The longtime weightlifter, soldier, policeman, family man and mentor also pushes others – to bear life’s burdens and condition themselves to meet future challenges. In Full Cannon, published late last year, the 61-year-old Peoria who founded programs such as ELITE…
Editorial | When American democracy is assaulted
Editorial | We need every member of Congress to acknowledge there was no election fraud; anything short of that stokes more violence
There is no credible evidence the election of Joe Biden was fraudulent. A New York Times editorial: “Republican lawmakers who objected to the electoral vote results on the grounds of mythical election fraud should immediately and publicly apologize, repudiate their…
Letter to the Editor | Glad to read UnityPoint increases minimum wage
Your January 2021 Issue of the Community Word carried the good news that UnityPoint Health will be raising minimum hourly pay to $15. I am happy to know that this hospital nonprofit corporation has taken this step that will improve…
Letter to the Editor | Journalists already in danger
One day after the attack on the Capitol in Washington, USAToday posted on Twitter that the newspaper “needs help identifying the people who broke into the U.S. Capitol,” then implored readers to follow a link to view the photos and…
Letter to the Editor | Even after 58 years, MLK’s nonviolent, direct action still best
I have been reading my library of MLK and borrowing his books from the Peoria NAACP community center library. It has been some time since I did this, and as a Quaker who does not have the Baptist Christian faith,…
Letter to the Editor | Condemn violence
The Council of Islamic Organizations of Greater Chicago strongly condemns the glaring acts of violence and civic disorder committed in our nation’s capital on Jan. 6. Breeching security perimeters, bashing locked doors and assaulting Capitol Police officers are criminal acts…
OpEd | History of Originalism, Part 2
BY BILL FEIPEL Originalism became a household word with the appointment of Amy Coney Barrett to the Supreme Court in October 2020. Originalism: it sounds reliable, stable, comforting. Ms. Barrett identifies its guiding principles as ”First, the meaning of the…
The Watch | Council discusses restaurants and COVID-19
If you don’t like what you saw in Washington, D.C. last month, start change by paying attention to elected officials here at home. For example, here are some highlights gathered by the League of Women Voters of Greater Peoria: In…
Real Talk | This is who we are
We watched in horror on Jan. 6, as the nation’s Capitol was breached by white terrorists on the behest of the president of the United States of America. These terrorists broke down doors, attacked Capitol Police, killing one officer by…
Nature Rambles | Frost in bloom
Inland Art | Story Stitchers
Art and Justice | How African American artists address the environment
Heat Waves — In Red and Black | Reasons for a Dividend-Based Carbon Tax, Part 3: Heat that Kills
Kim Stanley Robinson opens his climate fiction opus, “The Ministry for the Future,” in the year 2025 with a brutal heat wave spreading across India. Heat and humidity approach the survival limit for humans. Then, the grid goes down across…
Reflections from an Existential Lens | Religion, Secularism and Life-Meaning, Part I
I have a friend of a friend who is Christian and interested in abstract theological questions. When we first met, he knew both that I was non-religious and that I know about religious arguments. Yet when I met him and…
Inclusion and A Tale of Two Cities
The population of Peoria is similar to the population of Lawrence, Kan., but one community is shrinking while the other is growing. One community has a more diverse population but less intentional discussion of equity and inclusion. The other predominantly…
Reflections From The Clergy | Division
We live in a time of partisan and ethnic divide. The causes of this negative phenomena are countless and they cause immeasurable distress in society. Sometimes, the ethnic divide or racism that we harbor is based on our natural biases…
West Peoria News | Budget talks on tap
The consolidated election for the upcoming City of West Peoria is April 6. Running for four-year terms are: Ward 1, Leroy Dohm; Ward 2, Merlin “Rocky” Merlinson; Ward 3, John Siewert and Clark Abraham; and Ward 4, James Silver. February…
Labor Roundup | February 2021
Organized labor blamed Donald Trump for the violent insurrection on Jan. 6 that saw hundreds of white nationalist domestic terrorists overrun the U.S. Capitol. Union leaders, including AFL-CIO President Richard Trumka and particularly National Nurses United Executive Director Bonnie Castillo,…
When Justice Becomes Injustice
Community leaders say trust the science, get vaccinated
Trust is in short supply in America today. Our trust has been betrayed historically dating back to the founding of the country and betrayed recently by government policies that do not serve the best interest of all Americans. Now we…