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Chicago Sun-Times •

As immigration enforcement surges in North Carolina, Chicagoans share advice, whistles

When federal immigration agents moved into Chicago’s streets, the sound of whistles followed. For months, the sharp blasts rang through many of the city’s neighborhoods, alerting residents to the presence of agents and attracting observers and protesters.The whistles have grown into a symbol of resistance in Chicago — and have already spread to other parts of the country targeted by President Donald Trump’s immigration blitz.“It’s effective because people start understanding that if they hear th...
Chicago Sun-Times •

Chicago police told to hold back after Border Patrol shooting in Brighton Park, body-camera footage shows

Newly released Chicago police body-camera footage shows officers were briefly told to steer clear of an Oct. 4 confrontation between protesters and federal agents in Brighton Park after a Border Patrol agent shot a woman.The heavily blurred videos, released Friday, confirmed the Chicago Sun-Times’ reporting that Chicago Police Department officers were ordered not to respond “per the chief of patrol,” Jon Hein, which has since sparked an intense backlash.These videos come after police officials b...
Chicago Sun-Times •

Hemp product ban, tacked onto law to reopen government, will hurt Illinois businesses

Amanda Montgomery and her husband started AM and PM Hemp Farm in downstate Kirkland in 2020. After her husband died unexpectedly last year, the farm, which produces and sells a range of hemp-derived goods, has been her “sole livelihood,” Montgomery said.But the farm could go up in smoke due to the Republican-led spending deal to reopen the federal government that passed Congress and was signed by President Donald Trump late Wednesday.“This bill would pretty much destroy my entire farm operation,...
Chicago Sun-Times •

Air traffic controllers to get back pay after shutdown, but flight cuts may linger, DOT chief says

Air traffic controllers will get most of their pay within two days after the federal government reopens, but traffic restrictions at the nation’s busiest airports could continue, U.S. Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy said Tuesday.Duffy spoke at O’Hare Airport, which led the nation in flight cancellations over the weekend as the season’s first major winter storm compounded government-mandated airspace restrictions.The Federal Aviation Administration’s air traffic cuts took effect Friday, with...
Chicago Sun-Times •

CTA's holiday train — Chicago's most festive ride — gleams in new photo book

For many Chicagoans, the surest sign that the holidays have arrived isn’t the first snowfall, but the Chicago Transit Authority’s holiday train, decked out in twinkling bulbs and garland and dashing through the city’s neighborhoods.That beloved CTA tradition for three decades is the subject of Chicago photographer Daniel Moreno’s new book, “Chicago’s Holiday Train,” a collection of photos that captures the train over the years.“Chicago, by the nature of how it works, there’s something specific t...
Chicago Sun-Times •

Masked ICE agents put damper on Oak Park Girl Scout food drive: ‘It’s heartbreaking as a mom’

When a group of Oak Park Girl Scouts and their parents set out for the group’s annual food drive Saturday morning, they imagined it would be a day of helping in their community.Instead, the girls encountered masked U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents with weapons and vehicles with dark-tinted windows as the sounds of whistles pierced the air.“It just went from a morning of us trying to do something good and teaching the kids about helping others,” said Brooke Groulx, an Oak Park pare...
Chicago Sun-Times •

Chicago flyers on edge ahead of FAA's planned 10% air traffic cuts

Some Chicago-area air travelers are anxious and scrambling, uncertain if their upcoming flights will be impacted by cuts in air traffic at the country’s biggest airports, including O’Hare and Midway.The Federal Aviation Administration announced it will reduce flight capacity by 10% in the busiest parts of the national airspace starting Friday morning, as the federal government shutdown stretches into its second month — now the longest in history.Airlines will phase in the cuts at the direction o...
Chicago Sun-Times •

Chicago residents, restaurants offer meals for people left without SNAP funds

When Dan Raskin arrived at work at 5 a.m. Monday at Manny’s Cafeteria & Deli, a line had already formed outside the Near West Side restaurant for a free meal advertised on social media for Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program recipients.By 10 a.m., two hours after opening, Manny’s had gone through the 300 meals — a sandwich, potato pancake and a drink — it planned to give to people who didn’t receive funds to buy groceries on Nov. 1, the day SNAP funds were initially frozen amid the federal...
Chicago Sun-Times •

Hundreds attend Evanston vigil after feds’ Halloween arrests: ‘This neighborhood was under attack’

After a Halloween disrupted by arrests by federal immigration agents in Evanston, several hundred people packed a community center parking lot for a vigil Saturday afternoon.The vigil follows the arrests of five people without legal status in the area on Friday, according to the Department of Homeland Security. Nearby schools were placed on soft lockdown during the operation.“Twenty-four hours ago, this neighborhood was under attack,” Mayor Daniel Biss said at the vigil. “And Evanston showed up....
Chicago Sun-Times •

South suburban food pantry draws hundreds as SNAP cutoff looms

Jason Webb receives roughly $300 each month in SNAP, or Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, benefits that he splits between his family and his elderly mother living by herself.The aid supplements his income from a part-time restaurant job that he uses to help put food on his family’s tables, Webb said.The 40-year-old man was among about 600 people who arrived at the south suburban Rich Township Food Pantry Thursday afternoon for its twice-weekly distribution. The crowd was larger because...
Chicago Sun-Times •

Two Illinois moms among millions facing SNAP cutoff as pantries say: ‘We cannot meet this need’

Natasha McClendon keeps a cabinet in her Englewood home stocked with possible sides, like potatoes and macaroni pasta, to feed her two school-age daughters and husband, who has a disability. But the family has no meat and just ran out of frozen vegetables to make a meal.The family was due to get about $1,100 next week for groceries through the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program. But they are among the nearly 2 million Illinois residents who will likely have to find another way to buy food...
Chicago Sun-Times •

Harrison Ford recognized for environmental advocacy at Field Museum ceremony

Framed by dinosaur fossils and elephant taxidermy, Harrison Ford recalled his childhood in suburban Chicago, spending his weekends at the Lincoln Park Zoo and wandering outdoors during his free time.It was on one of those adventures in his neighborhood that he came face-to-face with a red fox, and that encounter led to a revelation, the actor and environmental activist said during a Field Museum conversation Wednesday evening.“Then the fox left, and I walked away having discovered a connection t...
Chicago Sun-Times •

Brighton Park businesses sign on to city's 'ICE-free zones' initiative

A red, blue and orange neon sign and an assortment of posters, photos and boxing memorabilia have greeted customers at 3 JMH Boxing in Chicago’s Brighton Park neighborhood since the gym opened in 2022.On Friday, owner Miguel Hernandez added another sign to that collection.“Private areas. No trespassing,” the sign reads. “You do not have consent to enter for civil immigration enforcement purposes.”The sign is a part of an executive order Mayor Brandon Johnson signed this month. The order bars U.S...
Chicago Sun-Times •

Teen employees sue Addison ice cream shop owner, allege years of secret bathroom recordings

Eleven former female employees are suing an Addison ice cream store and its owner, alleging he secretly recorded them in the store’s bathroom, part of his exploitation of the employees since 2021.The unnamed girls, who were between 14 and 17 years old when they worked at Flavor Frenzy in the western suburb, filed a new civil lawsuit in the DuPage County Circuit Court against the shop and its owner, Steven Weisberg, the workers’ lawyers said Thursday.“This business owner hired young girls, for ma...
Chicago Sun-Times •

Judge declines to block Northwestern from disciplining students over antisemitism training

A federal judge on Monday declined to block Northwestern University from disciplining students who refused to complete an online anti-bias training that the graduate student plaintiffs say characterizes criticism of Israel as antisemitic. The judge refused to grant a temporary restraining order sought by the graduate students. Their class action lawsuit, filed last week, alleged that Northwestern discriminated against the students, including some who are school employees, based on their national...
Chicago Sun-Times •

What we know about Saturday ‘No Kings’ protests in Chicago, suburbs

Advocacy groups, including Indivisible Chicago and the American Civil Liberties Union of Illinois, are planning a “Hands off Chicago” protest at noon Saturday at Grant Park following President Donald Trump’s deportation campaign that has sent federal agents to Chicago and across the suburbs. The rally is a part of a “nationwide day of defiance.” Major protests are slated for New York City, Washington, D.C., Atlanta and San Francisco.“As ICE continues to occupy our streets and attack our neighbo...
Chicago Sun-Times •

What to know about PIT, the driving maneuver feds used in Southeast Side car chase

Border Patrol agents intentionally rammed their vehicle into an SUV they were pursuing on Chicago’s Southeast Side Tuesday, causing the car to spin and crash.The maneuver, known as a precision immobilization technique, or PIT, is a driving tactic used by some law enforcement agencies to end a vehicle pursuit.However, some law enforcement professionals and legal experts say the move is ineffective and dangerous. Many police departments across the country, including the Chicago Police Department,...
Chicago Sun-Times •

Hopleaf owner seeks new home for two 125-pound vintage cash registers

Michael Roper started working at bars in the 1970s, and for the first 40 years of his career, across 15 taverns, he rang up each drink on one of the same lines of mechanical registers.So when Roper, 71, opened Hopleaf in Andersonville in 1992, he purchased two of these machines — one from a Salvation Army store and the other from a moving and storage company — for $120 apiece, he said.These gear-and-motor-powered “bangers,” as they were called, now sit quietly in Hopleaf’s storage room. Built by...
Chicago Sun-Times •

Runners and their cheerleaders turn out for Chicago Marathon: ‘This is our Super Bowl'

Chicago Marathon runners and spectators reveled in the chance to show some Chicago pride on Sunday, despite several weeks of intense immigration enforcement, mass protests and negative national headlines about the city. The annual race also was a display of true grit for both elite runners and the casual joggers just looking for a challenge. “Chicago will always show out, and the marathon is the perfect example of that,” said Izzy Mealy, who was cheering on the final runners early in the afterno...
Chicago Sun-Times •

In 'Little Palestine,' crowd cautiously hopeful for ceasefire agreement between Israel, Hamas

Speaking to a crowd gathered Thursday in “Little Palestine,” Deanna Othman said she was cautiously welcoming the ceasefire agreement that could end the deadly two-year war in Gaza but remained skeptical that Israel will follow through with its promises. “President [Donald] Trump must honor his commitment to securing a permanent ceasefire and must not allow the Israeli government to manipulate him yet again,” said Othman, an organizer with the Chicago chapter of American Muslims for Palestine, re...
Chicago Sun-Times •

Protesters hit the streets as Texas National Guard expected to be deployed in Chicago area

Hundreds of protesters hit the streets around the Chicago area Wednesday evening as National Guard troops were anticipated to be deployed in the Chicago area.Earlier in the day, a military source told the Sun-Times that Texas National Guard troops were expected to head to the Broadview ICE facility in the west suburbs.Details were scant on how many troops would be arriving or when, and there were no signs of troops arriving there late Wednesday. But the deployment was expected to entail 200 sold...
Chicago Sun-Times •

Chicagoans flock to nation’s second store for viral Jellycat plushies

Some Chicagoans can’t get enough of the lovable “jellies” stuffed toys from Jellycat, the British toymaker that opened its second U.S. store last week on Michigan Avenue.The shop nestled in the Nordstrom on the Magnificent Mile was bustling Monday evening, with a line of customers stretching out of the store waiting for a chance to buy the cuddly stuffed toys.Some shoppers were children who came with their parents. But most were young adults who say they love the stuffed animals and the nostalgi...
Chicago Sun-Times •

Pritzker calls on state agencies to investigate feds’ treatment of children at South Shore raid

Gov. JB Pritzker is directing the state’s Department of Child and Family Services and the Department of Human Services to evaluate how children were treated during an aggressive immigration raid on a South Shore apartment building this week, he said in a Friday statement.The U.S. Department of Homeland Security said federal agents with Border Patrol, the FBI, and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives arrested at least 37 people in the raid, making it one of the largest operatio...
Chicago Sun-Times •

ChiArts board not renewing contract with CPS citing 'unsustainable' deficit, sparking questions about future

The board that oversees the Chicago High School for the Arts has decided not to renew its contract with Chicago Public Schools, casting doubt on the future of the city’s only arts-focused public high school.In a message to families, ChiArts Executive Director Tina Boyer Brown and principal Néstor Corona said “increasing financial challenges” led the board to its “very difficult” decision, adding that rising operating costs have led to an “unsustainable” deficit.“This means the board will not man...
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