Serving the Northwestern and Evanston communities since 1881
The Daily Northwestern Monday, November 7, 2022
Arts & Entertainment
Extended November Special Issue
See page 5 for stories
Black city employees raise equity concerns Employees publish report detailing city discrimination By SELENA KUZNIKOV
daily senior staffer @selenakuznikov
After approximately 30 Black city of Evanston employees hosted an internal meeting in August to share their workplace experiences, Black city employees have now published a report alleging inequitable and unjust practices in the workplace. Written by employees across various departments, divisions and ages, the 39-page report, released Nov. 1, states Black city employees face racial discrimination and institutional inequities and barriers. The City of Evanston Black Employee Action Group published the report and said it aimed to highlight inequities and provide a “solution-based framework” to improve city workplaces for all employees. The report’s authors remain anonymous, with the group requesting protection for employees behind the letter under whistleblower protection laws. “What we identified at (the August meeting) is that our experiences may seem singular,
but are actually part of a deeper systemic racial issue rooted in the policies and politics of our workplace,” the report said. The report cited anonymous lived experiences from Black employees. Employees alleged a culture of racist comments and microaggressions from coworkers, unfair hiring practices, inequitable workloads and a lack of upward mobility or opportunities in the workplace, among other discriminatory practices. The report alleged that the city’s Human Resources department failed to adequately investigate complaints filed by Black employees, stating that many incidents reported to HR had little to no follow-up under previous and current Evanston leadership. The group also referenced the 2022 lakefront report published by Salvatore, Prescott, Porter & Porter, which found the city HR department and city officials had failed in addressing systemic sexual misconduct and physical abuse along Evanston’s lakefront employees. The lakefront report alleges inadequate documentation of reports, inconsistent complaint responses, a lack of necessary training and capacity to handle investigations, among
» See DISCRIMINATION, page 11
Alyce Browne/Daily Senior Staffer
The Wildcats huddle before a play. Northwestern played through intense wind and a rainstorm in Saturday’s contest, a 21-7 loss to No. 2 Ohio State.
Wildcats fall to No. 2 Ohio State Cats come up short against Buckeyes amid wild weather conditions By JOHN RIKER
daily senior staffer @jhnriker
On Tuesday afternoon before Northwestern’s home contest
against No. 2 Ohio State, offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach Mike Bajakian added meteorologist to his responsibilities. Up against the Buckeyes’ vaunted unit, the third-year offensive coordinator designed a game
plan that adjusted to the windy and rainy forecast by leaning heavily on the run, with a specific emphasis on Wildcat formations that would directly snap the ball to the Wildcats’ running backs. “[Coach Bajakian] and the
offensive staff did a good job putting together an outstanding plan,” head coach Pat Fitzgerald said. “We had to wait until practice Tuesday to
» See FOOTBALL, page 11
Residents discuss budget worries Here’s how to vote City hosts events for constituent input on proposed budget for 2023
Ahead of midterms, Wildcats prepare to vote in Evanston
By JEREMY FREDRICKS
the daily northwestern @jsfredricks
About 10 Evanston residents gathered to raise concerns about a lack of transparency around the city’s 2023 proposed budget at a Thursday town hall. The proposed budget of about $402.5 million would be an 11.7% increase from last year. It features more funding to help the city lower carbon emissions under the Climate Action and Resilience Plan and to hire additional staffers for a variety of departments. About a quarter of the budget will support infrastructure and civic projects under the Capital Improvement Plan. Hosted at the Evanston Ecology Center, the Thursday event was the city’s second town hall on the subject, with the first one held in Spanish on Oct. 26. Trisha Connolly was one of several residents who pointed to a lack of transparency from the city in its past and current financial affairs.
Recycle Me
as a student at NU By PAVAN ACHARYA
daily senior staffer @pavanacharya02
Jeremy Fredricks/The Daily Northwestern
Evanston Chief Financial Officer Hitesh Desai presents the 2023 proposed budget to residents at a Thursday town hall. Residents expressed concerns about several aspects of the budget, especially transparency, during the town hall.
“People are not going to be able to stay in this town, if that’s the train that we continue to drive,” Connolly
said. “I feel like we don’t have a holistic picture.” Evanston Chief Financial Officer Hitesh Desai and
Budget Manager Clayton Black delivered a presentation
» See BUDGET TOWN HALL, page 11
The 2022 midterm elections are fast approaching, and Northwestern students and faculty have multiple on-campus voting resources available from now through Election Day on Nov. 8. NU community members can choose to either vote in the Illinois elections or those of another home state. Those who choose to vote in Illinois can request a mail-in ballot or vote in person, either early or on Election Day. In Illinois, absentee ballot requests are due five days prior to the election. The ballots themselves must be postmarked by Election Day. Those who have missed absentee ballot deadlines in Illinois can register to vote online or in person on
Election Day. Voters who plan to register when they vote in person must bring two forms of identification: one to establish their identity and another to show proof of an Illinois address. Election Day polling locations on or near the NU Evanston campus include the Noyes Cultural Arts Center by North Campus and Parkes Hall on South Campus and will be open from 6 a.m. to 7 p.m. on Election Day. Those voting out of state can vote by mail-in ballot or in person in their home state on or before Election Day. Voting rules vary throughout each of the 50 states. For example, Nebraska requires absentee ballots to be requested 11 days before Election Day, whereas requests are due one day prior in Montana. Some states like Pennsylvania require that mail-in ballots are postmarked and received by Election Day. Meanwhile, New York requires the ballots be postmarked and received within seven days of Election
» See HOW TO VOTE, page 11
INSIDE: Around Town 2 | On Campus 3 | Arts & Entertainment 5 | Classifieds & Puzzles 11 | Sports 12