As I write my last column for 2019, I am grateful to Clare Howard and the entire team at COMMUNITY WORD for the opportunity to sound off on issues of importance to me and I hope from time to time…
Straight Talk | What’s going on with media?
On Thursday, Nov. 7, 23-year-old Tyshan Gayton exchanged gunfire with law enforcement officials not far from the Glen Oak Learning Center and then fled to a house on Briarwood. Police rushed to the area of 2300 North Knoxville followed by…
Bill Knight | Health-care costs
Decades ago, I edited a weekly newspaper owned by a record chain whose owner was mulling over providing health-insurance coverage to full-time workers when in a matter of weeks I had to go to emergency rooms. I’d seriously injured my…
Editorial | Courage or cowardice: Learning America’s true history takes courage
In the din and clamor over the 2020 presidential election, it’s easy to feel adrift and unable to influence the direction of our country. Maybe it’s even easy to feel a little apathetic, a little despair. But Bryan Stevenson and…
OpEd | Whistleblowers, sources and the constitution
BY TORI WHIDDEN Throughout the United States, government agencies are unconstitutionally enforcing restrictive policies that are negatively affecting the public’s access to information. First Amendment rights allow public employees to speak about work-related matters without the permission of their superiors.…
Nature Rambles | Chinquapin Oak
As the leaves fall and the forest takes on a slumbering personality, we often don’t think much about the trees until they start leafing out again in the spring. However, winter is a great time to take a new look…
Reflections From A Baha’i | Universal human rights attainable
One of the great achievements of the twentieth century was the adoption of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights by the U.N. General Assembly on Dec. 10, 1948. The Universal Declaration affirms in its preamble that it is intended to…
The Watch | PHA meetings
Several months ago, attorney John T. Brady read the local government observer reports in his League of Women Voters of Greater Peoria monthly newsletter. It reported PHA meetings had been moved or cancelled, often without notice. Agendas and basic information…
The Lion’s Den | Part I: African American Education: During Slavery
This article is the first in a series that exams the African American experience with America’s education system. Part one will examine the education of Blacks during the times of slavery. Education for African Americans during slavery was mainly illegal.…
Inland Art | Imagism
The catalog essays that support the exhibition “What Came After: Figurative Painting in Chicago 1978 – 1998” at the Elmhurst Art Museum, question whether the term “Imagism” is fitting for art predominately recognized as Chicago-born. They also question whether Imagism…
Arts Beat | December 2019
Dec. 6: “A Merry Little Christmas,” featuring the Peoria Pops Orchestra. 7 p.m. Five Points Washington. 444-8222. Dec. 6: Dexter O’Neal + Funk Yard 5:30 p.m. “Live at the Five Spot,” Contemporary Arts Center, 674-6822. Dec. 7: Bradley Chorale, Women’s…
Real Talk | When the smoke clears: The legalization of marijuana in Illinois
Implicit biases that still exist with marijuana stem from “refer madness” from the early 1950s. Those biases were geared toward individuals living in poverty and the escape provided by marijuana. The mythology of marijuana is that it causes aggression; it…
Reflections From A Hindu Perspective | Art of debate
As our next presidential election looms closer, the sheer barbarism of the public arena vocalization filled me with great anguish. On the current political debate stages, behavior like blatant lying, interrupting the opponents, childish insults have become a norm for…
Serendipity | Holiday happiness
Music, memories, scents, sounds and other reminders help make Christmas the extravaganza it is today. We don’t all agree on how much of the details are charming because we view it from personal preferences. For some, it’s too much of…
West Peoria News | December updates
Township Supervisor Sharon Kennedy is looking for people interested in sharing what they know about the history of West Peoria. Kennedy can be reached at the township building, 2516 W. Rohmann, 9 a.m. until noon Tuesdays, Wednesdays or Thursdays. Call…
Labor Roundup | December 2019
National Labor Relations Board plans to ban RAs, TAs from unionizing, and activists such as Princeton University Research Assistant Hrishikesh Somayaji are protesting. “We simply need a union to be able to bargain for the rights that we deserve as…
Restoration: Coal Hollow Park
An environmental restoration is unfolding north of Chillicothe on the site of a former coal mine. Mike Contratto, center, works with park district employees and volunteers on a foot bridge at Coal Hollow Park. The bridge connects a new parking…
Racism is a health risk; CenteringPregnancy counters the risk
Medical research has carefully documented the risk of high blood pressure, high cholesterol, obesity, smoking, lack of exercise and more. But the health risk of racism was largely ignored. Statistics, however, are now emerging –– African American women are at…
Artist uses light, space, sky and landscape
When Craig Adcock lectures at the Riverfront Museum Nov. 14, he’ll not only present artist James Turrell to a Peoria-area audience probably unfamiliar with him. The program, presented by the Peoria Fine Arts Society, also will in some ways revisit…
Healthcare system “cracking” around abortion access; “Medical Students for Choice” steps in with help
Young people today are stunned by the possibility of losing Roe v. Wade. That includes medical students who see first hand how inadequate the formal curriculum is covering female reproductive choice at most medical schools. As more states enact increasingly…
Views & Perspectives | Impeachment a waste of time
I have written previously in this column that I believe attempts to impeach President Trump are a waste of time by the U.S. House of Representatives and will not lead to a conviction in the U.S. Senate. As someone who…