LWV OPRF March 15 Week in Preview
Final Call
LWV OPRF will stream the off-Broadway hit, Tea for Three on Friday, March 19 at 7:00pm. This one-woman play stars actress Elaine Bromka, who channels former first ladies Lady Bird Johnson, Pat Nixon and Betty Ford. Tickets are $25 for our fundraiser and are available here. Deadline for ticket purchase is Noon this Wednesday, March 17. On Friday, March 19, at 6:00pm, you will receive a vimeo link and password to the 70-minute show that starts at 7:00pm. You will also receive a Zoom link to the live, 20-minute Q&A with the actor after the show.
Candidate Forums
The last two Candidate Forums left before the April 6 Municipal Election are this Thursday for the River Forest Library Board followed by the forum for the Park Board. Early voting started March 10 at local courthouses and will start on March 22 at the Oak Park Village Hall. The attendance for these virtual forums has been great with additional people viewing them afterward. We are so thankful for our partnership with the Oak Park and River Forest Libraries. You can still submit questions and register for the final two River Forest Forums here in addition to viewing the ten previous recorded forums.
April Second Tuesday
Democracy and the Three-legged Stool: Voting, Electoral Districts and Ethics  Please join the Second Tuesday committee on Tuesday, April 13 at 9:30am to hear Tyler St. Clair from Common Cause discuss voting reforms nationally as well as in in Illinois, the current status of the census data, when it might be released and the implications for congressional redistricting and finally, ethics reform/accountability in Illinois. “Common Cause Illinois sides with no one but the people as we build a democracy that works for all of us. Every aspect of our elections and representative self-government must be fair, open, accessible, and set up so we all have faith in the integrity of election outcomes and of those who serve us.” Please register  here.
Also, Common Cause will take a deeper dive into election reform issues in the state of Illinois this Tuesday, March 16, at 7:00pm. You can register for the free event here.
America Goes to the Polls
The 7th edition of the biennial report series "America Goes to the Polls!" was
created in collaboration between nonprofit Vote.org and the U.S. Elections Project. This research report digs deep into data supplied by all 50 states, to not only rank them by their official voter turnout numbers, but also to examine how policies like Same Day Registration and Vote at Home, which many states expanded in light of the pandemic, made an impact on the U.S. electorate. Some of the highlights of the report were:
1.Every state increased their turnout over 2016.
2.First time in recent history that 20 states had voter turnout over 70%.
3.Minnesota led the way with 80% voter turnout.
4.Illinois was in 28 place with 67% voter turnout.
Read the full report on our website's Voter Service page.
Highway Sustainability
LWV UMRR's bi-monthly educational meeting on April 5th will focus on the sustainability measures in the Illinois Tollway system. Our speaker will be Bryan Wagner, Environmental Policy Program Manager. In this post on the LWV UMMR blog, you can see him receiving an award on behalf of the Illinois Tollway from the Metropolitan Water Reclamation District of Greater Chicago at its Sustainability Summit. Bryan is the manager in charge of this program and is an interesting and engaging speaker. The work being done in Illinois has application in highway construction and maintenance across the Upper Mississippi basin. Join us at 1:oopm on April 5 to hear Bryan's talk. You can read more about this event and join the Zoom meeting here.
Remembering a Titan
One of our League's Lifetime Members and a pillar of our community, passed away last Wednesday. Sherlynn Reid left an over 50-year legacy of action and involvement in our community. She was OPRF League President from 1971-73 and I met Sherlynn shortly after moving into Oak Park in 1977. I worked with her many times over the years when she was Oak Park Community Relations Department Head and was talked into many volunteer "opportunities" by her. I will miss her engaging smile, ready laughter, and sage advice. Our condolences go out to her daughters and grandsons. You can read Ken Trainor's tribute to Sherlynn here.
Chicago Women's History Center
The Women's History Center is partnering with the Chicago Public Library to sponsor a program on Saturday, March 27, at 2:00 pm, about Chicago activist Hazel Johnson, "Mother of Environmental Justice." Cheryl Johnson will speak about her mother's life and the legacy she left behind as an environmental justice activist. Her stories will be accompanied with archival photographs and manuscripts from the People for Community Recovery Archives, an organization founded by Hazel Johnson to fight environmental racism on Chicago's heavily polluted southeast side. This Women's History Month program is co-sponsored by the Chicago Women's History Center. You can register for this virtual event here.
LWV US March 11, 2021