Good afternoon. Here’s the latest news you need to know in Chicago. It’s about a five-minute read that will brief you on today’s biggest stories.
This afternoon will be mostly sunny with a high near 12 degrees. Tonight will be mostly cloudy and remain extremely cold with wind chills as low as -3. Tomorrow will be mostly sunny with a high near 38, then Sunday it will be mostly cloudy with a high near 31.
Top story
Violence in some Chicago neighborhoods puts young men at greater risk than U.S. troops faced in Iraq, Afghanistan war zones, study finds
For more than a decade, some people have used the term “Chiraq” — a mashup of Chicago and Iraq — to describe a city whose violence makes some neighborhoods feel like battle zones.
Now, researchers say they’ve found that some parts of Chicago are even deadlier for military-aged young men than what U.S. soldiers faced in war zones in Iraq and Afghanistan.
The risk of a man 18 to 29 years old dying in a shooting in the most violent ZIP code in Chicago — 60624, a swath of the West Side that includes Garfield Park — was higher than the death rate for U.S. soldiers in the Afghanistan war or for soldiers in an Army combat brigade that fought in Iraq, according to a study published in the medical journal JAMA Network Open.
“You fight in an Army combat brigade, you come back and say, ‘My God, I was in the thick of it for a year, and look at the risks I faced,’ ” says Brandon del Pozo, a Brown University researcher and former New York City cop who worked with three other scholars to examine violence in Chicago, Philadelphia, New York and Los Angeles. “In Garfield Park, these young men face those risks every single year. And the risks accumulate.”
Among men ages 18 to 29, the annual rate of firearm homicides in the 60624 code was 3.24 per 100,000 people in 2021 and 2022, the study found, compared with an annual death rate for U.S. troops in combat in Iraq of 1.7 per 100,000.
Even when the researchers expanded their sample to include Chicago ZIP codes ranked in the top 10% of violence, young men still faced a greater risk of dying than soldiers in Afghanistan and Iraq, the study found.
More news you need
- A Chicago man faces several child pornography charges in Cook County after a federal investigation infiltrated the encrypted media app Telegram and found a cross-country network of people sexually exploiting children. At least 17 people have been charged in all. Read the full story here.
- Paul Vallas’ campaign for mayor received a financial boost last year from Richard E. Hagen, a retired police officer who was named in the costly civil litigation stemming from the fatal shooting of Laquan McDonald. The support could bolster criticism from rivals and others that Vallas has aligned himself too closely with police, Dan Mihalopoulos and Tom Schuba write.
- Three months after Mayor Lori Lightfoot approved the Bally’s casino deal, the daughter of a contractor expected to help oversee its construction was named to chair Lightfoot’s campaign fund. It’s just one example of some of the well-connected people in line to profit from the plan Lightfoot approved. Tim Novak and Robert Herguth have more here.
- A marketing company owned by Ja’Mal Green, one of nine candidates in Chicago’s Feb. 28 election, steered small businesses seeking COVID-19 relief loans to three lenders that were faulted in a congressional report last year for having turned a blind eye to fraud. Green says government oversight of lenders was too lax, but many small businesses denied by traditional banks got the help they needed.
- The city has officially opened a temporary shelter for asylum seekers in Woodlawn — a decision nearby residents have raised concerns about, citing lack of transparency from the city. At least two people yesterday tried to stop a bus carrying recently arrived immigrants to the shelter.
- FOP President John Catanzara was accused yesterday of squandering union money and alienating everyone — including the police union’s closest allies — to the point where it’s hurting the rank and file officers he is supposed to represent. Veteran Chicago Police Detective Bob Bartlett, who is trying to unseat the fiery union president, leveled the accusations in an interview with our Fran Spielman.
- Yesterday, in honor of the 30th anniversary of the film “Groundhog Day,” hundreds flocked to the town of Woodstock, where the beloved comedy was filmed. Woodstock has become a yearly destination for “Groundhog Day” fans to relive the time-loop that Bill Murray’s character Phil Connors found himself in. Some visitors traveled thousands of miles yesterday to celebrate the holiday in the quaint town of 25,000 people in the far northwest suburbs of Chicago. Our David Struett has more on the festivities here.
A bright one
Atsuko Okatsuka starts with the silly
Last year was a true breakthrough for rising-star comic Atsuko Okatsuka, who not only released her critically acclaimed debut stand-up comedy special “The Intruder” on HBO, but also was named one of Variety’s 10 Comics to Watch For last year.
Her road to success has taken some unusual turns, growing out of a childhood that was challenging at times. Born in Taiwan, she spent her childhood in Japan before moving to the United States at 10 years old with her mother and grandmother and living undocumented for seven years.
But now she’s happily living out her comedy dreams amid a tour focusing on new material. She performs a series of six sold-out shows this weekend at the Den Theatre.
“This is the first time I’ve performed in Chicago more than one night at a time, so I’m looking forward to really getting to know the city and at least see a museum,” says Okatsuka. “Chicago loves comedy. I know that because a lot of comedians I know came from there and I know the background that’s in Chicago and, yeah, I’m looking forward to great comedy lovers.”
Okatsuka took the reins of her stand-up career in 2012, when she produced the Disoriented Comedy tour alongside two other female Asian comics. Later in Los Angeles, she was notable on the local scene for not only her strong comedy performances, but also her unique appearances at hipster venue Dynasty Typewriter and its Sunday afternoon “Go Day” series of audience-interactive experiences. While Okatsuka has moved on from those appearances, she still defines being silly a key part of her creative process.
“It’s always what’s silly for me. If it just tickles me with silliness, that’s what I chase first,” she explains. “Then I try to find the macro and how to tie my joke into a bigger theme.
Carl Kozlowski has more with Okatsuka ahead of her Chicago residency here.
From the press box
- Bears offensive coordinator Luke Getsy wants to prove he’s head coaching material. If he can lead Justin Fields and the offense to another level next season, he’ll likely get that opportunity, Jason Lieser writes.
- When will the Bulls front office reveal how it really feels about this roster? The next week leading up to the Feb. 9 trade deadline may be when the team finally shows its hand, Joe Cowley writes.
- Mount Carmel vs. Brother Rice and New Trier vs. Evanston are among the prime high school basketball matchups Joe Henricksen previewed ahead of this weekend.
Your daily question☕
Should the mayor of Chicago be pro- or anti-dibs? Tell us why.
Send us an email at newsletters@suntimes.com and we might feature your answer in the next Afternoon Edition.
Yesterday we asked you: If you were doomed to experience your own “Groundhog Day” scenario, where would you choose to be?
Here’s what some of you said...
“Stuck at a White Sox game, it’s the 8th inning, the Sox are winning and I’m enjoying a funnel cake. I could do that every day if we didn’t have old man winter.” — Charlotte Taylor Powers
“My wedding day! By far one of the best days of my life. I had so much fun and I would get to hang out with all the people I love most! Though my life has been a lot like ‘Groundhog Day’ because 20 years later and my wife is still as wonderful and beautiful as she was on our wedding day!” — Derek Matheis
“The west coast of Ireland with the Atlantic Ocean in view on a turf farm with a stone cottage, chimney and thatched roof.” — Craig Barner
“In my mom’s backyard surrounded by family, grandkids playing in the background.” — Sandra Judith
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