To gain insight into environmental injustice in Evanston, advocacy groups, city officials and residents met at the Fleetwood-Jourdain Community Center on Saturday, June 3.
When Cherie Animashaun thinks back to Super Bowl LVII, she doesn’t recall the electrifying gameplay or even Rihanna’s sensational halftime performance. Instead, the Niles West High School senior remembers the Apple Music short film that captured Rihanna’s “Road to Halftime.” With hit song “Run this Town” blasting in the background, the film follows a young.
Ndona Muboyayi, a fifth-generation Evanston resident, attended both Evanston/Skokie School District 65 and Evanston Township High School District 202 schools. But as a student, she said she faced adversity due to systemic barriers. Community leaders with similar experiences helped her overcome those barriers, Muboyayi said. That’s what she said she wants to do for children.
With 17 vacancies within the Evanston Police Department, Cmdr. Ryan Glew said the staffing shortage is placing a strain on officers. The department transitioned to a 12-hour work schedule instead of an eight-hour one to fill gaps in the roster, he said. Mikhail Geyer, a detective and the police union president, said many are struggling.
A health assessment in July revealed that residents of the historically Black 5th Ward have a life expectancy five to 13 years shorter than residents in local predominantly white neighborhoods. Every five years, the Health and Human Services Department conducts the Evanston Process for Local Assessment of Needs (EPLAN) to holistically look at the health.