As climate wildfires rage and the world burns, we ask: who is rising to the challenges of the multiplying climate catastrophes? Illinois State University (ISU) has not. Instead, ISU has retreated from past climate commitments. The retreat begins in earnest…
The great fractal college experiment
BY FUSUN AKMAN Fractals are shapes that repeat themselves at smaller and smaller scales, as broccoli florets are wont to do. I have been thinking of fractals geopolitically: whatever is happening in the world is happening in the U.S. is…
Reflections From A Hindu Perspective | Restoration of one of the holiest sites of Hindus: A story of loss and recovery
Seldom does an event occur in the history of civilization that is the culmination of centuries of struggle and sacrifice by hundreds of thousands of people and perseverance in the belief in a system of law and order. Such an…
West Peoria News | Township dissolution on the ballot
A referendum to dissolve West Peoria Township will be on the ballot Nov. 3. West Peoria Township Trustees voted unanimously at a special meeting Aug. 13 to place the item on the ballot. This meeting followed a public hearing Aug.…
Labor Roundup | October 2020
Even change will need civic action, says Postal Workers’ Prez. Saying “movements move Congress and politicians, and not the other way around,” Postal Workers President Mark Dimondstein nevertheless warns movement activists to be ready for a long haul –– even…
Fred Winterroth: He’s spent half his life advocating for the proposed Hanna City Trail and now it’s within reach
Hanna City Village President Fred Winterroth sees enormous regional benefit from converting 25 miles of abandoned Union Pacific rail line to a hiking-biking trail. The narrow strip of land runs through Bellevue, Hanna City, Farmington and Middle Grove. Now 65,…
Western Avenue Upgrade to regenerate 61605
When urban planner Chuck Marohn talks about the best economic stimulus for urban communities, he advises focusing dollars on older sections of town, not the sprawling suburbs that cost more to maintain than they generate in tax revenue. Marohn proves…
PAWAC: Israel-Palestine path forward
It’s time to abandon the notion of a two-state solution for Israel and Palestine and instead embrace the goal of Jewish-Palestinian equality, Peter Beinart said during a Peoria Area World Affairs Council talk via Zoom conferencing. Beinart, editor-at-large for Jewish…
The Lion’s Den | Voting Rights
All eyes are on the United States as we approach the next presidential election on Nov. 3. As we approach the election, now may be a good time to review the history of voting in this country. Initial voting rights…
Straight Talk | No more Peoria history
Our good friend Norm Kelly is gone, another victim of cancer. A few months ago, I wrote about my high school friend and his special writing accomplishments. I did it then because he told me he was not long for…
Bill Knight | Columbus statue
People aren’t stupid. We learn. Sometimes lessons are fanciful fables that reassure us; sometimes they’re difficult realizations of our past, and ourselves. Columbus statues aren’t symbols of humanity’s progress, one man’s courage or Italians’ intelligence. However, they represent racism and…
Editorial | Christopher Columbus statue and the Electoral College – both racist legacies of white supremacy
George Floyd’s death set off a global movement for racial justice. In the fervor of this movement, two events should be seen and understood through the frame of white supremacy. The Peoria Park District is evaluating the fate of the…
OpEd | Challenging Gender Bias in Male-Dominated Sports
BY ELLEN KRASIN We often tell children that they can grow up to be whatever they want to be, but is that really true? Is our society set up to allow such an idealistic theory? In the case of young…
Nature Rambles | Derecho
Monday Aug. 10 started off as a sunny, clear day with a slight chance of rain in the afternoon in Central Illinois. I happened to be at our Tawny Oaks facility, when around 2:30 p.m. the sky to the west…
Real Talk | When the message gets lost
There is no surprise that our country is in a state of unrest. From the pandemic to the riots, to questioning and challenging the mattering of Black lives to the rebuttal of all lives. From the challenge to mask or…
The Watch | Peoria council discusses cuts
“Normal” is not quite the right word. But a new reality is taking shape for local governments in 2020. On July 28, Peoria City Council mulled changes to the 2020-2021 budget in the wake of COVID-19. Staff was directed to…
Inland Art | Barbara Ciurej and Lindsay Lochman
Barbara Ciurej and Lindsay Lochman have been collaborating on and experimenting with visual culture for 40 years from their studios in Chicago and Milwaukee. While recognized originally for critiquing the artworld’s male-centric art institutions and subjects (a reality that still…
Art: What is it Good For? | Giving Voice
In May of 2018, we started our 501(c)(3) Big Picture Initiative with a 1,650 square foot portrait of Abraham Lincoln on the Peoria County Courthouse. We assumed the monumental task of creating something even bigger and more powerful would be…
Groundswell of interest: Learning to be anti-racist
Last month, Community Word spoke with Jessica Stephenson, owner of the independent bookstore Lit on Fire on Main Street. This month, Mary Beth Nebel, owner of the independent bookstore I Know You Like a Book on Prospect Road in Peoria…
Reflections From A Secular Humanist | A Secular Humanist’s View of Happiness
Are new insights the result of thoughtfulness or impulsiveness? At the end of your life would you rather have achieved maximum happiness or maximum productivity? What causes and sustains your happiness? How much does your happiness add or detract from…
Heat Waves — In Red and Black | How not to treat heat stroke during an intense heat wave
I know three people who collapsed from heat stroke. Doctors told frantic parents of two kids to immerse them in a cold-water bath. The third, a high school runner who collapsed during a race, attended a school where the athletics…