Three pieces of legislation were debated a few weeks ago at a low-key hearing of the Illinois House’s civil-law committee. One bill would allow trusts for pets. Another would grant elderly victims of crimes the right to give depositions at home. Both proposals were sent to the full House with no objections, 18 to 0. […]
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Jammed packed
Even people who aren’t supporters of Karen Hasara will admit she’s done a lot of good during her two terms as Springfield’s first woman mayor. She’s furthered the development of downtown and helped to build the new Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library and Museum. She’s brought in outside experts to suggest ways to beautify the city. […]
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Stop the music?
When Ken Duffy took over Walko Music Co. in 1980, the store had been renting band instruments to Springfield schools for 25 years. But last semester Duffy saw a “25 percent” drop in his rental business. The decline will become even more drastic if District 186 continues to cut funds to band programs. That outrages […]
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On guard
Springfield’s oldest crossing guard, Herman Hamilton, works down the block from Dubois Elementary School. He directs traffic at the corner of Monroe and Lincoln while puffing on an ever-present pipe. On Valentine’s Day, Hamilton bought an exact number of suckers for every child on his watch. He handed out the candy as he talked to […]
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Homeland Insecurity
Before the United States was thrown into uncertainty and grief on September 11, 2001, Springfield residents were the target of a terrorist attack. In the spring of 2001, only months before the World Trade Center tragedy, a group of terrorists were discovered on the Illinois Sate Fairgrounds during a defense department exercise. They were mixing […]
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A peace marcher’s progress report
On February 15, I was in New York City for the international day of protest called “The World Says No to War.” It was biting cold, and I had to double up on everything: two pairs of socks, long underwear plus my warm pants, earmuffs under a hood, finger gloves covered by mittens. The huge […]
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First Draft
In January, as U.S. troops massed for a possible war with Iraq, Congressman Charles Rangel (D-N.Y.) proposed something no lawmaker had done in years: legislation to reinstitute the draft. Rangel’s idea sparked several weeks of lively debate in the halls of government, on TV pundit shows, and in the op-ed pages. Proponents and opponents of […]
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Policing the police
The City Council meeting was packed with angry citizens outraged over the latest scandal in the Springfield Police Department. Mayor Karen Hasara tried pounding her gavel, she tried apologizing, and she even tried publicly admitting that, yes, “there is racism in the department.” Finally, she tried promising a citizen review board, and police chief John […]
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Homeless in winter
The homeless are often called “lazy” or “crazy.” Writer John Jermaine spent last weekend in the freezing cold, talking to homeless people as they tried to stay warm. He says there is no one type. “I have discovered men who defended this country, people who do volunteer work, and those driven to the streets by […]
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Death penalty politics
State Representative Mary O’Brien, a Democrat from Watseka, chairs the Illinois House committee on criminal justice. Given the Democratic Party’s takeover of Springfield and her own landslide reelection in November (she received 70 percent of the vote), you might suspect O’Brien and seven committee members passed a bill to abolish the death penalty last Friday […]
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Sins of omission
The only racism in the Springfield Police Department is reverse racism–the kind where blacks get better treatment than whites. That’s one of the conclusions reached by the Peoria law firm Husch & Eppenberger, which was hired last November to investigate the Springfield Police Department’s handling of two cases involving black officers. The firm’s 99-page report […]
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Mayor Davlin’s right-hand woman
The revolution is manifest in the decor of the spacious corner office overlooking Monroe Street. The centerpiece is a rocking chair on a colorful rug. The credenza holds a handmade pottery tea service. A trio of colorful papier mache birds perches on the window sill. And the bookshelf brims with volumes by Maya Angelou, Alice […]
