When we talk about violence in Chicago, it often feels hopeless. But violence isn’t inevitable; it’s a symptom of something deeper. The real issue isn’t violence; it’s value.
This isn’t about communities lacking values. It’s about what we, as a city, choose to value. For decades, institutions have neglected entire neighborhoods, failing to recognize their worth. That neglect comes at a price, paid by those communities and by all of us.
When people grow up unseen, unheard and unsupported, they get the message that they don’t matter. And when someone feels worthless, it’s hard for them to see value in themselves or others. That’s where the harm begins, often culminating in a single, irreversible act on our streets.
But this isn’t just about personal choices. It’s about a society that puts things, money, property and status above people. We spend more on punishment than prevention, more on incarceration than on inspiration. Violence is what grows in the vacuum left when schools lose funding, housing is unstable, mental health care is unavailable and jobs vanish.
If we want to end violence, we must stop treating it solely as a safety issue. It’s a value issue.
We need to invest in people. That means providing youth with mentors, jobs and safe, nurturing spaces. It means making mental health support widely accessible. It means teaching resilience and emotional regulation in schools. We need restorative justice approaches and reliable funding for community organizations that truly understand local needs. Most importantly, we need to create real, tangible opportunities, not just empty promises.
We also need to rethink how we define safety. Real safety isn’t measured by police presence. It’s about stable housing, caring relationships, healing, and a strong sense of belonging and purpose. It’s about showing people their lives matter, that they are worth protecting and have something to live for.
Chicago has everything it needs: grit, heart and people who care. What’s missing is a shift in what we choose to value.
When we start truly valuing people, we’ll begin to see less violence, not because it disappears overnight, but because we’ll be building something better in its place: connection, dignity, hope and joy.
Chicago can heal. We just have to believe it’s worth it.
— Johnny Page, executive director, ConTextos, Chicago
What else will he tax?
So, Mayor Brandon Johnson wants to tax the food that we need in order to survive. I have another suggestion that may make as much sense to the mayor. Why not tax us on the air that we all need in order to live?
Johnson could base this tax on age, lung capacity and body weight. If that does not work for him, he could try taxing us on the vital sunlight that bathes our city.
— John A. Magala, Chicago
Turn the lights off
Why are many street lights on major Chicago streets on during the day? If they were off during the day, the city could save money. Less electricity use would also help the environment.
— Eleanor Hall, Chicago
Drug pricing problem
Imagine being told your lifesaving medication was only available if you travel to a specific hospital. That’s the reality many Illinois patients with chronic conditions now face — due, in part, to the lack of transparency in the federal 340B drug pricing program.
As a rheumatologist practicing in Chicago for over 30 years, I’ve devoted my career to helping patients access the biologic therapies they need to manage autoimmune diseases. My team and I were involved in the first study confirming the efficacy of these medications, which are derived from living organisms — hence the name “biologics.” Their impact has been nothing short of transformational. But creating them is complex, and they are costly to purchase and administer.
Originally, the federal 340B drug pricing program was designed to make these treatments more affordable for low-income, uninsured patients. But over time, hospitals and pharmacy benefit managers (PBMs), who manage drug benefits for insurers and employers, have found ways to profit from the system — often at the expense of patients and independent practices like mine.
340B allows eligible hospitals to buy biologics at steep discounts, then bill insurers at average markups of 200% or more, pocketing the difference. Patients are then charged significantly more at these hospital-affiliated infusion centers than they would be at an independent practice.
I’ve seen this firsthand. One of my longtime patients, recently directed by his PBM to a hospital clinic, was billed more than triple what we would have charged him, even though the hospital paid less for the medication. He would have preferred to continue treatment in my office — where he felt comfortable, could ask his provider follow-up questions and would have paid far less — but the system gave him no real choice.
This system creates a vicious cycle. Patients face higher out-of-pocket costs, causing them to delay or skip treatments, and independent practices struggle to compete — forcing many to sell to hospital systems. That’s not how quality, affordable health care should work.
Now, House Bill 2371 threatens to codify this maligned incentive structure into Illinois law. It would further undermine the accessibility and affordability of community-based care. What the program needs most is transparency, and HB 2371 promises the opposite.
Patients deserve access to care based on their medical needs, not corporate contracts. Illinois lawmakers must reject HB 2371.
— Dr. Robert Katz, Chicago
Madigan’s fortune
I followed the trial and verdict of former House Speaker Michael Madigan. The revelation in Sunday’s paper that prosecutors revealed in a court filing that Madigan was worth $40 million absolutely floored me!
Who said crime doesn’t pay?
— Tony LaMantia, Chicago
Why Pride matters
“But why do we have to have a Pride Month? When’s Straight Pride Month?”
I can’t believe I still see this tired, old argument.
We have a Pride Month to celebrate and support the LGBTQ+ community because they are a marginalized group. For centuries, being straight has been the “default” expectation. Anyone who fell outside of that “default” has faced the implied message from society that they don’t belong, that their true selves aren’t acceptable.
We have a Pride Month because same-sex marriage has been legal in this country for only 10 years. Gay people have been around forever, but it wasn’t until 2015 that we decided it was OK to honor their relationships in a legal, public marriage with all the same rights.
We have a Pride Month because people are still bullied, harassed and even killed for not fitting the “default” setting. According to media advocacy group GLAAD, 2024 saw an average of 2.5 anti-LGBTQ+ incidents every day, including bomb threats, vandalism and assaults. That doesn’t even include the hate spread every day in memes, comment sections, and private messages.
We have a Pride Month because societal messages have made young people feel that being gay is so wrong, so unnatural and evil, that they would be better off dead than embrace that part of who they are. According to the Trevor Project, 39% of LGBTQ+ youth considered suicide in 2024, and more than 1 in 10 attempted suicide.
That is why the LGBTQ+ community and its allies proudly celebrate Pride Month. That is why you see rainbows everywhere, why organizations share Pride posts, why you’ll see parades and events and a prism of colors across skylines.
We have no societal subtext implying that being straight is weird. Straight relationships dominate movies, shows and children’s books. Straight marriage has been around for millennia. And I’ve never heard of someone being assaulted or pushed to the point of contemplating suicide because they were straight.
We don’t have Straight Pride Month because being straight is not and has never been a social crime; no one’s sexual and gender orientation should be.
With every year that passes, we hope for even more celebration of Pride Month and less anger about lifting up those who have been historically pushed away. After all, love is love, which we all should embrace.
— Alice Froemling, South Elgin
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