A referendum to dissolve West Peoria Township will be on the Nov. 3 ballot. Having performed the due diligence of weighing the costs and benefits for the citizens of West Peoria, the Township board decided dissolving the Township was in…
Serendipity | Seasonal Transitions
Living in the Midwest provides residents with some of the most beautiful weather months, a few of the most challenging, weeks of dreariness, explosive heat that appears suddenly, and while we’re perspiring and paying high utility bills, we realize we’ll…
Labor Roundup | November 2020
Voter intimidation anticipated from “Army for Trump.” Unions are marshalling members at polling places and in court in anticipation of attempts to intimidate voters by the so-called “Army for Trump.” Headed, at least on its website, by Don Trump Jr.,…
Ray LaHood: I am voting for Joe Biden for President
Election Day Nov. 3 will soon be upon us. My first presidential election was November 1968. I voted for Richard Nixon mainly because he promised to heal the country after the assassinations of Martin Luther King and Robert Kennedy. Also,…
Sheriff Brian Asbell: Blame the system, not the bail funds
There are more than 80 community bail funds nationwide. These funds were started with the goal of ending pre-trial incarceration of people who don’t have the money to post bail and must remain in custody. However, people with money can…
Piano and Racism
BY NATASHA GREENE One of the greatest loves in my life is my relationship with music. Music has been a constant companion throughout life as far back as I can remember. Once, while taking piano lessons from a retired 80-year-old…
Straight Talk | The race for mayor
Lots of people have announced they’re running for mayor of Peoria, some others are undecided and that includes current City Hall leader Jim Ardis. WMBD-TV keeps announcing Ardis has declared. He hasn’t. Rita Ali, elected just a year ago to…
The Lion’s Den | Nature’s Lessons
As summer slips into fall and the sound of the cicadas provide us with a nightly symphony, I am reminded of the simplicity of nature and how it has a way of gently reminding us that despite what we think,…
Bill Knight | Trump’s defiance of science and law
The day Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg died and President Trump and Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell pledged to violate McConnell’s own precedent on USSC vacancies, Trump’s Environmental Protection Agency re-authorized the use of the herbicide atrazine, which contaminates…
Editorial | Racism distorts history and creates shoddy journalism
Newsrooms across the country are conducting diversity training and seeking to hire a more diverse staff to improve journalism and report more inclusively on the entire community. Gannett, owner of the Journal Star, stated it’s making a concerted effort to…
Letter to the Editor | Peoria’s Historians
As Roger Monroe noted in his September column, Norm Kelly recently passed into history. Monroe eulogized his long-time friend for his unique talents. But Kelly’s legacy lies not just in the books, articles and talks that he created about local…
Letter to the Editor | Vote YES to sell Heddington Oaks
Peoria County voters will see a referendum on their ballot Nov. 3 which will allow the Peoria County Board to sell vacant property, the former long-term care facility known as Heddington Oaks. The decision to close Heddington Oaks was not…
Letter to the Editor | Understanding your vote-by-mail option in Peoria County
This election season, the Peoria County Election Commission wants to assure voters that we are committed to providing accurate and accessible voting options to all residents for the upcoming 2020 General Election. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, we anticipate Vote…
OpEd | When religious freedom is a threat
In the midst of the furor over the pandemic, the economy, our current divisive politics and the upcoming national election, an important area of concern tends to be overlooked. This spring, the Justice Department hosted a week of training for…
Real Talk | Black Excellence
“As I was sitting at work on the verge of tears, just thinking that the color of my skin could literally decide on whether I would make it home to family and friends, I was at a loss. I am…
The Watch | Springdale sees increase in burials, cremations
Whatever 2020 throws at us, your government leaders are finding a way to grind it out. Springdale Cemetery Authority met Aug. 18, using Webex. Manager Mark Matuszak reported the number of burials and cremations is up considerably over last year.…
Nature Rambles | A Swift Autumn
Back in the August issue of Community Word, this column mentioned the fact that the Chimney Swift Tower at the Peoria Park District’s Tawny Oaks Field Station had a pair of swifts take up residence and build a nest. I’m…
Inland Art | Chicago’s Hubbard Street district
Chicago’s Hubbard Street district was a coalescent site of experimental art in the ’70s and ’80s. For artists and designers, the street had a radical presence that was distinctive, nurturing and pleasurable. Loft buildings and raw spaces hosted enormous crowds…
Reflections From A Secular Humanist | Religion and fear
As a Secular Humanist, I don’t believe in Gods, Satan, heaven, hell, condemnation, salvation, souls, sin, karma, reincarnation, life after death, supernatural beings, inerrant scriptures, miracles, magical thinking or messages from Gods. The virtues of religious people are also found…
Heat Waves — In Red and Black | Will Illinois State University’s Reggie Redbird Get a Green Vest?
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…