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AUSTIN WEEKLY news Former West Side commander, father of alderman passes,
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Vol. 32 No.1
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January 3, 2018
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austinweeklynews.com
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Also serving Garfield Park
@AustinWeeklyChi
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@AustinWeeklyNews
M tD Meet Dr. R Rashad h d Saafir, page 3
New wellness center headed to West Side The center is continuation of partnership between local health organizations By IGOR STUDENKOV Contributing Reporter
When it opens later this year, the Westside Community Triage and Wellness Center will provide mental health services and help address trauma that hasn’t been properly treated. They are also looking to help address opioid addiction. As the doctors involved in the effort noted, while the news tends to focus on how opioid addiction affects suburban communities, in the Chicago area, West Side communities are the ones that have been hardest hit. The center, which will be located at 4133 W. Madison St., in West Garfield Park, is the result of a partnership between West Garfield Park-based Habilitative Systems, East Garfield Park-based Bobby E. Wright Comprehensive Behavioral Health Center and the Cook County Health and Hospitals System. But the organizations behind the center aren’t waiting for it to open to mobilize against the opiod crisis. Last year, they sponsored a mobile triage unit to respond to emergencies 24/7 and on Dec. See WELLNESS CENTER on page 6
SEBASTIAN HIDALGO/Contributor
Coats galore
Janis Harris, who has family members in Austin, grabs a red coat during Stop The Violence’s Unity in the Community Coat Drive. Like many residents, Harris saw the coat drive while walking by and decided to partake in the event. More photos on page 8.
Davis faces two challengers in Dem. primary Anthony Clark and Ahmed Salim are running to replace the Congressman By BOB SKOLNIK Contributing Reporter
Two idealistic young candidates with little money and scant name recognition outside of Oak Park have filed nominating petitions to oppose longtime Congressman Danny Davis (D-Chicago) in the March 20, 2018, Democratic primary in the 7th Congressional District. Oak Park and River Forest High School
special education teacher and community activist Anthony Clark is one of the candidates. Clark, 35, also filed to run against Davis in the race for Democratic State Central Committeeman for the 7th District. Clark says that he is running a grassroots, progressive campaign and that it’s time for new leadership to address issues of systemic racism and oppression of people of color which still exist.
“We’re also facing these issues because we’ve allowed current leadership to maintain status quo and to focus on party and career over people,” Clark said. “And I feel to truly make systemic change, we need transformative leadership.” He says that Davis, 76, who was first elected to Congress in 1996, and is a former Chicago alderman with deep roots See DAVIS CHALLENGERS on page 10
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