Statewide: The Pandemic And Hunger In Illinois

Experts say the rate of food insecurity in Illinois has nearly doubled during the pandemic.  And the picture is worse in Black and Hispanic households with children.  We hear a report.  

Local health departments have had to change their strategy during the pandemic.  We talk with one administrator.  

And when Lincoln was killed in April 1865, the country was stunned.  An author tells us how people responded to the news.  

Those stories and more on this episode of Statewide.

Our lineup:

* WBEZ's Odette Yousef examines hunger in Illinois during the pandemic.

* David Condos reports on reluctance of Latinos to get the coronavirus vaccine and the impact on towns with meatpacking plants.

* Eric Stock of WGLT talks with McLean County Health Department Admistrator Jessica McKinight about how her agency had to shift priorities in the past year.

* Mary Hansen looks into social media posts by two Springfield police officers.  It raises the question of how far can cops go online?

* Derek Cantu brings us the debate over legal injection sites for drug users.  Some say they are safer, but not everyone is on board.

* Yvonne Boose spotlights a Chicago student who recently won the Illinois portion of a national poetry competition.  

* Sen. Robert Peters (D-Chicago) explains his effort to erect a plaque at the Illinois State Armory in Springfield, commemorating a 1965 appearance by Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.

* Sean Crawford visits with author Martha Hodes, whose book "Mourning Lincoln", explains how people learned of the news that Abraham Lincoln was assassinated and their reaction to it.  

Statewide for the week of April 9, 2021Listen to Statewide across Illinois in:

• Bloomington/Normal – WGLT 89.1 (Fridays 11 a.m. - Noon, Sundays 6-7 a.m.)
• Carbondale – WSIU 91.9 (Fridays 2-3 p.m. and Sundays 6-7 a.m.)
• Mount Vernon - WVSI 88.9 (Fridays 2-3 p.m. and Sundays 6-7 a.m.)
• Olney - WUSI 90.3 (Fridays 2-3 p.m. and Sundays 6-7 a.m.)
• Quad Cities - WVIK 105.7 HD-2 (Fridays 11 a.m. - noon)
• Rockford/DeKalb – WNIJ 89.5 (Saturdays 6-7 a.m., Sundays 2-3 p.m.)
• Springfield/Decatur - WUIS 91.9 (Fridays 11 a.m. - Noon, 11 p.m. - Midnight, Saturdays 9-10 a.m.)
• Peoria – WCBU 89.9 (Fridays 11-noon, Sundays 6-7 a.m.)
• Pittsfield - WIPA 89.3 (Fridays 11 a.m. - Noon, 11 p.m. - Midnight, Saturdays 9-10 a.m.)
• Urbana/Champaign – WILL 580 (Fridays 11 a.m. - Noon, 7-8 p.m.)

Copyright 2021 NPR Illinois | 91.9 UIS. To see more, visit NPR Illinois | 91.9 UIS.