Local News

The University of Chicago Continues Tradition of Honoring George Kent

The University of Chicago’s, Organization of Black Students (OBS), invited political strategist and television correspondent Donna Brazile to speak during its 2014 Annual George E. Kent Lecture Series.

A First-Hand Account of Events Leading to the Murder of Emmett Till

The story of Emmett Till, the 14-year-old African American youth from Chicago who was murdered Aug. 1955 while visiting with relatives in Money, Miss., is one that for years haunted his family and the entire African American community and, some would say, helped galvanize the Civil Rights Movement.

Unemployed Cook County Residents Get a Boost to Get Back to Work

Skills for Chicagoland’s Future (SCF) was recently showcased at a White House summit focused on strategies to reduce long-term unemployment. SCF is a public-private partnership that helps match businesses with current, unmet hiring needs with qualified, unemployed job seekers by closing the skills gap in Chicago and Cook County by providing recruitment, placement and training services at no cost to the job seeker.

President Obama’s Initiative Against Sexual Assault Calls for Public Awareness

U.S. President Barack Obama recently announced a call to action against sexual assaults on college campuses. President Obama signed a memorandum that will create a task force whose charge is to find practical measures to prevent sexual assaults and improve the quality, urgency, perception and speed of responses to sexual assaults within 90 days.

App Challenge for 2nd Congressional Dist. Students

With the fear that the U.S. will fall short in filling technology job openings with American citizens, more and more programs and initiatives are being offered to involve high school and college students in math and technology through STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Match) projects and education.

University of Chicago Creates Presidential Library Foundation

Establishing its competitive footing in its quest for the Barack Obama Presidential Library, the University of Chicago (U of C), announced last week the establishment of the Barack H. Obama Foundation, created to oversee planning for the university's possible future attraction.

City Provides Two New Locations for Free Tax Preparation Help

The City of Chicago is promoting its free Tax Preparation Assistance Program in an effort to encourage, eligible Chicago residents, to apply for the Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC). According to the Mayor’s office, 100,000 households in the City fail to claim the EITC, leaving as much as $200 million in unclaimed dollars.

Chicago Urban League, Gary Comer Center, Hosts Black History Month Film Festivals

In honor of Black History Month, the Chicago Urban League and the Gary Comer Youth Center are both hosting Black history film festivals.

Divvy Bikes Look to Expand into South Shore

For those of you who are unfamiliar with the Divvy Bikes program, it is a system provided by the Chicago Department of Transportation (CDOT) where bikes are rented to users for 30 minute intervals and returned to one of the network of docking stations located throughout a city as part of a bike sharing system. The bikes are rented for 30 minute intervals in order to insure all riders have a bike available to them. CDOT received initial funding for Divvy through federal grants and the City’s TIF funds.

EEOC Report Examines Obstacles Facing Women in Federal Workplace

The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) today issued a comprehensive report addressing major obstacles hindering equal opportunities for women in the federal workforce, in addition to highlighting stakeholder recommendations. The report is available on EEOC's website at http://www.eeoc.gov/federal/reports/women_workgroup_report.cfm.

Cook County Shared Fleet Program Saves Taxpayers $250,000

Cook County's Shared Car program, which has been in progress for one year, has already saved taxpayers approximately $250,000 according to county officials. The Shared Car program is the latest of several government transportation programs supported by Zipcar throughout Illinois, including programs at the state, city and county levels. The program, which decreases employee vehicle costs and travel reimbursements, complemented Cook County's existing fleets by providing access to car sharing for employees, and optimized their existing fleet with Zipcar's FastFleet technology.

Legislation for Year-Round School Announced

U.S. Sen. Mark Kirk announced new legislation at a press conference last week held at Alain Locke Charter School, on Chicago’s West Side, pushing for year-round schools throughout the nation as a way to close the achievement gap.

The Village of Hazel Crest Discusses Lifting Pawn Shop Moratorium

Village of Hazel Crest officials talked with local residents and business owners last Thursday during a public meeting to discuss lifting the current moratorium on issuing business permits/licenses to pawn shops and cash-for-gold enterprises. The village’s moratorium or, temporary prohibition of issuing licenses to pawn shops and cash-for-gold ventures, has been in effect for a year. It now must be reviewed by the Village of Hazel Crest’s President and Board of Trustees but the fate of the moratorium, according to village officials, will be decided mostly by concerned citizens.

South Side Youth's Path to Innovation and Entrepreneurship

There’s no shortage of news about African American youth who take the wrong path in life. Here’s a story however, that highlights an African American youth who started down the wrong path but changed his course and is now an entrepreneur with a device that soon will be on store shelves as a product that benefits children and their families. It's called the Thermofier.

U.S. Legislators Introduce Bill Designating National Park Status for Historic Pullman Area

A legislative measure originally introduced by former U. S. Cong. Jesse Jackson, Jr., is once again being presented by U.S. Senators Dick Durbin (D-IL), Mark Kirk (R-IL), along with Congresswoman Robin Kelly (D-IL), during the first session of the 113th Congress this week to establish a national park in Chicago’s Historic Pullman neighborhood.