@Salon aims to recreate literary tradition with modern culture and issues

Ladan Osman

@Salon will feature renowned local and regional artists, beginning at noon Saturday, March 21, at the McLean County Arts Center in downtown Bloomington.

The event, sponsored by the Illinois State University Creative Writing Program and the Department of English, is free and open to the public.

“A theater of conversation and exchange akin to the literary salons of the 17th and 18th centuries, @Salon welcomes artists and arts enthusiasts from area colleges and universities, the larger Bloomington-Normal community and beyond,” said Associate Professor of English Duriel Estelle Harris, the founder and curator of the event.

The day will feature readings by Chicago-based poets Ladan Osman and Matthew Shenoda. Osman is the author of the Sillerman prize-winning Kitchen-Dweller’s Testimony. Shenoda is the author of Tahrir Suite and past winner of the American Book Award. Musical selections will include performances by local female-fronted indie/pop five-piece band Alex and the XO’s as well as Chicago-based vocalist and multi-instrumentalist Alicia Walter.

Matthew Shenoda

@Salon will include presentations by three students of Illinois State’s Creative Writing Program—works-in-progress by authors Bryan Reid and Eric Pitman and a sound art showcase curated by Jonah Mixon-Webster.

“This is a wonderful way for artists to get real feedback on their work from the public and those outside their inner circle,” said Harris. “It affords the artist an active role in the dialogue.”

Works by featured artists will be available for purchase at the event. Light refreshments will be served.

@Salon is co-sponsored by the McLean County Arts Center, Obsidian: Literature & Arts in the African Diaspora and the Illinois State University Ethnic Studies, International Studies, and Women’s and Gender Studies Programs and the LGBT/Queer Studies and Services Institute.

For more information about @Salon, contact Harris at (309) 438-1401 or (309) 438-1401 or dharri2@ilstu.edu.

Emily: Using Your Library Voices

Emily Vigneri

On September 16, 2014, Illinois State University held its first-ever Human Library. If you’re not familiar with the term “Human Library” (and don’t worry, you’re not alone!), it was started in Denmark in 2000 by a youth organization called “Stop the Violence.”

Members of “Stop the Violence” were looking for a way to encourage conversation among individuals who are different from one another. To do that, they decided to provide a safe, non-threatening way for individuals to engage in meaningful conversations with one another about stories that are different from their own.  

These stories are typically in relation to some prejudice, hardship, or discrimination that the storyteller, known as a Book, tells to listeners (known as Readers) in an effort for to challenge preconceived notions, biases, or prejudices that the Readers may hold themselves. The Readers are permitted to ask questions of the Books, something that many of us find hard to do in everyday life, especially when our questions pertain to extremely personal or perhaps difficult experiences in someone’s life.

Due to the widespread success of this initiative, Wendi Whitman, an Associate Director in University College at Illinois State, heard the idea at an American Democracy Project conference and brought the concept back to campus. A committee of individuals from different areas of campus was formed to organize the event, and I was fortunately selected to work on securing Books.   

For several months, the committee worked to set up an online registration system for the event, secure facilities, and recruit/train Books and Librarians. Librarians were students asked to help keep the Books feeling safe and intervene should any of the Readers’ questions or actions become hostile. We were hopeful that this would not happen (and it did not), but since we were asking students to challenge their prejudices about various groups, we wanted to ensure that were doing all that we could for our Books. We also led training sessions for Readers (students enrolled in a first-year seminar); we asked them to be respectful of all Books and encouraged them to ask good questions, as the Books were there to help the Readers learn. 

On the day of the event, we welcomed 459 first-year students to the Bone Student Center where they listened to 33 Books covering topics such as suicide, bullying, LGBTQ issues, traumatic brain injury, anxiety, and more. Our evaluation results from the event were astounding – 100 percent of Books who completed an evaluation would encourage others to participate; many of our Books commented on how cathartic and therapeutic it felt to share their stories. Of the 306 student evaluations we received, 99 percent of students would recommend participating in the Human Library to other students, and 97 percent believed there was a respectful environment during the Human Library. Due to the success of our event, we are very excited to hold our next Human Library on September 23, 2015! 

For more information about the event or to participate as a volunteer or Book, e-mail HumanLibrary@IllinoisState.edu.

MCLP Class of '15 graduates March 7

Five local organizations will get a boost towards their goals as the Multicultural Leadership Program (MCLP) Class of 2015 concludes its community service projects on Saturday, March 7 at Heartland Community College's Astroth Community Education Center Building (the second floor auditorium).

Beginning with a 7:30 a.m. continental breakfast, this public presentation is offered 8 to 10:45 a.m. Five MCLP teams will share how they put servant leadership into action, dedicating six months’ time and effort to help five local non-profit organizations achieve the following:

 Community Health Care Clinic — study the feasibility of a dental clinic and a five-year budget program

Immanuel Health Care — develop strategies to increase name recognition

Meadows at Mercy Creek — support staff development to enhance skills and better serve residents

Prairie Pride Coalition — assess LGBT community needs to help redefine goals and outreach

Challenger Learning Center — enhance fundraising efforts

Immediately following the project presentations, MCLP will offer an information session 11:00 AM to noon to share about future MCLP opportunities, including how to apply for the MCLP Class of 2016 program year. Local nonprofits interested to submit proposals for next year’s MCLP class projects may apply online at www.bn-mclp.org.

Radio Interviews Offer Previews of Team Experiences: Tune in to Susan Saunder’s show on WJBC AM 1230 every Friday at 10:05 a.m. through March 6th to hear interviews with the MCLP project teams; and to WXRJ’s Ursula Crooks’ “What’s Going On” show 12-2 p.m. on Saturdays through March on FM 94.9.

For more information, see www.bn-mclp.org or contact MCLP Executive Director, Sonya Mau at contactus@bn-mclp.org or call 309-556-3589.

Marlee Matlin Headlines March 24 ISU Dinner

Oscar-winning actress and activist Marlee Matlin is guest for the March Disability Awareness Cultural Dinner at 5 p.m. March 24, in the Brown Ballroom of Illinois State University's Braden Auditorium.

Matlin, who won an Academy Award in her 1986 turn in Children of a Lesser God, is an advocate for American Sign Language and co-author of non-fiction and juvenile fiction. The former Chicagoan lost her hearing at eighteen months of age, and faced addiction challenges in her early teens.

On July 26, 2010, Matlin signed a speech at an event commemorating the 20th anniversary of the federal Americans with Disabilities Act. She is actively involved in Easter Seals (where she was appointed an honorary board member), the Children Affected by AIDS Foundation, the Elizabeth Glaser Pediatric AIDS Foundation, and the Red Cross Celebrity Cabinet.

Her semi-autobiographical series of young adult books focus on Megan and her challenges and accomplishments as a deaf girl. Her biography is I'll Scream Later. Matlin teaches sign language through her iPhone/iPad app Marlee Signs, available through the iTunes App Store.

As a means to celebrate and educate on diversity, ISU University Housing Services began coordinating Cultural Dinners in the early 1980’s. The tradition of these dinners continues today and is meant to expose students to "the rich cultural diversity of our society as well as expand their knowledge of the world in which we live."

Originally held in residence hall conference rooms, they are now held in larger university banquet rooms to accommodate the increasing interest in our programs. The interest has been sparked by greater access offered over the years to national opinion leaders and performers at the top of their craft.

Cultural Dinners are open to the ISU community (student, faculty, and staff) as well as the Bloomington-Normal community. They generally draw up to 600 people. Cultural Dinners take place once or twice a semester and include an address from a keynote speaker, a meal, and entertainment specific to the culture being celebrated.

The planning and execution for these events is done, not only by University Housing Services professional staff, but also by students in order to encourage the development of leadership skills.

Ticket information for the March 24 dinner will be available soon at http://www.housing.ilstu.edu/current-residents/cultural-dinners/tickets.shtml.

MCIA Sets 2015 Goals, Youth Open House

McLean County India Association President Uma Kallakuri has issued her goals for the organization and the Twin Cities' Indian community for 2015, as MCIA prepares for a February 21 youth open house from 3 to 5 p.m. at the Hindu Temple of Bloomington-Normal.

In a recent interview with NIOT:BN, Kallakuri emphasized the importance of reaching out to her community's youth. The following is Kallakuri's presidential address:

"Dear members of McLean County India Association,

The 2015 MCIA Committee and I wish you and your families a very happy, prosperous, healthy, successful and peaceful New Year!

I am greatly honored and humbled to be the 35th President of MCIA during 2015, one of the oldest organizations representing the Indian community in Central Illinois; the committee is looking forward to serving and working with all of you.

Thanks to the vision, foresight, and devotion of our founders, past presidents and their executive boards, and scores of dedicated volunteers, MCIA has come a long way. In the past few years we have fulfilled our purpose of promoting and sustaining the culture and heritage of India in McLean County. We personally thank all the volunteers and the sponsors, who are very critical for our organization’s continued success.

As we enter 2015 our vision becomes simple and clear:

Based on MCIA’s history of 35 successful years, we will plan and organize events and activities that will provide quality experiences and togetherness in the community.

To accomplish our vision we would like to focus on the 3 ‘I’s:

·  Inspire – Inspire the McLean County Indian community to participate in community activities and leadership programs.

·  Integrate - Integrate into the local community by providing more outreach and philanthropy programs in order to foster networking and mentorship by creating venues for people with similar interests.

 ·  Identity – Our youth are the future of tomorrow. We aim to encourage our youth to learn about their Identity through exposing them to Indian values, culture and traditions, thereby providing a platform for them to become future leaders.

To achieve these goals:

We request you to come forward as a volunteer, donor, and sponsor to help us in achieving these goals and to also provide us with valuable feedback.

Description

Lastly, a lot of what we do here is only possible by the generosity of our valued members of the community. Once again, we are thankful for their time, energy, creativity, thought, financial and dedicated support. 

This is our organization - Our MCIA. I look forward to this year and our community coming together in support of McLean County India Association.

Long live MCIA.

Jai Bharat! God bless America!"

Black History Month 2: Righting the Rails

Camille Taylor

 Emanuel Hurst Sr., Art Taylor's grandfather and a Pullman porter, 1942-1968.

How are unions, black history, and the current debate over state workers and labor rights related?

Both my husband Art and I had grandfathers who worked for the railroad. My husband’s grandfather was a Pullman porter from 1942 to 1968. All Pullman porters were black, referred to as “George,” (after founder George Pullman), and worked as personal attendants for passengers in the Pullman sleeper cars. My grandfather was a Sky Cap, carrying passengers’ luggage for the Illinois Central Railroad.

Asa Phillip Randolph organized the Brotherhood of Sleeping Car Porters in 1925. It took 12 years, an amended Railroad Labor Act from President Franklin Roosevelt, and gaining membership in the American Federation of Labor, before the Pullman Company would negotiate the first contract with the porters. During those 12 years, the company used its power and money to perpetrate fear by firings and violence to deter organizing efforts. Their union fought to get a fair wage, benefits, and better working conditions.

As a result of the contract, wages for porters increased, their work week was shortened, and they got overtime pay. The lives of our parents improved due to increased wages for our grandfathers. Education and the value of hard work was stressed, and this was passed on to me and my husband.

A. Phillip Randolph was the mastermind behind the March on Washington Movement in the 1940’s that sought to end discrimination in the military, war industries, government agencies, and in labor unions. He also organized the famous March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom in 1963 where Dr. Martin Luther King made his “I Have a Dream" speech.

Camille Taylor, for many years an educational leader in Bloomington, serves on the Not In Our Town: Bloomington-Normal steering committee, with her husband Art, who works with State Farm.

The A. Philip Randolph Pullman Porter Museum is a 501(c)3 institution. Our mission is to promote, honor and celebrate the legacy of A. Philip Randolph and contributions made by African-Americans to America's labor history. At our facility this celebration begins with the Brotherhood of Sleeping Car Porters, as we educate the public about their legacy and contributions.

For a history of the Pullman porters and their struggle, watch this video on The A. Philip Randolph Pullman Porter Museum, whose mission is to promote, honor and celebrate the legacy of A. Philip Randolph and contributions made by African-Americans to America's labor history. Visit the museum at 104th & Maryland Ave., Chicago, and find out more at http://www.aphiliprandolphmuseum.com/.

Restaurants Help Labyrinth Outreach

A pair of Twin Cities restaurants next month will help feed the need to support formerly incarcerated women working to reintegrate into the community.

On March 2, Rosati’s Pizza in Normal is donating 25 percent of its dine-in sales and 20 percent of carry-out and delivery sales to Labyrinth Outreach Services  to Women, for patrons who mention Labyrinth when ordering. Contributions will be made for orders placed all day.

And then, on March 31, Noodles & Company in Normal will donate 10 percent of the value of all purchases between 4 p.m. and 9 p.m. to the organization.

Labyrinth is a not-for-profit, 501(c)(3) organization that provides long term supportive services to women from McLean County who have been incarcerated or are on probation. It collaborates with all available local social service agencies to assist women in remaining free of future court involvement. The goal is to significantly reduce criminal recidivism in McLean County.

Labyrinth recently received funding via two grants. The Illinois Prairie Community Foundation- Women to Women fund will support pre-employment/"soft" skills this spring, while the State Farm Bank Foundation will help Labyrinth continue classes exposing women to non-traditional employment and trades this summer and fall.

Laverne: 'I'm Not Just One Thing'

Photo by Katherine Warren

Gay, transgender, straight -- no one is "just one thing," according to a critically acclaimed actress and African-American transgender woman who keynoted this week's 23rd annual Midwest Bisexual Lesbian Gay Transgender Ally College Conference (MBLGTACC) at Illinois State University's Braden Auditorium.

Laverne Cox, who plays Sophia Burset, an incarcerated transgender woman in the Netflix original series Orange Is the New Black, received a standing ovation from the Bone Student Center audience.

“I stand before you an artist and an actress, a sister, and a daughter," Cox told the gathering, which assembled for informational sessions and entertainment at the regional conference. "And I believe it’s important to name the various intersecting components of my multiple identities because I’m not just one thing and neither are you."

Cox greeted the crowd with the words of the noted abolitionist Sojourner Truth, “Ain’t I a woman.” She noted Truth originally spoke those words when a crowd of people accused her of being a man, exposing her breasts as proof of her femininity.

Cox discussed the challenges she has faced and the shame she hid over most of her life. Cox was born in Mobile, Alabama, and has a twin brother, M Lamar, who portrays the pre-transitioning Sophia in Orange Is the New Black. Cox stated she attempted suicide at the age of 11, when she noticed that she had developed feelings about her male classmates and had been bullied for several years for not acting "the way someone assigned male at birth was supposed to act." She is a graduate of the Alabama School of Fine Arts in Birmingham, Alabama where she studied creative writing before switching to dance, and Marymount Manhattan College in New York City, New York, where she switched from dancing to acting.

Not In Our Town: Bloomington-Normal's Arlene Hosea discusses the group's anti-bigotry/anti-bullying efforts with students during the Midwest Bisexual Lesbian Gay Transgender Ally College Conference. Photo by Camille Taylor.

Cox now speaks and writes about transgender rights and other current affairs in a variety of media outlets, such as the Huffington Post.

“All of the challenging things that have happened to me have made me who I am and I think they also made me more sensitive to other people’s issues because I’ve gone through some stuff,” Cox said.

Cox urged the community to create "spaces of healing" to minimize the damage caused by cruelty and bigotry.

Cox will return on February 25 to speak at ISU. Tickets are available for free to ISU students and staff in the Bone Student Center Box Office, with a limit of four tickets per person. They will be free and available to the public starting February 16.

Police and the Percentages

Nationally, African-Americans make up 11 percent, and Latinos make up 9 percent of police agencies in communities with more than 250,000 residents. How do the Twin Cities and McLean County fare?

The Bloomington Police Department is ramping up efforts to add diversity in new officers. Here's a breakdown of the number of minorities, women, and white officers employed with local law enforcement agencies, compiled by The Pantagraph:

• Among Normal Police Department's 83 officers, there are two African-American officers, one Hispanic female and one Asian male. Seventy officers (84 percent) are white males and nine (11 percent) are white females. (The NPD currently is over its full complement of 81 officers because several are about to retire).

• Bloomington Police's full complement is 128 officers, but four have not been replaced. The 124 officers include four (3.2 percent) male Latinos and two (1.6 percent) African-American male officers, including Chief Brendan Heffner. A third African-American officer recently retired after 30 years. There are 115 (92.7 percent) white male and three (2.4 percent) white female officers.

• None of McLean County sheriff's patrol deputies are minorities. The department has 53 officer positions, but only 44 are filled: 43 are white males; there is one white female.

• Illinois State University's Police Department has 27 officers. Three (11 percent) are African-American males, 18 (67 percent) are white males and six (22 percent) are white females. 

Demographically, McLean County is 80.5 percent white; 7.7 percent African-American, 5.2 percent Asian, 4.7 percent Hispanic or Latino and 51.2 percent female, according to 2013 U.S. Census Bureau data.

Other area police departments have a similar shortage of minority officers.

Of the Champaign Police Department's 123 officers, 99 (80.5 percent) are white males, 10 (8 percent) are white females, three (2.4 percent) are Hispanic males, one is an Hispanic female, two (or 1.6 percent) are Asian males and eight (6.5 percent), including Chief Anthony Cobb, are African-American males.

Of the 241 Springfield police officers, 195 (81 percent are white males; 11 (4.6 percent) are African-American males; five (2 percent) are Hispanic males; and two are Asian males. Springfield also has 28 (11.6 percent) white female officers.

To explore opportunities in local law enforcement, visit the Bloomington Police recruitment page at http://www.cityblm.org/index.aspx?recordid=2&page=201.

ISU Speaker: Katrina Culmination of a Whirlwind of Forces

The devastation that occurred in the wake of Hurricane Katrina was due to more than Mother Nature, says Cedric Johnson, associate professor of African American studies and political science at the University of Illinois at Chicago.

In honor of Black History Month, Johnson will address the politics that enabled the chaos that followed Katrina with his talk titled  The City that Care Forgot:  New Orleans and the Future of American Urbanism at 7 p.m. Tuesday, February 17, in the Prairie Room of the Bone Student Center at Illinois State University.

The event is free and open to the public. Sponsored by the Department of History and the Office of the President, the talk is part of the Speaker Series at Illinois State University.

Johnson is editor of a collection of essays titled The Neoliberal Deluge: Hurricane Katrina, Late Capitalist Culture and the Remaking of New Orleans. The book examines the root causes of the disaster of Katrina, and places blame squarely in neoliberal restructuring. The book's contributors argue that "human agency" and public policy choices were more at fault for the destruction and social misery experienced than were sheer forces of nature. 

Deluge also examines how pro-market reforms are reshaping life, politics and economy in New Orleans. The book won the W.E.B. DuBois Outstanding Book Award from the National Conference of Black Political Scientists.

Johnson is also the author of Revolutionaries to Race Leaders: Black Power and the Making of African American Politics.

Johnson earned a Ph.D. in government and politics from the University of Maryland-College Park, and was awarded a post-doctoral Fellowship at the Frederick Douglass Institute for African and African American Studies at the University of Rochester. His scholarly work has been published in journals such as Souls and the Journal of Developing Societies.

The Speaker Series of Illinois State University seeks to bring innovative and enlightening speakers to the campus with the aim of providing the community with a platform to foster dialogue, cultivate enriching ideas, and continue an appreciation of learning as an active and lifelong process. 

Pamela: Youth's 'Unique Perspective' Can Benefit Law Enforcement

Bloomington's Pamela Reinbrecht on  the Bloomington Police Department's effort to recruit diverse new officers onto the force:

"Young people have a unique perspective on how the world and community works, in real time. They understand the struggles and how it feels to be in situations where you need to call 911. They see how people react when backed in a corner and can typically see bad behavior or a criminal mind. Call it instinct, if you will. To the community, that's huge. 

"They are young, smart, athletic, great work ethics and truly do care about their community. They are more awake and alert than we give them credit for.  I would like to see them appreciated more and given the chance to thrive. After all we/they know the future is up to them doing the right thing. Let's allow them to do just that."

Willie: 'That's So Gay' Not So Cool

In the new article,  “That’s So Gay”: From a Teacher’s Perspective, in the Southern Poverty Law Center's Teaching Tolerance publication and its accompanying website (http://www.tolerance.org/print/blog/s-so-gay-teacher-s-perspective), Ginger Aaron Brush, a lesbian elementary physical education teacher in the Birmingham, Ala., area confesses that when she was closeted, the term "immediately caused me to shudder." Her typical response to students at the time was, "We don't use those kinds of words."

"Unknowingly, I taught my students that the word gay was vulgar and that it had no place in dialogue or conversation," Aaron Brush wrote. "Although I had hoped not to bring any attention to this word, I was doing just the opposite. I was bringing negative attention to the word gay and unintentionally promoting it as a word to use when one wanted to hurt another person’s feelings. By not saying anything more than, 'Don’t use that word,' I was actually saying a lot."

In the years since, the teacher has embraced her sexual identity and learned to emphasize diversity rather than creating an air of the taboo around LGBT issues. She now sees such juvenile slights as "opportunities to help my students understand family diversity, how to steer clear of gender stereotypes and to recognize bias-based bullying." Aaron Brush recommends asking questions such as “Why would you choose that word?,” “Tell me why you think being gay is an insult?,” or “How do you think that would sound to a gay person?” over merely "shutting down the conversation."

Not In Our Town: Bloomington-Normal leader Willie Halbert recalls the value of a similar dialogue roughly three years ago at the Bloomington Public Library, when a group of Bloomington and Normal high schoolers participated in a survey that revealed they all were guilty of using "That's so gay" and other terms, "not even thinking that they were discriminatory top a group of individuals."

"They were actually in tears when they thought about it," Halbert recounted. "Those youths who participated's lives were changed, and two of them actually received the (Twin Cities' annual) Martin Luther King Award for their work with NIOT and other work toward equality."

Sadly, she said,  Aaron Brush's article demonstrates that three years later, "the same issues are still occurring."

_

Teaching Tolerance is a publication free to teachers that provides “a place for educators to find thought-provoking news, conversation and support for those who care about diversity, equal opportunity and respect for differences in schools.” It is “dedicated to reducing prejudice, improving intergroup relations and supporting equitable school experiences for our nation’s children.” Teaching Tolerance is a project of the Southern Poverty Law Center and includes the magazine, weekly newsletters, classroom resources, film kits, and more.  Accommodating the broad range of age and developmental appropriateness needed in schools, teachers from all school levels are able to use and benefit from the resources.

BPD Chief Heffner Extends Invitation to the Force

Young Bloomington men and women -- Chief Brendan Heffner wants you.

The African-American head of the Bloomington Police Department emphasizes that "we ARE recruiting," and he's hoping March police officer testing will contribute to a more diversified force for community good.

As of mid-January, the BPD included 124 of a total allotted 128 officers -- 118 white, four Latino, and two African-American (including Heffner). Three of those officers are female.

Though Normal Police Chief Rick Bleichner admits "we are not as diverse as we'd like to be," he argues his department is "better now than we've ever been," with 79 white, two African-American, one Latino, and one Asian officer. The NPD includes 10 women.

Heffner reports "minorities who are looking for a job" can earn a starting salary of $56,000, three weeks' annual vacation, and "good benefits." He urges the community to help identify and encourage potential candidates.

"This isn't for everybody, so we need everybody's help," Heffner said.

Illinois Prairie Community Foundation Announces Grant Opportunities

IPCF is accepting applications for four types of grants through Feb. 23, offering opportunities for cultural, arts, education, and health.

Applicants must represent a 501(c)3 organization or one that operates under fiscal management of a 501(c)3, a branch of local, county, state or federal government, a nonprofit school/college/university, or a religious organization as recognized by the IRS. Programs must be available to residents of McLean, DeWitt, Livingston or Logan Counties but need not operate in all four counties (one exception is the Shulman Grants, which must be available to residents of McLean County).

For each specific program application, a group may choose only one grant type. However, you may apply in multiple grant categories if the applications are for distinctly different programs and fit the criteria for that particular type of grant.

IPCF General Grants are open to programs and projects that focus on education, environment, health and wellness or youth.

Mirza/IPCF Arts and Culture Grants are open to programs and projects that focus on performing, visual, or literary arts and/or art education/enrichment.

Youth Engaged in Philanthropy (YEP) Grants are conducted by Illinois Prairie Community Foundation’s YEP group consisting of 24 area high school youth. Projects must be youth focused or significantly impact youth; adults and youth alike are encouraged to submit an application.

Sol Shulman Jewish Life and Education Grants are open to educational programs and materials for residents of McLean County that focus on Jewish-themed arts, music, and theater or Jewish cultural enrichment. Examples include books for libraries, lectures, school curriculum or the like.

More information and applications for all four grant types are available at http://www.ilprairiecf.org/ipcf-grant-rounds Direct questions to Kathi Davis, associate program director and grants coordinator, at (309) 662-4477 or (309) 662-4477 or kdavis@ilprairiecf.org.

IPCF supports local solutions to local needs by growing and preserving permanent funds

Webinar to Focus on School/Neighborhood Race Issues

University of Illinois Extension will offer Racial Dynamics in Housing and Schools, a local government information education network webinar on “the complex issues surrounding contemporary racial dynamics,” at noon February 24.

The one-hour on-line session is presented by Dr. Maria Krysan and Dr. Amanda Lewis, University of Illinois Chicago and Institute for Government and Public Affairs and Dr. John Diamond,  University of Wisconsin, Madison. It will introduce participants to issues shaping racial dynamics in schools and neighborhoods.

In small, medium and large cities throughout Illinois, children and families of different races and ethnicities routinely attend different schools and call different neighborhoods home.  Despite the passage of the Fair Housing Act of 1968, which made it illegal to discriminate against minorities in the buying and renting of housing, segregated neighborhoods persist — and their causes are complex.  Similarly, after a short period when schools became more integrated, there has been even less positive movement toward accomplishing the goals of integrated schools.  And the two are clearly inter-related. 

In this webinar, presenters will provide background on the patterns and causes of segregation in neighborhoods and schools, and explore some of the attitudinal and structural factors that underlie these patterns.  The discussion will offer insights into some of the programs and policies — particularly in schools — that inadvertently help contribute to these patterns of segregation and to the unequal outcomes that often result from them.   

For more information on the webinar and how to participate, please contact Corey Buttry, University of Illinois Extension state specialist, Community and Economic Development, buttry2@illinois.edu  217-244-2430. To register online, visit https://web.extension.illinois.edu/registration/?registrationid=11555.

Bring It On Bloomington Notes Feeling of Social Divide

Eric Stock

WJBC-AM 

Results of a city-wide survey in Bloomington are now in a hands of stakeholders who will try to see what changes - if any - can be done. 

Executive Director of the McLean County Regional Planning Commission Vasudha Pinnamaraju said while Bloomington's population actually skews younger than the national average, there's worry they'll inevitably get older and how can the city be hospitable?

"By that time, how are we going to accommodate that aging population?," Pinnamaraju asked. "Do we want to lose them to the Sunbelt communities? Do we want to help them age in place? These are all of the questions we are asking." 

Vasudha Pinnamaraju queries residents during a 2014 Bring It On Bloomington meeting at the McLean County YWCA.

Pinnamaraju told WJBC's Scott Laughlin, the survey also shows a clear east-west divide in the city, due largely to socioeconomic factors. There's a much higher concentration of low-income families in west Bloomington. 

"The sentiment exists there is a divide. People feel like we should try to find ways to dissolve that," Pinnamaraju said. 

Residents also said they want to preserve the city's historic neighborhoods. 

"People are happy with the variety we have with older and newer neighborhoods, but are extremely concerned the historic neighborhoods are not being taken into consideration," Pinnamaraju said. 

More than 2,000 residents took part in the Bring It On Bloomington survey that will guide the city's comprehensive plan for the next two decades. The working groups covering areas such as economic vitality, arts and culture and neighborhoods are expected to have a final report for the city council by June. 

From Night Riders to Freedom Rider

Zellner at immediate right behind activist and Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee colleague Julian Bond. (Richard Avedon Foundation)

An Alabama native and civil rights activist who rejected his family's links to the Klan and helped organize the freedom rides of 1961 will speak Feb. 10 at Eureka College, on the 1960s civil rights movement.

Bob Zellner is the author of The Wrong Side of Murder Creek: A White Southerner in the Freedom Movement. Spike Lee is producing an independent film, “Son of the South,” based on the book.

Zellner's talk will be at 7:30 at the college's Cerf Center. Tickets are $5. For reservations, go to www.eureka.edu/events or call 309-467-6420 or 309-467-6420.

Zellner's father and grandfather were active in the Ku Klux Klan, but the young Zellner's childhood took a unique turn when his father James traveled to Europe to help support the Jewish underground during the Nazi occupation. Isolated from English speakers for months, his father met a group of black gospel singers who were also supporting the Jewish underground.

As they worked together as equals throughout a Russian winter, James came to reject the racist beliefs he was raised with, and when he returned, he split from the KKK.

By high school, Bob began forming his own opinions on race and equality following the expulsion of Autherine Lucy (a black student) from the University of Alabama.

By college, Zellner had become the first white field secretary of the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee (SNCC), a group involved in registering voters and working for change and equality.

As a result of his efforts with SNCC, Zellner was arrested 18 times and charged with offenses that included criminal anarchy and inciting the black population to acts of war and violence.

He later continued organizing anti-racism efforts with the Southern Conference Educational Fund.

Zellner has a doctorate in history from Tulane University. He wrote his dissertation on the Southern civil rights movement.

National School Choice Week: No Social Barriers

Bloomington Alderman Karen Schmidt celebrates National School Choice Week at God's Deliverance Outreach Ministry with Pastor Rochelle Patterson.

A record number of US governors, mayors, and county leaders took part in the reportedly largest-ever series of education-related events in U.S. history by issuing official proclamations recognizing Jan. 25-31 as School Choice Week in their states and localities.

These 158 proclamations were issued by 64 Democratic and 43 Republican mayors, including Bloomington's Tari Renner. Held every January, National School Choice Week is an independent public awareness effort. National School Choice Week 2015 will be America's largest-ever celebration of opportunity in education. Featuring more than 11,000 independently organized events across all 50 states, the Week shines a positive spotlight on effective education options for children.

National School Choice Week is independent, nonpolitical, and nonpartisan, and embraces all types of educational choice – from traditional public schools to public charter schools, magnet schools, online learning, private schools, and homeschooling.

"Families all across the country are celebrating the freedom to choose the right schools for their children this week. As people nationwide gather to support opportunity in education, it's clear that elected officials are standing up and taking note," said Andrew Campanella, president of National School Choice Week. "There's no political or geographic barrier to supporting educational options for parents and kids, which is why we see Democrats and Republicans from every region of the country recognizing School Choice Week."

According to a 2011 Education Next poll, 50 percent or more of African-Americans either “completely” or “somewhat” favored vouchers for students to attend private schools, versus just 23 percent or fewer who oppose the idea. When presented with tax credits for individual and corporate donations for private school scholarships, “somewhat” or “complete” support hits 57 percent.

A Black Alliance for Educational Options report surveyed 1,700 black voters in Alabama, Kentucky, Louisiana, and Mississippi in March 2013. In each state, 85 percent to 89 percent of those surveyed wanted as many educational choices as possible. More than half of those surveyed in each state—55 percent to 57 percent—said they would send their child to an alternative to their assigned school, if given the choice.

The group Hispanics for School Choice (HFSC) meanwhile advocates "for the removal of any restrictions on the parental right to choose" between public, charter, virtual, or home schooling.

"We are excited to start working on our advocacy goals for the upcoming year, all of which will break down barriers that are preventing too many children from reaching their full potential," Said Jason S. Crye, executive director of HFSC.

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Gender and Needs Part 2: Police Working to Understand LGBT Issues

Physical abuse is not the domain merely of heterosexual men -- male victims and partners in gay or lesbian relationships face special challenges when they call 911, seek court relief, or attempt to deal with the abuse at hand, Bloomington counselor Cheryl Strong advises.

Strong notes how the system has adapted -- or sometimes has failed to -- in seemingly unorthodox domestic abuse cases. She argues a male partner in a relationship who has been assaulted by or fears escalation to violence or a violation of orders of protection by his female partner should call 9-1-1 as readily as would a female abuse victim. It's not a matter of a partner's ability to physically defend himself, but a matter of being able to legally protect himself in the event a physical episode occurs.

"If you're at risk, and you're a male, you need to let the police know what happened," Strong maintains.

Same-sex couples can experience "very similar dynamics" as regards domestic abuse, but Strong rejects the "myth" that two male partners or two female partners are an equal physical or emotional match in a conflict. That myth may cause some law enforcement officers to respond differently to a domestic incident involving an LGBT couple, potentially underestimating the threat to a victim.

"It's not really about strength -- it's about who is being the abuser and is taking the liberties of power and control in a relationship," Strong relates.

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The National Domestic Violence Hotline offers this overview of the dynamics of power and control in various relationships and gender orientations.

Further, reporting same-sex partner violence or abuse may require victims to "out" themselves before they are willing or ready, and even today, Strong warns some LGBT couples may feel isolated within the community and thus reluctant to seek official assistance or highlight abuse. Most domestic abuse shelters aren't designed to meet the needs of same-sex partners, further limiting options for victims or potential victims.

The National Intimate Partner and Sexual Violence Survey, conducted in 2010 and published in 2013, interviewed 9,086 women and 7,421 men who self-identified as heterosexual, gay, lesbian, or bisexual. The survey focused on sexual violence, stalking, and intimate partner violence in the 12 months before the survey and over the respondents' lifetime. The federal Centers for Disease Control measured intimate partner violence across five categories: psychological aggression and coercive control, control of reproductive or sexual health, physical violence, and stalking.

The CDC determined a lifetime prevalence of rape, physical violence, or stalking by an intimate partner was 43.8 percent for lesbians, 61.1 percent for bisexual women, and 35 percent for heterosexual women, while it was 26 percent for gay men, 37.3 percent for bisexual men, and 29 percent for heterosexual men.

The good news is, the local law enforcement community is responding to the special issues of LGBT citizens. Illinois State University Police Chief Aaron Woodruff recently helped local police and correctional officers gain greater insight into issues facing the transgender community. Woodruff was one of the main presenters at police training sessions sponsored and moderated by the U.S. Department of Justice. Other presenters at the sessions included members of the transgender community from Champaign, Peoria and Chicago.

“The training sessions gave officers and staff members a greater understanding of the transgender community and issues surrounding gender identity and expression,” said Woodruff. “Greater awareness of those issues helps to build trust and foster better communication between police officers and members of the transgender community.”

All University Police officers and dispatchers took part in the training, along with police officers from Bloomington and Normal, McLean County Sheriff’s deputies and McLean County Jail correctional officers.

In addition to general cultural competency, the training sessions addressed specific situations involving interactions with law enforcement, such as victim interviews, searches and even jail placements.

For more information, check out the National Domestic Violence Hotline at http://www.thehotline.org/is-this-abuse/lgbt-abuse/.

Heart Association: Social Environment Can Affect Kids' Health

Bigotry and bullying bad for the health? A new study may suggest as much.

Children with favorable "psycho-social" experiences may have better cardiovascular health in adulthood, according to research in the January 27 American Heart Association journal Circulation.

Positive psycho-social factors include growing up in a family that practices healthy habits, is financially secure, is a stable emotional environment and where children learn to control aggressiveness and impulsiveness and fit in socially.

In a Finnish study, participants with the most psycho-social advantages in youth scored higher on a cardiovascular health index in adulthood than those with the least psycho-social advantages.

Cardiovascular health index was calculated by looking at activity level, cholesterol and blood pressure control, healthy eating and weight, blood sugar control and stopping cessation.

Results from the study revealed that those with the most psycho-social advantages in childhood had a 14 percent greater change of being a normal-weight adult, 12 percent greater chance of being a non-smoker as an adult and 11 percent greater chance of having a healthy glucose level as an adult.

"The choices parents make have a long-lasting effect on their children's future health and improvements in any one thing can have measurable benefits," said Laura Pulkki-Raback, study author and research fellow at the University of Helsinki.

Researchers initiated the project with 3,577 children and teens ranging from age 3 through 18 and measured socioeconomic status, emotional stability, parental health behaviors, stressful events, self-regulation of behavioral problems and social adjustment.

Twenty-seven years later, researchers assessed 1,089 of the original participants to determine cardiovascular health.

Favorable socioeconomic status and self-regulatory behavior — meaning good aggression and impulse control — in youth were stronger predictors of ideal cardiovascular health in adulthood.

"Scientific evidence supports the fact that investing in the well-being of children and families will be cost effective in the long run because it decreases health care costs at the other end of life," Pulkki-Raback said.