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Swastikas, Graffiti Found on Several Properties in Tinley Park

Swastikas and other markings were recently found on several Tinley Park businesses and residences, officials said. Tinley Park, Ill. police said they don’t have any suspects and aren’t sure if any of the incidents over the last two months are connected. The south suburban police also added that the vandalism hasn’t been classified as hate crimes. “We are still working at it,” Deputy Police Chief Lorelei Mason said. “We don’t have any leads. This has run in spurts. We think it could be kids.”

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Englewood Woman Celebrates 104th Birthday with a Big Bash

Collard greens, gospel music, gum and family. Those are some of the secrets that helped Rosie Atchison live to be 104, quipped her granddaughter, Tammy Barnes, 47.

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31st Street Beach and Park Named after Margaret Burroughs

The Chicago Park District Board named a second beach and park after an African-American – the late artist Margaret Burroughs. Last week, the board agreed to name the 31st Street Beach and Park after Burroughs, a long-time Chicago Park District Commissioner who co-founded the DuSable Museum of African American History, 740 E. 56th Pl.

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Fallen Black Firefighters Honored at Chatham Neighborhood Park

A Pierce model fire truck, named in memory of fallen Chicago Firefighter Sidney Brown, has logged about 37,000 miles since arriving to a South Side fire station a dozen years ago.

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Rauner Signs Bill Prohibiting Police Chokeholds, Establishing Guidelines for Body Cameras

When Kwame Raoul was a Ill. state prosecutor, he recalls getting patted down by police officers as he exited his car in an area south of downtown Chicago on Financial Street.

Elected Officials Tout Local Jobs Program, Healthcare

Larome Levy, an Austin neighborhood resident, is looking forward to college. But first, he must pay $500 in fees he owes to Steinmetz High School. The 18-year-old senior is now able to pay off the debt because of his new clerk job at Loretto Hospital, 645 S. Central Ave., Chicago.

Country Club Hills Amphitheater Could Open Next Summer

Country Club Hills outdoor amphitheater, closed for nearly two years, could be back in business next summer with more seats, city officials said. The Country Club Hills Council agreed Monday night to use about $1.7 million in tax increment financing (TIF) money to more than triple fixed seating at the amphitheater to about 2,100. The south suburban, Ill. venue currently has about 640 such seats.

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Man charged with punching Ald. David Moore

A 22-year-old man was charged with punching Ald. David Moore as the Chicago official tried to disband alleged prostitutes on a South Side street, officials said.

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Jordan Davis’ Mom: Shield Children from Gun Violence

On the anniversary of the death of Michael Brown, an unarmed African American teen killed in Ferguson, Mo. after a controversial run in with a white police officer, a mother of another dead teen asked Chicagoans to save their children from gun violence.

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Boykin Eyes Hotly Contested Senate Race

Cook County Commissioner, Richard Boykin, is taking steps to enter Illinois’ hotly contested U.S. Senate race.

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Chicago Man, Exonerated of Murder, Fatally Shot on West Side

A Chicago man, exonerated after serving 17 years in prison, was killed during an alleged “bad” drug deal, officials said. Alprentiss Nash, 40, was fatally shot in the chest when he allegedly attempted to rob another man last week, Chicago Police said. Nash and Paul Vukadinovic, 30, allegedly exchanged gunshots July 28th in the 400 block of South Paulina Street, police said. Nash was taken to Stroger Hospital, where he was pronounced dead, authorities said.

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Head Start Marks a Half Century of Service in the U.S. this Summer

Recognizes name on manuscript. Understands letter forms, big and small. And colors, paints and pastes. Those were some of the benchmark tasks I completed as a 5-year-old in the first year of the Head Start program in 1965. I was just one of millions of low income children helped by Head Start. The program celebrates its 50th anniversary this summer.

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Thousands Pray to Stop Violence in Chicago

As a nurse at Northwestern University hospital, Desiree Smith sees her share of gunshot victims.

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Ex-Federal Prosecutor Becomes First Woman to Chair Chicago Police Board

Lori Lightfoot is a familiar face in law enforcement. She was a federal prosecutor. She once ran Chicago Police Department’s Office of Professional Standards. But last week, the openly-gay, African-American woman broke new ground as the first female to head the Chicago Police Board.

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Fallen Black Firefighters to be Recognized at Chatham Park

In 1983, Chicago Firefighter, Sidney Brown, thought children were inside of a burning South Side home. So, he rushed in to save them but became trapped in an attic in the house at 119th and State streets.

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Ex-Prosecutor: Texas Officer ‘Abused His Power’ in Bland Traffic Stop

Sandra Bland’s somber funeral at DuPage African Methodist Episcopal Church attracted hundreds of supporters, who were shocked and dismayed that her death stemmed from a simple traffic stop.

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Lunch Bus Serves Record Number of Free Meals to Chicago Area Children

During summer break, Jennifer Sanders regularly catches up with reading at the West Englewood Library on the city’s South Side. But the 16-year-old teen doesn’t have to worry about what she will eat during her daylong visits. That’s because the Harlan High School student is one of about 1,000 youth receiving free meals this summer from the Greater Chicago Food Depository’s “Lunch Bus.”

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Robbins Native Nichelle Nichols Credited with Recruiting Women, Minorities to Space Program

The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) space mission last week to the international space station was diverse: three crew members represented the U.S., Russia and Japan.

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Do Not Argue with Cops During Traffic Stops!

What should you do when a cop pulls you over during a traffic stop? Drivers should simply comply with the officer’s orders, said several law enforcement experts.

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Employees Rally to Support Roseland Community Hospital

Wendy Jones remembers her mother suddenly suffering a heart attack while in the emergency room of Roseland Community Hospital (RCH) on Chicago’s far South Side. “The hospital staff acted quickly and saved her life,” said Jones on Friday outside the medical facility open at 45 W. 111th St. Jones said the encounter is the main reason she supports the 85-year-old medical facility. Outside the hospital, Jones joined about 150 other demonstrators, many with signs proclaiming “Roseland Matters” and “Black Lives Matter.”

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Flossmoor Metra Station Gets $4 Mil. Facelift

The busy Flossmoor, Ill. Metra station got a $4 million facelift, one of several renovations in the last couple of years the rail line has initiated.

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Abena Joan Brown, Black Theater Pioneer, Touched Everyone She Knew

(Opinion) When my dad died, my family scrabbled to find a place to hold his memorial in Chicago. He was an artist reared on the South Side but spent the last two decades of his life operating a gallery in Washington, D.C.

Preckwinkle Gets Sales Tax Increase: Critics Fear Hike Will Hurt Businesses

Yasmin Curtis has a thriving sports bar on the city’s South Side. The 35-year-old woman, who opened the Bronzeville Sports Bar and Grill nearly five years ago, now has eight employees.

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Jackson Criticizes Democratic Committee for Backing Duckworth Over Zopp in Senate Race

The Rev. Jesse Jackson, Sr. criticized the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee for endorsing U.S. Rep. Tammy Duckworth instead of Andrea Zopp in the U.S. Senate race in Illinois.

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Long-time South Side Barber Honored for Activism, Mentoring

When Stacy Harris was a teen on Chicago’s South Side, he dealt drugs and brawled a lot. Now, Harris, 44, owns a small car dealership in northwest Indiana. He credits a 75-year-old South Shore barber with helping him turn his life around: El-Hajj Elshabazz.

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Abena Joan Brown, Black Theater Pioneer, Dies After Short Illness

Abena Joan Brown, founder of the ETA Creative Arts Theater on Chicago’s South Side, died Sunday after a short illness.

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Group Encourages Taste of Chicago Visitors to Eat Healthy

Just two years ago, Shannon Williams ate lobster and cheesecake at the Taste of Chicago festival in Grant Park. But on Sunday, she ate corn, noodles and water melon. That’s because the 37-year-old resident of Chicago’s Auburn Gresham neighborhood participated in the Humana Healthier Choices Rewards Program.

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Robbins Historian Promotes Village's Rich History to Inspire Youth

The first black-owned airport in the nation. Black leadership for nearly a century. And former residents with big names, like Dwyane Wade and Keke Palmer. Those are just a few of the examples that Tyrone Haymore uses to argue that Robbins, Ill. is the most historical black community in the United States.

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DuSable Museum Festival Attracts Artists, Food Vendors, ‘Steppers’

Denise Sherman had never been to the annual Arts and Crafts Festival at the DuSable Museum of African American History. But on Saturday, the 55-year-old woman decided to visit the 41st annual event because she loves to dance.

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Divvy Bike Memberships Offered at $5 for Low Income Residents

The city of Chicago is offering low income residents Divvy Bike annual memberships for $5 instead of the normal rate of $75.

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Sen. Mattie Hunter: No one is 'exempt' from violence that killed nephews

Retired Chicago Public Schools teacher, Sharon Byron, has attended so many funerals of former students, she has lost count. On Saturday, Byron added one more to her list: the funeral of Willie Lee Hunter, 31, who was killed while with his brother, John Lee Hunter, 25, who was also killed. The siblings, memorialized in white caskets, had a joint service at Gatling’s Chapel, 10133 Halsted St.

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Willie Wilson's Campaign for Democratic Presidential Nomination Gets Little Coverage

The National Urban League’s presidential candidate plenary appears to be star-studded. Jeb Bush, Dr. Benjamin Carson, Hillary Clinton and Martin O’Malley have all confirmed to appear at the July 31st event in Florida, according to the League’s website.

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Activists sue three suburbs to keep guns out of city

On the heels of another bloody holiday weekend, an anti-violence group filed a lawsuit Tuesday against three suburban communities to keep guns out of Chicago.

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