Jason Spyres was sentenced to 30 years in prison after three marijuana convictions. Police found 37 pounds of marijuana sent to him via United Parcel Service by his mother in California. His mother served six months for her crime. He…
Editor’s Note: Cleve Heidelberg was found dead in his apartment Saturday morning March 24. He was released from prison 10 months ago after spending 47 years behind bars for a crime he always insisted he did not commit. In a…
A year ago this month, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Administrator Scott Pruitt, appointed by President Donald Trump, visited the USS Lead Superfund site outside Chicago. It’s still hazardous. The EPA’s Superfund program was established 38 years ago to clean up…
President Trump’s announcement of a 25 percent tariff on steel and 10 percent on aluminum is terrible policy for our trade relations with a number of countries with which we have had very strong friendships and solid trade policy. Our…
Basketball fans, coaches and others are still talking about the Metamora loss to Chicago Marian in the 3A super sectional IHSA game held on the campus of Northern Illinois. It was a closely fought game officiated by Tom Fuller, Tariq…
“Data takes the emotion out.” The Rev. Marvin Hightower, president of the Peoria Chapter of the NAACP, said that in an article in the March issue of Community Word about clean syringe exchange programs. Research shows clean syringe exchange programs…
Is Andrew Johnson’s Past Trump’s Future? “I would impeach the President because he is such an infernal liar!” This remark was uttered not by a contemporary critic of Donald Trump, but by General Ulysses S. Grant of President Andrew Johnson…
It was the eve of “Sunshine Week” – a few days in March when government transparency and accountability are celebrated – when a glance at the Peoria City/County Health Department’s online “Food Inspection Scores” found a list of inspections but…
Editor’s Note: Following the shooting rampage at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Fla., people across the country are staging protests about gun violence. By some estimates, hundreds of thousands of students walked out of school March 14 in…
The emancipation of women and the education of girls has been a priority of the Baha’i community since its inception in Persia (Iran) in 1844. One of the faith’s disciples was a woman named Tahirih. Tahirih was one of the…
I attended a lecture at Bradley University by Dr. Simon Balto, an assistant professor of history and director of African-American Studies at Ball State University. The lecture was sponsored by Bradley’s department of history and was part of the Armstrong…
In 1981 Gary Justis and I showed together at Randolph Street Gallery. It was our first solo exhibition in Chicago, each taking a floor of the expansive new site just off Halsted — an area that would gradually draw galleries…
MUSIC April 3: “Rockin’ Road to Dublin,” Irish dance, 7 p.m. Civic Center Theater. 673-3200. April 6: Cousin Eddie “Live at the Five Spot.” 5:30 p.m. Contemporary Art Center. 674-6822. April 7: Sun Stereo, with People Brothers Band. 9 p.m.…
April 22 marks the 48th anniversary of Earth Day, the environmental movement born to combat widespread industry pollution. On the first Earth Day in 1970, 20 million Americans took to the streets to demonstrate for a healthy, sustainable environment. Today,…
It wouldn’t be spring without the flush of new, green growth that happens each year in our woods and prairies of Central Illinois. There is that magical time, before the trees have fully leafed out, when sunlight streams through the…
Procrastination isn’t a desired behavior although it often sneaks into daily activities. Like the unexpected guest showing up unannounced with expectations of luxurious amenities, procrastination can adversely affect good intentions and positive outcomes. It requires effort not to fall into…
Striking graduate assistants at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign rallied March 8 to celebrate a tentative settlement after a marathon overnight bargaining session. “We got our two biggest priorities related to addressing financial stability and guaranteed tuition waivers” for…
Early Saturday morning, police and property management found Cleve Heidelberg dead in his Peoria apartment after a friend failed to reach him. No foul play is suspected. “He died a free man. I don’t care what legal technicalities are pending,…
Blasts of ice and sleet from a late spring blizzard did not deter more than 350 people on Saturday protesting gun violence and demanding action at a “March for Our Lives” rally in downtown Peoria. Across the country, there were…
Marvin Hightower, president of the Peoria NAACP, steers with a steady hand through scores of emotional and potentially contentious racial issues. During a discussion about a clinic location in Peoria to supply clean, safe syringes to addicts illegally using drugs,…
On Aug. 1, 2007, in the middle of St. Paul-Minneapolis’ rush hour, the heavily-travelled eight-lane I-35W Bridge over the Mississippi River collapsed. Thirteen people were killed. Another 145 people were injured. Roll your eyes in boredom about infrastructure, if you…
BY ANDREA ROTH When Morton resident Tiffany Cruse takes her 8-month-old daughter Tahlia, for a medical checkup, she’s asked about lead paint. “What’s concerning to me is it’s (questions) only about paint, not other sources (of lead poisoning). I know…
