CIMC Alerts Blog

In Memoriam: Chicago labor and media activist Larry Duncan

Longtime Chicago activist on media and labor issues Larry Duncan has passed away. Memorials have been posted by Labor Beat and by Chicago Media Action.

Author: 
CIMC

Leak: Laquan McDonald's assassin faces 16 additional counts

Word leaked to Chicago corporate media this morning [March 23, 2017] that the assassin of Laquan McDonald is facing 16-additional counts of aggravated battery, in addition to the standing six counts of murder.

Author: 
CIMC

Activists win in court against city council over transparency rules, could override city council decisions

From the newswire: "a Cook County Judge ruled that the Chicago City Council violated Illinois’s Open Meetings Act (OMA) by refusing to allow members of the public to testify at its meetings in accordance with the Act...While [the] ruling covered just part of the activists’...motion, a final ruling on the suit as whole, if the City is found guilty of violating the OMA, could invalidate all final decisions made by the Council at its May 18 and June 22 meetings, including the $15.8 million TIF ordinance for luxury housing...passed at the June meeting."

Author: 
CIMC

Protesters for justice poised to take Michigan Avenue again on Nov. 25

For the second consecutive year, protesters working to achieve justice for unjust killings by police are organizing a Black Friday protest on Michigan Avenue on Friday, November 25th.

Author: 
CIMC

"Resist Trump!" Protest Set for Saturday, Nov. 19th

The latest in a series of protests in the wake of the 2016 election: Resist Trump, November 19th, Downtown Chicago

Author: 
CIMC

Oct. 27: Tenth anniversary of assassination of Indymedia journalist Brad Will

October 27, 2016 marks the tenth anniversary of the assassination of Brad Will, a journalist with NYC Indymedia (born in the Chicago area) who was killed covering Oaxaca death squads in Mexico. Brad Will was 36 years old.

Here is archival coverage from 2006, including a protest outside the Mexican consulate in Chicago which saw two arrested (including a CIMC journalist).

Author: 
CIMC

Chicago Teachers Union, Schools Reach Tentative Agreement

On the cusp of a public teachers' strike, the Chicago Teachers Union and the Chicago Public Schools have reached a midnight-hour tentative agreement.

Author: 
CIMC

Chicagoans March on Oct. 3rd against Anti-Homeless Policies

In the wake of illegal harassment of homeless Chicagoans, residents are taking to the streets with a protest on October 3rd against local anti-poor policies.

Author: 
CIMC

City of Chicago Threatens Illegal Seizures Of Homeless People's Possessions

From the newswire: "Activists are denouncing the City of Chicago's latest threatening moves against the city's homeless population ahead of a sweep scheduled for tomorrow morning, Friday, Sept. 16. Police and Department of Family Support Services (DFSS) personnel blanketed Uptown's homeless encampments late last week with notices threatening to destroy their tents and other possessions needed to survive the oncoming winter."

Author: 
CIMC

Rauner signs bill requiring stricter rules against anti-privacy stingrays

Stingrays, "cell-site simulators...which can locate and track a person's cell phone without their knowledge", will soon be under stricter rules in Illinois. (To learn more about stingrays and about digital surveillance generally, check out this interview on Chicago Independent Television.)

Author: 
CIMC

Chicago City Council Violates Illinois Open Meetings Act, Say Activists

From the Newswire: Activists Sue City Council. State Law Says Meetings Must Be Open to the General Public and Decisions Made at Closed Meetings Could Be Voided. (The suit is being filed by two longtime Chicago activists, representing North Side Action for Justice, Uptown Tent City Organizers, and the Gay Liberation Network.)

Author: 
CIMC

Chicago Reporter Unveils Sweeping Police Misconduct Lawsuits Database

The Chicago Reporter has made available a police misconduct lawsuits database, encompassing more than 650 cases from 2012 through 2015 totaling more than $210 million in Chicago taxpayer dollars.

Author: 
CIMC

#BlackLivesMatter activists call for justice after further release of cop videos

The city of Chicago has made public hundreds of audio and video files in what's billed as "a major step forward to promote transparency". Also, the prospects of a mass-release of Rahm Emanuel's own communications have gotten a big boost in court, making that likelihood all the greater. Even so, Black Lives Matter Chicago released a statement saying that such developments are but paltry moves to justice for victims of Chicago police brutality.

Author: 
CIMC

McDonald's Workers Converge on Shareholder Meeting for Higher Wages, Union Rights

On May 26, 2016, the McDonald's corporation is holding its annual shareholder meeting, which is the focus of a record-setting protest encompassing more than ten thousand workers demanding higher wages and the right to unionize.

Author: 
CIMC

41 Arrested at BP Whiting Refinery Protest Near Chicago

Rahm Emanuel's donor base is overwhelmingly rich and white

In news that will surprise no one, but which is good to have formalized, Rahm Emanuel's donor base is overwhelmingly rich and white.

Author: 
CIMC

Documents show details of violence inside Homan Square

The Guardian provides specifc details of the torture scandal at Homan Square: "Internal documents from the Chicago police department show that officers used physical force on at least 14 men already in custody at the warehouse known as Homan Square."

Author: 
CIMC

Moral Bankruptcy Of Chicago's Elites

Forbes Magazine of all places has posted a damning indictment of the moral bankruptcy of Chicago's elites.

Author: 
CIMC

Chicago Teachers Union votes to hold one-day walkout on April 1st

The Chicago Teachers Union, saying that teachers are "dying the death of a thousand cuts", voted to hold a one-day walkout to be held on Friday, April 1st.

Author: 
CIMC

Donald Trump to face sizeable protest at campaign rally

Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump is scheduled to hold a rally in Chicago on Friday, March 11th. Efforts to protest Trump have galvanized Chicago.

Author: 
CIMC