Community
Rep. Ford invites residents to hear from Black youth
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West Side residents – young and old – are invited to the Thompson Center Wednesday to hear area youth talk about what needs to be done to reduce violence in Chicago.
Homepage Featured
Black voters hurt by new redistricting maps, group says
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Members of Illinois African Americans for Equitable Redistricting to Governor have a message for go. J.B. Pritzker and Illinois Democrats: “You have made a mockery out of the Voting Rights Act.”
Opinion
Will Blacks, Latinx people see the need to get vaccinated? Austin lawmaker hopes so
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Many in the African American and Latinx communities remain wary of immunization and the medical establishment at large, writes state Rep. La Shawn Ford. That’s why “we have to make sure that people trust the vaccine will work, and we need to do everything that we can to bring an understanding to our community about how important it is to take the vaccine and to be able to trust it,” Ford says.
Business
Website launches to promote Black-owned businesses
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The newly launched website -www.BlackShopFriday.com – provides a guide to more than 500 local Black-owned businesses – more than 40 of them in Austin – that can be searched by category and/or neighborhood. Black Shop Friday is a partnership of the city of Chicago, the Chicago Urban League and advertising agency O’Keefe Reinhard & Paul (OKRP).
News
Austin men commemorate Million Man March
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About 50 people came together last week to commemorate the 25th anniversary of the Million Man March and to call for new economic drivers for the Austin community. The Million Man March, which the Washington Post called “the largest civil rights demonstration in U.S. history,” was held in Washington, D.C., on Oct. 16, 1995.
Opinion
Abolish teaching history – until we get it right
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Important parts of our history have not been told or taught because it hasn’t been believed it actually happened, writes state Rep. La Shawn Ford. Until they saw it on their TV screens, the dominant White culture didn’t believe that Blacks could be treated like John Lewis was treated – and many did not believe that so many Blacks are victimized by police until they saw the last 8 minutes and 46 seconds of George Floyd’s life.
anti-violence
Advocates say killing of children must stop
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The Austin Peoples Action Center hosted a rally Friday that featured George Floyd’s brother Po Floyd and former NBA player Stephen Jackson, who called for Blacks to come together and stop the violence. Cook County Board President Toni Preckwinkle announced $5 million in anti-violence funding at the event.
Opinion
America must value the lives of black millennials and others in our communities
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Raheem Cooper-Thomas, Cortez Watson Jr., Chukwuka John Okafo and Herb Howard have these questions on their minds: When do we fight back? How and when do we seek justice for all the lives lost? And when will we have any opportunity in this country?
testing
Governor pledges more COVID-19 testing on West Side
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Four Federally Qualified Health Centers (FQHCs) in Chicago – including PCC Community Wellness Center, which operates two sites in Austin, and the Lawndale Christian Health Center – will expand testing on the West and South sides over the next several days to an additional 400 tests per day.
African-American
West Siders invited to virtual town hall
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More than 20 elected officials – including Congressman Danny Davis, state Reps. La Shawn Ford and Camille Lilly, and state Sen. Kimberly Lightford – will be hosting a “tele” town hall April 7 from 4 to 5:30 p.m. on the impact of COVID-19 on black communities.