Good morning, Chicago. ✶
🔎 Below: How irreplaceable keepsakes that once belonged to “Queen of the Blues” Koko Taylor ended up for sale for a few bucks on the South Side.
🗞️ Plus: A crucial hearing over federal immigration agents’ use of force, Mayor Brandon Johnson’s plan to build a $50 million Greyhound station and more news you need to know.
📝 Keeping score: Josh Giddey and Nikola Vucevic led the Bulls to a 113-111 comeback win over the 76ers.
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⏱️: A 9-minute read
TODAY’S WEATHER 🌤️
Mostly sunny with a high near 59.
TODAY’S TOP STORIES 🔎
‘Queen of the Blues’ Koko Taylor’s possessions — including Grammy — are sold at flea market
By Mark Guarino
Major find: A buyer combing through a booth at the flea market in Back of the Yards last week stumbled on irreplaceable keepsakes once owned by Chicago’s own Koko Taylor, known worldwide as the “Queen of the Blues” and considered the greatest female blues singer of her generation.
The haul: Taylor died in 2009. Important artifacts from her life in music were now spread out across cheap portable tables and in plastic bins for anyone with a few dollars to buy. The haul included photos of Taylor with celebrities, personal notes and cards from famous collaborators, stage dresses, awards, and handwritten lyrics.
Finding answers: How did the possessions of a Grammy-winning icon end up in a flea market on the South Side and not in a protected archive at a university or museum? The saga began four months ago when Luis Gonzaga, a Chicago-based junk dealer, purchased — sight unseen — the contents of a storage locker in Orland Park via an online auction.
‘Pretty nice amount’: Inside, he discovered a bundle of cash — “a pretty nice amount” — so he was motivated to sell the rest at a heavy discount. “I already got my little blessing from her and wanted to give the stuff back … wanted her stuff being out there [rather] than being lost,” he said. Among items already sold: Taylor’s 1985 Grammy Award and several guitars.
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Crucial hearing over feds’ use of force could reveal ‘incredible’ Bovino testimony Wednesday
By Jon Seidel and Kade Heather
Major hearing: Following a monthlong court battle that featured appearances by top federal officials and an appeals court’s rebuke, a high-stakes hearing is set for Wednesday over the treatment of protesters and journalists amid the feds’ aggressive deportation campaign in Chicago.
Key context: Wednesday’s hearing is the culmination of the legal back-and-forth that prompted U.S. Border Patrol commander-at-large Gregory Bovino’s appearance last week at the Dirksen Federal Courthouse, as well as his deposition over the feds’ controversial tactics.
Separate filing: In a separate filing, plaintiffs’ lawyers said Bovino’s deposition included an admission that he had instructed officers to “go hard” and arrest protesters “who make hyperbolic comments in the heat of political demonstrations.”
More headlines:
- Federal judge likely to intervene at Broadview’s ICE facility: ‘It has really become a prison’
- Judge blocks Trump administration from withholding transportation funds over immigration enforcement
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Will teachers union post give Stacy Davis Gates fresh campaign money to help Mayor Johnson?
By Robert Herguth
Campaign cache?: As Stacy Davis Gates expands her clout by taking over as head of a statewide teachers union, the new job may allow her greater access to another large pot of campaign money just as her ally, Mayor Brandon Johnson, prepares to run for reelection.
Key context: Gates, who retains her post as head of the Chicago Teachers Union, and Johnson are close politically — the CTU was a significant force in getting him elected in 2023. The Illinois Federation of Teachers, CTU’s statewide parent organization, also maintains a political action committee that has given nearly $1 million to Johnson’s election efforts.
Bottom line: Gates’ elevation to IFT president could give her greater voice over how the IFT PAC dispatches its cash, which totals more than $2 million.
More headlines:
- CPS board votes to absorb ChiArts, fund Epic Academy through end of school year
- City Hall gift room highlights Mayor Johnson’s ‘hostility to oversight,’ inspector general says
- Ald. Conway stumbles across Mayor Johnson’s plan to build $50M Greyhound station
MORE NEWS YOU NEED 🗞️
- Eyes on Jackson: As former U.S. Rep. Jesse Jackson Jr. (D-Ill.) attempts a comeback more than a decade after he resigned from Congress and was convicted of corruption, one financial contributor is state Rep. Thaddeus Jones, who’s under investigation for similar campaign-finance misconduct.
- Family mourns son: John Thomas, 15, was biking to his father’s house to go trick-or-treating Friday afternoon when police say he was fatally shot on the Near West Side. “They took my world,” his mother told the Sun-Times. “He touched so many hearts, so many people.”
- Trial in fatal shooting begins: Alvin Thomas, 25, is accused of fatally shooting Huayi Bian, 36, and Weizhong Xiong, 38, in 2020 in Chinatown.
- No fare bump: The Regional Transportation Authority said it is no longer requiring the CTA, Metra and Pace to implement 10% fare increases next year, following the passage of a historic $1.5 billion transit funding package in the General Assembly.
- Longest shutdown ever: The government shutdown has entered its 36th day, breaking the record as the longest ever and disrupting the lives of millions of Americans, with program cuts and federal workers nationwide left without paychecks, the Associated Press reports.
- Trader Joe’s eyes Uptown: The grocery chain has applied for a packaged goods liquor license that will help pave the way for a new store on Montrose Avenue.
POLITICAL ANALYSIS ✶
Chuy Garcia’s move shouldn’t surprise — political handoffs, family dynasties are nothing new
By Tina Sfondeles
Garcia steps down: The-Sun-Times broke the news Monday that U.S. Rep. Jesus “Chuy” Garcia will not seek reelection, with his chief of staff, Patty Garcia, filing petitions for the 4th Congressional District just before the 5 p.m. Monday deadline.
The Chicago way?: Garcia is not the first Chicago politician to handpick a successor. The city has seen similar machinations over the decades. His call is frowned upon, though legal. But the process — ducking out at the last minute — limits candidates because many people considering a run opt out of challenging an incumbent.
Memory lane: We look back on some of Chicago’s most egregious examples of anointing a successor, including instances of family hand-me-downs. In some cases, incumbents stepped down before an election, setting the stage for the mayor to appoint a pick without the input of voters. Dive in here, or via the button below.
FROM THE PRESS BOX ⚾🏒🏈
- Imanaga’s call: Cubs left-hander Shota Imanaga has become a free agent after declining club and player options.
- Moore earned call-up: Rookie Oliver Moore’s dominance in the AHL made the Blackhawks find an NHL spot for him, writes Ben Pope.
- Bears analysis: Whether QB Caleb Williams has the instincts to reach an elite level or not, he has an ability to focus and slow the game down in crunch time that creates good fortune, writes Mark Potash.
- Bylaw proposals: We take a look at some of the most interesting bylaw proposals revealed Tuesday by the Illinois High School Association.
GAMES AND CROSSWORDS 🧩
This week’s Chicago-style crossword theme is: Famous Chicagoans 🌟
Here’s your clue:
1A: “The Fugitive” star and Chicagoan-by-birth, Harrison ___
BRIGHT ONE 🔆
Gale Street Inn is set to reopen under new owner
By Bob Chiarito
Five months after Gale Street Inn abruptly closed, the Jefferson Park institution has a new owner who plans to reopen the restaurant in December.
Paulo Villabona, 50, purchased the eatery in a deal that closed Saturday. He bought it with the help of two family members, who are silent partners.
Villabona, who has lived in Jefferson Park with his wife and two daughters since 2019, has worked in the restaurant industry for 36 years. He started as a dishwasher and moved to line cook, server and bartender before becoming general manager of Bar Siena at Old Orchard Mall in Skokie.
“It’s been a longtime dream,” Villabona said of being an owner.
He was considering opening a place in Jefferson Park when he learned that Gale Street Inn closed — and reached out to former owner George Karzas.
With the sale came the restaurant’s recipes, most notably its famous tender baby back ribs. Villabona says he’s also bringing back former employees and will honor previous gift cards that customers have.
“We’re going to keep the hits, absolutely. But we’re going to play around with it and stretch our wings on some things. We’ll keep the integrity of what it is,” he said.
DAILY QUESTION ☕️
Yesterday, we asked you: How would you like the CTA or the city to handle smoking on trains and buses?
Here’s some of what you said, edited for clarity:
“Utilizing the security cameras … I think they should probably hire more staff, but for exclusively watching the cameras.” — Danielle Rupert
“Just have separate train cars. One for smokers and some not.” — David Vosburg
“It seems to me that having a conductor on each train like they did in the past would go a long way in solving the smoking issue and some of the petty crime as well. People need a human presence.” — Dean R. Martin
“More real police actually riding the trains and writing real tickets. Contracted security fixes nothing and costs plenty; it’s not as if people don’t already know that smoking isn’t allowed, so informing them yet again is bound to be ineffective. Real police will curb the general lawlessness and lack of regard for others that I see nearly every day on the CTA.” — Tom Stroud
“I would like for the CTA to stop the train and remove passengers [who] are smoking. CTA should also bar those folks from entering the station for a period of time.” — Kymi Armour
Thanks for reading the Sun-Times Morning Edition!
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Written and curated by: Matt Moore
Editor: Eydie Cubarrubia
Hat tip: Sun-Times’ Joel Carlson for today’s subject line, which you’ll find on the front page of today’s Sun-Times print edition. Members and home delivery subscribers can access the e-paper here.
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