BY JOYCE BLUMENSHINE The Clean Energy Jobs Act needs your support. This state legislation will likely come back to the Illinois House and Senate this fall and is essential for efforts to expand solar and wind energy and new jobs.…
Reflections From A Hindu Perspective | Sewa
Sewa is selfless service performed without expecting anything in return. It is an act performed by humans as a basic property of being a human, not guided by the expectation of joy dependent on desire fulfillment. As a human, we…
The Lion’s Den | Soundtracks to the Struggles
Southern trees bear strange fruit Blood on the leaves and blood at the root Black bodies swinging in the southern breeze Strange fruit hanging from the poplar trees Pastoral scene of the gallant south The bulging eyes and the twisted…
Nature Rambles | Migrating Goatsuckers
As May turns to June, bird migration in Illinois winds down and most resident species have taken up housekeeping. They have established nesting territories, and started raising young. During this time, they sing less often and even the most strident…
Real Talk | Silence — the true murderer of humanity
How often do we just sit back and watch things occur without speaking up? Whether that is in the form of allowing verbal bullying to occur or mentally removing oneself from a situation but physically being present. That does not…
Inland Art | Robert Rowe
Designer, photographer and now hand-made book artist and printmaker Robert Rowe came to Bradley University from Marshall University in Huntington, W. Va., in 2000. During his 20 years in Huntington, Robert served as the head of graphic design and photography…
Art Inc. | Summer Arts Camp
ART Inc. is pleased to announce its 2019 Summer Arts Camp and class schedule, which includes filmmaking, visual arts, coding, drama and dance. The five-week camp runs July 1 to Aug. 2, Monday to Friday, 10 a.m. to 3 p.m.…
Arts Beat | June 2019
June 1: Heartland Festival Orchestra presents “A Triple Shot of Tchaikovsky.” 7:30 p.m. Five Points Washington. 444-8222. June 1: Black Velvet. 9 p.m. MD’s Sports Bar & Grill. 691-2025. June 1: The Golden Fleece. 10 p.m. Kenny’s Westside Pub. 676-1693.…
Serendipity | Brinley Mae
Nearly seven years ago we excitedly welcomed our sixth grandchild, Brinley Mae, into our family. Just like the lyrics from the 1974 hit song, “Cat’s in the Cradle,” she “came to the world in the usual way.” That word “usual”…
Environmental News Briefs
Antibiotic use expands to citrus Antibiotic resistance in humans has been linked to overuse with livestock, but now the EPA is defying objections from both the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the Food and Drug Administration to allow…
Senator: Graduated, progressive tax is a fair tax
State Sen. Dave Koehler told an audience at East Bluff Community Center that legislation to change the state income tax from a flat rate of 4.95 percent to a graduated tax with higher rates on higher wage earners will mean,…
West Peoria plans for July Fourth
June means plans are in full swing for the 49th celebration of the West Peoria July Fourth parade and flag raising. The parade starts at 10 a.m. July Fourth and wends its way through West Peoria. This event is well…
Labor Roundup | June 2019
Four-fifths of voters want U.S.-made rebuilding of infrastructure, but not Donald Trump’s Mexican Wall, according to a poll from the Alliance for American Manufacturing. Only 34 percent of voters (7 percent of Democrats, 22 percent of independents and 69 percent…
No. 1 in nation for “Draconian,” mandatory drug sentencing
Once again, Peoria tops a nationwide list –– this time for harsh sentences for nonviolent drug offenders. Many in the judicial system contend these disproportionally harsh sentences do not make society safer but only serve to feed mass incarceration. Federal…
Banking on the arts
Most people didn’t hear about some big news this spring. It was good news but wasn’t a surprise, say local arts advocates. But the absence of reporting on it seems to some like the heavy-equipment industry making unexpected gains but…
When “the best of the best” is arrested
Yunek Moore fulfilled every dream a parent could have. She was president of her class at Peoria High School, member of the National Honor Society, enrolled in after-school activities and was college bound. Then, inexplicably, she was singled out at…
Views & Perspectives | We deserve better than “acting” secretaries
Seven of the sixteen Trump cabinet positions have “acting” secretaries. Defense, Homeland Security, Interior, Chief of Staff, Office of Management and Budget, Small Business Administration. On April 10, President Trump told Americans that he was running the Department of Homeland…
Bill Knight | Ugliness in April elections
Dirty politics, surly opposition and ugly social media all surfaced around April’s election. Some races had no challengers; some couldn’t fill vacancies; some unqualified candidates resorted to name-calling or paying others for negative appeals. Willingness to serve takes time, money…
Straight Talk | Bullies? Are you kidding?
The Bradley basketball season is over after a surprising finish by Coach Brian Wardle and his Braves. They won the Missouri Valley tournament and gave nationally ranked Michigan State a run for the money before losing in the NCAA tournament…
Editorial | Rabbi calls for justice for Palestine
Rabbi Brant Rosen is a scholar who has patience, empathy and courage in his activism for Palestinian people and social justice. He proves it is possible to love Israel and the Jewish faith and protest human rights violations in Gaza.…
Op-Ed | Right to harm plays well in Peoria
BY KAREN HUDSON Illinois Citizens for Clean Air & Water recently hosted the Midwest premiere of “Right to Harm” at the Peoria Riverfront Museum Giant Screen Theater. The film reveals the multiple externalities created by concentrated animal feeding operations or…