Good morning, Chicago. ✶
🔎 Below: After 14-year-old Armani Floyd’s death Friday, his peers at a South Shore after-school basketball group struggled with losing a friend they thought of as family, while the violence revived a City Council snap curfew measure vetoed by the mayor.
🗞️ Plus: Debts owed to City Hall rise by $1 billion, where to order Thanksgiving dinner and more news you need to know.
📝 Keeping score: The Bulls lost to the Pelicans, 143-130.
📧 Subscribe: Get this newsletter delivered to your inbox weekday mornings.
⏱️: An 8-minute read
TODAY’S WEATHER 🌥️
Cloudy with a chance of rain and a high near 52. The rest of the week will see single-digit wind chills, possibly snow and more rain.
TODAY’S TOP STORIES 🗞️
Fatal Loop ‘teen takeover’ leaves families, peers reeling
By Mohammad Samra, Violet Miller, Casey He and Tom Schuba
Remembering Armani: Armani Floyd, 14, helped organize marches and food giveaways with his father, an anti-violence organizer. On Friday, Armani was killed and eight other teenagers were wounded as shootings erupted during a so-called teen takeover after the Christmas tree lighting in the Loop. More than a dozen of Armani’s friends gathered at a Grand Crossing basketball court Monday night, placing electric candles near his photo.
Fatal shooting: Seven teens were hurt about 9:50 p.m. Friday in the first shooting, near the Chicago Theatre. The victims were boys and girls ranging in age from 13 to 17, authorities said. Less than an hour later and five blocks away, officers found two more teens shot. Among them was Armani, who died from multiple wounds.
Curfew calls: On Monday, 2nd Ward Ald. Brian Hopkins said his plan to institute a “snap curfew” could have made a difference in preventing the sometimes chaotic teen gatherings. The measure was approved by the City Council in June but vetoed by Mayor Brandon Johnson. The proposal would have allowed Chicago’s top cop to declare a curfew with just 30 minutes’ notice. Hopkins plans to introduce a new curfew ordinance by Christmas.
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Debts owed to City Hall rise by $1B since early in Mayor Johnson’s term
By Mitchell Armentrout and Tim Novak
Money missing: A Sun-Times analysis found the city is missing out on more than $1 billion in ambulance payments, utility bills, red-light camera tickets and other debts that have gone unpaid since December 2023.
Necessary funds: Another billion dollars sure would come in handy for Mayor Johnson. It could cover a massive shortfall and mend fences in the City Council during another ugly budget season — if only the city were able to collect all fines and fees that have been issued since he took office.
Key context: Johnson is not the first mayor to find his Finance Department missing out on piles of cash. The city’s unpaid ledger stacks up to a whopping $8.2 billion dating back to the early 1990s. Officials and experts agree most of the entrenched debt will never be paid off.
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U.S. Rep. Underwood tours Broadview ICE facility, warns deportation blitz not over
By Tina Sfondeles
‘Terrible’ conditions: U.S. Rep. Lauren Underwood on Monday called conditions inside the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement facility in Broadview “terrible” and warned that staffing is expected to triple by January at ICE facilities in the Chicago area in anticipation of more immigration enforcement.
Facility updates: The congresswoman told reporters she saw no detainees, despite ICE having processed some people in the Chicago area this weekend. ICE officers told Underwood that’s because they were “updating their systems and installing new security cameras.”
Key context: U.S. Department of Homeland Security officials have insisted that Operation Midway Blitz would continue in Chicago, and a DHS source said about 100 agents would remain behind. The source also said 1,000 agents could return to the streets in March.
MORE ON IMMIGRATION ✶
Small businesses are still reeling from Chicago-area immigration blitz
By Anna Savchenko and Michael Puente
Some small-business owners in predominantly Latino neighborhoods say their clientele has yet to fully return after the last few months.
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Landscapers hit hard by ICE blitz, ‘accused of the crime of working’
By Neil Steinberg
Federal immigration enforcement agents may have scaled back for now, but fear — and defiance — remains in the landscaping business.
MORE NEWS YOU NEED ✶
- Residents demand action: About 36 people still reside at the squalid South Shore building targeted in a Sept. 30 immigration raid. A county judge had appointed a receiver to relocate tenants, clean up the building and make repairs. Residents say they’ve not heard from the new manager.
- Mom back in hospital: A Dolton woman is back in the hospital days after she gave birth in a truck on the side of the road after being told by staff at a northwest Indiana hospital to leave, according to her family.
- Pritzker’s pleas: Gov. JB Pritzker has asked President Donald Trump to reconsider the decision to reject about $620 million in disaster relief funding to help Illinois residents, though it’s unclear what recourse the state may have to receive the money.
- CTU probed: The Chicago Teachers Union is cooperating with a federal inquiry into allegations that it is keeping financial audits from its members, though a lawyer representing the union argues “it’s a waste of time.”
- Rough flu season: Chicago is expected to experience a worse flu season, with one expert citing the lower effectiveness of this year’s flu vaccine.
- Hybrid bus budget: The CTA says it plans to buy up to 150 hybrid buses after receiving a $121 million federal grant. Pace says it will buy 36 hybrid buses after receiving a $39 million federal grant.
- Jackson comes home: The Rev. Jesse Jackson, 84, was released from the hospital Monday after 12 days of receiving treatment for a neurological condition, his family said.
HOLIDAY GUIDE 🦃
Where to eat or order carryout for Thanksgiving
By Ximena N. Beltran Quan Kiu
Holiday options: Chicago offers no shortage of options to match your mood if you want to leave the Thanksgiving cooking to someone else. We’ve listed some ways you can treat yourself to a high-end dinner or stay in and opt for takeout. But hurry — most of the options require reservations or preorders.
Manchamanteles: Order the special mole negro Oaxaqueño con pavo, a rich, smoky turkey mole layered with chocolate, roasted chiles and warm spices. You can dine in or pick up their Thanksgiving catering package.
Travelle at The Langham: This high-end “Gobble and Graze” buffet elevates the classics, as a live jazz band and downtown setting underscore the experience.
The Publican: Keep the stress of cooking at bay with their meal kit, available for pickup or delivery — complete with baked goods and a bottle of wine.
Soul & Smoke: Soul & Smoke’s popular grab-and-go, heat-and-serve meal boxes are back. Last year, the barbecue chain received more than 900 orders across three locations. You’ve got until Wednesday to claim yours.
WATCH: WHERE TO ORDER THANKSGIVING DINNER ▶️
WBEZ contributor Ximena N. Beltran Quan Kiu offers her shortlist of local spots to get your holiday meals this season. | Sun-Times/WBEZ
FROM THE PRESS BOX 🏈🏒🏀
- Bears analysis: Their offense has been cooking, but the degree of difficulty rises in this stretch of the playoff race, writes Jason Lieser.
- Hawks prospect’s moment: Mason West’s unusual decision to delay his hockey career for one last high school football season paid off in dramatic fashion when his school won the Minnesota state title Friday.
- Sky staff: The team has added Latricia Trammell to their coaching staff, replacing assistant coach Courtney Paris.
- Boys basketball: Michael O’Brien shares 20 questions and answers on this year’s high school boys basketball season.
GAMES AND CROSSWORDS 🧩
This week’s Chicago-style crossword theme is: Thanksgiving 🦃
BRIGHT ONE 🔆
Meet Derek Erdman, the artist behind the ‘Cat Pix’ flyer
By Mitch Dudek
Four years ago, someone taped a flyer to a vacant storefront window in Logan Square next to Lula Cafe. It showed a charming line drawing of a cat and announced that anyone who texted an accompanying phone number would receive free cat pictures in a text reply.
Intrigue has overcome skepticism about 500 times since, triggering a vibration in the pocket and a smile on Derek Erdman’s face.
“I mean, how many things these days are not a scam? This is one thing that is not a scam. Just cat pics,” Erdman explained, after overcoming his own skepticism about the authenticity of a newspaper reporter calling to inquire about his service.
Erdman, 51, is a self-taught artist who lives in a Logan Square apartment filled with paintings, large plants, records, kitsch and two rescued cats: Chichi, who’s shy, and Archie, who’s simple.
He spends about four minutes a day happily fulfilling cat pic requests.
Aaron Johnson, co-owner of Esquire Barbershop in Andersonville, saw one of the flyers last summer and texted a request for photos.
“Whenever you leave your cat at home, you miss your cat,” Johnson said. “And with this, you just text and say ‘Hey, I’d like some pics of cats please’ and he sends you f— ton pictures of cats. I say ‘thanks’ and send back a picture of my cat, but we’re not having a conversation or anything — and that’s it. It brightens my day, and I move on.”
DAILY QUESTION ☕️
In yesterday’s Morning Edition, we asked you: Do you think the Bears will make the playoffs this year?
“Considering the McCaskey family still runs the Bears, what has happened so far is nothing short of a miracle and should be appreciated. They won’t make the playoffs but having a winning season will show great progress.” — Mark Liptak
“I think the Bears will manage to sneak their way into the playoffs with a 10-7-ish record. I doubt they’ll make it farther than a game or two – there’s too many glaring flaws still for them to be a Super Bowl-caliber team. But then again, they’ve already exceeded almost all my expectations!” — Caitlin Eder
“Our defense will decide it. If we keep getting better at stopping offenses, then for sure.” — Les Kaminski
“Yes. 10 wins can potentially get you in the wildcard.” — Michael Bergbower
“Absolutely! They have eight wins already and are playing well.” — Brad Fugiel
Thanks for reading the Sun-Times Morning Edition!
Got a story you think we missed? Email us here.
Written and curated by: Matt Moore
Editor: Eydie Cubarrubia
Hat tip: The Sun-Times’ Joel Carlson for today’s subject line, which you’ll find on the front page of today’s newspaper.
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