Federal prosecutors have filed criminal charges against an Indiana man who allegedly acted as the so-called straw purchaser of the handgun used in the weekend shooting of two Chicago police officers.
Jamel Danzy, 29, of Hammond, was arrested Sunday and is being held in federal custody pending a detention hearing set for Wednesday afternoon. His lawyer noted during a court hearing Monday that he has no criminal history. He is charged with conspiracy to violate federal firearm laws.
The weekend shooting took the life of Officer Ella French, 29, and left another officer in critical condition. The feds’ decision to swiftly file charges in connection with French’s death followed a visit last month by Attorney General Merrick Garland to Chicago, where he touted a new program meant to combat gun violence in Chicago and other cities.
That program is meant, in part, to target so-called straw-purchasers who use their clean records to help put guns in the hands of people who shouldn’t have them. A federal judge recently handed an eight-month prison sentence to a straw-purchaser connected to a December 2019 mass shooting. Danzy faces a maximum of five years behind bars.
A 10-page criminal complaint filed against Danzy shows that investigators worked well into the night following the 9 p.m. shooting Saturday at 63rd and Bell Avenue — initiating a trace of the gun that killed French at 1:15 a.m. Sunday morning.
The criminal complaint alleges that the Honda CR-V stopped by the officers was registered to Danzy, though he was not present at the shooting. The complaint also says authorities traced the gun used to kill French to Danzy through the ATF National Tracing Center. Danzy allegedly purchased the gun from a licensed dealer in Hammond on March 18.
Federal agents approached Danzy on Sunday at a Munster restaurant where he works, according to the complaint. Danzy agreed to speak to the agents, and he initially told them his purchase of the gun was legitimate, according to the complaint. Eventually, the feds say he admitted he was lying and that he had bought the gun for someone he knew could not legally purchase it because of a criminal conviction.
Authorities say that person was convicted of felony theft in 2019 in Dane County, Wisconsin. He was sentenced to three years of probation.
That person was among those taken into custody following French’s shooting, according to the feds. That person was in possession of a Glock .22-caliber semi-automatic pistol, which the feds say was the gun used to kill French.
The gun allegedly used to kill Officer Ella French.U.S. District Court records
When Hassan Brewer stared at a woman at a West Garfield Park restaurant over the weekend, her boyfriend accosted him, Cook County prosecutors said Monday.
That confrontation led to a physical altercation between the two men and ended with 31-year-old Brewer allegedly opening fire, seriously wounding his rival.
The victim, 27, was taken to Mount Sinai Hospital in serious condition and underwent surgery over the weekend, authorities said.
His condition has since been upgraded to “good,” prosecutors said.
The man was waiting for his food with his girlfriend at the restaurant at 8:05 p.m. Saturday when he noticed Brewer gazing at his girlfriend, prosecutors said.
After the two exchanged words, Brewer pushed the man, who responded by punching Brewer in the face, prosecutors said.
Brewer eventually left the restaurant. But he returned moments later armed with a loaded gun, prosecutors said. Brewer allegedly went on to fire the weapon from the restaurant’s doorway, shooting the man at close range in the buttocks, back and thighs.
Brewer, who was shot in the arm by a restaurant security guard, then ran out of the business, prosecutors said.
He was arrested less than an hour later in the 1900 block of West Ogden Avenue, police said.
The fight and subsequent shooting was captured on surveillance video and the victim and his girlfriend identified Brewer as the shooter in a photo array, prosecutors said.
An assistant public defender pointed out that the security guard failed to identify Brewer and argued that Brewer opened fire to defend himself.
But Judge Charles Beach noted, “It’s not as though this was the heat of the moment thing. He left the restaurant and returned.”
Beach then ordered Brewer, a father of four, held without bail for attempted murder and aggravated battery with a firearm.
Brewer has three prior felony convictions, including a 2017 unlawful use of a weapon. Prosecutors said he was currently on parole for that conviction, although Brewer seemed to indicate his parole was over.
NEW YORK — After several delays, the first phase of the sex trafficking trial of R&B hitmaker R. Kelly started Monday with jury selection in New York City.
Lingering health threats caused by the coronavirus pandemic and a shakeup of Kelly’s defense team pushed the trial into the summer, nearly two years after he was charged with abusing women and girls for nearly two decades.
U.S. District Judge Ann Donnelly began questioning potential jurors about whether they can keep an open mind about Kelly two years after he was charged with abusing women and girls for nearly two decades. She reminded them the defendant was presumed innocent and that they should not be influenced by any bad publicity Kelly has faced over the accusations.
The proceeding was being conducted amid pandemic precautions, restricting the press and the public to overflow courtrooms with video feeds. Much of the time, Kelly and potential jurors weren’t clearly visible on the feeds and the audio was often faint.
More screening was set for Tuesday. It was unclear how long the process will take.
Kelly, 54, has been locked up since he was indicted, mostly housed in a federal jail in Chicago. He was moved last month to the federal Metropolitan Detention Center in Brooklyn to face trial in a case that’s further diminished his superstar status.
Last week, defense attorney Deveraux Cannick told a judge that Kelly needs to be measured for new clothing because he’s gained so much weight in jail. And he asked that court transcripts be provided at no cost because Kelly has been unable to work for two years, saying: “His funds are depleted.”
The Grammy-winning, multiplatinum-selling singer has denied any wrongdoing and pleaded not guilty to charges accusing him of leading an enterprise of managers, bodyguards and other employees who helped him recruit women and girls for sex. Federal prosecutors say the group selected victims at concerts and other venues and arranged for them to travel to see Kelly.
New to the R. Kelly case?
Need a refresher on what’s happened so far?
Check out these links for everything you need to know about Kelly’s federal trial in Brooklyn.
Defense lawyers have said Kelly’s alleged victims were groupies who turned up at his shows and made it known they “were dying to be with him.” They only started accusing him of abuse years later when public sentiment shifted in the #MeToo era, they said.
The trial had been expected to start earlier in the year. But opening statements were moved to Aug. 18 after Kelly fired his original lawyers.
Jurors are expected to hear testimony from several of his accusers. A judge has ruled that the women will only be referred to by their first names.
Prosecutors also are expected to offer evidence that Kelly schemed with others to pay for a fake ID for Aaliyah, a singer on the rise at 15 years old, in a secret ceremony in 1994.
Aaliyah is identified as “Jane Doe #1” in court papers because she was still a minor when Kelly began a sexual relationship with her and believed she had become pregnant, the papers say.
“As a result, in an effort to shield himself from criminal charges related to his illegal sexual relationship with Jane Doe #1, Kelly arranged to secretly marry her to prevent her from being compelled to testify against him in the future,” the papers say.
Aaliyah, whose full name was Aaliyah Dana Haughton, worked with Kelly, who wrote and produced her 1994 debut album, “Age Ain’t Nothing But A Number.” She died in a plane crash in 2001 at age 22.
The case is only part of the legal peril facing the singer, born Robert Sylvester Kelly. He also has pleaded not guilty to sex-related charges in Illinois and Minnesota.
Kelly won multiple Grammys for “I Believe I Can Fly,” a 1996 song that became an inspirational anthem played at school graduations, weddings, advertisements and elsewhere.
Nearly a decade later, he began releasing what eventually became 22 musical chapters of “Trapped in the Closet,” a drama that spins a tale of sexual deceit and became a cult classic.
But Kelly has been trailed for decades by complaints and allegations about his sexual behavior, including a 2002 child pornography case in Chicago. He was acquitted in that case in 2008.
Scrutiny intensified again amid the #MeToo movement in recent years, with multiple women going public with accusations against the singer. The pressure intensified with the release of the Lifetime documentary “Surviving R. Kelly” in 2019.
NEW YORK — After several delays, the first phase of the sex trafficking trial of R&B hitmaker R. Kelly started Monday with jury selection in New York City.
Lingering health threats caused by the coronavirus pandemic and a shakeup of Kelly’s defense team pushed the trial into the summer, nearly two years after he was charged with abusing women and girls for nearly two decades.
U.S. District Judge Ann Donnelly began questioning potential jurors about whether they can keep an open mind about Kelly two years after he was charged with abusing women and girls for nearly two decades. She reminded them the defendant was presumed innocent and that they should not be influenced by anything they’ve previously heard about the case.
The proceeding was being conducted amid pandemic precautions, restricting the press and the public to overflow courtrooms with video feeds. Much of the time, Kelly and potential jurors weren’t clearly visible on the feeds and the audio was often faint.
The process was expected to last at least until the end of the day Monday and possibly into Tuesday.
Kelly, 54, has been locked up since he was indicted, mostly housed in a federal jail in Chicago. He was moved last month to the federal Metropolitan Detention Center in Brooklyn to face trial in a case that’s further diminished his superstar status.
Last week, defense attorney Deveraux Cannick told a judge that Kelly needs to be measured for new clothing because he’s gained so much weight in jail. And he asked that court transcripts be provided at no cost because Kelly has been unable to work for two years, saying: “His funds are depleted.”
The Grammy-winning, multiplatinum-selling singer has denied any wrongdoing and pleaded not guilty to charges accusing him of leading an enterprise of managers, bodyguards and other employees who helped him recruit women and girls for sex. Federal prosecutors say the group selected victims at concerts and other venues and arranged for them to travel to see Kelly.
New to the R. Kelly case?
Need a refresher on what’s happened so far?
Check out these links for everything you need to know about Kelly’s federal trial in Brooklyn.
Defense lawyers have said Kelly’s alleged victims were groupies who turned up at his shows and made it known they “were dying to be with him.” They only started accusing him of abuse years later when public sentiment shifted in the #MeToo era, they said.
The trial had been expected to start earlier in the year. But opening statements were moved to Aug. 18 after Kelly fired his original lawyers.
Jurors are expected to hear testimony from several of his accusers. A judge has ruled that the women will only be referred to by their first names.
Prosecutors also are expected to offer evidence that Kelly schemed with others to pay for a fake ID for Aaliyah, a singer on the rise at 15 years old, in a secret ceremony in 1994.
Aaliyah is identified as “Jane Doe #1” in court papers because she was still a minor when Kelly began a sexual relationship with her and believed she had become pregnant, the papers say.
“As a result, in an effort to shield himself from criminal charges related to his illegal sexual relationship with Jane Doe #1, Kelly arranged to secretly marry her to prevent her from being compelled to testify against him in the future,” the papers say.
Aaliyah, whose full name was Aaliyah Dana Haughton, worked with Kelly, who wrote and produced her 1994 debut album, “Age Ain’t Nothing But A Number.” She died in a plane crash in 2001 at age 22.
The case is only part of the legal peril facing the singer, born Robert Sylvester Kelly. He also has pleaded not guilty to sex-related charges in Illinois and Minnesota.
Kelly won multiple Grammys for “I Believe I Can Fly,” a 1996 song that became an inspirational anthem played at school graduations, weddings, advertisements and elsewhere.
Nearly a decade later, he began releasing what eventually became 22 musical chapters of “Trapped in the Closet,” a drama that spins a tale of sexual deceit and became a cult classic.
But Kelly has been trailed for decades by complaints and allegations about his sexual behavior, including a 2002 child pornography case in Chicago. He was acquitted in that case in 2008.
Scrutiny intensified again amid the #MeToo movement in recent years, with multiple women going public with accusations against the singer. The pressure intensified with the release of the Lifetime documentary “Surviving R. Kelly” in 2019.
Chicago’s most important news of the day, delivered every weekday afternoon. Plus, a bonus issue on Saturdays that dives into the city’s storied history.
Mayor Lori Lightfoot was given the cold shoulder by CPD rank and file about midnight Saturday at the University of Chicago Medical Center when she approached them on the 7th floor as they grappled with the shootings of two fellow officers.
Chicago Police Officer Ella French was shot and killed during a traffic stop Saturday night in West Englewood, while her partner continues to fight for his life at the hospital. Three people are in custody.
Just moments before more than a dozen officers turned their backs on the mayor, Lightfoot tried to talk to the male officer’s father, who himself is a retired Chicago police officer. He clearly wanted nothing to do with Lightfoot, according to two sources who were there.
The father excoriated the mayor and blamed her for what had happened. One source said Lightfoot handled herself well as the father yelled at her. She listened and treated him with respect.
It was then suggested that Lightfoot say a few words to nearby grieving officers, but as she approached, “they did the about-face — it looked like it had been choreographed,” said one of the sources present, calling it “astounding.”
A group of Chicago teens helped turn a once vacant, grassy area in Douglass Park into a miniature golf course that’s as educational as it is fun.
The public on Saturday got its free first shot at playing the new 18-hole mini golf course, called “Douglass 18.” People of all ages, including parents with young children, took turns vying for holes-in-one on the conservation-themed course.
“It’s great,” Albany Park resident Christopher Lampa said after sinking a shot on No. 7. “I’m definitely enjoying it so far.”
Khalid Hannah, left, plays mini golf with his son Khalil, right, on the opening day of the Douglass 18 mini golf course in the North Lawndale neighborhood on Saturday morning.Pat Nabong/Sun-Times
Funded by corporate sponsors, Ald. Michael Scott Jr. (24th) and a private donor from the Lincoln Park Zoo, the roughly $900,000 project had been in the works for more than three years. Each hole, designed by West Side teens, was inspired by one or two of the 200-plus species of birds that migrate through Douglass Park every year.
Jaeda Branch, Lincoln Park Zoo’s community program lead for North Lawndale, hopes the course inspires people to be more aware of their actions at the park and to start taking better care of nature in general by not littering.
“It’s important because right now it’s a great oasis [for birds], but we want people to be conscious of their actions of things to make sure that it stays a beautiful oasis,” Branch said.
Federal prosecutors have filed criminal charges against an Indiana man who allegedly acted as the so-called straw purchaser of the handgun used in the weekend shooting of two Chicago police officers.
Jamel Danzy, 29, of Hammond, was arrested Sunday and is being held in federal custody pending a detention hearing set for Wednesday afternoon. His lawyer noted during a court hearing Monday that he has no criminal history. He is charged with conspiracy to violate federal firearm laws.
Ella French, 29, was identified Sunday by the Chicago Police Department as the officer who was fatally shot in West Englewood while in the line of duty Saturday night. Her partner, who was also wounded during a traffic stop shortly after 9 p.m. at 63rd Street and Bell Avenue, remained in critical condition Sunday at the University of Chicago Medical Center, CPD Supt. David Brown said.
A criminal complaint alleges that the Honda CR-V stopped by the officers was registered to Danzy. It also says authorities traced the gun used to kill French to Danzy through the ATF National Tracing Center. Danzy allegedly purchased the gun from a licensed dealer in Hammond on March 18.
Federal agents approached Danzy on Sunday at a Munster restaurant where he works, according to the complaint. Danzy agreed to speak to the agents, and he initially told them his purchase of the gun was legitimate, according to the complaint. Eventually, the feds say he admitted he was lying and that he had bought the gun for someone he knew could not legally purchase it because of a criminal conviction.
That person was among those taken into custody following French’s shooting, according to the feds. That person was in possession of a Glock .22-caliber semi-automatic pistol, which the feds say was the gun used to kill French.
The gun allegedly used to kill Officer Ella French.U.S. District Court records
Attorney General Merrick Garland visited Chicago last month to tout a new Justice Department program meant to combat gun violence in Chicago and in other cities across the country, in part, by targeting straw purchasers — people who use their clean records to help put guns in the hands of people who aren’t supposed to have them.
Federal prosecutors say a massive international gambling ring based around Chicago reached into the campus of Illinois State University, where a key player in the ring allegedly “ran a significant bookmaking operation.”
Assistant U.S. Attorney Terry Kinney insisted in a court memo Monday that Matthew Namoff deserves to spend time behind bars, pointing in part to Namoff’s alleged venture at Illinois State. The prosecutor also wrote that Namoff brought a “deep-pockets” gambler and a police officer into the ring once led by Vincent “Uncle Mick” DelGiudice.
“Matthew Namoff played an important role in DelGiudice’s illicit business — as an agent, he ran DelGiudice’s bookmaking operation on a college campus, which facilitated gambling by underage students,” Kinney wrote.
An Illinois State spokesman did not comment on the claim Monday when contacted by the Chicago Sun-Times. Namoff’s defense attorney could not immediately be reached, but he was expected to file his own memo Monday.
DelGiudice, who pleaded guilty in February, once boasted that Namoff had worked with him for more than three years, had 60 gamblers and was a 50/50 partner with DelGiudice, Kinney wrote in his memo. The prosecutor also wrote that Namoff “recruited and managed student gamblers” at Illinois State and “supplied them with log-ins and passwords which he acquired from DelGiudice so they could place wagers through DelGiudice’s website.”
Finally, Kinney wrote that Namoff wanted to recruit a friend who was a police officer into the ring in January 2019. DelGiudice allegedly told Namoff he had city workers, police and firefighters betting through him. He also allegedly told Namoff about Stella’s role in the ring.
Namoff vouched for the police officer, and DelGiudice told him to “keep him on a short leash,” Kinney wrote.
Chicago Police officers turned their backs to Mayor Lori Lightfoot because they are “at the breaking point” and believe “leadership across this country, across this city do not have their back,” an influential alderman said Monday.
Ald. Matt O’Shea (19th) is Lightfoot’s hand-picked chairman of the City Council’s Aviation Committee. It was a reward for his runoff endorsement of the mayor, which helped pave the way for her landslide victory over County Board President Toni Preckwinkle.
O’Shea also represents a Far Southwest Side ward that’s home to scores of Chicago police officers.
That’s why he was not at all surprised by the cold shoulder Lightfoot got Saturday night from rank-and-file officers gathered on the 7th floor of the University of Chicago Hospital after the fatal shooting of Officer Ella French.
The officers were there to pray for French, 29, who was shot and killed during a traffic stop in West Englewood, and for her critically-wounded partner, who is still fighting for his life.
“They’re at a breaking point. Clearly, our police officers have been under siege, under-appreciated and thrown under the bus for the last year and a half. They feel — and rightfully so — that leadership across this country, across this city do not have their back,” O’Shea told the Sun-Times.
“Anybody who was working Saturday night as those calls came over the radio and they learned of what had happened to their colleagues — that’s a tipping point. And it’s a tipping point that many of us have been waiting to happen as the unbelievable violence we see in communities all across this city, where criminals have absolutely no regard for human life, no fear of the consequences of their actions. To shoot at point-blank range two Chicago police officers. We are a city in crisis.”
O’Shea was asked what message Lightfoot should get from the show of disrespect by rank-and-file officers and the tongue-lashing the father of the wounded cop gave to her at the hospital.
“I would hope she gets an understanding that police officers across this city feel that leadership does not have their back. That’s what I’m hearing. That’s what I’ve been hearing for a long time,” the alderman said.
Noting that West Englewood residents assisted police officers in apprehending two of these suspects, O’Shea said: “The majority of people in this city support the police, want to see something done to send this pendulum back the other way. They’re sick and tired of the violence. Sick and tired of innocent children being murdered.”
Far Northwest Side Ald. Anthony Napolitano (41st) has served the city as both a Chicago police officer and firefighter.
Like O’Shea, his constituents include scores of police officers.
Napolitano has clashed repeatedly with Lightfoot on police reform issues, most recently on the issue of civilian oversight.
But he does not believe the mayor alone wears the jacket for what happened to French and her partner.
“I never saw her as an anti-police advocate. But I will put this 550 percent on these socialists and these progressives in the City Council. This blood is on their hands, without a doubt,” Napolitano said.
“They’re the ones who created this whole anti-police movement that has made these brazen acts of violence against police officers [possible] — 39 this year alone. This is created by them. This whole defund and disrespect movement that they have started. These pieces of s–t are the ones that created this and talk anti-police. And they’re the ones begging for more police in their communities. They’re the biggest hypocrites. They disgust me.”
Mourning bunting hangs at Chicago Police Department headquarters on Monday. Officer Ella French, 29, was fatally shot Saturday during a traffic stop in West Englewood. Ashlee Rezin/Sun-Times
Ald. Nick Sposato (38th) is a former Chicago firefighter whose Northwest Side ward is home to scores of Chicago Police officers. He’s one of the rank-and-file’s biggest defenders in the Council.
Sposato said the show of disrespect Lightfoot got from cops who are “hurting,” was understandable, but also “disappointing” and unjustified.
“People want to play the blame game. I don’t blame anybody for this. It’s the time and the culture,” Sposato said.
“I know first-hand that the mayor is not anti-police. I know what she tells me. Sometimes, maybe, she doesn’t show it as well in public.”
Although the unprecedented show of disrespect was directed at Lightfoot, Sposato said crime-weary Chicagoans are “mad at all politicians.”
“It’s not just her. It’s probably 45 of the aldermen. It’s the state’s attorney. It’s the chief judge. … If you’re an elected [official], you’re to blame because [of] this whole cancel culture and the lack of support by electeds for police officers. It’s not just in Chicago. It’s all over the place,” Sposato said.
“Two or three aldermen are always supporting the police. Some of ’em don’t bash the police, but they sort of sit on their hands. And some of the Commies are just constantly bashing the police and saying bad things about ’em and want to defund ’em. And we get lumped in with the rest of them.”
Public Safety Committee Chairman Chris Taliaferro (29th) called the cold shoulder that Lightfoot received “unfortunate,” “tragic” and unwarranted.
“I do not agree,” Taliaferro said.
“We can’t let that be our focus. We just can’t. You have a young lady 29 years old with only three years of service on the police department. That has to be our focus rather than on sensationalizing what might have happened at the hospital.”
A Chicago police procession drives by the Cook County Medical Examiner’s Office early Sunday morning. The procession was in honor of Officer Ella French, who was shot and killed during a traffic stop in West Englewood Saturday night. Tyler LaRiviere/Sun-Times
Fraternal Order of Police President John Catanzara has clashed with Lightfoot over all manner of law enforcement issues.
Catanzara said the mayor could easily have avoided the hospital confrontation.
“She was told, ‘Don’t come upstairs’ several times. I know that because I was downstairs in the E.R. when her people were told that the family did not want her upstairs. And she went up there anyway,” Catanzara said.
The father “expressed his views,” Catanzara said, telling the mayor she was to blame.
Catanzara couldn’t agree more. State’s Attorney Kim Foxx is “not the only problem here.” Lightfoot is equally to blame, he said.
“From no vehicle chases at all under any circumstances pretty much to … 13 pages of a foot chase policy — that’s all on the mayor. It’s stupid. And she’s been vilifying the police for two-and-a-half years now,” Catanzara said.
“Now, all of the sudden, she’s having a come-to–Jesus moment because she’s got John O’Malley as her deputy mayor? Nice enough dude, but enough is enough. Nobody’s buying it. She can say whatever the hell she wants and look like a hero. But she’s full of s–t.”
The mayor’s office issued a statement saying Lightfoot is singularly focused on “healing the wounds” and would “reject any and all [who] try to use this moment to drive further divisions in our city.”
“This is an extremely difficult and heartbreaking time for the Chicago Police Department, and for our entire city. The Mayor was present at the emergency room to offer support and condolences to the families involved and the hundreds of line officers and exempts who were there, which she did. In a time of tragedy, emotions run high and that is to be expected,” the statement said.
“The Mayor spoke to a range of officers that tragic night and sensed the overwhelming sentiment was about concern for their fallen colleagues. As the Mayor stated [Sunday], now is not the time for divisive and toxic rhetoric or reporting. This is a time for us to come together as a city. We have a common enemy and it is the conditions that breed the violence and the manifestations of violence, namely illegal guns, and gangs.”
The 32nd Summer Olympics that just ended in Japan was held in a bubble but could not escape the calamities of this time.
Rows of empty seats paid sad tribute to the pandemic that is spiking in Japan and elsewhere across the world. Athletes competed under severe, even crippling heat, harsh testament to the extreme weather that is the product of heedless human impact on our climate.
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Sports pages hyped the competition for the most gold medals or total medals as an emerging Cold War faceoff between China, Russia and the United States. On the field, however, the athletes once more expressed the true spirit of the Olympics.
The best in the world competed fiercely at the highest levels of their sport. Their skill and conditioning reflected years of discipline and training. With level playing fields and one set of rules, athletes from different countries, cultures, races and religions competed on the basis of their ability and their character, not on the color of their skin or the nature of their religion.
Champions from Fiji, Kosovo, Qatar, Venezuela, Uganda, Jamaica, Cuba and Croatia and some 65 countries in total captured the gold. When the playing field is even, the rules are public and the goals are transparent, we all win.
Their rivalries were fierce, so too was their camaraderie. Many athletes trained in virtual isolation during the pandemic, suffering the year-long Olympic postponement. Some won gold, such as Karsten Warholm of Norway and Sydney McLaughlin of the U.S. in the 400-meters hurdles, breaking previous world records.
When Tamyra Mensah-Stock became only the second U.S. woman to win gold in wrestling, her tearful celebration and irrepressible jumping became a global social media hit. When the dynamic Simone Biles chose to withdraw rather than risk injury in gymnastics her teammates rushed to support her; gymnasts across the world defended her when she came under criticism. Then she showed the grit to come back to win a bronze medal on the balance beam.
The athletes recognized and paid tribute to their competitors. They cried together; they embraced and cheered together. Gianmarco Tamberi, the Italian, embraced Mutaz Essa Barshim of Qatar after they agreed to forego a jump-off and share the Olympic title in the high jump. In the 100-meter hurdles, Luca Kozak helped lift Yanique Thompson after both tumbled to the ground. Norwegian triathlete Lotte Miller consoled Belguim’s Claire Michel, sobbing after finishing last.
And despite the strictures of the organizers, the athletes demonstrated that they were citizens as well as athletes. Even before the games opened, the women’s soccer teams from the United States and Sweden, Britain and Chile, New Zealand and Australia took a knee or joined arms in an overt gesture against racism.
As the games end, the challenges we face across the world are only increasing. Olympic athletes will join in protesting the efforts to suppress the vote in the United States. The movement for Black lives will continue to build. Women will continue to demand equal rights at work and on the playing field.
The Tokyo Olympics provided a clear lesson in the imperative of joining together to fight the pandemic and to address the challenge of global warming. It also provided a clear example of what is possible at home and across the world if we all play by the same set of rules.
We can compete without turning to violence or war. We can win or lose and still respect one another, across lines of race, religion, gender and nationality. Global warming may end up turning the Summer Olympics into the Fall Olympics, but the Olympic spirit should not be lost amid the profit-making, the national rivalries, the ideological and racial divides.
Orland Park, IL-based Edwards Realty Company (ERC), a boutique property management, investment, and development firm, announced the expansion of its Pop Local program to Orland Park Crossing. The program, which has supported local entrepreneurs across the Midwest, focuses on giving small business owners an opportunity to gain awareness for their products in a traditional retail environment.
Edwards Realty Company is a leading real estate investment, development, and management firm with three decades of experience investing in communities. Over the past 30 years, Edwards Realty Company has developed a diverse portfolio of mixed-use properties across the Midwest. Their open-air centers are “Centers of Attention” in their respective neighborhoods and represent an innovative convergence of community, compassion, commitment, and commerce.
ERC kicked off the program at the Orland Park Crossing on August 3rd. They’re offering one local entrepreneur or small business owner free retail space beginning in October 2021 for three full months through the holiday season and into the new year. The Pop Local program is an additional initiative led by ERC to help invigorate an important intersection within Orland Park into a defined and vibrant centralized business district.
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Through Pop Local, the lucky winner will gain access and support to reach local residents in Orland Park and the surrounding area, as well as provide resources to build out their space and marketing support to draw attention to their business.
“Orland Park has been our company’s home for many years. Bringing our successful Pop Local program to this area is just one way that we can help small business owners get their businesses off the ground,” said Ramzi Hassan, President of ERC. “We are thinking big picture for Orland Park by identifying opportunities to incorporate Orland Park Crossing into our overall vision for Downtown Orland Park. Our hope is that through this strategy and with programs like Pop Local, we can draw attention and interest from small business owners and local area residents to our community.”
Local small business owners and entrepreneurs who are interested in participating in the program can apply through an online application form at ShopPopLocal.com from August 3– August 31st. Submissions will be narrowed down to three finalists and the community will have the chance to vote for the winner online. Finalists will be notified at the beginning of September and the official program winner will be announced on October 1st. For more details on the Pop
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