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AUSTINWEEKLY news ■
Vol. 35 No. 4
Oak Park’s Don Harmon selected next Illinois Senate president,
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January 22, 2020
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austinweeklynews.com
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Also serving Garfield Park
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PAGE 7
Leaders d N Network t k elects l t new president, page 6
City kicks off $750M investment campaign Capital will be targeted to South and West side neighborhoods By IGOR STUDENKOV Contributing Reporter
The city of Chicago recently invited residents of the Austin, North Lawndale and Humboldt Park communities to share what they want to see the city invest in. On Oct. 21, Mayor Lori Lightfoot announced the launch of the Invest South/West initiative, where the city would work with its sister agencies, local community organizations and business people to put their money and resources toward “foster[ing] community cohesion, vitality and private investment” in South and West side neighborhoods that haven’t seen much investment. The first round on investments will focus on 10 community areas, including the three aforementioned West Side neighborhoods. Over the past two months, the city held several kickoff events in those neighborhoods to not only let residents know what’s in store, but to get their reactions and suggestions. The West Side kickoff was held on Jan. 18 at Kehrein Center for the Arts, 5628 W. Washington Blvd. City officials laid out how the initiative would work, and residents got a chance to offer suggestions and vote for their priorities in the workshop afterwards. While many activists said they were excited to see investment come to the West Side, there were also reservations about how much that would See INVESTMENT on page 8
Photo courtesy Creative Commons
The forgotten King
The more radical King — who spoke out against the Vietnam War, critiqued the profligacy of capitalism and warned black leaders about imitating the white establishment — rarely appears during our annual King Day celebrations. Neither does the black social gospel tradition that fed and sustained his radical politics. Read why on page 2.
Fund to grant $1M to summer programs Grant applications due Feb. 14, awards to range from $1K to $10K
By MICHAEL ROMAIN Editor
An alliance of grassroots organizations based on the city’s West and South Sides may have more funding for their activities and programming this summer thanks to $1 million in rapid-response grants from the Partnership for Safe and Peaceful Communities’ Chicago Fund.
The Partnership is a coalition of more than 40 foundations and funders dedicated to supporting programs that reduce gun violence. The coalition’s Chicago Fund will give out $1 million in rapid-response grants that will range from $1,000 to $10,000 “to support programs and events by small, grassroots organizations that are proactively working to keep Chicago communities hardest hit by gun violence
safe,” according to a statement the coalition released on Jan. 15. The grant applications are due Feb. 14. The funding will be distributed on April 22. The application for grants is available online at: https://cct.smartsimple.com/s_Login.jsp. To read more information about the grant, visit: http://www.safeandpeacefulchi.com/.
State Farm Mutual Automobile • Insurance Company State Farm Indemnity Company • Bloomington, IL • statefarm.com® Larry and his staff are licensed and together have over 75 years of State Farm experience.
See CHICAGO FUND on page 9
Larry Williams,Agent 5932 W. Lake Street Chicago, 60644 (773) 379-9010 larry.williams.b0bk@statefarm.com