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Happy Monday. Tune in tonight at 5:30 and 10 p.m. for a WTTW News special that’s the latest in our series on policing in Chicago.
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Gov. JB Pritzker signs bills aimed at further protecting reproductive rights in Illinois, on Aug 22, 2025, at the University YMCA in Champaign, Illinois. (Courtesy of State of Illinois live stream)
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Two bills aimed at further protecting reproductive rights in Illinois were signed by Gov. JB Pritzker on Friday, expanding protections to health care providers and making contraception and medication abortion more accessible to college students.
HB3709 requires public colleges and universities to offer contraception and medication abortion, if they have an on-campus pharmacy or student health center, beginning in the 2025-2026 school year. University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign student advocates and recent graduates Emma Darbro and Grace Hosey testified before state legislative committees in support of the bill. The legislation was partly inspired by a student referendum question at UIUC last year regarding increasing access to contraception and medication abortion on campus.
“Our student advocacy with Planned Parenthood started back in 2022, after the overturning of Roe versus Wade, with a very simple objective: to protect students' reproductive rights by expanding student access to birth control and abortion services,” Darbro said during Pritzker’s bill signing event in Champaign in central Illinois.
Some backstory:
Illinois joins a small handful of states ensuring students can access abortion care on college campuses, with California, Massachusetts and New York having similar laws in place, according to the Chicago Abortion Fund.
“By becoming the first state in the Midwest to guarantee public university campus access to medication abortion and contraception, Illinois is sending a clear message: our young people’s health and futures matter,” Chicago Abortion Fund advocacy and communications director Alicia Hurtado said in a statement.
Pritzker also signed an expanded state shield law HB3637, which protects more providers, like licensed midwives and wholesale drug distributors, from discipline for providing lawful health care services in Illinois. The bill also ensures health care providers can still prescribe medication previously approved by the FDA but whose approval is revoked and is still considered effective by the World Health Organization, according to the Governor’s office.
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Sponsor Message
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Learn about sponsorship opportunities.
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(WTTW News)
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Local Veterans Affairs workers are speaking out after losing their collective bargaining rights.
The Trump administration cut union contracts for U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) employees earlier this month as part of a larger effort to strip federal workers of union protections.
About 400,000 workers across the country are being stripped of labor protections, which advocates say threatens the quality of veterans’ care.
More context:
VA workers are represented by unions such as the American Federation of Government Employees (AFGE), the Service Employees International Union (SEIU) and National Nurses United (NNU), among several others.
The move comes as the Trump administration continues its downsizing of the federal workforce, which will create sweeping staff cuts across several departments such as the Social Security Administration and the Environmental Protection Agency.
Aimee Potter, a union steward with AFGE Local 789, said the end of collective bargaining rights means a lack of job security for VA workers. She said they also won’t be able to have a say in the workload and resources that help them serve patients.
“We have a lot of veterans who receive not only VA benefits, but also Social Security benefits, which provide them with safe and stable housing,” Potter said. “The ability to pay for their housing costs, transportation costs — so if any of those services are cut, we are definitely going to see an increase in homelessness among veterans.”
Veterans Affairs Secretary Doug Collins has said that unions too often get in the way of veterans’ best interests, and that the move will ensure staffers are focused on best serving veterans.
“No one lost their job or was fired as a result of this move,” Department of Veterans Affairs press secretary Peter Kasperowicz told WTTW News in a statement.
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Amelia Gray, an 8-year-old female polar bear, is coming to Brookfield Zoo from Oregon, as matchmakers hope she'll mate with Brookfield's male, Hudson. (Courtesy of the Oregon Zoo)
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Brookfield Zoo had great expectations back in 2021 when Hope, a 5-year-old female polar bear, arrived at the zoo from Utah and was introduced to Hudson, Brookfield’s longtime bachelor. But as each spring mating season passed, highly anticipated cubs never materialized.
So it’s back to the drawing board. Brookfield Zoo announced that Amelia Gray, an 8-year-old female, will be making the move from the Oregon Zoo to Chicago’s suburbs, where she’ll also be paired up with Hudson.
“We’re really going to miss her. But we’re also excited that she’ll get to spend time with a male bear — and hopefully be able to raise some cubs,” Rachel Ritchason, the Oregon Zoo’s deputy director of animal care, said in a statement to The Oregonian. “Our goal is to ensure a long-term future for one of the world’s most vulnerable species.”
Amelia is expected to arrive at Brookfield Zoo Chicago later in the fall. She’ll acclimate first to her new habitat before being introduced to Hope and, eventually, Hudson. Guests may be able to see her by mid-October, zoo officials said.
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The annual Waterlily Weigh-Off is now underway, and the plants are flexing their muscles. This goofy contest, dreamed up by the Denver Botanic Garden in 2023, has more than 40 competitors from eight countries, all vying to see whose lily pad — specifically, species of Victoria water lily — can hold the most weight. We gathered some notable contenders here. The winner will be announced Aug. 28.
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Back in the Day: August 25, 1980 - Historic Landmark Henry W. Rincker House “Accidentally” Demolished
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In 1979, the city of Chicago designated the city’s second-oldest residence at 6366 N. Milwaukee Ave. in Norwood Park as a historical landmark. (It’s right by Superdawg.) The Gothic Revival cottage was built in 1851 and first owned by Heinrich (Henry) Wilhelm Rincker, a German-born 19th-century businessman who started a bell foundry. By 1977, the house had been long vacant when a developer bought the property and wanted to convert the space into condominiums. The community rebelled, which led to the landmark designation. The story didn’t end there, because on this date in 1980, the Cirro Wrecking Company demolished the building. While the incident was claimed to be an
accident by the developer and the wrecking company, fires that damaged the building earlier in the year raised suspicions. As the illuminating blog Chicago Nature points out, “After the house was demolished without the approval of the Commission on Chicago Landmarks, the Commission and the community, led by Alderman Roman Pucinski, brought a lawsuit against the owner, which resulted in a settlement for the City, to be used for the preservation of other designated landmarks.” To date, a plaque in the Shop N Save Market parking lot still commemorates the now-demolished landmark.
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This Week’s Civic Events and Meetings
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Every Monday, WTTW News highlights the best ways to get involved with local government.
City Club of Chicago
On Tuesday at noon, join City of Chicago Inspector General Deborah Witzburg for a roundtable discussion with City Club of Chicago CEO Dan Gibbons. Tickets and details can be found here.
WTTW
Join WTTW on Thursday for a powerful Firsthand Community Conversation exploring the urgent issues of policing and public safety in Chicago. This event will feature a screening of select clips from “Firsthand: Peacekeepers,” plus other short-form content that highlights lived experiences and local perspectives on these critical topics. Moderated by Dan Protess, executive producer of WTTW Firsthand, the panel discussion will feature Firsthand participants including Judge Patricia S. Spratt, of the Circuit Court of Cook County, who also presides over
the North Lawndale Restorative Justice Community Court, Ernest Cato III, chief public safety officer, Illinois Department of Corrections, and Retired Chief of the Chicago Police Department and Heather Cherone, WTTW News political reporter. RSVP and details here.
City Club of Chicago
On Thursday at noon, the City Club of Chicago will host a discussion with U.S. Rep. Mike Quigley, Illinois’ 5th District. Tickets and details can be found here.
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Where's your favorite place to see live music in Chicago? Tell us why.
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Email DailyChicagoan@wttw.com with your responses and your answers might be published.
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5:30 PM | 10:00 PM
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Want more WTTW News content? Follow WTTW on Instagram to check in with us daily, go behind-the-scenes, and more.
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Newsletter Producer: Josh Terry
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