Category Archives: Voices

Supporting Women, Girls and Families: An Interview with Stephanie Cockrell

Posted on May 2021 by P. Stewart

Women are praised for being pillars of strength in their families and communities, but this same strength might lead them to be overlooked when designing services to meet the needs of a community. Women also need therapeutic activities that help … Continue reading →

Posted in African American, African American Women in Champaign-Urbana, African Americans, Community, Voices of Color, Women | Comments Off

Black Art Politicized: A Discussion with Leslie Smith

Posted on May 2021 by Drake Materre

I had the amazing opportunity to interview Leslie Smith, a board member of the Urbana–Champaign Independent Media Center (UCIMC) and the founder of Black Voices Theater Production. As someone who grew up in a household with a father who is … Continue reading →

Posted in African American Women in CU, African Americans, African Americans, Arts, Local Arts, Voices of Color, Women | Comments Off

Stop Asian Hate: A Local Perspective

Posted on May 2021 by Sharon S. Lee

The March 16, 2021 shootings in Atlanta, resulting in the tragic deaths of eight people, six of whom were Asian women, have raised awareness of anti-Asian violence, misogyny, and hatred in this country. In this unprecedented time when global viruses … Continue reading →

Posted in Racism, Voices of Color, Women, Xenophobia | Comments Off

Bail Systems as Wealth-Based Incarceration, or “No Money, No Justice”

Posted on April 2021 by Carol Skalnik Leff

The Eighth Amendment to the US Constitution prohibits “excessive” bail, a prohibition that dates back to English common law, and is largely honored in the breach. In Champaign County Jail, on any given day this past winter, there were … Continue reading →

Posted in Court System, IL, incarceration, Justice, National, Women | Comments Off

Shamar Betts: Caught in a Legal Drama that Started Before He was Born

Posted on April 2021 by Janice Jayes

No one wants to be the poster child for a Supreme Court challenge. However, finding his case before the Supreme Court could not only help Urbana resident Shamar Betts resolve his own situation, but it could redraw the legal lines … Continue reading →

Posted in African American, BLM, Champaign County, civil rights, Court System, Justice, News, Racism, Women | Comments Off

The Haters Among Them

Posted on April 2021 by Pat Simpson

The number is thirty so far, thirty police officers charged with the act of participating in the Capitol insurrection last January. Many, many Americans felt shock, and media analysts expressed particular outrage, to find men in blue—perhaps even waving blue-line, … Continue reading →

Posted in bigotry, National, Police, police accountability, Racism, White Nationalism, Women | Comments Off

Africa and COVID-19 Vaccines: The Politics Surrounding Equitable Access to Vaccines

Posted on April 2021 by Fatou Jobe

Global North countries, including France, Canada, the United Kingdom, and the United States, are hoarding COVID-19 vaccines, leaving countries of the Global South behind in equitable access to vaccines. As COVID-19 vaccines become available, many Global North countries have already purchased half of the … Continue reading →

Posted in Africa, COVID-19, International, International, Women | Comments Off

Thank the Suffragists: Celebrating the Women’s Rights History of Champaign County

Posted on February 2021 by Barb Oehlschlaeger-Garvey

Ever wondered why March is Women’s History Month? We at the Museum of the Grand Prairie invite you to answer that question with a visit to our latest exhibit celebrating the centennial of women’s voting rights, “How Long Must Women … Continue reading →

Posted in Feminism, Voting Rights, Women, wonen's rights | Comments Off

Countering Disinformationhttp://publici.ucimc.org/wp-admin/edit.php to Build a Just Society

Posted on December 2020 by Kiana Kazemi

We have heard a lot about disinformation during this past year, but learning more about how information is manipulated, distorted and deployed to shape social debates can help you recognize when you are being targeted in a disinformation campaign. It … Continue reading →

Posted in African American, Media, Racism, Trump, Women, Youth | Comments Off

White Nationalism in our Own Front Yards

Posted on December 2020 by Janice Jayes

This past summer residents of West Champaign awoke to find their neighborhoods had been leafletted with an insulting anti-immigrant flyer bearing the imprint of the New Jersey European Heritage Association (NJEHA), a group designated as a white nationalist hate group … Continue reading →

Posted in Alt-Right, Racism, White Nationalism, Women, Xenophobia | Comments Off

“It’s Scary Having a Fifteen-Year-Old Son”: Community Voices on Gun Violence in C-U

Posted on December 2020 by FirstFollowers

In the midst of the global pandemic, Champaign-Urbana has its own local epidemic: gun violence. As of July 20, police had received 95 reports in 2020 of shooting incidents in Champaign alone. This is more than double the total for … Continue reading →

Posted in African Americans, African Americans, Gun violence, incarceration, Poetry, Violence, Voices of Color | Comments Off

Separating Anti-Zionism and Anti-Semitism

Posted on December 2020 by Jenni Walkup

The morning after the 2016 presidential election, I woke up wondering if I was still white. I am Ashkenazi (Eastern European) Jewish, and had always felt confident in the safety my light skin afforded me. That day, for the first … Continue reading →

Posted in anti-Semitism, Israel/Palestine, Students, Women | Comments Off

Blurs and Erases

Posted on June 2020 by Johnny Page

We find ourselves at an interesting moment. Pivotal, in fact. As we collectively attempt to navigate uncharted waters, I am constantly thinking about how prepared I am. For a large portion of my life, lockdown was my reality. This in … Continue reading →

503 total views

Posted in African Americans, COVID-19, incarceration | Comments Off

A Student’s Perspective on COVID-19

Posted on June 2020 by Tristan Suellentrop

On January 21, 2020, the first case of COVID-19 within the US was confirmed. During the first few days of the University of Illinois spring break, it was announced that all courses would transition to online-only learning by March 23, … Continue reading →

451 total views

Posted in COVID-19, Section, Students, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Voices | Comments Off

Is the Addition of a Larger Police Presence to Urbana Schools a Human Rights Violation?

Posted on June 2020 by Cara Munro

On February 4, 2019, I was in class at Urbana High School when a student came in and said there were students fighting in the hall and a teacher had been knocked out. My teacher quickly locked the door and … Continue reading →

1,120 total views

Posted in Education, Education, Police, Section, Students, Voices | Comments Off

University of Illinois “Old” Alums Return for a Conference on the 1960s Protest Movement

Posted on December 2019 by Robert Justin Goldstein

About 50 literally “old” University of Illinois alums returned to campus from around the country (and in one case, from Switzerland) to attend an October 4-5 conference about the 1960s UI student protest movements for free speech and against the … Continue reading →

Posted in 1968 Revolt, Education, Students, University of Illinois, Vietnam War | Comments Off

This is going to take more than windmills: Addressing Trauma at the UN Climate Summit

Posted on December 2019 by Kate Insolia

Climate activists from around the world converged on New York City during the United Nations Climate Summit in September, 2019, and I was lucky enough to be invited to contribute to this historic moment. There were scientists, lawyers, architects and … Continue reading →

Posted in Co Counseling, Environment, Indigenous | Comments Off

University and High School Students Collaborate to Host September 20th Climate Strike

Posted on December 2019 by Anya Kaplan-Hartnett

Between September 20 and 27, over 6000 protests took place in 185 countries as part of the Global Week for Future. Students walked out of classes, workers went on strike, and millions gathered to demand climate justice and take action … Continue reading →

Posted in Environment, Students, University of Illinois, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign | Comments Off

Attacks on the Campus Left Then and Now: Fighting Student Activists on Illinois’ Campus in the 1930s

Posted on May 2019 by Nick Goodell

In the 1930s, the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign was home to a thriving anti-war and anti-imperialist community of different radical, socialist, and communist groups. The National Student League (NSL), later called the American Student Union (ASU), the Communist Youth … Continue reading →

Posted in African Americans, Alt-Right, military, Students, University of Illinois | Comments Off

For a World Without Borders

Posted on March 2019 by Tariq Khan

Speech by Tariq Khan at the UIUC Ayuda Rally at Anniversary Plaza, November 29, 2018. UIUC Ayuda was a student group/campaign to raise awareness about and material support for the Central American caravans made up of people seeking asylum. I … Continue reading →

Posted in Alt-Right, bigotry, Immigration, Indigenous, Land, Refugees, University of Illinois | Comments Off