ChicagoTalks - Latest Articles tag:chicagotalks.org,2005:Near-Time http://www.near-time.net/images/shared/favicon.ico The latest articles from the ChicagoTalks space with comments Welcome to Chicagotalks where Neighborhood News Matters Near-Time release 2008.42.0 (rev. 27101 - 2008-12-29) 2009-01-14T17:53:39Z Curtis Black of Community Media Workshop /news/2009/1/14/illinois-advocates-say-successful-stimulus-package-must-include-affordable-housing 2009-01-14T17:48:42Z 2009-01-14T17:53:39Z Illinois advocates say successful stimulus package must include affordable housing <div class="mceContentBody"><p>&#10;With the&#160;<a href="http://communitymediaworkshop.org/newstips/?p=329" target="_blank">still-growing</a>&#10;housing crisis at the core of the sharpest economic downturn since the&#10;Great Depression, advocates called for affordable housing to be a key&#10;component of stimulus and recovery plans.</p><p>&#34;Housing is infrastructure,&#34; said Jack Markowski of the Chicago-based<a href="http://www.cicchicago.org/" target="_blank">Community Investment Corporation</a>,&#10;alluding to massive infrastructure investments planned in the&#10;forthcoming &#8230;</p></div><br class="no-line-height" clear="both" /><div class="mceContentBody"><p>&#10;With the&#160; <a href="http://communitymediaworkshop.org/newstips/?p=329" target="_blank">still-growing</a>&#10;housing crisis at the core of the sharpest economic downturn since the&#10;Great Depression, advocates called for affordable housing to be a key&#10;component of stimulus and recovery plans.</p><p>&#34;Housing is infrastructure,&#34; said Jack Markowski of the Chicago-based <a href="http://www.cicchicago.org/" target="_blank">Community Investment Corporation</a>,&#10;alluding to massive infrastructure investments planned in the&#10;forthcoming stimulus program. &#34;It employs people. It provides the&#10;foundation to allow people to be part of the workforce.&#34; And with a&#10;growing need for energy conservation, &#34;it&#39;s part of the green economy.</p><p>&#34;We have proposals that are shovel-ready,&#34; he added, speaking at a&#10;gathering of over 200 community housing practitioners convened by the <a href="http://www.chicagorehab.org/" target="_blank">Chicago Rehab Network</a> at Roosevelt University Monday.</p><p><a href="/wiki/illinois-advocates-say-successful-stimulus-package-must-include-affordable-housing">Read more...</a><br /></p></div><br class="no-line-height" clear="both" /> Alyx Sariol /news/2009/1/13/illinois-students-to-embark-on-inauguration-trip 2009-01-13T16:12:39Z 2009-01-13T16:12:39Z Illinois students to embark on inauguration trip <div class="mceContentBody"><p>Jan. 13, 2008 - A group of Illinois students will embark on a once&#10;in a lifetime trip on Sunday to witness a piece of history &#8211; the&#10;inauguration of the country&#8217;s first African American president.</p><p>The &#8220;<a href="http://centerforcommunityadvocacy.com/WitnesstohistoryTour.html">Witness to History Bus Tour</a>,&#8221; organized by Clarence Davidson at the Chicago-based<a href="http://centerforcommunityadvocacy.com/">Center &#8230;</a></p></div><br class="no-line-height" clear="both" /><div class="mceContentBody"><p>Jan. 13, 2008 - A group of Illinois students will embark on a once&#10;in a lifetime trip on Sunday to witness a piece of history &#8211; the&#10;inauguration of the country&#8217;s first African American president. </p><p>The &#8220;<a href="http://centerforcommunityadvocacy.com/WitnesstohistoryTour.html">Witness to History Bus Tour</a>,&#8221; organized by Clarence Davidson at the Chicago-based <a href="http://centerforcommunityadvocacy.com/">Center for Community Advocacy</a>,&#10;will take approximately 25 students from around Illinois on a free&#10;4-day bus trip to Washington D.C. for the Inauguration on Jan. 20. </p><p>Recognizing&#10;the historical significance of the upcoming event, Davidson was&#10;inspired to organize the trip as a way for students to be a part of&#10;history and engage in numerous learning experiences along the way. </p><p><a href="http://chicagotalks-space.near-time.net/wiki/illinois-students-to-embark-on-inauguration-trip">Read more...</a><br /></p></div><br class="no-line-height" clear="both" /> Alyx Sariol /news/2009/1/12/new-eastside-caps-meeting-addresses-biased-based-policing-homeless-problem 2009-01-12T15:58:42Z 2009-01-13T16:24:41Z New Eastside CAPS meeting addresses biased-based policing, homeless problem <div class="mceContentBody"><p>Jan. 12, 2008 - Racial profiling, hate crimes and vagrancy were&#10;among the issues raised by residents of Chicago&#8217;s New Eastside&#10;neighborhood during their Beat 124CAPS meeting Thursday.&#160;</p><p>The bi-monthly<a href="http://www.cityofchicago.org/city/webportal/portalContentItemAction.do?contenTypeName=COC_EDITORIAL&contentOID=10912&topChannelName=HomePage">Chicago Alternative Policing Strategy</a>meetings aim to address issues, past and present, with officers who work in the area. In&#10;concurrence with recent &#8230;</p></div><br class="no-line-height" clear="both" /><div class="mceContentBody"><p>Jan. 12, 2008 - Racial profiling, hate crimes and vagrancy were&#10;among the issues raised by residents of Chicago&#8217;s New Eastside&#10;neighborhood during their Beat 124CAPS meeting Thursday.&#160; </p><p>The bi-monthly <a href="http://www.cityofchicago.org/city/webportal/portalContentItemAction.do?contenTypeName=COC_EDITORIAL&contentOID=10912&topChannelName=HomePage">Chicago Alternative Policing Strategy</a> meetings aim to address issues, past and present, with officers who work in the area. In&#10;concurrence with recent media coverage about biased-based policing,&#10;guest speaker Sgt. Dan Mahoney from the Internal Affairs Division was&#10;on hand to address the issue.</p><p>&#8220;The&#10;department has a strict policy prohibiting racial profiling and&#10;biased-based policing,&#8221; said Mahoney. &#8220;We are looking to make sure that&#10;officers are not engaging in either and we&#8217;re committed to stopping&#10;this.&#8221;</p><p><a href="http://chicagotalks-space.near-time.net/wiki/new-eastside-caps-meeting-addresses-biased-based-policing-homeless-problem">Read more...</a><br /></p></div><br class="no-line-height" clear="both" /> Curtis Black of Community Media Workshop /news/2009/1/9/michigan-avenue-horse-carriage-companies-challenged 2009-01-09T16:15:22Z 2009-01-11T22:31:39Z Michigan Avenue horse carriage companies challenged <div class="mceContentBody"><p>Jan. 9, 2009 - In response to complaints by animal&#10;rights activists, one horse carriage company is no longer operating on North Michigan&#10;Avenue as of January 1 for violations of city code.</p><p>Kerri Stojack of Ald. Scott Waguespack&#39;s&#10;32nd Ward office said the Department of Consumer Services has not renewed the&#10;business license &#8230;</p></div><br class="no-line-height" clear="both" /><div class="mceContentBody"><p>Jan. 9, 2009 - In response to complaints by animal&#10;rights activists, one horse carriage company is no longer operating on North Michigan&#10;Avenue as of January 1 for violations of city code.</p><p>Kerri Stojack of Ald. Scott Waguespack&#39;s&#10;32nd Ward office said the Department of Consumer Services has not renewed the&#10;business license of JC Cutters Ltd.</p><p>The company houses its horses in an&#10;unpermitted tent on the Chicago River which lacks electricity and running&#10;water, and it has racked up numerous complaints from the city&#39;s Animal Care and&#10;Control Commission for inadequate shelter and unsanitary conditions, with&#10;horse&#39;s hay mixed with manure and urine. It was the subject of a WMAQ-TV&#10;investigation in October (<a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4ZJNBo1iqdE" target="_blank">video</a>).</p><p><a href="/wiki/michigan-avenue-horse-carriage-companies-challenged">Read more...</a><br /></p></div><br class="no-line-height" clear="both" /> Agnes Masnik /news/2009/1/8/chicago-attorney-representing-guantanamo-detainees-discusses-complexity-of-prison-closure 2009-01-08T15:58:35Z 2009-01-11T22:29:42Z Chicago attorney representing Guantanamo detainees discusses complexity of prison closure <div class="mceContentBody"><p>Jan. 8, 2009 - Prisoners sit in an 8-by 6-foot cell, built from a wire frame. The cells sit&#10;in two rows facing each other out in the open air. They are covered with&#10;a tin roof, which traps the heat of the sun. There are no fans or air&#10;conditioner provided.</p><p>As &#8230;</p></div><br class="no-line-height" clear="both" /><div class="mceContentBody"><p>Jan. 8, 2009 - Prisoners sit in an 8-by 6-foot cell, built from a wire frame. The cells sit&#10;in two rows facing each other out in the open air. They are covered with&#10;a tin roof, which traps the heat of the sun. There are no fans or air&#10;conditioner provided.</p><p>As President-elect Barack Obama takes office, one of his highest executive&#10;priorities is to close Guantanamo Bay in Cuba, but the new administration will&#10;face difficult challenges on how to process the detainees for trial and&#10;possible release.</p><p>Jeffrey Colman, a Chicago attorney who has represented prisoners at&#10;Guantanamo, said he still has two clients imprisoned there indefinitely.</p><p><a href="http://chicagotalks-space.near-time.net/wiki/chicago-attorney-representing-guantanamo-detainees-discusses-complexity-of-prison-closure">Read more...</a><br /></p></div><br class="no-line-height" clear="both" /> Jessica Rosenberg /news/2009/1/7/chicago-based-project-harambee-works-to-fight-african-aids-epidemic 2009-01-07T16:25:58Z 2009-01-11T22:27:28Z Chicago-based Project Harambee works to fight African AIDS epidemic <div class="mceContentBody"><p>Jan. 7, 2009 - Kathleen Harrison was never that interested in Africa.</p><p>But that was 2001 - before the former Loyola University&#10;medical professor visited an orphanage for HIV positive children in Kenya. On the long trip home, the images of the parentless&#10;children played back in her head. She&#10;knew she wanted &#8230;</p></div><br class="no-line-height" clear="both" /><div class="mceContentBody"><p>Jan. 7, 2009 - Kathleen Harrison was never that interested in Africa.</p><p>But that was 2001 - before the former Loyola University&#10;medical professor visited an orphanage for HIV positive children in Kenya. On the long trip home, the images of the parentless&#10;children played back in her head. She&#10;knew she wanted to help, but was discouraged by the fact that she was just one&#10;person. </p><p>That&#39;s when she took matters into her own hands.</p><p><a href="/wiki/chicago-based-project-harambee-works-to-fight-african-aids-epidemic">Read more...</a><br /></p></div><br class="no-line-height" clear="both" /> Christine Iversen /news/2009/1/6/shelter-to-school-conversion-sign-of-the-times-in-south-loop 2009-01-06T15:58:43Z 2009-01-11T22:41:26Z Shelter to school conversion sign of the times in South Loop <div class="mceContentBody"><p>Jan. 6, 2009 - With the demolition of the former Pacific Garden Mission&#10;building on South State Street complete,&#160;<a href="http://www.jonescollegeprep.org/">Jones College Preparatory High School</a>&#160; is&#10;gearing up for big change in 2009. Chicago&#10;Public Schools has changed construction plans for the now-empty lot immediately&#10;south of the school from an extension to a &#8230;</p></div><br class="no-line-height" clear="both" /><div class="mceContentBody"><p>Jan. 6, 2009 - With the demolition of the former Pacific Garden Mission&#10;building on South State Street complete,&#160; <a href="http://www.jonescollegeprep.org/">Jones College Preparatory High School</a>&#160; is&#10;gearing up for big change in 2009. Chicago&#10;Public Schools has changed construction plans for the now-empty lot immediately&#10;south of the school from an extension to a new seven-story, $130 million&#10;building. </p><p>The school council announced the change at an open meeting&#10;in late November where students, parents and community members gathered to&#10;discus the expansion. According to the&#10;council, the new building will hold up to 1,200 students, a 60 percent increase&#10;over current 750-student capacity. </p><p>&#34;I think it&#39;s a good thing,&#34; said Christina Richards, a&#10;student at Jones, &#34;because a lot of people don&#39;t like that there&#39;s not a gym&#10;right now. It will probably bring more&#10;people here.&#34;</p><p><a href="/wiki/shelter-to-school-conversion-sign-of-the-times-in-south-loop">Read more...</a><br /></p></div><br class="no-line-height" clear="both" /> Evan Minsker /news/2009/1/5/uptown-food-pantry-seeing-more-in-need-during-economic-slump 2009-01-05T15:59:52Z 2009-01-11T22:38:24Z Uptown food pantry seeing more in need during economic slump <div class="mceContentBody"><p>Jan. 5, 2009 - An economic downturn sprouts many&#10;worries. Topping the list for food pantries across the country is, &#34;Will&#10;we run out of food?&#34;</p><p>That&#39;s the issue the<a href="http://www.juf.org/">Jewish United Fund</a>(JUF) is addressing. A financial crisis&#10;means more people in need.</p><p>&#34;We&#39;re definitely seeing more people coming to us for &#8230;</p></div><br class="no-line-height" clear="both" /><div class="mceContentBody"><p>Jan. 5, 2009 - An economic downturn sprouts many&#10;worries. Topping the list for food pantries across the country is, &#34;Will&#10;we run out of food?&#34;</p><p>That&#39;s the issue the <a href="http://www.juf.org/">Jewish United Fund</a> (JUF) is addressing. A financial crisis&#10;means more people in need.</p><p>&#34;We&#39;re definitely seeing more people coming to us for help as a result of&#10;the economic downturn,&#34; said Linda Haase, the associate vice president of&#10;marketing communications with the JUF.</p><p>And to a food pantry, more people means less food. </p><p><a href="/wiki/uptown-food-pantry-seeing-more-in-need-during-economic-slump">Read more...</a><br /></p></div><br class="no-line-height" clear="both" /> Erica Christoffer /news/2009/1/2/sudanese-lost-boy-committed-to-improving-life-in-chicago-community-homeland 2009-01-02T16:18:56Z 2009-01-11T22:36:24Z Sudanese Lost Boy committed to improving life in Chicago community, homeland <div class="mceContentBody"><p>Jan. 2, 2009 - Standing outside the Deluxe Diner on the North side of Chicago in Rogers&#10;Park, Peter Magai Bul towers over the people around him. An acquaintance from&#10;the neighborhood swerves around sidewalk pedestrians on his bike and&#10;affectionately gives Bul a nod, calling him &#34;Manute Bol&#34; as he passes.</p><p>At &#8230;</p></div><br class="no-line-height" clear="both" /><div class="mceContentBody"><p>Jan. 2, 2009 - Standing outside the Deluxe Diner on the North side of Chicago in Rogers&#10;Park, Peter Magai Bul towers over the people around him. An acquaintance from&#10;the neighborhood swerves around sidewalk pedestrians on his bike and&#10;affectionately gives Bul a nod, calling him &#34;Manute Bol&#34; as he passes. </p><p>At 6 feet, 6 inches, Bul doesn&#39;t quite reach the retired NBA star&#39;s stature&#10;at 7 feet, 7 inches. But they do have other things in common: They were both&#10;born in Sudan and they both fled the brutal civil war. Now, in the U.S., they&#10;both work as activists seeking to educate the community and create change in&#10;their homeland.</p><p>Bul serves as president of the <a href="http://www.aycda.org/home.html">Ayual Community Development Association</a>. Maketh&#10;Mabior, a fellow Lost Boy and lifelong friend, described Bul as someone who&#10;always has a plan, someone who has the answer and someone who works extremely&#10;hard.</p><p>&#34;He&#39;s somebody who would put himself on the line,&#34; Mabior said.&#10;&#34;He makes himself busy every day. Sometimes I say, &#8216;Peter, you have to&#10;take a break.&#39; The man is everywhere. He&#39;s like an ambassador.&#34;</p><p><a href="/wiki/sudanese-lost-boy-committed-to-improving-life-in-chicago-community-homeland">Read more...</a></p></div><br class="no-line-height" clear="both" /> Curtis Black of Community Media Workshop /news/2008/12/31/daily-january-peace-vigil-aimed-at-obama-s-agenda 2008-12-31T18:51:37Z 2008-12-31T19:00:33Z Daily January peace vigil aimed at Obama's agenda <div class="mceContentBody"><p>&#10;Dec. 31, 2008 - Peace groups from around the region will hold a daily vigil throughout&#10;January in Hyde Park, blocks from the home of President-elect Barack&#10;Obama, to&#10;show support for the progressive agenda on which Obama ran.</p><p>&#34;We are trying to remain hopeful, but we understand that there is&#10;tremendous pressure on &#8230;</p></div><br class="no-line-height" clear="both" /><div class="mceContentBody"><p>&#10;Dec. 31, 2008 - Peace groups from around the region will hold a daily vigil throughout&#10;January in Hyde Park, blocks from the home of President-elect Barack&#10;Obama, to&#10;show support for the progressive agenda on which Obama ran.</p><p>&#34;We are trying to remain hopeful, but we understand that there is&#10;tremendous pressure on Obama to step away from the positions he took&#10;during the campaign,&#34; said Dan Pearson, an organizer for <a href="http://camphope2009.org/">Camp Hope 2009</a>. &#34;We want to show that there is support for him to implement all&#10;the changes that he campaigned for.&#34;</p><p>Spearheaded by <a href="http://vcnv.org/">Voices for Creative Nonviolence</a> and Nobel Peace Prize&#10;nominee Kathy Kelly and joined by groups advocating immigrant rights&#10;and action on climate change, Camp Hope will maintain a daily presence&#10;at Drexel Square Park, 51st and Drexel, from Jan. 1 to Jan. 19,&#10;the day before Obama&#39;s inauguration.</p><p><a href="/wiki/daily-january-peace-vigil-aimed-at-obama-s-agenda">Read more...</a><br /></p></div><br class="no-line-height" clear="both" /> Heidi M. Stallings /news/2008/12/30/legal-groups-cook-county-judicial-recommendations-has-little-sway-on-voters 2008-12-30T15:49:31Z 2008-12-30T15:50:10Z Legal groups' Cook County judicial recommendations has little sway on voters <div class="mceContentBody"><p>Dec. 30, 2008 - When Judge Vanessa A. Hopkins was reelected as a circuit court judge with&#10;nearly 70 percent of the vote last month she felt relieved, grateful and&#10;vindicated by the voters of Cook County.</p><p>Hopkins is one of three Cook County judges who won reelection despite not&#10;having the endorsement &#8230;</p></div><br class="no-line-height" clear="both" /><div class="mceContentBody"><p>Dec. 30, 2008 - When Judge Vanessa A. Hopkins was reelected as a circuit court judge with&#10;nearly 70 percent of the vote last month she felt relieved, grateful and&#10;vindicated by the voters of Cook County. </p><p>Hopkins is one of three Cook County judges who won reelection despite not&#10;having the endorsement of one of the most prestigious law associations.</p><p>&#34;The Chicago Bar Association did not elect me. The people did,&#34; said&#10;Hopkins.</p><p><a href="/wiki/legal-groups-cook-county-judicial-recommendations-has-little-sway-on-voters">Read more...</a><br /></p></div><br class="no-line-height" clear="both" /> Meha Ahmad /news/2008/12/29/obama-win-stirs-mixed-feelings-in-biracial-community 2008-12-29T14:55:04Z 2008-12-29T14:58:39Z Obama win stirs mixed feelings in biracial community <div class="mceContentBody"><p>Dec. 29, 2008 - When&#10;Angela Pham looks at President-Elect Barack Obama, she sees a black president.</p><p>Pham, 22, who is half Vietnamese, half white, says Obama doesn&#39;t truly&#10;represent other biracials, citing a speech about race given in March, where&#10;Obama focused chiefly on the black community.</p><p>Pham said she&#39;s seen Obama &#8230;</p></div><br class="no-line-height" clear="both" /><div class="mceContentBody"><p>Dec. 29, 2008 - When&#10;Angela Pham looks at President-Elect Barack Obama, she sees a black president.</p><p>Pham, 22, who is half Vietnamese, half white, says Obama doesn&#39;t truly&#10;represent other biracials, citing a speech about race given in March, where&#10;Obama focused chiefly on the black community.</p><p>Pham said she&#39;s seen Obama reach out to the black community and wishes the&#10;president-elect spoke out more to the biracial and multi-racial voters.</p><p>Raised by her white mother, Pham doesn&#39;t have strong Vietnamese features. She&#10;may consider herself &#34;more white&#34; but identifies as biracial and&#10;checks &#34;biracial&#34; or &#34;other&#34; on government forms and&#10;college applications.</p><p>She knows what it&#39;s like to be raised by the &#34;white side&#34; of the&#10;family like Obama, who was raised by his white mother and later by his maternal&#10;grandparents, so she wants to be able to better relate to him.</p><p>Richard Schaefer, a professor of black world studies and racial attitudes at&#10;DePaul University, said racial identity in American society is socially rather&#10;than biologically constructed.</p><p><a href="/wiki/obama-win-stirs-mixed-feelings-in-biracial-community">Read more...</a><br /></p></div><br class="no-line-height" clear="both" /> Elisa Tavares Bell /news/2008/12/26/chicagoans-complain-about-access-to-city-council 2008-12-26T16:18:44Z 2008-12-26T16:08:46Z Chicagoans complain about access to city council <div class="mceContentBody"><p>Dec. 26, 2008 - Chicagoan Bruce Jordan took a day off from work to attend a Chicago City Council Committee meeting last summer, but he sat waiting for almost two hours before learning his alderman would not be there.<br /><br />Jordan, president of Concerned Citizens of Auburn-Gresham, said Ald. Howard Brookins &#8230;</p></div><br class="no-line-height" clear="both" /><div class="mceContentBody"><p>Dec. 26, 2008 - Chicagoan Bruce Jordan took a day off from work to attend a Chicago City Council Committee meeting last summer, but he sat waiting for almost two hours before learning his alderman would not be there.<br /><br />Jordan, president of Concerned Citizens of Auburn-Gresham, said Ald. Howard Brookins Jr. (21st) did not attend the August zoning meeting at which Jordan and other community residents wanted to voice their safety concerns about a commercial district the alderman wants to develop in their southwest side neighborhood. <br /><br />&#34;I&#39;ll take off work for important issues,&#34; said Jordan, an 11-year Chicago resident. &#34;But when we go for nothing, it&#39;s inconvenient and disappointing.&#34;</p><p><a href="/wiki/untitled-4-3">Read more...</a><br /></p></div><br class="no-line-height" clear="both" /> Travis Truitt /news/2008/12/24/board-to-study-how-cook-county-awards-contracts-to-women-and-minorities 2008-12-24T17:12:48Z 2008-12-24T17:28:44Z Board to study how Cook County awards contracts to women and minorities <div class="mceContentBody"><p>Dec. 24, 2008 - Looking to save money and increase efficiency in the way minority and women-owned businesses secure contracts, Cook County Commissioner Elizabeth &#8220;Liz&#8221; Doody Gorman (17th) proposed eliminating a county department earlier this month.<br /><br />Gorman&#8217;s move to approve two ordinance amendments that would eliminate the county&#8217;s Department of &#8230;</p></div><br class="no-line-height" clear="both" /><div class="mceContentBody"><p>Dec. 24, 2008 - Looking to save money and increase efficiency in the way minority and women-owned businesses secure contracts, Cook County Commissioner Elizabeth &#8220;Liz&#8221; Doody Gorman (17th) proposed eliminating a county department earlier this month.<br /><br />Gorman&#8217;s move to approve two ordinance amendments that would eliminate the county&#8217;s Department of Contract Compliance elicited a request for a roll call vote from Commissioner William Beavers (4th), and later in the board meeting Gorman agreed to send her proposals to a committee for further study.<br /></p><p><a href="http://chicagotalks-space.near-time.net/wiki/untitled-4-2">Read more...</a><br /></p></div><br class="no-line-height" clear="both" /> Erica Christoffer /news/2008/12/23/groups-on-both-sides-of-the-same-sex-marriage-debate-fight-for-change-in-illinois 2008-12-23T16:22:27Z 2008-12-23T16:22:27Z Groups on both sides of the same-sex marriage debate fight for change in Illinois <div class="mceContentBody"><p>Dec. 23, 2008 - Lauren Hasselson and Christy Fairbairn of Bloomingdale know they&#39;re up against a tough fight. The couple, who demonstrated against the approval of California&#39;s Proposition 8 in Downtown Chicago last month, plan to wed May 2 in a commitment ceremony. They want nothing more than their vows &#8230;</p></div><br class="no-line-height" clear="both" /><div class="mceContentBody"><p>Dec. 23, 2008 - Lauren Hasselson and Christy Fairbairn of Bloomingdale know they&#39;re up against a tough fight. The couple, who demonstrated against the approval of California&#39;s Proposition 8 in Downtown Chicago last month, plan to wed May 2 in a commitment ceremony. They want nothing more than their vows to be recognized under Illinois law.<br /><br />Momentum has gained on both sides of this controversial debate since Nov. 4 when three states - Florida, Arizona and California - passed referendums against same-sex marriage.<br /><br />Protect Marriage Illinois board member Peter LaBarbera said his group would like to see even stronger legislation enacted in Illinois.</p><p><a href="/wiki/groups-on-both-sides-of-the-same-sex-marriage-issue-fight-to-change-law-in-illinois">Read more...</a><br /></p></div><br class="no-line-height" clear="both" /> Leo Moskal /news/2008/12/22/a-makeover-for-welles-park-play-lot 2008-12-22T17:56:17Z 2008-12-23T15:16:14Z A makeover for Welles Park play lot <div class="mceContentBody"><p>Dec. 22, 2008 - As<a href="http://www.chicagoparkdistrict.com/index.cfm/fuseaction/parks.detail/object_id/48f1f9e9-5d6d-4f53-8eb5-49f01a1d5623.cfm">Welles Park</a>&#10;in the Lincoln Square neighborhood creeps towards its 100-year&#10;anniversary, a group of local residents want to restructure the park&#39;s&#10;playground.</p><p>The<a href="http://www.friendsofwellesparkplaylot.com/">Friends of Welles Park Play Lot</a>&#10;is raising money for the rejuvenation project and hopes to have the&#10;necessary funds by the end of &#8230;</p></div><br class="no-line-height" clear="both" /><div class="mceContentBody"><p>Dec. 22, 2008 - As <a href="http://www.chicagoparkdistrict.com/index.cfm/fuseaction/parks.detail/object_id/48f1f9e9-5d6d-4f53-8eb5-49f01a1d5623.cfm">Welles Park</a>&#10;in the Lincoln Square neighborhood creeps towards its 100-year&#10;anniversary, a group of local residents want to restructure the park&#39;s&#10;playground.</p><p>The <a href="http://www.friendsofwellesparkplaylot.com/">Friends of Welles Park Play Lot</a>&#10;is raising money for the rejuvenation project and hopes to have the&#10;necessary funds by the end of the year. The group, formed in 2006,&#10;hopes to raise an additional $330,000, combining it with $470, 000 from&#10;the Chicago Park District.</p><p><a href="/wiki/a-makeover-for-welles-park-play-lot">Read more</a><br /></p></div><br class="no-line-height" clear="both" /> Kaitlyn McAvoy /news/2008/12/19/with-inaugeration-coming-whither-2008-campaign-gear 2008-12-19T12:52:51Z 2008-12-19T12:52:51Z With Inaugeration Coming, Whither 2008 Campaign Gear? <div class="mceContentBody"><p>Dec. 19, 2008 - Long after the polling machines have been put away and the campaign&#10;yard signs taken down, political memorabilia stores and online auction&#10;sites still have plenty of presidential campaign items to get rid of.&#10;Candidate buttons, bumper stickers, T-shirts and masks are still being&#10;sold -- even from the losing &#8230;</p></div><br class="no-line-height" clear="both" /><div class="mceContentBody"><p>Dec. 19, 2008 - Long after the polling machines have been put away and the campaign&#10;yard signs taken down, political memorabilia stores and online auction&#10;sites still have plenty of presidential campaign items to get rid of.&#10;Candidate buttons, bumper stickers, T-shirts and masks are still being&#10;sold -- even from the losing candidate. </p><p><a href="http://chicagotalks-space.near-time.net/wiki/with-inaugeration-coming-whither-2008-campaign-gear">Read more...</a><br /></p></div><br class="no-line-height" clear="both" /> John McCarron /news/2008/12/18/chicago-lawn-neighborhood-serves-as-example-of-growing-foreclosure-crisis 2008-12-18T14:25:49Z 2008-12-18T14:25:49Z Chicago Lawn Neighborhood Serves as Example of Growing Foreclosure Crisis <div class="mceContentBody"><p>Dec. 18, 2008 - It was the red dots-scores of little red specks&#10;sprinkled across a map of just one neighborhood on Chicago&#39;s southwest&#10;side-that spoke the loudest.</p><p>Several high-powered experts spoke Dec. 4 in Chicago at a field hearing&#10;of the Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on Financial Services. But&#10;Sen. Richard J. Durbin (D-Ill.), &#8230;</p></div><br class="no-line-height" clear="both" /><div class="mceContentBody"><p>Dec. 18, 2008 - It was the red dots-scores of little red specks&#10;sprinkled across a map of just one neighborhood on Chicago&#39;s southwest&#10;side-that spoke the loudest.</p><p>Several high-powered experts spoke Dec. 4 in Chicago at a field hearing&#10;of the Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on Financial Services. But&#10;Sen. Richard J. Durbin (D-Ill.), who chairs the subcommittee, and as&#10;assistant majority leader figures to play a key supporting role in the&#10;upcoming Obama administration, seemed just as impressed by the&#10;testimony of the dots.</p><p><a href="/wiki/chicago-lawn-neighborhood-serves-as-example-of-growing-foreclosure-crisis">Read more...</a><br /></p></div><br class="no-line-height" clear="both" /> Nick Orichuia /news/2008/12/17/new-ordinance-may-bring-higher-costs-for-downtown-valet-parking 2008-12-17T02:17:56Z 2008-12-17T12:21:59Z New Ordinance May Bring Higher Costs for Downtown Valet Parking <div class="mceContentBody"><p>Dec. 17, 2008 - Costs&#10;for using valet services in downtown Chicago might soon rise under an&#10;ordinance proposed by Ald. Brendan Reilly (42nd) that would require&#10;parking companies to have insurance coverage of at least $1 million&#10;and prove all their drivers have a valid license.</p><p>This&#10;ordinance is long overdue,&#34; said Reilly. The &#8230;</p></div><br class="no-line-height" clear="both" /><div class="mceContentBody"><p>Dec. 17, 2008 - Costs&#10;for using valet services in downtown Chicago might soon rise under an&#10;ordinance proposed by Ald. Brendan Reilly (42nd) that would require&#10;parking companies to have insurance coverage of at least $1 million&#10;and prove all their drivers have a valid license.</p><p>This&#10;ordinance is long overdue,&#34; said Reilly. The issue, he said,&#10;&#34;has only grown more frustrating and more complex Downtown as&#10;time has gone by.&#34; </p><p><a href="http://chicagotalks-space.near-time.net/wiki/new-ordinance-may-bring-higher-costs-for-downtown-valet-parking">Read more...</a><br /></p></div><br class="no-line-height" clear="both" /> Travis Truitt /news/2008/12/16/ordinance-to-bring-more-winter-classic-revenues-to-wrigleyville 2008-12-16T13:06:18Z 2008-12-16T13:06:18Z Ordinance to Bring More Winter Classic Revenues to Wrigleyville <div class="mceContentBody"><p>Dec. 16, 2008 - Baseball season may be nearly four &#10;months away, but Wrigleyville rooftop owners are among the Lakeview &#10;businesses looking to cash in on the first hockey game ever played at &#10;Wrigley Field.</p><p>Ald. Tom Tunney (44th) last week paved &#10;the way for rooftop owners by introducing an &#8230;</p></div><br class="no-line-height" clear="both" /><div class="mceContentBody"><p>Dec. 16, 2008 - Baseball season may be nearly four &#10;months away, but Wrigleyville rooftop owners are among the Lakeview &#10;businesses looking to cash in on the first hockey game ever played at &#10;Wrigley Field. </p><p>Ald. Tom Tunney (44th) last week paved &#10;the way for rooftop owners by introducing an ordinance that would allow &#10;fans to view the game from the rooftops on Waveland and Sheffield avenues &#10;overlooking the ballpark. </p><p>The New Year&#39;s Day game will feature &#10;the Chicago Blackhawks hosting the Detroit Red Wings in a rare outdoor &#10;event the National Hockey League calls the &#34;<a href="http://www.nhl.com/ice/eventhome.htm?location=/winterclassic/2009">Winter Classic</a>.&#34; </p><p><a href="http://chicagotalks-space.near-time.net/wiki/ordinance-to-bring-more-winter-classic-revenues-to-wrigleyville">Read more...</a><br /></p></div><br class="no-line-height" clear="both" /> Stephanie Gray /news/2008/12/15/city-council-to-consider-ordinance-targeting-parking-company-accused-of-assault-other-abuses 2008-12-15T12:50:38Z 2008-12-15T12:50:38Z City Council to Consider Ordinance Targeting Parking Company Accused of Assault, Other Abuses <div class="mceContentBody"><p>Dec. 15, 2008 - Ald. Scott Waguespack (32nd) asked a Chicago City&#10;Council committee last week to stop parking companies from booting cars&#10;on private property in his West Side ward.</p><p>The Committee on&#10;License and Consumer Protection unanimously approved the ordinance,&#10;which could go to the full city council as early as Dec. &#8230;</p></div><br class="no-line-height" clear="both" /><div class="mceContentBody"><p>Dec. 15, 2008 - Ald. Scott Waguespack (32nd) asked a Chicago City&#10;Council committee last week to stop parking companies from booting cars&#10;on private property in his West Side ward. </p><p>The Committee on&#10;License and Consumer Protection unanimously approved the ordinance,&#10;which could go to the full city council as early as Dec. 17th.</p><p>Legally&#10;parked residents and business owners in the 32nd Ward -- which includes&#10;parts of the Roscoe Village, Bucktown, Lakeview and Lincoln Park&#10;neighborhoods, among others -- have reported being harassed and, in&#10;some cases, assaulted by employees of&#160; <a href="http://globalparkinginchicago.com/">Global Parking Management</a>, said Waguespack.</p><p><a href="/wiki/gray-submission-2">Read more...</a><br /></p></div><br class="no-line-height" clear="both" /> Jennifer T. Lacey /news/2008/12/12/chicago-youth-protest-police-armed-with-assault-rifles 2008-12-12T17:58:46Z 2008-12-12T17:59:21Z Chicago Youth Protest Police Armed With Assault Rifles <div class="mceContentBody"><p>Dec. 12, 2008 - Chicago youth continued to push for a meeting with&#10;Chicago Police Superintendent Jody Weis on Thursday night to discuss&#10;his decision to equip police officers with M4 military assault rifles.</p><p>Over 20 youth from the<a href="http://www.swyc.org/">Southwest Youth Collaborative</a>&#10;protested in the cold, chanting &#34;One, two, three, four; no &#8230;</p></div><br class="no-line-height" clear="both" /><div class="mceContentBody"><p>Dec. 12, 2008 - Chicago youth continued to push for a meeting with&#10;Chicago Police Superintendent Jody Weis on Thursday night to discuss&#10;his decision to equip police officers with M4 military assault rifles. </p><p>Over 20 youth from the <a href="http://www.swyc.org/">Southwest Youth Collaborative</a>&#10;protested in the cold, chanting &#34;One, two, three, four; no more M4s&#34;&#10;outside the Chicago Police headquarters before attending a board&#10;meeting. </p><p><a href="http://chicagotalks-space.near-time.net/wiki/chicago-youth-continue-protests-against-police-armed-with-assault-rifles-2">Read more...</a><br /></p></div><br class="no-line-height" clear="both" /> Ebony L. McCline /news/2008/12/12/sudanese-refugees-find-a-home-in-chicago 2008-12-12T12:45:23Z 2008-12-12T12:45:23Z Sudanese Refugees Find a Home in Chicago <div class="mceContentBody"><p>Dec. 12, 2008 - Maketh Bul Mabior walks&#10;into a downtown Starbucks ten minutes late. However, he does not&#10;appear to be in a rush. His six-foot frame turns as the revolving,&#10;see-through door twirls around. He stops. He looks around. He pulls out&#10;his cell phone, proceeds to dial a number, not realizing &#8230;</p></div><br class="no-line-height" clear="both" /><div class="mceContentBody"><p>Dec. 12, 2008 - Maketh Bul Mabior walks&#10;into a downtown Starbucks ten minutes late. However, he does not&#10;appear to be in a rush. His six-foot frame turns as the revolving,&#10;see-through door twirls around. He stops. He looks around. He pulls out&#10;his cell phone, proceeds to dial a number, not realizing that he has&#10;already been noticed.</p><p>Mabior, a Sudanese refugee, has a huge smile&#10;on his face, highlighting the contrast between the color of his skin&#10;and his pearly white teeth. Even though it is warm in Chicago,&#10;26-year-old Mabior has seen some not so warm nights in his past.</p><p><a href="http://chicagotalks-space.near-time.net/wiki/sudanese-refugees-find-a-home-in-chicago">Read more...</a><br /></p></div><br class="no-line-height" clear="both" /> Dimitrios Kalantzis /news/2008/12/11/9-8-million-medical-malpractice-settlement-puts-county-on-track-to-spend-12-more-in-2009 2008-12-11T13:16:36Z 2008-12-11T13:16:36Z $9.8 Million Medical Malpractice Settlement Puts County on Track to Spend 12% More in 2009 <div class="mceContentBody"><p>Dec. 11, 2008 - Three days into the new fiscal year, the Cook&#10;County Board of Commissioners unanimously approved an unprecedented $9.8&#10;million medical malpractice settlement last week, as President Todd Stroger&#10;seeks $280 million in bonds to cover day-to-day costs.</p><p>Commissioner&#10;Peter N. Silvestri (9th) called the&#10;settlement, involving the 2005 death of 27-year-old &#8230;</p></div><br class="no-line-height" clear="both" /><div class="mceContentBody"><p>Dec. 11, 2008 - Three days into the new fiscal year, the Cook&#10;County Board of Commissioners unanimously approved an unprecedented $9.8&#10;million medical malpractice settlement last week, as President Todd Stroger&#10;seeks $280 million in bonds to cover day-to-day costs.</p><p>Commissioner&#10;Peter N. Silvestri (9th) called the&#10;settlement, involving the 2005 death of 27-year-old Farrah Dickerson,&#10;atypical. He said he expected a 12 percent increase in total&#10;settlements for&#10;2009 from last year&#39;s $80 million due to the large size of the&#10;settlement. <br /></p><p>Still, Silvestri said $90 million is just a drop&#10;in the bucket considering the county&#39;s $3.2 billion annual budget.&#160;</p><p>Others disagree. </p><p><a href="http://chicagotalks-space.near-time.net/wiki/9-8-million-medical-malpractice-settlement-puts-county-on-track-to-spend-12-more-in-2009">Read more...</a><br /></p></div><br class="no-line-height" clear="both" /> Christine Iversen /news/2008/12/10/economic-hard-times-hit-south-loop 2008-12-10T13:03:25Z 2008-12-10T13:03:25Z Economic Hard Times Hit South Loop <div class="mceContentBody"><p>Dec. 10, 2008 - It&#10;is touted as being one of the hottest and fastest-growing residential&#10;neighborhoods in the city, but despite the rapid rise in development&#10;that has occurred in this trendy area, even the South Loop is not safe&#10;from the ill effects of the looming recession.&#10;</p><p>It&#10;is perhaps most evident at &#8230;</p></div><br class="no-line-height" clear="both" /><div class="mceContentBody"><p>Dec. 10, 2008 - It&#10;is touted as being one of the hottest and fastest-growing residential&#10;neighborhoods in the city, but despite the rapid rise in development&#10;that has occurred in this trendy area, even the South Loop is not safe&#10;from the ill effects of the looming recession.&#10;</p><p>It&#10;is perhaps most evident at night, when the myriad of new condominium&#10;buildings stand tall and dark against the city&#39;s skyline.&#160; The&#10;construction on most of these buildings has come to an end and&#10;residents of the purchased units are fully moved in.&#160; But their lit-up&#10;windows are outnumbered by dark, empty units.&#10;</p><p><a href="http://chicagotalks-space.near-time.net/wiki/economic-hard-times-hit-south-loop">Read more...</a><br /></p></div><br class="no-line-height" clear="both" />