■ Latest on FEMA flood benefits PAGE 3
FREE Vol. 37 No. 38
September 20, 2023 ■ Also serving Garfield Park ■ austinweeklynews.com
@AustinWeeklyNews
@austinweeklynews
@AustinWeeklyChi
Parker’s k ’ art therapy, h page 6
Activists demand West Side Amazon increase hiring, wages They’re also looking for a commitment toward emissions control By IGOR STUDENKOV
Chicago artist Barrett Keithley stands before new mural at Austin’s Kehrein Center for the Arts.
Staff Reporter
Residents living east of the West Humboldt Park Amazon distribution facility near the intersection of Division Street and Kostner Avenue renewed their push for a Community Benefits Agreement, marching right up to the building’s front door last Tuesday. Ever since the facility was announced in August 2021, people living in the residential blocks east of the site expressed concerns about the traffic jams and pollution caused by increased diesel truck traffic, and tried to pressure Amazon to commit to hiring local. They got support from Black Workers Matter activists and several elected officials, including Brandon Johnson, who was Cook County commissioner at the time. The fact that the opening of the facility continues to be postponed – most recently to Sept. 27 – only aggravated the situation. In late August, the neighbors sued Amazon, claiming that it didn’t get the proper zoning clearances. And on Sept. 12, they marched to the building to present petitions calling for Amazon to adopt a community benefit See AMAZON on page 13
FRANCIA GARCIA HERNANDEZ
Kehrein celebrates Black youth with Barrett Keithley mural
Keithley created the piece with the idea of representing Black people in the beauty of their own neighborhood By FRANCIA GARCIA HERNANDEZ Staff Reporter
WS ! NEF H S A L
Chicago artist Barrett Keithley stood with open arms before young elementary and middle school students from Austin-based Catalyst Circle Rock Wednesday morning. Behind him, glimpses of colorful patterns and musical notes caught the students’ eyes, awaiting to see Keithley’s work. To the side, a team of co-artists, arts See MURAL on page 7
You can get local news delivered right to your email in-box. Sign up for FREE at AustinWeeklyNews.com