During the spring and early summer, Americans enjoyed a brief period of live music and moviegoing before COVID cases started to spike and cancellations rolled in.

In response to the changing circumstances, promoters AEG and Live Nation have announced vaccine mandates for their concertgoers starting in October.

Music festivals such as July’s Lollapalooza in Chicago have experimented with requiring attendees to present proof of vaccination or a negative COVID test. About 200 fans out of 385,000 tested positive in the two weeks after the event began.

But other events that went forward this summer have led to viral outbreaks, such as Watershed Music Festival in George, Washington, which has been tied this week to more than 230 coronavirus cases in a crowd of 25,000.

With movie theaters taking a hit amid the delta variant and positive COVID tests bringing filming delays, the release dates of many movies have been reshuffled as well.

As the nation heads indoors for the fall, the future of concerts and movies is uncertain. Here’s a list of the notable delays and cancellations.

Concerts

Stevie Nicks

The Fleetwood Mac singer has canceled all five of her performances scheduled for 2021 because of concerns about rising COVID numbers. Nicks, 73, told fans in a tweet announcing her decision that although she is vaccinated, given her age, she is being abundantly cautious.

Limp Bizkit

They played Lollapalooza, but the 1990s rap rock band announced that they are canceling their 2021 tour dates for the health and safety of all concertgoers. “In short, the system is still very flawed,” lead singer Fred Durst told Billboard. “Even if the performers, crews, staff and promoters do their best to ensure safety on and behind the stage, that doesn’t ensure the safety of the audience as a whole.”

Singer/songwriter Michael Buble performs at T-Mobile Arena on March 30, 2019 in Las Vegas, Nevada.Getty Images

Michael Buble

The singer/songwriter has postponed U.S. and South America tour dates in an attempt to avoid this summer’s surge of infections. “It is better for me to reschedule these shows to a time when all of us are confident that we can relax and enjoy the show,” the singer announced on Aug. 10.

Korn

On Aug. 14, Korn announced that singer Jonathan Davis had tested positive right before the band’s Scranton show, which they pushed to Sept. 25. Other tour dates in Northeast cities were postponed until October and shows in Darien and Syracuse, New York, were canceled.

Fall Out Boy

On Aug. 4, Fall Out Boy pulled two shows in New York City and Boston from their Hella Mega tour with Green Day, Weezer and The Interrupters after a member of the band’s team tested positive. Yet, they rocked Wrigley Field to its core on Aug. 15.

“Each band and their crew have operated in a bubble independently to safeguard everyone as much as possible at each show and in between shows,” Fall Out Boy wrote on Instagram.

Lynyrd Skynyrd

The American rock band canceled four shows this August after guitarist Rickey Medlocke tested positive for coronavirus. The band also postponed an Aug. 13 concert in Atlanta until Oct. 23.

Garth Brooks

On Aug. 18, the country music superstar canceled the next five shows on his stadium tour. “In July, I sincerely thought the pandemic was falling behind us. Now, watching this new wave, I realize we are still in the fight and I must do my part,” Brooks said in a statement. Brooks’ wife, singer Trisha Yearwood contracted COVID in February.

Neil Young performs at Painted Turtle Camp on September 14, 2019 in Lake Hughes, California.Getty Images

Neil Young

The singer/songwriter has withdrawn from the sold-out Farm Aid concert, where he was set to perform alongside Willie Nelson, John Mellencamp and Dave Matthews on Sept. 25.

“My soul tells me it would be wrong to risk having anyone die because they wanted to hear music,” he wrote in a message posted to the Neil Young Archives site. “All you people who can’t go to a concert because you still don’t feel safe, I stand with you. I don’t want you to see me playing and think it’s safe now.”

Movies

‘Avatar 2’

The release of the sequel to the 2009 blockbuster has been pushed from December 2021 to December 2022. All aspects of production have been delayed by COVID, according to a letter released by director James Cameron.

“As many of you are aware, due to COVID-19, we were forced into an unexpected lengthy delay in starting the live action filming we are currently doing in New Zealand,” he wrote. “What most of you likely do not know is that the pandemic is still preventing us from being allowed to recommence most of our virtual production work on stages in Los Angeles.”

‘The Batman’

“The Batman,” a new take on the Dark Knight starring Robert Pattinson, has been postponed from Oct. 1, 2021, to March 4, 2022, following a series of delays after cast members tested positive for COVID.

‘Clifford the Big Red Dog’

The family-friendly live action adaptation was set for release Sept. 17 but has been delayed to an as-yet undetermined date.

‘Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness’

In a domino effect of Marvel delays, the premiere of the “Doctor Strange” sequel has been pushed from November 2021 to March 25, 2022. It was originally set for release in May 2021.

Timothee Chalamet in “Dune.”Warner Bros.

‘Dune’

“Dune,” the star-studded movie adaptation of the sci-fi classic, was originally scheduled to premiere December 2020 but was delayed until Oct. 1, 2021, and then pushed again to Oct. 22 2021.

‘Halloween Kills’

The release of the horror reboot was pushed from October 2020 to October 2021, delaying its already scheduled sequel “Halloween Ends” a full year as well, until October 2022.

‘Jurassic World: Dominion’

“Jurassic World: Dominion,” the sixth installment of the blockbuster franchise, was postponed from June 11, 2021, until June 10, 2022.

‘The King’s Man’

The sequel to the “Kingsman” series has been continuously delayed from the original February 2020 release date until September 2020 and then again until Dec. 22, 2021.

‘Minions: Rise of Gru’

The release of “Minions: Rise of Gru” has been delayed a full two years from its original July 3, 2020, release date, to July 1, 2022.

‘Mission: Impossible 7’

“Mission: Impossible 7” was delayed from Nov. 19, 2021, to May 27, 2022, which pushed “Mission: Impossible 8” from a Nov. 4, 2022 release to July 7, 2023.

‘No Time to Die’

The 25th James Bond movie was originally scheduled for release April 2020 but has been delayed a third time until Oct. 8, 2021.

‘Shazam! Fury of the Gods’

The “Shazam!” sequel will now premiere on June 2, 2023, a year after its original June 3, 2022, release date.

‘Thor: Love and Thunder’

In a series of delays to the Marvel Cinematic Universe, the fourth “Thor” movie was moved from its original Nov. 5, 2021, release to Feb. 11, 2022, and then again to May 6, 2022.

‘Top Gun: Maverick’

The sequel to Tom Cruise’s 1986 classic has been pushed back twice by the pandemic and is now scheduled for Nov. 19, 2021.

‘Venom: Let There Be Carnage’

The “Venom” sequel will now come out on Oct. 15 instead of Sept. 24. This is the third delay to the release, which was initially scheduled for Oct. 2, 2020.

Festivals

New Orleans Jazz and Heritage Festival

The New Orleans Jazz and Heritage Festival, which was scheduled to run Oct. 8-10 and Oct. 15-17, has been canceled in response to the overwhelming rise in Louisiana’s COVID cases. The festival, which had already been postponed from spring, will offer ticketholders refunds and rollovers to next year’s event, which is scheduled for May.

“In the meantime, we urge everyone to follow the guidelines and protocols put forth by public health officials, so that we can all soon experience together the joy that is Jazz Fest,” the announcement read.

Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo

The Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo has canceled all its 2021 events and entertainment options, including the rodeo competitions, after already being delayed until May to accommodate the ongoing coronavirus crisis.

President and CEO Chris Boleman announced on Feb. 3: “While we were optimistic that moving our Rodeo to May would provide a better opportunity to host our annual community event that Rodeo fans have come to love and expect, unfortunately, it has become evident that the current health situation has not improved to the degree necessary to host our event.”

Gulf Coast Jam

The Pepsi Gulf Coast Jam music festival, which successfully hosted country music lovers in Panama City Beach, Florida, this June, has postponed its Labor Day event until June 3-5, 2022.

In the release announcing the delay, organizers cited Bay County, Florida’s surge in cases this summer and promised ticketholders rollovers and refunds.

Coachella and Stagecoach

In January, the Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival and Stagecoach country music festival, which were scheduled for April, were canceled.

The announcement marked the third time the Coachella festival was canceled because of the pandemic. “We look forward to when the events may return,” Riverside County Public Health Officer Dr. Cameron Kaiser wrote.

Electric Forest

The outdoor music festival in Rothbury, Michigan, was canceled for the second year in a row this April and postponed until 2022.

“We must balance our optimism with realism – and we must respect the process in place, the efforts underway, and the sacrifices we’ve all made over the last year in an effort to keep each other safe,” the announcement read.

Read more at usatoday.com

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Four men were wounded in a shooting Thursday afternoon inside a business in Bronzeville on the South Side.

They were inside a business about 4:10 p.m. in the 300 block of East 47th Street when two people opened fire, Chicago police said.

A 30-year-old man was struck in the chest and transported to the University of Chicago Medical Center in critical condition, police said.

A man, 36, suffered gunshot wounds to the head and ankle and another man, 36, was hit in the wrist, police said. The fourth victim, a 60-year-old man, was struck in the thigh, police said. They were taken to the same hospital and all listed in good condition.

There is no one in custody.

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The prolific and brilliant Spike Lee has always represented his home of New York City with the greatest of pride but also an unblinking social conscience, wearing his love for NYC on his Yankees baseball cap and his Knicks jerseys, and of course most importantly through such lasting feature films as “Do the Right Thing,” “Crooklyn,” “25th Hour, “She’s Gotta Have It,” and “Inside Man.”

Lee also has focused on other elements of life in America by directing such invaluable documentaries as “4 Little Girls,” “David Byrne’s American Utopia” and “When the Levees Broke: A Requiem in Four Acts” — so given his passion for New York and his non-fiction storytelling gifts, who better than Lee to direct an epic, four-part, nearly eight-hour HBO documentary series about the complex and rich and tragic and beautiful and heartbreaking and inspiring world of New York City in the 21st century?

In the comprehensive and illuminating “NYC Epicenters 9/11 ? 2021 1/2 ,” Lee conducts 200 interviews with New Yorkers from all walks, from health care workers to journalists to firefighters to actors to politicians, while often offering his own, typically strong and vocal opinions about everything from 9/11 to the Black Lives Matter movement to Donald Trump to the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic. (I’ve seen three of the four episodes.) And while the series is New York City to its very core and only occasionally visits stories in other parts of America, the people we meet and the stories they tell and the hardships they endure and the battles they fight are relatable to the rest of the country and most of the world.

Episode 1 is largely about the outbreak of the pandemic, as politicians, front line health care workers, patients and journalists recall the early days of uncertainty followed by the months and months of tragedy. Every time new interview subjects are introduced, they introduce themselves on camera, e.g. “My name is Chuck Scarborough, I’m a news anchor at NBC-4 New York and I’ve been working there since 1976,” “My name is Sylvie De Souza, I’m the Chair of Emergency Medicine at the Brooklyn Hospital Center,” “I’m Bill de Blasio, 109th mayor of the City of New York,” etc. Virtually every interview provides a new and unique perspective. Lee serves as off-camera interviewer, allowing the subjects and the stories they tell to be front and center. (Not that he doesn’t inject his unique phrasing and his unfiltered opinions; when Donald Trump is onscreen, the graphic refers to him as “President Agent Orange.” In a later episode, Barack Obama is identified as “President Barack ‘Brudda Man’ Obama.”)

During “Epicenters,” Spike Lee identifies Donald Trump as “President Agent Orange.”HBO

“Epicenters” eventually expands into lengthy treatments of the Black Lives Matter movement; the marches and rallies and conflicts across the USA in the summer of 2020; the dangerous spread of misinformation about COVID and the vaccines, and the mob attack on the U.S. Capitol of Jan. 6. Never one to opt for the more subtle notes, Lee at one point plays a live version of Bruce Hornsby singing the social protest anthem “The Way It Is,” while we see still photos and mug shots of insurrectionists.

The third installment is all about 9/11. Lee starts with a clip of from “On the Town” (1949), with Frank Sinatra, Gene Kelly and Jules Munshin as sailors trying to experience all that New York has to offer in 24 hours. We then segue to footage of the building of the World Trade Center in the 1970s, accompanied by “Fanfare for the Common Man” by Brooklyn native Aaron Copland. Soon thereafter, we’re plunged into the waking nightmare that was 9/11, with witness after witness saying at first the whole thing felt like it was something out of a movie.

AP

We’ve seen much of this footage and heard many of these stories before, but it’s still a devastating reminder of one of the most horrific days in American history. There is an extended passage about one aspect of the rescue efforts that was relatively overlooked: the maritime evacuation of more than a half-million people from Lower Manhattan by a convoy of Coast Guard vessels, NYPD Harbor Unit boats and ships, fireboats, merchant ships, tugboats and civilian ferries.

Through it all, Spike Lee’s lifelong love affair with New York City and its people is fierce and unwavering.

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Don’t boo Mitch Trubisky when he returns to Soldier Field. That’d be petty, misguided and embarrassing.

All the exasperation of the Bears drafting should be directed at Ryan Pace. Boo him instead — if you can find him, that is.

Trubisky has been taking heat for Pace’s mistake of trading up to take him No. 2 overall in 2017 — turning down Patrick Mahomes and Deshaun Watson — ever since he got booed at a Bulls playoff game the day after the draft. But, to both his credit and his detriment, he did everything right as he tried to live up to what the Bears thought they saw in him.

That’s why no one actually hates Trubisky, neither at Halas Hall nor beyond.

He never lost support from people in the building, including the locker room, because he worked constantly. This isn’t a guy who squandered his chance through recklessness and entitlement. His shortfalls in mastering the playbook and reading defenses weren’t from a lack of trying. He was gritty. And he never dodged blame.

“You earn trust by the way you handle yourself in practice and in meetings and on the game day,” coach Matt Nagy said. “Mitch is an extremely tough individual. Really, last year, it could have been easy for him to just say, “You know what, I’m not playing anymore, I got injured and I’m done.’ And he didn’t do that. He fought back.”

Unfortunately for Trubisky, talent matters most. Jay Cutler — the gold standard for modern Bears quarterbacks, sadly — was good enough on the field that no one cared much how he acted away from it.

And now that the Bears have moved on with a more impressive talent in rookie Justin Fields, there’s no point in wallowing in Trubisky’s disappointing four-year run.

“That’s still my guy, still my brother,” safety Eddie Jackson said. “I want the best for him and his family… He can put all this stuff behind him and prove people wrong.”

If Trubisky got the opportunity Nick Foles did a few years ago and jumped in for the Bills during the playoffs, Chicago would root for him. Obviously the Bears don’t think he’ll go on to be great, but they hope it happens for him.

And on that note, there was nothing profound about Trubisky saying last month that he sensed the organization “continuously believing in me less and less.”

That couldn’t have been more obvious. That’s exactly what’s happening when a team declines a fifth-year option, trades for a veteran at your position and benches you three games into the season. Of course the Bears lost faith. Clinging to it would’ve been delusional.

“I’m excited for him to go back to Chicago,” Bills running back Matt Breida said, “and show them they made a mistake.”

Let’s chill on that, Breida. It’s a preseason game.

Also, it will never be a mistake. Bailing on Trubisky was the smartest thing the Bears did in the entire ordeal. Regardless of whether he thrives with a new team, it wasn’t going to work out here.

Nearly everything about that boondoggle falls on Pace and Nagy.

“It would not be fair to put everything on him,” Nagy said of Trubisky. “There’s a lot of things that went into that. And I know that he’s a resilient guy and he’s going to do everything he can to have a successful career.”

Trubisky didn’t draft himself No. 2 overall, nor did he unnecessarily trade a package of picks.

Trubisky didn’t give himself a higher pre-draft grade than a future Hall of Famer in Mahomes.

Trubisky didn’t catch the Bears’ interest with his athleticism and then insist that he “win from the pocket” instead of relying on his mobility.

If anyone deserves booing, it’s not him. He did what he could. He simply wasn’t good enough. Pace is the one who should’ve known better.

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Black men in mainstream television and movies are often relegated to two types of roles — athletes and criminals — with minimal nuance.

A TV series produced by former Bear Thomas Q. Jones aims to change the pace.

“Johnson,” which airs 7 p.m. Sundays on Bounce TV, details the lives of four lifelong friends — Black men with the same last name who aren’t related — who are dealing with fatherhood, careers, the stigma regarding mental health, divorce, relationships, entrepreneurship, microaggressions, barbershop appointments and massaging hair care products into their lover’s scalp, among many other topics.

“This is an original show, an original idea, and an original concept,” said Jones. “The whole show is seen through our perspective. No veering left or right at all. We keep our narrative consistent. It reinforces everything that we put together — all the money, time, sweat, and tears.”

Jones, a running back who played in 12 NFL seasons — three with the Bears — followed up his NFL days by building an acting resume. In pop culture he’s more known for his “Straight Outta Compton,” “Luke Cage,” “Being Mary Jane,” “P-Valley” and “Bosch” roles, among many other acting credits, than his time on the gridiron.

“I think I went into [acting] with the mindset — to be honest — wanting to reinvent myself and get away from football,” said Jones, who plays Omar on the series. “I’m not the guy who just played for the Jets and Bears. I wasn’t a football player — I played football.”

“Johnson” debuted earlier this month to 2 million viewers, becoming the most-watched half-hour series in network history, officials said. Bounce TV

Why name the series “Johnson”?

Series creator Deji Laray (“Bosch,” “Greenleaf”) wanted to bring to light that Johnson is a common surname among Black folks.

“I don’t think it’s a secret that Black men and Black women historically haven’t been accurately represented in the media,” said Laray. “There has been some representation here and there I think we can be proud of. Ultimately, it’s all about balance.

“Johnson is the most common African American last name in the United States. We all know a Johnson; we’re all related to Johnson. We all have the same experiences as Black men, but you know when you go to our first names — Greg, Omar, Jarvis and Keith — you peel back those layers and you see how different we are once you get past the last name.”

The series — which has Cedric the Entertainer as an executive producer, and fellow “Kings of Comedy” star D.L Hughley as a recurring character — seems to indicate that viewers want more than what they’ve been offered historically, as “Johnson” debuted earlier this month to 2 million viewers. That’s the most-watched half-hour series in the history of Bounce, which is available on Roku, on many cable and satellite systems, and on Chicago’s Channel 38.2.

“We’re happy that people respect how grounded the show is,” said Laray. “We’re happy that men and women feel like the show is balanced.”

In the aftermath of the series’ initial success, Jones recalls the feedback he received from industry gatekeepers when shopping the pilot.

“They just didn’t think that people would actually tune in for 10 episodes of Black men having a voice in something not being street drama or a straight comedy,” said Jones. “One person we pitched the show to has brothers and uncles, so when she saw the pilot, she understood completely — It took one person.”

Thomas Q. Jones (pictured in 2005) played three seasons for the Bears.Getty Images

The series also normalizes a niche — often met with amazement and ridicule — rarely seen in movies and TV: Black hockey fandom.

“I think what we do there is that we make the audience aware that there is this mindset that [hockey] isn’t 100 percent accepted in the Black community,” said Laray. “You know there is that stereotype about this sport, but we also normalize it. … It’s really up to the audience to figure out who they’re gonna side with on their opinion on this.

“Greg [the character played by Laray] and Jarvis [Derrex Brady] make a pretty good case that this is a sport like any other sport and there’s nothing wrong with people loving hockey, people playing hockey, and finding it a great sport to watch.”

And the takeaway from the show?

“To show Black men in all of our glory and in all of our flaws as well — we’re chasing greatness,” Laray says. “We’re brothers, we have goals, we have dreams, and we have good intentions.”

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A parolee is accused of gunning down a man who was riding in a van with his girlfriend and daughter when he was shot in Humboldt Park.

Angel Figueroa, 38, was in the passenger seat of the van when Justin Cortes opened fire in the 3400 block of West Division Street on Aug. 6, Cook County prosecutors said.

Before the deadly shooting, Figueroa’s girlfriend, who was driving the van, noticed a Hyundai Santa Fe following them at Spaulding Avenue, prosecutors said. Eventually, the Sante Fe pulled up alongside the van and its driver, who had on a reflective green vest, allegedly fired one shot, striking Figueroa in the face.

A television crew filming nearby heard the gunshot and then a woman’s screams. They also saw the van drive off after the shooting, prosecutors said. Figueroa’s girlfriend drove him to Humboldt Park Health Hospital, where he was pronounced dead.

Detectives used private and city surveillance cameras to track the Sante Fe to the Smoke’n’Snack, at 3333 W North Ave. Surveillance videos at the Smoke’n’Snack show the car — which is registered to Cortes’ mother — at the business just minutes before the shooting, prosecutors said.

The video also shows 25-year-old Cortes, who has tattoos over each eye, making a purchase inside the store, prosecutors said. His cellphone also allegedly pinged to a cellphone tower near the scene of the crime and at the time gunfire erupted.

There is also a police body-camera recording of Cortes following a car crash involving the Santa Fe on Aug. 8, prosecutors said.

He was arrested Wednesday, Chicago police said.

Cortes was on parole for a 2016 home invasion conviction at the time of the murder. He was charged with illegal gun possession by a felon in June but never appeared for a bond hearing, prosecutors said.

Cortes was ordered held without bail Thursday for Figueroa’s murder.

Read more on crime, and track the city’s homicides.

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WASHINGTON — A North Carolina man who claimed to have a bomb in a pickup truck near the U.S. Capitol surrendered to law enforcement after an hourslong standoff Thursday that prompted a massive police response and the evacuations of government buildings in the area.

Police did not immediately know if there were explosives in the vehicle, but authorities were searching the truck in an effort to understand what led the suspect, identified as 49-year-old Floyd Ray Roseberry, to drive onto the sidewalk outside the Library of Congress, make bomb threats to officers and profess a litany of antigovernment grievances as part of a bizarre episode that he live-streamed for a Facebook audience.

The standoff was resolved peacefully after roughly five hours of negotiations, ending when Roseberry crawled out of the truck and was taken into police custody. But even in a city with a long history of dramatic law enforcement encounters outside federal landmarks, this episode was notable for its timing — Washington remains on edge eight months after the insurrection at the U.S. Capitol — and for the way the suspect harnessed social media to draw attention in real time to his actions.

Authorities who spent hours negotiating with Roseberry — first using a dry erase board and then bringing him a telephone that he refused to use — were digging into his background Thursday afternoon. They did not reveal any details about a motive, and no charges were immediately announced.

Investigators had been speaking with members of Roseberry’s family and learned that his mother had recently died, Capitol Police Chief J. Thomas Manger said. “There were other issues he was dealing with,” the chief said, without providing specific details.

But social media appeared to offer its own clues.

As police continued negotiations, video surfaced of Roseberry on Facebook Live inside the truck, which was stuffed with coins and boxes. He threatened explosions, expressed hostility toward President Joe Biden, profanely warned of a “revolution” and laid bare a series of grievances related to U.S. positions on Afghanistan, health care and the military.

Roseberry’s ex-wife, Crystal Roseberry, said she had seen images of the man in the standoff at the Capitol and confirmed to The Associated Press that it was her ex-husband. She said had never known him to have explosives, but he was an avid collector of firearms.

Videos posted to Facebook before the page was taken down appear to show Roseberry at the Nov. 14 Washington rally attended by thousands of Trump supporters to protest what they claimed was a stolen election. One video appears to be filmed by Roseberry as he’s marching with a crowd of hundreds of people carrying American flags and Trump flags and shouting “stop the steal.”

Thursday’s incident began around 9:15 a.m. when a truck drove up the sidewalk outside the library. The driver told the responding officer he had a bomb, and he was holding what the officer believed to be a detonator. The truck had no license plates.

Kelsey Campbell, a student at the University of Wisconsin-Madison visiting Washington as part of a class trip, said she and another student encountered Roseberry around 9:20 a.m. outside the nearby Supreme Court building. Campbell said he was with his truck, which was parked next to the sidewalk, and was holding a large stack of dollar bills.

“He said, ‘Hey, call the police, tell them to evacuate this street, and I’ll give you all this money,'” Campbell recounted to The AP. “I said, ‘No!’ and he threw the money at us and we started running.”

Campbell said she and the other student saw some police officers standing nearby. They told the officers what happened, and the officers then went to confront Roseberry.

The standoff brought the area surrounding the Capitol to a virtual standstill as police emptied buildings and cordoned off streets as a precaution. Congress is in recess this week, but staffers were seen calmly walking out of the area at the direction of authorities.

Police were still searching the vehicle Thursday afternoon and had identified some “concerning” items, like propane containers in the bed of the truck, Manger said. But it wasn’t clear whether Roseberry had any explosives in the vehicle.

“We don’t know if there are any explosives in the vehicle, it’s still an active scene,” Manger said.

The nation’s capital has been tense since the Jan. 6 insurrection at the Capitol by supporters of then-President Donald Trump.

A day before thousands of pro-Trump rioters stormed the Capitol, pipe bombs were left at the headquarters of the Democratic National Committee and the Republican National Committee in Washington. No one has been arrested yet for placing the bombs.

The RNC, not far from where the truck was parked Thursday, was also evacuated over the threat. A spokesman for the DNC said its headquarters, which is located farther away from the truck’s location, was put under lockdown, but that lockdown has been lifted.

Thursday’s incident marked the third time in as many weeks that federal and military law enforcement authorities had to respond to attacks or possible threats. Officials are also jittery over a planned rally in September.

___

Long reported from New Buffalo, Michigan. Associated Press writers Alanna Durkin Richer in Boston, Tom Foreman Jr. in Charlotte, North Carolina, and Zeke Miller, Nathan Ellgren, Ashraf Khalil and Alex Brandon in Washington contributed to this report.

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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 partly sunny with a chance of thunderstorms and a high near 86 degrees. Tonight will be mostly clear with isolated showers and thunderstorms and a low around 70. Tomorrow will be mostly sunny with a high near 87.

Top story

Chicago Park District’s deputy inspector general says he was suspended illegally to ‘whitewash’ lifeguard abuse investigation

The Chicago Park District’s deputy inspector general said today he was placed on “indefinite, unpaid emergency” suspension last week in what he called an illegal attempt to whitewash an investigation into rampant sexual assault, sexual harassment and physical abuse among the district’s lifeguards.

Until he was walked out of Park District headquarters last week, Nathan Kipp led the internal investigation of lifeguards at Chicago’s pools and lakefront beaches that has implicated Park District Supt. Mike Kelly in an alleged cover-up.

One of only two investigators assigned to the probe, Kipp had spent a year as acting inspector general. He was a candidate for the job that went to Elaine Little, ex-wife of State Rep. Curtis Tarver (D-Chicago).

Kipp said he was given no reason for his suspension. He called it “shocking,” “meritless” and “illegal,” since it was not ordered by Little and, he added, only the inspector general has the “authority to recommend discipline” for her staff.

Nevertheless, Kipp said he has no doubt about the motivation behind his suspension.

“This meritless action is a clear attempt by Park District officials to impede and obstruct a devastating investigation into widespread sexual assault, sexual harassment and physical abuse throughout the District’s Beaches & Pools Unit,” Kipp was quoted as saying in a four-page statement.

The investigation by the park district’s inspector general “is not independent, as Mr. Kelly falsely assures. Instead, the Park District and its Board of Commissioners have repeatedly and unsuccessfully exerted improper influence over the OIG [office of the inspector general] with the apparent goal of ending the investigation prematurely and as quietly as possible.”

Fran Spielman and Lauren FitzPatrick have more on the disfunction with the city’s Park District here.

More news you need

Thousands of mourners gathered today for the funeral of Chicago police officer Ella French, who was killed during an Aug. 7 traffic stop. In a speech during the service, French’s mother, Elizabeth, said she was there with only “half a heart” since one of her children is gone.

Four police officers and a teen standing outside the church where Officer French’s funeral was being held suffered possible heatstroke. They were all taken to hospitals, a fire official said.

A former Melrose Park cop today became the latest gambling defendant in Chicago’s federal court to avoid prison time when a judge ordered him to serve six months in home detention. Amabile pleaded guilty in April to running an illegal gambling business with a bookie with purported mob ties.
A key accuser at R. Kelly’s sex-trafficking trial returned to the witness stand today in Brooklyn. She testified that she was told to follow “Rob’s rules” — restrictions on how she could dress, who she could speak with and when she could use the bathroom.

Opioid-related deaths are still high in Chicago as the West Side remains the epicenter of the crisis, Block Club Chicago reports. Reporter Francesca Mathewes caught up with a local task force of residents who work to prevent and respond to overdoses.

A bright one

10 to see at Ruido Fest, scaled back but still packing plenty of star power

After losing its 2020 edition due to the coronavirus pandemic, Ruido Fest returns this weekend for its annual three-day run in Chicago.

“Ruido” means “noise” in English, and there will be plenty of musical exuberance tomorrow through Sunday at Union Park, once again the site for this alternative Latin music festival, with appearances by powerhouses such as Cafe Tacuba, Caifanes, Ivy Queen and Panteon Rococo.

The three locally-based promoters of Ruido Fest — Metronome Chicago, Riot Fest Presents and Star Events — have scaled down the event this year due to COVID-19. Instead of the usual 50-plus acts on three stages, there will be 31 acts on two stages. Attendees will need to provide proof of vaccination or a negative COVID-19 test (within 72 hours prior) for admittance.

If you decide to go, here are some must-see artists to add to your list:

Cafe Tacuba

Ruben Albarran of Cafe Tacuba performs during the Grito Latino Fest at Parque Viva in Alajuela, Costa Rica, on March 31, 2019. Ezequiel Bercerra/Getty Images

Over its 32-year run, the Mexican quartet Cafe Tacuba has thrown virtually every traditional Mexican style — son, norteno, ranchera, bolero, cumbia — into its alt-Latin mix, layered over a foundation of guitar rock.

Ambar Lucid

Ambar Lucid performs at SXSW in Austin on March 13, 2019.Photo by Michael Loccisano/Getty Images for SXSW

Born in New Jersey, the singer-songwriter has arrived like a comet, with Pitchfork, Rolling Stone and the New York Times singing her praises. At 20 years old, she plays with the skill of a seasoned performer on her EP “Get Lost in the Music.”

Ivy Queen

Ivy Queen performs onstage during Univision’s 33rd Edition of Premio Lo Nuestro a la Musica Latina at American Airlines Arena on February 18, 2021 in Miami.Rodrigo Varela/Getty Images

Hailed as “The Queen of Reggaeton” ever since she emerged on the scene in the late ’90s, the New York-reared diva stands tall (even without her trademark stilettos) in a male-dominated genre.

See Laura Emerick’s full list of can’t-miss artists performing at Ruido here.

From the press box

Bears fans can calm down. Quarterback Justin Fields returned to practice Thursday and the team expects him to play in Saturday’s preseason game against the Buffalo Bills. Coach Matt Nagy held him out of Wednesday’s practice because of a groin injury.
Marist, which is No. 6 in the Sun-Times’ high school football preseason rankings, doesn’t return many starters from the spring season, but the RedHawks have two of the top talents in the area in quarterback Dontrell Jackson Jr. and offensive lineman Deuce McGuire.
After suffering an ankle injury Tuesday against the Wings, Sky’s Candace Parker is “day to day,” said coach and general manager James Wade. It is her second injury to her left ankle this season.

Your daily question ?

What’s one touristy activity that you, as a Chicagoan, have never done?

Reply to this email (please include your first name and where you live) and we might feature your answer in the next Afternoon Edition.

Yesterday, we asked you: What is the best TV show set in Chicago? Tell us why. Here’s what some of you said…

“‘Chicago P.D.’ — so many recognizable places. Love the real snow and cold weather where you genuinely see their breath as they talk. It’s so good to watch a show that is actually filmed where it portrays.” — Linda Kuhel Jones

“I’m torn between ‘The Bob Newhart Show’ and ‘Good Times.’ Both are iconic Chicago series with wonderful title sequences of the city.” — Meg Rhem

“‘Kolchak the Night Stalker.’ Carl missed a World Series game between Cubs and Red Sox to chase a UFO! Darren McGavin was one of the greats.” — Joe Burns

“‘Early Edition.’ Not only did it feature the Sun-Times every episode but it was a feel good show that my whole family enjoyed watching and it showed many areas of Chicago — not to mention the cute cat.” — Becky Weber

“‘The Chi’ or ‘Southside’ for sure. Shame on Shameless for moving away and phoning it in.” — Anthony Gino Manderino

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A man who was wounded in a shooting Sunday in Little Village on the Southwest Side has died.

Eric Jara, 40, was pronounced dead at 2:44 a.m. Wednesday at Mount Sinai Hospital, the Cook County medical examiner’s office said.

On Sunday, he was in a vehicle with a 19-year-old man about 1:25 a.m. in the 2700 block of South Drake Avenue when someone unleashed gunfire, Chicago police said.

Jara was struck multiple times, while the other man suffered a gunshot wound to his leg, officials said. Both men were hospitalized in critical condition at the time.

No arrests have been reported, Area Four detectives are investigating.

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NEW YORK — A key accuser at the R. Kelly sex-trafficking trial returned to the witness stand on Thursday, weeping when a prosecutor asked her to read out loud from a journal entry describing how he allegedly beat and choked her the last time they were together in 2010.

Jerhonda Pace, who had remained stoic during nearly two days on the witness stand, read how Kelly cursed at her and slapped her three times, telling her, “It’s not going to be an open fist next time.” She wrote that he choked her and sexually assaulted her before she “became fed up with him” and left.

The witness, who is pregnant and only a few days from her due date, asked for a break so she could compose herself.

Pace resumed her testimony in Brooklyn federal court a day after telling jurors she was a 16-year-old virgin and a member of Kelly’s fan club when he invited her to his mansion in 2010. While there, she said, she was told to follow “Rob’s rules” — edicts restricting how she could dress, who she could speak with and when she could use the bathroom.

She said Kelly — born Robert Sylvester Kelly — sometimes demanded she wear pigtails and “dress like a Girl Scout” during sexual encounters that Kelly often videotaped.

On cross examination, defense attorney Deveraux Cannick sought to show Pace hid her true motivations regarding Kelly and deceived him by lying about her age.

“You were in fact stalking him, right?” Cannick asked.

“That is not right,” she responded.

Pace had testified earlier the she told Kelly she was 19 when they met but had informed him she was only 16 by the time he sexually abused her.

Cannick confronted her with a lawsuit settlement she signed indicating she agreed she never revealed to Kelly that she was a minor. She said it was in exchange for hush money.

The questioning fit a theme that defense lawyers have repeatedly pushed early in the trial: Kelly was victimized by groupies who hounded him at shows and afterward, only to turn against him years later when public sentiment shifted against him, they allege.

To bolster their claims against Kelly, prosecutors showed jurors screenshots from Pace’s phone showing several communications with Kelly in January 2010, including a text from him reading, “Please call.” There was also a photo of her with “Rob” tattooed to her chest. She said she’s since “covered it up with a black heart.”

Pace, the trial’s first witness, was among multiple female accusers — mostly referred to in court as “Jane Does” — expected to testify at a trial scheduled to last several weeks. Other likely witnesses include cooperating former associates who have never spoken publicly before about their experiences with Kelly.

The Associated Press doesn’t name alleged victims of sexual abuse without their consent unless they have shared their identities publicly. Pace has appeared in a documentary and participated in media interviews.

Kelly, 54, has denied accusations that he preyed on Pace and other victims during a 30-year career highlighted by his smash hit “I Believe I Can Fly,” a 1996 song that became an inspirational anthem played at school graduations, weddings, advertisements and elsewhere.

The testimony comes more than a decade after Kelly was acquitted in a 2008 child pornography case in Chicago. The reprieve allowed his music career to continue until the #MeToo era caught up with him, emboldening alleged victims to come forward.

The women’s stories got wide exposure with the Lifetime documentary “Surviving R. Kelly.” The series explored how an entourage of supporters protected Kelly and silenced his victims for decades, foreshadowing the federal racketeering conspiracy case that landed Kelly in jail in 2019.

The trial is occurring before an anonymous jury of seven men and five women. Following several delays due mostly to the pandemic, the trial unfolds under coronavirus precautions restricting the press and the public to overflow courtrooms with video feeds.

The New York case is only part of the legal peril facing the singer. He also has pleaded not guilty to sex-related charges in Illinois and Minnesota.

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