voices.

I'm Brandis Friedman.

Here's what we're looking at.

It's become a hot issue in the race for president.

The high cost of childcare and what can be done about it.

And we hope you have an appetite because black restaurant week is in full springs full swing in Chicago.

I'm hungry folks for what's on the menu.

>> When there are spaces that are filled with love.

Actively heals our community.

>> And a vacant lot in Bronzeville transforms into a space for the neighborhood.

And now to some of today's top stories, the man convicted of killing Chicago police officer Ella French in a traffic stop 3 years ago was today sentenced to life in prison.

23 year-old Monte Morgan was convicted of first-degree murder in March.

His defense team had argued for a 40 year prison term graphic body camera footage showed French's final moments as Morgan unleashed what prosecutors described as quote, absolute carnage after officers pulled over his car for having expired plates, French was killed and her partner Carlos Yanez junior was seriously injured.

Former alderman Carrie Austin is set to stand trial in November of next year.

That's nearly 4 and a half years after federal prosecutors first alleged she took bribes from a developer and then lied about it.

But it remains to be seen whether the 75 year-old will ever face a jury.

The judge ordered the longtime city council member to undergo a physical examination after Austin's lawyers insisted she was too ill to stand trial.

But prosecutors say the evidence shows Austin is alert, lucid and responsive also resigned from City Council in March 2023 and did not seek reelection.

After this week announcing a hiring freeze and cuts to overtime to help address a looming budget deficit.

Mayor Brandon Johnson made clear today his administration did not make such a move lightly.

>> We don't want to have to cut any services made that very clear.

You know, I've been an organizer been elected official and I know the damage that has been done over the course of bad decisions.

But as a city, we have to be prudent and fiscally responsible in this moment.

Something Johnson added today that police and fire departments are now exempt from the hiring freeze.

The mayor made the remarks at a ceremony to celebrate the 1.2 5 million dollar restoration of the Little Village Arch following its designation as an official city landmark in 2022.

>> For more on the city's budget deficit, please check out our Web site.

Black firefighters from New York this morning joined Chicago's Black Fire Brigade to honor those lost on 9.11 after a moment of silence.

A bell was rung to honor comrades who died as the towers of the World Trade Center collapsed.

>> Uniform and >> Chicago's Black Fire Brigade is dedicated to promoting fire service, education and safety training and highlighting the contributions of generations black firefighters.

Up next, we look at efforts to make childcare more affordable right after this.

>> Chicago tonight, black voices is made possible in part by the support of these donors.

>> It's an issue plaguing families across the country and the state of affordable child care in Chicago was under the microscope at a recent city Hall committee hearing.

>> We hear from childcare center workers and family childcare providers who can't afford to support their families who are stressed and saddened by seeing the consequences of turnover and under staffing.

>> Advocates in Illinois are pushing for higher wages and better benefits in an effort to retain childcare workers.

It comes after a center in Bronzeville recently shut its doors.

The CEO says due to a lack of staff.

Here to talk more about this growing issue are Shauna edge?

A senior vice president at Illinois Action for Children, location, McFadden, CEO and executive director of Centers for New Horizons and Be Honest, Carissa director of Montessori Foundations of Chicago and member of the Steering Committee for Childcare Advocates United.

Thanks to all 3 of you for joining us location.

Let's start with you.

Please tell us more about the challenges that you're Bronzeville center that led to its closure.

>> All right.

Some the CEO and executive director of Centers for New Horizon.

We have been around for the last 53 years.

We have a child care center or 43rd in Cottage Grove.

If Ellis, it has been a staple in the bronxville community since 2008 recently had to make the decision to close it due to a lack of staffing.

So what led to the laugh?

Lack of staffing?

There are a number of different different issues that led to it over the last 2 years in particular.

We've been really face with it.

The main challenge of all of our staff really been transfer over to CPS, do sitting universal implementation of preschool.

The air.

So west preschool for all Our staff that were also trained and qualified for those positions accident and pretty much went to the neighborhood schools.

Okay.

would that mean for the families of students who attended the center?

It was terrible.

So the last 2 years we've consolidated class is closing one by one.

And so we just really couldn't afford to operate the sectors like that.

So the families we've had to turn away.

We've never had a problem with enrollment.

Our capacity is 150 families.

We've always been able to meet our enrollment numbers.

The problem is simply that don't have enough teaching staffs operate.

So I've had to refer families to other places.

So families we're able to find additional carousel.

Families were not.

Shawna.

Several people testified at the City Council committee hearing that we just played a clip last week.

What would advocates like to see the city too?

>> think the city needs to become serious about setting aside dollars to invest in the childcare workforce.

I do think.

>> That is real important effort.

I think it will.

It will set an example for the understanding that the child care workforce is the backbone of all of the workforce.

Right?

And we know that parents can't go to work if they if their children are in, you know, safe, accessible places.

And I think we recognize that through COVID and post COVID that we've lost some centers and folks have really been struggling.

Parents had to make difficult decisions about their livelihood, their self-sufficiency because they haven't been able to have adequate care due to some closures of child care centers.

The state has made greater investments, particularly around compensation for childcare workers statewide.

But in the city because the model is slightly different.

It's important that the city steps up in May and likewise makes additional investments briefly for us.

Clarify what that model means because some folks think that childcare money is childcare money.

But the truth is like.

>> Funding to educate or to care for one child comes from several different streams.

Absolutely.

Absolutely.

So in the city, many programs blend.

Great funding between Office of Head Start Dollars which is head start and early head start programming and then Illinois State Board of Education funding preschool for all as well as prevention initiative funding.

That happens throughout the state.

But in the city of Chicago typically goes through the Department of Family and Support Services and folks have contracts with the department and then are able to provide those services to families.

But traditionally, those dollars have not been extensive or enough and they certainly don't go to every CBO in the city.

And so as a result of that, many of them also blend with child care assistance program funds and may have cited minister contracts in order to bring in additional revenues to be able to meet.

basically the needs to maintain their centers.

But what has happened is that because costs have been on the increase, there is less and less money to give directly to staff.

And we know that public so I wanted to get be out in here because the out of what was your reaction and is this a problem that can be solved just by paying workers more money?

>> Yes, absolutely.

If we can compete effectively the teachers at public schools at the traditional schools, we can certainly keep our workers.

>> My staff are not leaving because they feel that CBS is necessarily a better place to work.

They're leaving for the pay and who blames them right?

If they can make $20,000 more $30,000 more a year and have all of summer off.

Of course, they're going to leave.

There needs to be equity if we cannot be competing with each other.

Cps can't be competing with CBO's Kuz CBO's community-based organizations.

We're always going to lose.

We're always going to be on the losing end.

The city doesn't fund us enough.

The state doesn't fund that's enough in order for us to compete fairly and we can't increase our tuition and put it on the backs of our parents.

You know, journey of the time the parents going to suffer the most are the parents that don't qualify for any programs.

They don't qualify for child care assistance.

They don't qualify for Headstart.

They don't qualify for free.

So the families that are just above the cut-off, you know that our $42,000 and over those are the ones that are going to be most affected.

Look, he do you think we can expect to see more childcare facilities closed at the city?

Can't find and not necessarily just the city, but if it's an increase in pay or something is not done lure them to stay at the community-based organizations, I believe so.

So only child, quality early.

>> Learning center is vital for any community, right?

That's one that that's the backbone of having a safe and equitable community.

When you do have that, you can expect a number of different things to flow from right?

A number of >> consequences that I don't think anyone really wants to go down a road of what that would look like so if organizations just can't do it in this way.

Light just like you said.

can bring They want to know somewhere this and it's not just PSA, other places that they're leaving to go find work that they believe pays better.

>> Yes, some people went to Starbucks.

Walmart it really depends.

One of education level, those that qualify to be actually teacher, obviously are going places like CPS.

Those that are we're losing our teacher systems as well because they could be seacoast or Starbucks.

Walmart we just can't compete.

So enough.

You know what?

What does all this say about the value that is being placed on the work of because anybody who's raised okay to watch the kid knows it's not But does this say about the value that's being placed on and childcare workers and the work that they do?

>> While it still remains to you know, undervalued folks to look at it often is babysitting.

It's sort of a mindset bat.

You know, historically, we know that childcare was born out of slavery and so was free labor.

And so it's predominantly done even today by women of color.

And as a result of that, there's never really been an effort to recognize their contributions really to society or to recognize the value of the work itself.

It's very complex work.

These are children that that need constant attention.

We know so much more now about brain development that we've ever known.

And we know that the first 5 years are instrumental in lay the foundation for the rest of life for lifelong learning.

And so it's really important that we invest in that period of time in a young child's life.

And we invest in that by making sure that that child care workers get the compensation and benefits they deserve so that they can be present, not stressed about how are they going to pay the next bill?

How are they going to feed their families, right?

They need to be able to put their whole being into that work to do it well, and we should honor that as a society, to go ahead.

and also it's it's not the child care worker or didn't really talk to the workers at the public school level.

It's only the child care worker at that.

>> Community-based organization.

I will because the teachers at at Public schools, they make that money.

They make, you know, 60,000 plus has a base salary from the day.

get a degree, you know.

So it's.

The week tradition.

We look at community-based organizations that it is less the traditional school less than CPS because honestly is the city of Chicago really value the workers.

They would have equitable pay for a teacher at a CBO and a teacher at a traditional school.

And to be clear and I want to get you as well.

To be clear, obviously, the teachers who are going to work for CPS, they then become members of the Chicago teachers union.

So they've got the union contract.

Basically that has been negotiated for them.

That you know, that that go ahead.

sometimes it's more of an appetite for that, right?

This more attractive.

>> And it is Israeli is disheartening to know that you have the exact same qualifications is your peer and you can make $20,000 less.

And shot.

We've got just a couple seconds left.

I mean, you know, we just talked about the hiring freeze that the city has implemented.

We know they're facing a big budget deficit this year and again next year.

What can be a few seconds?

Well, I think the city really needs to take a hard look on how they support all workers.

And that is by providing accessible, affordable child care for all.

>> And the only way to do that is to figure out a way to make investments.

I recognize the city has a deficit, but I do feel that this needs to be a priority, long term, long-term priority.

What would you like to see done with the show?

The same like putting our money where our mouth What's really important if this is an important than what could help come from the federal government.

>> Absolutely.

But there are already investing, we mentioned before city of Chicago gets a block grant from the state of Illinois.

But they distributed to CPS first and look at community-based organization second, so the way they've distribute that block, Grant needs to be revisited to set help support childcare.

In addition to CPS, OK, shown Ajay looking stomach fat and beyond Caruso.

Thanks to all 3 of you for joining us.

Appreciate it for to Thank you.

Up next, changing the narrative by creating a place for community.

>> A vacant lot in Bronzeville is being transformed into a new space for the community.

The gathering space dubbed the Southside Sanctuary opened last month after 3 years in the making the 13,000 Square-foot Plaza has a performance stage and space to host artists, picnics, outdoor classes, farmers, markets and other activities.

>> I wanted to design more spaces that made us feel excited that we can come together to celebrate that other people could come from other parts of the city.

have an incredible experience and What was and what I read about Brownsville.

It's important for us to change the narrative and this space will do that.

I wanted to create a space and made all feel like we're deserving.

There are many in other communities across the city.

We don't have in our communities need a space to come together.

We need a space to have farmers markets.

We need a space to have a marching band as incredible as King Prep to be able to play.

And when the Bud Billiken parade comes by, you don't need another empty lot.

>> We need so we can sit in the grass.

Read a book.

Meet your neighbor and he like a community.

You know, people just come here and go home.

We want people to come here.

We want them to go to every single incredible business on the block because each one of those businesses have the story.

>> If there's something that you see needs to be change in your community, don't think somebody else is going to do it.

Don't ask somebody else for something.

Do it yourself.

Go down to city Hall.

Write a letter writing E mail and express what you did.

But don't just express what you need make a plan to get it done.

You can get it done yourself, find somebody else that can help you.

>> And the Southside Sanctuary was supported by a $712,000 City Grant and is located at 47th and Martin Luther King Junior Drive.

This weekend's event includes a fitness class, a yoga session and a farmers market.

Up next, what's on the table for this year's Black restaurant week?

It is officially BRAC Black Restaurant Week and my favorite segment of the month.

It's a little misleading because it's actually 2 weeks.

So there's still plenty of time to visit your favorite local spots or to explore some new ones.

The event was created 5 years ago in an effort to help restaurants that couldn't afford the pricey marketing.

So we've got a couple of chefs from to Chicago eateries.

They're here with us now.

Terry Evans, owner of Windy City ribs.

And I use Murph president of hairs Gulf Shrimp.

Thanks to you both for joining us.

I'm really excited talk to you, but I'm also excited about the goodies that you brought.

So first, let's talk about black restaurant week How are you preparing for?

Terry Evans will start with you.

No, this is our second year participating and so what is most exciting as it exposes our brands, people that.

>> Ordinarily wouldn't visit one of our establishments.

So I think from a preparation standpoint, is just ensuring that we've got the staff because they do bring out the people, the marketing they provide for us is standing which allows people to drive some traffic, additional traffic to the restaurant to want to be sure you've got the people and obviously the food, rather put this stuff stocked up so they feed everybody.

>> same question to How do you prepare for black restaurant week?

Oh, yes, we is our second year as well.

And I it's one of my most favorite you know, falls right after taste of but we we started a special as like, let's just Eastland, something new.

>> And this is our po boy that we watch just for black restaurant week and like you said it, it gives a platform to lesser known brand restaurants.

So a busy time of year for you falls right after the taste.

But that means you're also it's sort of force force multiplier Yeah.

So only see here to your bank Yassin and its special in my heart.

>> Because last year at this time, the Feed the Cell Foundation or want to grab have a grant for my restaurant.

Allow.

Okay.

Congratulations I'm Terry Black restaurant week was as we've discussed created with the intent to highlight and uplift black owned spots.

What barriers are challenges to black owned business is face that others might not.

>> You know, I tell people this all the time we have the grit and the Hawks and the and intelligence to be able to it sure that our restaurants are successful.

The challenge is always the Capitol, right?

And so when you can't and don't have the resources to do that additional stuff that's necessary in order to grow and scale like marketing, you're going to need that extra push.

And so organizations like this allow us to be able to get that marketing that otherwise we couldn't afford.

Because if you think about agency record or hiring someone to come in a lot of times with minority owned restaurant.

We just don't have those resources available to us it.

Sure you are.

You switching anything up for next week?

And here's Gulf Shrimp, for example, you mentioned the PO boy, that we have not this since the founder any here.

I took over the business after my husband passed away.

>> 3 years ago during COVID.

So right now we wanted to keep some of outfits like sober family-run restaurant, the shrimp Po boy, this is just special just for Midwest Black Restaurant Week.

just for them and we'll see if going to continue it after it's that, okay.

We'll see how it does next week.

Of course, our condolences the loss of your husband on because here's Gulf Shrimp.

Long legacy in Chicago.

20 years, 20 in just a little bit tell us a little bit about fun here tells has so here, where the got shrimp.

Because this is his my mother-in-law.

When they're in, that would have been the same ages.

Billie Holiday, 100 in 4.

And so that's where the Louisiana Gulf Shrimp because she was from the Texas Louisiana Goff area.

makes us different?

Why tell people even though where my papa your hand could hand a vein?

Our shrimp come in daily from the supplier.

So that's why we have that one of a kind distinctive taste which impressed me.

Obviously we how do you get Gulf shrimp?

Fresh daily, never frozen.

Here is the list questions.

We're going to fight few minutes, all but the judge of that.

Thank you very much very windy city ribs.

You're known for your staple of barbecue foods.

Are you switching anything up this year?

>> You know, we will offer our sampler at a discounted rate and will also do a catfish as well as our smoke going.

>> Combination because a lot of people don't know that we do have other things other than rebs.

And for our now pork eaters, they can come in and try some of things that are always sold out wishes are smoked wings that are catfish do really well.

So we're going to be switched out with that this year.

Got you.

And so, you know, I'm sensing from both of you.

Obviously, you've got your staples.

You've got your reds and you've got your golf trip.

But, you know, I'm also getting sort us old food, southern vive altogether anyway, yes, yes, I mean, similar.

I think to I use a story, right?

My great, great grandfather sold whiskey as a free slave.

And so I always stand on the shoulders of understanding that if he could do that as a free slave and so was key to be able to create educational opportunity for his family.

I'm 3 generations selling whiskey starting off in the South Loop Chicago now doing in Navy Pier.

So I think the fact that we always kind of go back to the roots allows us to kind of continue to figure out where we want to scale and how we want to grow our businesses to folks who know are going are you related to near screen know I went you we And I saw you all just moved to Navy Pier as well.

Terry hasn't going first black owned business to be on Navy Restaurant.

Black female restaurant, a Navy Pier love the leadership.

They've been very supportive of ensuring.

>> But I get the resources that I need in order to continue to grow.

And it's just great.

I mean, they see so much traffic.

There's so much opportunity for residents that are in Chicago to come out to Navy Pier, to experience all the things.

So when they can come in, they can find a locally owned restaurant.

I think it kind of puts icing on the cake for what's already there.

So I've been advised him to try some food, which, you know, you don't have to tell me twice.

Problem is I don't have a forks on the finger I suppose because it delightful.

But what it while wait see if I can get a 4 cafe can make one materialize >> want you to you brought police told me about the po boy.

Yes, like I said, that's what we're launching for Black restaurant week.

We're going to offer this for a special and then our traditional like you're saying the southern.

>> Food like to fish shrimp with spaghetti in our spaghetti is is made fresh daily.

I'm it's bell pepper onion and the ground beef sauce.

So this is what we caution OK, now that you're not going to tell me, but I'm going to ask you anyway, tell me about the fry.

How do you how your private room?

Yes, we but are 5, 5 shrimp?

What are what are you call it?

The family trade secret recipe and that's what makes them nice.

And crispy proprietary blend.

Yes, yet or if is not telling us folks.

>> But what you want, what you have.

So we have our sampler was comes with 3 bones.

>> As well 2 other smoke meats, this what will offer for the next 2 weeks as well to our brisk it as well as our pulled pork and our smoke points.

We're going to give people an extra item on their sample.

Addition that we have our staple size, which includes our beans, our low tehan are big things.

Okay.

That's a low today.

Yeah.

And it is not American cheese, everybody.

The right here in way that it is your face shout out to Granger.

Thank So, you know, we've just got a couple seconds left.

What advice do you have to other aspiring black restaurant tours?

Harry?

>> And I think you need to establish a community to to your earlier point.

It should.

I are friends were connected in a number of different ways.

>> But I think allowing other restaurant groups to be able to find that opportunity to connect with other restaurants.

is key because it is a lonely place as a business owner.

And so if you to have that community is great.

And the 2 of you have each other, know, as well as some others, which is So could good luck for Black restaurant week.

Thanks again for coming Terry Evans and I Earth again like restaurant week runs through the 22nd for information on more restaurants are participating.

You can check out our Web site.

>> And that is our show for this Wednesday night.

Join us tomorrow night at 5, 30 10 now for all of us here at Chicago tonight, Brandis Friedman, thanks for watching.

Stay healthy and safe and have a good night.

>> Most cats he's made by she called personal injury and wrongful death is committed to supporting diversity and inclusion initiatives throughout the profession.