Cyntoia Brown, who was an inmate at the age of 16-years-old, will be released from prison Aug. 7 after serving nearly 15 years behind bars as a result of a life sentence she received as a juvenile. Being sentenced to life in prison at the age of 16 is...
By Northern Star Editorial Board
| October 17, 2018
With midterm elections approaching and recent polarizing activity in government, the Northern Star Editorial Board implores readers to begin educating themselves on the current composition of those in elected bodies.Midterm election voting is held Nov....
Timothy Killeen, University of Illinois System president, addresses the crowd Tuesday, in announcing the Illinois Innovation Network's partnership with NIU in the Barsema Alumni and Visitors Center.
Elected officials should use their right of free speech when candidates who are attempting to unseat the representatives employ bigotry, hate and fear to win a race.
Republican Rep. Jeanne Ives has a bigoted political advertisement sarcastically “thanking” Gov. Bruce Rauner for his support of birth control, unions, sanctuary cities and for allowing grown men in dresses to use girls’ bathrooms, according to the BenedictRauner.com ad.
Ives mocked the transgender community and inflamed the bathroom debate by mischaracterizing Rauner’s support of House Bill 1785. The ad depicts a man wearing a dress thanking Rauner because he can now use the women’s bathroom. This representation is inflammatory as Ives is insinuating the transgender community is illegitimate and bills that grant them equal rights are just tools for illegitimate members of the trans community to be sexual predators.
House Bill 1785 actually amends the Vital Records Act. The bill requires those who have undergone “gender transition treatment” to have a licensed health care or mental health care professional make a declaration about the individual’s transition before issuing an updated birth certificate with their new gender and name, according to the bill.
When Ives’ decision to run the commercial and its intent were questioned, her spokesperson doubled down and said “she is not pulling the ad because she is not intimidated by Gov. Rauner and what she called his paid party mouthpieces,” according to a Feb. 3 WGN article.
What’s most interesting about Ives’ political ad is Rauner never publicly denounced her bigoted ad; he remained silent on the topic altogether.
While Ives is in her own right to say and think what she wants about the transgender community, her ad is not a true reflection of the bill passed by Rauner.
Elected officials especially Illinois Governor Bruce Rauner ,should be representing all communities, and Ives’ misleading attack against Rauner was also an attack against the very communities Illinois elected officials are supposed to represent.
The only way to combat an individual’s right to spew hate and bigotry is by using the same right to counter their words.
People in power have an obligation as elected officials to use their voice to represent people. By staying silent, they aren’t doing their job.
Daniel Biss, 9th District senator and Democratic gubernatorial candidate, speaks to a crowd of more than 50 attendees Tuesday in the Sky Room of the Holmes Student Center.
Republican gubernatorial candidate Bruce Rauner gives a thumbs up outside his polling place at Sacred Heart Center in Winnetka on Election Day, Tuesday.
Winnetka businessman Bruce Rauner has taken Gov. Pat Quinn’s seat in the midterm elections, according to projections.The race — one of the closest and most expensive in the country — pitted Rauner against Quinn, who has served as governor since...
Gov. Pat Quinn delivered the State of the State Wednesday, an address filled with ambitious promises to lay the foundation for a better Illinois.His goals, although commendable and attainable, lack crucial elements that would benefit students.Education...
Senior Pastor Jon Hutchison of the United Methodist Church, 321 Oak St., said gambling expansion in Illinois is not a good way to raise money for the state. A gambling expansion bill caused great controversy in Illinois, leading hundreds of pastors across...
Our government is broken. Whether it is the local, state or federal government, it never can seem to get anything done. We have an ever increasing amount of debt, another potential government shutdown on the way and presidential campaigns that last forever,...
