The Rundown: Pilots fly abortion patients over state lines

Plus, a $25 minimum wage in Chicago? Here’s what you need to know today.

Elevated Access
The Chicago skyline sits in the distance on a recent flight piloted by an Elevated Access volunteer. Taylor Glascock for WBEZ
Elevated Access
The Chicago skyline sits in the distance on a recent flight piloted by an Elevated Access volunteer. Taylor Glascock for WBEZ

The Rundown: Pilots fly abortion patients over state lines

Plus, a $25 minimum wage in Chicago? Here’s what you need to know today.

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Hey there! I’m counting down the seconds until my long holiday weekend. Don’t worry, Bianca has your back tomorrow. But here’s what you need to know before I check out.

1. In post-Roe America, pilots take the abortion battle to the skies

A growing network of pilots is volunteering time, equipment and expertise to help connect people with abortion care after the U.S. Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade, reports Elly Fishman for WBEZ.

“Pilots take tremendous pride in the freedom we have to fly,” one pilot told Fishman. “I can fly anywhere I want to. I don’t have to file a flight plan. I don’t have to talk to air traffic control. It felt right to use these freedoms to help someone whose freedoms are being threatened.”

Nearly 1,000 volunteer hobby pilots have offered to fly with Elevated Access, an Illinois organization that transports women seeking abortion care, and physicians who provide it, to states where it is safe and legal to do so.

“I absolutely never imagined we could use private pilots and it came just in the knick of time for the health care crisis we’re in,” said Alison Dreith, director of strategic partnerships for the coalition. “That’s the beauty and the sadness of Elevated Access.” [WBEZ]

2. Should Chicago’s minimum wage be bumped up to $25 an hour?

That’s a question one of the largest unions in Illinois is asking candidates running in Chicago’s upcoming elections, reports Greg Hinz at Crain’s Chicago Business.

“No one has said no,” said Greg Kelley, president of SEIU’s regional council.

“We’re the union that started the move for a $15 minimum wage, and that was 10 years ago,” Kelley told Hinz, adding “we do think it’s time that Chicago move farther than it has.”

Chicago’s minimum wage is currently $15.40 an hour. [Crain’s]

3. Trump’s tax returns could soon be handed over to Congress

The U.S. Supreme Court today refused to block the release of former President Donald Trump’s tax returns to a House committee. The court’s order was not signed and did not include any dissents, reports the Associated Press.

The Democratic-controlled House Ways and Means Committee could quickly receive the tax returns for Trump and his businesses that go back more than six years.

Today’s order marked “Trump’s second loss at the Supreme Court in as many months. In October, the court refused to step into the legal fight surrounding the FBI search of Trump’s Florida estate that turned up classified documents,” the AP reports. [AP]

4. The Army veteran who tackled the gunman at Club Q

Richard Fierro went to Club Q in Colorado Springs with his family to celebrate a friend’s birthday and watch a drag show.

Then shots rang out, and his daughter’s boyfriend, Raymond Green Vance, was among those killed, reports The Associated Press.

“Speaking to reporters at his home Monday, Fierro teared up as he recalled Raymond smiling and dancing before the shots rang out,” the AP reports.

Fierro said his Army training kicked in, and he ran across the bar and tackled the shooter to the ground. Another person at the bar, Thomas James, helped Fierro by removing the gunman’s rifle and kicking him in the head, reports the AP.

“I have never encountered a person who had engaged in such heroic actions who was so humble about it,” Colorado Springs Police Chief Adrian Vasquez said of Fierro. “He simply said to me, ‘I was trying to protect my family.’ ” [AP]

The attack on Club Q comes as drag performances across the nation have faced a rise in threats by far-right extremists. [New York Times]

5. NPR’s best books of 2022

Oh boy, here they come: the lists of best whatever of the year.

And NPR kicked it off with this insanely long list of the best books. Seriously, what didn’t they include in this beast?

Among the books highlighted is one several Rundown readers have recommended: Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, which is also what I say whenever my husband asks if I’ve done all of my chores.

Another book on the list is one I really need to read ASAP: Grant Morrison’s Luda.

“Aging drag artist Luci LaBang gets goaded into mentoring a young protégée in the ways of her magic. This is, of course, a horrible idea,” NPR writes. [NPR]

Here’s what else is happening

  • A giant goldfish was discovered in France, and you have to look at the photo. [BBC]
  • The U.S. men’s national team’s first appearance at the World Cup ended in a tie with Wales. [NPR]
  • Amy Schneider still rules. [AP]
  • The James Webb Space Telescope took some cool glamour shots of Jupiter-like planet. [NPR]

Oh, and one more thing …

The holiday shopping season is upon us, and you may thank (or curse) a Chicagoan who applied psychology to advertising when you’re checking out of the store.

This week, WBEZ contributor and historian Shermann “Dilla” Thomas and WBEZ’s Cianna Greaves talk about the many ways local madmen and women loomed large during America’s golden age of advertising, creating icons like the Pillsbury Doughboy and Rudolph. [WBEZ]

Tell me something good …

With millions of Illinois residents expected to travel this Thanksgiving, what’s a good podcast to listen to?

Charlie Post writes:

“If you are not listening to Smartless, you are missing out. Sean Hayes, Jason Bateman and Will Arnett often goof around with their guests and keep the mood light (mostly). It’s in my rotation amongst the dorky, geeky and nerdy podcasts, balancing them out nicely.”

Feel free to email me, and your recommendations might appear in the newsletter this week.