Good morning, Chicago.
Yesterday, U.S. health officials announced their recommendation for a third COVID-19 booster shot. The extra dose would be administered eight months after people received their second shot of the Pfizer or Moderna vaccine, according to the plan outlined by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and other health agencies. Officials also said people who got the Johnson & Johnson vaccine will likely need a booster, but that they’re waiting for more data.
Meanwhile, superintendents from public school districts across Illinois joined forces yesterday to oppose Gov. J.B. Pritzker’s school mask mandate after dozens of districts were put on probation for defying the requirement. My colleague Karen Ann Cullotta has the story
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Chicago Public Schools and the Chicago Teachers Union are at “an impasse” in negotiations over the fall reopening of schools with less than two weeks until students return for in-person learning, CTU President Jesse Sharkey said Wednesday.
CTU says many of CPS’ safety plans for this year aren’t strong enough — but “right now, we’re saying we’re going back into buildings,” Sharkey said. CPS emphasized its commitment to the health and safety of its students and staff in a statement Wednesday while reaffirming its intention to reopen classrooms this month.
Half her lifetime ago, Jerhonda Johnson Pace was a teenage R. Kelly superfan, a member of his MySpace fan club, so devoted that she went to the Cook County Criminal Courthouse in 2008 to show support during the singer’s first criminal case.
This week, 13 years later and 800 miles away, Pace faced Kelly at another courthouse. This time, as the first witness against him in a federal racketeering case that could see him locked up for life.
Hundreds of mourners waited in line Wednesday afternoon at St. Rita of Cascia Shrine Chapel to pay their respects to Chicago police Officer Ella French, who was shot and killed during a traffic stop on Aug. 7. French’s partner, Officer Carlos Yanez Jr., was shot in the eye, brain and shoulder, according to a GoFundMe fundraiser organized by family.
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A transgender woman from Oswego won a 10-year court battle with Hobby Lobby, when the Illinois Appellate Court ruled this month that she had the right to use the women’s restroom at work.
Meggan Sommerville’s battle began shortly after she completed her transition to living as a woman in July 2010. Hobby Lobby, where she had worked since 1998, changed her personnel records to reflect her female gender but balked at what has become a flashpoint in the transgender culture wars: access to a gender-appropriate bathroom.
10 last-minute Midwest vacations for Labor Day weekend
Long before the pandemic, Labor Day weekend was considered the last hurrah of summer. So it stands to reason that vaccinated Chicagoans might be looking to get out of town for the long weekend and take in some outdoor scenery, socially distanced fun and delicious bites before cold weather descends. Here are 10 ideas to get you started.