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Vol. 34 No. 18
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Austin organizations get COVID-19 ‘racial equity’ funds,
April 29, 2020
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Also serving Garfield Park
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Bonni McKeown has ideas for reopening, PAGE 5
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New top cop gets crash course in race Sparks fly over David Brown’s COVID-19 crackdowns on West Side By IGOR STUDENKOV & MICHAEL ROMAIN Contributing Reporter & Editor
Chicago’s new top cop wasn’t on the job for a week before he met controversy related to what some residents and activists believe is the police department’s racially disparate response to the COVID-19 pandemic. The Chicago City Council’s Committee on Public Safety confirmed Former Dallas Police Chief David Brown as the city’s newest police superintendent at a meeting on April 20. Brown officially started on April 22. Within a day, Brown apologized to a group of aldermen representing parts of the North and Northwest Sides for his decision to deploy police officers from police districts in those areas to the West Side’s 11th District to work on gun crimes and disperse crowds — a move that has drawn criticism from activists and West Side residents concerned that the police department has been disproportionately enforcing COVID-19 crackdowns across the city. “He came out and apologized immediately and said, ‘I’m sorry that I blindsided you guys with this,’ ” Ald. Anthony Napolitano (41st) told the Chicago Sun-Times. “He apologized that he had no warning for us.” Napolitano’s district is home to “scores of police officers, firefighters and other city employees,” the Sun-Times reported. The Chicago Tribune recently reported that three West Side districts — the 11th District, 15th District, and the 10th District — have seen the largest number of police dispersals. Out of the 930 incidents of “coronavirus loitering” reported in the early weeks of Gov. See POLICE CHIEF on page 2
ALEX ROGALS/Staff Photographer
Residents ask information about the face masks on Thursday, April 23, 2020, during a community-wide face mask distribution event put on by Austin Coming Together outside of the By The Hand Club for Kids in Chicago’s Austin neighborhood. More photos on page 3.
Austin leaders grapple with COVID-19 deaths
As of April 25, 82 Austin residents have died By SUZANNE McBRIDE AustinTalks
Eighty-two. That’s how many Austin residents have been lost to COVID-19 since the pandemic hit earlier this spring, city officials disclosed on April 25.
Austin residents ranging in age from 26 to 97 years old have died, with most deaths being of those over 60, Dr. Jennifer Seo, medical director of the Chicago Department of Public Health, said during a virtual meeting attended by nearly 200 people on Saturday. Austin is one of three Chicago communities – along with Auburn Gresham and South Shore – the city is targeting because of how many people have died of COVID-19 in these
neighborhoods. In all of Austin’s zip codes, 6,522 people have been tested for the coronavirus and of that number, about 30 percent – or 2,101 people – have tested positive, Seo said. People with asthma, diabetes and hypertension are at particular risk, and Austin residents suffer from those ailments at higher rates than the rest of the city, she said. For instance, 13 percent of Austin
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Austin Weekly News, April 29, 2020
COVID19 DEATHS Taking precautions from page 1 residents have asthma, compared to 10percent citywide; and 39 percent of Austin residents have hypertension, compared to 28percent of Chicagoans who have it. “Our Austin community is greatly affected,” Seo said. Loretto Hospital President and CEO George N. Miller agreed. “Austin has been hit very, very hard, and we’ve been hit very, very hard,” he said. He thanked the Austin community for donating personal protective equipment to hospital workers and restaurants for providing meals to the healthcare workers who are “very busy” both in the emergency room as well as the COVID-19 unit, Miller said. He announced Loretto has been designated a state testing site, and starting Monday would be offering tests from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. at the hospital, 645 S. Central Ave., either walk-up or drive-thru. The tests are free, and
POLICE CHIEF Rough welcome from page 1 J.B. Pritzker’s stay-home order, between late March and early April, about 700 happened on the West Side, the Tribune reported. Five hundred of those incidents happened in the 11th District while the 10th and 15th districts each reported 100 incidents. Chicago Police spokesperson Luis Agostini told the Tribune that “dispersal orders have proven to serve as an effective enforcement tool to ensure compliance with the [public health order], without having to resort to citations or arrests unless absolutely necessary.” During a teleconference held April 9 and organized by Communities United and Voices of Youth in Chicago Education (VOYCE), two social justice advocacy organizations, Degalo Moore, of Austin, said that a week earlier, an officer
no insurance is required. PCC Community Wellness Center also is doing drive-thru testing, though an appointment must be made in advance by calling (773) 295-3347; tests will be conducted from 9 to 11 a.m. and 1 to 3 p.m. Monday through Friday. The testing site is located in the parking lot next to the PCC Austin Farm at 330 N. Lotus St. (across from PCC Austin Family Health Center). State Rep. La Shawn Ford late last week announced the former Walgreens at 1606 N. Mobile Ave. is another testing site, operating from 9 a.m.t o 4 p.m. Residents must register in advance, and it’s a drive-thru site only. For more information, click here. Dr. Seo and Dr. Sarah Tarnowsky, who works at PCC, both stressed that only certain individuals should be tested, and those not experiencing any symptoms definitely should not seek a test. Seo said she worries people who test negative for the coronavirus won’t then take the necessary precautions, like continuing to stay at home and maintaining social distancing if they do go out. “There isn’t an unlimited amount of testing … so we need testing to be available for our community members who are over
60 or have underlying health conditions.” The most important steps each of us can take, Seo said, are to stay home and if you must leave your home, stay at least 6 feet away from others at all times. Also, make sure to frequently wash your hands so the virus doesn’t get into your eyes, nose or mouth. When outside your home, facial protection should be worn, Dr. Seo said, though she noted cloth masks are helpful, but not 100 percent effective. The purpose of the mask is not to protect you but everyone else; and surgical and N95 masks should be reserved for health personnel and first responders.
Ald. Jason Ervin (28th) said while he sees many people wearing masks, not everyone is wearing them correctly; masks need to cover both a person’s mouth and nose. Residents are welcome to join Chicago Health Commissioner Dr. Allison Arwady each week day at 11 a.m. via the city’s Facebook page to ask questions about the coronavirus. The city also updates the number of cases and deaths in Chicago; that data and other information can be found here. Residents can call the city’s coronavirus hotline at (312) 746-4835 or email coronavirus@cityofchicago.org. CONTACT: austintalks.org@gmail.com
threatened him and his friend. “Last Tuesday, I was going to my friend’s house, because I haven’t seen him in a while and I was going to the store,” Moore said. “When I came outside, police was harassing us, saying, ‘Y’all need to get in the house, you all need to be inside, and if you aren’t in house by 5:00 p.m., you’d be arrested.’” Myaia Coleman, of North Lawndale, said her brother had a similar experience. “When it comes to the police and COVID-19, I believe a lot of police officers are abusing their powers,” said Coleman. “They’re looking at us like walking disease and I think that’s unfair.”
predominantly minority communities. Brown encouraged officers to use less force and supported the use of body cameras to improve transparency. According to a 2016 report by the New York Times, Brown’s tenure was still marked by complaints from black residents of racial profiling. Brown garnered national attention on July 7, 2016, when five Dallas Police officers were fatally shot and nine injured by a lone gunman. Brown retired in October of that year. As part of the confirmation process, superintendent candidates have to clear the Committee on Public Safety, which is chaired by Ald. Chris Taliaferro (29th), a former police officer. During the April 20 committee meeting, Taliaferro asked Brown what he would do differently about the fact that the department still lags in recruiting African-American officers. Brown replied that his experience in Dallas taught him that the only way to improve minority hiring was having recruiters who specialize in minority hiring. “I think you need people selected to understand these groups, what attracts them and having that face time with people, particularity in college and university settings,” he said. “I was surprised you didn’t have recruiting teams here targeting your specific demographics.” Ald. Michael Scott (24th) asked what Brown could do to improve safety and make people living in neighborhoods like North Lawndale feel safe. Brown responded that the statistics don’t mean much if people don’t feel safe and that the key is positive engagement with residents and businesses. Ald. Jason Ervin (28th) said that he would be working with Brown to reduce loitering and prostitution, saying that people should
feel as comfortable in Garfield Park as they do in Lincoln Park. Brown said that he believed that there was a way to address those issues without hurting people’s constitutional rights and that it requires creativity and a willingness to try different approaches. South Side Ald. Roderick Sawyer (6th) asked how Brown thought civilian oversight would benefit police. Brown responded that he believes that “local democracy and debate” makes a city strong, but he declined to give his position on what a civilian oversight council should look like. “I have a long track record of calling it like I see it and I won’t hesitate to follow the same approach in the City of Chicago,” Brown said. “There must be a real partnership with the community. And civilian oversight can serve as a mechanism to build [that partnership]. So I’m a full supporter of civilian oversight and I’ll be a full supporter of what the mayor and the City Council negotiate.” Sawyer also asked how he would approach negotiating the new contract with the Fraternity Order of Police. “I’m going to be a strong advocate for cooler heads prevailing in the way we negotiate on both sides,” Brown said. Brown also touted a program that kept juveniles accused of nonviolent crimes from going to jail by having them participate in some form of mental health treatment and/ or counseling programs. “The more you can get our young people back on the right path, the better and safer you are,” he said. “At the same time, we need to accept the small subset of young people who are violent and would hurt us, and they need to be incarcerated.” CONTACT: michael@austinweeklynews.com
Promises of more outreach During the April 20 public safety committee meeting, which was held virtually due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Supt. Brown said that he would conduct more community outreach and improve relations between the police and the community. A Dallas native, Brown joined the city’s police department in 1983. When he became police chief in 2010, he pushed to improve the relationships between police and residents, especially those in
DAVID BROWN
Austin Weekly News, April 29, 2020
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ALEXA ROGALS/Staff Photographer
Austin Coming Together representatives were outside of By The Hand Club for Kids, 415 N. Laramie Ave., to distribute free facial masks on April 23. Last Thursday, Gov. J.B. Pritzker announced that he is “extending Illinois’ stay-at-home order through May 30 with certain modifications taking effect May 1, including opening up state parks, expanding essential businesses and requiring masks in public, according to Capitol News Illinois.
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Austin Weekly News, April 29, 2020
Nonprofit seeks to expand recovery treatment footprint I Am Able Family Development hopes to develop four THRIVE community treatment centers By IGOR STUDENKOV Contributing Reporter
Dr. Caroline Vessel, CEO of I Am Able Family Development, a North Lawndalebased mental health treatment center, 3410 W. Roosevelt Rd., said she wants to do more than help victims of trauma get better. She wants to see them thrive. “That’s very important to us, because we don’t want to be in the place of just surviving, because you can’t get ahead in survival mode,” she said. Vessel is working to establish the Trauma Healing and Restorative Intervention toward Visions of Excellence (THRIVE), a network of four community treatment centers. Her organization has secured funding from the Illinois Criminal Justice Information Authority and is applying for state funding in order to open the centers. She’s also getting input from trauma survivors, mental health
professionals, already working c o m m u n i t y on the details,and residents and I Am Able plans to elected officials. hold public online The Illinois meetings to get Criminal Justice community input Information throughout May. A u t h o r i t y Vessel would like to oversees several have her operation federal and state up and running by grant programs, next year, although including the the exact timeline Trauma Recovery will depend on Centers program. when they secure According to its the funding and website, the idea is how much funding to address all of the they will get. survivors needs I Am Able was — from housing to established to help medical care. African-American Vessel made the and Latino announcement families deal with a meeting of the substance abuse, CAROLINE VESSEL North Lawndale family dysfunction C.E.O. C o m m u n i t y and other issues. Coordinating I Am Able Family Development Vessel said that Council’s Health THRIVE is an & Wellness extension of that subcommittee on mission. April 21. In a follow“Part of my up interview, she purpose for being said that a committee of stakeholders is on Earth is to rescue my African American
“ We don’t want to be in the place
of just surviving, because you can’t get ahead in survival mode.”
people out of ongoing trauma,” she said. “We realize that healing has to start with us, because people who perpetrate trauma aren’t going to make it happen.” During the April 22 meeting, Vessel said she would like to set up one treatment center in Austin, one center in West Garfield Park, one center in East Garfield Park and one center in North Lawndale, so that people won’t have to leave their community to get help. Vessel said that I Am Able put together a planning committee that includes survivors, social service agencies, law enforcement agencies, victim services, schools, healthcare providers, mental/behavioral health providers and area elected officials from different levels of government. They are also putting together focus groups in each community where Vessel hopes to locate a THRIVE center, and they will be hosting online town halls in May. During the April 21 meeting, Vessel said that the centers definitely wouldn’t be based at I Am Able’s existing facility in North Lawndale, because there isn’t enough space. In a follow-up interview, Vessel said that her organization is working with elected officials to identify spaces they can lease in existing buildings or lots where they can build something new. CONTACT: igorst3@hotmail.com
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Austin Weekly News, April 29, 2020
Either open small businesses or sing the blues By BONNI McKEOWN Contributor
Where would the West Side be without its mom-and-pop shops? Small Business (especially Black, women owned, and mom-and-pop shops in all areas), artists, and gig workers have been neglected as money ran out in the federal Coronavirus stimulus plan while big business and banks made off with unaccounted-for trillions of dollars. With the first round of PPP funds — already raided and depleted by large businesses — micro businesses with revenues of under $1 million were totally left out of the setup. Thousands of sole proprietorships, including those who are loved and relied on by their communities, are on the road to close and die, and with them, people’s livelihoods. We cannot stay on lockdown forever. May 31 is forever to many of us. Subjecting people to continued stress and poverty leads to poor health just as surely as one virus. We must implement sensible ways to maintain physical distancing while businesses, including beauty and barber shops and restaurants, begin to reopen. Consider compensating them for the lack of full capacity as people must spread out. Independent businesses should be prioritized, as chain stores are part of larger entities already benefitting from government bailouts. The city of Chicago’s Connect2Capital applications are now closed. How many people will be able to get help, and when? For artists, including our blues musicians, will the city-state 3A Arts relief program be adequately funded when applications reopen on May 4? If it’s too complicated to administer small biz help without involving bank red tape, local and state officials must demand that federal
officials continue the individual stimulus checks at, say $1000 a month to individuals for the next six months to a year. This can help many super-small businesses survive. We ask the governor, Cook County Board of Commissioners president, mayor of Chicago and other mayors to hold an on-line forum, specifically to accept suggestions from actual small businesses on how to conduct a safer reopening. Public officials would use this information to define needs, then lobby for federal emergency funds to fill them. New York lifestyle physician Dr. David Katz argues for re-opening society while sheltering vulnerable people and aiming for public immunity in his interview with Bill Maher. Some ideas: Could barber, beauty, nail shops and other small stores mark six-foot distances with tape and have people wait their turn outside the door? Banks and post officers are doing this now, along with plastic barriers for the clerks Could cheap masks be made available in convenience stores for customers to wear indoors in tight spaces? This could also encourage people to wear masks when riding on CTA? Could tables in restaurants be laid out six feet apart? Could outside dining be spaced and enlarged? Could parks and kid-oriented restaurants employ extra people to spray and sanitize play equipment, as well as asking people to bring sanitizer and wash their hands in the restrooms often? Could small festivals be held later in summer, with x-marks and circles on the ground showing where to spread out? Note to public officials: Small businesses know how to innovate. They will help come up with many answers! CONTACT: austintalks.org@gmail.com
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Austin Weekly News, April 29, 2020 SPONSORED CONTENT
Oak Park Regional Housing Center and why we “Live in Oak Park”
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any people are aware that Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. was a leader in the Civil Rights movement, however, not too many know he played a large role in the Fair Housing movement. In the early 1960s, Blacks were systematically stripped of opportunities to live in certain communities. It was this discrimination, a core component of injustice that still happens today, that forced Black people to live in segregated neighborhoods. Beginning in 1965, Dr. King led the Chicago Freedom Movement, which was the campaign to address housing (and other Athena Williams, Executive Director issues) in OAK PARK REGIONAL Chicago, the HOUSING CENTER most racially segregated city in the United States. This campaign pushed for “open housing” and the right of Blacks to buy homes and live anywhere they wanted. Black home seekers in the city and surrounding suburbs were effectively barred from middle-class, predominantly white neighborhoods and prevented from freely seeking housing. While there were a few victories from the Chicago Freedom Movement, it was not until seven days after Dr. King’s assassination that Lyndon B. Johnson signed the Fair Housing Act of 1968. This flurry of open housing progress had a snowball effect that arrived in Oak Park in the late 1960s. The Oak Park Housing Center was founded in 1972 by Roberta “Bobbie” Raymond. I had the opportunity
to speak with Bobbie several times during my time here at OPRHC. She made it clear that “we need to be open to Blacks coming into the community while instilling the values of this community.” Bobbie, concerned about racial integration and fair housing, became active in Oak Park, and was instrumental in passing Oak Park’s groundbreaking 1968 Fair Housing Ordinance. Fair housing was promised to everyone in America through the passage of the Fair Housing Act of 1968. We are still a long way from realizing Dr. King’s dream of fair housing for all. Unfortunately, Black and Hispanic families continue to remain twice as likely to live in poverty and continue to fall victim to discriminatory housing practices. Even today, in 2020, the consequences of social, economic and geographic inequality are becoming greater and more urgent. For example, the typical Black or Hispanic renter seeking housing is shown 11 percent fewer apartments than a white renter with similar qualifications, according to a 2012 HUD survey. This is why we Live in Oak Park. The Oak Park Regional Housing Center promotes affirmatively furthering Fair Housing, which is a legal requirement that federal agencies and federal grantees further the purposes of the Fair Housing Act. At OPRHC, in partnership with the Village of Oak Park, our landlord partners, and community members, we create a housing market that is open, inclusive, and fulfills the diverse needs of all community residents. Fair housing reconnects neighborhoods by ensuring access to quality housing, regardless of race, gender, religious views, familial status, or disability. All citizens have the opportunity to live in close proximity to high-achieving schools, employment opportunities, transportation options,
APRIL, NATIONAL FAIR HOUSING MONTH, increases efforts to end housing discrimination and raises awareness of fair housing rights. April is also the time to remember the assassination of Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. in 1968 and his contributions to the Civil Rights Movement. banking services, grocery stores and retail, public services, and public space. Local government reaps benefits from promoting integration by lowering costs for social services, improving revenues through strong property values, and providing a desirable community where households and businesses can thrive. Our work is intentional. We are needed at a time like this to maintain and continue to promote racial integration as we move the legacy forward to embrace the values of the community especially inclusion and equity.
We are here today because we are tired. Now is the time to open the doors of opportunity. - Dr. King, 1966, Chicago Solider Field Stadium as part of the Chicago Open Housing Movement.
Schuman brothers, long-time Housing Center backers, sell buildings to ResCorp
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he Schuman brothers, Russ and Kevin, bought their first apartment buildings on Oak Park’s east side some 30 years ago. Over the decades they have focused on Oak Park values of quality multi-family housing units at affordable prices with a strong eye on racial diversity. And that is why, says Athena Williams, executive director of the Oak Park Regional Housing Center, that the Schuman buildings, mainly on Austin Boulevard but also on Washington Boulevard, have been so integral to the properties represented by the Housing Center. In late March, the Schuman brothers sold their last six Oak Park multi-family buildings to the Oak Park Residence Corporation, a non-profit housing partner of the Village of Oak Park. David Pope, executive director of both ResCorp and its companion Oak Park
Housing Authority, is enthused about the sale. He hails the retiring Schuman family for “working under the radar but always advancing integration, affordability and quality units in an area we have always had concerns about maintaining.” Pope touted their long support for the Housing Center. “They have been great partners with the Housing Center. They are huge fans of the work of the Housing Center,” he said. That partnership will continue, Pope said, as all Residence Corporation units are listed with the Housing Center. The purchase of the six buildings is the single largest purchase ever made in the 54 year history of ResCorp. Adding the Schuman properties and their 170 apartments increases the total number of apartment units it owns from 459 to 629, a 37 percent hike.
The Fair Housing Act protects people from discrimination when they are renting or buying a home, getting a mortgage, seeking housing assistance, or engaging in other housingrelated activities. The Federal Fair Housing Act prohibits discrimination in housing because of: • Race • National Origin
• Religion • Sex
• Familial Status • Disability
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Austin Weekly News, April 29, 2020
These are some of our proud partners who support These are some of our proud partners. the Homebuyer and Financial Education initiatives of our West Cook Homeownership Program!
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OAK PARK REGIONAL HOUSING CENTER’S RESPONSE TO COVID-19
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Out of concern for the health and well-being of our clients and employees as well as careful consideration of the recently announced national emergency in response to the COVID-19 pandemic, our offices will only be accessible by phone and email until the state and or local “shelter in place” order has been lifted. Because we are accessible, providing emergency and
essential housing related services, please note that we have implemented additional health and hygiene protocols that include enhanced daily office cleanings, adding hand sanitizers at the entrance to our offices, practicing social distancing, and educating employees as well as clients on the latest CDC recommendations to help prevent illness.
We ask everyone - please be wise, sanitize. Use this protocol when entering your home:
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he
g 0 er o
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When you arrive home try not to touch anything
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20ml bleach + 1 litre water Prepare a disinfectant solution
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Remove your shoes
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Put on gloves and wash your mobile phone and glasses with hot soapy water or alcohol (disinfectant)
Leave your bag, purse, keys, etc in a box at the entry of your home
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Clean all the surfaces of whatever you bought from outside with the bleach solution, before storing it.
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Remove your clothes and place them in a bag to be washed
Carefully remove and dispose of your gloves, then wash your hands
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Take a shower. If you can’t, wash all exposed areas. Hands, wrists, arms, neck, nails, etc.
Remember, it is not possible to carry out complete disinfection. The goal is to minimise the risk of infection.
1041 South Boulevard, Oak Park, IL 60302 • 708-848-7150 5934 W. Lake St., Chicago, IL 60644 • 773-887-5187 Hours vary by location and season, please call ahead before you plan your visit! The Oak Park Regional Housing Center is a 501c3 nonprofit, HUD approved agency. OPRHC is the home of: the Live in Oak Park Program, providing rental matching to affirmatively further fair housing; and the West Cook Homeownership Program, providing homebuyer education, all areas of housing counseling, and a financial education initiative to help people enhance their financial skills and create positive banking relationships The opinions and views presented in this section are not the opinions or views of any of our sponsors or funders.
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Austin Weekly News, April 29, 2020
YO U DON T H AV E T O BE SO STRONG BUT IF I’M NOT, WHO WILL?
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Austin Weekly News, April 29, 2020
Austin nonprofits to get city funding for COVID-19 efforts City’s Racial Equity Rapid Response Team to partner with West Side United, Austin Coming Together By AUSTIN TALKS
As of last Monday, 538 people had died of COVID-19 in Chicago, according to the city. As of last Sunday, at least 20 of those deaths were of Austin residents, city data shows. Click here for COVID-19 data from the state that shows the number of positive cases by ZIP code.
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Austin is one of three Chicago neighborhoods identified by Mayor Lori Lightfoot’s administration for an engagement campaign to fight COVID0-19, officials announced April 20. Austin was chosen – along with two South Side communities – based on data that indicated a need for action to address the disproportionate impact the global pandemic has had on African American communities, officials said. The city’s newly formed Racial Equity Rapid Response Team and West Side United will partner with Austin Coming Together and two other anchor community groups in Auburn Gresham and South Shore to develop hyperlocal, data-informed strategies to slow the spread of COVID-19 and improve health in these communities. “With the recent reports of how COVID-19 is taking the greatest toll on the black community, the importance of addressing the disparities that exist in Chicago is paramount as it is also a wellknown fact that the social determinants of good health are not in our favor,” Darnell Shields, Austin Coming Together’s executive director, said in a statement last Monday. The aim, Shields said, is “to develop and implement strategies that meet the need in Austin and other communities hit hardest by this pandemic.” To provide targeted information and get input from residents in Austin, the city hosted a tele-town hall this past Saturday, April 25. Earlier this month at a meeting of the 15th Police District faith leaders, Sybil Madison, deputy mayor for education and human services, hinted Austin was among the neighborhoods the city was considering for the campaign. “What we’re going to need in places like Austin – which has a high rate of (coronavirus) cases and high rate of mortality – we’re going to need our community leaders, our activists, our institutions, our city departments to really mobilize around this effort,” Madison said then.
Key elements of the new campaign include: • An operations team has been integrated into Chicago’s Emergency Operations Center to enable coordination and resourcing of strategies developed through local partnerships and collaboration to identify gaps and solve problems faster. • An education/communication working group is tailoring messaging to speak directly to the realities that people in Austin and the two other Chicago neighborhoods face, including protecting loved ones and guidance for essential workers and multigenerational households. This information is being delivered to people in their homes, including 80,000 door hangers placed over the last week and 150,000 mailed postcards. • A providers working group is developing strategies to reach patients with underlying health conditions that increase the risk of contracting COVID-19. • Community leadership networks are coordinating the distribution of masks and protective resources to local residents in their communities, including 60,000 face masks donated from Dr. Willie Wilson in partnership with Sinai Health System. “The work of the newly formed Racial Equity Rapid Response team is central to West Side United’s mission which identifies structural racism and historical disinvestment in black and brown communities as pillars of disparity and inequity,” Ayesha Jaco, West Side United’s executive director, said in a statement. “The immediate investments needed to address the COVID-19 mortality and infection rates in high-risk communities also warrant a long-term commitment this initiative can deliver by building the capacity of communities and residents to arm themselves with the tools and resources to stay informed and healthy,” Jaco said. CONTACT: austintalks.org@gmail.com
Street outreach programs get $6 million to curb violence
Most recently, violence interrupters have been tackling another epidemic disproportionately impacting Black Chicagoans: coronavirus By PASCAL SABINO Contributing Reporter
CHICAGO — The Mayor’s office is awarding $6 million in funding to help expand street outreach programs to stop violence on the city’s South and West sides. The funding, allocated through the Chicago Department of Public Health, build on Mayor Lori Lightfoot’s shift away from public safety strategies that rely only on policing and instead will tackle the root causes of violence, the mayor’s office said. “Gun violence is not only a public safety issue, it’s a public health crisis,” Lightfoot said. “…We are putting tools directly into the hands of our community-based outreach workers who every day utilize de-escalation skills to interrupt violence, prevent retaliation and build positive relationships with those who are at the highest risk of violence.” The funds, being distributed by Metropolitan Family Services, will help convenes 11 community groups under the Communities Partnering 4 Peace initiative. The groups that will receive funding are: • Target Area Development in Auburn Gresham, Englewood and West Englewood • Institute for Nonviolence Chicago (INVC) in Austin and West Garfield Park • Precious Blood Ministries in Back of the Yards • Southwest Organizing Project (SWOP) in Chicago Lawn • Breakthrough Ministries in East Garfield Park • Acclivus in Greater Grand Crossing • Alliance of Local Services (ALSO) in Humboldt Park • New Life Ministries in Little Village • UCAN in North Lawndale and Roseland • Claretian Associates in South Shore • Roseland CeaseFire Outreach workers are credible messengers — trusted members of the community who have relationships and shared experiences with the folks on the street who are trapped in circumstances where violence thrives, said Vaughn Bryant, who leads. Communities
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Partnering 4 Peace. “They often come from the street organizations in that community,” Bryant said. “Given that they’ve turned their lives around, they can walk in those communities on unarmed and be safe because they have credibility amongst the people in those communities.” The outreach workers build long-term relationships with people vulnerable to gun violence so they can guide them toward a better path by connecting them to social services like behavior health support, job readiness training and legal aid provided by Communities Partnering 4 Peace partners. The added funding will allow some of the community groups to increase the number of outreach workers they employ. For others, it will ensure the sustainability of the street outreach programs so workers can be longterm, permanent figures in a neighborhood’s social infrastructure. “We often talk about trauma at the individual level. But there is also organizational and systemic trauma,” Bryant said. “When you have lapses in funding and these organizations have to lay people off, that’s a traumatic experience in and of itself.” The funds will also help fund the Metropolitan Peace Academy, an 18-week training on conflict mediation and deescalation, which also earns outreach workers six credit hours toward an associate’s degree at City Colleges of Chicago. In North Lawndale, outreach workers employed by community partner UCAN have become a regular fixture at crime hotspots where they intervene to stop violence before it happens and prevent retaliation after a violent incident. They are tuned into the historical gang beefs, economic struggles and drug operations in the neighborhood, so they know better than anyone how and when to steer young folks away from violent situations. But lately, the violence interruption workers have been tackling another epidemic disproportionately impacting Black Chicagoans: coronavirus. Using the same relationship-building tactics, the outreach team has been advising young people on the streets to stay home and sharing tips on staying healthy. “We can definitely give a better outlook on what’s going on in our community. Coming from us as credible people to them, they understand it better,” said UCAN violence interrupter Reggie Woods. “Everybody don’t listen to the news. Everybody don’t listen to the police.” Pascal Sabino is a Report for America corps member covering Austin, North Lawndale and Garfield Park for Block Club Chicago. CONTACT: pascal@blockclubchi.org
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Austin Weekly News, April 29, 2020
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IN THE CIRCUIT COURT OF COOK COUNTY, ILLINOIS COUNTY DEPARTMENT CHANCERY DIVISION U.S. BANK NATIONAL ASSOCIATION Plaintiff, -v.LENA HARRIS A/K/A LENA TOMLINSON, 400 WEST ONTARIO CONDOMINIUM ASSOCIATION Defendants 18 CH 15348 400 WEST ONTARIO STREET, APT. 908 CHICAGO, IL 60654 NOTICE OF SALE PUBLIC NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN that pursuant to a Judgment of Foreclosure and Sale entered in the above cause on August 22, 2019, an agent for The Judicial Sales Corporation, will at 10:30 AM on May 27, 2020, at The Judicial Sales Corporation, One South Wacker Drive, CHICAGO, IL, 60606, sell at a public sale to the highest bidder, as set forth below, the following described real estate: Commonly known as 400 WEST ONTARIO STREET, APT. 908, CHICAGO, IL 60654 Property Index No. 17-09-127-0361058, 17-09-127-036-1228 The real estate is improved with a residential condominium. Sale terms: 25% down of the highest bid by certified funds at the close of the sale payable to The Judicial Sales Corporation. No third party checks will be accepted. The balance, including the Judicial Sale fee for the Abandoned Residential Property Municipality Relief Fund, which is calculated on residential real estate at the rate of $1 for each $1,000 or fraction thereof of the amount paid by the purchaser not to exceed $300, in certified funds/or wire transfer, is due within twenty-four (24) hours. No fee shall be paid by the mortgagee acquiring the residential real estate pursuant to its credit bid at the sale or by any mortgagee, judgment creditor, or other lienor acquiring the residential real estate whose rights in and to the residential real estate arose prior to the sale. The subject property is subject to general real estate taxes, special assessments,
REAL ESTATE FOR SALE or special taxes levied against said real estate and is offered for sale without any representation as to quality or quantity of title and without recourse to Plaintiff and in “AS IS� condition. The sale is further subject to confirmation by the court. Upon payment in full of the amount bid, the purchaser will receive a Certificate of Sale that will entitle the purchaser to a deed to the real estate after confirmation of the sale. The property will NOT be open for inspection and plaintiff makes no representation as to the condition of the property. Prospective bidders are admonished to check the court file to verify all information. If this property is a condominium unit, the purchaser of the unit at the foreclosure sale, other than a mortgagee, shall pay the assessments and the legal fees required by The Condominium Property Act, 765 ILCS 605/9(g)(1) and (g)(4). If this property is a condominium unit which is part of a common interest community, the purchaser of the unit at the foreclosure sale other than a mortgagee shall pay the assessments required by The Condominium Property Act, 765 ILCS 605/18.5(g-1). IF YOU ARE THE MORTGAGOR (HOMEOWNER), YOU HAVE THE RIGHT TO REMAIN IN POSSESSION FOR 30 DAYS AFTER ENTRY OF AN ORDER OF POSSESSION, IN ACCORDANCE WITH SECTION 15-1701(C) OF THE ILLINOIS MORTGAGE FORECLOSURE LAW. You will need a photo identification issued by a government agency (driver’s license, passport, etc.) in order to gain entry into our building and the foreclosure sale room in Cook County and the same identification for sales held at other county venues where The Judicial Sales Corporation conducts foreclosure sales. MCCALLA RAYMER LEIBERT PIERCE, LLC Plaintiff’s Attorneys, One North Dearborn Street, Suite 1200, Chicago, IL, 60602. Tel No. (312) 346-9088. THE JUDICIAL SALES CORPORATION One South Wacker Drive, 24th Floor, Chicago, IL 60606-4650 (312) 236-SALE You can also visit The Judicial Sales Corporation at www.tjsc.com for a 7 day status report of pending sales. MCCALLA RAYMER LEIBERT PIERCE, LLC One North Dearborn Street, Suite 1200 Chicago IL, 60602 312-346-9088 E-Mail: pleadings@mccalla.com Attorney File No. 268011 Attorney ARDC No. 61256 Attorney Code. 61256 Case Number: 18 CH 15348 TJSC#: 39-5394 NOTE: Pursuant to the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act, you are advised that Plaintiff’s attorney is deemed to be a debt collector attempting to collect a debt and any information obtained will be used for that purpose. Case # 18 CH 15348 I3149123
Austin Weekly News, April 29, 2020
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Austin Weekly News, April 29, 2020