Quick hits: Illinois news in brief for Tuesday Feb. 22, 2022
‘Unmask the Children’ rally draw dozens
Students, parents and teachers in a Central Illinois school district held an “Unmask the Children” rally Monday.
Nearly 100 people came together to show support in optional masking in schools.
A Peoria Public School statement said the school will continue to enforce masking to provide students with the in-person learning environment they need throughout the school year.
Report: Naperville is the safest city
A new study says an Illinois city is the safest in America.
MoneyGeek analyzed FBI crime statistics in 297 cities around the country to calculate the cost of crime in each area, which includes impacts to victims, the loss of stolen property and medical bills.
The study found the safest city, ranked by cost of crime per capita, is Naperville, at $187 per capita.
On the other end of the spectrum, St. Louis was the most dangerous at over $11,000 per capita.
Anti-Semitic fliers investigated
University of Illinois officials are investigating reports of anti-Semitic flyers left across the Champaign-Urbana campus over the weekend.
The News-Gazette reports an email by Chancellor Robert Jones said the flyers were left on and around campus inside plastic bags filled with rocks.
Jones called the messages “a cowardly and craven way to spew hate and division in our community.”
Film center named after Roger Ebert
The University of Illinois at Champaign-Urbana plans to launch a film center this fall named after one of the school’s most famous alumni.
The Roger Ebert Center for Film Studies will include internships in arts criticism and equipment for film classes.
Ebert was an Urbana native who graduated from the U of I in 1964 and became the first film critic to win a Pulitzer Prize.
Focus on grain bin safety this week
The Illinois Department of Agriculture and the state fire marshal are encouraging farmers to review safety practices during Grain Bin Safety Week Feb. 20-26.
Illinois fire departments responded to a nation-leading 12 rescue incidents at grain bins and elevators in 2020.
Farmworkers are required to attend training in order to utilize the best practices while working in and around grain bins.
Unused 1984 Bulls ticket up for auction
An unused ticket for Michael Jordan’s first NBA game may make a Connecticut man a bit wealthier.
The ticket is from Oct. 26, 1984, when the Chicago Bulls were scheduled to play the Washington Bullets.
Mike Cole was a student at Northwestern University and had an extra ticket for the game but couldn’t find anyone to go with him.
He is putting the ticket up for auction online with an initial asking price of $200,000.
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