Chicago’s largest music festival, Lollapalooza, kicked off Thursday in Grant Park for four days of music, crowds and festivities. Hotel owners in the Loop say that this year may be the best yet, with big-name headliners like Olivia Rodrigo, Sabrina Carpenter and Tyler, the Creator.
But let’s go back to the start of the week. On Monday, Gov. JB Pritzker signed a pair of gun control measures into law, and state lawmakers said they’re looking to address the steady rise in auto insurance rates in Illinois. By Friday, Pritzker signed another bill, this time one that would provide some Chicago police officers and firefighters with higher pensions. At the city level, the Chicago City Council eliminated minimum parking requirements
More Top Picks Best High Contrast Keyboards For Seniors
for some residential developments and Mayor Brandon Johnson weighed new taxes on businesses — including a corporate head tax — to help balance the next budget.Meanwhile, more Illinois primary races are opening up, and endorsements are pouring in. On Thursday, 83-year-old U.S. Rep. Danny Davis announced that he will not seek a 16th term representing Illinois’ 7th Congressional District. At least nine people have filed to run for the soon-to-be vacant seat, but Davis has already endorsed his preferred successor: veteran state Rep. La Shawn Ford. In the race to replace outgoing Sen. Dick Durbin, U.S. Rep. Robin Kelly also earned a key endorsement this week, receiving backing from a major gun control political action committee.
More layoffs are hitting the city’s education sector. Northwestern University announced it eliminated about 425 staff positions on Tuesday, and Moody Bible Institute, a small bible college, also laid off about 9% of its staff.
Plus, former President Joe Biden visited Chicago this week to speak at the National Bar Association’s awards gala, where he called on the nation’s lawyers to continue to uphold the Constitution under the Trump administration.
In other news from around the world, wildfires raging across Canada covered parts of the midwestern United States with smoke, leading to unhealthy air quality alerts. The United Kingdom and Canada announced this week that their governments would recognize a Palestinian state come September, following a similar move by France. And some countries were able to complete trade deals with the U.S. before the president’s Friday deadline, but others — like Brazil, Switzerland and New Zealand — ran out of time. The new rates will take effect on Aug. 7.
And Chicago Cubs fans lost a legend this week. Hall of Famer Ryne Sandberg, the dynamic second baseman who spent 15 of his 16 major-league seasons with the Cubs, passed away at age 65 following a battle with prostate cancer. The team then dropped into second place in the National League Central after a loss to the Milwaukee Brewers. But the week ended on a more positive note. The Cubs added four players before Thursday’s trade deadline, and on Friday, the league officially announced that the 2027 MLB All-Star Game will be held at Wrigley Field.
Now for the fun stuff! Here’s the latest installment of the Tribune’s Quotes of the Week quiz, this time with excerpts and utterances from July 27 to Aug. 2. Missed last week? You can find it here or check out our past editions of Quotes of the Week.
More Top Picks Laundry Basket