Axios Chicago

May 06, 2024
🥤Happy Monday! Today is "National Beverage Day." Not any particular beverage, all the beverages.
- 🌞 Today's weather: Sunny and a high of 69.
Situational awareness: The tickets for our upcoming Axios Office Hours event at The Hideout are now on sale!
🎂 Happy birthday to our Axios Chicago members Mark Lenhart, Joseph Tyler, Lisa Masucci, James O'Reilly and Mary Godlewski!
Today's newsletter is 858 words — a 3-minute read.
1 big thing: Campus protests escalate over weekend
Tensions escalated this weekend after police arrested 68 participants for criminal trespassing during a student-led School of the Art Institute protest.
Why it matters: Chicago protests had, until this point, stayed largely peaceful, avoiding police involvement and confrontations between protesters, but this weekend's events could offer a preview of what lies ahead for Chicago at this summer's Democratic National Convention.
The latest: Sunday afternoon, the formerly quiet DePaul encampment attracted hundreds of pro-Israel and pro-Palestinian protesters chanting slogans and shouting at each other, buffered by a gate and a wall of police along Fullerton.

Background: Sixty-eight protesters at a School of the Art Institute (SAIC) rally were arrested Saturday for criminal trespassing hours after they set up an encampment in the North Garden at the Art Institute.
- Protesters tell Axios SAIC administrators offered to let them stay in the museum garden until Sunday morning if they agreed to move to an SAIC academic building. But 20 minutes later while protesters were discussing the offer, administrators told them police were on their way, protester Sam Anthem tells Axios.
The other side: Museum spokesperson Megan Michienzi says officials negotiated for hours — even offering amnesty from academic sanctions if demonstrators left — before asking the police "to end the protest in the safest way possible."

What they're saying: Demonstrators were held all night at the 19th District police station. Sunday morning, several told Axios that police failed to provide them with a phone call or return property including money, a ring and a bassoon reed.
The other side: CPD officials said the protesters were allowed phone calls but had not responded to other allegations by Sunday evening.
2. Chart of the day: Guns at schools skyrocket


K-12 schools in the U.S. saw 1,468 firearm incidents in the decade ending in 2023, a 324% increase from the prior decade's 346 incidents.
- In Illinois, there were 145 incidents, ranking us fourth behind California, Texas and Florida.
- That's per the K-12 School Shooting Database, an open-source research project attempting to quantify gun incidents at grade schools.
How it works: The group defines "incidents" as instances when a gun is fired or brandished with intent to shoot, or when a bullet hits school property.
The latest: 111 incidents have occurred nationwide so far this year, as of April 29, with five of them in Illinois.
The big picture: Absent significant gun reform, schools are increasingly turning to other measures to protect kids, ranging from rules requiring see-through backpacks to issuing teachers "panic buttons" and hiring armed guards.
3. Live & Local: Media musical chairs
Media companies have had a rough year, laying off staff as the advertising market continues to crater.
Zoom in: In addition to the layoffs causing changes, some of our favorite personalities in Chicago have moved jobs.
📺 Television
Paris Schutz left his job as co-anchor of WTTW's "Chicago Tonight" in April, but he quickly picked up a new assignment, covering politics as a reporter for Fox News Chicago.
- Schutz's departure means "Chicago Tonight" features a solo host, Brandis Friedman.
Yes, but: It also means that longtime Illinois political reporter Amanda Vinicky will step into the Friday "Week in Review" hosting role, which was long made famous by the now-retired Joel Weisman.
📰 Newspapers
Longtime Daily Herald executive editor Jim Baumann stepped down and the paper tapped Lisa Miner to replace him. Miner was most recently the managing editor and has been at the Herald for 40 years.
- With Miner at the helm, two of Chicago's three daily newspapers are run by women.
📻 Radio
WSCR-FM (The Score) and evening personality Gabe Ramirez have parted ways. Ramirez notably hosted call-in shows on Bears football, which is a huge tradition in Chicago going back to Ed O'Bradovich and Doug Buffone.
- The Score will feature a rotation of hosts when there are no Cubs game broadcasts.
4. Tips and hot links: O'Hare terminal plan a go
The city's Cinco de Mayo parade in Little Village was canceled Sunday after police reported nearby gang violence. (Fox 32)
✈️ The city and airlines reached an agreement on an international terminal expansion at O'Hare that would eliminate the need for travelers to take a train between terminals. (WGN)
🚫 Ald. Nicole Lee is criticizing Mayor Brandon Johnson's plans to move migrants into a shelter in her South Side ward, citing safety and environmental concerns. (Tribune)
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5. First taste: Funkytown-Samuel Adams beer
A crisp, light, craft lager by Funkytown Brewery hits bars this week after the local Black-owned brewery won a contest to collaborate with Samuel Adams.
Why it matters: Black brewers and drinkers are underrepresented in the craft brewing market, and the 1984 Pale Lager is aimed, in part, at changing that dynamic.
What they're saying: "We wanted something refreshing and easy to drink to appeal to the underserved market that is not into craft beer," Funkytown CEO and co-founder Rich Bloomfield told Axios during a kickoff party at Sheffield's in Lakeview last week.
- The name comes from the year Samuel Adams was founded and the year the three Oak Park-raised Funkytown founders were born.
The intrigue: The beer eschews bitter flavors for a smoother, lower-alcohol (5%) experience.
Where to sip: The 1984 Pale Lager will be available through May at select taps in Boston and Chicago including Sheffield's, Bitter Pops and Pilot Project.
Edited by Lindsey Erdody and copy edited by Matt Piper and Yasmeen Altaji.
📸 Carrie is excited to see a new photography exhibit at the Cultural Center featuring photos of life in Chicago and Paris neighborhoods.
🙏 Monica is worried that she, Justin and Carrie can't go to the sold-out Lisagor Awards this year where Axios is nominated for Best Newsletter. Let the team know if you have a spare ticket?
🎤 Justin is performing tonight at Daisies in Logan Square as part of the storytelling event Between Bites. It's going to be a blast, with food, drink and performances. Justin is also going to be reunited with his old radio pal Ji Suk Yi!
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