years, I don't feel qualified to weigh in on the controversial question of neighborhood boundaries).

Life in this community can be many things owing to its unique geography: cozy and insular, friendly and entrenched, peaceful, and a bit sleepy. But it's also the sort of place where people settle in for the long haul. It's not uncommon for families to live here for multiple generations, or to sell their house only to buy a new one around the corner. Archer Heights is a community of well-loved single-family homes, chatty neighbors, and dozens of wonderful nooks and crannies that fly under the radar of even long-time residents.

Curiously enough, Archer Heights also has an extremely busy street running through the middle of it: Pulaski Road, which connects us to West Elsdon directly to the south and keeps running for another 150-odd blocks. Pulaski is home to strip malls as far as the eye can see—sometimes it feels like they extend all the way to the Gulf of Mexico. The street is practically a highway, with its wall of mid-sized commerce serving as a sound barrier concealing the quiet neighborhoods beyond.

If you're spending time in Archer Heights or West Elsdon, odds are your visit is intentional. You might be seeing family, or exploring the well-worn paths of the place you call home. You might walk for blocks along a quiet side street with only the rustle of leaves or the far-off hum of industry keeping you company. And if you stop at a 4 SOUTH SIDE WEEKLY ¬ NOVEMBER 25, 2020

crosswalk along Pulaski and take note of the unending stream of cars rushing through the neighborhood without ever thinking twice about stopping, you might even feel bad for those thousands of drivers who have no idea what they're missing. (Dixon Galvez-Searle) Neighborhood Captain Dixon Galvez-Searle is a lifelong Chicagoan who was born and raised in what realtors are no doubt calling Logan Square, but is more accurately the southernmost tip of Avondale. He spends his days crafting digital communications (web pages, emails, social media posts) on behalf of a single-payer advocacy organization. Dixon lives in Archer Heights, where he tends to his hungry and demanding cats, bikes the side streets with his giddy daughter, and serves on the board of the Southwest Collective along with his wife, Jaime, who started the growing community organization in their basement in early 2019.

BEST BLANK CANVAS

Former Marzano’s Miami Bowl

From 1955 to 2004, the corner of Archer Avenue and Pulaski Road was home to an unthinkably large (eighty lane!) bowling alley that drew crowds from across the Southwest Side and beyond. But as the mainstream appeal of bowling dwindled and the crowds thinned out, it became clear that such an extravagant ode to the sport was no longer commercially viable, and after the bowling alley closed in 2004, the building

ARCHER HEIGHTS AND WEST ELSDON

was razed in 2006. Today, all that remains is a sign that reads “O PEN OWL ING” and 3.5 acres of crabgrass mixed with deteriorating concrete—all of which is confounding for neighborhood residents, because by all outward appearances this is a prime location.

The property sits directly across from both the busy Pulaski Orange Line CTA station and Curie Metro High School, and is a little more than a mile south of I-55.

And while various residential and commercial projects have been proposed over the years, none of them has come close to breaking ground. (It didn’t help that one such project was interrupted by the Great Recession and that the owners, JD Real Estate of Pete’s Fresh Market fame, seem content to sit on the property until it yields a sizable return.) As the years go by, young people in the neighborhood are increasingly unaware that this particular plot of land was ever anything but the vacant lot it is today.

But just imagine what this land could be. It could be an arts and cultural center showcasing the talents of Chicagoans who are not often celebrated, and providing the kind of live performance space that other communities take for granted. It could be a community garden or green space to counterbalance the wide streets and expansive concrete parking lots nearby. It could be a series of affordable or mixed-income rental units in a city that builds overpriced condos next to its most crowded train stations.

It could even be a commercial property hosting retail or other businesses (imagine a mid-size movie theater in this location), although the surrounding area is not currently hurting for storefronts or strip malls.

Or it could be something completely different, based on feedback from students, commuters, and residents. And while COVID-19 has made it unlikely that any sort of ambitious project will begin construction in the near future, the potential and need for a community anchor that draws people from across the Southwest Side’s disparate communities is as strong as it’s ever been.(Dixon Galvez-Searle) The former Marzano’s Miami Bowl lot is bounded by S. Archer Ave. to the north, S. Karlov Ave. to the west, W. 51st St. to the south, and S. Pulaski Rd. to the east. If you’re the type of person who currently has access to millions of dollars, the land is currently available for lease through Metro Commercial Real Estate, metrocre.com.

BEST DRAWN-OUT DISCUSSIONS ABOUT BOOKS

Adult Graphic Novel Book Club at the Archer Heights Public Library

Worst. Year. Ever. Among other things, 2020 has not been kind to fans of comics and graphic novels, who are accustomed to gathering at large, indoor conventions, and who may even choose to avoid cramped comic book shops while COVID-19 still looms large. But a newly launched book club out of the Archer Heights Public Library—also home to a Polish book club featured in 2019 BoSS—hopes to somewhat fill that gap by providing a monthly (virtual) space for discussing adult graphic novels like Watchmen and Batman: The Dark Knight Returns.

Those two widely acclaimed books were featured in October and November, respectively, and librarian Dean Ramos, who leads the group, plans to include indie books, biographies, and European graphic novels in future months. Once COVID-19 restrictions put the library’s popular crafting programs on hold, Ramos leaned on his interests and his experience running a similar book club at the southwest suburban Stickney-Forest View Public Library (he moved to the Archer Heights library about a year-and-a-half ago). He says he has a year’s worth of material for the group, and expects the virtual crowds to get bigger as the months go on.

And in case anybody skipped over the word “adult” in the group’s title, note that these books often contain mature themes and imagery, so no signing up your kid who happens to be into Marvel. This particular book club is for readers ages sixteen and older. (Dixon Galvez-Searle) Adult Graphic Novel Book Club at the Archer Heights Branch Library, 5055 S. Archer Ave. To register for an upcoming book club, visit chipublib.org, click “events” at the top of the page, and select “book clubs” using the series of checkboxes at the left. The December 14 edition of the adult graphic novel book club will focus on the “Saga” series by Brian K. Vaughan.

HANNAH FARIS

BEST COMFORT FOOD BY THE GALLON

Peke’s Pozole

If you’re somebody who gets overwhelmed by too many choices, then seek out this storefront restaurant for a hot (and possibly spicy) bowl of pozole, a traditional Mexican stew that comes in three simple varieties: rojo, verde, y blanco. Actually, you’re not going to walk out with a bowl’s worth, you’re going to walk out with either a gallon or a half-gallon, and the half-gallon is going to give you about six bowls worth, perfect for a family meal or for a week of solo sustenance over the long winter months.

The pozole itself features a base of hominy and pork, along with just the right amount of flavorful but not overpowering broth and an outrageously generous grab-bag of toppings that includes avocado, radishes, shredded lettuce, seasonings, and a whole lime. (Do yourself a favor and don’t ignore the lime, a squirt of citrus in a bowl of piping hot pozole really hits the spot.) There are other items on the menu, and try them if you must, just realize that the main attraction can be found in the restaurant’s name. (Dixon Galvez-Searle) Peke’s Pozole, 4720 S. Pulaski Rd. Thursday–Friday, 9am–6pm; weekends, 8am–8pm.

Closed Monday–Wednesday. (773) 801-1136. pekespozole.com. In a COVID-free future, patrons will be able to soak in the colorful interior that includes brightly painted walls, papel picado (colorful perforated paper) strung across the ceiling, and a beguiling cat emoji-inspired store mascot.

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ARCHER HEIGHTS AND WEST ELSDON

BEST EASILY ACCESSIBLE MENTAL HEALTH RESOURCES

La Caja de la Comunidad

BEST PLACE FOR ONESIES THAT ARE ONLY GOING TO FIT FOR THREE MONTHS ANYWAY

Freebies for Families

Remember Saturday, February 29? It was a simpler time, when dozens of families and a dedicated group of volunteers could gather at Zoe’s Patio on Archer for a clothing swap. The monthly “Freebies for Families” events, which started in the fall of 2019 as a reaction to the tragic murder of Marlen Ochoa Uriostegui during what was supposed to be a private pickup of baby clothes, provided a public space for parents and expectant parents to donate or receive onesies, toys, books, and other necessities.

The February event was the biggest one yet, with tables and booths stacked high with donations, families cycling in and out for hours on end, a dedicated arts and crafts table, and kids running around with reckless abandon.

The March event probably would have been even bigger, but of course, it had to be canceled—as did the April event, and the May event, and so on. But organizers with The Southwest Collective refused to put “Freebies” on a complete hiatus, and instead began scheduling contact-free pickup and dropoff of items for expectant parents.

This was especially important during a time of increased need, when families were experiencing everything from canceled baby showers to layoffs and loss of income.

The team of volunteers housed donated items in their basements and garages, and made an extra effort to put together curated care packages for families during the spring and summer.

Then, with the weather becoming cooler, the Collective managed to host an inperson (outdoor) event on October 24. Organizers secured space at the United Credit Union parking lot, spaced tables at least six feet apart, provided hand sanitizer to everybody upon entering, and required attendees to wear masks (which were made available in case anybody needed one). The dozens of attendees who braved the late fall chill were also treated to a Dia de los Muertos inspired performance by the southwest side dance troupe Teatro Tariakuri.

If there’s anything new parents need, it’s a community of people who care about them and their children. Quarantine may have complicated matters, but there’s still no shortage of families who want to look out for one another. (Dixon Galvez-Searle) November and December “Freebies” events are planned at the spacious Activo Fitness facility, 6018 S. Pulaski Rd., with similarly strict safety measures in place. Visit swcollective.org for more info as it becomes available.

6 SOUTH SIDE WEEKLY ¬ NOVEMBER 25, 2020

Little Free Libraries have been around for a long time, and are a great way for neighbors to share their gently used books with one another. But oftentimes these libraries get filled up with the sorts of titles that populate thrift store shelves: airport fiction, sticky board books, college tomes, biographies of notable people from the 1980s, and the like. La Caja de la Comunidad is a different kind of informal neighborhood book exchange, envisioned from the ground up to provide mental health resources to a largely Latinx population that has experienced both trauma and heightened anxiety during the Trump years, that often lacks even basic health coverage, and that has suffered disproportionate harm during the COVID-19 pandemic.

La Caja de la Comunidad features an abstract tan face in profile, with an illustrated red brain visible in the center, along with the phrase “La Salud Mental Es Importante / Mental Health Matters.” The box was installed in late October, and houses books in both Spanish and English that community members are free to take home and call their own, as well as brochures from organizations such as The American Foundation for Suicide Prevention. It also provides self-care items such as gratitude journals and coloring books to encourage coping and relaxation, which we could all use more of in 2020.

The organizers hope such a public display of mental health resources will raise awareness of mental health challenges in the Latinx (primarily Mexican-American) community, and spark conversations about the importance of mental health in general.

They also hope to help those who need professional support connect with culturally appropriate and accessible services from licensed therapists to informal networks to professionally staffed hotlines. There are serious mental health challenges associated with the pandemic, and the sooner we bring these issues out into the open, the sooner we can deal with them as individuals and as a community. (Dixon Galvez-Searle) La Caja de Comunidad, S. Keeler Ave., between W. 47th and 48th St. It is a collaboration between No Somos Locos, The Southwest Collective, and the Robledo-Olivo Family, and was created in loving memory of Derek Jason Robledo who lost his battle with depression in 2019.

BEST STUDENT ACTIVISM, LOCAL PARKS EDITION

Curie Park renovation (or lack thereof )

Where do you suppose home games for budding athletes at Curie Metro High School get played? If you said neighboring Curie Park, with its combination football/soccer field and acres of green space, well...you’d be wrong. That’s because the park is in such poor condition that visiting CPS teams refuse to play there. Sadly, this problem has lingered for a long time; it’s been a whopping ten years since the varsity football team has played a home game at Curie.

Students at the third-largest public high school in the city are beyond fed up with the state of their park, and produced a video detailing just how patchy, soggy, messy, and dangerous the field can be. The young filmmakers/activists interviewed nearly a dozen students and staff, and spliced their observations about the park together with

AVALON PARK & CALUMET HEIGHTS

HANNAH FARIS

footage of patchy grass, barely visible field markers, pooled water, and divots galore.

Then there are the sparkling new parks at other CPS high schools, some of them quite close to Curie.

“There are so many pieces of foundation, like concrete and rebar, in the field that it causes spontaneous sinkholes to form,” said Joseph Riley, Curie’s athletic director, in the video. “They might not be huge, but they’re low enough where you could just be walking…and you could blow out your knee [or] roll an ankle. Imagine trying to play competitively out there.” Where is all that concrete and rebar coming from? It’s likely leftover from the two blocks worth of residential homes that once stood on what is now the western half of the park (archival aerial photos show that these were destroyed sometime in the 1960s or ‘70s).

During his uncharacteristically competitive 2019 re-election campaign, 14th Ward Alderman Ed Burke was asked about the state of Curie Park and pointed to ae renovation that he’d signed off on; in an email, a CPS spokesperson told the Weekly the 2013 renovation cost $725,317, and included new topsoil and sod “to provide positive drainage,” some fencing and accessibility improvements, and repairs to the irrigation system and a softball field. But per the video, that renovation is the one and only time the field has been upgraded since Curie opened in 1973, and it did little to address the (literally) underlying problems that make the park borderline unusable for students and neighborhood residents alike. CPS skirted the question of how it intends to respond to the student activists—its spokesperson said it is “aware of the concerns raised by the school community and is committed to continued engagement,” but didn’t respond to a request for clarification on what that engagement has looked like, or might look like in the future. (The Park District never responded to a Weekly request for comment.) In 2016, then-CPS CEO Forrest Claypool acknowledged the poor conditions of the field in a letter supporting an ultimately unsuccessful grant application the school submitted. Despite this, there still remain no plans to fix the problems at Curie Park. (Dixon Galvez-Searle)

Compiled by Rovetta McKinney Neighborhood Captain SARAH DERER

I

bought this house twenty-two years ago in 1998 and I moved out in 2000 after I got married. We were having a child and I already had a child who was four and we decided to have a house built in Bronzeville. So in 2000, I moved to Bronzeville and rented out this house until I returned in 2018.

I’ll tell you a few things that I viscerally love about Avalon Park. When I first moved here, I was a single mom and my daughter was three. It was a neighborhood. It was a real neighborhood with tree-lined streets, established people, nosy neighbors who you want because they watch out, elders, kids, and families. It was a very welcoming environment to me, not to mention the housing was very affordable.

That part hasn’t really changed in the eighteen years I’ve been away.

When I moved out of my house in 1998, my brother moved in and stayed for thirteen years. He loved the neighborhood so much he bought a house two blocks down the street. When he moved out I began fixing up the place. While fixing up the house, I let it remain vacant, allowing people to apply to rent. I can’t tell you how many people replied with interest in this unit because of the neighborhood. It is seen as a desirable neighborhood. It is quiet, by which I mean at night I go in my backyard and there’s no craziness going on. I can hear the crickets, I hear bugs. It's wonderful.

The neighbor on the corner and the one next to him were so happy to see me come NOVEMBER 25, 2020 ¬ SOUTH SIDE WEEKLY 7

AVALON PARK AND CALUMET HEIGHTS back because they were here when I bought the property. The neighbor on the corner was like, “Oh I saw somebody was moving in and I was wondering and I’m so glad it’s you! You know, we just never know.” People have a lot of pride around living in this neighborhood. I would say it is similar to Marynook and various areas in Chatham.

I look at things with a slightly different eye because I come from a family of licensed architects. So I look at the built environment, I look at housing stock, I look at community as well. My lens comes from my background in the arts—I have a degree in fine art. I have a twenty-five-year career as a collaborative community based muralist creating large-scale mosaic murals with community with neighbors, non-artists and artists alike. I don't do that anymore, but I'm just saying this is the lens I look at the neighborhood with.

I know I'm kind of going on a tangent. I'm gonna circle back around. I've been gardening since I was sixteen and I love this backyard so much, like the one that we had in Bronzeville. I had garden parties there. I'd have friends come over and to help me garden, and I'd teach them mosaics. I'm loving my yard here; I've been back almost three years and I have all these vegetables growing. I give plants to my neighbors, teach them how to grow them. I found a Facebook group called Black Women Who Love Outdoor Spaces. It got me looking at my yard so differently and made me want to beautify my yard in addition to growing vegetables. So I start moving everything around. Now I've painted my deck, moved my barbeque grill, and put in AstroTurf. I was enjoying it so much this summer especially since we had to be at home because of COVID-19. When it got to the point where people were a little more comfortable, but also when I knew people were going stir crazy, I started thinking: I've got this yard, and it's not just about me, community isn't just about you. So I reached out to a few people I know and said "Hey if you all ever want to have any events in my yard, let me know. It's no cost, I would love to host and share my love, my space." These two young ladies who have a business together called Weaving The Thread, their background is in arts and culture but they focus on traumatic brain injury and trauma as well as medical racism. They had a peace circle in the backyard. It was beautiful. I opened my yard to a woman who I used to take Egyptian dance class with. We had our fifth class yesterday.

Then Shani Smith of Black Cornerstones was telling me about these co-created spaces and I said, “Well, why don't we do something in my backyard for the community?”

So that's part of what this (garden party) was—I've never had a cold frame, I've never grown in the winter, but I am aware of it, I've looked into it. I have friends who have done it. I've been looking at this and I'm like, well, let's all learn together and I'll share what I know. And I'm sure there's other people in the community that are assets just like me, who have stuff to share on the level of gardening as well as neighbors meeting neighbors.

So going back to Avalon Park, I'm saying all of this to say: I'm doing this right in my backyard. I talk with the lady on the corner, who keeps very much to herself and now is caring for her mother in her home. She doesn't really get to garden like she used to. She told me a story. Right out my window, you can see an apartment building, a small apartment building maybe six to eight units. The landlord is not absentee—he comes, he works on the building, he's present. So she had an opportunity to talk with him after apparently someone put some graffiti on a part of the building and he wasn't doing anything about it. And so she had a conversation with him.

So right away he painted it. He doesn't live in the neighborhood so his investment is financial. It didn't occur to me until she said that, and I think that is a big part of the draw. You don't drive through Avalon Park going, “They need to do something about that.” That's one of the things I loved when I first moved here in 1998, when I bought this house. The large majority of people here are homeowners. There is a pride of ownership. People have pride in just their space, I see that in how people care for their property in Avalon Park, and that I really like.

(Kiela Smith-Upton, as told to Rovetta McKinney)

8 SOUTH SIDE WEEKLY ¬ NOVEMBER 25, 2020

Neighborhood Captian Rovetta McKinney works in procurement in the interior design industry. Prior to that, she worked as a merchant/designer in the jewelry industry for over a decade. She has a Master of Science in International Marketing and a passion for arts and culture.

SARAH DERER

BEST PRESERVATION OF SOUTH SIDE JAZZ

South Side Jazz Coalition

Founded in 2015 in Calumet Heights, the South Side Jazz Coalition was created to save jazz. By establishing partnerships in the city, the SSJC continues “the legacy of Chicago tenor saxophonist Earl LaVon Freeman’s free weekly jazz jam, which has been in existence for forty years,” according to its website.

However, this year SSJC decided to shift its focus to helping musicians stay afloat during the pandemic. Many jazz musicians were adversely affected by the shutdown, suddenly finding themselves without work as venues were forced to temporarily close to help stem the COVID-19 infection rate.

As a member of the city’s Cultural Advisory Council, Margaret Murphy-Webb, co-founder and executive director of SSJC, was able to get grants from the city Department of Cultural Affairs and Special Events, Arts Alliance Illinois, and the Safe & Peaceful Communities Fund, totaling $10,000. The grant money allowed SSJC

AVALON PARK AND CALUMET HEIGHTS to help put musicians back to work by hosting popup jazz concerts throughout the South Side, including shows in Calumet Heights, South Shore, and Greater Grand Crossing. These performances were well-received and proved to be mutually beneficial, providing musicians an opportunity to share their craft and audiences a respite from the realities of COVID-19. The events also gave people a chance to safely interact with and check in on neighbors—particularly elders that may not have had any interaction with others in months.

Audiences were treated to two hours of entertainment, with the largest event drawing seventy to eighty socially distanced people of every age, according to Murphy-Webb.

Additionally, SSJC provided food aid and personal protective equipment to families of musicians who had little to no existing income. They were able to help about forty families by providing them with monthly food staples worth up to a hundred dollars.

In September, they hosted a community jazz event at Saint Columbanus Catholic Church in Park Manor, encouraging people to register to vote and complete the census.

Though the South Side Jazz Coalition has positively impacted many, there is always more to be done. According to Murphy-Webb, the organization has exhausted the grant money and is open to donations. (Rovetta McKinney) South Side Jazz Coalition. Contact Margaret Murphy-Webb at (773) 888-6709 or southsidejazzcoalition@gmail.com. southsidejazzcoalition.org

JESSE OWENS PARK FIELDHOUSE

SARAH DERER

BEST SPACE TO ESCAPE AND GET BACK TO NATURE

Jesse Owens Park, 8800 S. Clyde Ave. Park grounds are open every day, 6am–9pm. Due to COVID-19 restrictions, the field house is open only for restroom usage and the Park Kids program Monday–Friday, 9am–5pm. (312) 747-6709. chicagoparkdistrict.com/parksfacilities/owens-jesse-park

Originally named Stony Island Park when it was established in 1947, this lush eighteenacre expanse of parkland was renamed in honor of Gold Medal-winning Olympic great Jesse Owens in the 1980s, at the suggestion of the Women's Committee for a Chicago Black Athletic Hall of Fame, the 87th Street Businessman's Association, and park district vice president at the time, Margaret T. Burroughs.

Despite certain areas of the park being closed in response to COVID-19, neighborhood residents can walk the perimeter of the park for exercise and visit the native prairie habitat Nature Garden.

Even with the playgrounds and play equipment currently closed, the park district’s afterschool program, Park Kids, serves ages six to twelve on weekdays from 2pm to 6pm, providing safe socially distant recreational arts and crafts, non-contact sports, wellness and nature-based activities. Registration is required and the cost is eighty-four dollars or free to eligible students. Jesse Owens Park offers a variety of remote fitness classes for seniors and others, including yoga, low impact aerobics and even kickboxing. Registration is required and some small fees apply. Navigating the Chicago Park District can be a bit tricky and a lot of information is hidden until you create an account, but once you do a whole new world of virtual activities opens. The staff are friendly and helpful if you should need to call.

When COVID restrictions are lifted, planning a visit to the park field house is a must. The modern LEED-certified building, constructed in 2009, has something for all ages to enjoy and would surely make Jesse Owens proud that it bears his name. The space includes a rooftop garden, solar panel energy, a newly furnished gymnasium, a fully equipped fitness center, multi-purpose rooms available to rent for private events, plus outdoor tennis courts, four baseball diamonds and five picnic groves. (Nicole Bond)

BEST HEALTHY FAST FOOD

Jesse Owens Park

Plant Based Junkie

A challenging reality about living in the Avalon Park & Calumet Heights area is that, historically, there have not been many healthy restaurant options. This is a well-known fact by residents, who tend to work around it by patronizing establishments outside of the community.

I, too, never thought twice about getting in my car and driving anywhere in the city to get the food I wanted. But it was not until the pandemic forced us to stay home that I really took stock of the neighborhood and its dire need for more diverse food options.

Enter Plant Based Junkie, which was opened this February 19 by Bobbie Beaugard-Williams. This vegan restaurant provides comfort food to a community without many healthier fast food options.

Plant Based Junkie has effectively converted comfort food favorites to meat-free versions without sacrificing flavor. According to its website, the company takes pride in having the ability to satisfy their customers' past carnivore urges, transforming them into “Junk Food Vegans.”

Prior to opening Plant Based Junkie, Beaugard-Williams, a native South Sider, worked as a bartender. Because of her hours, she found it difficult to find vegan or vegetarian food options, so she decided to experiment with different foods and brought her creations to her bar customers for beta testing—constantly receiving positive feedback, she told Block Club Chicago in March.

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SARAH DERER

Plant Based Junkie's menu consists of cleverly named food options, such as the Hot Mess burger (vegan cheese, grilled jalapeño peppers, grilled onions, vegan mayo, and sriracha) and the Filthy Philly (grilled green peppers, mushrooms, and onions, with melted vegan mozzarella), the restaurant's vegan version take on one of Philadelphia's most famous exports. (Rovetta McKinney) Plant Based Junkie, 1635 E. 87th St. Tuesday–Saturday, noon–7pm; closed Sunday and Monday. (773) 902-7467. plantbasedjunkiechicago.com

BEST PLACE TO CHANNEL YOUR INNER ARTIST

Calumet Heights Community Art Center

Anchored and run by the True to Life Foundation, a nonprofit founded by Velinda Alexander in 2002, the Calumet Heights Community Art center was developed to fill a void in the neighborhood with respect to the arts. Alexander, True to Life’s executive director, wants the center and the foundation to be a guiding light and of service to people in the community. She told the Weekly she wants to see people whole, happy, and thriving in a safe space. The Calumet Heights Community Art Center is that place.

Since 2017, the center has offered workshops for seniors, afterschool programs, 10 SOUTH SIDE WEEKLY ¬ NOVEMBER 25, 2020

summer day camp and early childhood resources, where each program fulfills its mission to promote competent, complete, and creative families through education, crisis intervention, and restorative programs.

During COVID-19 restrictions, the center opened its doors to offer a safe e-learning space for the children of essential workers. Along with daily e-learning, the students got to participate in a weekly art making program facilitated by local artists.

The art projects range from clay and ceramic work to mosaic making.

The most recent mosaic work done by students, with instruction from artist Kathleen Power, uses tile, glass and mirrors and some of it will be installed on the center’s back wall to compliment one of the city’s most inspiring murals. “Light the Spark,” painted by artist Kayla Mahaffey, in partnership with the Southeast Chicago Chamber of Commerce and artist Abie Vasquez of Alpha Bomber Productions, is in an Afro-pop/Afro-surrealism design that has become a colorful beacon wrapping around the building to signal beauty, love, and unity throughout the neighborhood.

The Calumet Heights Community Art Center also features a bountiful youth-led garden with three grow beds where children learn how to cultivate vegetables from seed to harvest. The crops this season included hot peppers, green peppers, kale, lettuce, and cucumbers for everyone to enjoy and to share with seniors in the community. (Nicole Bond) Calumet Heights Community Arts Center, 8828 S. Stony Island Ave. and True to Life Foundation, 1712 E. 87th St. Monday–Friday, 7:30am–4:30pm. (773) 374-7046. truetolifefoundation.org

AVALON PARK AND CALUMET HEIGHTS

BEST ORGANIC CONNECTIONS AMONG NEIGHBORS

Black Cornerstones Project

On the frigid afternoon of October 25, a group of fifteen to twenty neighbors hailing from Avalon Park, South Shore, Bronzeville, and Calumet Heights sat around in an Avalon Park backyard with cups of hot herbal mint tea or apple cider in hand, listening intently to a former community muralist teaching about cold frame gardening.

Attendants ranged in age, were of varying gardening experience, mostly homeowners (both recent purchasers and long-established), and some apartment dwellers all sharing a common interest in residential year-round farming. This is what Black Cornerstones founder Shani Smith has in mind when she excitedly discusses “having residents co-create spaces to foster relational building blocks.”

The Black Cornerstones Project is a group of ordinary people co-creating bold and extraordinary spaces based in Calumet Heights. The organization is the brainchild of Smith, a neighborhood resident who believes a “community should call people in before they call them out.” Smith has a long history in community involvement as a non-violent direct action strategist and trainer; she has a background in social justice work and community organizing. Additionally, she was a former organizer for the Service Employees International Union and former block club president.

The organization has a two-pronged origin story. After prompting from the founder of Queen Up the Movement, a women’s empowerment group, Smith sought to plan a Black Girl Magic picnic as a community engagement activity during the early throes of the pandemic. However, with Chicago’s closure of public spaces, Smith pivoted to hosting the event in her backyard and the picnic was transformed into a backyard movie night, now hosted monthly.

After George Floyd’s death, a personal experience called Smith into action, and she officially formed the Black Cornerstones. In May, during the citywide uprising, Smith heard that the front window of her neighborhood T-Mobile store had been broken. Initially, she was shocked and couldn’t believe this was happening in her community. Then she asked herself “What can I do in this moment?” Smith immediately went to the T-Mobile store to protect it and to discourage people from looting by telling her neighborhood’s story. She got different responses—some positive, some negative—but they didn’t loot. Eventually, a gentleman pulled up and offered to help. One by one, neighbors started showing up to help clean while others painted sheets with positive messages, which were used to cover the store’s broken window. As night fell, however, they were unable to prevent the property from being ransacked. The incident still served as a turning point, and Smith knew something positive had to be done, so she decided to facilitate open spaces for the community.

Smith envisioned an environment that allows residents to co-create events around their existing interests and share it with others. For instance, if a person enjoys walking, they can create a walking club.

In recent days, Black Cornerstones’ events have taken the form of a walking group, an Art Walk held last month, a gardening club, and, of course, a monthly Backyard Movie Night. (Rovetta McKinney) Black Cornerstones Project. Contact Shani or shani831@hotmail.com. blackcornerstones.com

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NOVEMBER 25, 2020 ¬ SOUTH SIDE WEEKLY 11

BACK OF THE YARDS

Compiled by Mell Montezuma Neighborhood Captain

B

ack of the Yards hasn't historically been known for being a gorgeous residential area or a hub of commerce—rather, it’s famous for its factories, its slaughterhouses, and for the former Union Stockyards that give the neighborhood its name. Through the decades, as businesses have come and gone, community has made the neighborhood persevere. After growing up in Chicago and not knowing much about the area, I moved here and have learned firsthand that this community is strong. That people look out for each other. Some people have lived here their whole lives, owning businesses that have served their community for nearly as long. Some places are rather new: farms feeding locals food grown from the same earth tired workers trod to and from slaughterhouses years ago, sprouting where few have expected life to sprout.

New libraries, businesses, even breweries and coffee houses. All are additions, not replacements. I don't think anything could replace the personality of this resilient, homey collage of a neighborhood. (Mell Montezuma) Neighborhood Captain Mell Montezuma is the Weekly’s visuals editor, illustrator, cheesemonger, and aspiring sommelier. Born and raised in Chicago, she enjoys learning even more about her beloved city through working with the Weekly.

12 SOUTH SIDE WEEKLY ¬ NOVEMBER 25, 2020

MELL MONTEZUMA

BEST FOOD PANTRY THAT DOES IT ALL

Casa Catalina

The Catholic Charities “basic human needs center” Casa Catalina has served the community of Back of the Yards for thirty-six years. Run almost single-handedly

by Sister Joellen Tumas for most of those years, Casa Catalina and its food pantry distribute food from the Greater Chicago Food Depository as well as from individual donors, providing nourishment for hundreds of families—as many as 350 a week, and an estimated 10,000 unduplicated visitors a year—in the neighborhood. About a third of Back of the Yards residents were born outside the U.S., and a third of households in the community earn below the poverty line. But, as per their name, Casa offers a lot more than food. The center also provides social services, unemployment aid, volunteer opportunities, and the warm support of those dedicated to helping others.

Casa Catalina was closed for several months in late 2019, as the aging building underwent extensive rehab. It reopened in late January with much fanfare and a blessing from a priest, as the pantry transitioned to a new “client choice” model that would allow clients to pick and choose their groceries much as one would in a grocery store, rather than receive a prepacked box or bag of food. Supermarket-like aisles were stocked with canned goods, cereals, and other dry goods, along with several freezers

BACK OF THE YARDS

MELL MONTEZUMA

delicious)—one of the ways that they must navigate how business operates these days. The playful illustrations on the cans (available in stores citywide) feature a mustachioed figure and colorful animals from cats to birds.

All the businesses in the building seem to intertwine; Whiner even filters the carbon dioxide from its fermentation tanks up into gardens on the top floor, reducing its environmental impact. But the symbiosis isn’t just chemical. Over the summer, Whiner participated in a collaboration with Weathered Souls Brewing as part of the Black is Beautiful campaign, intended to raise funds for police reform and legal defenses for those who have been wronged, and raise awareness of the injustices done against BIPOC on a daily basis. Whiner’s owners felt that, as a business on the South Side, where BIPOC communities are a majority, it was important to show their support. A hundred percent of the proceeds from the fundraiser went to this campaign, and Whiner sold out of the stout created for the campaign in just a couple of months (unfortunately for the rest of us who didn’t get a taste). Nine months into the pandemic Whiner, tucked away in The Plant, is still brewing up some of the best beverages in the city. (Mell Montezuma) Whiner Beer Company, 1400 W. 46th St. Taproom currently closed; purchase beer for pickup or delivery at whinerbeer.com

of meat, and visitors wheeled small carts through the shelves, with the assistance of volunteer personal shoppers. Back then, Sister Joellen said, “I think it’s to give people more of a choice and help them feel like they have control over their lives. We’ll see how it goes.” Well, it lasted all of six weeks before the pandemic forced Casa Catalina to restructure operations again in the name of public health.

Sister Joellen, who’s in her seventies, was herself sidelined for several months due to COVID-19 restrictions, but the pantry has soldiered on, and she’s back now, distributing bags of food out the back door of the storefront space to socially distanced clients in the alley. No matter what challenges the winter brings, this neighborhood anchor will be there to meet community needs. (Mell Montezuma and Martha Bayne) Casa Catalina, 4537 S. Ashland Ave. Monday–Tuesday, 9am–3pm; Wednesday, 1:30pm– 6pm; Thursday, 10am–3pm; Friday, 9am–3pm; closed weekends. (773) 376-9425

BEST SPIKED ‘BOOCH

Whiner Beer Company

Off the 47th Street bus, tucked away behind a medical center and a Marshalls, there is an old meat packing facility. Except now, instead of producing sausages this old red brick building, now known as The Plant (Best Futuristic Factory, 2011 BoSS), is home to a number of small businesses producing vegan food, fresh breads, honey, and some of Chicago’s most iconically kitten-clad cans of beer, Whiner Beer Company.

On one recent day, I’m shown around by Brian Taylor, Whiner’s co-founder.

It’s almost eerie seeing the empty taproom, with the specials still up on the cement wall in cheerful chalk. Despite having to close the taproom in March, Whiner is still producing thousands of cans of beer, including “spiked kombucha” that blends their beer with house-brewed kombuchas that incorporate flavors such as hibiscus, guava, and grapefruit. I’m shown a large room with wooden walls; taking up the entirety of this room is a massive mother SCOBY, the bacterial and yeast culture that serves as the basis for kombucha, resting in a large vat. You can smell the yeasty, promising aroma of fermentation in the air as soon as the doors are open. Whiner has been making hard kombucha since March, trying something new (and still just as

BEST LOCAL GREEN SPACES When COVID-19 hit, South Siders, along with the rest of the world, were forced to isolate in their homes. It was difficult for many to stay confined within the walls of their own house, without seeing friends and family members as a precaution to prevent the spread of COVID-19.

Many people are coping with this by visiting local parks, which offer a safe way to get out of the house while still adhering to social distancing protocols. From meeting loved ones for a socially distanced get-togethers to walking the dog, parks have become a staple of the COVID-19 era.

When thinking of major Chicago parks, people probably think of Millennium Park, Lincoln Park, Jackson Park, and Ping Tom Memorial Park. But Back of the Yards is home to plenty of great places to both enjoy the outdoors and have communion with others.

Some of the amenities discussed, such as programming, playgrounds, and pools, may be closed at this time due to COVID-19.

Davis Square Park

Davis Square Park offers a vast variety of amenities: a field house, an outdoor pool, a horseshoe area, a soccer field and plenty of benches to enjoy the scenery on. This park is located in a fairly residential area so there is no hustle and bustle to worry about, unlike in, say, Grant or Millennium Park.

The park opened to the public in 1905, one of ten parks that opened that year in the City of Chicago. While 1905 was over one hundred years ago, Davis Square park barely looks its age. In 2014, then-Mayor Rahm Emanuel’s Chicago Plays!

Program helped the park implement upgrades to the playground equipment. The baseball fields were renovated with assistance from the Cubs Charities Diamond Project the same year.

Davis Square Park, 4430 S. Marshfield Ave. 6am–11pm. (312) 747-6107. chicagoparkdistrict.com/parks-facilities/davis-dr-nathan-square-park NOVEMBER 25, 2020 ¬ SOUTH SIDE WEEKLY 13

BACK OF THE YARDS

Sherman Park

Located at the southern edge of Back of the Yards is Sherman Park. Significantly larger than Davis Square Park—57.7 acres of land, compared to Davis Square’s 8.88.

But along with Davis Square Park, Sherman Park was established in 1905.

Sherman Park provides all the essentials for a nature-filled walk with plenty of paths that go around the Sherman Park Lagoon. These paths include four bridges that lead to an island, home to several benches to enjoy the scenery along with soccer and baseball fields. Tennis and basketball courts are also available at Sherman Park for those interested.

Sherman Park, 1301 W. 52nd St. 6am–11pm. (312) 747-6672. chicagoparkdistrict.com/parks-facilities/sherman-john-park

Back of the Yards Park

The smallest of the parks on this list is Back of the Yards Park. This park is a total of 1.07 acres and while it does not have any active programming through the Chicago Parks District, there is space for a small gathering adhering to City of Chicago restrictions.

Originally known as Throop Park, this park was renamed Back of the Yards Park in 1990 to eliminate confusion with Throop Park up in Pilsen.

As a community park, there is a swing, playground equipment, a relatively new basketball court and a water spray feature to keep the kids occupied in summer while the adults enjoy some time to themselves.

Back of the Yards Park, 4922 S. Throop St. (312) 747-6107. chicagoparkdistrict.com/ parks-facilities/back-yards-park

Cornell Square Park

Cornell Square Park was established back in 1904 to help provide more recreational programs to a highly populated residential sector of the city. The park is named after Paul Cornell, an important figure in the creation of the South Park System who passed away the same year this park opened to the public.

The fieldhouse is a highlight of this park. It contains two gymnasiums, an auditorium, and a kitchen.

This park is home to a playground that was renovated back in 2014 as part of Emanuel’s Chicago Plays! Program. Alongside the playground and fieldhouse, there are soccer fields, an outdoor swimming pool, a water spray feature with an interactive option, and baseball fields. (Corey Schmidt) Cornell Square Park, 1809 W. 50th St. (312) 747-6097. chicagoparkdistrict.com/parks-facilities/cornell-paul-square-park

BEST PARENT ACTIVISM

Campaign for a Back of the Yards Library

Since 1972, when it opened as the New City Branch Library in a storefront at West 46th Street and South Ashland Avenue (now occupied by the Ameri-Mex Insurance Agency), the public library in Back of the Yards has bounced around the neighborhood four times. Two more storefronts followed—one on 47th Street, and 14 SOUTH SIDE WEEKLY ¬ NOVEMBER 25, 2020

then another at the Yards Plaza shopping center—before it ended up, seemingly for good, at the then-newly-opened Back of the Yards College Prep High School in 2013.

There, it was to serve as both the community’s library and the high school’s, an arrangement unique in Chicago—since, libraries have been paired with public housing developments, but no other schools. A Chicago Public Library (CPL) spokesperson told reporters when the library opened that it would “have all of the full-service things you’d find in a public library but with an enhanced space for teens,” and a 2014 quality-of-life plan labeled the co-location of the school and library as a success that would “anchor” the neighborhood—but it has ended up serving both populations poorly.

Neighborhood residents detailed complaints about visibility, accessibility, and heating and air conditioning in a 2017 Medill Reports story. Then, after the Tribune’s series on sexual assault within CPS was published in 2018, more security measures were put into place, making library access harder on days school was in session, Block Club Chicago reported in July. Still, students worried about the public having access to the school via the library pre-pandemic, and called for the neighborhood to have its own standalone library once again.

In May, according to the Block Club report, state Representative Theresa Mah, who represents the area, secured $15 million in state capital funding toward a potential library development project. (She previously worked on the successful campaign for the new Chinatown library, which opened in 2015.) She credited the work of parents on the school’s Local School Council, who asked for her support last year. “Like other high schools in the area, our students deserve their own library and our community deserves a library—a fountain of knowledge,” LSC president Consuelo Martinez told Block Club.

When parents and advocates made their case to her around the beginning of the year, Mah told the Weekly, she told them she was impressed and would support their cause. At the time, she was limited to contacting the Chicago Public Library commissioner to express her support—but when, during the process of working on this year’s state capital funding bill, she was asked if she had any “regional projects” in or near her district she wanted to propose funding for, she asked after the $15 million for the library, and it was approved.

Officials are still determining potential sites, including one at West 47th Street and South Justine Avenue and another at 47th and South Bishop, according to Jesse Iñiguez, a community leader and owner of Back of the Yards Coffee (Best New Friend in the Form of a Coffeehouse, 2017 BoSS), across the street from the high school.

He said in an interview that he hopes more public attention comes to the project to prompt public officials into action; the community has, after all, been waiting decades for this essential safe space in the neighborhood.

According to Mah, the city is currently conducting a land acquisition analysis and plans to begin conducting public comment procedures sometime early next year.

It’s unclear whether any further funding will come through, or be required—the Chinatown library she advocated for ended up costing around $19 million—but Mah and CPL spokesperson Patrick Molloy said that construction costs can vary between rehabbing existing structure and new construction, and the size of the building. Those pending questions also prevent hard timelines from being set for the library’s opening.

Neither the city nor CPL has pledged any further funding yet, however Molloy said he was optimistic in the potential for the infrastructure of the city’s Invest South/ West Plan to provide for additional funding. Both Mah and Molloy stressed that Iñiguez’s hope for robust public engagement would be fulfilled; Mah said she’s a “huge champion of that part of the process,” and Molloy said CPL is “anxious to start the” community engagement process. (Sam Stecklow)

BEVERLY & MORGAN PARK Compiled by Scott Smith, Neighborhood Captain

THE GIVINS CASTLE, BUILT IN 1886. PHOTO BY SCOTT SMITH

B

everly and Morgan Park—the area of the 19th Ward roughly bordered by South Western Avenue, West 87th Street, South Vincennes Avenue, and West 119th Street—should be a community uniquely suited to ride out the social isolation of COVID-19.

Often described as a “bedroom community,” its residents tend toward the insular, even in non-pandemic times, and are more likely to build their own backyard patio and invite family and friends over for cocktails rather than enjoy those amenities outside the home.

A historically Irish-Catholic neighborhood which also boasts one of the few racially integrated populations in Chicago, there’s as much unity as there is division.

“Love Where You Live” is the unofficial motto of the area, but it’s still a place where identity is driven by parish or block with ready-made “pods” and “cohorts,” which carry with them a feeling of “we’re all in this together.”

In a community area filled with cops, firefighters, teachers, and social workers, you’ll find plenty of rule followers, champions of best practices (there’s a local Facebook group dedicated to which places are and are not enforcing mask-wearing), and the kinds of moms and dads who are used to parenting their friends’ kids, too.

Yet it’s exactly these characteristics that have led the neighborhood to struggle with the virus just like everyone else.

As of this writing, positivity rates and cases have trended upward for the last month, as they have elsewhere in the city and state. Some residents speculate a neighborhood with many first responders will be more likely to see higher numbers, but as private schools here open up again (exacerbating the area’s longtime passive aggression between the “publics” and the “Catholics”), and those backyard patios start to host groups of twenty-five instead of five, the causes seem disparate, not specific.

The systemic issues of racism and health care disparities experienced by an integrated community can’t be overlooked here, either.

The cancellation of the neighborhood’s annual South Side Irish Parade (locally, just “the parade”) was a bellwether for what was to come in 2020. The Beverly Area Planning Association’s (BAPA) summer busy season went as dry as the east side of Western Avenue with its Ridge Run, Bikes and Brews, and Home Tour events put on hold for now.

If the ways you live your life are a larger part of what makes you unique, then who 16 SOUTH SIDE WEEKLY ¬ NOVEMBER 25, 2020

are you this year? How do you create and form a community spirit? Can you “Love Where You Live” when living seems risky?

Beverly and Morgan Park found its answers.

As in the suburbs, Beverly and Morgan Park tended more toward car culture than bike culture in the Before Times. But this July, BAPA rolled out a “Bike Beverly” campaign, which may have been why Beverly Bike And Ski, a beloved neighborhood institution since 1921, reportedly had a two-week waitlist for two-wheel tune-ups.

BAPA also substituted a garden walk for its Home Tour, giving people another reason to get out of their cars.

Bars with windows you couldn’t see into before transformed their parking lots into pop-up patios with live music pouring off the neighborhood’s main thoroughfare of Western Avenue. This winter local brewpub Open Outcry, named “Best Pizza Not From a Pizza Parlor” in 2017 BoSS, will update its pre-COVID rooftop igloo domes to wood-paneled cabins with different themes, like Harry Potter’s Hogwarts or your parents’ basement circa 1985. Good for families, “pods,” and those fresh off a negative COVID test.

Though “the parade” was canceled, the annual Beverly Art Walk became the “Alt Walk,” through several public art displays called “Pandemograms.” Summer protests for racial justice were a regular occurrence in the area and neighborhood activists held space at one of the busiest intersections every day for two full weeks. A new mutual aid program, 19th Ward Mutual Aid, now operates a “free store” every week with food and PPE. This year’s shared tragedy and sorrow are as present in Beverly and Morgan Park as anywhere else. It’s also sharing in the hard work of envisioning a “new normal” that builds back better than before.

Neighborhood Captain Scott Smith is a communications strategist who's lived in Morgan Park since 2009. As an active participant in civic life and community groups within Beverly and Morgan Park, he has been a part of the Beverly Area Planning Association, the Beverly Area Arts Alliance, and the Southwest Chicago Diversity Collaborative—all of which are mentioned in this section, but he's done his best to be objective about all of it. You can follow him on Twitter at @ourmaninchicago.

BEVERLY & MORGAN PARK

BEST ART WALK THAT ISN'T

Beverly Alt Walk: Pandemograms

Members of the Beverly Area Arts Alliance (Best Anarchistic Art Organization, 2019 BoSS) have an elder Gen-X’er vibe: take a punk rock approach to putting on a show wherever you can find a space, but add in a healthy desire to wrap things up by 9pm or so because everyone has to get up for work in the morning (unless it’s a Thursday and then OK, we’ll stay for one drink, but absolutely no more than two).

This would have been the seventh year of the Alliance’s Beverly Art Walk. A family-friendly, indoor/outdoor event, it draws thousands of people each year; only the South Side Irish Parade brings more Far Southwest Siders out of their homes and onto the sidewalks. Conceived by Sal Campbell and Monica Wilczak, the Art Walk is the cornerstone of a year-long slate of programming from the Beverly Area Arts Alliance.

The Alliance could have been forgiven for taking this year off. Outside of sourdough loaves, binge-watching Tiger King or Ted Lasso was about as creative as most of us felt in 2020. But by the time summer passed and September rolled around, many people were looking for one last hurrah before winter set in for good.

This year is about doing less and cutting back to the basics. So rather than one allday event marketed to a wide audience, the Alt Walk—titled “Pandemograms”— had a hyperlocal feel. On three separate days (September 17 and 24, and October 1) for three hours each evening, a number of small, local venues displayed classic pieces from previous Art Walks and new works evoking the tenor of the moment.

Some of the Alt Walk pieces forced visitors to examine the moment, as “social justice and equity are core values of the Alliance,” according to the Alt Walk’s press materials.

Two striking murals by Paul Branton centered the Black Lives Matter movement and George Floyd in striking colors. Linda Bullen’s yarnwork wove its way around a tree in front of indie bookseller Bookie’s (Best Bookstore Not in Hyde Park, 2015 BoSS; Best New (New) & Used Bookstore, 2019 BoSS) in a piece titled “Not Forgotten: Native American Women.” Down the street, inside brewpub Horse Thief Hollow (Best Pub for Bandits, 2013 BoSS), hung Edward Gorey-esque, haunting pencil drawings by Kurt Mitchell, known to hold court at the end of the bar until he passed away from COVID-19 over the summer. Outstretched hands, rendered in clay by Robin Power, reached for more, backgrounded by a painting from T.C. Dumont-English titled “Arise”: a fist, drenched in red.

In times of crisis, we look at what’s needed most, climbing Maslow’s hierarchy of needs as high as we can. This year’s Alt Walk helped Beverly remember feelings of belonging and esteem, even in a time when we feel less self-actualized than usual.

(Scott Smith) For more information or to get involved with the Arts Alliance, visit beverlyarts.org

TOP: YARN-BASED PUBLIC ART HONORING AND REMEMBERING MISSING INDIGENOUS WOMEN BOTTOM: “ARISE” PAINTINGS BY T.C. ENGLISH-DUMONT, “OPEN HANDS” CERAMIC SCULPTURES BY ROBIN POWER COURTESY OF BEVERLY AREA ARTS ALLIANCE

BEST DISSENT

Vigil for Black Lives at 103rd and Western

Beverly is a neighborhood of first responders. It’s also one of the few communities in Chicago to boast some measure of racial integration. This dichotomy showed up throughout 2020 as homes here showed off lawn signs supporting both first responders and Black Lives Matter—often side by side.

In the wake of George Floyd’s murder, activists with Southwest Chicago Diversity Collaborative and Southsiders For Peace held space for two weeks in a row. One of the area’s busiest intersections was filled with men, women, and children of all races with homemade signs reading “Black Lives Matter” and “Silence Is Violence.” On the lightest days, the street corners held only ten to fifteen people. But for most of the first week, anywhere from fifty to 200 showed up to protest racial inequity.

As with many of the summer protests, people here wondered if things would “go back to normal,” but 2020 was not a year in which normal was in ample supply. SCDC and SSFP came together again in October for a Unity March through neighboring Mt. Greenwood, a sequel of sorts to a similar march the year before. For a community that prefers to keep the status quo, it was a sign that perhaps things wouldn’t be as static as they once were. (Scott Smith) Southwest Chicago Diversity Collaborative, facebook.com/scdcollaborative, and Southsiders For Peace, facebook.com/southsidersforpeace, hold monthly meetings that are open to the public NOVEMBER 25, 2020 ¬ SOUTH SIDE WEEKLY 17

BEVERLY & MORGAN PARK

THE EXTERIOR OF TWO MILE COFFEE BAR. PHOTO BY SCOTT SMITH

BEST COMFORT FOOD NEWS OF THE PANDEMIC

Two Mile Coffee Bar's expansion and Munchiez

Aside from Western Avenue’s string of bars, Beverly’s business districts—linked through the Metra Rock Island District train stations—each have their own personality. 95th Street leans toward Black-owned clothing stores, while 103rd Street is dominated by grab-and-go convenience with a few bespoke boutique offerings. 99th Street is an easy place to spend most of a morning and afternoon: a stop for coffee, then a walk through some gift shops, followed by a visit to the salon. They’re the hardest businesses to run in good times, even harder during a pandemic that robs them of foot traffic and weekend curiosity-seekers. Throughout 2020, the Beverly Hills/ Morgan Park Business Association and the Beverly Area Planning Association were shoring them up through a few “buy local” campaigns like Take-Out Tuesdays and The Bucks Stay Here.

Amidst all the closings of small businesses wrought by COVID-19, two new openings offered some economic optimism.

First, Two Mile Coffee Bar (Best Café in a Train Station, 2019 BoSS) opened its second location along the Rock Island Line, in the space formerly occupied by B-Sides Coffee at 99th and Walden. Since opening its first spot in the rehabbed 95th Street Metra station, Two Mile made its expansion efforts clear: the “vision” section of 18 SOUTH SIDE WEEKLY ¬ NOVEMBER 25, 2020

THE INTERIOR OF MUNCHIEZ. PHOTO BY SCOTT SMITH

its website outlines a plan to build out the Rock Island’s historic stations as caffeinated beachheads. The family-owned business announced plans to take over B-Sides in March as COVID-19 hit local communities full force. Overcoming the odds, Two Mile opened in May with coffee from Intelligentsia, tea from Kilogram, and pastries from Laine’s Bake Shop, which operates out of the Hatchery food incubator in East Garfield Park. Its mobile-based, pick-up-and-go option is perfectly suited to the COVID era, while its specialty coffee selections and bright, art-laden walls offer the possibility of what’s to come on the other side of all this.

Then there’s Munchiez on 95th Street, a Black-owned business that opened in August. Billed as a place “where childhood lasts forever,” the candy store and cereal bar is an Instagram-ready sugar bomb of dopamine and serotonin with a menu that seems formed from up-all-night sleepovers. More than thirty types of cereal are available and the menu encourages mixes like Captain Crunchy Pebbles or Frooty Loopy Crunch complete with Technicolor milk. Their shakes mix cookies, cereal, and ice cream together in a cure-all for stuck-inside blues. Pizza puffs, walking tacos, and beef sandwiches round out their offerings and various sweets and candy bars line the walls. (Scott Smith) Two Mile Coffee Bar, 9907 S. Walden Pkwy; 95th Street location closed through December.

Monday–Wednesday, 7am–2pm; Thursday–Saturday, 7am–4pm; closed Sunday. (773) 629-6001. twomilecoffee.com Munchiez, 1803 W. 95th St. Thursday, noon–7pm; Friday and Saturday, noon–8pm; Sunday, noon–5pm; closed Monday–Wednesday. shopmunchiez.com

BEVERLY & MORGAN PARK

BEST AVENGERS-STYLE TEAM-UP

19th Ward Mutual Aid

CHRISTINE MELODY PERFORMING FOR GET LOCAL BEVERLY. PHOTO BY JOHN KOSIEWICZ

BEST UNEXPECTED ARTS REVIVAL

Live music

Outside of the occasional barroom cover band, there isn't really a live music scene in Beverly/Morgan Park (even the roadhouse-esque Harte’s Saloon is technically in suburban Evergreen Park). But under COVID-19, a bumper crop of local options sprung up. The Beverly Area Planning Association started putting on front porch concerts at people's homes, livestreamed via Facebook as neighbors socially distanced on lawns with coolers in tow. The Alliance held a series of outdoor shows with Nora O'Connor, and the Michael Damiani Blues Band put on two benefit concerts for Nicholas Tremulis, whose family is dealing with COVID. A new endeavor seems likely to stick around in 2021. Get Local Beverly hosted a regular series of livestreamed music shows over Instagram and YouTube from May through October. Mostly filmed inside the former Ridge Academy space on 103rd and Campbell, which was once a Lutheran church, many of the artists performed in front of a stained glass window, the words “YOU SHALL BE MY WITNESSES” embedded within. Standout performances, still available at Get Local Beverly’s website, include original music from Shannon Baker, Christine Melody, Nathan Graham, the Sam Sinclair Trio, and a set of Tejano-infused covers from Daya Dorado.

Artists were chosen by Get Local co-founder Amy Marbach for shows that ran from May through October. The shows mixed acoustic rock, hip-hop, blues, and jazz in an eclectic aesthetic meant to showcase artists from around the South Side and south suburbs, which often get overlooked when talking about what the Chicago area has to offer. “Creative people are here, people in the neighborhoods want to support this,” said Marbach. “Music can connect and uplift people at this time.”

As for 2021, she plans for some winter shows at the Joplin Marley Studio, Get Local Beverly’s home base on West 99th Street and South Walden Parkway. (Scott Smith) Performances from this summer’s concert series and further information about future shows available at getlocalbeverly.org

A few years ago, writer Edward McClelland wrote about Beverly as one of the last bastions of the “Chicago accent.” Popularized by Saturday Night Live’s “Superfans” sketches, it’s a set of vocal tones and vowel pronunciations dripping in au jus, mild sauce, and giardiniera. An accent shared by grandparents who remember when the stockyards closed and their first responder grandchildren.

The accent is also a shibboleth for a community of people who will swoop in during a crisis with dishes of food delivered to homes in mourning, clothes for the family who lost everything in a fire, or a fundraiser for the child with cancer whom everyone adopts as their own. No one here would ask for charity, but help from your neighbors is impossible to avoid.

In May, this spirit led Tim Noonan, an IT and data guy, to form a mutual aid group that runs a weekly free store offering food and personal hygiene items to those who need it—humbly called 19th Ward Mutual Aid and its Free Store.

At the group’s first meeting, Noonan’s presentation had a technocratic feel to it, with charts and data on the demographics of the neighborhood showing who was most at risk during the pandemic.

19th Ward Mutual Aid brings together non-profits like Turpin Cares and the Beverly Area Planning Association and takes donations from various churches and community members. It also receives boxes of food from the USDA and local pantries.

Noonan said his own experience with unemployment made him want to help others who might experience something similar. “You don’t know their story, it’s none of our business,” he said. “If they’re asking for food for themselves or someone else, we have an obligation to give it to them. They’re our neighbor. Helping them means they’re going to stay our neighbor.”

The Free Store has served 2,100 families since it opened over the summer. Noonan plans on holding a fundraiser after Thanksgiving to fund its next phase. (Scott Smith) 19th Ward Mutual Aid. 19aid.com, facebook.com/19aid

VOLUNTEERS FOR THE 19TH WARD MUTUAL AID. PHOTO COURTESY OF THE 19TH WARD MUTUAL AID

NOVEMBER 25, 2020 ¬ SOUTH SIDE WEEKLY 19

BEVERLY & MORGAN PARK

BEST WAY TO SPEND A DAY OF SOCIAL DISTANCING

Dan Ryan Woods, the Major Taylor Trail, and Rock Island Public House

This was a year when the idea of running into the woods, never to return, seemed like an idea worth considering. For those who want just a taste of that life, the Dan Ryan Woods at 87th and Western offers a brief respite. Part of the Cook County Forest Preserve system, the woods offer 257 acres of social distance. Picnic groves provide space for outdoor dining while climbing stairs up a sledding hill make for good cardio workouts. Even more distance is available via the Major Taylor Trail, named for Black cycling champion Marshall “Major Taylor,” which runs along the eastern end of the Woods, giving cycling enthusiasts seven-and-a-half miles of pavement through the Far South Side.

Cut through Whistler Woods after the gorgeous Major Taylor mural (Best Public Art Celebrating Black Cyclists, 2018 BoSS) over the Cal-Sag Channel, signaling your exit from Chicago city limits, then head up Halsted toward the Joe Louis Golf Course to pick up the Cal-Sag Bike Trail. Two more miles of trail will lead to south suburban Blue Island and a perfect place for an al fresco fuel-up: Rock Island Public House, home of one of the Southland’s finer craft beer selections, and Butter Upon Bacon, a kitchen in the same location with a rotating menu of savory sandwiches, salads, and entrees.

Even if the end of the Major Taylor Trail is as far as you want to go, the mural bridge is a spirit-lifter where the past, present, and future come together. Stand on the bridge facing east and you’ll see a painted celebration of a Chicagoan who broke racial barriers in athletics at the turn of the twentieth century. Face west in the evening and you’ll see one of the best places to watch the sun setting over the water, a reminder that the South Side remains beautiful—a reason for optimism about the future. (Scott Smith) Dan Ryan Woods, entrances at S. Western Ave. and W. 87th St., S. Western Ave. south of W. 83rd St., W. 83rd St. east of S. Western Ave., S. Western Ave. south of W. 87th St., W. 87th St. west of S. Damen Ave., and W. 91st St. and S. Hermitage Ave. Sunrise to sunset. fpdcc. com/places/locations/dan-ryan-woods Major Taylor Trail, accessible from the Dan Ryan Woods and Whistler Woods; street and bikeway access points available from the Forest Preserves. Sunrise to sunset. fpdcc.com/places/ trails/major-taylor-trail Rock Island Public House, 13328 Olde Western Ave., Blue Island. Weekdays, 3pm–11pm; weekends, noon–11pm. Butter Upon Bacon, providing dinner service at RIPH, open weekdays 4pm–9pm, Saturday noon–9pm, and closed Sunday. RIPH: (708) 388–5513, BUB: (773) 369-8466. rockislandpublichouse.com, facebook.com/butteruponbaconbi

VIEWS FROM THE MAJOR TAYLOR TRAIL, ACCESSIBLE FROM THE DAN RYAN WOODS. PHOTOS BY SCOTT SMITH

20 SOUTH SIDE WEEKLY ¬ NOVEMBER 25, 2020

BRIDGEPORT Compiled by Nikki Roberts Neighborhood Captain

ANTHONY NGUYEN

W

hen I solidified my love affair with Chicago and became an official resident in 2016, I was struck by the sense of kinship that permeated the near South Side neighborhood of Bridgeport despite the diversity of its residents. At every local restaurant or corner store, and even while walking down the street, I saw neighbors from different backgrounds greet each other as equals. Strangers who had never seen me around would offer a friendly greeting, and I began taking routine morning walks partly because I always returned home with lifted spirits from those interactions. I appreciated the way Bridgeport could effortlessly make me feel like I belonged to a tight-knit community. But when I moved in, little did I know that the neighborhood has a strong history of community organizing that spans nearly 150 years.

In 1877, railroad workers across the county went on strike, and demonstrations in many major cities turned violent. In Chicago, a particularly brutal clash between striking workers and the U.S Army occurred in Bridgeport when protestors marched north on Halsted Street over the South Branch of the Chicago River. It wasn’t just railroad workers that protested, though—because of the neighborhood’s working class background, many residents and fellow laborers allied themselves with those on strike for better wages and, together, they took to the streets.

Today, bloody labor demonstrations are far from the norm, but that same mutual support still exists in Bridgeport. When businesses were forced to close their doors this spring due to the coronavirus pandemic, I witnessed (socially distanced)

lines of customers on Halsted waiting to pick up curbside orders of Mexican cuisine from Taqueria San Jose (Best Fourth Meal, 2012 BoSS), and a regular stream of patrons purchasing their favorite to-go beverages from Maria’s Packaged Goods (Best Watering Hole, 2011 BoSS; Best Neighborhood Drinks, 2012 BoSS). The new owner of Bridgeport Bakery sold essential household items at wholesale prices to members of the community, and a group of volunteers formed Greater Bridgeport Mutual Aid to provide multiple forms of assistance to residents who were hit hardest by the effects of the pandemic.

A strong sense of neighborhood pride can present itself in different ways. This summer, Bridgeport was gripped with tension when a group of predominantly white men yielding baseball bats, pipes, and other makeshift weapons took to the streets near the eastern border of the neighborhood, allegedly to defend residents in case riots broke out from a nearby Black Lives Matters protest in Bronzeville—reminding some older locals of the youth athletic clubs in the neighborhood that acted as agitators during the 1919 race riots. WBEZ reported that the presence of these men made some residents feel safe, but other concerned residents took to community groups like “Anti Racist Bridgeport” on Facebook, voicing the need for change and unity across the neighborhood. A counter-demonstration was planned for the following weekend before it was canceled by organizers for fear of escalating tension between residents.

Despite its challenges, Bridgeport has a legacy of aiding the underdog.

Local businesses are a cornerstone of the neighborhood, so it’s no NOVEMBER 25, 2020 ¬ SOUTH SIDE WEEKLY 21

BRIDGEPORT surprise that this year’s Best of the South Side issue features two of the greasiest restaurants in the area and the resurgence of a beloved bakery. Also in this issue are two stories about communities—a mutual aid fund and a traveling performance art project—that began in Bridgeport but have since spread throughout the South Side.

(Nikki Roberts) Neighborhood Captain Nikki Roberts is a South Side transplant from the western suburbs.

When she’s not working at Reggies Rock Club, she’s busy interviewing up-and-coming Chicago bands, finding and reporting her next story, or planning her next road trip. Her writing has appeared in local publications including Chicago Reader, Chicago magazine, and South Side Weekly. You can read more of her work at nicolemroberts.contently.com

BEST COMEBACK

Bridgeport Bakery 2.0

Located off the corner of Archer Avenue and Loomis Street, Bridgeport Bakery has been a neighborhood institution for forty-eight years. So when news came that longtime owner Ron Pavelka was closing the bakery, people mourned. And then they mobilized.

Can Lao, a neighborhood resident for twenty years and a Chinese immigrant, decided to step in and buy the bakery from Pavelka. He apprenticed under Pavelka for months, learning how to make pączki and other recipes that made the bakery famous. Having never baked professionally (Lao is a pharmacist by trade), he told me, “Bridgeport Bakery is my pastry school, kind of....I learned from the best.”

Beyond a couple renovations (new flooring and updated lighting), the bakery remains in its original form. The red “Bridgeport Bakery” neon sign greets you at the front. Coffee cakes, cookies, and croissants are still baked fresh every morning. The bakery (now known as “Bridgeport Bakery 2.0”) had a soft opening on January 30 and sold out of bacon buns—a neighborhood favorite—at 6am, according to Block Club Chicago.

Then COVID-19 hit, and the bakery had to partially close for a few months.

Early in the pandemic, Lao worked with the Helen & Joe Acevedo Scholarship Memorial Foundation to distribute takeout lunches to people hit hard by the virus.

TAYLOR MOORE

22 SOUTH SIDE WEEKLY ¬ NOVEMBER 25, 2020

For five months, the bakery was giving out roughly a hundred meals per week and delivering toilet paper, masks, and other supplies when there were shortages. The bakery is no longer distributing food due to the foundation losing some funding, but it donates unsold bread to Pilsen Food Pantry, Community Kitchen, and the local fire department and police station.

Lao has also spent the last several months tinkering with the menu, adding new items, like strawberry muffins, as people ask for them. He started carrying dim sum favorites as well, such as BBQ pork buns, shu mai, and dumplings, and the response has been positive, particularly from Chinese residents of a nearby senior home who ordinarily take a bus to Chinatown for food.

“My customers tell me what to make,” Lao said. “I try to serve the community.”

(Taylor Moore) Bridgeport Bakery 2.0, 2907 S. Archer Ave. Sunday, 5am–3pm; Monday, 5am–noon; Tuesday–Saturday, 5am–4:30pm. (773) 523-1121. bridgeportbakerychicago.com

BEST USE OF EMPTY LOTS

“Open sheds used for what?”

“Open sheds used for what?” chronicles an experiment in the “open construction of space” in Bridgeport, then Pilsen, and now in Garfield Park. The art project was inspired by the meticulous notes of Peru by Julian D. Smith, the colonialist U.S. mine manager in Cerro de Pasco, who once jotted the question “open sheds used for what?” contravening his usual complete sentences while visiting a mine extracting the country’s natural resources, speculating it might be for “arsenic, stored in barrels” in what the artists behind the project describe as “a wonderful moment of ambiguity and disruption.” The concept is that builders construct and eventually dismantle their version of a shed in a vacant lot that’s open to performances, installations, and other use by other artists, such as demonstrations of cladding and bread-making, as well as readings and live concerts. For example, artists Jesus Hilario Reyes and Leah Solomon built an octagonal frame for their performance at the opening of the “Shut Up Stone Mountain” exhibit—which decried the infamous white supremacist monument in Georgia—at the Co-Prosperity Sphere.

ANTHONY NGUYEN

BRIDGEPORT The overall project is the brainchild of recent University of Chicago graduates Marina and Cecília Resende Santos. Marina, a writer and artist who has exhibited in galleries in Chicago, Brazil, and Argentina, and published her writing in places like Newcity and THE SEEN, has often collaborated with Cecília, an architectural historian who served as a curatorial fellow during the 2019 Chicago Architecture Biennial, on projects such as Ato da Corda connecting their houses with string last year.

“Open sheds used for what?” kicked off at an empty at 3439 South Morgan Street in June as protests against police violence filled the streets, triggering more reflection on the meaning of public space across the city. A sequence of construction and destruction by various artists examined the relationship between society, public space, and construction, elevating the makeshift assemblage of the open shed into an emblem of the commons. The phases of Join, Divide, Enclose, and Dismantle invited intervention from local artists as an act of resistance and a reimagining of public space in the city that is often heavily policed and/or exploited for material gain, illustrating how ultimately dismantling the shed opens the space up for the creation of something entirely new and more driven by public input. The highly conceptual art project made its mark on Bridgeport this summer before being dismantled on the Fourth of July and moving on to the El Paseo Community Garden in Pilsen, and then to the backyard of the Franklin Art Gallery in Garfield Park. ( Joseph S. Pete) “Open sheds used for what?” openshedsusedforwhat.com, instagram.com/opensheds_usedforwhat

grocery deliveries to tutoring to direct cash aid.

The organization has donated more than $12,000 in direct aid to neighbors in the form of $200 checks. People can request aid through a form on the website or through the mutual aid Facebook group, and others can fulfill aid requests that appear on a public spreadsheet or make a direct donation to Greater Bridgeport Mutual Aid. The mutual aid network has also fulfilled more than 100 grocery requests, some of which are paid for based on need.

The helpline has fielded more than 500 aid requests since its launch in April, according to Schibrowsky. Beyond groceries and direct aid, Greater Bridgeport Mutual Aid has helped neighbors with specific service requests, like walking Mandarin speakers through household repairs by phone, mowing lawns, funding CTA farecards, and, once, transporting a dozen suitcases from Bridgeport to Chinatown for a senior who was moving and didn’t have a car. Residents can text or leave a voicemail with any questions or requests.

Neighbors in the mutual aid network have also started hosting weekly tutoring sessions. Every Thursday between 5 and 7pm, teachers and daycare workers volunteer to help kids and teens with homework over Zoom. Parents and children looking to receive this help can join the Greater Bridgeport Mutual Aid Facebook group. (Taylor Moore) Greater Bridgeport Mutual Aid. Leave a voicemail or text (312) 818-1393. gbmachicago.org

BEST COMMUNITY RESPONSE

Greater Bridgeport Mutual Aid

With the COVID-19 outbreak in the spring came a historic wave of unemployment and financial insecurity. In March, more than 83,000 Chicagoans applied for the 2,000 housing relief grants available from the city Department of Housing. As social safety nets buckled under the weight of the coronavirus pandemic, neighbors across the country stepped up to help each other through mutual aid networks, born out of the radical idea that communities must provide for each other in the absence of governmental help.

In Chicago, Tenants United approached neighborhood groups across the city to form mutual aid networks that could serve each unique community. Bridgeport organizers reached out to Jianan Shi, executive director of Raise Your Hand for Illinois Public Education, with the idea, and from there, Shi collaborated with Bridgeport Alliance and the 11th Ward Independent Political Organization (IPO), to build the network’s infrastructure—and Greater Bridgeport Mutual Aid was born.

Serving Bridgeport, Canaryville, Armour Square, and Chinatown, the organization describes itself as “people helping people helping people.” One of its goals is to foster a sense of community responsibility for one another, a value that doesn’t always exist in nonprofits that address poverty.

“We don’t want to be a charity,” says Anna Schibrowsky, helpline co-lead of Greater Bridgeport Mutual Aid. To Schibrowsky, an anarchist, mutual aid is a community safety net. “When the government falls through, we know we can’t rely on them, so people need to come through for each other.”

Greater Bridgeport Mutual Aid has received grants from Cornerstone Anglican Church, Molina Healthcare, Chicago United for Equity, a COVID-19 response group called BACC (Bridgeport, Armour Square, Canaryville, and Chinatown), Park Community Church, and other institutions to fund their work, which ranges from

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Honorable Toni Preckwinkle Honorable Toni Preckwinkle President, Cook County President, Cook County Board of Commissioners Board of Commissioners John Yonan, P.E., Superintendent John P.E., Superintendent John Yonan, Yonan, of P.E., Superintendent Department Transportation & Highways Department Department of of Transportation Transportation & & Highways Highways

www.cookcountyil.gov/FAIRTRANSIT www.cookcountyil.gov/FAIRTRANSIT A project delivered by the Cook County A by A project project delivered delivered by the the Cook Cook County County Department Department of of Transportation Transportation & & Highways Highways Department of Transportation & Highways

NOVEMBER 25, 2020 ¬ SOUTH SIDE WEEKLY 23

BRIDGEPORT

BEST COMFORT FOOD IN UNCOMFORTABLE TIMES

Phil’s Pizza

There is nothing like ripping open the grease-soaked paper bags that Phil’s Pizza uses to package its thin-crust pies. For years, I’ve been eating Phil’s tavern-cut pizza—the real Chicago pizza—and it has added flavor to some of my fondest memories while living in Bridgeport. I’ve shared small squares of gooey cheese pizza with coworkers at staff parties or on a break during a busy shift. I’ve stumbled home after a night out and called in my usual order for a small cheese pizza topped with giardiniera before I had even taken my keys out of my bag to unlock the apartment door. Phil’s is my favorite Sunday meal to share with my partner when we don’t want to get off the couch, and it’s an easy compromise when choosing a place to eat with my family members who all have very particular taste buds.

Day-to-day life has been anything but predictable over the last eight months, but Phil’s has brought me a simple kind of reassurance in these turbulent times. When businesses initially shuttered mid-March, the beloved pizza joint only closed its doors for one day before re-opening. After returning home from covering Black Lives Matter protests this summer, I shared a large Phil’s pizza with friends while we decompressed and discussed what we had experienced. When my inner circle began to lose their employment, we gathered around our favorite tavern-cut pizza while we emphasized that we would find a way to support each other.

A few things have changed at Phil’s, though. There is no more in-person dining, face masks and social distancing are required, and only one person per order is allowed at the pickup counter. But while many businesses have refused to accept cash sales, both due to the coin shortage and as a preventative measure to stop the spread of COVID-19, Phil’s has never wavered in being a “cash only” establishment. While a great public health precaution, “touchless payment” establishments can have negative effects for patrons who might have no other choice than to purchase food in cash, such as people experiencing housing insecurity or undocumented workers who face barriers opening bank accounts.

It’s absurd to think pizza could solve any of the problems our city has faced in 2020, but sometimes, closing your eyes and savoring a greasy slice is enough to forget about them for just a moment. (Nikki Roberts) Phil’s Pizza, 1102 W. 35th St. Sunday-Thursday, 4pm–11pm; Friday–Saturday, 4pm– midnight. (773) 523-0947. phils-pizza.business.site

ANTHONY NGUYEN

ASIA BABIUK

SILVESTRO D E S I G N OPERATIONS AN ON

ARCHITECTURE THE SOUTH

FIRM SIDE

24 SOUTH SIDE WEEKLY ¬ NOVEMBER 25, 2020

THANK YOU ESSENTIAL WORKERS + BUSINESSES

BRIGHTON PARK Compiled by Jocelyn Vega Neighborhood Captain JOCELYN VEGA

B

righton Park’s commercial strip, starting at South Brighton Place and South Archer Avenue and continuing southwest down Archer, can easily be overlooked as just another street of unfamiliar businesses you drive by. But if you pull over and step closer, you’ll find a series of unique shops. Once you step inside, you can see the time and effort behind each place.

Brighton Park sits on the shoulder of Chicago’s Southwest Side, a convening of autonomous and cultural economies: blocks of small Latinx and Mexican-owned businesses. Brighton Park is also a shoulder lifting local livelihoods, a neighborhood that is shouldering a pandemic economy. When the city completely shut down earlier this year, shop owners echoed the importance of your time, purchases, and recommendations to the people you know. They shared how online shopping, big box stores, and even regional chains had soaked up customers before they reached their door.

Flower shop owner Baldemar Galindo stressed how a community leader like Martin Luther King Jr. is needed at this moment. For him, the absence of a leader is deeply felt. He explained that Chicago needs someone to defend the autonomy of small shops against the growing trend of one-stop national and regional chains—dead ends in our communities. He explained that over time, big box stores keep providing more: liquor, flowers, cooked food, housing goods, and more, all under one roof. He’s concerned that more people go straight to those establishments and stay there. He

hopes people remember a dollar’s local impact.

The shop owners and street vendors I spoke to on Archer stressed that their businesses aren’t reinvesting profits—simply keeping their doors open is the current stressor. They shared that their businesses represent their entire livelihood, their life, and their pride in generational practices. Many worked in these family-owned stores as children, and many felt that nothing else was meant for them. But in these times, without more business, they fear losing everything.

The shops lined up on Archer represent more than business names—they carry the years of experiences it took for business owners to reach this point in their careers.

Some started their craft as a kid; others started “desde mi tierra” (it started since my land), referring to how they started saving save up for their front door’s opening day.

If you’re willing, I invite you to spark conversations in these shops and listen to shopkeepers’ thoughts and advice. When you visit shops, you can see how shops are actually homes. Shopping local means directly supporting the artisans and curators: families, generations, and community members. It’s hard to not have a conversation when you recognize workers and shop owners as part of the community. ( Jocelyn Vega) Neighborhood Captain Jocelyn Vega is a first-generation Latina and contributing editor to the Weekly NOVEMBER 25, 2020 ¬ SOUTH SIDE WEEKLY 25

BRIGHTON PARK

BEST CORNER WEEKEND TAMAL

Lola & Rafa’s Tamales

Lola & Rafa’s Tamales is a family business all around. Lalo, his wife Aurora, and their son consistently greet people entering and exiting La Palma Supermercado, the corner where they’ve operated for over ten years—but there are plenty of cars pulling over just to visit them. As a team, they’re busy taking orders, and often run out by early afternoon. When I stopped by, they were serving tamales verdes.

Lalo said his family takes pride in running out. He explained that he’s thankful to each customer that trusts their hard work and appreciates their tamales’ flavors. The family explained that Brighton Park’s neighbors are very encouraging. They also shared their gratefulness towards this community that helps them thrive each weekend. Lalo carries over twenty-one years of craftsmanship—and says, “There’s nothing I [would] rather do but sell my tamales.”

I recommend visiting this family early in the weekends. I also suggest tipping—each dollar shows appreciation not only toward their time, but toward the years of experience that go into their craft. Lola & Rafa’s also offers tamales that are dulce (sweet) and vegano (vegan), and champurrado drinks. ( Jocelyn Vega) Lola & Rafa’s Tamales, (773) 633-4666 or (773) 318-1131. Cash only.

JOCELYN VEGA

BEST AFFORDABLE PLANT AND FLOWER SHOP

Eventos Galindo

When visiting, I spoke with shop owner Baldemar Galindo, who is determined to keep his shop open. He shared how the COVID-19 shutdowns forced businesses to dance on a tightrope. He explained that businesses either closed, falling off the tightrope, or found a way to stay open, with the owners fearful that the next step might be their last.

We talked about the struggles of being a single shop against growing monopolies in physical stores and over consumers’ attention. He’s worried generations of craft, knowledge and practice will be crushed by corporate and online shopping. His storefront is the product of years spent working with plants and skills gained growing up. His shop offers a variety of fresh flowers, potted plants, plant decorations, and additional florist services. He explained that he’s doing his best to advertise—but it’s difficult when people like to shop for everything in a single store.

As mentioned in the introduction, he hopes to someday see an economic leader help uplift independent shops. He noted that small businesses, like his, are thankful to existing customers and understand that everyone is struggling to survive right now.

He just wishes people realized how far each dollar goes in these small shops. “Twenty dollars make a difference. Every single dollar has value here. Your purchase makes a difference. It means bills get paid. It means another day our doors are open. We need help.” ( Jocelyn Vega) Eventos Galindo, 4207 S. Sacramento Ave. Monday–Friday, 9am–5pm; Saturday, 9am– 2pm; closed Sunday. (773) 696-9063. eventosgalindofloral.com 26 SOUTH SIDE WEEKLY ¬ NOVEMBER 25, 2020

BEST PANADERIA TO BUY REGIONAL AND TRADITIONAL MEXICAN BREAD

Monterrey Bakery

This early morning-to-evening bakery is a family favorite to visit. Tall, steel carts are routinely pushed out the kitchen door, filled with a variety of pastries and breads.

For under ten dollars, you can feed your household—and have plenty to share with neighbors or friends. The affordability and steady flow of bread makes this panaderia a community staple for so many families. Monterrey also dishes out regional bread styles that are difficult to find elsewhere. My family’s regional favorite is Quesadillas de Atole, which is only sold on Thursdays. On other days, this shop has additional surprises, like Conchas de Canela (cinnamon). As one suggestion, I recommend buying bread to make tortas. Just make sure to go down the block and pick up groceries from the corner Supermercado or carnitas from Paco’s Tacos to complete the experience.

Monterrey Bakery, 4328 S. Archer Ave. (773) 927-9456. Open every day, 5am–9pm.

Cash only.

Compiled by Bridget Vaughn Neighborhood Captain

BEST HIDDEN GEM NAMED AFTER IGUANAS

Taqueria La Iguanita

This taqueria is simple and perfect. I’ve had some of the best tacos de carne asada right here. I’m aware this is a bold statement, but it’s declared with confidence. La Iguanita’s carne asada is my city-wide favorite. This taqueria is also where my sister and I have bonded during the pandemic. We share our life questions and feelings over tacos, passing salsa containers while eating in the car. Shout out to my sister for introducing me to La Iguanita.

I highly recommend visiting with an appetite, because you’re going to want more. After you push their two doors to enter, you’ll walk straight to their no-frills menu. You can’t go wrong with any of their options. Just make sure you ask for their salsa de aguacate (avocado) as one of their specialties.

If you call, I also recommend not being impatient. You’ll need to wait after some rings because they’re a busy shop and worth the quick wait. ¡Provecho! ( Jocelyn Vega) Taqueria La Iguanita, 3733 S. Kedzie Ave. Open every day, 8am–7:30pm. (773) 254-5064.

Cash only.

BEST CORNER BODEGA TO BUY WHOLESALE PRODUCE AND SPICES

La Bodeguita Beto’s Produce

This tucked-away shop is Brighton Park’s official bodega. In the summertime, especially pre-COVID-19, you would have found a bustling shop with a line out the door. But even now, this bodega continues to serve its community, despite the pandemic’s interruption. Beto’s continues to provide the lowest prices possible, because they want to support families and community members. Their handwritten signs and excellent customer service motivate me to return often. Their motto is “¡Ven y Ahorra – Todos Los Días!” (Come and Save – All of the Days!) ( Jocelyn Vega) La Bodeguita Beto’s Produce, 4233 S. Albany Ave. (708) 208-5301 or (630) 457-0636. facebook.com/la-bodeguita-betos-produce-122492602486691

BRONZEVILLE

M

BRIDGET VAUGHN

y parents were born in the South and were part of the Great Migration to the North.

My father was born October 8, 1919 in Mississippi. He was the youngest of three children. When my grandmother was birthing dad, she experienced complications. My father’s difficult birth took a toll on my grandmother.

She likely went untreated and in lots of pain. She died when my father was two years old. Without a stable caregiver, my grandfather packed up and moved his family to Chicago, seeking a better life in what we now call Bronzeville.

My mother was born in Louisiana on September 11, 1921. My grandfather died of complications of a non-medically treated appendicitis. His family treated him with heat packs instead of ice packs. By the time my grandpa reached a hospital that accepted Negro patients, it was too late. He died shortly after his arrival at the hospital.

My mother was nine years old when my grandmother made the decision to migrate north to Chicago, to seek a better life for her kids. Once in Chicago, my grandmother and her four children moved in with family, in what’s now Bronzeville.

As Black Southerners faced the Ku Klux Klan, racism, lynching, and lack of job opportunities in the South, Chicago became one of the largest Northern cities for Black migration. Between 1910 and 1970, over six million people migrated from the South to the North. Being a lifelong Chicagoan, I can attest that my city is still one of the most segregated in the country.

The Chicago Defender played a pivotal role in encouraging Black Southerners to migrate to cities in the North and the West. Between 1910 and 1920 alone, the percentages of Black people moving to the major Northern cities—mostly for industrial work—dramatically increased. In this ten-year migration span, New York saw an increase in the Black population of sixty-six percent, Chicago 148 percent, Philadelphia 500 percent, and in Detroit, 611 percent.

NOVEMBER 25, 2020 ¬ SOUTH SIDE WEEKLY 27

BRONZEVILLE Richard Wright’s “The One-Room Kitchenette” expresses the exuberance of leaving the South to the true reality of living on Chicago’s South Side as a colored person. I wish I could have delved deeper into my grandparents’ lives in the South.

I end with sharing parts of Mr. Wright’s “The One-Room Kitchenette” and contemplate being in his shoes, his family’s shoes, your shoes. Wright’s prose is truthful, powerful, and was and still is the reality for so many people today: “Our time has come! We are leaving! We are angry no more; we are leaving! We are leaving homes, pulling up stakes to move on.

“We see white men and women get on the train, dressed in expensive new clothes.

We look at them guardedly and wonder will they bother us. Will they ask us to stand up while they sit down? Will they tell us to go to the back of the coach?

“We pay the conductor our fare and look apprehensively for a seat. We were told that we can sit where we please, but we are still scared. We cannot shake off the three hundred years of fear in three hours.

“What they do is this: they take, say, a seven-room apartment, which rents for $50 a month to whites, and cut it up into seven small apartments, of one room each; they install one small gas stove and one small sink in each room. The Bosses of the Buildings rent these kitchenettes to us at the rate of, say $6 a week. Hence, the same apartment for which white people-who can get jobs anywhere and who receive higher wages than we-pay $50 a month is rented to us for $42 a week!

“The kitchenette is the funnel through which our pulverized lives flow to ruin and death on the city pavements, at a profit.” (Bridget Vaughn) Neighborhood Captain Bridget Vaughn is a contributor to the Weekly and a senior engagement officer with the Illinois Institute of Technology.

BRIDGET VAUGHN

28 SOUTH SIDE WEEKLY ¬ NOVEMBER 25, 2020

BEST GOOD NEWS

The Future National Museum of Gospel Music

“I think it’s my God-given challenge, to try and get this building back,” said Cynthia Jones, chairwoman of Pilgrim Baptist Church.

Jones could relay a lifetime of memories from the church’s pews. It was “a megachurch before megachurches became prominent,” she said. “If you didn’t get there by 10 o’clock, you didn’t get a seat.”

What everyone remembers, however, are the names. Legends like Mahalia Jackson sang there regularly throughout the twentieth century. Bessie Coleman was part of the congregation. On one occasion, Martin Luther King Jr. preached from the pulpit. And above all, Pilgrim Baptist was home to music director Thomas A. Dorsey, the immortal “Godfather of Gospel.”

As the years passed, Pilgrim faced trying times. By the turn of the century, attendance was in steep decline. In 2006, a fire burned everything, save the walls, to the ground.

But Pilgrim—named Best Once and Future Church in 2015 BoSS—is hallowed ground: no ordinary church, with no ordinary history. When Jones, who’s been working to restore it since 2001, said “it seems like I have been pregnant with this building for nineteen years,” she was only half joking. So in 2017, when Don Jackson, of the DuSable Museum and Stellar Gospel Awards, suggested a National Museum of Gospel Music to Jones, she joined in. The rest is history in the making.

“Not many museums get the opportunity to be on the ground where the history was made,” said Antoinette Wright, president and executive director of the museum.

She’s drawn upon decades of friendships, connections, and personal histories to tell a story that spans centuries: recent collaborators include Robert Marovich of the Journal of Gospel Music website; Sasha Daltonn, the founder of the Chicago Gospel Festival; and Reverend Stanley Keebles, an elder statesman of gospel history.

Wright has worked closely with the families of Pilgrim’s gospel pioneers, preserving histories that might have otherwise vanished. She spoke with her mother about growing up with the Barrett Sisters, and received an archive of Roberta Martin’s materials from one of Martin’s children. Thomas Dorsey III has contributed his grandfather’s memoir, which was found in an attic some years back.

Above all, Wright treasures the stories that need to be told for the first time. “I think it’s important that we capture as much of those living legends as possible—I have an affinity toward first-person voices, because those are the items that close the gaps, the missing items of history,” she said.

Wright hopes that the museum can convey not just the depth of gospel’s roots in the Black tradition, but the complexity of its history. She takes an interest in the reinterpretations and translations of standards like “Amazing Grace”: a hymn penned by an English clergyman involved with the Atlantic slave trade; a hymn that became a definitive Black spiritual. And Pilgrim National Baptist was originally built as a synagogue, after all.

“I want to make sure that everybody understands this is not an African-American story, it’s a peoples’ story. There’s Asian gospel choirs, there’s the Soweto gospel choir.

The music is a part of every culture, and it’s comfortably accepted not as Black music, but as the people’s music,” Wright said. Jones, too, sees an international audience for the National Museum of Gospel Music: “Every year, people come to the ruins—people from China, from Pakistan, from [other parts of ] Asia—people that just want to touch the walls, just be there and be part of it.”

There’s still a ways to go before that museum is open, especially after the 2020 derecho knocked down one of the surviving walls in August. But for Wright, the National Museum of Gospel Music will be a museum without walls. As Bronzeville

BRONZEVILLE and Chicago have rallied around the cause in recent years, it’s become possible to see that museum taking shape. In 2018 and 2019, the organization held concerts at nearby Apostolic Faith Church, which were open to the public and filled to capacity. (“That’s what we wanted the music to be, you know, to be free and flowing,” Wright said.) In 2019, pastors and gospel singers from across Chicago came together to bless the site.

“You’ll find a philanthropist that will give you a million dollars, a half-million dollars—but it takes the community’s everyday support for sustainability, for any museum or community building like that. And we have that here. People in Chicago are waiting anxiously to see this building, to be part of it,” Jones said.

And even in uncertain times, they’re set on this path.

“What I’d like to say is that I’d like to be around to see that building,” said Jones. “I’ve been working on it for nineteen years, from restoration to rebuilding.

And I’m looking forward to walking into that museum, just smiling and seeing the completion of it.” (Christopher Good) Pilgrim Baptist Church and future National Museum of Gospel Music, 3301 S. Indiana Ave. nationalmuseumofgospelmusic.org

BEST NEW CAKERY

Eméché Cakery and Café

After selling her baked goods in New York, Janelle Richmond moved to Chicago and began selling her alcohol-infused cupcakes at the southwest suburban Chicago Ridge Mall. In the fall of 2019, Eméché (French for “tipsy”) relocated to an adorable spot in Bronzeville. The staff are friendly and helpful and the atmosphere is welcoming and comfortable. The décor makes you want to stick around to read a book or work while you eat and drink—which in non-COVID times you’d be welcome to do. Since moving into the new location, the café has expanded its offerings to include more alcohol-infused desserts and a simple and tasty lunch menu. (Bridget Vaughn) Eméché Cakery and Café, 3453 S. Prairie Ave. Monday–Saturday, 8am–5pm; closed S unday. (312) 265-1249. emechecakeryandcafe.com

BEST HISTORICAL CHESSBOARD

Architecture of the Illinois Institute of Technology

Wandering around the campus of the Illinois Institute of Technology (IIT), it can feel a little like walking a chessboard, albeit one populated by black and beige buildings positioned in some inscrutable pattern. The original master plan, designed by Ludwig Mies van der Rohe is, in fact, a twenty-four-square-foot grid, and looks more systematic at a God’s-eye angle than from the perspective of a pawn straying illicitly off the sidewalk.

S.R. Crown Hall, which houses the College of Architecture, is the most famous of the Mies buildings. Generally described as airy and slight, its slim black frame is in fact wonderfully menacing: the two central girders, symmetrically receding from view over a set of marble steps, look like a pair of furrowed eyebrows. There’s no need to wonder what kind of academic terror the architecture students inside are being subjected to,

BRIDGET VAUGHN

thankfully, since the large glass windows let anyone see right through and the girders support a suspended roof, leaving the interior devoid of columns (though there are usually some dividers).

Chicago architect Stanley Tigerman, who died last year, wrote in 1986 that the “central constituent feature” of Mies’ work was “measurement.” I couldn’t tell you exactly what he means, but it rings true—the windows and panels of Crown Hall are sliced into subdivisions by the frame, until the exterior is all smaller squares and rectangles you can pull apart and stack up again, or doodle your way into with a ruler and some graph paper.

Tigerman also poked fun at Crown Hall, or the reverence others had for it and the rest of Mies’ portfolio, when he made “The Titanic,” his 1978 photo collage showing the building sinking into Lake Michigan at a steep angle.

While Crown Hall capsizes into the water at the Art Institute, where Tigerman’s piece is housed, the soil where it actually stands has come up to meet it. A few years ago, during a routine bit of maintenance work, IIT uncovered some artifacts from the Mecca Flats, an apartment building that was once home to Gwendolyn Brooks and other residents of Bronzeville, the spiritual center of the city’s growing Black Belt.

In the early twentieth century, the administration at IIT tried moving the school out of the neighborhood, anxious about the influx of Black immigrants from the South into the area. When that failed, the school instead engaged in a project of slum clearance, buying up apartments and demolishing them. After purchasing the Mecca, the university practiced its own kind of measurement, partitioning and subdividing apartments, neglecting them until residents wanted to leave.

When that failed to get rid of everyone, IIT began to evict tenants. After a drawn-out court battle, it succeeded in 1950; Mies began designing Crown Hall that year, and finished it in 1956. Two years after the discovery of the artifacts, there’s still no visible commemoration of the Mecca’s residents, or any of the other people or buildings displaced by IIT, on campus. (Christian Belanger) Core campus of the Illinois Institute of Technology, bounded by W. 31st St., S. State St., W. 35th St., and S. La Salle St. NOVEMBER 25, 2020 ¬ SOUTH SIDE WEEKLY 29

CHATHAM

Compiled by AV Benford, Neighborhood Captain

WILLIAM BENFORD AT TRACK'S END. PHOTO BY AV BENFORD

T

he bones of the dream of Black economic sovereignty still mark the corridors of Chatham. Lining 87th, 79th, and 75th Streets going from east to west, and State Street, King Drive, and Cottage Grove Ave heading from north to south, are buildings whose whitewashed terra cotta majesty and sheer size indicate that once they served the higher capitalistic purposes of industry or banking. Chatham was once the center of major Black-owned commercial industry in Chicago, housing the headquarters of Johnson Products Company (Ultra Sheen Hair Products)—but just as if not more importantly, Chatham was a cornerstone of Black banking in the United States. Seaway National Bank of Chicago, Independence Bank of Chicago, and a branch of the Illinois Service Federal Savings and Loan Association all once called the area home. Independence Bank of Chicago, which was founded in Chatham, in part by Johnson, was one of the nation's largest Black-owned banks until 1995 when 30 SOUTH SIDE WEEKLY ¬ NOVEMBER 25, 2020

another corporation acquired it. Revitalization of the commercial districts along 75th and 79th Streets have brought new lifeblood and energy into the area in recent years, but 87th street—whose banks built modern Black Chicago—remains stuck in a dimly lit late nineties bubble of crumbling parking lots, reckless speeding, fried food, and trash. When George Floyd was killed earlier this summer the outpouring of pent-up rage brought the heaviest rioting the area had ever seen. Cracks in the social contract became violent fractures and after the looting and the burning, I questioned whether the area would ever be commercially viable again. But there are bright spots in the midst of it all. This is a salute to the light. (AV Benford) Neighborhood Captain AV Benford is a staff writer for the Weekly

CHATHAM

BEST FISH (NOT FRIED)

Fisherman's Island

Hungry in Chatham and you don’t want your food fried? Your options are limited.

Subways are plentiful in the neighborhood and now offer a great chopped salad option if you don’t want a sub. You could try a steamed “veggie delight” from one of the Chinese food joints. The Wrap Bar, named Best New Wraps in 2018 BoSS, also has plenty of options. But if you want seafood in one of the homes of fried fish, you have to search a bit.

Fisherman’s Island is a small chain of seafood markets on the Far South Side.

There you can order your platter of fresh fish and have it cooked for you on the spot for an additional one dollar fee. The crab legs here are the cheapest competently prepared crab legs that I have found in the city. They slather your seafood in your choice of seasoning like cajun or jerk and drench it in a butter-like substance called Whirl. Your meal comes in a metal catering pan that demands a newspaper spread and the cracking of shells with bare hands. Platters come with sides of red potatoes, broccoli, and corn in true crab boil style. And, get this, they take EBT (but not for phone orders, and the dollar prep fee has to be paid in cash). The line here gets longer the later in the day you go and can wrap around the building. But order, then grab a drink across the parking lot at Red Pepper. Call ahead—you might still end up in line, but it will save you some time. (AV Benford) Fisherman’s Island, 432 E. 87th St. Sunday–Thursday, 10am–9pm; Friday–Saturday, 10am–10:30pm. (773) 873-7777

BEST HUNGRY MAN BREAKFAST

Track's End

Located on South Holland Road—one of those side streets that seem to pop out of nowhere, run for a few blocks, and terminate in a daydream—Track’s End is one of Chatham’s three remaining options for a proper sitdown breakfast. The kind where I can yell at WGN playing on the TV, with the paper spread in front of me, holding a cup of coffee, and debating my wife or my uncle. The restaurant, nestled between a Walmart loading dock and an Aldi, shares a building with Motel Sleepers Inc., an inn that while open to the public, mainly provides lodging options for the freight railroad workers and support staff of the Union Pacific, CRX, and Santa Fe railroads. These railroad tracks frame the neighborhood and the whistle of their trains are a distinctive feature of the audio landscape of the area. They also give this dinner its name: Track’s End. One of a few restaurants with the name scattered across the country, Track’s End and its hungry man offerings are railroad-themed. Platters have names like the Steam Engine (two eggs any style with biscuits and sausage gravy) and the Railroader (a massive four-egg omelet prepared with hashbrowns, onions, green peppers, ham, bacon, mushrooms, and your choice of two cheeses.)

Because of COVID-19, the restaurant is carry-out only these days, but on warmer days there’s a bench out front you can sit on while you ponder life and grab a bite. (AV Benford)

FISHERMAN'S ISLAND. PHOTO BY AV BENFORD

Track’s End, 8544 S. Holland Rd. Open daily, 6am–10pm. (773) 729-3300

NOVEMBER 25, 2020 ¬ SOUTH SIDE WEEKLY 31

CHATHAM

BEST RE-EDUCATION

Red Pepper Lounge

My mother bought our townhouse on Calumet in 1986. We had been living in a condo in Hyde Park, but with a growing daughter, my mother wanted more space.

The Chatham of her youth in the sixties had been idyllic, the model of Black middle-class homeownership. So when it came time for her to purchase, Chatham was a natural choice; having grown up in the adjacent area of Greater Grand Crossing and integrating Chicago Vocational High School in the sixties, she was extremely familiar with the area.

I first came to know Red Pepper’s Masquerade Lounge because of my love for BBQ. In the eighties and nineties, Red Pepper shared a parking lot with a truck stopturned-restaurant called The Rib Joint. They had a rib tip lunch special that if I saved up or begged I could afford to get maybe once a week. At the time, Red Pepper had a huge yellow mural painted on their sidewall that, with a sax man painted in silhouette, advertised “Live Jazz.” The place held a certain majesty. Any time of day I passed the place, folks seemed to be in good spirits. I had one of my first legal drinks at Red Pepper.

When I returned to Chicago in 2018 after living in New York for over a decade, Red Pepper became my sounding board. The same locals who were drinking at this favorite community bar when I left for good in 2006 were still watching the game and debating politics when I returned. I am the only person in my house who religiously watches football and so when I want company in bemoaning the Bears, there is always a lively, welcoming, shit-talking crowd of service and city workers here for me to commune with.

I have never been served by a man at this bar, or a woman under thirty-five, which gives the place the hard-nosed feminine comfort of a southern speakeasy at times where everyone is Auntie or Cousin. This is not a young person’s bar, but a bar for younger folks to learn what bars are for. If I want to drag my alderman out loud for the amount of drag racing and trash littering the 87th Street commercial district, one of his friends and supporters is likely to be there for a hearty exchange. If I am looking for advice on taxes or home repair, one of the barflies can either provide the information or direct me to someone who can. And when I am looking to learn about how the area once was, when the streets were lined with the best of shops, and when this very bar wouldn’t seat Black folks, one of the old heads day drinking a two-dollar Coors can remind me of how, before the Dan Ryan came, the area was the Black Gold Coast.

Red Pepper has a party room, a traditional bar that stocks fruity varieties of brown liquor like Peach Crown Royal, and a bar menu that seriously rivals downtown watering holes. I recommend the Grilled Shrimp—ten for sixteen dollars. (AV Benford) RED PEPPER LOUNGE. PHOTO BY AV BENFORD

32 SOUTH SIDE WEEKLY ¬ NOVEMBER 25, 2020

Red Pepper Lounge, 428 E. 87th St. (773) 873-5700

Compiled by Alex Arriaga and Eli Hoenig Neighborhood Captains

CHICAGO LAWN & WEST LAWN ALEX ARRIAGA

I

spent the first ten years of my childhood living across 71st Street from Marquette Park. During these years I got to know Chicago by the sounds of airplanes flying low over Midway, and by trips to the Dominick’s on Pulaski.

Marquette Park is also where I learned to ride a bike. My first bike was painted a metallic purple with mermaid cartoons, decorated with streamers on the handlebars, and outfitted with training wheels. Stubbornly, the training wheels refused to stay on the bike. When they fell off, I fell down with them. They were so stubborn I eventually chose to just remove them, and find my own balance.

The 60629 ZIP Code has been a COVID-19 hotspot throughout the duration of the pandemic. The primarily working-class Latinx community is comprised of many of the city’s essential workers, most of whom haven’t had the luxury to work from home, and still lack access to efficient testing. Months into the pandemic, this lack of resources in a heavily impacted community is nothing short of unjust and negligent.

On a recent visit to the neighborhood, I listened to the frustration of a woman whose husband tested positive even though he only went to and from his job as a mechanic. I saw parents coming back from work to pick up their kids from daycare late into the evening. At a COVID testing site, community members were met with long lines.

But at Marquette Park, with the safety of open space and room to run, I saw kids screaming and playing tag. I saw families at the lagoon admiring the geese who had yet to migrate south. As I admired the trees, all the willows and the yellows and oranges, couples and groups of teenagers strolled past.

This neighborhood has so much to carry. The virus is out of control, and workers have not stopped—they can’t stop. At Marquette Park, the weight is lessened just for a bit as community members look for balance during this heavy time. (Alex Arriaga) West Lawn Neighborhood Captain Alex Arriaga is a journalist currently completing a residency with City Bureau. Her reporting focuses on how immigrant communities in Chicago build power and participate in democracy. She grew up in West Lawn, moved around a lot, and now lives in Pilsen.

Chicago Lawn Neighborhood Captain Eli Hoenig is a graduate student at the University of Chicago studying materials science. He’s trying to figure out what happens to densely packed ions at electrically charged surfaces. He’s lived in Hyde Park for several years and likes community and co-ops and riding his bike to out-of-the-way places.

NOVEMBER 25, 2020 ¬ SOUTH SIDE WEEKLY 33

CHICAGO LAWN & WEST LAWN

BEST COMMUNITY CERAMICS STUDIO

IMAN Beloved Community Ceramic Studio

I wasn’t looking for a ceramics studio when I entered the Inner-City Muslim Action Network (IMAN) community center, an inconspicuous building on West 63rd Street, Chicago Lawn’s main commercial strip. Instead, I was interested in its community health clinic, which the organization has transformed into a local COVID-19 testing center, and their food distribution efforts, which have been active since the onset of the pandemic. After a chance encounter with Ariya Siddiqui, the artist in charge of the studio, I soon found myself holding a flyer advertising a new series of ceramics classes, as she led me through newly renovated spaces to the studio in the back.

There’s an abrupt transition from the freshly painted plaster walls of the IMAN gathering spaces to the exposed brick and cement of the studio. The ceramics studio smells earthy, and feels clean and organized. It’s a spacious room, filled with several large tables and built-in shelving that holds finished sculptures, glazes, and tools. The kiln, where sculptures can be fired on-site, sits in a small alcove off the main workspace.

The walls of the studio are lined with pictures from the 1966 Chicago Freedom Movement march led by Martin Luther King that ended in Marquette Park. (The pictures were taken and donated to IMAN by photographer Bernard Kleina.) The march is infamous for the violent reactions of the police and many residents from the Chicago Lawn community. MLK himself was hit in the head by a rock thrown by a counter-protestor. (A living memorial to that march was erected in the park in 2016, and named Best Reminder in 2016 BoSS; the site where it was constructed was converted to become the ceramics studio.) These images point at the studio’s mission that extends beyond ceramic arts. The program offers a space for, and is integrated with, classes covering topics such as spirituality, civil rights, and local history. The ceramics studio is part of IMAN’s larger mission to “foster health, ELI HOENING

wellness, and healing” in Chicago through social organizing, holistic health clinics, and art.

A series of two classes offered this fall, for example, covered the economic effects of segregation in Chicago; while learning, the potters crafted their own miniature ceramic banks. These classes were forty dollars per sequence, but the instructor assured me that anyone from the surrounding neighborhoods can join free of charge in exchange for some volunteer hours. The ceramics studio also hosts open studios, where people can simply work on their projects. (Eli Hoenig) IMAN Beloved Community Ceramics Studio, 2747 W. 63rd St. imancentral.org/chicago/arts-culture/beloved-community-ceramic-studio

BEST NEW HOBBY FOR FAMILIES WHO ROCK

West Lawn Rocks!

Take a closer look at the rocks in West Lawn. They’re not like normal rocks.

In West Lawn, the rocks are watermelons, they’re lucha libre fighters, they’re pencils, and they’re Patrick Star from SpongeBob. Eddie Guillen launched the neighborhood rock painting group West Lawn Rocks only four months ago in order to help families cope with the pandemic. Since its inception, the group has grown to 400 members.

Community members on the online group shared their positive reviews of the initiative.

“Starting this activity throughout the neighborhood has allowed us to build connections between families despite this pandemic. It definitely allowed us to keep our sense of community,” said West Lawn resident Vanessa Carlin. “I was able to teach my senior parents how to paint and they were able to share this experience with younger members of the family.”

The group was created as a community-building effort meant to spark creativity in the neighborhood. The group encourages painters to hide their painted rocks and for group members to stay on the lookout for the hidden art pieces.

“The goal is to get lots of people all across our communities painting so that there are lots of rocks to be found out there, as well as get people outside and looking at the beautiful world around them,” says the introduction to the page on Facebook.

With everything that the neighborhood has gone through in 2020, it’s one way that the community can share creativity and joy. (Alex Arriaga) West Lawn Rocks! facebook.com/groups/286027296052959

BEST NO-FRILLS PIZZA PARLOR

Papa T’s

Papa T’s is a classic Italian restaurant serving distinctly American-style pizza: the cheese layer is slightly thicker than the crust it’s served on (which is not particularly thin), and the mushrooms and onions, although certainly present, are barely seen within the folds of the mozzarella. It’s the type of pizza that satisfies my most basic food desires: for fat and salt, for cheese and bread, for large quantities that I can eat quickly and immediately satisfy my hunger. It’s the type of pizza that is immeasurably better while hot and fresh and that, if left cold, would unpleasantly solidify. Thankfully, despite the large quantity it’s served in, the appeal of the pizza is great enough to 34 SOUTH SIDE WEEKLY ¬ NOVEMBER 25, 2020

CHICAGO LAWN & WEST LAWN

preclude that possibility.

The pizza is good, but truthfully, that’s not how the restaurant stood out to me.

Their pizza is too similar in style to that of Little Caesars (a location of which is a few storefronts down) to be worth writing about for its own sake. Papa T’s has, according to the employee who took my order from behind a permanent plexiglass window, been around for thirty years and during that time has consistently provided its food and labor to the local community. It’s helped at block parties and has been a consistent spot for locals to hang around in and watch the small TV perched in the corner of the dining area. During the COVID-19 pandemic, they distributed pizzas to schools and hospitals.

As a result of the permanent plexiglass barrier separating customer from employee, and the restaurant’s overall spaciousness, Papa T’s has operated for the entirety of the pandemic, but its business has still suffered. Employees have been forced to cut hours to prevent others from being laid off entirely. Even with these measures, Papa T’s hasn’t been able to support its entire workforce. The restaurant itself was empty when I ordered my food, instilling a sense of disquiet while offering relief from the stress of crowded indoor spaces. (Eli Hoenig)

ALEX ARRIAGA

Papa T’s. 2843 W. 63rd St. Monday–Thursday, 11am–11pm; Friday–Saturday, 11am–midnight. (773) 436-2100. papatspizza.com

BEST INTERSECTION FOR LOVE

59th & Keeler

At 59th and Keeler, you’ll find love.

This intersection is where Love Fridge Chicago installed the #11 Love Fridge so that families can come daily and take what they need, or donate what they can. This show of community love in the form of mutual aid has been an essential cushion for Chicagoans in neighborhoods all across the city getting through the pandemic.

To draw people to the love fridge to take needed items or drop off donations, local artist Milt Coronado created a mural that honors the identity of West Lawn: the words “West Lawn” are featured prominently and between the words, two wings which read “Midway.”

This was the first mural that went up as part of the West Lawn Mural Project, an initiative to bring more public art to West Lawn, to represent unity and generosity in the community, with the design on T-shirts sold to raise money for local businesses.

“It is a very blue-collar community, highly impacted by COVID because they are essential workers, they have bills, they have families,” Coronado said. “I think that with the murals, it shows a sign of strength. It’s close to home, and it gave me great honor and humility to be able to contribute my talents this way to the community.”

(Alex Arriaga) Love Fridge #11: El Refri de la Vida, 4215 W. 59th St. Weekdays, 7am–2pm and 5pm–8pm; Saturday, 8am–noon; Sunday, 9am–noon. thelovefridge.com

BEST TACOS AND BEST TRUCK

La Chaparrita’s McQueen Taco Truck

On the corner of 59th and Kedzie, amongst the traffic and people walking, you can smell the tacos from La Chaparrita’s red truck named McQueen, named after Lightning McQueen, hero of Pixar’s Cars series. It has become a staple in Chicago Lawn in the two years it has been there.

During the pandemic, many have depended on this truck as a way to get some quick and delicious tacos. During the summer, it made a patio available, making it one of the only patios open to the Chicago Lawn community. It attracted many people from the community and those passing by the usually bustling intersection of 59th and Kedzie.

Yet McQueen is just a chapter in the history of La Chaparrita, which goes back to matriarch Doña Emma, who, after immigrating to the U.S. from Mexico, created a legacy with her family selling tacos that have become a South Side staple.

The original La Chaparrita is on the corner of 25th and Whipple in Little Village.

Ulises Sanchez, Doña Emma’s son-in-law, emphasized in an interview that nothing would have been possible without her. Now he and his wife run the taco truck together.

Part of that vision was expanding their reach, which they ended up doing in Chicago Lawn.

The pandemic has hit Chicago Lawn hard. However, for the workers of McQueen, accessibility and its delicious tacos has helped them keep their jobs.

Sanchez said this is important because “They need to bring home la papa”—the bread, the money—to feed their families.

McQueen shows resilience in the face of chaos. It brings joy to Chicago Lawn in the form of tacos. Perhaps most importantly in a year like 2020, it is something familiar that brings comfort. (Carolina Gallo) La Chaparrita #2’s McQueen Taco Truck, corner of W. 59th St. and S. Kedzie Ave. Monday, 6:30pm–11pm; Tuesday–Sunday, noon–5pm and 6:30pm–11pm. (773) 940-1306, facebook.com/lachaparrita2restaurant NOVEMBER 25, 2020 ¬ SOUTH SIDE WEEKLY 35

I kind of built the same foundation with my family and my children. We began to come through Chinatown—I go there for the parade, and just to be a part of where we live, because we always wanted to know our neighbors. That's what I feel about Chinatown, I feel that it's a place that you can get to know people, people who will connect you with different people. Just to be able to walk from your building, walk right into a place where you feel like you're in China, but you're really still in Chicago—the attractions for me as a little girl was out of sight, so I knew that I wanted to introduce it to my family.

When I was pregnant with my youngest daughter, I came to Haines school to volunteer. I was able to connect with the principal and assistant principal, which gave me a position which I still hold today. I've been here seventeen years plus, so I'm so proud of that. It was always my dream as a little girl to be either a teacher or a daycare provider, so working at Chicago Public Schools has been a great opportunity for me to start that later on in life when I am blessed with a home that I can do so.

My best part of Chinatown is Haines school, and also marching with Haines school through Chinatown during the parade. I love it, that's my favorite.

It has been a little sad. Walking there now, it kind of just looks like we are just at a standstill right now. I never saw Chinatown as not busy as it is now. It kind of makes you feel, “Oh wow, will we ever get back to our old selves?”

We love to go up there and get coffee, and I always see all the seniors there sitting down, eating their breakfast. You kind of miss those things. You see the parents there and the kids, and they're like, “Hey, Ms. Jones!” So yeah, that's kind of been missed.

At this point, in this time, you need some uplifting. With Chinatown, we live in a community where you kind of want to get involved. You don't know what you're getting involved in unless you get in there. Like my grandma used to always say, you will never know until you just step out on faith and go for it. (As told to Tammy Xu) Neighborhood Captain Tammy Xu is a contributing editor and fact-checking director for the Weekly. She lives in South Loop with her husband and plants and writes about software development for Built In.

CHINATOWN

BEST CROSS-TOWN UNITY MARCH

Compiled by Tammy Xu Neighborhood Captain

Asian American Christians for Black Lives and Dignity March SARAH JOYCE

Anita Gist-Jones’s family has called Archer Court home for three generations. She served on the Local School Council and sat on the board that successfully fought for a new Chinatown library. Anita was honored in People Matter’s “Black Heroes in Chinatown” celebration in January for her work as a parent volunteer, bus monitor, and lunchroom supervisor at Haines Elementary School, where students are currently doing remote learning.

M

y mom, she brought me and my brothers up here, in Archer Court. As kids, we loved to go to all the festivities they had going on in Chinatown. We just loved Chinatown—just walking through, looking at the different gift shops, being able to purchase the little toys and little snacks.

It’s a place that you wouldn't want to leave. So as we got older, my mom moved, and I was able to still hold the unit at Archer Court, so that was great. Then of course I began to have my family. I have two girls and a boy, they all attended Haines school here in Chinatown, myself too a graduate from Chinatown.

36 SOUTH SIDE WEEKLY ¬ NOVEMBER 25, 2020

On June 28, 2020, marchers gathered in Ping Tom Park for the Asian American Christians for Black Lives and Dignity march. Raymond Chang, president of the Asian American Christian Collaborative and campus minister at Wheaton College in the western suburbs, initially approached Chinese Christian Union Church (CCUC) and Bronzeville’s Progressive Baptist Church with the idea to hold a prayer march as a response to the killing of George Floyd. In each of their hundred-plus year histories, CCUC and Progressive Baptist had never collaborated, but Chang wanted the march to show that the divide between the Asian and Black communities could be bridged.

Chris Javier, a deacon and youth counselor at CCUC, said, “The heart of this was that Asian Americans were not going to be silent anymore, that we were going to be more supportive….We wanted to demonstrate that support to the Black community.”

News of the upcoming march generated a mixed reaction in the Chinatown community. Many people were excited, but within the CCUC congregation, Javier said, “People were asking, ‘Do we hate the police now? Is this what we’re saying now?’ ” And in the greater Chinatown community, people brought up Huayi Bian and Weizhong Xiong, who were killed in Chinatown in February by a young Black assa-

CHINATOWN

SARAH LAM

iant during an attempted robbery—an incident that had angered many people in the community. Javier continued to hear the questions: “Where was the church when the two were murdered? Do you love Black people more than your own people?”

The organizers of the march carefully planned the procession in acknowledgment of the community’s range of responses. The prayer march consisted of four prayer stations to pause, reflect, and pray together: the march started at Ping Tom Park, continued to the Wells and Cullerton parking lot near the site of where the two men in Chinatown were killed, then to CCUC and the Progressive Baptist Church.

Around one thousand marchers and over one hundred congregations united the day of the march. The prayer march at Ping Tom Park started with a prayer, a speech from Chang on the problem of the insufficient progress around racial justice, and ended with an eight-minute and forty-six second kneeling in remembrance of George Floyd. Silently, marchers walked to the Wells and Cullerton parking lot.

Grace Chan McKibben, executive director of the Coalition for a Better Chinese American Community (CBCAC), a non-partisan, non-religious nonprofit that focuses on civic engagement and community mobilization, led a prayer at the parking lot with Ally Henny from The Witness: A Black Christian Collaborative.

Then the march traveled down Wentworth Avenue towards Chinese Christian Union Church. As the marchers chanted “No justice, no peace” through the Chinatown Gate, there were mixed responses from onlookers.

Javier noted, “There were three experiences happening here. Some were terrified by the march. Some saw it as a chance to voice their support—I’m looking at teenagers, young kids, people from all walks of life chanting together. And it was a day that others felt supported.”

Jamal Johnson, an associate pastor from Progressive Baptist Church, spoke at the CCUC station. He felt frustrated by being “yet again in this position of having to grieve more Black lives,” but felt the march was a positive experience.

“The event was an opportunity to call into accountability in the church,” Johnson said. “So many times when these things occur, as a Black man, as a Black preacher of the gospel, it can seem as if we’re in this alone, and it didn’t feel that way that day.”

At Progressive Baptist Church, the final station, marchers heard from Pastors Charlie Dates of Progressive Baptist Church and Watson Jones III of Compassion Baptist Church.

Reflecting on Chicago’s history of redlining and segregation, Chang said, “We wanted to say no more to these artificial divides. This is the first step of many, which we hope will continue to bridge our communities.”

Johnson continues to feel optimistic about the unity between the communities. “I believe there is still a lot of work to do, as far as achieving the goal of racial reconciliation in the church,” said Johnson. “To see other believers of other ethnicities, backgrounds, and cultures lock arms with African American Christians to march symbolically in unity—not in the name of politics or culture, but in the name of our Lord Savior, Jesus Christ—that’s where my optimism comes from.”

“We need to be in community [together], to go outside our community to build bridges, so we can go learn,” Javier said. “It was powerful.”

Chang, Chan McKibben, Javier, and Johnson all agreed that building relationships is key in continuing the conversation. Javier is in the process of connecting with The Chicago Partnership, a group dedicated to building relationships between churches in Chicago’s deeply segregated city.

CBCAC is organizing and facilitating anti-racism workshops geared to first-generation Chinese American adults, which cover topics such as the differences between prejudice and structural racism, the historical discrimination of Asian Americans and other races, and how to build solidarity. Chan McKibben said, “This is important to start building an understanding of other races and to build solidarity while explaining the historical and systemic racism in the U.S.” The march sparked a dialogue within the Chinatown community about the complexities of race.“Working with Chinatown on racial issues, it’s been a heartbreaking, painstaking process,” Javier said. “Where the change can start is by hearing people out, seeing where their needs are, and addressing those concerns.” (Mallory Cheng) Chinese Christian Union Church, 2301 S. Wentworth Ave. (312) 842-8545. ccuc.net Progressive Baptist progressivechicago.org

Church,

3658

S.

Wentworth

Ave.

(773)

268-6048.

Coalition for a Better Chinese-American Community. cbcacchicago.org

BEST ESSENTIAL DELIVERY SERVICE

Chinese American Service League

Unlike nearly all of Chicago, the Chinese American Service League (CASL) wasn’t caught off guard by the pandemic. In January, weeks before the first known coronavirus death in the States, the organization was already preparing for potential scenarios, says Winnie Lam, CASL’s manager of senior wellness and independence.

We’re lucky they did. Over the past forty years, CASL—named the Best Multifaceted Cultural Center in 2015 BoSS—has come to play an indispensable role in Chinatown, supporting residents with employment, housing, childcare, and healthcare. In March—when businesses closed, workers went on furlough, and public life came to a standstill—CASL’s foresight allowed it to maintain this dizzying array of public services without interruption.

Since the first lockdown, the organization has operated completely remotely, offering programs such as Zoom dance classes and a virtual gala. In recent months, CASL has ramped up their presence at Mercy Hospital and Medical Center, hired new staff, and spearheaded an Alzheimer’s support program. But the full impact COVID-19 has had on the elderly was something that couldn’t be anticipated.

Before the pandemic, CASL’s adult day service program provided about a hundred seniors with meals. But the caregivers who did wellness checks and home visits elsewhere saw firsthand how seniors’ quality of life had declined. “The need beNOVEMBER 25, 2020 ¬ SOUTH SIDE WEEKLY 37

CHINATOWN came very apparent—that there are hundreds of Chinese seniors that are going hungry, are terrified, that won’t open their doors,” says marketing and communications officer Elizabeth Bishop.

So on April 13, CASL launched the senior meal program, which provided three meals every weekday to an additional 300 seniors. With support from volunteers, staff, and local businesses that dropped off “pallets full of bok choy” and other supplies, CASL has managed an incredible feat: by its estimates, delivering 4,500 traditional meals to seniors every week for the past thirty-two weeks.

An undertaking of this scale required as much help as possible. Fortunately, CASL was able to hire alumni from their own culinary training program for support.

This was a bit of a role reversal: CASL’s cooking classes usually teach western cuisine in tandem with English courses, in order to help students land jobs in kitchens outside Chinatown. But with the students’ help, hundreds of seniors received “fresh, healthy, and culturally appropriate meals during a time of widespread food insecurity,” said Phillip Thigpen, the head instructor of the culinary training program.

According to Bishop and Lam, Chinatown residents’ fear was palpable at the start of the pandemic. “We thought there was paralysis before, when people didn’t want to leave the community—now they [wouldn’t] even open their doors, and understandably,” said Bishop.

But thanks to workers’ efforts, CASL hasn’t just gotten through the pandemic, but brought new neighbors into the loop. According to Thigpen, the senior meals program will be a permanent part of CASL going forward.

CASL came into existence with a potluck nearly forty years ago, and even now, continues to change lives with food. It’s essential work if there was ever such a thing.

(Christopher Good) The Chinese American Service League, 2141 S. Tan Ct., (312) 791-0418. For more information see caslservice.org.

BEST PANDEMIC UNEMPLOYMENT HOTLINE IN A CHICAGO LANDMARK

Pui Tak Center

For more than a quarter century, the Pui Tak Center, located beside the neighborhood’s iconic gate, has served new immigrants and the Chinese community in the historic city landmark On Leong Merchants Association Building that has been described as Chinatown’s city hall. The church-based community center offers a number of programs, the most popular of which are its English-as-a-second-language (ESL) classes.

But when the coronavirus pandemic spread around the world, the community it served faced new challenges.

“Our students were losing their jobs at Chinese restaurants and at hotels downtown,” Pui Tak Center executive director David Wu said. “They were getting laid off and at risk of losing their houses.”

But the Illinois Department of Employment Security online application for unemployment benefits only has built-in language support for English, Spanish, and Polish.

"Speakers of other languages struggled with being able to apply,” Wu said.

He asked ESL transition coordinator Grace Jin to launch a program to help Pui Tak Center employees apply for unemployment insurance benefits.

Initially, during the lockdowns at home this spring, much of the Pui Tak Center’s unemployment assistance efforts were online. The center held webinars to help its already registered clients apply for benefits and posted translations of the state’s online unemployment filing process on its website. Jin recruited and trained volunteers 38 SOUTH SIDE WEEKLY ¬ NOVEMBER 25, 2020

SARAH JOYCE

to help people with their online applications, troubleshoot issues, and guide those without any devices to file claims using Pui Tak Center computers.

“Basically, we translate as much as we can so they can apply on their own,” Jin said.

“But if they still have problems they can call us.”

Thus far, the program has served 717 clients. Wu estimates it’s helped them claim $8-10 million worth of benefits during the pandemic.

“We also provided 450 households with food and groceries,” he said.

“But we could never provide the millions of dollars for food and groceries that unemployment [benefits] did. The unemployment [benefits] really helped with rent, utilities, and groceries, to ensure the people here in Chinatown will survive.”

Chinatown has been especially hard-hit by the coronavirus pandemic, Wu said. The number of unemployment claims filed by Asian Americans in Illinois skyrocketed from 2,473 in February to more than 38,419 in May, according to the U.S. Department of Labor.

“That’s a jump of 1,550 percent. That’s higher than every other ethnic group,” Wu said. “So many Asian Americans work in the most vulnerable industries, in hotels and restaurants.”

Jin said that in many cases, both husbands and wives lost jobs while raising children. Lately, more people have been returning to work, but high unemployment remains a stubborn issue.

“A lot of the restaurants and hotels are not hiring back very quickly,” Wu said.

“Unemployment is still going to be a problem.”

The Pui Tak Center has just been adapting its services to the needs of the community during these times.

“We help our community with the different problems they face, but this was not a very common service that was needed until the mass layoffs during the pandemic,” Wu said. “But every nonprofit has pivoted some services during the pandemic, such as by moving classes online. It’s important to be a safety net for the community—and that can mean shifting your program model.” ( Joseph S. Pete) Pui Tak Center, 2216 S. Wentworth Ave. Monday–Thursday, 8am–7:30pm; Friday 8am– 5pm; Saturday 8am–5:30pm. (312) 328-1188. puitak.org

CHINATOWN

BEST CLASS FOR LEARNING TO TALK TO FAMILY MEMBERS

People Matter

This summer, People Matter held its first Community Language Program, offering classes in Cantonese and English to the Chinatown community. People Matter, which is based in multiple Chicago neighborhoods, is an organization working toward uplifting communities through civic education, service, and advocacy. Their six-weeklong pilot language program attracted thirty-two students from different age and ethnic groups and was led by teachers born and raised in the community. In addition to teaching the languages, the People Matter program also helped connect students from different generations and cultures. The students built a close-knit community, where senior students learning English would talk with younger students in the Cantonese class about topics as diverse as shopping, how to write to elected officials, and communicating with their family members.

Aside from cross-generational connections, People Matter’s programming also seeks to build cross-racial conversations. In Chinatown, People Matter’s Tackling Anti-Blackness in Chinatown (TACC) subcommittee held a variety of programs to educate community members about anti-Blackness within the Asian American community. In late June, People Matter held the first ally-led march for Black Lives in Chinatown. People Matter organizers, in collaboration with local college students, strategically planned the route within neighborhood residential areas so that Chinatown residents and local shopkeepers were able to interact with the marchers and learn more about the movement. Since People Matter’s founding in 2019, it has also been celebrating Black community members in Chinatown ceremonies, with the next celebration slated for January 2021.

As part of the civic education work, TACC also offers anti-Blackness workshops, including comprehensive teach-ins about addressing anti-Blackness for schools and corporations, and recently held a five-week anti-Black racism class for individuals and organizations in Chinatown.

Along with their regular programming, People Matter also adapted to the COVID-19 pandemic in innovative ways. They have surveyed Chinatown residents about initiatives the community wants to see by canvassing and phone banking—as of September, they have gathered more than one hundred responses.

To help members address their concerns during the pandemic, People Matter is also holding free COVID-19 testing in three sites in Chinatown, Pilsen, and Bronzeville.

People Matter’s mission is to “address the problem of people not having input in their own community’s future,” and the organization’s future programming is helping to uplift the community through continued education, service, and engagement, both in-person and virtually. (Yiwen Lu) People Matter. peoplematter.one

BEST FOOD DRIVE FOR BUILDING SOLIDARITY

Chinese Christian Union Church Food Drive

On April 14, 2020, Chinese Christian Union Church (CCUC) set up a COVID-19 Response Fund to provide its members, the Chinatown community, and surrounding neighborhoods with PPE, food, and other material items. The initial goal was to raise $10,000, but they have so far raised over $18,000.

“It’s a beautiful picture of Chinatown coming together and taking care of our people and ministering to them in one of the darkest times,” said Chris Javier, a deacon and youth counselor at CCUC. Initially, the food distribution program packaged 250 bags at each food drive.

With the collaboration of local nonprofits and others such as the Coalition for a Better Chinese American Community, Economic Strategies Development Corporation, state Representative Theresa Mah’s office, Chinatown Chamber of Commerce, Pui Tak Center, and local Chinese grocers such as Phoenix Bean Tofu Starlight Market, now over 450 bags are distributed during each food drive. Most recently, under a partnership with Molina Healthcare, the food distribution has served as sites to receive flu shots and COVID-19 tests. CCUC is also establishing a permanent COVID-19 testing site in Allen Lee Plaza, directly outside the church.

Grace Chan McKibben, executive director of the Coalition for a Better Chinese American Community, noted that volunteers came from the greater Chinatown area and from the Pilsen community.

“This is one of the first times different folks from these communities were working on a common project,” Chan McKibben said. “This was great in building solidarity and an understanding of each other.”

At the time of publication, CCUC has stopped food distribution and will be focusing on next steps in supporting Chinatown community members.

(Mallory Cheng) Check CCUC’s Facebook page, facebook.com/ccuc.chitown, for future updates. You can donate at ccuc.churchcenter.com/giving, under COVID-19 Relief. For general inquiries, visit english.ccuc.net.

NOVEMBER 25, 2020 ¬ SOUTH SIDE WEEKLY 39

Compiled by Rob Bitunjac Neighborhood Captain

CLEARING & GARFIELD RIDGE SARAH DERER

C

lear-Ridge, the hyphenated moniker for the two outlying communities of Clearing and Garfield Ridge, is the perfect representation of the shared nature of both areas. Sticking out of the southwestern edge of Chicago, Clearing and Garfield Ridge not only share the once-busiest airport in the world, Midway, but share a common history.

Both were annexed to the city in 1915, much to the chagrin of what used to be Stickney Township. In fact, stories abound of political trickery, voter fraud and lost paperwork regarding the annexation. Both also take their name from historical elements located in each community.

Clearing took the name from a great rail yard named the Chicago and Clearing Rail Yards, originally built by the railroad magnate A.B. Stickney and later bought by the Belt Line, which still owns it to this day. Garfield Ridge took its name from Garfield Boulevard, which runs through the community, and the ancient ridge that was originally a shoreline for the famous Mud Lake, which existed for thousands of years just north of what is now South 53rd Street.

Clear-Ridge has always been considered the “boonies” to old Chicagoans, and many longtime residents will regale you with stories about farms in the area through the 1950s. City utilities were slow to come to the community, as well as public parks 40 SOUTH SIDE WEEKLY ¬ NOVEMBER 25, 2020

(not until the late 1940s), and of course no “L” service existed until the Orange Line began operations in 1993.

This isolation came at a cost. While it helped shape the close-knit nature of both communities, it also contributed to segregation, as evidenced by the negative community response to the creation of the LeClaire Courts CHA development in the 1950s. While it was part of Garfield Ridge, the housing project remained highly segregated from the rest of the community until it was razed in the 2010s as part of their Plan for Transformation.

The moniker Clear-Ridge came into popular usage in the 1950s as the area, like most others, experienced a population boom. It’s been used as the name of the various local newspapers, most popularly the Clear-Ridge Reporter and its famous Little League, the Clear-Ridge Little League, which has won titles in the Little League World Series several times over the years.

Both communities are home to many city workers, especially police and fire department employees. Due to their proximity to the suburbs they offer residents the best of both worlds: city amenities as well as choices in eating and retail that the nearby suburbs offer.

While some rivalry does exist across the borders of Garfield Ridge and

CLEARING & GARFIELD RIDGE Clearing, you would be hard pressed to find anyone who doesn’t claim to have hung out, shopped, and lived their lives equally in both areas. Perhaps it is this close kinship that has helped form a sense of togetherness during the difficult months of the pandemic. Across both neighborhoods, local businesses and organizations have banded together to give people a sense of normalcy. (Rob Bitunjac) Neighborhood Captain Rob Bitunjac, and his wife and three children, are lifelong residents of Garfield Ridge where their family has lived for the past hundred years. He has worked for the Chicago Public Library for the past twenty-nine years and is currently the branch manager for the Clearing Branch Library. In 2011, along with a group of other local historians, he formed the Clear-Ridge Historical Society and has served as the president since its inception. The Clear-Ridge Historical offers tours, free programs at the Clearing Library, has written three books on local history, and maintains a local history file at the Clearing Library.

hope. Also, kids love to paint and create.”

And it’s not only kids that are enjoying the site. It has brought out the artistic talents of many adults in the area that just love to paint and hide rocks for the kids to find. A frequent contributor, Jennifer Lody, said that painting the rocks is therapeutic and that she loves seeing the ideas that others have come up with. They have even created “Rock Trees” where people can hide their rocks and display their ideas.

Another member, Dave Koz, is known for his rocks painted like mice, and people fight to find them.

In these times of social distancing and quarantine, this has proven to be a perfect activity for the whole family. (Rob Bitunjac) Clear/Ridge Rocks. facebook.com/groups/28941870244203

BEST PUBLIC HISTORY

Chrysler Village

BEST ROCK GROUP

Clear/Ridge Rocks

SARAH DERER

Kerry Gollogy loves rocks—but no, she’s not a geologist. She was in Florida with her son and came across a painted rock. It made her smile. Instructions on the rock directed her to a Facebook group that encouraged her to rehide the rock for someone else to find. She immediately thought that this would be a great idea for her neighborhood of Clearing and Garfield Ridge. Along with her friend Lisa Robinson, she set up a Facebook group called Clear/Ridge Rocks this June.

The idea is for people to paint or otherwise decorate rocks, hide them, and encourage anyone that finds the rock to post a picture on the Facebook group and either rehide it or paint a new one. The idea took off, and the group currently has 2,200 members.

Why is it so popular? “I think people needed something to make them smile in these times,” said Gollogy. “Talking and walking and looking down and seeing a rock makes you feel happy. People are getting out of the house, it makes walks more enjoyable. It’s a small act of kindness that is so important right now. I have met neighbors that live on my block that I was unaware of. It gives everyone a little bit of

Most lifelong Chicagoans are aware that the city is laid out along a giant grid. Map enthusiasts and amateur and professional historians are often interested in deviations from this grid because these anomalies tell small stories about the development of the city. Whether it be a diagonal street or an oddly shaped group of streets, these breaks in the grid never cease to pique curiosity.

So it is no surprise that within the outlying community of Clearing, there lies an oval-shaped subdivision that catches the attention of most of these folks.

Unofficially called Chrysler Village, this subdivision is located near the southeast corner of Clearing, bounded by West 63rd and 65th Streets and South Long and Lavergne Avenues. It was designed in the 1940s by the J.E. Merrion Company, which later lent its name to the southwest suburb Merrionette Park.

Built primarily for World War II-era workers who were employed by the nearby war defense plants—the Dodge Plant (which became the shopping mall Ford City) just to the southwest, and the Studebaker Plant to the north near Archer and Cicero Avenues—the houses of this subdivision, largely underwritten by the Federal Housing Administration and originally subject to restrictive racial covenants, have a utilitarian style. The homes are distributed in an oval shape, forming a ring with Lawler Park at its center. The semicircular street layout has given rise to conspiracy theories about a covert military meaning behind its design and rumors of underground tunnels to Midway Airport and Ford City Mall.

The circular layout also fostered a close-knit community. Former and current residents recall giant block parties and neighborhood events centered at Lawler Park.

People who lived there used to distinguish themselves as being from “the village,” as opposed to the rest of the Clearing community. Over time, as the defense plants closed, residents no longer shared a common workplace but the close-knit community feeling persisted.

In 2014, at the urging of 13th Ward Alderman Marty Quinn, and with the help of residents and a group of doctoral students at Loyola University Chicago’s Public History Lab, Chrysler Village was named to the National Register of Historic Places.

A community event was held in August 2016 celebrating past and present residents along with activities, history booths, an oral history project, and an honorary “Chrysler Village Way” street sign unveiling. Current residents are proud to be part of a historic place and many have purchased plaques that adorn their residences and attest to the historic importance of the community. (Rob Bitunjac) Chrysler Village, bounded by W. 63rd St. to the north, S. Lavergne Ave. to the east, W. 65th St. to the south, and S. Long Ave. to the west. To find out more about the area and the Chrysler Village History Project, visit chryslervillageproject.wordpress.com.

NOVEMBER 25, 2020 ¬ SOUTH SIDE WEEKLY 41

EAST SIDE & HEGEWISCH Compiled by Maria Maynez, Neighborhood Captain

THE SOUTHEAST YOUTH ALLIANCE. PHOTO BY JULIA HUNTER

Oscar Sanchez is a cofounder of the Southeast Youth Alliance

T

he Southeast Side is historic. It is a catalyst. It is a resistance. It is embracing.

And it is changing. The Southeast Side is a beautiful home where people can raise their families, where people can enjoy themselves and have a long life— but over time, we’ve been stripped of that, because of all the damage done through environmental racism and harmful development here.

It’s a growing dynamic, and folks wanting to raise a family here are now saying, “We don’t necessarily need heavy industries here.” We need change. What really makes us so different, and why the community is a catalyst, is because all the things we’ve been dealt or handed in our life that have created a negative experience for us—for example, the pollution, or the violence, or being part of a low-income area—have allowed people to not only have a mentality to say they can change it, but to join others in collectives of people wanting to create change for the community.

Growing up in my house, there was this idea of, if we don’t take care of us, who

will? My parents are from Mexico, and they didn’t trust the police or government, and they had a pick-yourself-up-by-the-bootstraps kind of mentality—but when they came to America, they kind of changed. They saw how a community can actually lift you, whether it’s friends or family members, and how at the end of the day, we have to keep ourselves safe.

At the end of the day, it has to do with love, unconditional love towards wanting to see your community brought up. Because during this pandemic, let’s be very candid— if we didn’t take care of our community during this pandemic and didn’t watch out for each other? I can’t even imagine how much harm would have been caused if we just stood by and let this catastrophe happen.

As a community, we have come together during these difficult times wanting to take care of one another because we deserve better. (As told to Maria Maynez) Neighborhood Captain Maria Maynez is a freelance journalist and community organizer based on the Southeast Side.

NOVEMBER 25, 2020 ¬ SOUTH SIDE WEEKLY 43

EAST SIDE & HEGEWISCH

BEST NEW OLD BAR

East Side Tap

Once one of the sixty “tied houses,” or brewery-owned bars, for the Schlitz brewing company, the building this tap house occupies is an ode to East Side history. Built in 1907, the exterior is a remnant of a time when steelworkers would spend their afternoons at the bar socializing and relaxing.

“We wanted to restore and preserve this tavern not only because it is a beautiful and architecturally interesting building, but also because it is a small part of a bigger history,” said owners Michael and Laura Medina in a statement.

Despite its changes, the bar has always been a place for the community. Shortly after Schlitz closed down, it was known in the forties and fifties as Club Selo, and in the seventies as the Bamboo Lounge. The Medinas, who bought the building in 2019, weren’t looking to give it a modern face, but instead have been working to renovate this prime jewel, which is set to open in 2021 as the East Side Tap. In October, the building was designated a Chicago landmark, making it the tenth former tied house in the city to be designated as such, and the fifth city landmark in the East Side.

“The East Side is a tight-knit community, and many neighbors have fond memories of the tavern, the people in it, and the times they had there. Those memories are meaningful,” said Medina. (Maria Maynez) East Side Tap, 9401 S. Ewing. Hours TBD. facebook.com/eastsidetap

BEST LONGTIME MARSH DEFENDER

Peggy Salazar

Peggy Salazar, the executive director of the Southeast Environmental Task Force (Best Environmental Activists, 2019 BoSS), has recently been battling against scrap metal shredder General Iron’s plans to relocate from the tony environs of Lincoln Park to the border of Hegewisch and South Deering on the Southeast Side.

It’s just the latest skirmish in her ongoing fight to save the Southeast Side from pollution and environmental degradation after the collapse of the steel mills that once cranked out metal there. Salazar has been working since first volunteering for the Southeast Environmental Task Force to reinvent the neighborhood in a greener way that would protect the environment and health of its longtime residents.

“I’m a lifelong resident who saw the steel mills disappear in the 1980s,” she said.

“Some residents were extremely disappointed the community lost so many jobs. So was I at first. But I saw how it could be a new dawn for the neighborhood. We’ve been fighting pollution and these companies. I want to pass this community off to my children so they want to continue to live here with the same quality of life that’s beneficial and not detrimental to them.”

The steel mills giveth and the steel mills taketh away.

“We’ve been instrumental in conservation and preservation in the neighborhood,” Salazar said. “The steel mills were a double-edged sword that brought jobs and opportunity. They were economic drivers that were ultimately detrimental, resulting in shuttered businesses and jobs lost by the thousands. Over time, I realized we gained open space. It was not pristine because of the heavy industry, but it was priceless to have thousands of acres of green space in an urban environment like Chicago. We had assets to capitalize off of after we lost all the industry.”

She became executive director of the Southeast Environmental Task Force, which was started in 1989, in 2010 after joining the board in 2005.

44 SOUTH SIDE WEEKLY ¬ NOVEMBER 25, 2020

Salazar’s first challenge was protesting an attempt to develop townhouses on a wetland.

“What a lot of people don’t know is that the Southeast Side is home to [some] of the only trailers in the city of Chicago,” she said, referring to the Harbor Point Estates just west of the state line with Indiana. “With the housing boom, they evicted [some] trailer residents to build high-end townhomes on [parts of ] the property. Initially, it was getting them to agree to a conservation easement. But after the collapse, the townhomes on the wetland never got built, and now it’s a part of the Cook County Forest Preserve.”

The group then fought the city’s efforts to build an outdoor firing range for the Chicago Police Department across from the public park at Hegewisch Marsh.

“It didn’t make sense to have this firing range for municipal officers across from the park, where the purpose was to be able to escape urban living, enjoy natural respite, and take advantage of this kind of environment. It didn’t make any sense to have officers shooting from sunup to sundown,” Salazar said.

A pair of nesting bald eagles helped the cause of the neighborhood activists, who ultimately prevailed in dashing the city’s plans for the shooting range.

“There were safety and noise pollution issues,” she said. “It was happening across the river, and the river was not wide at that point. The scary thing was they wanted to have constant shooting in a neighborhood where you have issues with drive-bys and gang-related shootings. You want to have a nature park where guns are shot off in the distance in total disregard to residents?”

Next, the group fought a coal gasification plant and convinced the city that petroleum coke (petcoke) should be stored in enclosures instead of in piles that stood two to three stories high along the banks of the Calumet River. “[The plant] would have brought more open storage of petcoke, more emissions that we didn’t want any more of, and only a handful of jobs,” she said. “The way we saw it, it was no win, no gain.”

The depth of the petcoke problem first sank in for Salazar when she was enjoying her first summer barbecue three blocks from the industry in the river.

“There was fine black dust floating in my soda that I never would have connected with the industry three blocks away,” she said. “I never realized how far that stuff traveled. What people don’t realize about the Southeast is that you have a residential neighborhood half a block away from the industry. I can’t imagine what they experienced by the industrial corridor if I had fine black dust in my glass of soda three blocks away.”

The Southeast Environmental Task Force has repeatedly sparred with the city over high levels of manganese, heavy metals, and emissions in the air, but has often found Chicago more interested in industry, jobs, and the tax base than residents’ wellbeing, Salazar said.

“We made progress on petcoke but are still concerned,” she said. “It’s being stored in open train cars headed to the BP Refinery. A resident expressed concern why it always operated at night. He felt it was so we couldn’t see the dust. When you’ve been living with open piles of coal and petcoke for so long, it’s hard to get residents to speak out. They feel disenfranchised and that there are no real solutions.”

Black soot from the petcoke pikes and horrible odors from local industry have permeated the whole neighborhood, Salazar said.

The group has proposed guidelines for responsible development that the city has ignored. Instead, today it’s fighting the General Iron scrap metal yard it fears would bring more pollution.

“They want to do it without any input from the community,” Salazar said. “We’re already breathing in more than our fair share of pollution without any more polluters.

They’re forcing an unwanted business out of the North Side and moving it to a less affluent area without expecting any pushback. The injustice of that should not be tolerated.”

EAST SIDE & HEGEWISCH

The Southeast Environmental Task Force filed a civil complaint with the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development over the prospect of more dirty industry in the neighborhood—which resulted in a letter from the federal government to Mayor Lori Lightfoot in opposition to the General Iron project—and is also staging rallies to combat the project.

“I believe we have brought awareness to the total disinvestment in communities like ours,” Salazar said. “If you live in the midst of something, you don’t often stop to think of what could be different or what needs to change. But the city of Chicago still wasn’t listening to the community about what they wanted.” ( Joseph S. Pete) Find out more about the Southeast Environmental Task Force’s work at setaskforce.org

BEST YOUTH MOVEMENT

Southeast Youth Alliance

The Southeast Youth Alliance started up in August of 2018 to get young people— ranging from students at George Washington High School to fledgling adults in their early twenties—to change the narrative of the Southeast Side.

The group of activists is by the youth, for the youth.

“We gear our programming to young people from high school to post-grads,” said co-founder and environmental organizer Luis Cabrales. “We want to be part of the change in the neighborhood and not just sit back and complain. From the beginning, we wanted to be action-based on the ground and to be part of the solution.”

Though small and still recruiting, the group has quickly made a name for itself through its activism. The Southeast Youth Alliance has been involved in a number of rallies and marches, including organizing the first Black Lives Matter march on the Southeast Side.

“We’re doing a lot of programming on environmental justice,” Cabrales said. “But we haven’t been as active this year because of the stay-at-home orders and because we do not want a rise in COVID-19 positivity rates.”

Despite adjusting to the pandemic, the group’s work this year has been wideranging. It has solicited public feedback on the 100th Street Calumet River Access Plan, set up a Día de los Muertos community altar at St. Francis De Sales High School, hosted virtual movie watch parties via Netflix, encouraged people to get out and vote, and urged high school students to apply for scholarships and sign up for a college prep program at the University of Chicago. It gave away masks, toys, and school supplies to students at a youth rally in September. It hosted an art market for local artists and helped start a community mutual aid fund that helped those in need pay for rent, utilities, and groceries. It lobbied to remove the Chicago Police Department from George Washington High School, staged a Black Lives Matter march in Hegewisch, organized community cleanups, and promoted COVID-19 resources to the community.

The Southeast Youth Alliance also took part in the November 14 protest near Mayor Lori Lightfoot’s house to try to stop General Iron from moving into the neighborhood.

“We went up north to protest the permit,” Cabrales said. “It would be devastating to the neighborhood. Some people still sort of live in the heyday when we still had U.S. Steel and steel factories, but they left behind toxic soil, contaminated soil, and a contaminated Calumet River.”

The Southeast Youth Alliance offers an array of programming.

“We do environmental justice and food, raising awareness about being vegetarian,” he said. “We have a student volunteer series where we get people to come out to Big Marsh and take part in stewardship and restoration.”

Cabrales, whose background is in community conservation, said the group hoped to change perceptions about the entire Southeast Side, including the East Side, South Deering, and Hegewisch neighborhoods.

“We want to change the neighborhood, to tell young people that don’t have to leave, that they can live there and not be ashamed,” he said. “You can be proud of where you came from.”

The group envisions a future with more green space and a more vibrant bike culture on the Southeast Side.

“We plan to live here long-term and want to organize events and programming to cause change so we’re part of the solution and not just complaining,” he said.

The Southeast Side has many bike trails but needs more bike lanes and improved access to natural areas like Big Marsh, Cabrales said. “A big problem is accessibility. If you go down a major street, you can barely avoid being hit by a semi-truck.”

“We’re like the Southeast Environmental Task Force tackling petcoke and manganese and lead in our soil,” he said. “We also have a passion for the big issues. We just want to give the young people a seat at the table.” ( Joseph S. Pete) Southeast Youth Alliance, facebook.com/southeastyouthalliance

BEST SYMBOL OF INSTITUTIONALIZED POLLUTION THAT’S BEEN NEGLECTED TOO LONG

The Schroud Property’s coal hills

The Coal Hills on the long-neglected Schroud Property have dated back to at least the 1970s. The landmark at the entrance of Hegewisch, at 126th Place and Avenue O, consists of slag, garbage, and construction materials piled high. ATV riders often rip across a post-apocalyptic man-made landscape that no one has moved to clean up after a half-century. The unsightly dump rises above desolate prairie grass splayed under power lines stretching off infinitely into the horizon.

PHOTO BY MARIA MAYNEZ

NOVEMBER 25, 2020 ¬ SOUTH SIDE WEEKLY 45

EAST SIDE & HEGEWISCH

Over the years, the Coal Hills have raised concerns in the far South Side about black tar leaking into Indian Creek, basements, the Babe Ruth baseball field, and soil in the neighborhood, leading residents to question whether they can even safely plant gardens in their backyards. But kids have still flocked there to ride dirt bikes, play paintball, and sled on slag piles in the winter despite a quicksand-like suction. People have come to Coal Hills to walk their dogs, hunt ducks, hang out in tree houses, or swim or fish in Indian Creek and nearby Wolf Lake.

The former wetlands site, once owned by the long-bygone Republic Steel, was supposed to be turned into a sports complex but was revealed to be contaminated with lead, chromium, and manganese, according to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). The local landmark has long been an illegal site for dumping, including mattresses, refuse, and empty beer bottles, in addition to the waste that introduced the contaminants. Community residents have told the EPA they would like to see it eventually repurposed as a park, natural area, playground, or access point to Wolf Lake, according to a recent EPA Community Involvement Plan. ( Joseph S. Pete) Schroud Property, southwest intersection of E. 126th Pl. and S. Avenue O. For information on its status as a Superfund site and its potential cleanup, visit cumulis.epa.gov/supercpad/ cursites/csitinfo.cfm?id=0505540.

ROUTE 66 PIZZA. PHOTO BY MARIA MAYNEZ

BEST ENVIRONMENTAL TRANSFORMATION

Big Marsh Park

Since its grand opening in 2016, Big Marsh Park has become a staple for the neighboring communities in the Southeast Side and Far South Side. Built in what had been a waste and slag dumping ground since the late 1800s, Big Marsh is more than an area to bird watch. Compared to more staid activities at other parks in the area, Big Marsh offers walking and biking trails, a pump track, BMX jump lines, and soon the Ford Calumet Environmental Center, which will allow the implementation of nature-based events and activities.

“Big Marsh offers plenty of opportunities for the public to spread out, discover, and reconnect with nature. Families can explore the park safely by riding their bikes through the dirt courses, bird watching along the marsh or taking a leisurely walk around the gravel loop that circles the southern half of the park,” said Joel Zavala, Big Marsh’s program and event facilitator.

Big Marsh is quite literally a hidden gem: it’s located in the Calumet Corridor, where there are only two roads that are used for access. It is a stark contrast against the nearby factories and industrial buildings. Big Marsh has caught the eye of many bike aficionados and offers kids and teenagers an opportunity to immerse themselves in nature and bike culture.

“The importance of having equitable access to spaces like these in the Southeast side has only been highlighted by the ongoing pandemic. The Chicago Park District and its partners hope to continue serving the Southeast side by offering safe and free programming that help facilitate the connection between these natural spaces and the surrounding communities,” said Zavala. (Maria Maynez) Big Marsh Park, 11555 S. Stony Island Ave. Weekdays, dawn to dusk; weekends, 8am–7pm.

(312) 720-0940. chicagoparkdistrict.com/parks-facilities/big-marsh-park-park-no-564

BEST STATE LINE PIZZA

Route 66

Owned by Alberto, a long time resident of the East Side who declined to provide his last name, Route 66 is a go-to favorite for many community members. As a staple of the community, it serves the East Side, Hegewisch, South Deering, and Whiting North Hammond in Indiana. It transcends Chicago and is a fan favorite across the state line with their famous jalapeño pizza. Throughout the years, Route 66 has been known to make generous donations and has always made an effort to reward students for their good work through free pizza slices.

Things have not always been easy but despite the adversities, the owner is known to bounce back and continue to provide the same hospitality and service that frequent customers know him for. Just last year, the immigrant-friendly business was raided

by ICE, leading to the arrest of five workers. This led to the pizzeria closing for more than three months. It was with the efforts of the community and organizations like Centro de Trabajadores Unidos, that the cherished business made its comeback.

(Maria Maynez) Route 66 Pizza, 10180 S. Indianapolis Ave. Monday–Thursday, 10am–10pm; Friday, 10am–11pm; Saturday, 1pm–11pm; Sunday, 1pm–10pm. (773) 734-2032. facebook.com/ route66pizza 46 SOUTH SIDE WEEKLY ¬ NOVEMBER 25, 2020

ENGLEWOOD Compiled by Erica Mosely

ENGLEWOOD

Compiled by Jade Yan, Neighborhood Captain PHOTO BY BRITTANY NORMENT

T

he sun is bright and the energy is electric as clusters of people approach the In & Out Food and Deli at the corner of South Halsted and West 66th Streets.

The last operating business in this small building was a corner store with everything from cigarettes to diapers to hot italian beef sandwiches—one of many in a long list of businesses unable to maintain a hold on the property. Boarded up for months after failing health inspection after health inspection, the former eye-sore is in the process of a transformation.

Teams of artists from the Englewood Arts Collective paint colorful murals as vibrant as the people of Englewood, while others lead children in arts and crafts. In the parking lot, residents and families dance to music played by community leader and resident DJ Dap, with children playing on see-saws crafted by design studio Made in Englewood. Just days after a shooting took place at the same site, residents are gathering to celebrate the launch of the free communal market, orchestrated by local community art nonprofit alt_, where shelves are regularly stocked with non-perishable

food and essential items and available to anyone in need. Dedicated, resilient, powerful, vibrant, innovative, and unstoppable. This is Englewood.

I am a third-generation Englewood resident; the landscape surrounding my legacy home has evolved over the years: from a thriving Black business district, to a gang war zone, to a mass of vacant lots central to neighborhood revitalization efforts happening today. In the nineties, my father retired from the Air Force and moved our family from England to Englewood. Around the time we moved back, post white-flight and after years of systemic disinvestment, gang violence had ravaged Englewood. Many families made the difficult decision to relocate in search of safety. Our home at the corner of West 65th and South Green Streets sat in the middle of this battle, driving my family to be one of the many who would migrate to the south suburbs. But despite our physical relocation, Englewood was always my home, and the only place in America I felt connected to. When I came to a crossroads in my adult life, just like my father before me, it was only natural that I returned home to 65th and Green Street.

NOVEMBER 25, 2020 ¬ SOUTH SIDE WEEKLY 47

BEST WELLNESS ON WHEELS E'A WILLIAMS WITH THE T.H.U.G. HIPPIE BUS. PHOTOS BY BRITTANY NORMENT

While the media blared negative images of Englewood and daily shooting statistics, I was encouraged to move almost anywhere but here. And yet when I returned, first by way of being a barista at the nonprofit Englewood coffee shop Kusanya Cafe, I was elated to discover a warm and vibrant community that cared. Yes, pockets of violence still occur, but matching every report of violence is a collective, individual, or organization working to effect positive change.

In the three years since I returned to the neighborhood after living in the south suburbs of Chicago, Wicker Park, Humboldt Park, Logan Square, and the San Francisco Bay Area, Englewood has shown me the definition of community. I have received more “good mornings” and genuine “hi, how are yous” than anywhere else I’ve lived. I returned with the intent of reconnecting with the only place that felt like home and that home gave me a family, teachers, and new friends.

The Englewood that exists today is not the same as the media will lead you to believe. Beyond the violence and the disinvestment lies a community only minutes from the city’s center teeming with originality, passion, ingenuity, and most of all, heart. The community of Englewood vibrates with creativity and an unparalleled force that has driven change without the help of city leaders and government involvement.

Asiaha Butler, co-founder and president of R.A.G.E.—the Residents Association of Greater Englewood—and Best Activist-Around-Town in 2016 BoSS, once said, “The major assets of our community lie in the spirit of the people—their resilience, commitment to community development, and the dedication to actively engage in projects or issues that impact them.”

For years, Englewood has been home to artists, entrepreneurs, activists, politicians, musicians, athletes, and influencers. Our greystone buildings are filled with essential workers, mothers, fathers, grandparents, and students. Every day activists, community leaders, and neighbors work to maintain peace and heal the wounds created by white flight and city leaders' lack of involvement.

Today, the people who call Englewood home are creating a new legacy all their own, on their own. We have broken through barriers to take hold of our neighborhood and reinvest in ourselves when no one else will. In this community, you will find thought leaders, innovators, and families working every day to reshape the neighborhood and create our own narrative.

To know Englewood is to know the residents that are the real engine driving change within our neighborhood. Englewood IS rising, every day. (Brittany Norment) Neighborhood Captain Jade Yan is a staff reporter for the Weekly.

48 SOUTH SIDE WEEKLY ¬ NOVEMBER 25, 2020

T.H.U.G. Hippie Bus

Yoga instructor and massage therapist E’a Williams wasn’t looking to make a radical lifestyle change, but 2020 presented her with one. Divorced, with her teenage son living in California and her regular paying work on ice thanks to the shutdown, she realized she had the chance to do something new. “I’ve always wanted to be a wellness gypsy,” she said. “[COVID-19] gave me the opportunity to do that.” On July 1, she launched a GoFundMe to raise money to realize her off-the-grid dream: a retrofitted, solar-powered school bus to serve as a mobile wellness and arts center she’s dubbed the T.H.U.G Hippie Bus. The name’s an homage to Tupac, whose “Thug Life” tag famously stood for “The Hate U Give Little Infants Fucks Everbody.” In Williams’ spin, it means both “The Healing U Give” and “Trauma Healing Urban Guru.” She’s no stranger to trauma herself; she’s lost a daughter and experienced homelessness. Raised in Uptown, she said her eyes were opened to the grievous disparity between the North and South sides when she moved to Englewood. “When I moved here to try and raise my kids and I couldn’t give them the same life I had had on the North Side, I was frustrated,” she said. “I was, like, why can't I find a free circus or free art class, summer program, or free just theater in the park?” The antiracist arts organization Enrich Chicago helped her put words—“systemic racism”—to what she was experiencing.

Williams describes herself as “a community thread”; she’s worked with neighborhood organizations like Resident Association of Greater Englewood, InnerCity Muslim Action Network, and others. Those connections have helped her make the T.H.U.G. Hippie Bus come together in just four months. Thanks to a donation from the Greater Englewood Chamber of Commerce, she was able to fly to Las Vegas and pick up the bus; it’s now parked at 59th and Honore, on land owned by Growing Home, who she’s partnering with so they can use the bus for their mobile farmers market. In early November, the bus had been stripped of seats and insulated, and masking tape outlined the new floor plan: kitchen in the back, seating for workshops and classes in the front, a privacy curtain for when she does massages during R.A.G.E.’s So Fresh Saturdays. Williams hopes to have all the renovations done by the holidays, so she can host a “Christmas village” at the bus.

Too many people in the Black community don’t give health and wellness care the respect it deserves, she said. “We're quick to pass on all the trauma, with all the fast food and all the fake hair but we don't pass on what's healing us. For some reason we're very shy and embarrassed about telling people ‘I get a massage or I go see a therapist,’ ” she said. “I’m out here to combat that, because if we don’t get over the simple thinking about getting a massage, we won’t be able to heal ourselves.” (Martha Bayne) Find more information about and donate to the T.H.U.G. Hippie Bus at gofundme.com/f/ thughippie

ENGLEWOOD

BEST SOURCE OF WISDOM FOR A NONPROFIT

MS GWEN, AN ELDER IN I GROW CHICAGO'S WISDOM COUNCIL. PHOTO BY BRITTANY NORMENT

I Grow Chicago’s Wisdom Council

Ms. Gwen is back to sitting on her porch next to her flowers, after a period of battling COVID-19. She is also back to meeting with members of I Grow Chicago, an Englewood nonprofit that provides resources such as mentorship and after-school programs.

Ms. Gwen is one of five elders in the Wisdom Council, a group of women who help the organization with peace-keeping initiatives.

The Wisdom Council is modeled after indigenous tribal councils and holds power above I Grow’s formal board, dealing with issues and finding solutions for the I Grow and Englewood community. One initiative was a multipurpose basketball court for I Grow’s peace campus, which spans six formerly vacant lots and two homes, and gives young people a space to play and the elders a space to take walks.

Although Ms. Gwen hasn’t been able to get down to the campus since March, when the pandemic hit—“I was really…out for the count,” she said about her experience contracting the virus—I Grow came to her porch to say hello, bringing food and news.

“I must have done a good job with them because everyone’s missing me,” she said, laughing.

Ms. Gwen has lived in Englewood for fifty years and joined I Grow when it started in 2014. She noticed Robbin Carroll, the founder, setting up on a lot on the next block and went over to see what was going on.

At first, she helped with the garden and grew vegetables and flowers; her own house is full of flowers, both inside as well as in her backyard and on her porch. Then Ms. Gwen decided to found the Wisdom Council around three years ago, with two other members, Ms. Ora and Ms. Johnson. “[I Grow is] just something I’m really excited to be a part of,” she said.

She’s proud of how the organization has “a lot of activities going on,” including art and cooking classes and yoga (the organization’s yoga program was named Best Child’s Pose in 2018 BoSS). One program that made an impact in her life was the weekly Women’s Group, also called Moms First, run by Deirdre Koldyke. The group plans outings for women and mothers, and offers excitement and variety. Looking after children can make people feel like “you’re stuck in a rut—like, ‘this is life,’ ” said Ms. Gwen. “[But] when you get a chance to get out and see what other people are doing, then your life hasn’t ended, you still got hope.”

Ms. Gwen is on the mend from COVID-19, and celebrated her eighty-third birthday earlier this month with her four daughters. She wants to see Englewood’s vacant lots “built back up,” from houses to businesses to educational opportunities.

“I feel it’s gonna be alright,” she added. ( Jade Yan) I Grow Chicago, 6402 S. Honore St. Get involved by calling (773) 245-2212 or visiting igrowchicago.org.

NOVEMBER 25, 2020 ¬ SOUTH SIDE WEEKLY 49

ENGLEWOOD

DION DAWSON, THE MIND BEHIND PROJECT DREAM FRIDGE. PHOTO BY BRITTANY NORMENT

BEST PLACE TO GET FRESH FOOD ON THE CORNER OF S. RACINE

Dion’s Dream Fridge

Every day, Dion Dawson wakes up at 5am and goes to shop for fresh produce. Then, he makes his way over to the corner of West 57th Street and South Racine Avenue, to place the fruit and vegetables on the shelves of his community fridge.

The fridge was created by Dawson, a thirty-year-old veteran, to address the food desert in Englewood, where he was born and raised. “It’s always been the case,” he said, of the lack of supermarkets in Englewood, besides the Whole Foods on 63rd and Halsted. “I guess the difference has been committing my non-stop energy to fixing that.”

The fridge, called Project Dream Fridge, is open weekdays. Dawson is out there every day, making sure people are wearing masks and only taking what they need until the next day, “because we’ll be open tomorrow,” he reminds people. Everything is always gone by midday, he said.

By tuning in to what food the community responds to, he has also been able to narrow down the contents of the fridge. Items that go fast include bananas, lettuce, onions, apples, and water. As for the less popular food, “cabbage moves a little bit slower,” he said, adding that radishes weren’t “a big thing” either.

The fridge is part of a larger charity called Dion’s Chicago Dream, which Dawson runs along with Nataly Moreno, as vice president, and his mother, Constance Strickland, as its administrative officer. Dawson told the Weekly he started the organization on Juneteenth of this year: “I looked in the mirror and asked myself, ‘What do I want to say I did, as far as this Juneteenth?’ ” He started a GoFundMe and raised $2,500, with which he fed a hundred families.

Riding on this success, Dawson decided to turn his efforts into Dion’s Chicago Dream.

He opened Project Dream Fridge around three months later, on September 11. The fridge is protected by a small shed, built by the mutual aid network Love Fridge Chicago, and covered in colorful paintings by Chicago artist Pugs Atomz.

While addressing food insecurity is the main goal, it’s “only one pillar of the things we do,” said Dawson. He tries to tailor the charity’s work to whatever Englewood needs. This might mean clearing up vacant lots, or finding an ice cream truck for children.

“I’m willing to do whatever we can to assist Englewood,” said Dawson. ( Jade Yan) Project Dream Fridge, corner of W. 57th St. and S. Racine Ave. Weekdays, 9am–4pm. dionschicagodream.com

50 SOUTH SIDE WEEKLY ¬ NOVEMBER 25, 2020

GAGE PARK Compiled by Maritere Gomez Neighborhood Captain

MARITERE GOMEZ

G

age Park is my home. I often wonder why my mother and father brought me to Chicago when we first immigrated nearly three decades ago. Chicago’s winters are so severe that it is discouraged to stand outside for longer than five minutes because it gets that cold. Chicago also takes first place in corruption, compared to other large cities like New York and Los Angeles. Its nickname “Windy City” describes more than the weather.

Within Chicago, there is my home, Gage Park. The local alderman is Ed Burke, who takes the cake as the most corrupt alderman of Chicago.

But somehow, I love this city and take pride in having grown up here. I’m happy that I can genuinely call myself a Chicagoan. Although it has a misinformed reputation due to violence, Gage Park deserves appreciation because it houses many of Chicago’s Black and brown people. It’s a microcosm of Chicago at large: segregated, Black and brown, and home to many.

It is also strange that many don't know much about Gage Park because I know it so well. I no longer live in Gage Park, but I often visit to see my mom. It still gives me warm, fuzzy feelings. However, people who’ve heard of Gage Park link it to gang violence and the recent family massacre on 57th and California.

I hold some tragic memories myself. My friend Ubaldo Salgado was killed just blocks from my house. To this day, I still wish there was something I could have done to help him. Maybe, if I had been outside at the exact moment he walked by, I could

have stopped him from meeting with the person that shot and killed him. When I think back to that time, I often think about Ubaldo as a dear friend and not the aggressive person that he wanted others to think he was.

I’ve played in a soccer league in the namesake park on 55th and Western since I was a kid. It is because of this experience playing soccer at this park that made me recognize Gage Park as my home. It created a sense of safety for me because of the people from the neighborhood that came together every week. I would see and play with my classmates and meet their families there. Our families became friends. One of my classmate’s dad was my soccer coach. He remains one of the best community members that I know. He recently passed away after contracting COVID-19. Until his passing, I would run into him at the grocery store. He would encourage me to keep on working on my studies and would check up on my general wellness.

Currently, Gage Park holds one of the highest numbers of COVID-19 rates compared to other Chicago neighborhoods, and also a high rate of deaths. One in eighteen residents of Gage Park’s 60632 and 60629 ZIP codes have contracted the virus. Say what you will about the large group gatherings or greater COVID testing availability to rationalize these rates; this does not tell the whole truth. Gage Park is a working-class neighborhood. Many Gage Park workers labor in factories where their health is secondary or tertiary to the company profit margins.

This pandemic has sharply demonstrated that the government will leave the NOVEMBER 25, 2020 ¬ SOUTH SIDE WEEKLY 51

GAGE PARK

working class and the working immigrant people without any safety net. The working class is left without any resources to feed, clothe, and shelter their families. Instead, they must risk their lives and succumb to the dangers of the pandemic by showing up for work for a paycheck.

These and many other reasons make Gage Park home for me. I don't know any other place in the world as well as I know Gage Park. So many of my friends and family live here, and it has so much to offer, and it is more than its violence. It’s also a home to pretty awesome places that show more to Gage Park than what the news may let on. Despite the bad, there is complexity and beauty that only community effort can build in the following places. Here are three of the best places in Gage Park that I want to showcase in my dear neighborhood. (Maritere Gomez) Neighborhood Captain Maritere Gomez grew up in Gage Park. She has been an activist in the city for over ten years, mostly fighting for immigrant and labor justice for her community that gives so much and is not thanked enough.

Mexican Art, CPS, Mexican university Tecnológico de Monterrey, and the Illinois Department of Human Services.

Natividad Hernandez graciously met with me as a walk-in recently. She tells me that the organization’s eagerness is to assist people with immigration issues. She tells me, “Nuestro afan es ayudar a nuestra gente para que no tengan miedo”—“our goal is to help people so they’re not scared.” She goes on to say that in the immigrant community, talking about one’s immigrant status is taboo, and many immigrant families do not speak openly about their immigration issues, fearing any possible repercussions.

She says that many in the immigration system do not understand what it means to come from nothing, and so FKCO strives to help the people that come from that background.

Organizations like these are sparse in Gage Park but badly needed. It has served to inform the community of where to get tested for COVID-19 and assure them that authorities will not be given any information they share with the testing sites.

(Maritere Gomez)

BEST COMMUNITY ORGANIZATION

Frida Kahlo Community Organization, 5133 S. Kedzie Ave. Monday–Thursday, 9 pm–4 pm; closed Friday–Sunday. (312) 421-7599. fridacommunity.org

The Frida Kahlo Organization

The Frida Kahlo Organization (FKCO) is a nonprofit supporting the neighborhood with immigration services and assisting kids with homework during after school hours. Its slogan is “Our Passion is our Community.” The organization was started in 2002 when two community members Natividad Hernandez and Myrna Fragoso, realized that the community lacked this kind of resource. The first location, in Pilsen, was allotted for educational after school programming, and its second location in Gage Park is used primarily for immigration services. During the pandemic, it has served as an outpost for education on this health crisis.

The organization has worked in collaboration with the National Museum of MARITERE GOMEZ

BEST MUSEUM FOR A CITY WITH A HISTORICAL GREAT FIRE

Fire Museum of Greater Chicago

This museum was first created in the early 1990s. Retired firefighters donated their time to build this museum from scratch. The collection of items on display was housed in the St. Gabriel Catholic School for a decade before moving to its current location at 52nd and Western. Some of the things in the exhibit include old leather fire buckets, a hand-drawn hose cart, and dozens of vintage fire helmets.

The museum is a block from the house where I lived until I was eleven and only three blocks from the home where I grew up after that point. I mention the distance from my house because it was always close to me, but it was never introduced to me or used as an educational tool to teach kids in the neighborhood. It is there, in Gage Park, my home, and it has impressive old-fashioned firefighter trucks and offers tours every week. It is the best firefighter museum, and it can be used in a fruitful way for the community.

I hope that this museum is utilized in better ways than it previously has. I attended Hancock High School (in West Elsdon, which borders Gage Park). We had the military recruiters and police academy recruiters tabling in the hallway next to the principal’s office, but no firefighter tablings or field trips to the Fire Museum. I have no memories of firefighters in the hood coming to recruit us. South Side kids like myself must be exposed to places like the Fire Museum. (Maritere Gomez) Fire Museum of Greater Chicago, 5218 S. Western Ave. Open every fourth Saturday of the month, 10 am–2 pm. (877) 225-7491. facebook.com/fire-museum-of-greater-chicago-406781376050537

52 SOUTH SIDE WEEKLY ¬ NOVEMBER 25, 2020

GAGE PARK

BEST UNDER-TAUGHT HISTORY

Martin Luther King Jr.’s March in Gage Park

I learned recently, through an article that resurfaced in social media, that during the height of the Chicago Freedom Movement, Martin Luther King Jr. led a march for fair housing through Gage Park and Marquette Park. It felt especially relevant this past summer as the topics of racism and police brutality took over, and protests erupted in Chicago and across the country due to the police killing of George Floyd and others.

Who knew that Gage Park held a rally for fair housing in the ‘60s?! I certainly did not, and I bet that many other community members are not aware because I know them well. Having gone to Nightingale Elementary School in Gage Park, I wish myself and my classmates living in the neighborhood were exposed to their neighborhood history. Instead, we received the watered-down history lesson on MLK. There is so much more to this neighborhood that many do not know.

It feels good to know that Gage Park was part of the Chicago Freedom Movement.

(Maritere Gomez)

A Community Art Project by 2020 Threewalls Fellow Chandra Christmas-Rouse

The South Side’s Greatest Word Game FILL IN THE BLANKS!

I live in _____________. My neighborhood feels like A NEIGHBORHOOD

a community when I go to ______________ and hear A PLACE

____________ and smell ____________. I wish more A SOUND

A SMELL

people knew about the history of ________________ AN EVENT

in this neighborhood. In the future, I hope that every street corner has a ____________________________.

LUIS SINCHI

LA VILLITA Compiled by Jacqueline Serrato, Neighborhood Captain

I

t was a tough year for Little Village in many respects.

Due to the pandemic, 142 people have passed away. Street vendors who people thought were immortal died. A negligent implosion of a smokestack had vulnerable people coughing and in pain. Shootings went up, with twenty-four reported homicides so far this year as of press time. Struggling businesses were sent over the edge, forced to shut down or retire early, and storefronts that were empty last year because of high rents remain empty today. Some responded to the civil unrest with violence, others with empathy. On top of it all, profit-driven developers planted their flags in huge plots of land when nobody appeared to be looking.

What this section shows, however, is that there are still things to celebrate, there are still people helping, there are still businesses giving it their all, there are still youth planning a better future, there is still hope.

As immigrants, community members have learned that when times are tough to always keep it moving. But a concept that this community is still learning is that it can’t keep running forever. It can’t keep running from ICE, it can’t keep running from gangs, it can’t keep turning its cheek to corruption, it can’t keep evading the voting booth, it can’t keep giving up its sense of place.

We’re learning to plant roots, to stand up for ourselves, to face our fears, to question those in power, to create mutual aid when we lack safety nets, to organize, to create solidarity, and to look within. ( Jacqueline Serrato) Neighborhood Captain Jacqueline Serrato is the editor-in-chief of the Weekly and co-manages the largest neighborhood page on Facebook.

AN OBJECT

LEAVE A VOICEMAIL OR TEXT YOUR ANSWERS TO 312-869-2584 NOVEMBER 25, 2020 ¬ SOUTH SIDE WEEKLY 53

LA VILLITA

BEST DRIVE-THRU FOOD PANTRY

BEST MEXICAN BREAKFAST FOR FIVE DOLLARS

For generations, churches in Little Village have organized food pantries to help feed families on the West Side, and in the midst of a global pandemic, New Life Church’s Pan De Vida food pantry is feeding thousands of households a week. What makes this distribution center stand out is not only the volume of food pallets provided by the Greater Chicago Food Depository, or the number of youth staff who help run the operation, but its drive-thru model that minimizes human contact and, thus, the spread of COVID-19.

Twice a week, on Tuesdays and Fridays, cars start lining up first thing in the morning along traffic cones on South Lawndale Avenue, from West 27th Street down to West 31st Street. Working out of the building across the street from the church, which was previously a tiendita with a mural of an Aztec warrior (that’s still up)—and whose owner retired when the pandemic shut everything down—food pantry staff load cardboard boxes into car trunks and back seats. Like a production line, workers and volunteers wearing face masks take turns serving each vehicle and sending it on its way.

The federal Paycheck Protection Program and individual donors help the church cover the costs of the pantry. The operation is directed by Abelardo Colin, who like many of the other young staffers, developed leadership skills at New Life through its mentorship and street intervention programs; the pantry also counts on regular volunteers from La Villita Community Church, the nonprofit organization Enlace Chicago, and other neighbors. Their hope is for the food pantry to become a permanent fixture and to continue serving the community holistically. ( Jacqueline Serrato)

Every weekend, Atardecer Acalpuqueño, a hidden gem in the historic Marshall Boulevard neighborhood, attracts immigrant families with its authentic rural dishes and handmade tortillas. The unassuming parking lot on Cermak tends to be full on the daily, especially by early risers who want to take advantage of the breakfast specials that end at 11am.

The family-friendly restaurant boasts a special menu with eleven meals for five dollars each. While these traditional dishes come without meat, they taste much more expensive than five bucks. Or maybe it’s just the cultural nostalgia because it feels like your mom’s or grandmother’s cooking.

The eggs can come scrambled with salsa del molcajete or salsa de arbol for more spiciness, or mixed with tomato, jalapeño and onion a la mexicana, or with fried potatoes, or with cactus and frijoles de la olla. The combos are many, and for a few dollars more, you can add chorizo, cecina, or steak. The yellow corn tortillas bring it all together.

Pre-pandemic, the older folks liked to lounge in conversation and stick around for the coffee, café de olla that is boiled in a clay pot and infused with cinnamon and sometimes other spices. And when coffee’s all you want, there’s a selection of pan dulce if you change your mind.

Whatever your mood, this Guerrero-style restaurant is always a top contender. ( Jacqueline Serrato)

Pan De Vida Food Pantry

Pan De Vida Food Pantry, 2701 S. Lawndale Ave. Tuesday and Friday, 9am–12pm.

(773) 762-0270. facebook.com/pandevidalavillita COURTESY OF MATT DEMATEO

Atardecer Acalpuqueño

Atardecer Acalpuqueño, 2906 W. Cermak Rd. Monday–Thursday, 8am–5pm; Friday–Sunday, 8am–6pm. (773) 277-7198

BEST BOTÁNICA ON 26TH

Botánica La Guadalupana

Owner Lidia Santoyo welcomes customers to her botánica with a gleeful attitude.

Although she is wearing a mask, it is easy to guess that she is smiling underneath it.

The botánica boasts of dozens of medicinal teas and supplements for the health and wellbeing of those who come through its doors.

Santoyo set up shop in Little Village more than thirty years ago. Hailing from Salvatierra, Guanajuato, she arrived in Chicago with an herbalism and alternative medicine degree. She was not allowed to put her degrees to use because they were not recognized in the United States, and in order to practice alternative medicine she would have been forced to study her field all over again. However, she knew the importance of her work: “In Mexico, people for generations have used teas and herbs to heal. I loved it, and I began to study [them] because it’s not just [about] working with them but knowing what they are good for.”

Despite not being a resident of Little Village, one day upon visiting the neighborhood she decided that 26th Street would be the perfect place to continue to use her skills and put her passion to work for others. “What inspired me to set up shop here was that thirty years ago, this street was mainly paisanos, mostly Mexican, and I liked it because since I used to do this in Mexico, I thought I could help the community.”

During the pandemic, Santoyo noticed that residents of La Villita are leaning into what their grandparents and parents already knew: that plants can heal. Throughout the pandemic, Santoyo stated, “One thing I sell the most is the products that help the immune system, specifically the ones that help the lungs, the throat, so I have had 54 SOUTH SIDE WEEKLY ¬ NOVEMBER 25, 2020

GERRI FERNANDEZ

customers ask for that because a lot of people don’t have insurance, and these herbs and supplements have helped them to heal.”

Santoyo is proud of the work that she does. Her focus is not the limpias, hechizos, or amarres as other botánicas do, but her aim is to help people regain their spiritual, physical, and mental health. “People who come here are used to the plants, to the natural supplements, and when someone needs something esoteric, we sell them the products such as candles, santo sculptures, lotions for love, money, and luck,” she said.

If you are looking for teas, candles, incense, herbal supplements, aguas de colonia, evil eye charms, and even pheromone-containing lotions to attract your crush, this is the place to come to. (Laura Ramírez) Botánica La Guadalupana, 3842 W. 26th St. Monday–Saturday, 10am–7pm; Sunday, 10am–5pm. (773) 522-7430

BEST ENVIRONMENTAL JUSTICE LEAGUE

Little Village Environmental Justice Organization

I first heard about the Little Village Environmental Justice Organization (LVEJO) when I was a sophomore at Greater Lawndale High School for Social Justice. All their work around the neighborhood has always been astounding. LVEJO members and their community keep Little Village residents informed about and well-represented in the constant fights against pollution.

In class we explored “The Poisoned Onion” project, which LVEJO was part of and which studied lead in the soil and Superfund sites in the city: places where companies would dump their waste and it’d be too toxic to be around. So the following year, I joined the Environmental Justice Club, a collaboration between my school and LVEJO, admiring the work other students had done a year prior with the #NoDieselLV project. At that time, we discussed the underlying issue of pollution from BWAY Corporation in the neighborhood, and persuaded all four school principals at the Little Village Lawndale High School campus to work with Big Green Chicago to get the school a garden.

In a sense, just being a part of that club was a window to show me what a teenager of color could do for their community. Whether it was taking field trips to the Farm on Ogden (see the North Lawndale section for more) or The Plant in Back of the Yards, NOVEMBER 25, 2020 ¬ SOUTH SIDE WEEKLY 55

LA VILLITA the group exposed young minds to other progressive environments. LVEJO is a real example of unity, making a difference, and a positive change in a community.

They were able to get the Crawford coal power plant shut down. They fought against the expansion of the Unilever factory that is located by the Zapata Elementary School (unfortunately, that was a battle lost) and continue to organize town hall meetings, like one on January 16, 2020, to hold the company Hilco accountable for its failures at the Crawford power plant demolition site, which resulted in the neighborhood being coated with dust and the death of worker Reynaldo “Rey” Grimaldo.

Aside from working against invasive, polluting companies, LVEJO also creates green spaces within the community. La Villita Park was its biggest accomplishment, as the organization turned a huge Superfund site in front of Cook County Jail into a community green space. Furthermore, LVEJO led the transformation of a fenceless site used to deposit leftover oil barrels into a small community garden, Semillas de Justicia Garden.

I’m still amazed by what LVEJO has done and still does. During the pandemic, its efforts against Hilco polluting our air have been tireless, and so have its finding ways to support its community during these hard times, by supplying mutual aid funds for families who are in need of groceries, and by cooking and delivering food to those who need it. (Sylvia Merie Meraz, Yollocalli Arts Reach) Little Village Environmental Justice Organization, 2445 S. Spaulding Ave. (773) 762-6991. lvejo.org

BEST LANDLOCKED FRIED SHRIMP

Troha’s

Maintaining a small business in the same location for 103 years will make you a neighborhood institution. Frying delicious, flakey shrimp for four generations of local diners will do that for you, too. Troha’s regulars, of which there are plenty, are quick to sing its praises, with many saying that the restaurant has been a tradition in their families for decades. So how is it exactly that a landlocked Lawndale restaurant came to fry some of the best seafood in Chicago?

Good value is part of the answer: Troha’s was founded in 1917 on the fine principle of selling a bowl of chili and a stein of beer for a nickel. However, the Depression caused prices of chili meat to rise, so they introduced smoked seafood in 1935, and after a visit to New Orleans, the owners decided to start frying shrimp. The current owners, now in their fourth generation, still pay attention to value. You’ll notice it with the lightness with which you reach for your wallet when it’s time to pay for that half-order meal, hand-breaded and cooked to order for only ten dollars.

It’s hard to overstate the importance of a community beacon like this. Legacy businesses like Troha’s act as third spaces that are integral to the exchange of ideas and fostering growth and community bonds in neighborhoods, and are especially important in areas where locally owned small businesses are few and far between.

It’s difficult to manage a small business for over a hundred years anywhere; Troha’s has helped Lawndale neighbors weather the storms of white flight, disinvestment, and now, COVID-19 storms with them. (Molly O’Mera, The Real Chi: Free Spirit Media's Community Newsroom) Troha’s Chicken and Shrimp House, 4151 W. 26th St., (773) 521-7847.

Sunday–Monday, noon–8pm; Tuesday–Thursday, 11am–8pm; Friday–Saturday, 11am–9pm. chicagoshrimphouse.com

56 SOUTH SIDE WEEKLY ¬ NOVEMBER 25, 2020

BEST SHOPPING CENTER THAT IS NOT A BIG-BOX STORE

Discount Mall

With so many shopping options along the 26th Street business corridor, Discount Mall remains the go-to place for just about anything—but its future is threatened by developers.

Discount Mall is a massive cultural hub in Little Village, where you could find the best deals on toys, shoes, Western wear, music, and jewelry. What you find here are not things you are likely to find at big-box stores like Target, rumored to be a potential tenant that a developer will lure to the plaza. (Should you need a Target, Little Village is already right in between two of them.)

Discount Mall’s façade displays a large mural of the Mexican flag. Having a one-stop shop where you can find rare and one-of-a-kind handmade goods, while being culturally relevant, is what has contributed to Little Village becoming the second-largest tax-generating district in Chicago, next to the Magnificent Mile. The Magnificent Mile downtown is not a shopping district developed with poor or working class families of color in mind, but this one is. For many people in the neighborhood, Discount Mall, previously recognized as the Best Place to Buy Literally Anything in 2014 BoSS, is a place that could in some ways replicate a mercantil like the ones found in Mexico. It is a place that lends an opportunity to learn how to create and develop a small business and become entrepreneurs in the United States.

Out of the seventy-seven community areas of Chicago, we have one of the largest populations of children. As a first-generation Mexican-American young Latina growing up in the nineties in Little Village, I would visit the mall almost every weekend to immerse myself in my culture without having to leave the neighborhood. It served as a transition and getaway from everything that would force-feed the need for me to assimilate, and I could walk in and feel the dignity, honor, and pride of coming from a culture made of and by people with faces that looked just like me. In the same way, Discount Mall serves as a transition into life in the United States for hardworking people looking to have a better life and opportunities for their family.

Discount Mall is where I purchased my first mixtape, bought some of my first hoop earrings, purchased my first pair of Dickies, my first Mexican flag, paisley print bandanas, my first Old English belt buckle, my first gold name plate and where I could get lost while my mom picked up un mantel or cobijas San Marcos, embroidery yarn, tortilleros, and, of course, tacos. You can purchase snacks and foods from the street vendors that surround the best shopping center in Little Village.

Since it was bought earlier this year, however, its future is uncertain. Organized groups like Juntos Por La Villita, Mi Villita, and Únete, among other young activist groups and neighborhood residents, have spent their time educating neighborhood people about gentrification. Small vendors have rallied outside the Discount Mall with the goal of pressuring owner John Novak and 12th Ward Alderman George Cardenas about their intentions for the future of the space, both of whom have said they want to attract corporate retailers.

Some of many of the puestos where I recommend you shop and help preserve the space that made many like me who we are today include: La Esmeralda (stall #801), Chicago Pets (stall #113), Sophie’s Shop (stall #306-307), The Bridal Shop (stall #419), Cerrajeria (stall #230), Ceaser’s Music of Illinois (stall #323-324), Tino’s Mens Wear (stall #420), D & J Jewelry (stall #207). (Gloria Talamantes) Discount Mall, 3115 W. 26th St. Monday–Saturday, 10am–7:30pm; Sunday, 10am–7pm.

(773) 376-3700. discountmall.business.site

McKINLEY PARK Compiled by Jocelyn Vega, Neighborhood Captain

PHOTO COURTESY OF OBDULIA VEGA

A

fter twenty-seven years of living in McKinley Park, Obdulia and Enrique Vega have grown and tended to many community roots. They’re also my parents. I interviewed them to learn their “Best of McKinley Park” based on nearly three decades of living on the same street. As early twenty-year-olds and recent immigrants, they purchased their first home in a new nation and city in 1987. Many of their coworkers scorned my parents for being “financially irresponsible” considering how young they were in an unknown country, but they persisted.

Obdulia hopes Chicagoans honor its existing residents and their contributions in shaping McKinley Park. Meanwhile, Enrique described it “as his home” because his children were raised here. Enrique and Obdulia’s “Best of McKinley Park” reflects their highest respects to its outstanding people and places.

This home has been extended to many guests throughout the years. Each visit often involves many elaborate meals and growing acceptance in community by seeing people as part of their greater family. This home continues to be their home. ( Jocelyn Vega) Neighborhood Captain Jocelyn Vega is a first-generation Latina and contributing editor to the Weekly

BEST NEIGHBOR THAT WELCOMED OUR FAMILY TO THE NEIGHBORHOOD

A Tribute to Ailene Emerson

Until she moved in 2005, Ailene was our neighbor. “She’s our family,” said Obdulia.

When she was twenty, Obdulia and Ailene, who was twice her age, became close friends. Ailene also became a confidante to the young mother of a three-year-old and another daughter in the future.

“At first, Ailene was concerned about two twenty-year-olds moving next door to her family’s previous home. Her mother, sister, and family members grew up there.

That was her family’s home. Ailene told me how she lost her tranquility after we first moved in,” said Obdulia.

However, Ailene extended her arm and wisdom to my parents. Obdulia said, “She told us that she realized her impression was wrong. She revealed her assumption too.

She was simply surprised but saw young people working so hard and raising a family.”

Ailene also extended her compassionate wisdom about parenthood, homeownership, and living in America.

“We spoke different languages. She didn’t know Spanish. I didn’t understand English, but we listened to each other in many ways. Ailene would invite me to learn about the grocery stores, visit hardware stores, and understand government paperwork.

She recommended people that she trusted. I could always turn to her.” Over the fence, they shared space between their homes.

NOVEMBER 25, 2020 ¬ SOUTH SIDE WEEKLY 57

McKINLEY PARK

Obdulia would offer homemade gelatinas (jello) that were never refused. As an exchange, Ailene would always surprise my parents by ordering pizza or grilling some burgers to eat together. They respect Ailene as a lifetime mentor to their children. “She is a kind person that welcomed us with heart,” said Enrique. ( Jocelyn Vega)

BEST VOLUNTARY NEIGHBORHOOD GARDENER

BEST NEIGHBOR WHO EXEMPLIFIES NEIGHBORLY INTEGRITY

Obdulia wanted to highlight her husband as a hardworking neighbor, especially supporting seniors for the past twenty-seven years. Enrique is always working with the land and not just in his backyard. His green thumb has a collective hand. He extends his time to maintain the entire street by mowing the majority of the front yards each weekend. He explained that this is how he likes to spend his time. This is how he wants to live. He wants his neighborhood to be inviting and welcoming.

And it definitely shows—you cannot miss the engine of a nonstop lawn mower waking you up early on a Sunday morning. When I asked why he wakes up early for this, he simply responded, “It shows who I am.”

Obdulia explained that Enrique’s love for the land has helped many neighbors and our family enjoy the outdoors as a second home. She said, “This helps how we live together on this block. He also gives crucial support for elderly neighbors, year long.

He’s always done that. He always helps who needs it, including the land.”

Across seasons, Enrique is either outside with a lawn mower and gardening tools or with a shovel tackling the winter’s garden: snow. Obdulia distinctly remembered when Enrique was in Mexico for an entire winter. Elderly neighbors constantly asked for him.

“They shared how much they needed his help. There was no one helping,” said Obdulia. During these conversations, some of the neighbors disclosed their medical barriers to her: heart attacks, hip problems, or balance issues. They also shared how Enrique’s yardwork kept them safe and gave them the security to step outside.

Upon returning, Enrique didn’t realize his work’s impact. “He does this with a voluntary heart,” said Obdulia. ( Jocelyn Vega)

Rafa

“He’s helped us in our greatest needs. He’s always willing to help and listen, even in emergencies,” said Obdulia. Enrique added that Rafa’s help also ended those emergencies, and they would always return that support as neighbors.

My parents counted all of the times Rafa was an ally and community role model.

“He is genuine, even down to the detail, in everything he does,” said Obdulia. Enrique described him as a man of integrity. He also thanked Rafa for his support across these years. Both Enrique and Obdulia appreciate Rafa and his extended family. “The sidewalk conversations, greetings, check-ins, and advice are all things we need as neighbors,” said Obdulia.

Tears escaped from Obdulia’s eyes when she explained his mentorship as irreplaceable. My parents lost count of how many times Rafa invited me to join his nieces and nephews on adventures. Enrique mentioned how Rafa treated me like another niece. In the past twenty years, his family became part of ours.

Obdulia and Enrique see Rafa as the type of neighbor that we all need and need to be. They hope people don’t forget how powerful neighbors are. They encourage people to actively build relationships with people close by. Without these deep connections, Obdulia said, “it wouldn’t be a neighborhood without this.” ( Jocelyn Vega)

Enrique Vega

BEST PALETEROS AND ICE CREAM VENDORS TO SUPPORT

All of them

“There’s a love in what they do, and it’s difficult to do,” said Obdulia when describing the gamble paleteros make each day when they sell their paletas (ice cream on a stick).

“There’s no salary and all of the risks. You risk not selling enough to even have an income,” she added, encouraging community members of all ages to buy directly from the vendors. Enrique agreed that each dollar goes the mile considering how far each paletero walks, searching for customers.

Often, Obdulia and Enrique buy in large quantities and offer a tip to express their gratitude. This kind of detail is always received as a surprise by paleteros, but Enrique explained that it’s important to contribute as much as possible. As part of his values, this level of contribution directly supports “the people” as a person living with community.

“You have to support them. Look out for them,” said Enrique. My parents typically buy in large bulks to offer “the joy of paletas” to guests and family members. Obdulia explained that everyone wins when we support local paleteros. “They love what they do! That’s why they do it! They bring joy in a cart,” concluded Obdulia.

McKinley Park’s paleteros, located throughout the neighborhood. Listen for their jingling bells in the warmer months and remember, cash only.

58 SOUTH SIDE WEEKLY ¬ NOVEMBER 25, 2020

"VIVA EL PALETERO." PHOTO BY JOCELYN VEGA

McKINLEY PARK

BEST GROCERY STORE TO SUPPORT DURING THE PANDEMIC

La Placita Chicago

La Placita has been fundamental to 35th Street, according to my parents. They both remember meeting most of its existing staff when they first arrived in the neighborhood. Obdulia explained how this is her go-to spot to buy meat, specialty dairy, and homemade specialties. “Los Carniceros’ (the butchers’) dedication and detailed service is what makes the difference. Their dedication is seen in their service and products,” said Obdulia. During the pandemic, Enrique and Obdulia explained they are shopping here as much as possible. Obdulia said, “We have to support our small places. Each dollar counts more and more for them.” Enrique’s favorite aspect is their weekend food options, specifically their menudo and carnitas. ( Jocelyn Vega) La Placita Chicago, 1840 W. 35th St. Weekdays, 8am–8pm; weekends, 8am–7pm. (773) 254-1223

BEST SMALL PARK GROWING FUTURE GENERATIONS

Hoyne Playground Park

LOCAL VOLUNTEER GARDENER, ENRIQUE VEGA. PHOTO BY JOCELYN VEGA

“There used to be a lot of violence there, always something happening,” said Enrique.

However, family engagement has uplifted a park and future generations in the past two decades. Enrique and Obdulia highlighted Omega Delta baseball as a powerful force in the community.

They explained violence in the park was a symptom of larger social issues, not stereotypes that gangbangers were simply “bad” people. Instead, they pointed to the overwhelming racism of unequal resources in the nineties that prevented young people and families from growing healthy ties in their environments. Enrique is happy to see the park now fill up with dozens of teams that are spending their time growing with the community.

From their backyard, they are both happy to now hear the booming cheers and the broadcasted commentary at the park. For Obdulia, Hoyne Playground Park is her favorite park, despite McKinley Park’s massive impression when she first visited the neighborhood. “Hoyne Park is small, but it serves the community,” said Obdulia. ( Jocelyn Vega) Hoyne Playground Park, 3417 S. Hamilton Ave. Open every day, 6am–11pm. (312) 7476527. chicagoparkdistrict.com/parks-facilities/hoyne-thomas-park

NOVEMBER 25, 2020 ¬ SOUTH SIDE WEEKLY 59

NORTH LAWNDALE Compiled by Martha Bayne, Neighborhood Captain

AFRICAN HERITAGE GARDEN AT 1245 S. CENTRAL PARK AVE. PHOTO BY SARAH JOYCE

M

any residents of the North Lawndale community area don't call it that. To them, it's simply Lawndale, the neighborhood's original name.

Blanche Killingsworth is a product of Lawndale. She came to the neighborhood from the South in 1962 and has lived there ever since. She currently serves as the chair of the North Lawndale Historical and Cultural Society.

Killingsworth wants the world to know about Lawndale's rich and storied past.

"I talk about North Lawndale everywhere I go," she said. The Central Park Theater on West Roosevelt Road, for example, was the first of the over fifty theaters in the Balaban and Katz Theater Corporation chain. It was designed by Chicago architectural firm Rapp and Rapp in the Spanish Revival style: a palace of red brick and terra cotta, with forest green roof tiles. The theater opened its doors in the fall of 1917, reportedly the first in the country with mechanical air conditioning.

In its heyday, the Central Park Theater buzzed with the latest in music and film.

"Benny Goodman debuted there. Dinah Washington sang there," Killingsworth said.

But it fell into disrepair and shut down in 1969; the House of Prayer—Church of God in Christ took over the building in 1971 and began restoring the building to its former 60 SOUTH SIDE WEEKLY ¬ NOVEMBER 25, 2020

glory. This year, the Central Park Theater was featured in the Chicago Architecture Center's Open House Chicago virtual tour.

"Cornelius Coffey, the first African American aviator? North Lawndale. Hyman Rickover, the godfather of nuclear submarines? North Lawndale." Killingsworth chuckled, "Yeah, we've got a little history going on that I intend to tell the world about.

Today, around 34,000 Chicagoans, eighty-eight percent of whom are Black, live in Lawndale. But between 1890 and 1910, it was primarily a Czechoslovakian community.

By the 1920s, it had become home to a large Jewish population. In an interview with the Weekly, Killingsworth said that, at one point, the neighborhood had the most synagogues of any place in the city. Chicago's most famous Jewish commercial street at the time was Roosevelt Road. But white residents left in droves due to racist fear-mongering about precipitous declines in home values as more and more Black families from the South Side and southern states moved to the neighborhood. White flight flipped the neighborhood from white to Black in a decade. According to the Steans Family Foundation, the 87,000 white residents in Lawndale in 1950 dropped to less than 11,000 by 1960, while the Black population grew from 13,000 to more than 113,000.

NORTH LAWNDALE Lawndale has lost many buildings over the years to fires and uprisings, but above all, to what the Chicago Architecture Foundation’s exhibition guide Learning from North Lawndale: Past, Present + Future calls a "continuous lack of repair” as a result of discriminatory housing policies like contract selling, blockbusting, and landlorddesigned overcrowding. In 1993, the city enacted a municipal ordinance called Fast Track to raze vacant buildings. According to the architecture foundation, buildings in Lawndale "became magnets for the wrecking ball.” Fast Track was supposed to improve neighborhoods by demolishing compromised structures and reducing the spaces where sex work and drug use might take place, but instead left communities like Lawndale with piles of rubble and hundreds of vacant lots.

1,355 vacant lots, to be exact, according to the Chicago Data Portal.

While structural disinvestment played a significant role in the story of Lawndale, so did social movements and community-led neighborhood transformation.

Lawndale was where Martin Luther King Jr. lived with his family in 1966 to draw attention to the desperate need for housing reform and an end to discriminatory housing practices in Chicago.

Lawndale was where the Contract Buyers League organized and fought against contract selling, renegotiating hundreds of contracts for its members in the late 1960s and 1970s.

Lawndale was where Gerald and Lorean Earles started the Slum Busters to highlight the beauty of their neighborhood, organizing volunteers to clean up vacant lots and till the soil next to train tracks.

Commitment to Lawndale's past, present, and future runs deep in this neighborhood's veins. One of the Lawndale Pop-Up Spot's most recent exhibitions was "Lawndale: a Living History," an interactive installation highlighting the portraits and stories of long-time resident Lawndalians to facilitate intergenerational conversations with young folks in the neighborhood. Killingsworth hopes that Chicagoans who don't live in Lawndale spend time getting to know her neighborhood, "to really see what it is, how it is, and where it's going—because we are moving." It is in that spirit that the Weekly has included North Lawndale—more commonly associated with the West Side—in its annual Best of the South Side issue for the first time this year.

(Charmaine Runes) Neighborhood Captain Martha Bayne is the managing editor of the Weekly.

BEST MULTITASKING LANDMARK

Stone Temple Missionary Baptist Church

The imposing-if-eclectic structure at the corner of Douglas Boulevard and Millard Avenue has served as a sanctuary to all comers for almost a century. Stone Temple Missionary Baptist Church, designated a landmark in 2016, was established in 1926 as a synagogue by Romanian Jews fleeing persecution. But after, thanks to white flight, Lawndale’s Jewish community left for the suburbs, the building was bought in 1954 by Georgia-born Reverend James Marcellus Stone, and given over to the Baptist church as a haven for African-American migrants from the South doing the same. In the fifties and sixties, Martin Luther King Jr., unwelcome in Chicago’s white churches, was a regular preacher, speaking from the pulpit under the glow of stained-glass Stars of David that endure today. “When Dr. King needed someplace to speak in Chicago, because the doors [to white churches] were closed because Mayor Daley said, ‘We don't need him. He's a rabble rouser,’ Rev. J.M. Stone, [the church’s founder], allowed him to come here. He set up an office in the church, and was here frequently,” said Reshorna Fitzpatrick; she’s married to Stone’s grandson, Bishop Derrick M. Fitzpatrick, and as a couple they serve as the current pastors.

According to Reshorna, before COVID-19, the church was known as “the funeral church.” A lot of churches are afraid to host funerals for gang members, she said, or simply are too small for large gatherings. So Stone Temple “opened up our doors…. nyone who wanted to have a funeral could come here.” She sees this as part of the church’s mission to serve the community, something it’s doing now, under COVID, by hosting outdoor services on the boulevard parkway, and giving away free food— including installing a Love Fridge—and other necessities like diapers and PPE. “We don't want there to be a lack in our community. We don't want there to be a lack in the lives of people. Wherever we can be our brother's keeper, that's what we want to be. Be it physically, mentally, or emotionally, whatever we can do to help, that's what we're really here for.”

Last year, a flower and vegetable garden was developed just east of the church with the help of Faith in Place, a religious environmental advocacy organization, and volunteers from Chicago Sinai, a Reform Jewish temple on the Near North Side with which Stone Temple has a longstanding partnership. This year, that garden became yet another site of service, with the installation of a stage designed by Human Scale—“a beautiful group of young people” according to Reshorna. The church is currently working with the Goodman Theater to facilitate a seven-week storytelling workshop for anyone in the community who wants to participate. “It gives us a voice to tell our story, our own narrative, our truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth,” Reshorna said.

This winter, Stone Temple is the distribution site for a free weekly outdoor soup giveaway called “Soup for the Soul." Come next summer, she hopes to see storytelling on the garden stage, and flowers blooming in a new lot across the street, where the church is in the process of installing a cut flower farm and stand called “Love Blooms.”

It’s another amenity North Lawndale lacks, and another way Stone Temple is working to fill the gap. (Martha Bayne) Stone Temple Missionary Baptist Church, 3622 W. Douglas Blvd. (773) 762–0013 or (773) 762-0900. Stonetemplechurch.org. Soup for the Soul happens Mondays from 4-6pm through March 31, 2021; for more or to support the project see www.gofundme.com/f/ NLsoupforthesoul

BEST LONG-RUNNING ARTS RETREAT AND COMMUNITY GROUP

Chicago Urban Art Retreat Center

Looking for ways to be not only involved in your community, but in yourself, through art, workshops, and programs? The Chicago Urban Art Retreat Center (CUARC) puts North Lawndale residents first by offering them a platform to share their creativity.

CUARC is a nonprofit, volunteer-based organization that has been offering arts and cultural programming to residents of North Lawndale since 1991. Over the years, it has created different ways to bring local artists and the community together by offering a safe retreat center where residents can participate in creative workshops, women’s retreats, and much more.

CUARC has incorporated the North Lawndale community into their projects, such as with the North Lawndale Heritage Quilt project, where the theme was the Black heritage of North Lawndale. This community art project consisted of hosting workshops in creating a quilt square with paper, watercolors, collage techniques, and acrylics. In addition to these workshops, several other workshops were held at Sacred Heart Home, a facility for adults with mental and physical health issues. Residents there created portraits of Black Americans that were later included in the quilt.

The center also offers a Peace Art Studio, where community members are invited to make any form of art, with all materials provided. CUARC also encourages participants to examine social justice issues and other issues of concern, such as animal NOVEMBER 25, 2020 ¬ SOUTH SIDE WEEKLY 61

STUDENT ACTIVISM IN NORTH LAWNDALE. PHOTO BY THOUGHTPOET

welfare. (The center has made it part of their mission to “be a voice for the voiceless animals that endure cruelty worldwide.”)

CUARC supports North Lawndale youth through its Youth Solutions Program, which encourages nonviolence and peace through art and discussion programs. This program has hosted events such as peace walks, where both children and adults are invited on a short walk promoting peace and happiness. An exciting upcoming project CUARC is currently working on is their Tubman-Kahlo Resource Center. Named in honor of Harriet Tubman and Frida Kahlo, the resource center, to be built on a currently vacant lot at 1957-59 South Kedzie Avenue, near the Kedzie Pink Line stop, will hopefully include an art gallery, a vegan cafe, a meditation garden, a flower shop, a referral office that will offer social services to residents, a stage for performances, and much more. CUARC plans to have this resource center up and running by late 2021 or early 2022. (Valeria Garcia, The Real Chi: Free Spirit Media's Community Newsroom) Chicago Urban Art Retreat Center, 1957 S. Spaulding Ave. (773) 542-9126. urbanartretreat.com

BEST NEIGHBORHOOD CULTIVATORS OF GREEN SPACE

North Lawndale Greening Committee

North Lawndale residents have done tremendous work restoring vacant lots into gardens for more than twenty-five years. Over fifty community gardens now dot the neighborhood, all serving a shared purpose beyond beautification: fostering cultural connection.

Each community garden boasts unique features representing the history and pride of its predominantly Black community. The North Lawndale Greening Committee (NLGC) crafted this focus with support and input from the community and city.

From the kinds of vegetable beds to the artwork bordering the space, there’s a lot of history under the soil.

Before NLGC formed in 1995, the Slum Busters Garden on the 1900 block of South Trumbull Avenue had been thriving since 1986, created by Gerald and Lorean 62 SOUTH SIDE WEEKLY ¬ NOVEMBER 25, 2020

Earles as part of a campaign to have neighborhood potholes and sidewalks repaired by the city. Their efforts attracted helping hands from both inside and outside the community throughout the years. Located underneath the Pink Line tracks, the garden features flower and vegetable beds and hand-painted signs. In 1993, Slum Busters Garden was conferred a Daily Point of Light Award, given to recognize acts of volunteerism, by then-President Bill Clinton. In the same year, the garden was featured in the movie To Sir with Love, Part 2, starring Sidney Poitier.

This garden, according to NLGC president Dr. Shemuel Israel, inspired other neighborhood renovation and redevelopment projects, including the formation of NLGC and the creation of a local farmer’s market.

A newer garden, African Heritage Garden, at 1245 South Central Park Avenue, sits on four city lots. It has a large flower bed formed in the shape of the African continent containing perennials and annuals whose bold colors evoke those of traditional garments. The Chicago Council of Elders officiated the opening of the African Heritage Garden in 2005 as a place of culture and community, according to its profile on the website of NeighborSpace, a nonprofit urban land trust that works with community gardens throughout the city. It now includes nine raised beds for food production, with trees and shrubs bordering its walls.

Beyond growing food and flowers, the gardens grow community. They have become gathering spaces for storytelling, peace circles, outdoor recess, bird watching, and just leisurely sitting. NLGC also runs a paid summer youth program for teenagers to learn gardening skills to keep cultivating crops during the season. (Madonna Salto, The Real Chi: Free Spirit Media's Community Newsroom) For more information on community gardens and gardening in North Lawndale, visit the North Lawndale Greening Committee’s website at nlgreeningcommittee.org

BEST STUDENT PARK ANTI-RACISM ADVOCACY

Campaign to Rename Douglass Park

Bianca Jones, a former educator at Village Leadership Academy, had no idea her 2017 fifth graders would create a path forward to dismantling a long legacy of white supremacy. This year, after four years of student advocacy, the Chicago Park District Board of Commissioners made the historic decision to rename Douglas Park in honor of slavery abolitionist Frederick Douglass and his wife, Anna.

“No one anticipated the persistence and the follow-through that these young people were going to have in getting the job done,” Jones said.

For years, the 173-acre park formerly known as “Douglas” has been beloved by the North Lawndale community as a place for kids to play and for families to gather.

But it became clear to the students that the park’s original name, honoring former U.S. Senator Stephen A. Douglas of Illinois, best known today for his pre-Civil War debates with Abraham Lincoln in which he refused to condemn slavery, was hurtful to Black Chicagoans who call North Lawndale home.

NORTH LAWNDALE Village Leadership Academy is a private K-8 school in the South Loop with a social justice focus. “That’s what we wanted—for people to see the damage of white supremacy and our country’s racist past,” said Jennifer Pagán, a former VLA educator who took the lead on the grassroots campaign in 2018 after Jones.

The students initially wanted to rename the park after Rekia Boyd, a young Black woman killed near the park by off-duty Chicago Police Detective Dante Servin in 2012, but later decided to re-focus their campaign in honor of Anna and Frederick Douglass for their efforts in the abolition of slavery and expansion of freedoms for Black Americans. To the students, the historic pair symbolize the passions and struggles of Black Americans in their plight to fight for a more equal future.

“To say that when you step foot on these grounds, this is named after two people who fought for our liberation, it's small, but there is a mental shift there when you know that history and you know what it means. When that comes up in conversation, that's empowering, that sows the seeds which spread more knowledge,” Jones said.

These are the same conversations needed to start further empowering Black youth, Black women, and Black families. The renaming of the park is a step forward in that direction, and comes at a time when the nation has slowly begun to wake up to its history and ties with white supremacists.

But Pagán said she believes the class hasn’t been given due credit for its effort, as the students were largely ignored by the city during their four years of canvassing. The name change, said Pagán, has only now happened because city officials felt pressured to do so in the wake of this summer’s protests against the killing of George Floyd.

(And perhaps, as reported recently, due to the creative vandalism of two self-described “old white ladies” who, according to a recent WBEZ story, took it upon themselves to add extra “S”’s to the Park District signage.)

However, discouragement and the lack of attention from people in power is no new story for the Black community and other people of color, said Pagán: “This moment definitely was taken advantage of, and the students should have been listened to years ago, but I was glad that they were able to see the fullness of the campaign and able to seal the victory.”

In an impassioned speech celebrating the park’s renaming, Chyla Lockhart, one of the students recently honored with the Friends of the Park Parktivist Award, included advice to young kids inspired to follow in the footsteps of their own work for social justice:“You are powerful! Use your voice and always stay committed. Get the support of your peers and work together even if it's hard.” (Danyella Wilder) Douglass Park, W. Roosevelt Rd. to W. 19th St. between S. Albany Ave. and S. California Ave. (773) 762-2842. chicagoparkdistrict.com/parks-facilities/park-no-218-previouslydouglas-stephen-park

BEST RETIREMENT

New Pine Valley Restaurant

Louise Harper, better known as “Momma Lue,” has been working at New Pine Valley Restaurant since 1962, when she was sixteen, after she moved to Chicago from Mississippi. At age seventy-seven, during her retirement party this September, she could say it was the only employer she ever had. She served meals to generations of Lawndale locals as well as global icons, such as Martin Luther King Jr. and the Clinton family. Momma Lue has been serving some Lawndale neighbors since their childhood and provided others with their first jobs. After a long tenure as a waitress, she purchased the business from the original owners, who were entering retirement— selling her house to be able to do so. Now, Momma Lue is retiring and passing the restaurant along to new owners.

It’s unlikely that longtime customers will notice any major changes to the restaurant, which feels like stepping through a time machine. The original jukebox

from the 1960s still operates with the same songs, and the cheeseburgers still cost only $1.35. One thing that’s changed is the cost of an egg sandwich—which has gone up from $2.25 in the 1960s to a ghastly three dollars in 2020.

In a video produced by Free Spirit Media in 2019, Momma Lue said she’s kept her prices low “for the kids—for the North Lawndale kids. They didn’t have enough money!” The neighborhood looked much different when New Pine Valley opened; the area changed demographically a great deal beginning in the 1950s, as Black families like Momma Lue’s moved up from the South, and Lawndale’s white residents fled in racist panic. The 1968 riots following the assassination of Martin Luther King Jr. led to shuttered businesses and municipal disinvestment; more than fifty years later the neighborhood still has few restaurants or other small businesses. King moved to Lawndale in 1966 to protest unfair housing practices and spread his civil rights movement north. New Pine Valley, which proudly served MLK lunch, reminds residents of the storied history that North Lawndale still holds. (Molly O’Mera, The Real Chi: Free Spirit Media's Community Newsroom) New Pine Valley Restaurant, 1600 S. Pulaski Rd. (773) 522-5500

BEST ART-BASED REBRANDING INITIATIVE

Art West Chicago

Art West Chicago is on a mission to promote arts and culture by and for the Black community. Covering Austin and Garfield Park as well as Lawndale, Art West created the popular Art West Gallery Tour as a showcase for local creatives, and in October of 2020 they opened a gallery space of their own. The goal is to offer West Siders resources that would’ve otherwise required leaving the neighborhood, and to push back against the image of the West Side as a cultural desert.

“We’ve seen Art West addressing that by providing events or networking opportunities so that we can figure out how to build an ecosystem for the creatives that live here specifically, but also the residents that live on the West Side too,” said Alexie Young, founder of Art West.

Young, who also manages the MLK Exhibit Center at 1558 South Hamlin Avenue, is a West Side artist herself; her paintings were featured at Art West’s opening gallery show. The opening of the gallery has created new opportunities for Art West to become a creative anchor for the West Side and create a safe space for artists to connect with each other. “Artists who are looking for a network of creatives that they can get connected with,” said Young.

And it’s not just about visual art: Art West supports all forms of creativity, including musicians, graphic designers, and fashion designers and entrepreneurs. “All we need is each other, to help build each other's brands,” said Young.

Given COVID-19 restrictions, Art West is currently activating virtual programming on Instagram and Facebook and has already held online events such as a virtual freedom festival, a seven-day live-streamed music event that included networking opportunities, artist-led workshops, and artist talks. “We had some highlevel production and were able to feature over twenty music artists every single day.

They performed live at some of the local spaces and all of those performances were streamed online,” said Young of the event.

Other events included virtual gallery tours of community-based artists, creative panels, and workshops such as one on how to make a DIY sugar scrub taught by the owner of Ivy Care, a North Lawndale-based maker of skin care products.

Young said in all she does she’s guided by the question “How do we live, work, and play on the West Side?” With Art West, she’s working hard to provide the answers.

(Valeria Garcia, The Real Chi: Free Spirit Media's Community Newsroom) Art West Gallery, 750 S. California Ave. Instagram: @artwestchicago NOVEMBER 25, 2020 ¬ SOUTH SIDE WEEKLY 63

PILSEN Compiled by Jacqueline Serrato Neighborhood Captain

JACQUELINE SERRATO

H

ave you ever experienced “la 18” at 8am? The vibe is different, but it always reminds me of my childhood, going to la Casa del Pueblo with my dad or going to pick up carnitas. The sun shines bright, illuminating all the beautiful colors on the Pilsen walls. It’s funny, but everytime I walk in Pilsen I am not just seeing the present, I am also seeing the past. Old memories. The good old days.

It’s true that we're in 2020, but there are still so many gems and special things in the barrio. I grew up in Pilsen, born and raised. And it is those gems that keep me going and staying. From Mestiza Shop, to Panaderia El Refugio, Tonantzin Shop, El Paseo Community Garden, Benny’s Pizza, and more. There are many beautiful and sacred things in Pilsen.

I keep saying, “I think I can stay for a year more.” Then something happens that causes me to realize I might leave soon. It’s that realization that makes me think I am losing my community. For a long time I couldn’t articulate why I would feel so much pain leaving the neighborhood. It’s not the end of the world. But then I heard an inidgenous woman speak about a word that exists in her language; the word means rootless and she went on saying that, like a plant, people can also feel rootless. It’s like 64 SOUTH SIDE WEEKLY ¬ NOVEMBER 25, 2020

they don’t feel a strong connection to the land or their community. It is important to feel that and to have that. This is why I would feel so much pain at the thought of literally ripping my roots out to move somewhere else and start over. My roots run deep in Pilsen. It gives me so much life and sustenance.

My poor mother keeps saying all the time now, “No recuerdo a nadie en la 18. Ya no hay nadie que conozco.” (“I don’t recognize anybody on 18th.There’s nobody I know.”)

That is why when I see las señoras on 18th Street I make sure to say, “Hola, buenos dias,” or “Hola, buenas tardes.” It makes them happy. I can see their smile. As much as my body knows it is time to find a new home, I still feel so tied to this community.

But the last few incidents on my block have really made me feel unsafe. My block is a hot spot for gang violence. Every year it never fails. I hear gunshots. What has hurt me is to realize that it is me that can be killed. It is me, the person who's done everything they can to stay, it is me who is part of the community’s culture and beauty.

This is the person who could get killed? It is not fair.

Then I see the erasure of my community. I see people coming into the community checking in like it’s a hotel and doing what they want without any remorse

PILSEN

BEST MURAL RESTORATION or consideration for those that have been living here for years. It’s hard to tell if they are community members or simply transient.

They think we don’t want life and progress in Pilsen just because we have so many empty storefronts. But the truth is we don’t have access, because who has an extra $2,000 to pay for a storefront and make their own rent? I would open my own space in Pilsen in a heartbeat but I can barely make ends meet.

But I found ways to follow my passions in Pilsen without having a brick-and-mortar location. I realized I can do so much with collaboration by being in spaces that are accessible that integrate my visions and intentions there. Nothing will stop me from providing for my community, not even the expensive rents. This is why I have mad respect for people like me making it happen in Pilsen. They found a way to stay and to thrive. This is why I make sure to support the local businesses and entrepreneurs. If I want to keep seeing them I have to support them.

There are so many factors that weigh us down. It is not fair that as a renter I can not have pets, I have to deal with increasing rent, see new apartments going up that are not for me, and deal with the lack of parking. So many struggles and gentrification, I can see why people have left. And I get why people do everything they can to stay too, to try to make it work.

As I try to survive this overwhelming reality I remind myself that cycles happen.

I have seen so many different cycles in the community. I just hope that in this cycle we are currently in we can find ways to keep our stories, dreams and voices alive.

Pilsen won’t lose people like me. I love being there for my community. I still see people getting involved and feeling connected. I might not have a 60608 ZIP code for long, but my heart will always have Pilsen. Hopefully our traditions and culture keep going. Next time you walk down la 18, take it all in and know so many are fighting to stay. (Cristina Puzio) Neighborhood Captain Jacqueline Serrato is the editor-in-chief of the Weekly and co-manages the largest neighborhood page on Facebook.

Educación para el Pueblo

People who grew up in Pilsen remember walking past murals on their way to school, work, or church on a regular basis. One of those murals, on the corner of 18th and Racine, was fading and barely visible anymore. It was painted in 1983 by muralist Aurelio Díaz and the kids from Casa Aztlán, around the corner, on what is now Honky Tonk BBQ (Best Bacon Candy, 2013 BoSS).

Díaz settled permanently in Mexico, but he painted multiple murals in Pilsen and Little Village from the mid-seventies to the early eighties and is best remembered for his “Galería de La Raza,” a mural of indigenous faces on 16th Street that was recently restored by artist Sam Kirk. All of Díaz’s work, however, has the same elements of brown empowerment.

Rufus Linus Jr., a Black muralist who grew up in Pilsen and has murals all over the city—most prominently at Farragut Career Academy High School—decided to restore the Honky Tonk mural with the support of the owners. Throughout the fall, he worked day and night shifts to replicate Díaz’s style and restore the design of the mural, “Educación para el Pueblo” (education for the people), which was featured in the 1983 crime drama <i>Bad Boys</i>.

The finished product shows an Aztec calendar in the center, next to an eagle perched on a cactus surrounded by a body of water (a reference to the Valley of Mexico). On the other side of the calendar are two brown youths sitting at a table, creating protest signs and what appears to be a manifesto that proclaims in Spanish: “Let’s organize together. Chicanos, Mexicans, Puerto Ricans, Central and South Americans.”

It’s inspiring when the community steps in to save our cultural expressions when so much else is being lost. ( Jacqueline Serrato) Exterior of Honky Tonk BBQ, 1213 W. 18th St.

GERRI FERNANDEZ

NOVEMBER 25, 2020 ¬ SOUTH SIDE WEEKLY 65

PILSEN

BEST TACO WALK-UP WINDOW

Los Comales

Taqueria Los Comales’ franchise has always been about carrying Mexican dining staples in the most practical way, and as late-night as possible. The original Little Village location is known for its quick drive-thru service (recognized in 2014 BoSS as Best Late-Night Drive-Thru), but during this pandemic, the Pilsen taquería overshadowed every other Comales in the city and suburbs with its walk-up window on 18th Street, near Ashland.

Customers are always waiting in line, peaking at lunch and dinner times, as waitresses take their order at the makeshift window. And it’s really not a boring wait because, if you can get a peek, you can watch the cooks inside grilling the carne asada and the cebollitas. Or take a few steps back, or walk into the alley, and appreciate the murals by Yollocalli Arts Reach youth that cover the building.

Or they can simply chill on 18th Street—even eat their tacos standing up, the Mexican way.

Established in 1988 by the founder’s brother, Miguel, the taquería is now run by the Gonzalez family’s adult children. As they have expressed in the past, they will survive a changing neighborhood—and it looks like they are surviving the COVID-19 crisis, too. ( Jacqueline Serrato) Taqueria Los Comales 3’s walk-up window, 1544 W. 18th St. Monday–Thursday, 8am–1am; Saturday, 7am–4am; Sunday, 7am–midnight. (312) 666-2251. loscomales.com

BEST ONE-STOP SHOP FOR CULTURAL TREASURES

Tonantzin Community Arts and Cultural Gallery

A few minutes off the 18th Street and Blue Island CTA 60 Bus Stop and a couple blocks down Racine, you'll find Tonantzin Community Arts and Cultural Gallery, a cherished cultural shop that provides Chicago residents with lovely and unique paintings, music memorabilia, hand-crafted gifts, and custom clothing from local artists.

Tonantzin is a cultural reminder embedded in the streets of Pilsen, a one-stop shop filled with books imported from México, colorful t-shirts with embroidered calaveras, books ranging from Gabriel García Márquez to Chicago and Mexican art history, and CD cabinets filled with a variety of Latin American folk rhythms, trova, blues, urban rock, poetry, and musicians like Julieta Venegas, Flans, Camilo Sesto, plus many more eccentric romantics and pop artists that I would listen to as a courtesy to my family on Saturday mornings.

Upon entering this magical place, you’re welcomed by the soft and soothing aroma of fresh incense and the newly repainted, vibrant walls. Marcela Gallo, owner of Tonantzin, was delighted to open its doors and mark its twelfth anniversary on November 15, 2020. For Marcela, embracing her roots in Mexican literature, media, and healing has paved her path to providing residents with interesting findings from her visitations to México.

Enlightened by Tonantzin’s aesthetic, you will be able to find freshly stocked cabinets with astonishing goods. I’ve always had an interest in local and “tianguis”-style shops for their unique and rare findings. In addition to media and books, self-care essentials such as oils, incense sticks, lotions, and even beautiful jewelry decorated with gems and minerals are on display and provided for people who are interested in a 66 SOUTH SIDE WEEKLY ¬ NOVEMBER 25, 2020

GERRI FERNANDEZ

self-care afternoon.

During an evening visit, I was filled with memories of what a tianguis from México has to offer. Enchanted by the hidden treasures, I always find myself digging through the shop. To fully grasp the essence of a culturally filled place, you will be encouraged to immerse yourself in the hidden wonders contained in this charming shop: what you see, what you smell, and what might that cute necklace with a sparkling gemstone chain might behold. I was welcomed like any other home.

(Gerardo Salgado-Flores, Yollocalli Arts Reach) Tonantzin Community Arts and Gallery, 1173 W. 18th St. Monday–Tuesday, noon–8pm; Wednesday–Saturday, noon–10pm; Sunday, noon–7pm. (312) 479-1970

BEST THREE-WAY INTERSECTION

18th, Blue Island, and Loomis

The North Side isn’t the only place where you’ll find multiple-cornered intersections.

The South Side has them too.

Unlike the famous and outright dangerous six-cornered ones in Portage Park and Wicker Park, due to their traffic, the three-way intersection of West 18th Street, South Blue Island Avenue, and South Loomis Street is calm, walkable, bikeable, and not completely gentrified.

On one southern corner is the Rudy Lozano Library, which many residents see as a sort of community center. Next door is the chill Harbee’s bar. Across the street, on Blue Island, is La Casa del Pueblo supermarket and restaurant. And right in between is Plaza Tenochtitlán, an open square and gathering place for street vendors, youth, the homeless, activists, artists, and other locals.

Back in the day and up until recently, people gathered here for parades, summer festivals, and the Via Crucis.

Looking northward, on Blue Island, is one of the most magnificent views of the Sears Tower and the skyline—not yet interrupted by big development. And hopefully, it’ll stay that way, as the other corners in the intersection have already been converted into banks, corporate restaurant chains, and snazzy storefronts—a process that arguably pushed out the Yollocalli Arts Reach youth center, the former Radio Arte radio station, and a family-owned panadería.

How much longer can we keep our view of downtown, and how much longer can we keep these streets ours? ( Jacqueline Serrato) Intersection of W. 18th St., S. Blue Island Ave., and S. Loomis St.

Compiled byFrancisco Ramírez Pinedo Neighborhood Captain

P

ullman is a neighborhood undergoing a transformation. What began as an acclaimed planned town built by George Pullman has become an acclaimed model for redevelopment for other neighborhoods. Pullman was praised for establishing a vertically integrated town where many of his workers, who doubled as residents, were in want of nothing. For more than a decade, they weren’t, but changes in the U.S. economy that took place during the Gilded Age brought infamy and a watershed moment in American and labor history: the 1894 Pullman Railway Strike.

What followed were a series of antitrust measures that separated Pullman’s railcar operations from its residential holdings. The company managed to operate until it was gradually dissolved by the late 1980s.

Like many neighborhoods in the Far South Side, the closure of Pullman’s famed railcar company coincided with the closure of nearby steel mills and was indicative of a broader industrial breakdown that initiated rapid demographic changes and economic deterioration. That is, until reinvestment was initiated by US Bank and Chicago Neighborhood Initiatives, starting in 2009.

Since this period of reinvestment began, a litany of big brands —a Whole Foods distribution center, a Walmart, and even Wisconsin’s famous Culver’s—have posted up in the iconic neighborhood, causing giddiness and criticism among people on the South Side.

There’s even been a move toward green industries with the opening of the Method Soap Factory and its rooftop farm tenant Gotham Greens, the largest rooftop farm in the nation.

The most recent big-name ribbon cutting was for an Amazon Distribution Center; the October 28 ceremony was attended by 9th Ward Alderman Anthony Beale and Mayor Lori Lightfoot.

Though Pullman’s recovery is by no means complete, and we wait to see what these promising changes will bring to the neighborhood over time, it’s worthwhile to look back at just a couple of enterprises whose staying power continues to be a source of pride for residents of this iconic company town and beyond. (Francisco Ramírez Pinedo) Francisco Ramírez Pinedo is a freelance web developer and contributing editor for the Weekly based in South Chicago covering labor, tech/cybersecurity, politics, immigration, arts, and design

BEST LOCAL ICE CREAM, MADE WITH LOVE

Richard’s Super Premium Ice Cream

PULLMAN OSCAR SANCHEZ

Prior to the COVID-19 pandemic, you could order a wide array of items at Richard’s Super Premium Ice Cream. From hot dogs and sandwiches, to sundaes and kernel popcorn that could give Garrett’s a run for their money. However, this Pullman mainstay of over twenty years, as its name suggests, is popular for ice cream.

Housed in an unassuming warehouse across the street from the University of Chicago Press distribution center, one could be forgiven for driving past this factory that houses a neighborhood pillar. Most of the current ice cream selection, just in time for the holidays, is reminiscent of a familial Thanksgiving dinner: Black Walnut, Sweet Potato Pie, Peach Cobbler, Pineapple Vodka (flavored with Ciroc). Its most popular flavor is Banana Pudding, which has real chunks of Nilla wafers, and is proof positive of the care that goes into hand-making these one-of-a-kind sweets.

Due to the pandemic, Richard’s, like every other restaurant in the city, has had to implement stricter rules in dealing with customers. No one is allowed inside, but staff will gladly take your order curbside, maintaining social distancing precautions. As with NOVEMBER 25, 2020 ¬ SOUTH SIDE WEEKLY 67

PULLMAN

THUMY PHAN

other restaurants in the city, it has had to lean on delivery service apps like Grubhub and DoorDash to fulfill orders. For pickup, customers are encouraged to call ahead with their order, or place one online through Richard’s website. Since the service that processes their website orders claims to charge no commission for the establishment, it is an attractive option for locally owned establishments that are struggling during this pandemic. Like the many small businesses that are going through the same ordeal, Richard’s Super Premium Ice Cream is definitely worth making an effort for, in the hopes that it makes it through. (Francisco Ramírez Pinedo) Richard’s Super Premium Ice Cream, 11103 S. Langley Ave. Weekdays, 11am–10pm; Saturday, noon–8pm; Sunday, 11am–9pm. (773) 614-8999. richardsicecream.com

BEST REVIVAL OF A LABOR STRIKE TACTIC

Pullman Visitor's Center and the NBA Wildcat Strikes

It has been over a hundred years since labor leader Eugene V. Debs, organized a strike against the Pullman Palace Car Company. The workers in the American Railway Union were demanding lower rent in Pullman following layoffs and wage decreases.

When the company refused, nearly 4,000 workers refused to run Pullman’s cars. The suddenness and effect of their actions is what is known as a wildcat strike. The storied events that followed are to be showcased in Pullman’s renovated Visitor’s Center in the historic Clock Tower and Administration Building. Long-awaited initial construction began on Labor Day this year; the project is expected to be finished by spring of next year. The historic district of Pullman was designated a national monument, the first in the city, by then-President Barack Obama in 2015.

68 SOUTH SIDE WEEKLY ¬ NOVEMBER 25, 2020

In 2020, with the upheaval that followed the murders of George Floyd and Breonna Taylor, many Americans began to advocate for Black lives in an unprecedented way—demanding that local governments and corporations do the same. On August 26, following the shooting of Jacob Blake in Kenosha, players for the Milwaukee Bucks followed the model of the Pullman workers before them and refused to play Game 5 of the NBA playoffs against the Orlando Magic. The Magic, as well as other teams, promptly followed suit. It caught many off guard, as is the essence of wildcat strikes (and the big cats from which they take their name). That the strikes were notable is due not only due to the high profile of the NBA, but also to the fact that the league, which is eighty-one percent Black, was one of the most high-profile sports leagues to meld labor with racial equality. Also notable is the huge discrepancy between players in major sports leagues and the majority shareholders, who are overwhelmingly white. Three days after the strikes the NBA and the National Basketball Players Association included voting rights into their labor agreements when they struck a deal that converted team-owned stadiums into voting locations for the 2020 election.

The 1894 disruptions in rail operations had great impact, and eventually drove then-President Grover Cleveland to call in national troops under the pretense of getting the mail delivered mail on time. By the end of the Pullman strike, some thirty people had perished due to violent clashes with the troops, but the company agreed to curb its power over workers. The strike also demonstrates recurring aspects of the movement for workers’ rights: the protests stoked racial tensions by hiring Black workers as strikebreakers, due to their being shunned by the union; the wage decreases were due to an economic downturn; Debs, a socialist, ran for president from his jail cell. The Pullman strike ultimately inspired the creation of Labor Day. The symbolism of officials breaking ground on this year’s Labor Day and the NBA strike that transpired a month before can’t be denied. Obviously, there are important differences between the Pullman and the NBA strikes, but to see one as having inspired the other is a fitting tribute to this landmark event in the history of the labor movement. (Francisco Ramírez Pinedo) An exhibit dedicated to the 1893 wildcat strike, as well as the 1937 founding of the Brotherhood of Sleeping Car Porters, will be showcased in the historic Pullman Administration Clock Tower Building, northeast corner of E. 111th St. and S. Cottage Grove Ave., after renovations are complete next year. For more information on the project, visit nps.gov/pull/projectupdates.htm.

ROSELAND

Compiled by Brittanee Rolle, Neighborhood Captain

I

’m not a resident of Roseland in the traditional sense, but it feels like home each morning I ride in on the Metra to teach sixty-plus high school seniors—sometimes more like home than the many formative places I called home in Atlanta.

From the very moment I set eyes on my school building in Roseland, where Teach for America has placed me for my first year of teaching, I knew it was home. I purposely went without a car because I wanted to feel the neighborhood. I wanted to sit next to parents kissing their children goodbye as I held the door open on the bus for us to march into school together. I wanted to see the students running out of the gas station licking their fingers from hot crunchy curls and super donuts. I wanted to learn the name of the cashier at the dollar tree and know what park my students were referring to when I read their journal entries for the day. I wanted it to be my home.

Those first two years were full of love and hope for that neighborhood. I loved the children, the parents, and the little hole in the walls that provided me with sustenance when I forgot my lunch at home. I was reminded of what it could be when students connected texts to their environments or when I watched our eighth graders cross the stage adorned with accolades. But, I was often told I had on rose-colored glasses.

Colleagues would encourage me to get a car instead of riding the bus because of my safety. Friends and family from back home would ask me how many bullets I dodged that day. I would even hear students talk about “getting out” and “never coming back.”

I felt naive in those moments, like my head was in the clouds.

But there was a knowing I couldn’t shake. Even when I left to teach in a different neighborhood for a year, I always knew I would return—which I did. In my heart, it felt like home and if home is based on the place you spend most of your time, it

PHOTO BY NEAL ANDERSON

actually was my home. During the long dark winters of the school year, I’d spend every hour of daylight in Roseland teaching students. I’d stay after school for games and often run down to the nearby Popeyes to sustain myself through the evening, knowing I wouldn’t see my home in Hyde Park until 8pm or 9pm. I’d come on the weekends to do copying for the upcoming lessons for the week or to cheer on my advisory boys in the football game. I’ve often heard it said that love is spelled t-i-m-e, and I joyfully gave just about every hour of the past six years I’ve taught there. But, I wanted to share that love with my students. I’ve always wanted them to see what I saw. My desire grew stronger when school shut down in March and was confirmed to remain closed for the upcoming semester. I realized just how important Roseland had been to me all these years and to my students. So for this year's BoSS for Roseland, you get to see the neighborhood, in its raw and spectacular existence, through the eyes of its youth.

Each entry is written by a student who either lives in or goes to school in Roseland.

They went through six weeks of learning about journalistic writing and composed a piece for a Best in Roseland. My hope is that you can feel and see the love I’ve always known from the moment I arrived. (Brittanee Rolle) The youth writers in this section were compensated for their work via a donation from Eve Ewing.

Neighborhood Captain Brittanee Rolle is a high school writing teacher on the South Side of Chicago. She believes one day the South Side will be known for having amazing young writers.

NOVEMBER 25, 2020 ¬ SOUTH SIDE WEEKLY 69

ROSELAND

BEST BOOK CLUB

Burst Into Books

Young people, do you hate reading? Is it hard for you to understand the topics or meaning of the story? Well, there is finally a solution for you. Burst Into Books is a literacy nonprofit that grew out of a book club, and is led by its founder Jurema Gorham, who noticed there weren’t many book clubs that focused on books for Black kids. The program is focused on rebuilding our village—Black communities—through educational and family programming. Some programs offered are virtual storytime, book club, bedtime stories, lit talk (a program for parents to help their children with reading and writing), and tutoring. Due to COVID-19, all of these programs are currently virtual to keep everyone safe. The organization’s mission is to “empower the community through teaching cultural literacy, financial literacy, digital literacy, reading, and writing.” Each age group has a carefully crafted curriculum that is ageappropriate. Each child is empowered to share their voice and reminded that their story matters. This program also seeks to provide support for families as well. This begins by making sure programs are affordable.

Gorham also wants to build kids' character by teaching them to work together.

She wants kids to feel like this program was made for them, and is centered around them and their families. Together, she and the participating families create an environment that makes reading come alive. The kids create paintings that relate to books they read by Black authors and it exposes the kids to all of the ways reading can be fun. This programming lets the kids see all of the different sides of reading.

Burst Into Books plans to open a community center that can host all of these events. Gorham wants to open it up in Roseland because she saw there was nothing here for the neighborhood’s kids. “It matters to me to do work in the neighborhood that most people don't want to come in,” she said. She wants to be a light for Roseland and show others that it is worthy of investment. “Everyone has a part to make it work,” she said. If everyone did their part and worked together more people would see the greatness in Roseland. (Neal Anderson) Neal Anderson is a senior at Butler College Prep. He loves writing because it is a way to express himself and his safe place.

Burst Into Books, 11001 S. Michigan Ave. (312) 970-9551. burstintobooks.org A PART OF THE PULLMAN-ROSLAND MURAL. PHOTO BY KEDASIA WARD

BEST PUBLIC ART

A PART OF THE PULLMAN-ROSLAND MURAL. PHOTO BY KEDASIA WARD

Pullman-Roseland Mural

Pullman, Roseland’s neighbor to the east, is the nation’s first industrial planned community. In 1880 George Mortimer Pullman purchased 4,000 acres to build a town for the workers in his train car factory. In 2015, then-President Barack Obama designated the neighborhood’s historic district as a U.S. National Monument because of its rich history. To represent this legacy, painter Rahmaan Statik created a mural along the border of Pullman and Roseland.

The mural is the size of a long gallery wall. It’s painted brown to represent Black culture. Orange and yellow, combined like the golden sun, represent the light that is needed, and joy. With the words “President Obama” and “Pullman Porters” printed below the painting, it represents the history of the community: though treated as second-class by the Pullman Company, the Pullman porters, many of the earliest of whom were former slaves, represented an opportunity to reach the middle class for many Black Americans. However, they were not permitted to live in Pullman when it was a company town.

Statik has produced over 400 murals. He has received mural commissions for corporate clients, but also has instructed children in mural paintings for After School Matters since 2004. He continues to contribute to the development of young artists by helping them with their art techniques, which often culminates into a mural like this.

Statik studied art in middle school and high school, then eventually enrolled at the American Academy of Art. When he really knew art was his career, he started to spray paint on the side of buildings, and was arrested for vandalism multiple times.

His vandalism eventually paid off, though, when he was selected to work with 9th Ward Alderman Anthony Beale in the Pullman and Roseland area, and that’s when he began working on the Roseland mural. Statik had thirty to forty students help him color in the mural, all of whom were from high schools in the area; they unveiled the mural on October 30, 2017. Reflecting on the mural, Statik stated in the interview, “I believe that being well-informed on the subject of your work and having an organized strategy produces a more intriguing work of art.”

Statik has a philosophy for not only creating art, but for the purpose behind it.

He stated in the interview that, “In my reality I have chosen my own destiny; time and fate have confirmed that producing art is my positive contribution to society.” (Kedasia Ward) Kedasia Ward is a senior at Butler College Prep. She is interested in journalism because she wants to learn more about the world and to create her own stories about different places.

70 SOUTH SIDE WEEKLY ¬ NOVEMBER 25, 2020

Pullman-Roseland Mural, E. 111th St. and S. Cottage Grove Ave.

ROSELAND

THE OUTSIDE AND INSIDE OF SAMMY'S BREAKFAST. PHOTO BY TASHIA HOGUE

BEST BREAKFAST

Sammy’s Breakfast

Sammy’s is a family business on a mission to serve “great quality food.” The glare from the flashing lights in its window is hard to miss, and on the other side of the crystal glass window is a team ready to cater to your hunger with a broad and varied menu.

It’s specifically known for what’s said to be the most important meal of the day: its breakfast menu “outsells the lunch menu,” according to manager Jennifer Rubio, and includes all the standards—pancakes, eggs, bacon, grits. Sammy's is also a home away from home, even for those who aren’t from Roseland. The homey decor and flower vases along the front desk add comfort to the scenery, as if you're in a living room. In this space, “'you don't feel so overwhelmed” Rubio said.

A satisfied customer wrote, “Good food, clean place, and nice people.” While conducting research, I had to experience this highly recommended establishment. Although some customers may complain about their prices, Rubio reassured them their “reasonable prices” come with “a really good amount of food.” As I opened the steamy styrofoam container, Rubio’s point had been proven.

Even with the restrictions of COVID-19, Sammy's hasn’t allowed the transition to interfere with its business. The restaurant has followed required safety precautions like mask upon entry, gloved workers, and daily sanitary cleanings to ensure its customers’ safety.

In Roseland, Sammy’s has provided more than the eye can see. From its quality homestyle recipes to its involvement in local events. Sammy’s has a history of providing assistance to those in need, even as a small business. Rubio said that Sammy's most frequent catering is to a nearby church and Catholic school, St. John de la Salle, and a local charter school, CICS Prairie. But it doesn’t stop with local organizations.

If unhoused people come into the restaurant, in example, the owner will pay them to perform a small task, like taking out the garbage. Often, the owner will buy them coats in the winter. In hopes of keeping up its quality reputation, Sammy’s is continuing to come up with ways to impact the community positively. (Tashia Hogue) Tashia Hogue is a senior at Butler College Prep. She uses her pencil as a sword to fight all of her battles and it helps her speak up when she struggles to use her voice.

Sammy’s Breakfast, 250 E. 103rd St. Monday–Saturday, 7am–7pm; closed Sunday. (773) 264-9100

NOVEMBER 25, 2020 ¬ SOUTH SIDE WEEKLY 71

ROSELAND

BEST WRITING CONFERENCE

Gwendolyn Brooks Black Writers’ Conference

The Gwendolyn Brooks Black Writers’ Conference, the oldest Black writers conference in the country, manifests an enduring love for literature. The conference is an annual event hosted by a collective at Chicago State University to unify people so they can celebrate the fruit that literature has to bear. The conference has allowed students, professors, and celebrities (like Common, Kanye West, and their mothers) to show their appreciation for literature. Whether you’re joining from the comfort of your home or walking into an auditorium, this conference is filled with a wide variety of people who love literature and are gathered in the name of it. Adding a virtual component this year broadened the reach and level of participants across the country, but limited the physical contact within the conference—but like Dr. Kelly Ellis, one of the committee members for the conference, said, “Where one door closes, another one opens.”

Poet Gwendolyn Brooks was the first Black person to ever win a Pulitzer Prize. In order to pay proper homage to her, this event can take up to two years to plan. “It was

quite a time for loving,” a line from Brooks’ poem “The Old Marrieds” soon became the focus of this year’s conference because, according to Ellis, “In these times we need to think about Black love, love for our community, for ourselves and our culture.” When I joined the conference this year, guest speakers were smiling as they spoke about the memories they had of Brooks. She impacted their work greatly. Brooks’ daughter, Nora Brooks Blakely, was also present. As she spoke of some of her mother’s work, grins followed the good memories for the audience. The panelists broke down pieces of literature and applied it to life. They also spoke of it as a “homecoming of sorts.”

After seeing established writers and lovers of literature discuss Gwendolyn Brooks’s writing, one could only wonder about the work it took to create this. Dr. Kelly Ellis said it best when describing the two years of planning as, “It’s a lot of work,” but the organizers get the job done to ensure that each year the people of Roseland experience an impactful Gwendolyn Brooks Black Writers Conference. (Marion Purnell) Marion Purnell is a senior at Butler College Prep. He loves writing because he can articulate his thoughts through writing essays, writing song lyrics, or journaling. It makes him feel his voice is heard.

Gwendolyn Brooks Black Writers Conference, held annually at Chicago State University’s Gwendolyn Brooks Library, 9501 S. King Dr., rm. 143. (773) 995-3286. csu.edu

THE CORDELL REED STUDENT UNION ON CHICAGO STATE UNIVERSITY'S CAMPUS, THE HOST OF THE GWENDOLYN BROOKS BLACK WRITERS' CONFERENCE. PHOTO BY MARION PURNELL

72 SOUTH SIDE WEEKLY ¬ NOVEMBER 25, 2020

SOUTH CHICAGO Compiled by Francisco Ramírez Pinedo, Neighborhood Captain

PHOTO BY FRANCISCO RAMIREZ PINEDO

A

ny time I’m in the Loop or on the North Side, people ask me where I’m from.

I tell them South Chicago. Then they ask me to specify which neighborhood, presuming I meant the South Side in general. I repeat: South Chicago. Only when I give up, I say, “Close to the border with Indiana, but very much still in Chicago.”

Although I was not born here, I’m adamant about the nomenclature because of how the neighborhood has shaped me and my fellow residents. Oftentimes, the barrio can feel like a small town because everyone knows everyone; there are usually only about two or three degrees of separation at most. Many of us still follow the old Chicago tradition of belonging to a certain parish and/or school. Many families who lived in the same houses since kindergarten still live in those homes.

However, the erasure that the neighborhood experiences even by other Chicagoans belies the reality of a neighborhood that sits along so much lakefront. Michael InnisJiménez’s book Steel Barrio: The Great Mexican Migration to South Chicago, 1915-1940 is required reading if one is to understand how the neighborhood shifted from mostly Eastern European to the mostly Black and Latinx community it is today; how a previous influx of Mexican immigrants created an identity and home despite residents

that at the time were hostile to Black and Latinx people. Those Mexican immigrants built spaces, like the first church in the city to serve people like them, and introduced baseball leagues to set roots here. As overlooked as the neighborhood is, there is still a sense of potential.

South Chicago residents are well aware of our disparities: public transportation into Chicago’s economic hubs is lacking, and people here continue to be threatened with health-adverse industries like General Iron. South Chicago was also one of the neighborhoods that experienced property damage on May 31 due to outrage over police brutality. However the very next day, people in the neighborhood promptly organized a cleanup starting at Nine 3 Studio that, like the steel that was forged along Lake Michigan decades prior, showed a resilience, pride in community, and a will to defy typecasting for a neighborhood I believe is one of Chicago’s best-kept secrets.

Francisco Ramírez Pinedo is a freelance web developer and contributing editor for the Weekly based in South Chicago covering labor, tech/cybersecurity, politics, immigration, arts, and design.

NOVEMBER 25, 2020 ¬ SOUTH SIDE WEEKLY 73

SOUTH CHICAGO

BEST REPLACEMENT FOR A CHRISTOPHER COLUMBUS STATUE

Memorial to Breonna Taylor

ILLUSTRATION BY THUMY PHAN

BEST TUCKED AWAY CAFÉ

Dulce’s Café

It had been a long time since South Chicago could count on a small locally owned café in the neighborod. The neighborhood had not had one since Sol y Luna Café, located just steps from the 92nd Street entrance of the Metra Station, closed in the early 2000s.

But then, in 2016, came Dulce’s Café. Located right across the street from the Church of the Immaculate Conception, the café has become a wholesome addition to the neighborhood. Throughout its existence, it has frequently changed decor, but a welcoming atmosphere has always been a constant. In addition to caffeinated beverages, it also offers a revolving menu that has included smoothies, juices, and even piña coladas. Sandwiches are also a draw of Dulce’s, where they are served alongside the occasional homemade Mexican appetizer. Most recently, traditional embroidered masks have been featured front and center on their counter, another sign of the changes that are necessary to protect a community hard-hit by the coronavirus.

Before the COVID-19 pandemic, it is easy to imagine Dulce’s Café filled with parents demanding an eye-opening tonic, and children, a sugar rush after a long school day.

Outdoor events were also commonplace. But now, as with every small business around the city, the small space seems vast and empty. These businesses count on only a fraction of what was there before the COVID-19 pandemic made local businesses like Dulce’s worry about their future.

However, the eclectic nature of Dulce’s is one of its biggest draws. During the week, with schools moved entirely online, Dulce’s was one of the few places to sit down and calmly read a book or fill a crossword puzzle, and it’s something to look forward to once the city opens up after what has been a calamitous year. (Francisco Ramírez Pinedo) Dulce’s Café, 2957 S. 88th St. Monday–Saturday, temporarily from 7:30am–3pm; closed Sunday. (773) 672-0839. facebook.com/dulcescafee 74 SOUTH SIDE WEEKLY ¬ NOVEMBER 25, 2020

The police murder of George Floyd in Minneapolis drove demonstrators to the streets in Chicago and around the country to protest state violence and systemic racial injustice, toppling statues of slaveowners, imperialists, and oppressors who ended up enshrined in bronze after shackling others in metal chains. Protestors razed statues of Robert E. Lee, Albert Pike, and anonymous confederate soldiers across the country.

Many cities removed statues of Christopher Columbus as popular opinion turned against the Italian explorer's genocide of indigenous people. Amid widespread protests, Chicago took down Columbus statues in Grant Park downtown, in Arrigo Park in Little Italy, and, eventually, in a pedestrian island in the triangular intersection of 92nd Street, Exchange Avenue, and South Chicago Avenue in South Chicago.

After initially dodging the attention of protestors, the seven-foot-tall bronze Columbus Monument at Drake Fountain on the Far South Side was the last to be “temporarily” removed in response to public outcry (none have been replaced). 10th Ward Alderwoman Susan Sadlowski Garza lobbied to have the statue taken down from the spot it occupied since 1909 after it was donated by hotelier John B. Drake.

Community group Bridges // Puentes: Justice Collective of the Southeast put up an impromptu makeshift memorial to Breonna Taylor, whom Louisville police murdered in her own home in the middle of the night with little accountability thus far. The Chicago Police Department removed the tribute to Breonna within a day (it now resides at Nine 3 Studios), but its ephemeral nature aptly illustrated how the powers that be suppress dissent and seek to preserve the old guard with little regard for what the public demands. ( Joseph S. Pete)

BREONNA TAYLOR MEMORIAL AT THE DRAKE FOUNTAIN. PHOTO BY FRANCISCO RAMIREZ PINEDO

SOUTH CHICAGO

BEST ART SPACE TO RALLY THE COMMUNITY

BEST YOUTH ORGANIZING

Just last year, Nine 3 Studio opened as a catalyst for visual art—and was recognized as such in 2019 BoSS—and this year the art studio opened its doors to community organizers and members coming together to bring awareness and to support the Black Lives Matter movement.

For Nine 3 Studio owner Roman Villarreal—who began making art back in the seventies, a time when art, as he described, had a meaning and touched on the issues of the Vietnam War—this movement has brought a change to the community and a change to art. “The art work has changed from being nice to look at to issue-oriented art. Now we’re going back to the old days where art conveyed a message,” he told the Weekly.

So far in 2020, the property has served as a place for community members to clean up following the riots as a result of the George Floyd and Breonna Taylor murders and soon after was used as an altar and place to pay respects for Breonna Taylor after Kentucky's Attorney General decided not to pursue wrongful death charges for the officers who killed her.

“You learn to share your space whenever you’re doing something like this movement, it’s all word of mouth,” said Villarreal. (Maria Maynez)

Southeast: A City Within a City is a steel-strong documentary film in the making, directed and produced by Far Southeast Side native filmmaker Steven J. Walsh. The endeavor was originally inspired by Walsh wanting to learn more about his grandfather, a Mexican American former steel mill worker named Roger “Coco” Gomez. It has now come to tell the story of not only Walsh’s grandfather, but of how four oncethriving communities—Hegewisch, East Side, South Chicago, and South Deering— were depleted of middle-class wealth and resources in the aftermath of the closing of the Southeast Side’s steel mills.

Walsh’s artistic filmmaking vision aims to use a varied mix of cinematic techniques along with a wide range of voices to tell the story. Walsh envisions the traditional person-to-person video interview sharing screen time with music videos, silent film clips, animation, and dramatic reenactments of true events—all of which will bolster the shared experiences of a variety of real-life characters, each intimately connected to the neighborhood, from artists, elders, and activists to gangsters, politicians, and scholars.

South Chicago native and legendary painter and sculptor Roman Villarreal is just one of the voices sharing his pride for the neighborhood as he reminisces about the beauty and culture from days past and speaks hopefully about what is possible for South Chicago next.

Southeast: A City Within a City is expected to be released this winter, and is an expert blend of grit, pride, and ingenuity used to give an accurate accounting of all the contributing factors to the rise, fall, and potential rebirth of the steel-strong South Chicago neighborhood. (Nicole Bond)

Juan Gonzáles, twenty, joined the Alliance of the Southeast’s (ASE) Youth Leadership Council (YLC) in 2019 because he didn’t feel there was much he could do standing alone with a sign on 106th and Ewing.

“I mean, maybe some passing cars might see it, but that’s not going to get me far.

With the YLC, I have tools. I have these resources. I have people that I know to help me,” he said. “As a team, our voices are a lot stronger. I’m very thankful for them.”

Skylar Spratt, thirteen, joined after one of her classmates introduced her. It’s helped her feel less alone, especially after her mental health declined during quarantine.

“We become really vulnerable with each other,” she said. “I realized I’m not the only one who goes through certain stuff. There are people my age who are going through the same things as me” ASE was founded the YLC in 2012 as a way to combat neighborhood violence by giving Southeast Side youth a sense of empowerment. The council provides leadership training for twelve- to seventeen-year-olds wanting to get involved with social justice efforts in the community.

Youth/Anti-Violence Coordinator Oscar Sanchez teaches members to look at an issue or problem in their community, and then provides them with the skills and resources necessary to find a solution. He said it’s an effort to mobilize them to become grassroots leaders themselves, so they can implement change independently.

“How do we expect youth to be the leaders of the future if we don’t give them any say in what we’re doing now?” Sanchez said. “We need to make sure they’re educated more than we were, educated from our experiences, so that they’re used to being in those positions instead of being tokenized.”

The YLC focuses on a slew of issues, but this year’s biggest concerns are community investment, mental health, and youth power. Sanchez said these coalesce into the campaigns they’ve been working on with other organizations, like environmental justice and police brutality.

The council hosts an annual back-to-school event—this year they gave out school supplies, mental health items, and masks. They also organize and partake in events like anti-violence rallies and Black Lives Matter marches. Members of the YLC are paid a stipend for every meeting they attend, and the meetings consist of things like peace circles, mental health check-ins, watching and discussing poetry competitions, and working together to craft solutions for issues in their communities.

“We’re the generation that’s going to continue to grow up here. Even when our parents are gone, this is still going to be the community that we grew up in,” Spratt said. “It’s important to represent our communities in a positive way, and not just with the things we do, but also with what goes on.”

This past year, ASE has worked on getting community input for developments, passing out over 10,000 masks and hand sanitizer bottles for residents on the Southeast Side, and urging developments to focus on things like local job hires, supporting local businesses, and affordable housing.

After City Hall announced they were signing a contract with General Iron Industries, a scrap metal recycler with a serious history of air pollution, ASE teamed up with other organizations in the 10th Ward for a demonstration outside of Mayor Lori Lightfoot’s house in Logan Square to deny General Iron’s relocation permit.

“We definitely deserve a voice in all these decisions that go on around our community,” Gonzales said. “I live here…I want my community to be represented by me rather than a bunch of people who barely know the community.” (Patsy Newitt)

Southeast: A City Within a City is anticipated to be released this winter. Follow updates on the production of the film on the director's Instagram account: @stevenjwalsh.

Alliance of the Southeast, 9204 S. Commercial Ave., ste 301. (773) 221-8908. asechicago. org

Nine 3 Studio

Nine 3 Studio, 9300 S. South Chicago Ave. facebook.com/villarrealartstudio

BEST STEEL MAGNOLIA

Southeast: A City Within a City

Alliance of the Southeast

NOVEMBER 25, 2020 ¬ SOUTH SIDE WEEKLY 75

SOUTH LOOP

Compiled by Jasmine Mithani, Neighborhood Captain FORT DEARBORN. PHOTO BY MELL MONTEZUMA

Janie Urbanic is the founder of the South Loop Village. It hosts monthly Memory Cafe events for elders with dementia and their caretakers.

This interview has been edited for length and clarity.

T

he Villages were started twenty years ago, and Boston actually was the first Village and the whole purpose is to create a community of older adults to help each other age in place. We call it “aging in community.” In the Greater Chicago area, there are seven villages, and the South Loop Village is the newest. We started officially; the first of this year—2020—was our official opening, but we started our Memory Cafe a year ago in August [2019]. When I started the Village, my interest in trying to help older adults focused around overall health but specifically brain health.

I worked in marketing and advertising for over thirty years and I woke up one morning literally and I thought, “You know, I had great clients but I don't care if XYZ companies ever sells another bag of potato chips, and I don't really care if soand-so ever sells another seat on an airplane. In truth, they're going to do that with or without me. It's time for me to give back,” is really what I felt like, “It's time for me to give back.” So I went back to school—I got a master's on the weekend program, with a neuropsych concentration in dementia. And then I was lucky enough to be hired at [Rush University Medical Center], kind of managing the operation there of their memory clinic. I worked for another twelve years at Rush, and it was during my tenure at Rush when they offered an early retirement package to 800 people because they were trying to lighten their financial load. And I was at retirement age and I thought, Boy, this is my swift kick in the you-know-what to say, here's your opportunity—now I can go do this. I can. I could never have done this Village thing while working, it's just too all-consuming. And I thought, you know, somebody is giving me a little nudge to say “Yeah, it's time for you to put it out there and go do this thing that you've had on your brain for two or three years. [Because] I knew right away, I can't work at Rush, I can't work anywhere and do this too. So they kind of gave me the opportunity. I will be forever grateful for that.

U

nfortunately in February of this year was our last in-person Memory Cafe because of the virus. We have been holding it on Zoom, and we will continue to do that until everybody is comfortable and it's safe to get together in person again. When it's in-person, [the Cafe] is a little bit longer of an event, and on Zoom, it’s a little bit shorter. We do an hour, but we have key elements that we make sure that we cover in every Memory Cafe. We open with some sort of meet and greet, and then we make sure we have music because music is very important to people as they age, and definitely people with cognitive issues respond very well to music, and sometimes that's a singalong. And then we have a quiz, we always want to make sure we tap into people's cognition and work a little bit with some brain exercises. Then we show a craft, and we let people know ahead of time what is involved in making it so if they want 76 SOUTH SIDE WEEKLY ¬ NOVEMBER 25, 2020

to make it along with us during the cafe they can or we tell them, you know, we show them how to do it and then they can do it on their own. And then we always have some sort of physical activity, that might be chair exercises, or sometimes the sing along will prompt people to get up and do some dancing around and that sort of thing. We make sure those elements—we want to touch into their senses, we want to touch into their cognition. We want to touch their physicality, make sure that they get some sort of movement, and we want to make sure we include music, every time.

We're trying to do as much as we can but we're so limited—we also have an issue with a lot of our older adults who are financially challenged. [They] don't either have devices on which to Zoom, or don't have connectivity., I mean a bit for us a bigger problem has been that there's internet that exists in a lot of these senior housing subsidized buildings but only in a community room, which is not open, because of the virus. So while they can get online if they go to their community room their community rooms are closed., Tthat's changing, day by day month by month but we still face a lot of issues with people not having connectivity, so that's made it additionally challenging for us to try to reach some of these older adults that we fear are dramatically socially isolated.

F

rom where I sit, I look at five-ten million-dollar condos on the north end of my geography, and I look at public housing on the south end of my geography. And I know that each of those two demographic, geographic areas have different needs. I know that the people that live on the north end, a lot of folks are empty nesters who move back to the city to do the things that are available to do in the city, but they left communities where they lived their whole lives and they come here and they don't know anybody. So they're desperate to make friends, and to have activities together and to do things that are of mutual interest to each. I look on the south end, and I see, gosh. These people don't need [just] activities, they need services. And so that's what a Village does, is it provides activities and services, at least for us, [that is] a South loop Village. We provide activities and services for people to help them, allow them to age in community. And so each end of our geography has a different need in that regard.

But it's real obvious to me having lived here for sixteen, seventeen years, how the community on one end has changed and the other end has really been neglected. So, living in this community for sixteen or seventeen years, the minute I learned about villages, I thought, gosh, we're the perfect community for a Village, you know we are, because Villages serve people in different ways. And, and everybody is longing for something.

Everybody is in need of something. (Lucy Ritzmann) South Loop Village Memory Cafe, hosted virtually. (312) 225-4406. facebook.com/ southloopvillage Neighborhood Captain Jasmine Mithani is an editor at the Weekly.

SOUTH LOOP

BEST SHORTCUT

Under Roosevelt Bridge

After twenty-four years, I had finally learned how to ride a bike, but was terrified I would hit a stoplight and then be unable to get my balance again. In my mind, cars would line up behind me, honking their displeasure at my pace, while pedestrians passing by shook their heads in judgment. Imagine my delight when a friend said she discovered a way to avoid the traffic of Roosevelt Roadon her walks. She pulled up a map and pointed out the underpass. A few weeks later I had discovered how to bike from 16th Street to Polk—a regular commute—via the magic of Plymouth Court.

If you’re heading north, enter the passage at 16th and Dearborn. Bike (or walk!) on the concrete sidewalk under the train tracks until you get to Cotton Tail Park. Cross the park and exit onto Plymouth Court, and head straight, through the Roosevelt Road underpass until you hit Polk. Admittedly, there are a few stop signs, but the street is quiet and no one will notice if you, like me, still fumble with your pedals every once and a while. ( Jasmine Mithani) Enter from the north on Polk/Plymouth, and 16th/Dearborn on the south.

BEST PLACE TO FORGET THE HUSTLE AND BUSTLE OF EVERYDAY LIFE

L+A Healing Studio

L+A Healing Studio’s spacious Michigan Avenue location is filled with warm light, vibrant flowers, and artfully crafted displays. There are shelves filled with (but not limited to) South Loop-concocted perfume, Texan botanical soaps, luxurious shaving supplies, and sparkling jewelry made in-store. A dance studio behind the counter coupled with multiple private rooms for massages, acupuncture, and facials completes the wellness hub.

L+A Healing Studio has been in business for five years, two at their current location on 21st and Michigan. The “L+A” is a reference to the owners, Leo Gonzalez and Alex Agudo, long-time Chicagoans who have made South Loop their home for nearly a decade. The studio is a blend of their interests: Gonzalez is a former nurse now practicing massage therapy and Traditional Chinese Medicine, while Agudo is a dancer with a background in the jewelry industry.

“We always want to make sure that everything—not only just like the treatments, but the products that we offer, the classes that we have—[with] all the services, there is affordability,” Agudo said during a phone call with the Weekly. “Because one of the biggest things is that people always think that wellness, or taking care of yourself, costs a lot of money, which it can, in a way, but we wanted to make sure that it was approachable. We wanted to get that out there to let people know: hey you know your health should come first.” (Compared to other acupuncture services in Chicago, L+A is indeed affordable.) The Studio’s community acupuncture program is one such way they’ve lowered the financial barriers to wellness. Pre-pandemic, acupuncturists would treat multiple people in the same room, focusing on a subset of treatments which only require access to elbows, legs, and feet—the twenty-minute “collective healing experience” (per its website) is thirty dollars, versus the eighty dollar hour-long individual sessions offered as well.

In addition to holistic health, L+A is built on pillars of community, environmentalism, and diversity. All of the products sold in-store are from companies women-, LGBTQ+, veteran-, or minority-owned businesses. Additionally, all

L+A HEALING STUDIO. PHOTO BY MELL MONTEZUMA

products must use natural ingredients and come in biodegradable, recyclable, reusable, or compostable packaging. Agudo notes that many of the vendors they work with donate a portion of profits to charity. Given all these stringent criteria, the overflowing shop is even more awe-inspiring.

Nowadays, L+A has adapted to these times. Gonzalez and Agudo are researching the safest way to restart the community acupuncture sessions, but otherwise are in full swing. The art classes previously held on the huge, knobby wooden table in the middle of the store have migrated online, and fitness programs are limited to four students.

Between every class and client, the rooms are sanitized with UV-C lights, steam, and disinfectant sprays.

Brightly lit in spring, cozy in the winter, L+A is a small haven where the traffic of Michigan Avenue melts away. Don a mask and swing by—you’ll never know what treasures you will find. ( Jasmine Mithani) L+A Healing Studio, 2018 S. Michigan Ave. Wellness appointments available Monday– Friday 10am–9pm; Saturday, 10am–6pm; Sunday, 10am–5pm. Retail open Monday– Friday, 11am–7pm; Saturday, 10am–6pm; Sunday, 10am–5pm. (312) 753-3249. lahealingstudio.com NOVEMBER 25, 2020 ¬ SOUTH SIDE WEEKLY 77

BEST PLACE TO RECKON WITH HISTORY

Battle of Ft. Dearborn Park

On a quiet part of Calumet Avenue, near the entrance to the Lakefront Trail lies a very small park with a brown plaque. The park resembles a large lawn, yet has the requisite amount of trees and benches; there is a small sidewalk where on a sunny day, kids will bike around and around. It is quiet, peaceful, and the site of a fierce conflict which took place over 200 years ago.

There is a brown plaque close to the exterior of the park that reads in bold gold type “BATTLE OF FORT DEARBORN August 15th, 1812,” followed by an attempt to explain the history of the battle. However, the blurb is far too small to encompass the alliances, trials, and tribulations that any of the groups have suffered but it tries to give a vague sense of who was fighting on which side. The blurb references “Some Indian Tribes” who were allied with the British to fight against the Americans who at the time were mostly living in and around Fort Dearborn. The Battle involved nearly one hundred soldiers and civilians and approximately 500 Potawatomi peoples, according to the plaque.

The park was dedicated in 2009, three years before the bicentennial of the War of 1812. This spot is intentional— nearly two miles from the actual site of Fort Dearborn at Michigan Avenue and Wacker Drive—since later nineteenthcentury accounts claim that this was the spot where the Battle happened. Even more specifically, locals pinpointed the Battle to a patch of sapling cottonwood trees near Pullman Mansion which was located at 1729 South Prairie Avenue. One tree was even nicknamed the “Massacre Tree” because it was thought to be alive at the time of the Battle, according to accounts in Alfred Theodore Andreas’ History of Chicago, published across three volumes in the 1880s.

The history around the Battle of Fort Dearborn has been contentious, as it has only started being referred to as such in the twenty-first century. Previously, it was known as a massacre.

The debate around the word used to describe that conflict and the way it has been framed has been ongoing—and the current plaque neatly can’t distill all that turbulent history. In the words of John N. Low, a member of the Michigan-based Pokagon Potawatomi and now director of the Newark Earthworks Center at Ohio State University, “History is not truth; it’s memory, [a]nd a part of remembering is considering what we forgot.” (Siri Chilukuri) Battle of Fort Dearborn Park, 1801 S. Calumet Ave. Daily, 6am to 11pm. (312) 328-0821. chicagoparkdistrict.com/parks-facilities/ battle-fort-dearborn-park

78 SOUTH SIDE WEEKLY ¬ NOVEMBER 25, 2020

MURAL BY MURAL MOVES. PHOTO BY TROY GUENO

SOUTH SHORE & WOODLAWN

W

Compiled by James Garrison, Martha Bayne, and J. Michael Eugenio, Neighborhood Captains

e moved into our place in the late fall of 2012. We met neighbors in the family buildings on either side of us, three generations deep, in South Shore for decades. And Hasan Park was soon our front yard living room, no matter the miserable temperatures. Ella, five, and Malcolm, six, climbed, slid, and raced with their rambunctious set while we paced and shivered with fellow caregivers.

We’d become acquainted with more folks at community organizing meetings, brought together by multiple crises. O’Keeffe was our nearest elementary school, and its entire staff had been fired and replaced. Fermi Elementary, about a mile to the west, was one of fifty neighborhood schools slated for permanent closure. Our local Dominick’s would also be shuttering, leaving the closest full-service grocery two miles away.

Soon I’d meet Sylvia. A mom and grandmother and former eighteen-wheeler trucker, she made a living as a registered CNA and a part-time caterer. This work was balanced with organizing and creating events for nourishment and fellowship in her neighborhood of Park Side, an area of South Shore where many people displaced by the demolition of high-rise public housing relocated. Sylvia organized Peace Fests, gospel concerts, and movie screenings in abandoned lots; she cooked an annual Christmas buffet that was accompanied by a gift giveaway. She also prepared enormous feasts in the warm months, making the occasion for what she calls Community Feeds. Sylvia’s grandparents had migrated to Chicago as young adults. Her mother’s people came from Louisiana. Her father’s people came from Tennessee and Mississippi. As a girl, Sylvia lived in Wentworth Gardens, then and now public housing. And this is where she first learned about community gardens. Southern folks came up with this knowhow, she told me, and at Wentworth Gardens, their gardens once thrived.

Sometimes we’d head out after dinner, just the three of us, scaling the wall bordering the sidewalk at Sixty-Seventh and the public golf course. Atop that wall, we’d inch towards wild mulberry, with Maurice holding Ella steady and high. As she grabbed and tasted the sweetness, I made peace with rose-purpley stains, the only price for what my husband called goodney. From there, we’d pass across the tended lawn,

saluting the golfers we’d startle, and then it was on to the tangle of bramble, on to the edge of Lake Michigan. Ella was strong and confident enough to take her own stony path safely down to the water. Back then, we called the place Turkey Burger Beach.

The slabs of red-brown slags were our roomy perches before the lake. Quiet beach.

Unofficial beach. Free of flags and unattended by lifeguards. The north skyline Ozlike. To the south: the smokestacks of Gary Steelworks. Straight ahead: lake and sky melded. That first summer the beach was magnetic. Can you believe it? Nearby and magnificent, still grieving the death of my mother, the lake was my tonic. Choppy or still. Arm’s length away. Numbingly cold and piercing and wondrous.

We’d measure our time in South Shore by the hidden beach’s changes. The second summer would be the summer of thick dragonflies hovering. There’d be the summer of the coyote dashing away from the brush. And, of course, the near constant occasions: those many weeks of high E. coli count and keeping bacteria test strips in my shoulder bag. We’d meet regulars. A trio of middle-aged Polish women from the Southwest Side, always sunning and swimming for entire Saturdays with a transistor radio, folding chairs, and small overflowing picnic basket in tow. At dusk on weekdays: a young man in a white Thobe and turban, praying on a limestone ledge.

When a visiting friend from Atlanta made the stroll to the beach with us, he’d ask how we could afford all of this beauty. My husband and I would try to explain Chicagostyle white flight and the Black Belt, and how Chicago segregation persists—how we’d come to know and feel the city’s ironclad segregation. If a Chicago neighborhood was black enough, it would stay black, we’d attest. This seemed as certain to us as the lake being east. What we didn’t acknowledge was Black Chicago was rapidly shrinking.

Maurice and I were children of the second wave of the Great Migration. Ella and Malcolm arrived in the time of the Great Exodus. (Audrey Petty) Excerpted from “Between the Lake and Emmett Till Road,” first published in The Chicago Neighborhood Guidebook (Belt Publishing, 2019) NOVEMBER 25, 2020 ¬ SOUTH SIDE WEEKLY 79

SOUTH SHORE & WOODLAWN

BEST COFFEE SHOP TO ERADICATE YOUR MISANTHROPY

Build Coffee

Build Coffee is downright utopian. Tucked into the Experimental Station building at 61st and Blackstone, it is equal parts bustling community hub, spectacular book/zine supplier, and phenomenal cafe. I could rave at length about the incredible drinks— sipping a cardamom rose latte with oat milk is akin to seeing the face of God—but, to be quite honest, I would come here even if the coffee were garbage. Build—founded and run by former Weekly editors Bea Malsky and Hannah Nyhart—is, simply put, a beacon of joy and support for its friends and neighbors. From Public Newsroom events centering civic journalism to patio pop-up shops featuring local artisans and orgs, Build is always finding clever ways to connect and uplift its community. Why merely hang pictures on the walls when you could start a meal-based residency program aiming to nourish and sustain local art and artists?

While the cozy interior is a sight for sore eyes, and spending time there gabbing with the raddest regulars and baristas certainly enhances its charm, Build has still managed to thrive and impact its community in these last few months, even if you can’t currently step inside. Since COVID-19 hit, Build has pivoted to using a walkup window to keep the crew and customers safe, joined Bookshop.org so that folks could support them virtually (while giving the finger to Jeff Bezos), and partnered with "The People's Bookshelf " and regular customers to send books to kids across the South Side. As if that weren’t enough, Build—with collaborators at the Experimental Station, including 61st Farmers Market, the Weekly, and the Invisible Institute— launched Market Box, a mutual aid effort that delivered local produce, eggs, and bread to over 800 households over the course of the growing season.

A treasured spot for performances, workshops, book groups, and game nights! A queer dreamscape! A squishy couch to laugh and cry on! A perfect bathroom mirror to selfie in! Build Coffee is the gem of all gems, and I am eternally grateful for the remarkable drinks, books, and humans it has brought to my life. (Wendy Zeldin) Build Coffee, 6100 S. Blackstone Ave. Walk-up window open Wednesday through Friday 8-3, Saturday and Sunday 9-2. buildcoffee.org. Buy books through Build Coffee at bookshop. org/shop/buildcoffee, where you can also find a reading list from the Weekly. For more information on the Market Box, go to experimentalstation.org/market-box. The Weekly, like Build Coffee, is a tenant of the Experimental Station. Wendy Zeldin is the market manager for the 61st Street Farmers Market, operated by the Experimental Station.

BEST BIG COLLAGE

Mural Moves Paint Crews at the Former ShoreBank

For artist Dorian Sylvain and others, the ShoreBank at 71st and Jeffery was once the center of the South Shore community.

Now, almost ten years after the bank closed for good, that center has been turned inside-out: the exterior wall on East 71st Street is plastered with images of bicyclists and barbecues, horseback riders and hula hoopers, living rooms and loved ones. It’s a family photo album for an entire neighborhood—a bouquet of photos torn from scrapbooks and blown up to scale.

The collage, titled “Better Together,” is one of many recent works by Mural 80 SOUTH SIDE WEEKLY ¬ NOVEMBER 25, 2020

Moves Paint Crews, the organization Sylvain formed to provide a platform for young South Side artists. Accessible art programs have been in short supply on the South Side, and the pandemic has made after-school programs even harder to come by. But miraculously, Mural Moves has gained momentum during the pandemic, with young “fellows” painting 4’ x 8’ panels in Sylvain’s backyard in Kenwood and assembling works like these around the city.

Over the summer, Mural Moves painted the wall on 71st canary-yellow and hung up their artwork, transforming the sidewalk into a sort of open art museum. Dubbed the “Sunlight Gallery,” it is, Sylvain says, in part an ode to the people who—for any number of reasons—don’t get to the interior of an art museum. In October, the “Better Together” collage took shape on the same wall.

Sylvain was raised in South Shore, and her family lived in the area for five decades.

She recalls ShoreBank as the “heart of the community, in a lot of ways”—in the days before internet banking and ATMs, you ran into neighbors in line and knew tellers on a first-name basis. The building was originally constructed as the Jeffery Theater, one of the many neoclassical cinemas built on the South Side in the 1920s and 1930s.

In the ‘70s and ‘80s, under Milton Davis, the bank gained a reputation for making loans accessible for Black homeowners. But the bank spent years in decline, and never recovered from the 2008 recession, closing a few years later.

This latest work is actually Sylvain’s third “public activation” at ShoreBank. In 2017, she painted a mural on walls that were slated to be demolished. But three years later, the building is still standing, and still in a state of disrepair. For Sylvain, the decay called for an answer—so as an act of hope, she painted a wall pink.

Many of Mural Moves’ recent works across the city have been painted on boardedup shop windows—recession-era signs of the times. The ShoreBank location raises similarly complicated questions about beauty and blight.

But South Shore has deep roots and a history of community action. For Sylvain, the act of reclaiming the bank recalls her first political experience, the fight to save the South Shore Country Club (now the South Shore Cultural Center). “I think even in this moment, claiming the bank, you know, is empowering, Saying ‘this is ours, and this is important. And this is valuable. Yes, it’s kind of raggedy right now, but we’re going to do better soon.’ ” And for Sylvain, recently named the city’s Auburn Gresham artist-in-residence in a new public art program, community-building isn’t just about the artwork, but about being on the corner day after day, getting to know the strangers who walk by.

“People are so kind—and so hungry for art, you know, even if they don’t know it.

We don’t know what we need. But when you see it, you’re like, yeah, that feels good.”

(Christopher Good) “Sunlight Gallery” and “Better Together” collage at ShoreBank, 7054 S. Jeffery Blvd.

BEST NEIGHBORHOOD MAINSTAY

Chef Sara’s Cafe

"Nine years," Sara Phillips tells me. That is how long her cafe, Chef Sara’s (a BoSS regular: Best Corner Hangout in 2012, Best Feedback-Driven Dining Experience in 2015, and Best “Café” in 2017), has been providing perfectly seasoned comfort foods like collard greens, salmon burgers. and, lately, more vegan offerings. Originally from Pittsburgh, Phillips, a former flight attendant, found a welcoming community in South Shore. “South Shore is close to downtown, close to the lake, it is so convenient,” she said. “The bikers, they ride along the lake, and when they get here, they Google where to get coffee.…Once they come in one time, they come back. They used to always say South Shore is like a diamond in the rough, you don’t really know what you got.”

SOUTH SHORE & WOODLAWN

As across the city, the pandemic has been hard on business. Luckily, Chef Sara's does brisk takeout business, and her warm vibes and enveloping charm still draw a steady stream of regulars and newcomers who have belatedly noticed her cafe nestled at the corner of 72nd and Exchange, across from the South Shore station of the Metra Electric Line.

Even as restaurants shut down to indoor dining again in the face of surging rates of COVID-19 infection, Phillips believes she has weathered the worst of this storm already and looks forward to welcoming diners again someday. “I grew up in my grandmother’s kitchen, and I wanted to make it like my grandmother’s kitchen,” she said. It is almost like Cheers, everybody knows your name. ( James Garrison) Chef Sara’s Cafe, 7201 S. Exchange Ave. Tuesday–Friday, 10am–4pm; Saturday, 10am– 3pm; closed Sunday and Monday. (773) 359-4637. chefsarascafe.com

BEST PANDEMIC PUBLIC MUSIC

Back Alley Jazz

In years past, on a given day each summer, horns would wail and drums would pound from the backyards of residents of South Paxton Street who had donated their greenspace to the cause of live jazz.

Led by Chicago artists Fo Wilson and Norman Teague, with support from South Shore Works and individual community members, “Back Alley Jazz” honors the outdoor jazz jam sessions that traditionally took place throughout the South Side during the sixties and seventies. “The project creates a contemporary neighborhood happening that animates, builds on, and celebrates Chicago’s history and continuum of culture and art in communities,” said a written entry on the website of the Hyde Park Jazz Festival, Back Alley Jazz’s partner organization.

Thanks to the pandemic, Back Alley Jazz could not take place this year in its

ISAIAH COLLIER & THE CHOSEN FEW PERFORM ON 79TH STREET FOR BACK ALLEY JAZZ. PHOTO COURTESY OF HYDE PARK JAZZ FESTIVAL

traditional format.

So in lieu of crowded gatherings in residents’ backyards, along one neighborhood block, small jazz combos set up across South Shore in private yards and public spaces like the steps of St. Philip Neri church, or the corner of 71st and Jeffrey. Wilson said masks and social-distancing measures were both required. “[People] were very cooperative around that restriction,” Wilson said. “Everyone wanted to enjoy great music, their neighbors, and not put anyone in danger.”

Despite the smaller scale, Back Alley Jazz still featured some of Chicago’s most prominent jazz musicians and groups, including saxophonist Isaiah Collier and his group The Chosen Few, The Marlene Rosenberg trio, and the Rajiv Halim quintet. The ensembles touched on myriad sounds and styles in their sets, with their music ranging from takes on old school jazz standards to more progressive sounds and styles.

Kate Dumbleton, executive and artistic director for the Hyde Park Jazz Festival, said that at its core, Back Alley Jazz is about justice. “It’s about the right to express culture in your neighborhood, and wherever you’d like to, and to ask for the resources to do that,” she said. (Ryan Rosenberger) Back Alley Jazz, hydeparkjazzfestival.org/backalleyjazz

BEST HARD-WON GROCERY STORE

Local Market

When Local Market opened in December 2019 in Jeffery Plaza, it was the culmination of years of organizing by South Shore block clubs and other residents. Finally, six years after the Dominick’s at that site had closed, the neighborhood again had the grocery store it wanted. Sure there’s a Save A Lot and a Jewel nearby, but “community members wanted a certain type of grocery store,” said Neighborhood Network Alliance steward Val Free. They wanted organic options; they wanted amenities, someplace “where they could sit down and eat and have a glass of wine and do all the things that they could do at a Mariano’s.” Despite the restrictions of COVID-19, for six months this year, South Shore had all that and more. And then came what Free called “the uprisings.”

In the early days of June, as the George Floyd protests spread across the city, the civil unrest and looting that hit downtown and swaths of the South and West Sides came to Jeffery Plaza. Local Market closed after several people broke in through the roof of the store. The community that had worked for years to get the market there in the first place mobilized. For two days, fifty or sixty people gathered to clear up debris and to show support for the market’s workers, some of whom were afraid to come to work. The message: “Not on our watch.”

It worked. “It didn’t stop them from looting other stores in that mall,” said Free, “but they definitely stopped at the Local Market.”

NOVEMBER 25, 2020 ¬ SOUTH SIDE WEEKLY 81

SOUTH SHORE & WOODLAWN

JEFFREY PLAZA'S LOCAL MARKET. PHOTO BY TROY GUENO

Since then, things have been calm. Business is good; all is stable. The Feeding South Shore program, which delivered free groceries from Local Market to 1,000 South Shore families over the summer, was recently rebooted for the winter months.

Funded by an anonymous donor and the Northern Lights Direct marketing agency, and renamed “Feeding Chicago Families,” it aims to provide 3,200 bags of poultry, produce, and other items to families at schools in South Shore, Oakland, and Hyde Park, as well as La Rabida Children’s Hospital.

Over the summer, a mural was painted on the wall outside the store. “The community definitely came together to make sure there was a clear signal: this is not to be touched,” Free said. (Martha Bayne) Local Market, 2101 E. 71st Street. Mon-Sat 7am-9pm; Sun 7am-8pm, (708) 617-2300. localmarketfoods.com. Anyone interested in donating to Feeding Chicago Families should email Amena Karim at amenakarim932@gmail.com.

BEST MOVEMENT TO END CHICAGO’S LARGEST PRIVATE POLICE FORCE

#CareNotCops

BEST ABOLITIONIST DANCE PARTIES

the #defund protests

This summer’s uprisings centered abolition in Chicago’s political discourse in a way we haven't seen for decades. They followed years of organizing for police accountability and against austerity, and months of pushing for an equitable COVID-19 response.

As thousands rallied into the streets to demand justice, there was a deep ambivalence— grief over the tragic deaths of George Floyd and Breonna Taylor, rage at the institutions producing systemic violence, power in being in solidarity with thousands of people after months of feeling disconnected, anger that cops won’t even wear a fucking mask, joy 82 SOUTH SIDE WEEKLY ¬ NOVEMBER 25, 2020

in seeing friends (serendipitously!) for the first time in months, resolve to struggle for real change, care from and for strangers, curiosity to listen and learn, and anxiety about the unknown dangers of mass protests.

Mayor Lori Lightfoot responded to the protests downtown on May 30 by raising bridges, instituting a curfew, and limiting access to public transportation and the Loop—cutting off Chicago.

Riots and protests for abolition spread throughout the city as communities and organizers came together to advocate for demands both local and sweeping.

On June 12, the abolitionist University of Chicago student organizers of #CareNotCops joined community members in occupying the Woodlawn headquarters of UCPD, one of the largest private police forces in the world. Their sit-in lasted for over twenty hours and had four demands: “to disarm, disclose the budget of, defund by fifty percent, and ultimately abolish the UCPD.” Occupying protestors weren't allowed to use the restrooms, and were denied access to the food, water, and medicine outside activists attempted to bring in. Within an hour over a hundred people came to offer tents, food, music, diapers, other supplies, and most of all, energy and solidarity. “That night, organizers turned a police headquarters that centers violence and harm into a true community space, with music, skill-sharing, and base building,” a #CareNotCops demonstrator said in a statement to the Weekly.

Partway through the evening, a dance party broke out. Students, alumni, community members, and a contingent of ten or so balaclava-clad black bloc activists blasted requests from the twenty or so #CareNotCops activists inside the station, sharing cheer and phone notes in between the bright collage of signs covering the glass facade (“UCPD serves stockholders,” “let them eat, let them pee,” “reparations NOW,” “Black Lives Matter,” and “everybody hates the police” among them). The collegiate zoomer song requests included Chloe x Halle’s “Do it,” Charli XCX’s “Vroom Vroom,” Megan Thee Stallion’s “Sex Talk,” and Nicki Minaj’s “Super Bass.” During a summer that saw no music festivals and no clubs, and most dancing groups relegated to Zoom calls, this collective joy—shared across a policed boundary—was indicative of the solidarity to come across abolitionist protests over the rest of the summer and fall. #CareNotCops described their follow up occupation to the Weekly: “Building off of this action, students, alongside organizers from across the city, came together once again to occupy the space outside of UChicago Provost Kay Yee Lee’s home in August.

The provost is the chief budgetary officer of the university, and protesters called for a public, transparent meeting with UChicago administrators. The administration thus far has refused to hold a public meeting and has not addressed any of the demands.

This space was occupied for seven days, involving hundreds of students, alumni, organizers, and community members, and in this time organizers built community, held organizing trainings, and demonstrated power. Ultimately, after seven days of harassing protesters, UCPD and CPD officers tore down the community space that was created. Undeterred after leading the longest consecutive action against the UCPD in history, protesters chanted emphatically, ‘WE WILL BE BACK.’” ( J. Michael Eugenio) #CareNotCops. Twitter: @carenotcops; Instagram: @care_not_cops; Facebook: UChicago Care Not Cops

IN MEMORIAM ARCHER HEIGHTS & WEST ELSDON

In Memoriam: Jan Kopec

Earlier this summer, Archer Heights lost one of its longtime residents in a tragic cycling accident near the corner of South Archer and Kostner Avenues. Jan Kopec, eighty-three, was out on one of his many trips to see relatives in nearby Garfield Ridge when he was struck and killed early in the evening of August 21. Like many in the community, Jan was an immigrant who was born outside the United States. He moved here from Poland in 1979, along with his wife and children, and lived his entire life in Archer Heights, briefly with his in-laws and then in a home of his own across the street from St. Bruno Parish.

Jan’s daughter, Barbara Kopec Cislo, remembers him as a kind and generous man who took tremendous pride in St. Bruno and would regularly volunteer to maintain the exterior of the building by sweeping the sidewalk, shoveling the snow, and helping the maintenance workers. He did much the same for a family next door, pitching in to help with home improvement projects and regular maintenance, and developing a close relationship with them despite a significant language barrier ( Jan spoke only Polish, and his neighbors spoke Spanish).

LILY COZZENS

Barbara remembered her father as a thoughtful man and an avid reader, and also as someone who loved working with his hands. She said he worked construction when first moving to the U.S. before starting a decades-long career at the now-closed Hendrickson spring factory. He loved woodworking and shoe repair as well, and later in life, cycling became a way for him to remain active as age began to take its natural toll. “He would say when he ‘greased those joints’ by biking he would feel better,” Barbara said.

Jan is survived by his wife, three children, seven grandchildren, and many extended family members. (Dixon Galvez-Searle) Archer Heights, and the southwest side in general, is home to a large number of factories and shipping facilities, and its streets see a great deal of truck traffic. Long stretches of Archer Ave. practically invite vehicles to travel at a high speed, and city and state officials would do well to implement safety measures like bike lanes and well-placed stop signs to protect cyclists. The nonprofit Active Transportation Alliance has organized an Archer Avenue working group currently focusing on the northeastern part of the street, near Bridgeport and Chinatown. To get involved, contact ATA advocacy manager Julia Gerasimenko at julia@activetrans.org.

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IN MEMORIAM

In Memoriam: Mind + Hand

If you squint hard at the brown brick facade of the Royal Bank building at 5400 South Pulaski, you can almost see the outline of the large, colorful, circuit-themed logo that used to advertise Mind + Hand, a neighborhood technology hub that once occupied the second floor. For a little more than three years (2016 through late 2019) Mind + Hand provided a space for students at nearby Curie, Hancock, and Solorio high schools to learn coding, indulge their creativity, and imagine (as well as plan for) a future in the tech industry.

During its too-short tenure in West Elsdon, Mind + Hand, which was featured as the “Best Technological Community Center” in 2018 BoSS, carved out a niche as one of the few public neighborhood hangout spots for the southwest side’s booming population of students and young people. Those who were drawn in by the somewhat cryptic sign (it sort of resembled a Starbucks logo) were treated to a plethora of tech resources from late-model Mac computers to a 3D printer, and more.

It wasn’t uncommon to see the entire Mind + Hand space filled with people, both during the many events they hosted or on any given weekday after school.

In addition to its programming for teens, Mind + Hand also offered activities and workshops for younger kids, and for adults: everything from a monthly Salsa night, to pumpkin carving, to networking events for current and would-be small business owners. Not to mention regular workshops for area teachers and administrators to help them incorporate tech into their classrooms. And it wasn’t uncommon to see other tech and community-based nonprofits using the space for their own meetings thanks to the generosity of the proprietors.

Sadly, what could have blossomed into a neighborhood institution ended up closing in the blink of an eye, its website shuttered and its social media accounts gone dark. (The Weekly heard from former employees that there were issues with funding, but former leadership for the nonprofit didn’t respond to a request for comment.)

Mind + Hand attracted big crowds, quickly, and its unique presence and programming will be missed. (Dixon Galvez-Searle) Young people looking for online coding classes might consider previous Mind + Hand collaborator We All Code, weallcode.org.

AVALON PARK & CALUMET HEIGHTS

In Memoriam for the Best (and Oldest) Black-Owned Hoagy and Steak Shop: Taurus Flavors

Say Supreme Steak or Hoagy Supreme, and many native Avalon Park residents, as well as those from surrounding neighborhoods, will start salivating at the thought of the Taurus Flavors' palate pleasers.

Growing up, I remember my sister going there a few times a week for a Hoagie Supreme with a bag of Vitner's Salt n' Sour chips. The flavor combination was divine.

During our childhood, a cousin, who happened to be a Philly native, stayed with us for a couple of years. Once introduced to Taurus' hoagies she was hooked. Not only did she enjoy the flavor of the sandwich, the hoagies satisfied a nostalgic part of her soul that yearned for anything reminiscent of Philadelphia.

Lines were often wrapped around the building on 85th and Stony Island by people craving a Supreme Steak, also known as a Sweet Steak: a chopped rib-eye sandwich with seasoned grilled onions, American cheese, sweet peppers, sliced tomatoes, and a secret sweet sauce on a steamed bun.

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Founded by Edward and Bernice Perkins in 1966, Taurus Flavors is the first and oldest Black-owned hoagy and steak shop in Chicago, according to its website. The eatery has been a beloved fixture in the Avalon Park community for decades.

Unfortunately, around 11pm on May 30, 2019, a vehicle crashed into the front of the shop, causing moderate damage. Thankfully, no employees or customers were present and no injuries were reported.

Less than a week after the accident, Taurus reopened, selling food by special order out of the back door to their parking lot. However, by September 2019, the shop was closed by the city and slated for possible demolition.

Reconstruction was delayed because of issues with insurance coverage and lack of capital. According to Taurus Flavors' the clause in their policy covered only partial demolition (the twenty-five percent of the damage caused by the car accident) and not the full rebuild.

Despite the popularity of the shop, Taurus Flavors did not have the capital necessary to fund the mandated construction. According to a post on its website asking for donations, prices were kept low (some sandwiches under four dollars) so that they remained accessible; this is because the founder, Edward Perkins, grew up extremely poor and wanted everyone to be able to afford delicious foods at extremely low prices, the post reads. (It also alleges that some employees and Perkins family members embezzled some $1.5 million between 2005 and 2015.)

Today the storefront has been demolished, leaving only a fenced-in lot. In June 2020, the owners established a GoFundMe campaign with a goal of $400,000, with the hopes of starting construction by July and finishing by December 2020. They appeared to be working to provide delivery service through a city approved commercial kitchen. Unfortunately, the campaign’s goal was not met, so the future of the building is uncertain. (Taurus Flavors did not respond to requests for comment sent by the Weekly.)

Taurus Flavors is a Chicago staple, and I'm hoping we see the building with the Sweet Steaks and charging bull return to its rightful place in Avalon Park. (Rovetta McKinney) Taurus Flavors, previously at 8534 S. Stony Island Ave. Donate to its GoFundMe at gofundme.com/f/taurus-flavors. taurusflavors.com

BRIDGEPORT

In Memoriam: Johnny O’s

Last fall, Bridgeport lost one of its beloved institutions when Johnny O’s—hot dog stand, convenience store, late-night meeting spot—closed. The family business of John Veliotis (who died in 2017 after selling hot dogs in Bridgeport since he was twelve years old) and his sons, there were grand plans for expansion in recent years—a long-closed tavern on the property was reopened on some special occasions starting in 2018, and pinball machines were installed—but ultimately, financial issues were too great to overcome. Peter Veliotis, one of John’s sons, told Block Club in October 2019 that a combination of loans and licensure issues had resulted in “a couple hundred thousand dollars” of debt, though he left open the possibility of reopening.

Unfortunately, the listed number has been disconnected, there have been no social media posts since then, and the website is no longer active.

If Johnny O’s remains closed and is sold to developers, a possibility Peter intimated to Block Club, it would be a shame. Johnny O’s was one of the things that made me feel at home in a new neighborhood when I moved to Bridgeport as a recent Columbia College dropout at nineteen. It was open twenty-four hours then, and my roommate and I went far too often to be healthy. (In 2015, when I was the Co-Neighborhood Captain for Bridgeport, I got him to write about Johnny O’s as the “Best Triple Cheeseburger.”) Its offerings were cheap but tasty, well-portioned,

and consistent. The aforementioned triple cheeseburger, the star of which was sport peppers, was perfect, as were the freshly-made chicken nuggets.

Decades of neighborhood history will also be lost. John Veliotis began his career selling hot dogs from a cart run by his parents outside of Comiskey Park in the forties, eventually opening his first restaurant in the neighborhood in 1959. Except for military service and a side career as a singer, it was his life’s work. “It’s the only way I know how to make a living,” he told me when I interviewed him for the Weekly in 2015. As Bridgeport’s old institutions closed over the years one by one—the Ramova Theater and Ramova Grill, Schaller’s Pump—Johnny O’s provided a glimpse into the neighborhood’s working-class industrial past, and served delicious, cheap food late into the night. (Sam Stecklow)

CHATHAM

In Memoriam: Mather’s-More Than a Cafe

Founded by Alonso Mather, a communications innovator, the nearly eighty-year-old nonprofit Mather, based in Evanston, posted a statement July 21, 2020 to its Facebook account, saying, "With the continued threat of COVID-19, as well as changing consumer preferences, we have made the difficult decision to permanently close all Café and neighborhood programs.”

Located on 83rd Street directly east of State Street, Mather’s—More Than a Café, named Best Activity Center for Seniors in 2018 BoSS, opened to the community in March of 2004. Since that time, it had become a rare and welcome community hub—one that was secular, not directly tied to a church, and for older adults. As the name indicates, Mather’s housed a café, but also was home to various happenings like community blood pressure screening programs, computer literacy classes, and a gym.

When I went to get information for the older ones in my life on its offerings, the staff was extremely friendly and accommodating. They whispered conspiratorially of their Friday night dances, happy to have a safe place to relax and cut loose. The café served downright decent food at deeply discounted rates to seniors. This meant that Mather’s became a major source of sustenance and community in Chatham.

When I was a kid, we would cut down 83rd frequently heading east to avoid the traffic on 87th. I passed the spot where Mather’s is weekly and from my mother’s car window saw restaurant after restaurant rise and die there. I was surprised and relieved after years away from the South Side that Mather’s was still there truly serving the community when I returned in 2018. COVID-19 has laid low many victims, and this palace of togetherness and belonging will be sorely missed. (AV Benford)

Francisco offices.

Two other Chinese-language newspapers recently shuttered their Chicago offices––China Press Weekly (僑報) and Epoch Times (大紀元). The former was founded in 1990 by eleven Chinese immigrants who arrived in the U.S from mainland China, Taiwan, and Hong Kong, launching their news site in 1997. Since then, China Press has served as a “cultural link” between Chinese Americans living stateside and in mainland China, Hong Kong, and Taiwan. It covers breaking news in the States and abroad, entertainment, business, and lifestyle updates––totally free of charge.

Epoch Times was launched in 2000 within the Epoch Times News Network–– born out of a need for access to independent media as the Chinese Communist Party manipulated and filtered international media. In 2003, Epoch Times launched its English website, followed by newspapers in New York City, Germany, and France.

In recent years, it has become known for an aggressive right-wing social media strategy.

Despite closures of their Chicago pages and offices, these Chinese-language media outlets continue to inform Chinese communities in the U.S. and abroad from their web platforms. (Francesca Mathewes)

CLEARING & GARFIELD RIDGE

In Memoriam: St. Camillus

Clearing and Garfield Ridge are, in the scheme of things, relatively new to Chicago.

Annexed between 1915 and 1923, the area grew exponentially in the following decades.

Historically, one very important aspect of any new area has been establishing a place of worship.

The nearest Catholic church to the area was St. Joseph’s, located in the nearby suburb of Summit. In 1917, the church wanted to explore the possibility of opening a mission church in the newly annexed section of the city. That year, it established St. Florian’s mission church and rented a few buildings around South Archer and Lockwood Avenues for a church and school. By 1921 the congregation had grown

CHINATOWN

In Memoriam: Chinese-language Newspapers Serving Chinatown

The COVID-19 pandemic has left few areas of business untouched by severe cutbacks or closures, and newspapers have certainly not been spared.

Several Chinese-language newspapers closed their Chicago sections and offices.

Hong Kong-based Sing Tao Daily (星岛日报), once operating out of the heart of Chinatown, first started publishing in the U.S. after establishing its New York City Bureau in 1965. From there, Sing Tao opened branches across the U.S. and other parts of the globe, including Vancouver, London, and Sydney. Although its Chicago page has closed, Sing Tao continues to operate out of its New York and San

SARAH DERER

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IN MEMORIAM

LA VILLITA and the Archdiocese was ready to build a permanent church, which was built at 5500 South Lockwood in 1921 and renamed St. Camillus.

St. Camillus grew with the neighborhood and became a cornerstone of the highly Polish neighborhood, regularly celebrating Mass in Polish.

Being located directly across from the one-time busiest airport in the world, Midway Airport, had its advantages and disadvantages. Rumbling airplanes interrupted many a Mass and shook the church quite often. The church was famous for its special 2:30am service: it was supposed to cater to pilots who were passing through and needed a Mass to fit their schedule, but due to the local taverns closing at 2am, the Mass also became a haven for weekend partiers who wanted to fulfill the weekly obligation or to sleep off a little of their buzz. One famous story holds that Delores Hope, wife of famous comedian Bob Hope, popped into the 2:30am Mass while on a layover.

St. Camillus also became a destination for its summer festival, The Taste of Midway. The festival featured the usual summer carnival fair and, in addition, hosted a polka tent and food from many fine Polish eateries.

As time went on though, thanks to changing demographics and a general decline in Catholic school attendance, the St. Camillus School closed in 2005. The church continued to operate until the Archdiocese announced in 2019 that the church would be closing and merging with the nearby St. Jane parish in 2020. The new parish would be called St. Faustina. The final mass was scheduled for April 30, but due to coronavirus restrictions, the Mass was canceled. St. Camillus officially closed its doors on June 30, just shy of a hundred years in business. (Rob Bitunjac)

In Memoriam: Raspa Man Don Lupillo

Little Village lost one of its most original street vendors to COVID-19. Lupillo Pérez served cups of shaved ice, or “raspas,” with syrup made of natural fruits that he would buy fresh and cook to a reduction at home every day—fruits like mango, guava, tamarindo, coconut, grosella, strawberry, and pineapple, plus other flavors like vanilla and coffee.

He didn’t buy the crushed ice ready to serve, so it was always a spectacle when he revealed a block of ice in his cart and manually scraped it with an old-school metal device called a raspador. Don Lupillo stood in the same place on West 26th Street and South Central Park Avenue for two decades, blending into the landscape of brickand-mortar immigrant businesses. It’s a shock to pass by that street corner today and see him gone.

A few days after his death, his grandchildren and neighbors pushed his wooden raspa cart on a last stroll through the neighborhood. ( Jacqueline Serrato)

ROSELAND

In Memoriam: Argus Brewery

Following a decade-long run on Chicago’s Far South Side, Argus Brewery became an unfortunate casualty of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic this spring. It was

JACQUELINE SERRATO

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IN MEMORIAM founded in 2009 by father and son Robert and Patrick Jensen when they set up shop in an old Schlitz Brewing Company horse stable, which was memorialized with the company’s historic logo. (Tours offered of the historical site on the border of Roseland and Pullman were named the Best Brewery Tour in 2019 BoSS.) Though it began as a pet project for Bob Jensen, Argus eventually garnered national and international recognition for its beers. One offering, the Holsteiner, won Bronze in the 2016 World Beer Cup. In 2018, the Great American Beer Festival awarded Argus gold in the Other Strong Beer category for its Golden Prairie Doppel Alt. When the brewery first opened, Jensen admitted in an April Patch story that he made missteps in introducing Argus to Chicago, such as “[underestimating] the complexity of the business,” but the increased attention gave him ideas for how to expand. He brought in experienced Chicago brewers and was planning to open a taproom at the site. Legal and logistical problems kept delaying the opening of the taproom, so they were relying on selling kegs to bars and restaurants. The indoor dining bans and subsequent tiered openings brought that to a halt and convinced Bob Jensen, sixty-five, to call it quits in April. The entire brewery, equipment and all, is now on sale for $2.5 million. (Francisco Ramírez Pinedo)

SOUTH CHICAGO

In Memoriam: Carlos Rosas of Calumet Fisheries

An anchor befitting the eatery he worked for, Carlos Rosas died on July 20, 2020 at age forty-one due to the novel coronavirus. He began working at Calumet Fisheries in 1997 before becoming its manager. Owner and President of Calumet Fisheries Mark Kotlick called it an “unreplaceable loss”. During his tenure running the restaurant, it received awards from the James Beard Foundation’s America’s Classics category, received a place in Eater Chicago’s essential restaurants list, and a visit from Anthony Bourdain for his acclaimed TV show No Reservations< (All that, plus being named Best Taste of Antiquity in 2013 BoSS.) However, out of all its awards and accolades, the one many would credit Rosas for is the new 2019 category created by the Jean Banchet Awards for Best Counter Service. Often described as the fishhouse’s ambassador and its face, the Facebook post announcing his passing was filled with heartfelt sentiments and messages remembering him for his character and kindness. He quarantined himself after feeling ill and was then transferred to Northwestern Memorial Hospital.

It is there where he was put on a ventilator and succumbed to COVID-19. He is survived by his parents Eusebio and Maria, his sisters Esperanza and Sanjuana, and brothers Martin, Chevo, and Jaime. (Francisco Ramírez Pinedo)

SOUTH LOOP:

In Memoriam: Overflow Coffee Bar and Akhirah’s Praline Candy & Coffee House

Both were remarkably distinctive and have been missed dearly, especially in a neighborhood without many natural meeting places (pre-COVID, of course).

Overflow regularly featured local artists and musicians, all accompanying Metropolis coffee and baked goods made by its manager, Kari Pendleton, a South Side native.

Overflow has been operated since 2018 by the small business development nonprofit Entrenuity, founded in 1999 by Austin resident and entrepreneur L. Brian Jenkins, and in its Daystar building location, had explored ways to make its facilities a resource to aspiring entrepreneurs. Akhirah’s, opened in 2016 by West Sider Arron Muhammad and his family, offset foot traffic issues for years by enticing its fans to come from all over the Chicagoland region to sample its New Orleans-style made-to-order beignets, variety of praline candies, and locally roasted coffee.

Since closing, both have been working towards reopening elsewhere. Overflow is staying put in the South Loop—something Pendleton told the Weekly was a goal for the Entrenuity team, and which became a reality when they toured a location in the former Vee-Jay Records building on Michigan Avenue’s old Record Row (Best Hidden History, 2017 BoSS) and knew it would be “the one.” (Entrenuity also expanded its coffee offerings in the city with the November 2019 purchase of the Common Cup in Rogers Park.)

In a phone interview, Muhammad said that he had been considering a location in Pullman for Akhirah’s to move to, but hadn’t committed to anything—and once COVID hit, he decided to play it safe and wait to see what will even be possible in a post-pandemic world. He laid out conditions that would need to be met: outdoor seating, parking, enough space inside for social distancing. Many former customers reach out to him, he said, to see when they can order beignets or pralines again, but he’s biding his time until everything is just right; Akhirah’s was subsidized by his longtime work as a personal trainer, and as the owner, he spent more time there than he would have preferred. Still, he said, “There was nothing like Akhirah’s,” and that’s true; the beignets were a steady part of my diet for the year I lived around the corner.

Both Muhammad and Pendleton have stressed the rarity of small businesses owned and run by Black people—particularly Black women, in Pendleton’s case— and the importance of supporting them. (There do remain two Black-owned or run coffee shops in the South Loop: Tea Pot Brew Bakery, Best Blueberry Scone in 2019 BoSS, and the café/coworking space Momentum, which opened in December 2019.)

While neither Overflow nor Akhirah’s shuttered because of the pandemic, their closures, however temporary, drive home the small margins and difficult decisions that many small businesses have to contend with. Thankfully, there are still ways to support both. Akhirah’s is offering its signature blend from Stivers Coffee—another small local Black-owned business—for purchase on its website. (Unfortunately, made-to-order beignets just aren’t meant for online sales.) And Overflow is reopening in its new building on December 11, with a private event featuring local musicians and artists being livestreamed the night before. (Sam Stecklow) Overflow Coffee, opening at 1449 S. Michigan Ave. on December 11. Hours TBD. overflowchicago.com Akhirah’s Praline Candy & Coffee House coffee sold at akhirahs.com

It was for reasons other than the pandemic, but two Black-run or owned coffee shops—of which there are just a handful in the city—closed their South Loop doors over the past year. In April 2019, Overflow Coffee (Best Place To Work—or Play— From Home, 2018 BoSS) left its space in the Daystar School building on State Street to make room for an expansion of the private school. That October, three blocks to the south, Akhirah’s Praline Candy & Coffee House (Best Sugar Rush, 2018 BoSS) decided not to renew its lease after finding the area to have too little foot traffic.

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