photo by Bill GorrellWorld's First Udderbot Recital:  Jacob Barton preforms new xenharmonic music by local composers on a unique instrument

Multi-instrumentalist and composer Jacob Barton presents his first full-length concert featuring the udderbot, a unique slide woodwind instrument invented in 2005.

A joint project of OddMusic-UC and UnTwelve, the concert will feature adaptations of pre-existing compositions and new music commissioned especially for the occasion.  Sixteen composers, half of them Champaign-Urbana residents, participated in the commissioning project.

The recital will take place at 8 PM on Friday, August 20, 2010, at the Urbana-Champaign Independent Media Center.  Admission is a $10-15 sliding scale, with no one turned away for lack of funds.  RSVP is recommended.

The following letter to the editor from Caroline Yang was printed in Sunday's News-Gazette.

It responds to the trial of Keving Hemingway and in particular the skewed article on the trial by NG reporter Mary Schenk

Thanks to our kind readers for notifying us of the letter's publication.

BD

As someone who witnessed most of the trial of Kevin Hemingway, I noted a troubling untruth and a glaring omission in Mary Schenk’s report. First, Ms. Schenk’s assertion that Mr. Hemingway “admitted to Champaign police that he robbed Herbst” is simply not true.  This was never revealed during the trial.  Considering that this case carries the possibility of an extended sentence, it would be generous to call Ms. Schenk’s error irresponsible.

Learn to swing dance or polish you skills! Get ready to dance to great bands at the Champaign Music 
Festival......or just have fun learning a classic couple dance!!!! $ adults $2 kids. Proceeds to 
benefit  Community Center For the Arts (C4A) www.c-4a.org (Donations als welcome to 
support C4A's music camp scholarship fund.

Approximately 50 people protested in Champaign-Urbana against Israel's recent attack on a flotilla carrying aid to Palestinians in the Gaza strip. The blockade against Gaza has been in place since the democratic election of Hamas in Gaza and basic humanitarian aid has been shut off to the people residing there. The flotilla was in international waters when Israeli Defense Forces were dropped from a Black Hawk helicopter. In an ensuing clash, at least ten pro-Palestinian activists were shot and killed. One of those still missing is an activist who was on the Mavi Marmara boat, according to Chicago IMC. Other protests took place in Chicago, across the country, and around the globe.

The demolition of Booker T. Washington Elementary began on May 19, 2010. A new two-story school costing $18 million is going to be built to fulfill the requirements of the "consent decree." The new school will double in size, significantly impacting the neighborhood.A traffic study has been conducted showing the increased traffic in the area.

According to local black activist Terry Townsend, a plan is underway to destroy the historic Douglass Park neighborhood. 

BD

On Monday night, May 3, 2010, Durl Kruse delivered a proposal for revisions to the complaint process for the Champaign Police Department before the Champaign Human Relations Commission on behalf of CU Citizens for Peace and Justice. The document is a 12-step process to strengthen transparency in the the complaint process, which many have admitted is broken. Citizens who have gone to file complaints against the Champaign police are known to have been turned away, discouraged, yelled at, and delayed in recieving a response for months.

Members of a newly-formed working group were present at the HRC meeting. They include Mark Aber, Andre Arrington, Jamar Brown, Police Chief R.T. Finney, Sgt. David Griffet, Valerie McWilliams, Garth Minor, Deputy Chief Holly Nearing, and Steve Carter. Their areas identified for considering changes are: 1) making a complaint 2) offering mediation 3) reporting results and 4) educating and informing the public.

The working group plans to present their proposals before city council. Whether they would first be brought before the HRC at the next meeting on June 7 was not clarified.

On April 21, 2010 some 40 to 50 people gathered in front of the Swanlund Administration Building for an event billed "Take back YOUR Campus Rally". The gathering was organized by Students for Chief Illiniwek (SFCF), the Orange and Blue Observer, and Illini Against a Mascot as a response to SFCF Freedom of Information Request findings showing the UIUC administration scrambling to articulate a post-mascot era policy regarding the display of their copyrighted property. The entire Pro-Mascot rally is now available at http://www.iresist.org/

Champaign City Manager announced that Officer Daniel Norbits, who shot and killed Kiwane Carrington, has been suspended for 30 days. This is the maximum suspension that can be enforced according to the police union contract. The justification was that Norbits "failed to maintain control of his weapon." The Illinois Fraternal Order of Police promptly responded, saying that Norbits was now the "victim" in the case.

See the attached pdf for the full reports.

BD

Here's Champaign Mayor Jerry Schweighart at the Tea Party in Champaign on April 15, 2010.

The Mayor says about Obama, "I don't think he's American, personally," and denies the existence of the President's birth certificate.

BD

Although it was 2008 when off-duty Champaign police detective Lisa Staples was caught driving drunk in an unmarked squad car, only recently were police reports describing the incident obtained. Many were outraged when Staples was given a lighter punishment than other DUI cases in Champaign County. But the public was kept from knowing the extent of her intoxication or the embarrassing details of her arrest. This case and others have led to a campaign for more harsh drug and alcohol testing for Champaign police officers.

In March 2009, I sent a FOIA request for police reports on the Staples case to the Illinois State Police. Notorious for their denials of public information, the state police summarily denied my request. After new FOIA legislation took effect in Illinois on January 1, 2010, I re-submitted my request. Now forced to obey the law, the state police handed over their records.

The 5th Illinois Coalition for Justice Peace and the Environment Conference, "Connecting and Communicating"

April 9 & 10, 2010 will feature Alexander Cockburn as Keynote speaker at the Independent Media Center • 202 S. Broadway, Urbana, IL 61801.

The PUBLIC is WELCOME.

The Illinois Coalition for Justice Peace and the Environment invites you to join us as we celebrate our 5th annual conference in the town where we began, Urbana, Illinois.

This year we come together to forge new connections and to explore new ways to communicate with each other as we meet the challenges of a movement seemingly drawn down while injustice, war and environmental degradation rage on. Yet, in four years ICJPE has grown to include over 160 member groups.
We are led by the activism of an extremely talented group of activist/speakers who will guide us in our presentations: Connecting and Communicating, Transforming Empire, Transforming the Land and finally Transforming Social Relations. Join us.

Conference Details:

Friday Fri, April 9, 2010
Keynote Address from 7:00pm - 9:00pm:

The Champaign City Council is deciding at their meeting on Tuesday at 7pm whether to accept $22.5 million federal grant already awarded to the two cities and the University for creating jobs and building internet connectivity in our community. If you support the deployment of a municipal broadband network in Champaign-Urbana, please consider contacting your city council member to express your support of the plan. Attached is a .doc file containing contact information and a sample correspondence. Whether or not Champaign accepts the grant funds has a strong bearing on whether federal stimulus money under the Broadband Opportunities Program will be used to create jobs in both Champaign and Urbana or provide essential services to underserved parts of our community. Our acceptance of this money also has a strong bearing on the viability of our round 2 funding proposal for community centers, libraries, and schools.