Hey there! It’s Thursday, and WBEZ is hiring. If you’re lucky, you might be able to sit within the blast radius of my laughter when (if?) we all return to the newsroom (located next to a funhouse on Navy Pier). Here’s what you need to know today.

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1. Biden will visit Chicago next week to boost vaccine mandates

President Joe Biden will be in town on Wednesday to “highlight the importance of COVID-19 vaccine requirements for businesses,” reports the Chicago Sun-Times.

The visit comes as the president seeks to boost public support for sweeping vaccine and testing mandates in an effort to curb the spread of the highly contagious delta variant. Earlier this month, Biden ordered federal vaccine requirements for as many as 100 million Americans. [Chicago Sun-Times]

Meanwhile, Mayor Lori Lightfoot today set a new vaccination goal, pushing for 77% of eligible residents to be at least partially vaccinated by the end of the year. City officials are currently reporting that 72.5% of residents 12 and over have received at least one shot as of Tuesday.

The new campaign is called (prepare to groan) Vax-Chi-Nation. [Chicago Tribune]

As the city seeks to boost vaccination rates, Lightfoot says she will not back down from mandating all city workers to get shots by Oct. 15. The city’s police unions are united in opposition against the mandate. [Chicago Sun-Times]

2. Who will need a booster shot and when?

Some breaking news: “An advisory panel of scientists for the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention today recommended a third dose of Pfizer’s COVID-19 vaccine for people 65 and older, as well as others at a high risk of severe illness,” NPR reports.

The station adds: “The CDC itself has yet to offer guidance on the use of COVID-19 boosters for fully vaccinated Americans. The influential federal public health agency usually follows the advice of its advisory committees although it’s not required to do so.

“Like the FDA, the CDC panel’s decision breaks with the Biden administration’s sweeping booster strategy to offer an extra dose to most age groups as early as this week in an effort to protect Americans against the highly contagious delta variant.” [NPR]

3. Senior U.S. diplomat resigns over “inhumane” deportations of Haitians

The Biden administration’s special envoy to Haiti quit his job today in a scathing letter, saying he didn’t want to be associated with the “inhumane and counterproductive” deportations of thousands of Haitian migrants to their homeland, which has been wracked by a deadly earthquake and civil strife, reports The Associated Press.

The news comes as the White House faces mounting criticism over its handling of the Haitian immigration crisis. Viral images of horseback-riding border agents grabbing, shouting and using other aggressive tactics against migrants has further fueled the public outcry.

In response, the administration today announced it will suspend horse patrols. [AP]

4. A burglar broke into a Wisconsin gun shop. At least four firearms made their way to Chicago.

Just a few hours into New Year’s Day in 2016, a burglar broke into a gun shop in the small town of Superior, Wis., stealing at least four guns that have been linked to dozens of shootings in Chicago, reports the Chicago Tribune.

Police and other experts say such burglaries in nearby states, as well as straw purchases, are a source of illegal weapons that fuels violence in Chicago. The Tribune spent “months examining hundreds of documents obtained through open records requests to outline and understand the fallout from just one such break-in.” [Chicago Tribune]

Chicago and many other cities across the nation reported a surge in violence last year.

Murders spiked by nearly 30% in 2020, the largest one-year change since nationwide tracking began in 1960, according to The New York Times, citing information gathered by the FBI. Nationally, the number of murders is still up for this year, but the increase is not as big. [NYT]

5. Don’t tell us what to wear, say Chicago high school students

Students are doing a lot of adjusting now that they’re back in classrooms at Chicago’s public high schools. They’re waking up earlier, taking the CTA to class and exchanging their sweatpants for other clothes.

But some are drawing the line at being told what not to wear, reports WBEZ’s Adriana Cardona-Maguigad.

Dress codes — and the controversies that accompany them — aren’t new, of course. But after more than a year of remote learning, many students have gotten used to making their own rules. And some teens say dress codes focus on censoring their style and policing their bodies. [WBEZ]

Here’s what else is happening

• Chicago seeks to woo Texas businesses and workers who oppose the Lone Star State’s new abortion law. [NPR]
• The Biden administration seeks to limit the use of hydrofluorocarbons, highly potent greenhouse gases commonly used in refrigerators and air conditioners. [AP]
• An arrest warrant has been issued for an Illinois woman who allegedly used a fake vaccination card that misspelled Moderna to enter Hawaii. [Chicago Sun-Times]
• The Tiger King is returning to Netflix. [CNN]

Oh, and one more thing …

Hero or vandal?

A frustrated Chicago man tore up a speed bump outside his alley garage after complaining to his alderman, and now he faces a $500 ticket for damaging city property, reports the Chicago Tribune.

The man, Nicolas Benitez, says he’ll fight it in court. He told the newspaper that the speed bump damaged his car and trapped ice and snow in the winter. So he grabbed a pickaxe.

“I did one piece today, another piece tomorrow. Little by little I took it out,” Benitez said. [Chicago Tribune]

Tell me something good …

We’re officially into fall, and I’d like to know: What’s your favorite fall food?

Sarah writes:

“My fall is not complete without a candy dish full of candy corn and peanuts, aka Salted Nut Roll mix, aka Midwestern Mix. The peanuts must be roasted and salty. The candy corn must be Brach’s brand.”

And Gail Pisut writes:

“Crockpot beef stew with mashed potatoes. Just the thought wraps me in a warm blanket.”

Feel free to email me at therundown@wbez.org or tweet me at @whuntah.

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