Will County was highlighted by the White House for rapidly delivering rental assistance to tenants in the county, staving off evictions as the pandemic upended the economy and threatened housing stability for many renters
state
Senator Cory Booker (D-NJ), Environmental Justice Advocate, Proud to Receive NNPA Leadership Award
NNPA NEWSWIRE — Sen. Booker, who served two terms as Newark mayor before his election to the Senate, will receive the 2021 National Newspaper Publishers Association (NNPA) National Leadership Award for excellence and innovative leadership in Black America. Drs. James Hildreth and Ebony Hilton, Sen. Raphael Warnock (D-Ga.), Congresswoman Cori Bush (D-Missouri), and Olympic record-setter Allyson Felix also will receive National Leadership Awards from the NNPA, the trade association of more than 230 African American-owned newspapers and media companies.
Black, brown people may be hardest hit as Pandemic Unemployment ends
Federal unemployment programs, including Pandemic Unemployment Assistance, came to an end on Sept. 4. All those on unemployment will now receive $300 less in weekly benefits and experts said it will likely hurt Black and brown workers the hardest.
Enhanced UI benefits disproportionately support Black and brown workers who have historically been left behind in recoveries. According to Lindsay Owens, executive director for Groundwork Collaborative, “the historic inequities in the labor market will be laid even more bare” after Monday’s benefits cutoff.
After Labor Day, roughly 7.5 million people lost key pandemic-era unemployment benefits established by the March 2020 CARES Act. Dr. Rakeen Mabud, chief economist at Groundwork, reacted to the impending unemployment cliff with the following statement:
AG Raoul launches investigation into Joliet Police Department
Attorney General Kwame Raoul on Wednesday announced that his office is launching an investigation into possible patterns or practices of unconstitutional or unlawful policing by the Joliet Police Department. The civil investigation follows requests made by the Joliet mayor and members of the Joliet City Council.
Joliet officially on its way to getting Lake Michigan Water
The Illinois Department of Natural Resources (IDNR) this past Wednesday, Sept. 1st, issued an order granting the City of Joliet a Lake Michigan Water Allocation Permit. This permit allows Joliet to begin using Lake Michigan water as its source of supply in 2030 and establishes annual allocation amounts through the year 2050.
Federal unemployment benefits end
Federal unemployment programs, including Pandemic Unemployment Assistance, came to an end on Sept. 4. All those on unemployment will now receive $300 less in weekly benefits and experts said it will likely hurt Blacks and brown workers the hardest.
Digging deeper into Old Joliet Prison’s history
The Old Joliet Prison along Collins Street has an almost ominous presence and the history behind it is likely even more sinister.
More is likely to be revealed now that the City of Joliet has received notice of an award of a $35,000 grant from the National Park Service to prepare a National Register Historic District nomination for the Illinois State Penitentiary – Joliet (later renamed Joliet Correctional Center, commonly known as the “Old Joliet Prison”).
Workforce Center of Will County releases September workshops schedule
The Workforce Center of Will County (WCWC) offers a wide variety of services to assist both job seekers and employers with employment needs. These services include classes on resume writing, practicing interview skills, and updating computer proficiency.
COMMENTARY: Mississippi’s Healthcare System is Failing Amid Covid
NNPA NEWSWIRE — The question remains: Is the Mississippi health system in failure mode? Dr. Alan Jones stated in a press conference, Tuesday, August 17, “In the systems of care right now, there are, across the state, makeshift ICUs. ICU patients in hallways. ICU patients being held in ERs. Med-surge patients on high flow oxygen and more invasive devices…in terms of the state of the hospital system, we’re standing in a garage with field hospitals. I think that speaks for itself.
NAACP, Black Leaders Demand Congress Act on Voting Rights
NNPA NEWSWIRE — Nearly six decades after Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and civil rights activists led the 1963 March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom, that helped establish voting rights for millions of Black Americans, African American leaders will again descend on the nation’s capital to demand Congress protect the rights.

