The Chicago Reporter articles from January 2007

The Chicago Reporter archives from January 2007

Tough issues, new responses.(Editor's Note: Reporter News)(Editorial)
January 1, 2007... These days, voters aren't surprised by much. We hardly even shake our heads at the sight of another alderman charged with taking bribes. In Illinois, when it comes to our government, we have become experts at chalking so much up to greed,...

MLK Day: a working holiday?(SPINOFFS: Keeping Current)(Martin Luther King Jr.)(Brief article)
January 1, 2007... The news: It's been 21 years since Martin Luther King Jr.'s birthday was first celebrated as a national holiday. Behind the news: For nearly 180,000 people working for some of Chicago's largest employers, Jan. 15 was just another Monday....

New minimum wage fails to meet minimum needs.(SPINOFFS: Keeping Current)
January 1, 2007... The news: Gov. Rod Blagojevich signed a $1-an-hour minimum wage increase into law in December, making the state's new $7.50-an-hour wage tied for the fifth-highest in the nation. The rate takes effect in July and will continue to rise by a...

Murder, by numbers; Chicago homicides up.(SPINOFFS: Keeping Current)
January 1, 2007... The news: The number of homicides in Chicago increased by nearly 4 percent in 2006. Behind the news: Collectively, murders decreased nearly 14 percent in mostly white districts and 26 percent in racially mixed districts. However, murders...

Deadliest districts.(SPINOFFS: Keeping Current)(Statistical table)(Brief article)
January 1, 2007... In 2005, murders in Chicago dropped to a 40-year low. Police attributed much of the decline to more aggressive and innovative police tactics in high-crime areas. But, in 2006, murders increased nearly 14 percent in the city's eight deadliest...

Aldermen: by appointment of the mayor.(SPINOFFS Keeping Current)
January 1, 2007... The news: Mayor Richard M. Daley appointed three black women in December to fill aldermanic vacancies in three predominately black wards. Behind the news: In all, Daley has appointed 31 aldermen, 20 of whom are presently on the 50-member...

Political conciousness: her words tumble on top of one other. Her hands wave in front of her and then fidget with the patriotic campaign button on her jacket.(Q&A: Naisy Dolar)(Interview)
January 1, 2007... Her conversation is sprinkled with the catch phrases of a political newcomer. The people need an "advocate" to "represent their voices" and "put the power back in their hands." But, when she discusses her campaign for 50th Ward alderman, she...

Cash and the city: city workers give thousands their bosses, alderman and ward organizations. Some say it's just part of the job.(Political Contributions)(Cover story)
January 1, 2007... When Jamie Andrade Jr. paid off some the 929,555.82 in personal loans he'd received since 1999, the money didn't go to a bank. Nor did it end up a credit union. The money was turned to the political campaign funds of Citizens for Mell and the...

Giving without limit: Illinois needs contribution caps, limit on who can give, some say.(Political Contributions)
January 1, 2007... Illinois State Board of Elections general counsel Steve Sturm said his colleagues across the country are mystified when he talks about his state's rules that limit who can give political contributions and how much. "They're surprised there...

Less money, little power: black aldermen, wards lag in contributions.(Political Contributions)
January 1, 2007... If money is any indication of power on the Chicago City Council, then black aldermen are limited. According to an analysis by The Chicago Reporter, black aldermen and ward organizations in predominantly black wards lag behind their white and...

Paper pushers: while Mayor Richard M. Daley has enjoyed public support from black leaders, his political army hails primarily from white neighborhoods on the city's Northwest and Southwest sides.(INVESTIGATION: Petition Circulators)
January 1, 2007... When Mayor Richard M. Daley coasted to re-election in 2003, he attributed his landslide victory to his broad support in neighborhoods north to south, black to white and Latino to Asian. But in the months leading up to his election, a more...

Mapping Daley's political muscle.(INVESTIGATION: Petition Circulators)
January 1, 2007... White and Latino neighborhoods on the Far Northwest and Southwest sides provided the most circulators in 2002 for Mayor Richard M. Daley. With the exception of Austin, African American community areas on the South and West sides had only a...

By choice or by chance: not everyone on the Chicago City Council has a patronage operation.(INVESTIGATION: Petition Circulators)
January 1, 2007... Not every alderman leans on city workers or a political patronage system to circulate petitions. Whether it's because of their independent ideals or the watchful eye of federal investigators, a few aldermen have found ways to work outside the...

January 9, 2007. (PARTING SHOT: Congo Square Theatre Co.
January 1, 2007... Members of the Congo Square Theatre Company rehearse their production of] August Wilson's play "Joe Turner's Come and Gone" at the Goodman Theatre. Throughout 2007, the Goodman will produce Wilson's 10-play cycle, chronicling the 20th-century...