Marker to Recall Segregation of Miller Park

"Those who don’t know history are doomed to repeat it.”

1940: Miller Park's whites-only beach.

That famous quote attributed to Edmund Burke, a one-time orator, political theorist and British member of parliament, is behind a new effort at Bloomington's oldest park.

The Illinois State Historical Society is putting up a marker to stand as a permanent reminder of the history of racial segregation at Bloomington’s Miller Park.

From 1908 and into the early 1950s when the beach was closed for a time, the swimming area at Miller Park was divided by a well-maintained section with a lifeguard and an unkempt, unguarded section labeled “Blacks Only.”

The Community Has A Secret

Mark Wyman, a retired Illinois State University distinguished emeritus history professor, said when the beach was reopened in 1957, there were no references to the decades of segregation.

The marker the McLean County League of Women Voters erected in Franklin Park in 2005 to recognize the local resident who was the first woman elected to the Illinois Senate.

Credit Illinois State Historical Society

"I saw the secret really develop then because in all of the editorials about reopening and in the speeches by the mayor, no mention that it used to be segregated until it closed in 1953," said Wyman, who along with historian Jack Muirhead researched the history and interviewed residents about what they knew about the separate and not-so-equal policies at Miller Park lake.

“People were not aware of that. ‘Did we ever have segregation here?’ they asked longtime residents. The replies were all the same, ‘No, too far north. No, never heard of it.’ Wyman said he and Muirhead heard the same response many times. "That’s when I realized this community has a secret."

The NAACP is supporting the project along with the McLean County Museum of History and the Not In Our Town (NIOT) coalition. Camille Taylor of NIOT said history has a way of repeating itself, so the marker is an important recognition of this community's ability to discriminate.

"Our mission is to stop hate, address bullying and to make a safe, more inclusive community for all so the things that Mark describes would certainly be under that mission in terms of sharing the history of segregation and where we are now as a community," Taylor said.

Taylor was involved in The Bloomington-Normal Black History Project, formed in 1982 to document the local history of the local black community with a collection that now contains photographs, portraits, booklets, articles, and artifacts.

The former Unit 5 counselor used those artifacts and documents for presentations during Black History Month at area schools. She said students could not understand why blacks were not allowed to swim in the same section of Miller Park lake.

"When I talked about Miller Park and a little girl named Phyllis Hogan who had to swim in the segregated part of the lake that had lots of debris and she got caught up in it and drown and some of the children were the same age as this little girl ... they couldn't believe it. They would ask, 'Why would they make those people do that?'" she said.

"That's when I realized this community has a secret."

Taylor said the students hearing those presentations in the 1980s and 1990s had no idea about this kind of treatment of blacks in their own community.

"Their eyes opened as big as saucers when they would hear things like the cheerleaders at Bloomington High School, going downtown to the square after a game and they wouldn't be served if a black cheerleader was with them, so all the cheerleaders got up and left," Taylor said about how the children responded to her accounts of discrimination.

She said the historic marker will be permanent and do more good to educate people and bring awareness than what she was able to accomplish through her school visits.

Plenty of Support

Wyman said he has encountered no opposition from city leaders including Alderman Karen Schmidt whose ward includes Miller Park. He was never worried about raising the estimated $4,000 to erect the marker and he says once he began talking about it, the money flowed in.

"Right away when I would mention it in talking to groups around town about our segregation past people would come out and say, 'I want to donate.'" He said several individuals who read about it in the McLean County Historical Society newsletter contacted us and offered donations.

The marker will measure 44 by 51 inches. There has not been an Illinois State Historical Society marker erected in the Bloomington-Normal area since 2005. Twelve years ago, the McLean County League of Women Voters sponsored a marker on the east side of Franklin Park honoring the life and career of pioneering lawmaker and community leader Florence Fifer Bohrer.

Wyman said plans are to put up the marker sometime this spring.

It includes 16 lines of text including a final line that reads, “Today, Miller Park—like all city facilities—is open to all.” 

May 1 March Declares 'Immigrants Are Welcome Here'

Paul Swiech

The Pantagraph

Chanting "No hate, no fear, immigrants are welcome here" and "Immigrant rights are human rights," about 300 people marched Monday evening from outside the McLean County Museum of History to outside Bloomington City Hall to support immigrant families in McLean County.

Photo by Gabriel Jiminez Glez

Responding to Trump administration comments about increasing deportations through partnerships between local law enforcement agencies and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, several speakers called for the City Council to adopt a "Welcoming City" ordinance, which would bar the city and Bloomington police from reporting people suspected of being in the U.S. illegally.

"We can't control what is happening in (Washington) D.C., but we can here," said Illinois People's Action board member Sonny Garcia, who was among several people who spoke at the rally in front of City Hall. He asked the City Council — which swore in newly elected members Monday evening in City Hall just before the rally — to "stand up and say 'no' to hate and be an example to the nation."

Bloomington Mayor Tari Renner came outside to welcome the marchers.

Calling the United States, "a nation of immigrants," Renner said "the better part of humanity has to prevail and, here in Bloomington, it will prevail."

Renner told the marchers that "our police force does not work with ICE" but stopped short of endorsing the Welcoming City ordinance.

"In this moment, there is no moral choice but to fight back. Because all of us are all implicated in what is being done, in our name, to our immigrant sisters and brothers." D. Dontae Latson, CEO, YWCA McLean County.

"In the face of overwhelming national enforcement, we need more than promises and words. We cannot only declare we are on the side of our immigrant neighbors and tell them everything is okay. We must decide to do more. We must decide to pass the Welcoming City ordinance." Charlotte Alvarez, executive director, The Immigration Project.

"I am an Uber driver. About a month and a half ago I had some riders try to assault and kidnap me. This was very traumatizing and I wanted my attackers to be prosecuted. But, I was advised not to press charges as it would be worse for me and my family because of our immigration case. I decided not to press charges against my attackers because of my husband's immigration status. It makes me very sad to know that these men never had any consequences for their actions and may act again." 'Stephanie,’ Bloomington resident.

"We may not be able to control what is happening in DC, but we certainly have the power to determine how our immigrant brothers and sisters are treated right here in McLean County," Sonny Garcia, Board Member of Illinois People's Action.

"We are here today to join our immigrant brothers and sisters in building power to advance our shared struggle. Together, we will fight for and win our collective liberation." Divah Griffin, Black Lives Matter Bloomington-Normal.

He told The Pantagraph earlier that the city legal department is analyzing a Welcoming City ordinance, but there are concerns.

Normal Mayor Chris Koos also told The Pantagraph earlier, "While I'm generally supportive of what they're trying to accomplish, that particular document is difficult to support because there are legal issues."

Renner and Koos have expressed concern about endorsing a document that puts police at odds with federal agents. Renner may issue a mayoral proclamation as an alternative to the ordinance.

But Jenn Carrillo, YWCA McLean County mission impact director, told The Pantagraph after the rally, "We need to go beyond a proclamation and codify it in an ordinance."

Carrying signs that read "Blono is better when we keep families together" and "Migration is Beautiful," many marchers — some shivering in the wind and 47-degree temperatures during the lengthy rally — also held plastic monarch butterflies. They have become a symbol of the immigration rights movement because they migrate from Mexico to the United States and Canada.

"Migration is not only natural but beautiful," said YWCA CEO D. Dontae Latson.

The Rev. Doug Hennessy, retired pastor of Holy Trinity Catholic Church in Bloomington, said: "God's Word tells us every person without exception has inherent human dignity and is worthy of respect. That families are meant to be together. That this one small planet is meant to be shared, not divided."

A Welcoming City ordinance "would be an important way for our community to say to our brothers and sisters and families who are most immediately threatened by the current situation, that we stand in solidarity with them," Hennessy said.

"The war against immigrants is a war against people of color," said Divah Griffin of Black Lives Matter Bloomington-Normal.

Among those who marched and rallied were David and Abby Warfel of Bloomington and their sons, Sam, 15, and Joe, 10.

"We're here to support the immigrant community," Joe said. "No human is illegal."

"We want to help families to stay together," Abby said. "We wouldn't want to be separated from each other. We want others to have that same sense of safety."

"The national climate on immigration is very distressing and we want to do something to make our community safer," said David Warfel, noting his ancestors emigrated from Germany.

"I want other families to have the same opportunities that my family had," he said.

For highlights of the march, visit https://www.facebook.com/YWCAMcLeanCounty/videos/10155242100266382/

Tiny Houses An Answer for Homeless, Businesses?

Willis Kern and Mike McCurdy

WGLT

City of Bloomington officials are working on one aspect of a possible solution to the homeless problem downtown.

Alderman Karen Schmidt, whose ward includes the business district -- which has seen an increase in homeless individuals, says so-called "tiny houses" may help the situation.

Tiny houses are small, moveable homes generally under 500 square feet that underscore a lifestyle of simple living.

Schmidt said the homes could be located together near downtown.

"We want to be very thoughtful and try to find a place in our community that doesn't feel isolated in any way. These are our residents and we want them to feel welcome, and we want it on a bus line," said Schmidt.

Schmidt said there seems to be momentum for bringing the tiny house concept into the homeless solution mix.

"I think it has a lot of traction and it has a lot of people at the table from the city, PATH and the shelters," she added.

Schmidt said zoning issues have to be resolved and she says the city's community development staff is working on that. The homeless problem downtown was spotlighted last week during the GLT News series "Homeless in Bloomington."

Kelley: Chronic Homelessness and Tiny Homes

Kelley Becker

NIOTBN Faith and Outreach Committee

On Wednesday, October 7, 2015, I had the privilege of talking with a group of Eureka College freshmen about the challenges that people who are chronically homeless face and some possible solutions. I was invited to speak by their instructor, Holly Rocke, who is a member of the church I serve, First Christian Church in Bloomington.

I shared with the students that I have built relationships with people in our community who live outside in tents year round. They endure harsh winter weather, heavy rains in the spring and excessive heat and mosquitoes in the summer. My work with people who are chronically homeless began because I learned where they were living and I and some friends began to share meals with them.

Over the years, we have continued to share meals and our lives. There are a group of people from the Bloomington-Normal community and beyond who take turn sharing meals and helping these friends in other ways. You see, there is not just one reason people become chronically homeless, so there isn’t just one way to help people who chronically homeless. Because I have gotten to know some of their stories personally, I have been able to work in the community for permanent solutions that I believe can work.

I have learned that our emergency shelters, Home Sweet Home and Safe Harbor, will never be able to help some people who are chronically homeless. There are some people that, due to their past, are unwelcome in our shelters. There are some people who, because of addiction, mental health or personality are unable to follow the rules the shelters must impose. It is these people that I have been working to help.

The Tiny Home Project was started in an effort to provide shelter, dignity, safety and a new start for people who are unable or unwilling to go to an emergency shelter. It is partnership between First Christian Church in Bloomington, The Matthew Project from Heyworth, the Lutheran Board of Church Extension and Illinois Wesleyan University School of Theatre Arts. We hope that through tiny homes we are able to provide housing FIRST so that people who are chronically homeless can change their lives forever.

Our first tiny home is almost finished. Our goals with this build were to 1) draw attention to chronic homelessness 2) give people who are chronically homeless an opportunity to see a tiny home and 3) to encourage community leadership to look at this solution.

At the Eureka College presentation, I showed the students pictures of the tiny house build and gave them the opportunity to ask questions. Many of the questions centered on how we would decide who is allowed to live in the homes or whom we would choose first. We hope to be able to build enough homes to put an end to living outside in our community. Of course, we would fill the homes in the beginning based on critical need. In other words, there are people whose health is seriously at risk by continuing to live outside. We should house them first.

It was hard for some of the students to wrap their minds around the idea of providing housing without strings attached. We teach our young people to grow up, get an education and make their way in the world. I talked with them about how difficult that is for some people and that many people in our country are teetering on the edge of homelessness all the time. We have to help each other. There is enough for everyone. Everyone should have a place to belong and a place to call home.

I believe we need to be a community that does not judge whether we believe a person deserves help, but instead commits to helping everyone have a safe place to live. Tiny homes may not be the solution for everyone, but it is a solution for some. We are in the process of working with City of Bloomington leadership, business leaders and social service organizations to find a place to put the tiny homes.

This project is an amazing example of how the faith community, business community, academic community and social service community can come together for solutions. We do not all agree and working together is sometimes difficult. However, together we are better. By working together we have the opportunity to build something that benefits the entire community.

Tiny House Project 'Springboard' for Transition of Homeless?

It was a different sort of luncheon and home tour recently at Bloomington’s First Christian Church. The luncheon was sloppy joes and three-bean salad, the home could fit roughly in perhaps two church parking spots, and the guests were a mix of city officials, church volunteers, representatives of west side non-profit groups, and guests who spent much of their days – and nights – on the streets.

Local contractor and volunteer mission builder Mike Robinson displays the Tiny House interior for representatives of non-profit organizations.

Redeemer Lutheran Church Tiny House volunteer chats outside the prototype home.

Members of three area churches are currently putting the internal finishing touches to the Tiny House – a modular one-room frame home equipped with AC, heating, a toilet, and shower, designed to put a roof over one currently homeless head. The Tiny House Project – built on the Illinois Wesleyan University campus with private and city support – will go on tour with an eye toward finding a lot and hookups for permanent or transitional residency.

“This is a good thing you guys are doing,” one guest told Tiny House sponsors prior to the home tour.

The Tiny House will be on display for two weeks at a time at various Bloomington-Normal churches, as project coordinators consider options for occupancy. “We actually haven’t thought that far yet,” admitted Tiny House Co-Coordinator Julie Robinson, whose husband, local contractor Mike Robinson, helped build and is now finishing the interior of the structure.

Robinson sees the tiny house as “a viable option” for persons who currently live outside, particularly during periods of inclement weather. City of Bloomington Code Enforcement Grants Coordinator Jennifer Toney sees even longer-term benefits of economic housing for homeless persons: “Housing is probably one of the most important things for an individual when they’re looking for a quality of life.”

Toney subscribes to a “housing first” model, arguing that those not “struggling with where they’re going to put their head at night” can focus on employment, community services, and financial security. “It levels the playing field a little bit.”

PATH Homeless Services Supervisor Lori Kimbrough characterized the Twin Cities’ current homeless situation as “pretty severe,” with some 20-25 people on the streets or “other places not meant for human habitation” on any given night. That number did not drop this past winter as it traditionally has on a seasonal basis, “and we’re looking for some permanent solutions to that problem,” Kimbrough said.

“The folks say who stay out on the street have huge barriers to housing – basically affordability is the biggest issue,” she noted. “They have extremely no to low income, so that doesn’t afford them a living situation or a permanent housing option.

“If the housing choices for a person are in a tent or in a shelter, these people prefer to choose a tent. If we could give them the option of affordable housing, I would say they’d prefer that option.”

Low building costs and floorplan/facilities simplicity also offer relatively low home maintenance costs – another plus for prospective Tiny House tenants trying to regain their financial stability, Kimbrough suggested. Inaugural tiny house projects to date “have worked fairly well” in communities such as Eugene, Ore., Madison, Wis., and Huntsville, Ala., the PATH supervisor maintained.

The City of Bloomington currently administers  a federal Department of Housing and Urban Development Local Continuum of Care Grant, which provides about $300,000 per year in homelessness prevention services. Toney and colleagues are investigating possible local lots for tiny houses, preferably along a municipal bus line to accommodate employment and considering public safety issues “for everyone,” she related.

Early talk of the Tiny House Project intrigued Joe Teague, a smaller properties broker and property consultant with Road Runner Real Estate and member of Second Presbyterian Church in downtown Bloomington. Teague concedes that the tiny house concept “breaks a few rules” and poses challenges in zoning and potential liability but notes “I’ve been known to bend or break a few as I go along in life.”

“It’s using great ideas, using different ideas, and using people’s imaginations to tackle a very tough problem and to provide services for folks who are in very tremendous need,” Teague said. “It also benefits our community as a whole. This is not just let’s put people in a shelter – let’s find them serves, let’s make it holistic. I don’t care if you live in a 10,000-square-foot mansion or a 2,500-square=foot nice house, or a cabin – sense of place is so critical. It’s a springboard.”

NIOT:BN Leaders Recognized For Life, Community Transformations

Twenty-six McLean County residents graduate from a program training them to be leaders, McLean County YWCA CEO D. Dontae Latson discuss his transformation from a 10-year-old boy with an arrest record, and Latson's Not In Our Town: Bloomington/Normal steering committee colleague, Bloomington Alderman Karen Schmidt was honored at Saturday's graduation ceremony for the Multicultural Leadership Program.

The "Celebrate Community"-themed event, at Illinois State University's Bone Student Center Brown Ballroom, featured Larson's keystone address and Schmidt's receiving MCLP's annual community service award.

MCLP began in 2009 with a goal of developing leaders who value diversity in decisionmaking at home, at work, and in the community.

Each year's participants are split into teams that assist a nonprofit group with a six-month project.

This year's nonprofits and projects included:

• Challenger Learning Center — enhance fundraising to support programs for area school children
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• Community Health Care Clinic — help with a dental care feasibility study and a five-year budget
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• Immanuel Health Center — increase name recognition
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• Meadows at Mercy Creek — recommend a staff development plan
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• Prairie Pride Coalition — redefine goals and outreach effort.

Latson grew up in a suburb of Washington, D.C., and watched the crack cocaine epidemic ramp up violence in his neighborhood.

In one year, he lost his brother and eight friends to violence.

Schmidt was recognized for her council service, local initiatives, and leadership. Below, listen to her acceptance speech.

Citizen Summit Brings Together Grassroots Interests

A diverse panel will explore cultural, economic, and strategic concerns during the City of Bloomington’s annual “Citizen Summit,” from 6 to 8:30 p.m. Tuesday, January 20, at the Bloomington Center for the Performing Arts.

 Since 2009, the summit, described as "a focused budget discussion" open to the public, has helped Bloomington’s mayor and City Council pinpoint grassroots needs and issues for the year ahead. Willie Holton Halbert, a Not In Our Town: Bloomington-Normal leader who has been asked by Ward 3 Alderman Mboka Mwilambwe to provide input at the summit, sees the potential to improve the community by identifying priorities for the city's diverse populations and neighborhoods.

 "I believe we have an obligation to allow our system to work when an injustice has been done but if the people within the system appears to have failed us, we must actively get involved to help bring about a positive change in our system for the community and nation for which we live,” Holton maintained.

 “We can do this by the power of our pens, sharing our thoughts in a constructive manner, being informed and taking a stand with a plan. It starts with one person, one group/organization, and/or one community and it is amazing how it becomes contiguous."

 Check out past summit comments and findings at  http://www.cityblm.org/index.aspx?page=428.

 

Renner to review 'Selma' events, Voting Act impact Friday

Copyright Paramount Pictures

Bloomington mayor and political science expert Tari Renner will offer insights on a crucial chapter in U.S. civil rights Friday in anticipation of the film "Selma"s arrival in the Twin Cities.

During Friday's biweekly City of Bloomington mayoral open house, at 4 p.m. in City Hall Council Chambers, 109 E. Olive St., Renner will discuss the Selma-to-Montgomery march -- the seminal basis for the new Martin Luther King Jr. biopic "Selma" -- and the lasting impact of the federal Voter's Rights Act of 1965.

Those are familiar topics for Renner, a political science professor with Illinois Wesleyan University. Dr. Renner, who also served on the faculties of Duquesne University and Washington College, was hired to chair IWU's poli-sci department in 1994.

His research interests have focused on local government policy-making structures and American elections. Renner received his Ph.D. and M.A. in political science from American University.

"Since race and southern politics are among my research and teaching interests, I'm hoping to help educate the community on the eve of the release of the movie "Selma" on Friday," Renner related.

The regular open house, an opportunity for residents to study the workings and latest activities of Bloomington government, will resume at 4:30 p.m.

"Selma" chronicles the three-month period in 1965 when Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. (David Oyelowo) led a campaign to secure equal voting rights in the face of violent opposition. The epic march from Selma to Montgomery culminated in President Johnson (Tom Wilkinson) signing the Voting Rights Act, one of the most significant victories for the civil rights movement. 

Oprah Winfrey appears in the film as civil rights activist Annie Lee Cooper. For more information about the film, visit www.selmamovie.com. For a movie preview, visit Youtube at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x6t7vVTxaic

"Selma" will be screened at Wehrenberg Bloomington Galaxy 14 Cine and Starplex Cinemas Normal Stadium 14. Check theater listings for times.