Grassroots groups around Chicago are already putting abolitionist ideas into practice.
Author Archives: Maya Dukmasova
Posted inBlogs
MTV’s Unlocking the Truth is too focused on white men
The new series on wrongful convictions highlights cases that aren’t representative of wider prison demographics.
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The Cook County Land Bank is chipping away at abandoned properties one house at a time
Now in its third year, the agency is trying to make a dent in rehabbing the area’s more than 42,000 vacant buildings.
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‘I shot at the car’: Police video shows chaotic aftermath of Paul O’Neal fatal shooting
Videos released by the Independent Police Review Authority don’t capture the shooting, but reveal a tumultuous aftermath.
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New Illinois law defines ‘stoned driving’
The state’s new marijuana law sets a benchmark for driving under the influence of weed, but attorneys say it’ll be hard to enforce.
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#BankBlack movement sends deposits soaring but Chicago’s Seaway still needs investment to stay afloat
One of the city’s last two remaining black-owned banks is looking for investor dollars to match a surge of customer support.
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Cook County commissioner calls for study to ‘examine the status of the African-American male’
Richard Boykin hopes better data may bring much-needed relief to a demographic facing dire problems.
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Public grows impatient for IPRA overhaul
Aldermen solicited input in a town hall meeting, but many in attendance seemed tired of waiting for reform.
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What does it mean to be a white ally?
White Chicagoans grapple with their place in the movement for black lives.
Posted inNews & Politics
Family of autistic teen killed by Calumet City cops loses civil suit appeal
Stephon Watts’s family is still searching for justice.
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Could the Justice Department enact national policing reforms?
As the feds work through investigations in Chicago and five other cities, can they go beyond consent decrees?
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Chicago police union plans last ditch effort to hide police misconduct records
But options for blocking biggest cop data dump in history are dwindling.
Posted inNews & Politics
The CHA’s ‘supervoucher’ program: a desegregation strategy that never was
Politics killed this pro-integration program before it had a chance to succeed.
Posted inNews & Politics
Cook County’s most unconventional judge takes justice beyond the bench
She sings, she dances, she shouts—she rings a cowbell. But Judge Jackie Portman is convinced her unorthodox methods in and out of the courtroom get results.
Posted inNews & Politics
The fight to preserve a model public housing project
Lathrop Homes has long been one of CHA’s most diverse and successful properties. But today it’s a shell of its former self.