By IIS Radio CHICAGO- Starting Jan. 1, schools will be prohibited from discriminating against natural hairstyles traditionally associated with race and ethnicity- including locs, braids, twists and afros – thanks to a law championed by State Senator Mike Simmons (D-Chicago). “No child should ever be singled out for sporting a hairstyle that authentically expresses their heritage…… MORE
By Dave Dahl Springfield Democrat Betsy Dirksen Londrigan, who ran for Congress twice and lost both times to U.S. Rep. Rodney Davis (R-Taylorville), is headed to the Biden administration. Pending confirmation, Londrigan will be state director for rural development for the USDA. It’s a position Colleen Callahan held while Barack Obama was president. Callahan was…… MORE
By Dave Dahl An Illinois business leader is becoming part of the national conversation on organized retail theft. “We have been involved at the state and local level, and now we’re also involved at the national level, of helping raise awareness through a coalition called USA-IT – United States of America against Illicit Trade,” said…… MORE
By Jake Fogal Following the holiday display of a Satanic Temple that is currently in place at the Illinois State Capitol in Springfield, Bloomington Republican, Dan Brady, issued a statement regarding the exhibit on Thursday. “While I fully support all Americans’ Constitutional rights to freedom of expression and religion, sometimes common sense tells us that…… MORE
By Dave Dahl Pandemic or not, your friends and family are unlikely to go without this holiday season. “Consumers appeared to have paid attention to the admonition to start much earlier,” said Illinois Retail Merchants Association president Rob Karr. “They did. It looks like it started in early October, so it will be interesting to…… MORE
By IIS Radio SPRINGFIELD – This is Scott’s Law Day in Illinois; a time to remind the driving public that they need to move over when they see flashing lights on the side of the road. Motorists need to slow down and change lanes when they see a vehicle pulled over with its hazards or…… MORE
By IIS Radio SPRINGFIELD – A look back at Illinois weather this year. February 2021 was brutally cold, with many records set all over the state. Spring and summer featured plenty of rainfall in central and southern Illinois, while the northern part of the state remained dry says State Climatologist Trent Ford. “The 2021 northern…… MORE
By Jake Fogal Earlier this month, State Farm began their annual Season of Giving campaign, with a small twist. Switching things up then in past years, the insurance company held a healthy competition between departments, where employees participated in a program called Acts of Good. Acts of Good is a program where workers could track…… MORE
As hospitals in McLean County is near capacity with cases of COVID-19 and the new variant Omicron running rampant, local health officials are issuing guidance for holiday get-togethers.… MORE
By Neil Doyle BLOOMINGTON – The Katthoefer Animal Building at the Miller Park Zoo will re-open Wednesday, Dec. 22, after several animals tested positive for COVID-19. The building was shut down last month after a tiger and four snow leopards started showing symptoms. Testing confirmation did not come until Dec. 14 from the national laboratory.…… MORE
By Mike Matejka Because of COVID, there is no Labor Day Parade this year. It’s always a great event for our everyday workers to march proudly down the street and enjoys the festive crowd. If there had been a parade, this year’s Labor Day theme was to be “150 years of struggle: your right to vote.” …
By Mike Matejka As President Donald Trump threatens to send federal marshals into Chicago, over the objections of Illinois Governor J.B. Pritzker, recall another Illinois Governor who protested the incursion of armed federal personnel into the city. Those federal troops, rather than calming, escalated the situation, leading to deaths and violence. Illinois poet Vachel Lindsay…
By Mike Matejka Our nation is at a unique watershed in human relations. African-Americans have been killed too many times in the past before George Floyd, but the response to this man’s death is international and all-encompassing. I was a grade-schooler during the Civil Rights 1960s. I watched Birmingham demonstrators hosed and the Selma – Montgomery…
Looking around our community, when we say employer, most will respond to State Farm, Country, or Illinois State University. We too often forget those who are building our roads, serving our food, or our public employees. COVID-19 has made us more aware of the risk. Going to work every day for some people means…