Advocate Aurora Health is the largest hospital system in Illinois and Wisconsin. | Brian Ernst/Sun-Times
Today’s update is a 5-minute read that will brief you on the day’s biggest stories.
Good afternoon. Here’s the latest news you need to know in Chicago. It’s about a 5-minute read that will brief you on today’s biggest stories.
This afternoon will be mostly sunny with a high near 72 degrees and a slight chance of showers and thunderstorms. Tonight will be mostly cloudy with a low around 53 and a 30% chance of showers and thunderstorms. Tomorrow will be cloudy with a high near 58 and a 20% chance of showers.
Top story
Advocate Aurora fires 440 workers who refuse to get COVID shots
Advocate Aurora Health, the largest hospital system in Illinois and Wisconsin, has fired more than 400 employees who refused to get vaccinated for COVID-19.
Almost half of the 440 recently terminated employees worked part-time, the company said in a statement. The number is less than 1% of about 75,000 employees.
The system, which operates as Advocate Health Care in Illinois, announced in early August it would require its workers to get vaccinated. Other large hospitals made similar announcements just before the U.S. Food and Drug Administration announced full government approval of the Pfizer vaccine. Two other vaccines made by Moderna and Johnson & Johnson are being administered under an emergency authorization from FDA.
When it announced its mandate in August, Advocate said it would make limited exceptions for religious or medical reasons. The announcement also coincided with a rise in cases over the summer attributed to a highly contagious form of the virus known as the Delta variant.
Advocate Aurora operates 26 hospitals in the two states.
Brett Chase has more on Advocate Aurora’s vaccine mandate here.
More news you need
R. Kelly could face a second consecutive summer in front of a jury if he does not find another way to resolve his federal criminal case in Chicago. A judge set an Aug. 1, 2022 trial date for Kelly’s case here during a status hearing this morning.
The agency that investigates use of force by Chicago police released body camera video yesterday showing an officer fatally shooting a man in an Englewood apartment last month. Officers were called to the apartment by a woman who said she was hit by her boyfriend who was also armed with a knife, according to a 911 call released by the Civilian Office of Police Accountability.
The University of North Dakota’s aerospace school has canceled all flight activities after a student pilot from Chicago died in a plane crash, the Associated Press reports. The university plane went down in a field Monday in northeastern North Dakota, killing 19-year-old John Hauser, authorities said.
Uber had people over yesterday to show off its new 461,000-square-foot digs at the Old Post Office where more than 2,000 employees will begin working over the next few days. The new space encompasses all of the ninth floor and portions of the eighth and 10th floors.
Chicago-based Ferrara Candy Co. said a ransomware attack last week at the company encrypted some of the manufacturer’s systems. But no fear, the company — responsible for Nerds, Brach’s Candy Corn and countless other treats — said that everything is still on the shelves and ready for the holidays.
A bright one
New production of ‘As You Like It’ pairs Beatles and Shakespeare
“As You Like It,” now playing at the Chicago Shakespeare Theater, contains the famous words “All the world’s a stage” at the beginning of the monologue referred to as “7 Ages of Man,” which tracks the progression of life.
As the most frequently produced dramas in the English-speaking world, Shakespeare’s works are often reinvented, and the Chicago Shakespeare Theater’s Beatles-themed rendition of “As You Like It” aims to do just that.
Conceived and adapted by Daryl Cloran for the Bard on the Beach Shakespeare Festival, and directed by Cloran here in Chicago, this technicolor jukebox musical is set in the 1960s and highlights a combination of some of the Beatles’ greatest hits with humor.
Liz Lauren
Orlando (Liam Quealy, left) serenades his love interest Rosalind (Lakeisha Renee) in Chicago Shakespeare Theater’s Beatles music-infused production of “As You Like It.”
Audiences eager for light-hearted entertainment will find it in this production.
The play opens in a boxing ring, in an homage to professional WWE wrestling, which was conceived in the 1960s, and takes off from there.
The driving beat from the live band onstage propels the storytelling forward, giving the show a concert vibe
The theater is also aiming to procure an environment that encourages public safety, as vaccine cards and IDs are checked at the door.
Read Sheri Flanders’ full review of the play here.
From the press box
The most intriguing Bulls season in recent memory tips off tonight with the team’s season opener against the Pistons. Lonzo Ball’s ready to push the tempo – hopefully his teammates are ready for it, Joe Cowley writes.
The Bulls are also hoping the strong signs on defense they displayed in the preseason will carry over now that the real games are starting.
First Aaron Rodgers said he owns the Bears, and now Tom Brady agrees. Bears tight end Cole Kmet says it’s up to him and his teammates to change that narrative.
Ben Pope on the Blackhawks’ dreadful season opener last night.
Your daily question ?
Facebook is planning to change its name, according to a new report. What would you rename the social network if it were up to you?
Email us (please include your first name and where you live) and we might include your answer in the next Afternoon Edition.
Yesterday we asked you: Whether you’re a transplant or born and raised here, what do you love most about living in Chicago? Here’s what some of you said…
“Chicago is definitely one of a kind — great food, fun and fests, the lake, the skyline, every sports league and we are/have history!” — Kem Hashan
“I love Chicago for its diversity! The people, the authentic foods that you have within your reach, the different cultures intertwining with one another.” — Richelle Selbor
“The different street festivals across the neighborhoods every summer. You really get to see what makes the neighborhoods great and what each of them offer.” — Chris Schoenherr
“Being born in Texas and then moving to Chicago was the best move ever. I loved the food, sports, the skyline, the women, the vibes and the countless events that go on in the city. Chicago is known as the second city but it’s the first city in my heart. ? ? ? ?” — Hugo Resendis
“I’m a ‘transplant’ who moved to Chicago 24 years ago. I came for professional sports teams like The Bulls, food, festivals and the scenery. I’ve remained here for sports teams, the food, festivals and scenery. There’s no other place like it, and I’ve lived in Boston, Providence, Fort Wayne, Ind. and was born in Nashville.” — Erika Norton
“Opportunity. I came here for college and ended up going in another direction and have been grateful ever since.” — Elizabeth Zaluba
“I’ve traveled to many other cities and Chicagoans are the kindest and most helpful. Also, The Art Institute and Museum of Science and Industry are wonderful Chicago treasures.” — Lissa Cross-McNier
“The fact that there is a wonderful public transit system. Moving here from Kentucky and being able to get around with no car is amazing.” — Angel Pilkin
“The morning paper: The Sun-Times.” — James Odum
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