Hello everyone,
We hope you’re all safe, healthy and are giving yourselves time to recover from exhaustion, whatever the cause of it may be. This is not what we imagined Week 10 to look like, but your Thursday team — Meredith Melland, Justin Myers, Mikayla Rose Price and contributor Jessica Rish — will still do our best to inform you on DePaul, Chicago and national news.
This week, we will cover the protestors who continue to demand justice for George Floyd in Chicago and across the nation, as well as the police and military response, protests’ impact on the novel coronavirus and DePaul’s new final rules given the circumstances.
What’s happening in Chicago?
Since our last newsletter on Monday, protests continued across Chicago to demand justice for George Floyd. Between Sunday and Wednesday, reports show that a total of 1,400 arrests were made in Chicago, but not all arrests are related to the protests. Meanwhile, 258 complaints have been filed against the Chicago Police Department since Friday. Many of the complaints were from protesters.
On Tuesday, Mayor Lori Lightfoot proposed police department reform in her address. Lightfoot hopes for a three-month fast track and wants the community to be involved in deciding how to update police training. However, the president of the Fraternal Order of Police, John Catanzara, said he is completely against civilians teaching sworn officers how to better police their community. Lightfoot also wants to give more power to nonprofits, such as My Block My Hood My City, on police-community relations. She emphasized how deep the pain of police brutality runs in Chicago.
Yesterday, a disturbing video revealed police surrounding a car around Brickyard Mall near Belmont Central, which had been looted. The group of police broke the car windows, and pulled out passengers Tnika Tate and her cousin Mia Wright. An officer restrained Wright on the ground by placing his knee on her neck. “All I thought about was George Floyd and it could have been another situation like that,” Wright told the Chicago Tribune. The Cook County state’s attorney’s office said today that they will review the allegations against the police officers. The family stated that they were not doing anything and were forcefully removed from their car.
Chicagoans may have watched George Floyd’s memorial service that was streamed live today from Minneapolis. Floyd’s family was accompanied by civil rights leader Reverend Jesse Jackson, Martin Luther King III, Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey and others. His family was able to reminisce about their memories with Floyd and tell the public that he had a “gift for people.” As Reverend Al Sharpton gave his eulogy, he preached for accountability from the criminal justice system.
Throughout the protests, some communities have been affected by looting and property damage. Some residents are working together to help clean up their communities and support one another. West Town nonprofit Esperanza Community Services is collecting household items like toiletries and nonperishable food for its clients. Meanwhile, hundreds of volunteers helped clean up Bronzeville on Wednesday.
Phase 3 of Chicago’s opening plan also began on Wednesday, although some businesses decided to stay closed and boarded up as the marches continued.
As of today, there are 929 new known cases of coronavirus in Illinois. Since this weekend, Governor J.B. Pritzker has continued to expand COVID-19 testing sites and urges anyone who participated in protesting to get tested. The state total since the start of the outbreak is now 124,759 cases. There have been 5,736 deaths, with 116 additional deaths today from the coronavirus.
Other Headlines In Chicago
Police crash into SUV and kill driver in the middle of a car chase, by Chicago Tribune’s Jeremy Gorner.
Vigilantes with bats in Bridgeport are dangerously interrupting peaceful protests, by Block Club Chicago’s Bob Chiarito.
Chicago activists rally for CPS to cut ties with Chicago Police, after watching Minneapolis’s public schools succeed in this initiative, by Block Club Chicago’s Jamie Nesbitt Golden.
A Black Queer Mutual Aid Fund will be giving out micro grants to support the Black LGBTQ community, by Block Club Chicago’s Jake Wittich
Chicago native Kanye West creates a college fund for George Floyd’s daughter, by Variety’s Staff.
Chicago summer school will reopen for in-person classes, by Chicago Tribune Staff.
What’s happening at DePaul?
In order to help students navigate finals during the emotions felt through protests across the nation and the ongoing threat of COVID-19, the Faculty Council has given students some relief. In a resolution passed yesterday, professors are now required to give students one of three options designed to help students:
1.Students’ final grades will be determined by any work turned in by May 29. Anything turned in after this date will not count towards their final grade. Only students in classes that have had at least 70 percent of their total grades submitted prior to May 29 are eligible for this option.
2. The class continues as normal, but professors can make things like final exams and projects optional. In this case, any grades given after May 29 for those tests or assignments will not lower your final grade.
3. Students can receive an automatic incomplete for the class without providing any type of an explanation, but they’ll still be affected by all the rules for taking an incomplete. They’ll then be given a timeframe in which to complete the remaining coursework.
These are just the list of approved alternatives for professors to pick from, and they’re only required to pick a singular one, though they have the option of offering two or all three. It is up to the individual professors to decide which option(s) they want to offer to their class.
The decision comes after a student-led petition that began on Sunday urging DePaul to provide alternative options for Black students regarding finals in wake of the protests over Floyd’s death.
In other Faculty Council news, for the first time in 15 years, they welcomed in a new general counsel: Kathy Stieber. In a statement to DePaul Newsline, Stieber says she hopes to use her new role to promote the university’s goal “to be unequaled among urban universities in the United States, ensuring the success of a diverse community of leaders.” Her official start date is July 1.
If you don’t want to read the news, here’s the headlines to know.
All four Minneapolis police officers who were fired for using excessive force to restrain George Floyd, ultimately killing him, are now in custody facing criminal charges. Tou Thao, Thomas Lane and J Alexander Kueng all face charges of aiding and abetting second-degree unintentional murder and second-degree manslaughter, according to WCCO in Minneapolis. The charges against Derek Chauvin, the officer that was videotaped kneeling on Floyd’s neck for eight minutes, have been updated to second-degree unintentional murder in addition to third-degree murder and second-degree manslaughter.
Minneapolis Public Schools terminated their contract with the Minneapolis Police Department on Tuesday after a unanimous school board vote, reports the Star Tribune’s Ryan Faircloth.
Governor Ralph Northam announced Richmond, Virginia, will remove its Robert E. Lee statue from public viewing, following a trend of other cities agreeing to take down monuments of racist leaders, according to NPR’s Bill Chappell. The city projected George Floyd’s face onto it last night.
The Pentagon elevated the level of threat the D.C. metro area is facing from protests to the second highest alert that indicates “‘likely’ targeting of military forces and or terrorist action,” according to Newsweek’s William M. Arkin. The National Guard has deployed 20,000 guards in 26 states and the District of Columbia. Former Secretary of Defense James Mattis denounced the president’s militarization efforts as “an abuse of executive authority.”
Online K-pop fans supportive of the #BlackLivesMatter movement blocked the Dallas Police Department’s request for videos of “illegal activity from the protests” on Saturday with fancams, resulting in the department taking down the submissions app. This week, they took over conservative hashtags like #MAGA so that the stream would be filled with K-pop posts mocking the hashtags, according to The Verge’s James Vincent
Several states held Tuesday primaries for state and national congress seats, such as Iowa, Indiana and New Mexico. Steve King, the Iowa GOP Congressman who has a history of making racist comments, was ousted from his seat, and at least five GOP women will go on to be candidates in general elections, from Politico’s Ally Mutnick, James Arkin, Zach Montellaro and Steven Shepard.
Law enforcement’s use of tear gas on protestors is highly dangerous, especially in a respiratory pandemic; it can cause long-term lung damage and seep through walls, affecting the people within, from ProPublica’s Lisa Song.
A new study in the New England Journal of Medicine found that hydroxychloroquine, the antimalarial drug President Trump supports using, did not prevent people from contracting COVID-19 when exposed to coronavirus, from The Wall Street Journal’s Jared S. Hopkins.
The Washington Post’s Amy Goldstein reports that 70 free coronavirus testing sites have closed this week because of destruction from civil unrest.
The NBA will resume its season with 22 teams in Florida on July 31 in a new format without audiences, from ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski.
Mental Health Resources
This document is a resource for Black people experiencing racial trauma. This master list includes specific resources as well as protesting tips and donation links.
Here’s 7 virtual mental health resources supporting Black people right now, including Chicago-based community organization Sista Afya’s support groups
Text SHARE to 741741 for free 24/7 crisis counseling by Crisis Text Line
Contact Illinois’ Call4Calm mental health resources. Residents can text TALK for English or HABLAR for Spanish to 552-020 and the state will put them in touch with a counselor
Call 833-626-4244 for the NAMI Chicago Helpline or 833-TURN-123 for the Bright Star Community Outreach to speak to a mental health counselor
If it’s late at night: text HELLO to 741741. Crisis Text Line is a 24-hour hotline that serves anyone, in any type of crisis
Where to Access Food in Chicago
This spreadsheet highlights businesses and locations providing food. There are also links to donate to these organizations.
Check out the Greater Chicago Food Depository for food banks or donate
Here’s a list of places to access food in Chicago today.
List of Petitions to Sign
This is a list of ongoing petitions to sign in support of the Black Lives Matter Movement.
Free Resources for Non-Black Allies
Reading guide of texts about race. All pdfs are free.
Here’s a guide to protest safely during the pandemic
Here’s the ACLU’s Right to Protest guide for Illinois
Can’t protest but want to help? Use this social media toolkit by the Chicago Alliance Against Racist and Political Repression (CAARPR)
If you think someone you know has been arrested – call the Chicago Community bail fund at 773-309-1198 to locate them (you need to know their birthdate and full legal name)
COVID-19 Testing Sites in Black and Brown Communities
Here are two Instagram infographics of Covid-19 testing sites in Black and brown communities in the Chicago area.
Links about George Floyd
Links listed on this site include donation sites, petitions regarding George Floyd’s murder, ways to educate about the Black Lives Matter movement, and other resources.
Where you can donate
Chicago Community Bond Fund: https://chicagobond.org/donate/
Good Kids Mad City: https://www.facebook.com/GKMC2018/?ref=page_internal
https://twitter.com/GKMC18?ref_src=twsrc%5Egoogle%7Ctwcamp%5Eserp%7Ctwgr%5Eauthor
Black Lives Matter Chicago: https://www.blacklivesmatterchicago.com
Assata’s Daughters: https://www.assatasdaughters.org
Circles and Ciphers: http://www.circlesandciphers.org
Chicago Torture Justice Center: http://chicagotorturejustice.org
E.a.t.: https://www.eatchicago.org
Chicago Alliance Against Racist and Political Repression: https://www.caarpr.org
Liberation Library: https://www.liberationlib.com
Market box: https://experimentalstation.org/market-box
Thank you all for reading our newsletter over the quarter and sticking with us as we’ve adapted. We will publish a newsletter next week on Monday and hopefully continue the once-a-week format through the summer. There will be new stories on our site tomorrow and on every other Friday during summer as well.
Be kind, take breaks and stay informed. We’re here if you need us.
Best,
Meredith, Mikayla, Justin and Jessica