A week’s worth of developing stories, odd events, and signs of the times, culled from the desks, inboxes and wandering eyes of the editors
Apology
The South Side Weekly would like to apologize to the Arab American Action Network (AAAN) and the broader Arab American community for the title and cover image of last week’s feature on the AAAN. Neither the title nor the cover was reflective of the Arab American community and the identity and goals of the AAAN. Over the course of the editorial process, before the title was selected, concerns about the cover were raised by the piece’s author, Zach Taylor. Those concerns were not addressed and the Weekly additionally apologizes for our oversight. To learn more about the AAAN’s mission and work, visit www.aaan.org.
For Reel
Every summer, the Chicago Parks District shows movies across the city, hopping from park to park every few days for ninetyish minutes of family-friendly viewing. DNAinfo has just published a map of all the places where movies will be shown from June to August. Recent hits such as The Lego Movie and the 2014 Annie will be shown in a number of South Side neighborhoods, but there will also be deeper cuts sprinkled throughout, such as Over the Hedge in Armour Square and Jumanji in Hegewisch. The farthest south movie will be The Avengers in Altgeld Gardens, and the farthest west will be Hairspray in Garfield Clearing, right behind Midway Airport.
A Surprise Protest at McCormick Place
65,000 came from around the country to attend this year’s National Restaurant Association show, which boasted a summit on restaurant finance, culinary showcases, and the unveiling of innovations like ninety-second pasta and edible 3D printing. But on Monday, seventy-five restaurant workers showed up with a slightly different agenda––to protest for an increase of wages for workers who rely on tips. While workers nationwide are protesting for a minimum wage of $15, restaurant workers who rely on tips are paid a base wage of only $4.95 an hour in Illinois, and as low as $2.13 nationwide. Though event officials eventually asked protestors to leave the venue, it’s pretty impressive that they even made it inside McCormick Place with fake event badges.
Deer Are Living on a Landfill in South Deering
Truth at least as strange as fiction: the Paxton II landfill in South Deering, which happens to be Cook County’s tallest nonstructural point, is overrun with (you guessed it?) deer. Dozens of the animals, unbothered by the smell and drawn in by the newly planted prairie grass, have made the mountain of garbage their home. While a decade or so ago goats were being dropped in to try to eat the grass growing on the mountain, at this point, about five years after sheepdogs failed to keep the goat population up, the deer have no competition for the hill. Hopefully they find their new home in Deering endearing.