This is (not!) an endorsement

Plus: “diversión” at Marquette Park. [View this email in your browser]( | [chicagoreader.com]( Introduction by Ben Joravsky|October 29, 2024 As Election Day approaches, the time has come for me to tell you who I will vote for—not that this counts as endorsements. To be clear . . . As a Reader writer, I do not make political endorsements. That would violate our nonprofit status. In any event, I don’t think it’s a surprise as to who I support. You would know by listening to my [podcasts]( especially the Wednesday episodes, where Monroe Anderson and I blast away at all things MAGA. At the moment, it’s kinda scary out there for people like me and Monroe. Trump’s been threatening to send the military after folks like us. He calls us the enemy within. Apparently, he hates us almost as much as he hates immigrants, if that’s possible. Trump’s running mate, Senator J.D. Vance, [went on CNN recently]( to reassure voters that Trump doesn’t mean what he says (even as Trump continues to say it). I’m not sure anyone believes Vance. Clearly, Jeff Bezos, one of the world’s richest men, has his doubts. Bezos had his paper, the Washington Post, pull its endorsement of Kamala Harris. You know, just in case . . . It’s starting to remind me of those days in the 90s and early 2000s when Chicagoans would tell me, “Hey, Ben, you keep writing those anti-Daley columns and you’ll wind up at the bottom of the lake!” Then they’d laugh—like it was funny. Then they’d vote for Daley—just in case the Boss was watching. Yeah, it doesn’t take much to intimidate people. At the first Hideout show that Mick Dumke and I hosted, Alderpersons Richard Mell and Scott Waguespack joked about the time the council met to approve full funding for Daley’s Olympics. Scott, then a rookie alderman, didn’t want to sign on to a blank check, obligating hundreds of millions of property tax dollars to this boondoggle. Having been elected as a good government reformer and all. But as the council roll call worked its way closer to Scott, Mell, his seatmate, advised him to vote yes or they will kill you. Not kill in the literal sense—more like [kill your career.]( We all laughed about it that night at the Hideout. Though for the record, Scott voted yes. Again—just in case. The final council vote on that Olympics blank check was unanimous. As the Sun-Times, Tribune, Crain’s, and pretty much every news outlet [not named the Reader]( cheered on. Hey, Mayor Johnson—if only folks were so easy-come-easy-go with borrowing money for the city’s classrooms, right? So you might say I was feeling a little deja vu as I watched Trump’s brownshirts—I mean, supporters—gather in Madison Square Garden to radiate their hate. Rest assured, I have a backup plan should Trump win. I know a lot of lefties who intend to vote for Jill Stein (or not vote at all), having managed to convince themselves that there are no differences between Harris and Trump. In MAGA circles, they’re the helpful lefties—right up there with Tulsi Gabbard and Baby Bobby Kennedy. I’m hoping they put in the good word for me and Monroe should Donny’s MAGA troopers come to our door. Upon reflection, I realize it’s not much of a plan. Here’s hoping we never reach the point where I’d have to use it.  WHAT BEN’S READING - Raymond Chandler’s [The Long Goodbye]( As the inventor of the hard-boiled detective novel, Chandler spawned thousands of imitators. Every now and then I feel compelled to reread the master. - [Cristalle Bowen]( previews Stevie Wonder’s upcoming concert (Sat 11/2 at the United Center) - [Ben Joravsky]( on Trump and Blago  BEST OF THE BEN J. SHOW - Political strategist [Delmarie Cobb]( Will America elect a woman president? - Sun-Times columnist [Rummana Hussain]( Trump scares Bezos - Alderperson [Matt Martin]( the bottom line by Maja Stachnik  ARTS & CULTURE - Anchor curator-in-residence Carlos Flores spoke to Luz Magdaleno Flores about [“diversión,” an art exhibition in Marquette Park highlighting southwest side artists](. His residency with the Chicago Park District included a year and a half of building relationships with community members and neighbors; in addition to other programming, the project culminates with a Día de los Muertos event on November 4. Flores says that his goal in the residency was to “create experiences that really de-numb you from very, very rough truths,” referring to overpolicing, gentrification, disinvestment, environmental racism, and other “pressure points” that residents begin to normalize.  NEWS & POLITICS - Advocates, families of missing and murdered Black women, policymakers, and journalists [appeared before the Chicago City Council Public Safety Committee to discuss police shortcomings and deep racial disparities]( in investigating missing person cases. Testimonials included Bridgette Rouse—sister of Sonya Rouse, who went missing in 2016—who said that the Chicago Police Department’s lack of response makes it clear that Black women who go missing in Chicago are “purposefully ignored.” The resolution that called for the hearing cited the seven-part Pulitzer Prize-winning investigation “Missing in Chicago,” copublished by Invisible Institute and City Bureau last November, an excerpt of which also ran as a [Chicago Reader cover story](. The meeting ended without any action from the committee. [Sam Stecklow, Invisible Institute]  MUSIC & NIGHTLIFE - [Saint Louis emo band Foxing return to Chicago]( after the release of their fifth studio full-length record; the group played a joint headlining tour with the Hotelier last year as a tenth-anniversary celebration for their two landmark emo records. Leor Galil reports that the new release builds on the band’s prog-rock splendor by cranking up the scalding screamo intensity, taking on parasitic tech-poisoned capitalism in a desperate fight. From Indian Lakes and Pictora Vark open the November 1, all-ages show at Outset. - “Soft-pop perfectionists” Bronze are out with a new self-titled LP, meticulously assembled over seven years with a huge roster of guests. They’ve been making yacht rock before yacht rock was a thing, though they describe their self-describe their music as “smoove pop songs that fans of Chicago, Fleetwood Mac, and Sade might enjoy swimming in or dancing to.” They’ll be playing the entire new album at the [record-release concert at Constellation this Friday]( (plus some surprises). The show promises a plethora of local talent, including Axis: Sova founder Brett Sova (featured on Bronze’s “ESP”), Jeanine O’Toole (the 1900s), Dan Browning (Cave), Josh Johannpeter (Mahjongg), Nate Lepine (the Nick Mazarella Quintet), and Nick Sednew (Chicago Afrobeat Project).  CONTESTS & GIVEAWAYS Enjoy a night of 80s rock when [Night Ranger takes the stage at Waukegan’s Genesee Theatre]( This show is coming up quick: Enter by tomorrow night at 11:30 PM to win a pair of tickets for the November 8 show.  BEHIND-THE-SCENES Election Day is only a week away: If you haven’t made your voting plan, now’s the time! It’s not too late to register to vote, which you can still do at any early voting site, no matter where you live in the city. The presidential election isn’t the only thing on the ballot; we’re also electing a school board for the first time in Chicago’s history. Take a look at [the Reader’s guide to the school board elections]( before you head to the polls, where you can see who’ll be on your ballot by district and get clarity on the questions you may have about this historic vote. 📰 LATEST ISSUE: VOTE VOTE VOTE 📰 [READ ONLINE]( | [COVER]( | [DOWNLOAD PDF]( [Facebook icon]( [Instagram icon]( [X icon]( [LinkedIn icon]( [Threads icon]( [YouTube icon]( [logo] You received this email because you signed up for newsletters from the Chicago Reader. Want fewer emails from us? [Click here to choose what you want us to send you](. Or, [unsubscribe from all Reader emails](. We’ll miss you! [Sign up for emails from the Chicago Reader]( | [Forward this e-mail to a friend]( © 2024 Chicago Reader. All rights reserved. Chicago Reader, 2930 S. Michigan Ave., Suite 102, Chicago, IL 60616