Illinois Public Media News

This week in Decatur, farmers and those in the agriculture industry from Illinois and the Midwest are gathering together at the Farm Progress Show. We talked about the past, present, and future of automation. 

Earlier this year, a federal court in Illinois ruled a state panhandling law unconstitutional, saying that it violates the First Amendment: freedom of free speech. That means panhandlers in Illinois can no longer be ticketed. 

The Illinois General Assembly adopted a new set of district boundaries for seats in the Illinois Statehouse and Senate. The 21st spoke to Tim Butler, Assistant Republican Leader in the Illinois House of Representatives, about the major legislative acts that took place yesterday.

We’ve heard the mental health struggles of parents, educators and after-school providers during the COVID-19 pandemic, but how are our children and teens doing? 

Illinois will have an updated sex education curriculum — one that propenents say is more inclusive, culturally relevant, and based on national standards, but some lawmakers say the law goes too far by introducing sensitive topics too early. 

A new report from the Union of Concerned Scientists found that the number of days people can do their jobs safely will dramatically decrease in the next few decades, thanks to climate change. The 21st was joined by one of the report's authors, a representative from the a group advocating for migrant farm workers, and a worker health and safety advocate with a consumer advocacy organization.

Illinois state lawmakers are returning to Springfield for a special session. We were joined by a group of reporters to discuss new legislative maps and a sweeping clean-energy proposal aimed at fighting climate change. 

On August 26, Governor JB Pritzker announced a reinstated mask mandate for all Illinoisans aged two and over in public indoor settings, in addition to making Illinois the seventh state in the nation to require teachers get vaccinated against COVID-19.

For years, an organization known as the International Women’s Baseball Center has envisioned a women’s baseball museum on the grounds of Beyer Stadium — one that would honor the accomplishments of female baseball players like those of the Rockford Peaches. But as of now, plans for a museum are at a standstill.

For years, Peoria’s south end has been dying: decaying homes, a lack of investment, and fleeing residents, but this summer, buyers from all over America — some of whom had never even heard of Peoria — started buying up homes sight unseen. And that's raising concerns.