In 2004, climate scientists predicted “more intense, more frequent and longer lasting heat waves” this century. In 2008, the 2nd National Climate Assessment projected heat waves in the Midwest every summer by midcentury. Last year, the Union of Concerned Scientists’…
Reflections From A Hindu Perspective | Charity
There is a story of a famous poet Māgha in the 6th century who was carefree with his wealth and lived in poverty towards the end of his life. One day, a poor man came to his door asking for…
Inland Art | “The Volte-Face”
Dan Devening’s work is a meticulous hybrid of disciplinary practices. He treads the periphery of painting, collage, graphic design and architecture, looking for new paths between demonstrated customs and proven structures.
Art: What is it Good For? | If It’s Broke, Fix It
The public education system in the United States is broken. A quick Google search reveals some of the problems that are nationally prevalent. Achievement gaps. Overcrowded. Underfunded. Outdated. High dropout rate. School-to-prison pipeline. These harsh realities have existed for decades…
PeoriaCon March 7 offers cosplay and comics
Hours before heading to Chicago and days ahead of the second PeoriaCon, Jason Johnston leads onlookers through a display of comic and other artwork on display at Studios on Sheridan. The 41-year-old Peorian, who formerly worked trade shows with Events…
Arts Beat | March 2020
March 9-April 17: 7th Central Time Ceramics exhibit. Bradley University’s Heuser Art Gallery & Hartmann Center Gallery. March 12: “African American Art in Bronzeville.” Lecture by Juarez Hawkins, Chicago artist, curator and professor. 10-11 a.m. Peoria Riverfront Museum; and 6-7…
Real Talk | A Republic, if we can keep it
What happened to the purist Republican Senate during the trial of Bill Clinton? In 1999, President Clinton was charged and impeached by the House of Representatives for lying under oath and obstruction of justice. The independent counsel who brought the…
Reflections From The Clergy | What Does It Mean to Be A People of Resilience?
On Oct. 29, 1999, former Archbishop Desmond Tutu officially presented President Mandela the five volumes of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission (TRC) report. Tutu, head of the TRC, had heard long hours of personal testimony from the victims of atrocities…
West Peoria News | Residents’ Association needs volunteers
The Residents’ Association has experienced some recent resignations and needs volunteers. The group meets on the third Thursday each month excluding July and December. For more information call Nick Baker at 696-4280. Time is rapidly approaching for the 2020 census.…
Labor Roundup | March 2020
Journalists unionizing at Sports Illustrated, alternatives in Phoenix, Miami. Arbitrary firings by a new management firm with no sports news experience, plus an uncertain future relying on “stringers” led more than 90% of the remaining 80 full-time staffers of Sports…
Discrimination and “The Politics of Hair”
“The Politics of Hair” is a storytelling campaign planned by Ill. Rep. Jehan Gordon-Booth to highlight the discrimination African-Americans experience due to hairstyles including natural, braids and dreadlocks. Many people in America who deny racism still exists need to hear…
ISU Professor: Peoria vulnerable to killer heat waves
Everyone who has watched Australia burn and Jakarta flood need look no further than Peoria for dangerous, life-threatening changes due to climate change. William Rau, Illinois State University emeritus professor of sociology, said communities in central Illinois need detailed emergency…
Potential health risks of recreational marijuana
Editor’s Note: Community Word ran an editorial in our September 2014 edition advocating for the legalization of recreational marijuana, not because we need more mind-altering drugs but because criminalization disproportionately impacted African Americans even though use is equal between whites…
Cordoba Clinic turns no one away
Muslims in Peoria alarmed; NGOs fear genocide in India
“Preparation for a genocide is definitely under way in India,” said Dr. Gregory Stanton, founder of Genocide Watch, speaking to an audience of U.S. Congressional and government officials at a briefing titled “Ground Reports on Kashmir and NRC (National Register…
The Lion’s Den | I Am Not My Hair
The California-based legislation, The Crown (Create a Respectful and Open World for Natural Hair) Act, SB-188, is designed to prevent discrimination toward African Americans based on their hair. This law is housed under California’s Fair Employment and Housing Act and…
Straight Talk | Bradley’s Chris Reynolds in running for A.D. at Indiana University
Chris Reynolds, Vice President of Intercollegiate Athletics at Bradley University, reportedly is one of four finalists for the job as Athletic Director at Indiana University. The popular Reynolds certainly has the credentials to get the job. He was a basketball…
Bill Knight | Trump and Iran
A local monthly commenting on acts of war from weeks earlier may seem no longer timely, much less local, but war is always local since family and friends are used, and war is tragically timeless. Plus, many reckless, feckless developments…
Editorial | 2019: A year of hate; 2020: A year redressing hate
Southern Poverty Law Center has tracked a steady rise in hate groups from 892 in 2015 to 917 in 2016 and 1,020 groups in 2018. The numbers for 2019 won’t be released until next month, but news accounts document an…
Letter to the Editor | And click! I became a feminist
The independent film “The First Rainbow Coalition” was shown by WTVP. It was also screened at ICC, sponsored by Community Word, WTVP-TV, ICC’s Department of Diversity & Community Impact and the West Central Illinois Labor Council. It was a memorable…
OpEd | Proton Beam cancer treatment in Peoria at OSF
OSF Saint Francis Medical Center has filed an application with the Illinois Health Department for licensing to construct and operate a comprehensive cancer center and proton beam radiation facility in Peoria. The center is expected to cost $237 million and…
The Watch | Cemetery and housing reports
There’s a bit of a winter lull for many governmental bodies. Budgets are finished or far off. Meetings are cancelled for holidays or bad weather. Key volunteers are down south for weeks or months at a time. But this is…