NIOT National Director To Frame Hate Crime Film Discussion

Patrice O'Neill, executive director of the national movement Not In Our Town is coming to Bloomington's Moses Montefiore Congregation Nov. 2, along with a timely documentary on hate in modern-day America.

Not In Our Town: Light in the Darkness is a one-hour documentary about a town coming together to take action after anti-immigrant violence devastates the community. In 2008, a series of attacks against Latino residents of Patchogue, New York culminate with the murder of Marcelo Lucero, an Ecuadorian immigrant who had lived in the Long Island village for 13 years.

Over a two-year period, the story follows Mayor Paul Pontieri, the victim’s brother, Joselo Lucero, and Patchogue residents as they openly address the underlying causes of the violence, work to heal divisions, and begin taking steps to ensure everyone in their village will be safe and respected.

Documentary Spurs Hearty Racial Dialogue

While Tuesday’s presentation of Against All Odds and a followup panel/public discussion of racial issues drew a healthy Twin Cities audience, here’s a replay of the panel discussion featuring comments on modern black challenges and opportunities featuring moderator and retired State Farmer Art Taylor, retired Unit 5 educator Camille Taylor, Bloomington-Normal NAACP President Quincy Cummings, and ISU political science specialist Ky Ajayi. Subjects ranged from racial assumptions in the public school and corporate environments to academic representation by minorities, institutional racism still evidenced in the housing market, white struggle to overcome engrained racist beliefs, and the long road ahead to achieving true racial equality and justice.

Please listen to a powerful and constructive dialogue, and if possible, share it with friends who might benefit either from education or inspiration.

The Citiesscape Part 4: Bias Before the Bench, Behind Bars?

Minorities would appear to be “on the downside” of McLean County’s criminal justice system, according to a new study for Not In Our Town: Bloomington-Normal.

In a study conducted by Illinois State University students and the ISU Stevenson Center for Economic and Community Development, researchers uncovered apparent racial as well as gender disparities in McLean County incarcerations.

“On any given day, the McLean County jail population is majority white,” the ISU team noted. However, it is also 32 percent black, “highly disproportional to the population.” Research findings indicate that “there is still work to be done to ensure that minorities are not wrongfully targeted and incarcerated.”

“So if we’re 8 to 9 percent African-American, in the jail we’re about 36 percent African-American,” Stevenson Center study coordinator Frank Beck relates.

The study also indicates a disproportionate frequency in traffic stops and related searches for black motorists, as detailed in Part 3 of this series.

ISU researchers examined patterns in McLean County Jail and court files. Each local booking had a code, frequency, and percentage, and the team focused on each frequency that was higher than five thousand, enabling members to narrow analysis to the most frequent charges.

Students then researched each code to obtain the name of the charge (e.g., domestic battery, possession of drug paraphernalia, first time and previous DUI convictions, and key traffic violations including driving without a license or with an expired license).

Of the 22,157 persons in the jail on felony charges under the study, 17,481 were men, and4,676 were women. Men spent an average 35 days in jail for felony charges, while women spent half as many days in jail.

For overall convictions, blacks and Latinos spend more time in jail than whites. Blacks spent nearly twice as many days in jail than whites, while Latinos fell between the other two groups. That pattern was consistent for both felonies and misdemeanors.

“Future research can hold constant conviction status and charge severity to further determine where disparities are most pronounced,” the team suggested.

The research team also studied the frequency of each group booked on drug charges, identifying a disparity between the races during the late teen years and early 20s. Whites are booked more frequently for drug charges, but frequencies for whites and blacks converge around age 27, which researchers found “extremely significant.”

Blacks comprise roughly eight percent of the total McLean County population, and when the frequencies converge it does not mean the demographics are changing (such as whites “suddenly moving out of the area in droves”). “Around age 27, blacks are booked on drug charges at a rate even more disproportional to the population,” the team concluded.

“Charge severity is even between whites, blacks, and Latinos,” Beck observed. “African-Americans are not likely to be booked on things that are more violent. African-Americans are far less likely to be booked on DUIs. Driving under the influence is very much a white thing – less so Latino, and far less so African-American.”

Art: Norms for An Inclusive Workspace

As a veteran of the corporate workspace who worked to make it more diverse and understanding, retired State Farmer Art Taylor is now bringing what he calls his "norms for inclusive workspace" to the community dialogue.

One of his cardinal principles is to "accept others' perspectives as TRUE for them," even if they do not jibe with their own past experiences or views. That's important in comprehending the challenges and pain of racial, cultural, or religious bigotry and expanding dialogue aimed at reconciling differences.

That lesson came home to Taylor when as a teen he was forced to leave a Chicago college prep school for a Jackson, Ky., high school where a counselor argued that he, like other locally raised black students, should focus on ag classes. The young Chicagoan, who'd "never stepped foot on a farm," learned at that point how to deal with "someone trying NOT to understand."

"If people come in with an open mind, your experience can be accepted as truth," Taylor suggests. "Please recognize that someone else's reality is truth for them."

Taylor will help moderate a panel discussion on race and related issues following Normal First United Methodist Church's 7 p.m. Sept. 26 screening of Against All Odds, a documentary about the struggles of middle class blacks. The event is free and open to the public.

Taylor's offers several other norms to promote constructive social discussion:

* Use “ I rather than attempting to speak for the group -- “Speak for yourself," from your own experience. "Only YOU can tell your story," Taylor stresses.

* Be responsible for your own learning.

* Challenge yourself to be Inclusive.

* Take ownership for your learning and be honest with yourself.

* Be open to new realities.

* LISTEN, and be open to perspectives from others.

* Build trust.

* Say what needs to be said in the moment.

* Honor confidentiality.

* Give "grace" to yourself and others. In other words, Taylor says, respect a speaker's level of education, background, or other differences as they tell their truth.

* Focus on self-Improvement, not perfection.

* Make space for others to share and be who they are while withholding judgment.

* Work toward shared success.

The Citiesscape Pt. 3: Normal Traffic Stop Data Shows Major Racial 'Inequities'

Data on traffic stops in eight Central Illinois cities show significant “inequities” in police treatment of motorists of different races and ethnic origins, according to Illinois State University’s “A Community Report on Intolerance, Segregation, Accessibility, Inclusion, Progress, and Improvement.”

The new report, requested by Not In Our Town: Bloomington-Normal, notes blacks are stopped more often and arrested more often than their share of the Bloomington-Normal population would suggest. Vehicles driven by blacks are searched more often, and yet drugs are more often found in vehicles of white drivers.

In their study of race and the local criminal justice system, the ISU team focused on disparities in traffic stops and incarceration in the McLean County Jail.  Normal had 19,637 traffic stops out of 72,836 for all eight cities examined. That was 27 percent of all documented stops in the Twin Cities, Champaign, Decatur, Peoria, Rockford, Springfield, and Urbana.

Using 2015 Illinois Traffic Stop Data from the Illinois Department of Transportation, students investigated whether disparities in this portion of the criminal justice system exist, specifically for Bloomington-Normal.  Normal police stop vehicles at a far higher rate than police in Springfield or Peoria – ISU student researchers stated “the pattern is quite stark.” Without taking into account severity of charge, blacks who are arrested spend more time in the jail.

“We find that vehicles with black drivers are far more likely to be searched, compared to those with white or Hispanic drivers,” researchers concluded. “This is true in Bloomington, Normal, and the six other cities; however, Normal has a much smaller portion of vehicles searched relative to their large number of stops.

“Though searched more often, vehicles driven by blacks are less likely to have drugs or drug paraphernalia. We find that blacks spend more time in the jail than whites or Hispanic individuals. We also find that men spend more time in the jail than women, regardless of whether the charge is a felony or a misdemeanor.”

The second highest number of traffic stops occurred in Springfield at 15,910. Bloomington Police Department recorded the third highest number, with 9,740 stops. The remaining cities in order from most to least stops are Rockford with 7,095, Champaign with 7,029; Decatur with 4,982; Peoria with 4,784; and Urbana, with 3,659. When Bloomington and Normal are combined, they accounted for 40 percent of all stops in the eight cities.

Since 1999, the Bureau of Justice Statistics (a branch of the U.S. Department of Justice) periodically has conducted the Police-Public Contact Survey to determine the nature of this contact and discrepancies in race, gender, citations, use of force, etc.  The Bureau distributes surveys to people aged 16 and older, and asks them to describe their most recent contact with law enforcement within the past 12 months.

The Bureau noted a nationwide decline from 2002-2008 in the total number of persons who had contact with police. However, for those who had contact with law enforcement there were still discrepancies between whites, blacks, and Latinos. The number of Latinos drivers stopped by police between 2002 and 2008 increased 28 percent, although there was no difference for white and black drivers during the same period.

 In 2008, blacks were more likely to have contact with law enforcement than whites, asians, Native Hawaiians, and other Pacific Islanders. The survey also inquires whether those stopped by law enforcement felt the police behaved appropriately: Blacks and Latinos were less likely than whites to feel this was true. Similarly, black drivers were less likely to feel there was a legitimate reason for police stopping them.

Blacks were significantly more likely to be searched during a traffic stop than Latino and white drivers, and police arrested blacks at a higher rate than whites during traffic stops. Although no comparison was made in relation to the percentage of searches that resulted in finding anything illegal, only one out of five people searched felt police had a legitimate reason to do so, across racial lines.

The Bureau also analyzed the use of force during traffic stops. Although in 2002 and 2005, whites were less likely than blacks and Latinos to experience the threat of force, the 2008 study indicated that only blacks were more likely to experience force. In addition to experiencing more frequent traffic stops, blacks also experienced more frisks and searches.

Racial disparity was found to be greater in frisks than in general searches; racial disparity frisks are contingent on a community’s racial composition, and a driver’s race does not correlate with the productivity of searches.

“Racial profiling in law enforcement is a problem due to racial stereotypes, reflecting the ‘legitimizing myths’ that perpetuate social dominance and hierarchies,” the ISU team stated. “. . . Officers were more likely to stop someone depending on location (i.e., if a black was in a predominately white area, or if a white person was in a predominately black area).”

After standardizing stop data for population size, the degree to which Normal ranked highest in traffic stops -- after accounting for population size, Normal’s frequency of stops is more than twice that of the other seven cities.

In Bloomington, Latinos are disproportionately more likely to be stopped, where in Normal, Latinos are disproportionately less likely to be stopped, given their share of the population.

It is uncommon for officers to request searches from motorists in Bloomington or Normal, and the likelihood of such requests does not seem vary by race or ethnicity. Of requests for searches, though, blacks drivers are far more likely to decline the request. In the end, however, black drivers are most likely to have a search conducted.

In Bloomington, white drivers had a 5.6 percent chance of a search being conducted, Latino drivers had a 8.6 percent chance, and black drivers had a 13.0 percent chance of a search. A similar pattern emerged in Normal: White drivers had a 1.0 percent chance of having a search conducted, Latino drivers a 2.2 percent chance, and blacks had a 3.4 percent chance of having a search conducted.

For all eight cities combined, white drivers had a 4.2 percent chance of being searched, Latino drivers a 6.1 percent chance, and black drivers had a 12.4 percent of being searched.

“Although there is a higher chance of being pulled over in Normal, there is greater likelihood of being searched in Bloomington,” ISU researchers reported.

In Bloomington, while white drivers had the lowest chance of their car being searched, they had the highest percent of being found in possession of drugs. In Normal, black drivers had the highest percent of being found in possession of drugs, followed by white drivers. Latino drivers showed the lowest percentage of drug possession in either city.

In both Bloomington and Normal, students found white drivers to have the highest percentage of drug paraphernalia possession, followed by black drivers, again, despite the higher rate of searches on vehicles driven by blacks.

District 87 Approves 'Welcoming' Resolution for All Students

Julia Evelsizer

The Pantagraph

Students worried about deportation or judgement based on their family’s citizenship were told they have nothing to fear while attending Bloomington District 87 schools.

The District 87 school board approved a resolution on Wednesday affirming the district as a welcoming and safe environment for all students, regardless of immigration status.

“The resolution doesn’t fundamentally do anything in terms of policies and procedures we already have in place, but it sends the clear message to students that you mean something to us and we care about how you’re feeling. We wanted to show in a very public way that we support you and we’ll do all we can to keep you safe,” said Superintendent Barry Reilly.

Reilly said there are “probably” students enrolled in District 87 who come from illegally immigrated families, but said he hopes the resolution will "alleviate any worries those students may be feeling" after recent changes to Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals, or DACA.

“This sends a message to the general community so those kids and their families know we have their back,” said Reilly. “The teacher in front of them in the classroom will be more important than anything we do here.”

The idea for the resolution was developed by a group of teachers who were approached by students who said they were afraid of deportation and being uprooted from their homes and schools.

Kim Taber, a teacher at Bloomington Junior High School, read comments from worried students to the board.

“I worry when I go home, I won’t see my parents and I’ll be left alone with my siblings,” Taber read from a student comment.

“It means a lot that the resolution was so strongly supported by the board,” said Taber after the meeting. “We want to see students feel successful in a country where they don’t often get that message. To hear it straight from the district is powerful.”

BJHS teacher Helen Brandon said students of immigrant families “often feel forgotten, devalued and an unwelcome member in the community.”

“We welcome you and care about you,” said Brandon.

“In a climate where outside voices are not always supportive and are sometimes frightening, we want to help kids hear, firmly, that they are wanted here with us at school,” added Julie Riley, BJHS teacher.

Gavin Nicoson, a freshman at Normal Community West High School, attended the District 87 meeting as a member of Not In Our School, a group against bullying and discrimination in schools.

“I feel that these issues and worries with students are more prevalent. I’m sure it’s hard for those students to go home where they are accepted and loved and then go to school where they are worried that people don’t accept them. This gives me hope,” said Nicoson.

McLean County Unit 5 Superintendent Mark Daniel said the Normal-based district has discussed the resolution with District 87, particularly how the district partnered with teachers to develop the message.

“Unit 5 will begin a similar process and we expect it could result in a resolution as well,” said Daniel.

Against All Odds To Open Racial Dialogue

AGAINST ALL ODDS: The Fight for a Black Middle Class, to be screened at 7 p.m. September 26 at Normal First United Methodist Church, probes the harsh and often brutal discrimination that has made it extremely difficult for African-Americans to establish a middle-class standard of living.

The film, a PBS documentary that premiered this spring, will be followed by a panel discussion moderated by Twin Cities NAACP Chairman Quincy Cummings, NIOTBN Education Subcommittee Chair Camille Taylor, and other community leaders.

As Bob Herbert notes in the film’s opening, “Whites talk about working hard and playing by the rules. But blacks have always had to play by a different, hateful set of hideously unfair rules. Working hard has never been enough for black Americans to flourish”. Through dramatic historical footage and deeply moving personal interviews, the documentary explores the often frustrated efforts of black families to pursue the American dream.

Today many African American families are still digging out of the recession that followed the Great Crash of 2007-08 and although some are doing better, black wealth remains meager compared to the white middle class. Nearly 40 percent of black children are poor, and for every dollar of wealth in the hands of the average white family, the typical black family has only a little more than a nickel.

This revealing and sometimes shocking documentary connects the dots of American history to reveal how the traditional route up the economic ladder by attaining a job that pays a living wage and then buying a house is a financial ascent that has been systematically denied to black families.  Reduced educational opportunity, rampant employment discrimination, the inequitable application of the GI bill, mortgage redlining and virulent housing segregation are among the injustices that have converged to limit the prosperity of black families from generation to generation.

Bob Herbert has been covering and commenting on American politics, poverty, racism and social issues for over 45 years through his tenure as a nationally-syndicated op-ed columnist for The New York Times as well as work for other newspapers and broadcast media. Growing up in New Jersey, the son of an upholsterer whose prosperous business was hobbled by banks unwilling to offer loans to blacks, Herbert had an intimate view of the barriers that faced striving black families.  His interviews with prominent African Americans, including Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist and author Isabelle Wilkerson, Congressman Elijah Cummings, renowned psychologist and author Alvin Poussaint, and policy activist Angela Glover Blackwell, as well as other accomplished black professionals, uncover generational stories
of profoundly damaging economic and social prejudice.

In AGAINST ALL ODDS, Herbert looks back at the uphill struggle facing black families freed from slavery over a century and a half ago and emerging from life as uneducated sharecroppers in the South. He traces the barriers to employment and housing designed to keep black people “in their place” both in southern states and in northern states as African Americans migrated throughout the country in search of opportunity and a better life. Shocking footage from Chicago in the 1950s and 60s shows how black families trying to escape overcrowded ghettos faced riots if they moved to a white block or a white suburb.  Beryl Satter—an author whose father, a white lawyer, fought against discrimination in Chicago— tells Herbert, “This whole history of white rioting and white violence has been historically buried.  When people think of violence and riots in the street, they always think of the 1960s when black people rioted, but when white people rioted, it doesn’t even have a name.”

For those blacks who have been successful in acquiring a middle class lifestyle in suburban neighborhoods such as Prince George’s County, Maryland, the foothold feels tenuous. Brent and Karla Swinton live there in a stately home and both have good jobs. But Brent says, “We may have arrived to a degree but we just got here so it’s still not quite the same.” The reality behind that sense of insecurity was abundantly clear following the Great Recession when widespread foreclosures stripped wealth out of the black community.

Yet through it all, Herbert reports, black Americans have shown time and again in the face of cruelty, systematic discrimination and injustice a tremendous resilience and determination to get their fair share of the American dream.  Herbert says, “There are no barriers that can’t be overcome. When dreams remain unrealized, it simply means the fight goes on.”

The Citiesscape Pt. 2: 'Desert' Life Unhealthy for Twin Citians?

Is West/Southwest Bloomington a “desert,” where lower-income residents and students especially may be virtually stranded far from healthy foods and drawn to retail “oases” that may foster serious or even lethal health risks?

According to a recently released NIOTBN-sponsored study by Illinois State University students and ISU’s Stevenson Center, the West Side exhibits disturbing desert-like conditions.    

The “disparities in access to healthy food correlates with many social factors,” including race, ethnicity, socioeconomic status, and income level,” concludes “A Community Report on Intolerance, Segregation, Accessibility, Inclusion, Progress, and Improvement.” A diet of “primarily unhealthy products” — including junk food, tobacco and liquor products, and fast food — can cause cardiovascular disease, liver cirrhosis, obesity, and multiple forms of cancer.

In mapping the Twin Cities, the ISU team quickly realized that Bloomington-Normal possesses many more convenience stores than grocery stores. Convenience stores stay open long hours, offering a small variety of household goods and “unhealthy” foods. With high convenience store accessibility and lower grocery store accessibility comes the tendency to rely on unhealthier convenience store options rather than the relatively healthier grocery store offerings, the study asserted.

Further, the majority of Bloomington-Normal's supermarkets and grocery stores are located along major roads, with Veterans Parkway, Market Street, and Main Street possessing the clear majority of store locations. On the map below, The areas shaded green are within one mile of a grocery store; unshaded areas are more than one mile from a grocery. The green and red dots indicate disadvantaged persons.

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Additionally, layering the fast food/convenience store/grocery store locations over the map’s U.S. Supermarket Accessibility layer shows reason for significant concern in West and Southwest Bloomington. There are quite a few red dots more than one mile from a grocery. This becomes more concerning when considering walkability. Most of the grocery stores are located along high traffic roads that are difficult for pedestrians to navigate while carrying groceries. So, efforts to improve food security in West and Southwest Bloomington may be beneficial to disadvantaged community members.

“There are also far more fast-food restaurants than grocery stores in Bloomington-Normal,” the team noted. “In all, unhealthy food options are more available than healthy ones.

“Distance to, prevalence of, and accessibility of healthy food options are directly related to a person’s overall health. Neighborhoods which lack these nutritious and affordable food options are called food deserts. While located in urban and rural settings, food deserts are found predominantly in low-income communities of color.

“Individuals in these food deserts will face a higher density of tobacco stores and fast-food restaurants with few, if any, healthy food options. When people and families have to expend more energy and resources to get fresher, healthier options than food found at convenience stores or fast-food restaurants, they will often choose to buy more readily available and less healthy food. Fast-food restaurants and tobacco companies target low-income and minority populations in their advertising—such as fast-food companies offering free prizes and more kids’ meals in lower income neighborhoods than higher income communities.”

Middle school and high school students walking to school are confronted with many “concealed dangers,” students advised. On the way to and from school in some neighborhoods, students may pass by multiple fast food establishments as well as alcohol and tobacco stores. According to several studies, more than fifty percent of U.S. schools that are mostly minority have both fast food and tobacco stores in close proximity, and low-income and minority students have a greater chance of taking routes to and from school that can expose them to fast food, alcohol, and tobacco stores.

Latino students are more likely to go to schools that are in areas including multiple alcohol, tobacco, and fast food establishments. Having these establishments near schools can increase the rates of obesity seen in school children as well as higher rates of teenage smoking, and children who pass these places everyday on their way to school are more likely to be offered alcohol, tobacco, or even other drugs.

“It is encouraged that students walk to school, but the dangers of kids passing these businesses can lead to unhealthy habits,” the ISU study warned. “Compared to middle schoolers, high schoolers have a higher chance of being affected by encountering these businesses daily. In sum, the literature points to a clear association between socioeconomic status and the chance of passing by these types of establishments.”

While a trio of new groceries has emerged in Bloomington over the past two years, two are located on the Veteran’s Parkway strip, and two, including the Green Top Grocery on the near West Side, are specialty retailers featuring organic, “natural,” and other trait-identified products that often are out of the basic price range of lower-income families. Green Top is a co-op grocery, where customers can purchase shares in the store to receive discounts and rebates – a model which according to Stevenson Center study coordinator Frank Beck may not fit the conventional “cultural dynamic” or consumer preferences of lower-income and minority consumers.

Kroger’s location at College and Emerson serves both Illinois Wesleyan students and West Siders. But Aldi’s, a discount food outlet, operated on Market Street, serving a West Side clientele, for roughly nine years before moving to the western city fringe near Walmart and opening a second location on Veteran’s bordering Normal’s east side Walmart – in either case, a drive or bus ride for the West Side’s poorer or older residents. A Latino grocery operates in the former Market Street location, with fresh produce but a tailored product selection.

While chains like Walmart have been making inroads into populous metropolitan inner city neighborhoods, securing a major new grocery in or adjacent to Bloomington’s lower-income neighborhoods is a daunting challenge.

“There’s a whole science out there of, ‘Should we build it, and where should we built it?’” Beck related. “Those folks that are going to spend those millions of dollars know that science back and forth. At the community level, by rough estimates, these days, you have to have a population of about 3,000 to make ends meet, if you’re the owner of a grocery store. Some small towns have thought of co-ops and other things – food deserts are not just in urban; they’re in rural as well.”

Immigration Project Helping Save Thousands of Illinoisans DACA 'Dreams'

This week, nearly 80,000 young students, workers, and householders who’ve spent much or nearly all their life in the U.S. learned that over the next 2 ½ years, they could lose their adopted home.

“This is really going to hurt our economy; it’s really going to hurt all these individuals and their families,” warns Charlotte Alvarez, executive director of Normal-based The Immigration Project, which is working to help thousands of Illinois “DREAMers” cope with the White House-announced phase-out of the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program.

Under the announcement, individuals whose DACA designation expired prior to Sept. 5 cannot file a new program renewal application, and are effectively “terminated,” Alvarez reported. Those with pending renewals can still be processed -- The Immigration Project is helping ensure client applications are processed in a timely manner.

Currently, those facing DACA expiration between Sept. 5 and March 5, 2018, must file a two-year renewal application with receipt by immigration officials before Oct. 5 or lose their shot at renewal.

“In this state, we have about 10,000 young people who must file renewal applications within the next month,” Alvarez advised. “We’re recommending that if anybody in our service area – in Central or Southern Illinois – needs to file a renewal, and their DACA expires between Sept. 5 and March 5, they should contact our office as soon as possible. We’ve had a lot of panicked DACA clients calling us up wondering what this announcement means to them, what will happen to people who have DACA once their work permit and their permission to remain expires.”

In fact, the Project has dedicated a staff member, Thalia Novoa, to focus on DACA renewal, and callers (309-829-8703) can listen for a specific DACA renewal extension to begin the process. If applicants prefer to handle the process themselves or decide they need legal consultation, the Project can identify resources or clarify the process.

“One of the things that’s a challenge for people is affording the application,” Alvarez noted. “The application in each case costs $495 to file. I know people whose DACA expired, and they saved up enough money to pay the fees again, but they’re now not able to. And now we have all these people who either were saving up money por planning to renew in the future who suddenly have to renew in the next month.”

Some applicants thus have launched Gofundme or similar campaigns to raise the money necessary to renewal, and The Immigration Project is seeking organizations that might be willing to provide financial support for clients.

DACA, signed in June 2012, stated that the government would not deport those who arrived here before the age of 16 and are under 31 years of age on June 15, 2012; who are in school or possess a high school diploma; who have lived here for at least five years; and who have not committed serious crimes.

DACA supporters are pinning long-term hopes on congressional intervention. Two federal immigration proposals – the BRIDGE (Bar Removal of Individuals Who Dream and Grow Our Economy) Act and the DREAM (Development, Relief, and Education for Alien Minors) Act – propose to address concerns by creating what Alvarez terms “a real path to citizenship.”

The Project joined Tuesday with “a fairly sizeable crowd” of DACA supporters in an Uptown Normal rally, requesting that Republican U.S. Rep. Rodney Davis, whose office is in Uptown, meet with those affected by new DACA rules and support either bills. As of Thursday, no meeting date had been scheduled.

At the same time, attorneys general of 15 states and the District of Columbia, including Illinois Attorney General Lisa Madigan, have filed a lawsuit alleging the administration’s action violated the due process rights of the young immigrants by failing to safeguard the personal information they initially gave the government in order to enroll in DACA.

“The solution is, either the administration reconsiders this policy, or Congress acts and creates a law and protections for these kids,” Alvarez said. “A lot of the DACA kids we have came to the country when they were two or three. They barely remember or don’t remember the country they were from. We’ve had clients who have gotten bachelors degrees, relying on DACA to be able to work. I have clients who are nurses, who are students, who are professionals. This is just going to pull the rug from beneath their dreams. It’s a real blow for them.”

For more information, visit The Immigration Project at www.immigrationproject.org.

ISU Study: Problems Persist in B/N, 'Less' Today With NIOTBN Help

This is Part 1 of a multi-part examination of Bloomington/Normal's challenges and successes in bridging social, economic, racial, and cultural concerns.

ISU's Frank Beck reviews conclusions of student researchers during a NIOTBN Steering Committee review of the study at Moses Montefiore Temple.

Key problems persist in the Twin Cities, according to a study by ISU students with the Stevenson Center for Economic and Community Development. But significant progress is being made, in part through efforts by NIOTBN and other local groups, "A Community Report on Intolerance, Segregation, Accessibility, Inclusion, Progress, and Improvement" concludes.

The Not In Our Town chapter in Bloomington-Normal recently asked two classes of students at Illinois State University to document intolerance, discrimination, segregation, disparities of access, and disparities in the criminal justice system in the twin cities. In this report, using archival material, secondary data, and primary data, the students examine these issues from the mid-1990s to the present. Not In Our Town also wanted to understand their position in the community and some strategies for future success, through an analysis of other organizations in the country similar to Not In Our Town.

The conclusion: “Bloomington-Normal was and is intolerant; discrimination did and does take place in this community; we are segregated. The community is also less of these things than it used to be and is less of these things than other places — thanks in part to the efforts of Not In Our Town.”

Interviews and focus groups document difficulties, progress, and hope for the future among community leaders, social service agencies, elected bodies, advocates, and law enforcement. Residents discuss systemic issues and the role of Not In Our Town in addressing them. Residents shared experiences of discrimination and intolerance from police, employers, and other community members. Some of the quotes drawn from the conversations “are powerful and are evidence of work yet to be done,” the study stressed.

Discrimination by law enforcement and a lack of access to quality food, health care, and employment are highlighted. Persons promoting racial equality, LGBTQ advocates, and residents provide ideas for future balance.

For example, data on traffic stops in eight Central Illinois cities and from the McLean County Detention Facility show inequities. Blacks are stopped more often and arrested more often than their share of the Bloomington-Normal population would predict. Vehicles driven by blacks are searched more often, yet drugs are more often found in vehicles of White drivers. Normal police stop vehicles at a far higher rate than police in the larger cities of Springfield or Peoria; the pattern is "quite stark." Without taking into account severity of charge, blacks that are arrested spend more time in the jail.

Bloomington-Normal is segregated, but far less than other Central Illinois communities, the students found. The index of dissimilarity for Bloomington-Normal shows that approximately 40 percent of black households need to change their residence in order to integrate each neighborhood to the same extent, across both cities. Since at least 1980, this number declined for Bloomington-Normal. Champaign, Decatur, Peoria, Rockford, Springfield, and Urbana experienced declines in their segregation too, but their values are still higher than Bloomington-Normal. We find that Springfield is the most segregated of these cities; the interaction index also shows Springfield to be the community where blackss are least likely to interact with a White person and vice versa.

One team of students mapped diversity in Bloomington-Normal against locations of health care facilities, tobacco and liquor stores, groceries with fresh produce, predatory lending establishments, banks, schools, and transit routes. There are disparities in access to these community attributes and the disparities differ by diversity of the neighborhood. In all, West Bloomington suffers from a lack of access to health care and fresh produce. Diverse neighborhoods have more access to fast food and convenient stores than they do quality grocers. Transit routes connect patrons to health care offices/facilities, banking, schools/community college, etc., but the costs in time are high. Predatory lending establishments are located on the community’s main routes, but proximate to economically disadvantaged populations.

The work of seven aspirational organizations from across the country is presented in the report. Based on the strengths of Not In Our Town, the Best Practices group identify characteristics of these model organizations that can further the local chapter’s efforts. From bylaws to organizational structure and activities, recommendations are made to increase participation, capacity, and credibility. Therefore, this project can help Not In Our Town identify its next steps.

“As community developers know, there is much to learn when we speak to one another about the state of affairs in our communities; not only can we better understand the situations our neighbors are experiencing, we can gather in collective action to work toward improvement and progress,” the study concludes. “This is the essence of Not In Our Town’s work and dedication.”

Documentary Features Indigenous Americans' Musical Gifts

Rumble, a new film on indigenous American contributions to music, plays 7 p.m. Sept 8, 10, 13, and 16 at the Normal Theater.

Rumble tells the story of a profound, essential, and, until now, missing chapter in the history of American music: the Indigenous influence.

Featuring music icons Charley Patton, Mildred Bailey, Link Wray, Buffy Sainte-Marie, Jimi Hendrix, Jesse Ed Davis, Robbie Robertson, Redbone, Randy Castillo, and Taboo, Rumble shows how these talented Native musicians helped shape the soundtracks of our lives.

YWCA: DACA Rescission Symptom of 'Xenophobia'

STATEMENT BY YWCA MCLEAN COUNTY CONCERNING DACA

 Consistent with an ongoing agenda rooted in xenophobia and the terrorizing of communities of color, the Trump administration has rescinded the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program. DACA, an executive order enacted by President Obama in 2012, alleviated the immediate threat of deportation for more than 800,000 undocumented millennials who met the eligibility requirements which included a clean criminal record, a high school diploma, and those who entered the U.S. as children.

For these young people who came of age as Americans, DACA did not afford full citizenship, but rather two year permits for those approved under the program. This allowed DACA recipients to continue to study and work in their communities with minimized threat of detention and deportation.

With no viable option for citizenship, these young people, who, in applying for DACA, voluntarily submitted their documented status and personal information to the federal government, face a very real and grave threat of being targeted for deportation. At the beginning of the DACA journey, people were fearful and often had to be convinced to come forward. This reversal is their nightmare and is corrosive to the trust established between the government and the people of the United States.

Removal of DACA is a threat to our entire community. Driven into the shadows, these young people are at heightened risk for abuse and exploitation, and are less likely to cooperate with law enforcement, putting everybody in danger. What’s worse is that should these young people be deported, they will never be eligible for U.S. citizenship again. Which not only means permanent loss of family and friends, classmates, and colleagues, but as parents of U.S. citizens this creates the potential for a child welfare crisis or the forced displacement of small American children.

At YWCA McLean County, we see this for what it really is: racial profiling, xenophobia, and bad public policy. We are outraged that this promise is being broken, and that those who came to this country as children will be criminalized and driven underground. DACA does not hurt anyone, it provided an opportunity for young undocumented people to emerge from the shadows, go through a system of vetting, and live without fear in the communities in which they grew up.

We at YWCA McLean County stand with all undocumented Americans, and will fight back, not only for DACA, but for a comprehensive immigration reform that is the solution we’ve needed for decades. We are calling on congress and our Illinois elected officials – Rodney Davis and Darin LaHood – to stand up and push through a solution, like the DREAM Act. We call on our entire community stand with us, contact your member of Congress, and demand protection and a path to citizenship for these trusting young people.

IWU's 'Half Life of Freedom' To Explore Racism

Award-winning author Jelani Cobb will speak at Illinois Wesleyan University's President's Convocation on Wednesday, Sept. 6, at 11 a.m. in Westbrook Auditorium, Presser Hall (1210 N. Park St., Bloomington).

His remarks, "The Half-Life of Freedom: Race and Justice in America Today," will be presented in connection with the University's Summer Reading Program selection, Between the World and Me, by Ta-Nehisi Coates. In keeping with Illinois Wesleyan's annual intellectual theme, The Evolution of Revolution, Coates' book calls for a revolution of thought around the social construct of race.

Both men attended Howard University, where they began a continuing friendship and shared discourse on the complexity of race.  

Cobb is the Ira A. Lipman Professor of Journalism at the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism. He has received Fellowships from the Fulbright and Ford Foundations.  

As a staff writer at The New Yorker, Cobb has penned articles about race, culture, the police and injustice. In 2015, he received the Sidney Hillman Prize for Opinion & Analysis Journalism for his columns on police shootings in Ferguson, Mo., and similar happenings. His investigative series Policing the Police, which aired on PBS Frontline in 2016, won the 2017 Walter Bernstein Award from the Writer’s Guild of America. 

His books include Substance of Hope: Barack Obama and the Paradox of Progress;  an insider's exploration of hip hop titled To the Break of Dawn: A Freestyle on the Hip Hop Aesthetic;  and The Devil & Dave Chappelle and Other Essays. His forthcoming book is Antidote to Revolution: African American Anticommunism and the Struggle for Civil Rights, 1931.

"I write because a different world is possible—we must always remember that," Cobb has said of his work.

The President’s Convocation traditionally opens the academic year at Illinois Wesleyan. The event is free and open to the public.

Unit 5 Can Help Race Relations

Normal officials hope McLean County Unit 5 can help improve race relations in the town.

City Manager Mark Peterson told a joint committee of town and school officials Tuesday he hopes the district will help the town push that effort, which it intensified this month with the publication of a study on how to improve Normal Police Department procedures.

"Most African-Americans went to school, for many years, with an African-American teacher who understood them as an individual," said Chemberly Cummings, the first black Normal City Council member and a committee member. "Now, we have teachers who are coming out of suburban or rural areas never ever seeing an African-American until they step foot into the classroom."

She said that dynamic can lead to a culture of mistrust between students and authority figures that follows students after they leave school.

"They're already developed a mindset about police long before they've come to this larger interaction with law enforcement," Cummings said, "It's both our responsibilities to make sure all of our children feel welcome. ... We can develop true diversity and inclusion plans, not just window dressing."

The district is "looking at the idea of how do we integrate diversity training" and working to make its staff and administrators as diverse as its student body, said Unit 5 Superintendent Mark Daniel.

He said he's seen the benefits of diversity training up close, through one of his daughters who was a student teacher for Chicago Public Schools.

"They went first to understand the community, then they went into the classrooms. ... She had no fear walking into a classroom or walking around Chicago."

"Because she had that kind of training, she looks through a different lens — I'm treating this (as), I see no color. I just see a student, I see a need, I see I'm there to be an adult who's there to assist.'"

Daniel said officials also need to consider "how are we going to bring people of color to our community."

That was part of a wide-ranging discussion as the committee met for the first time. Cummings, council member R.C. McBride and Peterson represented the town; board members Jim Hayek and Mike Trask joined Daniel for the district, which hosted the meeting.

The next meeting is expected to be in late November or early December at Uptown Station. The town will host.

The council and school board met there last month to discuss resurrecting the committee, which is intended to make both more stable and less susceptible to external obstacles like the state.

Both passed an agreement to hold quarterly meetings with two members of each body and annual meetings with all members.

Local Faiths Unite to Stand Against Racism

Kevin Barlow

The Pantagraph

As co-chairwoman of the Not In Our Town Faith and Outreach Committee, Mollie Ward is sometimes surprised by the subject manner of prayer requests she receives from residents of Bloomington-Normal.

“It’s remarkable how often I get requests from people to just pray for peace,” she said Monday night. “Those requests come even when they are going through some terrible issues of their own.

"When I ask people what would you like me to pray for, the response I often get is for peace in the world and our country. It’s amazing that comes first.”

Ward was one of several faith leaders who organized an interfaith community service that drew about 300 people to First Christian Church in Bloomington. The group issued a statement to announce they were united in commitment to stand up and speak out in nonviolent ways for love and justice.

“We’re here tonight to demonstrate how we, who are all brothers and sisters with each other, can live and breathe together,” said the Rev. Jim Warren, the senior pastor at the church.

The event was organized to encourage unity among all faiths, said co-chairwoman of the service, Rabbi Rebecca Dubowe of the Moses Montefiore Temple in Bloomington.

“We believe that it is possible for all faiths to be together and share the same message of love among each other. This was spurred by the tragedy in Charlottesville," she said, referring to the Aug. 12 confrontation during a rally of white supremacists in Virginia in which one person was killed. "But the faiths that sustain us separately can come together to let us know that love is the most powerful force we have.

“The affirmation of people and the dignity of all people is the message we are hoping to deliver for our community,” said the Rev. Jackie Clement of the Unitarian Universalist Church of Bloomington-Normal.

“Right at the moment, we are all concerned about Texas," Clement said of the victims of Hurricane Harvey. "But on a regular basis, it is a matter of concern for my congregation and other congregations I visit, that it be clearly known in the community that there is a large body of people who are willing to stand in this community for justice and what is right.”

The Rev. Beth Rupe, the co-chairwoman of the Pro-Reconciliation Committee of the Christian Church in Illinois and Wisconsin, said the church is interested in raising awareness about racism in Bloomington-Normal.

“Love is going to be what overcomes racism,” she said. “As people of faith, we are called together to stand in love. We want to speak to unity and speak to the tradition and that we can do better as children of the Divine.”

The service included speakers, prayers and music from many faith traditions. 

“I think it’s really great that the leaders of different religions can get together and talk about something that we all have in common and that is that we hate racism and we hate what is going on with racism in our world right now,” said Tammy Hoback of Bloomington.

A similar service was held in July 2016. At that time, the Not In Our Town organization hosted a prayer vigil following the shootings of police officers in Dallas, Texas.

“Events like this prove that different people with different viewpoints from different religions can gather with the idea of peace as a common thread,” said Bill Parker of Normal. “I’m proud that our towns can hold such an event.”

Banquet to Honor 44 Young Community Models

Why I See You, YICU Service Awards Celebration to recognize and celebrate young adults’ community service and leadership in McLean County
 
For A Better Tomorrow (FBT) announced on August 2 that 44 young leaders and two teams have been nominated for the second annual Why I See You, YICU Service Award. YICU celebrates young leaders who are role models that make a positive impact on others lives and their community through everyday actions in their neighborhoods, schools, social service agencies or through voluntary service to others. 

Tickets for the YICU Service Awards Banquet are $25 and may be ordered on the FBT Website. Deadline to purchase the tickets in September 5. 

“Most of these nominees operate largely ‘under the radar’ doing good deeds, sharing their time and talent quietly and selflessly. We are honored to recognize and celebrate them.” said Cranston Sparks, YICU Steering Committee Member.
 
A panel of leaders will review the nominations and select three winners in three different age groups. All nominees will be recognized at this event. Nine individuals and one team will be chosen from the outstanding group to receive a prestigious award based on their accomplishments and community impact! FBT is excited to make a $250 donation towards a non-profit in honor of the award winners.

The Awards Banquet will be held on September 10 at the Double Tree in Bloomington, IL. The social hour begins at noon with the program at 1 pm. This year's nominees are:

1. Emily Fienhold, 21, Chenoa, IL
2. Jeffrey Risberg, 12, Bloomington, IL
3. Amber Hill, 16, Bloomington, IL
4. Jaylyn Haynes, 14, Bloomington, IL
5. Sankalp Amaravadi, 16, Bloomington, IL
6. Anusha Bhojanam, 14, Normal, IL
7. Kaitlyn Stephens, 17, Farmer City, IL
8. Caroline Pickering, 17, Bloomington, IL
9. Arjun Kale, 13, Normal, IL
10. Sankhya Amaravadi, 22, Bloomington, IL
11. Breanne Penn, 18, Normal, IL
12. Kavya Sudhir, 16, Bloomington, IL
13. Wah Chook, 17, Bloomington, IL
14. Shreeya Malpani, 16, Bloomington, IL
15. Carys Lovell, 15, Bloomington, IL
16. Elena Hollingsworth, 18, Bloomington, IL
17. Sky Holland, 18, Normal, IL
18. Rebekah Herrmann, 17, Normal, IL
19. Austin Spaulding, 18, Bloomington, IL
20. Veli Aydoner, 17, Bloomington, IL
21. Danylle Myers, 18, Normal, IL
22. Amit Sawhney, 15, Bloomington, IL
23. Savannah Sleevar, 14, Bloomington, IL
24. Sierra Fields, 18, Bloomington, IL
25. Jasie Kelch, 20, Normal, IL
26. Leah Sebade, 18, Normal, IL
27. Zitlally Arias, 17, Bloomington, IL
28. Ajitesh Muppuru, 15, Bloomington, IL
29. Makayla Castle, 17, Farmer City, IL
30. Nathaniel Parson, 17, Bloomington, IL
31. Sky Watson, 17, Bloomington, IL
32. Rajeshwari More, 12, Bloomington, IL
33. Bronwen Boyd, 17, Bloomington, IL
34. Manasa Chenna, 14, Normal, IL
35. Bhavana Ravala, 16, Bloomington, IL
36. Nachiketh Rotte, 16, Normal, IL
37. Sharanya Rotte, 12, Normal, IL
38. William Short, 17, Normal, IL
39. Micah Johnson, 18, Bloomington, IL
40. Georgi Roll, 18, Bloomington, IL
41. Camron Hinman, 16, Normal, IL
42. Tristan Bishop, 18, Bloomington, IL
43. Logan Smith, 18, Normal, IL
44. Cierra Ester, 15, Normal, IL
45. Not In Our School Student Coalition Team - Aishwarya Shekara, Kavya Sudhir, Mihir Bafna, Anniah Watson, Ajitesh Muppuru, Zitlally(Lolly) Arias, Fiona Ward Shaw and Shreeya Malpani
46. Bloomington High School Promise Council Team - Mihir Bafna, Alisha Nadkarni, Bronwen Boyd, Fiona Ward Shaw, Veli Aydoner, Amber Hill, Carys Lovell, Wah Chook, Sierra Fields, Nathaniel Parson

Mass Choir to Sing Out In Commemoration of Charlottesville

Nine local congregations will rise up together in a song of hope and humanity at Monday's Unity in the Community interfaith gathering to address the recent Charlottesville tragedy, at 7 p.m. at Bloomington First Christian Church.

The gathering is open to the public, and Twin Citians of all faiths as well as non-believers and others are welcome. The service will feature a mass choral performance of the anthem "Goodness is Stronger Than Evil," with words by Desmond Tutu.

"Having a mass choir, with the choirs of all these different churches, shows the diversity that we all can contribute, to share our passion that love is stronger than evil," said service co-coordinator and First Christian's music director Rev. Holly Irvin. "We can sing that message together."

In a statement by "faith leaders of Bloomington-Normal," they stressed they "abhor the loss of life, the dishonoring of the children of the Divine, the insults hurled, and the wounds of history re-opened."

"Events such as these inflict injury which damages our minds, bodies and spirits: the totality of our humanity," a group of several dozen leaders of various faiths stated. "At times such as these, the faiths which sustain us separately come together to assure us that love remains the most powerful force in human existence, allowing no room for hatred, bigotry, discrimination, and violence.

"Hatred is the poison of the spirit. The resulting fear cut us off from the holy, from goodness, beauty and ultimately, life. It is love that truly confronts the corruptions of racism, white supremacy, anti-Semitism, and discrimination of all forms."

Against All Odds to Examine Black Pursuit of the American Dream

AGAINST ALL ODDS: The Fight for a Black Middle Class, will be screened at 7 p.m. Sept. 26 at Normal First United Methodist Church, offering Twin Citians a chance to examine and discuss challenges to and efforts to overcome racism and discrimination in America.

“Have black Americans had a fair shot at the American dream?” acclaimed journalist Bob Herbert asks. The question is answered in AGAINST ALL ODDS: The Fight for a Black Middle Class, a documentary that probes the harsh and often brutal discrimination that has made it extremely difficult for African-Americans to establish a middle-class standard of living.

A panel discussion will follow the film, which is open to the public.

“Whites talk about working hard and playing by the rules. But blacks have always had to play by a different, hateful set of hideously unfair rules. Working hard has never been enough for black Americans to flourish,” Herbert says in the film’s opening. Then, through dramatic historical footage and deeply moving personal interviews, he explores the often frustrated efforts of black families to pursue the American dream.

Today many African American families are still digging out of the recession that followed the Great Crash of 2007-08, and although some are doing better, black wealth remains meager compared to the white middle class. Nearly 40 percent of black children are poor, and for every dollar of wealth in the hands of the average white family, the typical black family has only a little more than a nickel.

This revealing and sometimes shocking documentary connects the dots of American history to reveal how the traditional route up the economic ladder by attaining a job that pays a living wage and then buying a house — is a financial ascent that has been systematically denied to black families. Reduced educational opportunity, rampant employment discrimination, the inequitable application of the GI bill, mortgage redlining and virulent housing segregation are among the injustices that have converged to limit the prosperity of black families from generation to generation.

Bob Herbert has been covering and commenting on American politics, poverty, racism and social issues for over 45 years through his tenure as a nationally-syndicated op-ed columnist for The New York Times as well as work for other newspapers and broadcast media. Growing up in New Jersey, the son of an upholsterer whose prosperous business was hobbled by banks unwilling to offer loans to blacks, Herbert had an intimate view of the barriers that faced striving black families. His interviews with prominent African Americans, including Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist and author Isabelle Wilkerson, Congressman Elijah Cummings, renowned psychologist and author Alvin Poussaint, and policy activist Angela Glover Blackwell, as well as other accomplished black professionals, uncover generational stories of profoundly damaging economic and social prejudice.

In AGAINST ALL ODDS, Herbert looks back at the uphill struggle facing black families freed from slavery over a century and a half ago and emerging from life as uneducated sharecroppers in the South. He traces the barriers to employment and housing designed to keep black people “in their place” both in southern states and in northern states as African Americans migrated throughout the country in search of opportunity and a better life. Shocking footage from the the 50s and 60s in Chicago shows how black families trying to escape overcrowded ghettos faced riots if they moved to a white block or a white suburb. Beryl Satter, an author whose father, a white lawyer, fought against discrimination in Chicago, tells Herbert, “This whole history of white rioting and white violence has been historically buried. When people think of violence and riots in the street, they always think of the 1960s when black people rioted, but when white people rioted, it doesn’t even have a name.”

For those blacks who have made it, and acquired a middle class lifestyle in suburban neighborhoods like those in Prince George’s County, Maryland, the foothold feels tenuous. Brent and Karla Swinton live there in a lovely home and both have good jobs. But Brent says, “We may have arrived to a degree but we just got here so it’s, it’s still not quite the same.” The reality behind that sense of insecurity was abundantly clear following the Great Recession when widespread foreclosures stripped wealth out of the black community.

Yet through it all, Herbert reports, black Americans have shown time and again a tremendous resilience in the face of cruelty and injustice and a determination to get their fair share of the American dream. Herbert says, “There are no barriers that can’t be overcome. When dreams remain unrealized, it simply means the fight goes on.”

NAACP, Town of Normal Partner for Civic Engagement Program

The Bloomington-Normal NAACP is partnering with the Town of Normal for the first Normal and NAACP Civics & Citizenship (NC²) program.

This will provide high school students (ages 13-18) the opportunity to come and learn about civic engagement in their community. There is no cost to participate. The mission is to spark dialogue between students and Town officials; this includes but is not limited to police and city council.

The program will take place on Saturday, Sept. 30; Saturday, Oct. 7; and Saturday, Oct. 14. Interest Forms will become available Monday, Aug. 28. Students must complete and submit Interest Form by Wednesday, Sept. 14, 2017.

On Saturday, Sept. 30, NAACP  will partner with the Children’s Discovery Museum to teach students that civic engagement is our duty. The students will participate in the World Wide Day of Play. On Saturday, Oct. 7, 2017, we will partner with the Normal Police Department to teach Civic Engagement is Our Right.

The students will learn how to build relationships with the police, engage with police during every interaction, a day in the life of a police officer, and the exploration of law enforcement as a career. This will be an interactive day filled with candid dialogue.

On Saturday, Oct. 14, 2017, NAACP will partner with the Town of Normal leadership to teach Civic Engagement is our responsibility. The students will have the opportunity to create their version of the Town of Normal 2040 Visioning Plan. The plan will be presented to some of the Town’s leadership. Every participant will receive recognition during the City Council meeting on Monday, Oct. 16, 2017.

This opportunity is open to all high school students in Unit 5. For more information,  contact Chemberly Cummings at chemberlycummings@gmail.com or (216) 570-0549.