Good afternoon! It’s Monday, and we could see temperatures hit nearly 70 degrees this week. So long, work sweatpants. Hello, work shorts. Here’s what you need to know today.

1. Another COVID-19 booster shot will be needed, the head of Pfizer says

Pfizer CEO Albert Bourla said this week that Americans will need a second booster shot to defend themselves from another wave of COVID-19 infections.

“Many variants are coming, and omicron was the first one that was able to evade — in a skillful way — the immune protection that we’re giving,” Bourla told CBS’s Face the Nation on Sunday.

Bourla’s comments come as the Food and Drug Administration has not determined whether to recommend a second booster shot. Bourla said Pfizer is sending data to the FDA to support its push for another round of inoculations. [CNN]

Meanwhile, a rise in cases in Europe and China is raising concerns that another global surge is beginning. [USA Today]

In the United States, caseloads are declining, causing officials to end many pandemic-era restrictions. Today marked the end of Chicago’s mask mandate for public schools despite a safety agreement with the teachers union. [Chicago Sun-Times]

2. Pritzker proposes $20 million for a witness protection program amid concerns over violent crime

Gov. JB Pritzker wants to pump tens of millions of dollars into a “a long-neglected witness protection program for people whose lives are put in danger by helping law enforcement,” reports the Chicago Tribune.

The move comes as a surge in crime is shaping up to be a dominant issue in this year’s race for governor. As the Trib reports, Republicans accuse Pritzker and his fellow Democrats of “supporting policies that embolden criminals and undermine law enforcement,” such as a criminal justice reform law that ended cash bail.

But Democrats say that law addresses inequalities in the criminal justice system. And states that didn’t enact similar legislation are also seeing a rise in crime, which some criminologists attribute to the pandemic. [Chicago Tribune]

3. Zelenskyy plans to address Congress amid mounting civilian casualties

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy will give a virtual address to the U.S. Congress on Wednesday morning. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer said Congress is committed to providing assistance to Ukraine and passing legislation targeting Russia’s economy.

In Ukraine, nearly 600 civilian fatalities have been confirmed in the last three weeks. They include a U.S. journalist and a pregnant woman, whose photograph on a stretcher following an attack on a maternity hospital was widely shared on social media.

The casualties come as Russia broadens its attacks to western Ukraine. In Lviv, constant air raid sirens are causing new alarm among residents and people who fled from Russian attacks in the east. [NPR]

4. A developer finds itself in the middle of two blockbuster political corruption cases in Chicago

A New York developer that resurrected Chicago’s abandoned main post office now finds itself in the middle of separate federal cases against Ald. Ed Burke and former Illinois House Speaker Michael Madigan, reports the Chicago Sun-Times.

Federal authorities have only identified the developer as “Company A,” but the Sun-Times has confirmed it is 601W Companies. Federal prosecutors say Burke and Madigan pressured the developer to hire their law firms.

The two indicted politicians are separately accused of using their offices to further enrich themselves. Both have pleaded not guilty. 601W is not accused of committing any crime. [Sun-Times]

5. Dr. Ngozi Ezike, who helped steer Illinois through the pandemic, marks her last day with the state’s Department of Public Health

Dr. Ngozi Ezike became a household name to Illinois residents during the pandemic, giving updates on COVID-19 during daily press conferences with Gov. Pritzker.

But when she was named as director of the Illinois Department of Public Health in early 2019, she was just one of 10 appointments announced in a press release.

“What started as a routine executive appointment changed into a monumental leadership opportunity with the arrival of COVID-19,” writes WBEZ’s Alex Degman.

Ezike said she wrote a few journal entries around the time of her appointment. In one, she said she wrote: “I’m so excited to grow and be stretched to new limits.”

“Didn’t exactly know the full impact of that,” Ezike said with a laugh. [WBEZ]

Here’s what else is happening

• Former President Barack Obama says he tested positive for COVID-19. [NPR]
• Here’s a look at the crowded race to replace retiring U.S. Rep. Bobby Rush. [WBEZ]
• Dolly Parton withdrew her nomination to the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame. [Hollywood Reporter]
• Singer Demi Lovato will perform at the Illinois State Fair. [Chicago Tribune]

Oh, and one more thing …

One of the things I love about Chicago is its history and how, just when I thought I’ve heard it all, something surprising pops up. Case in point: About 30 years ago, a drag queen named Joan Jett Blakk ran for mayor against Richard M. Daley.

She didn’t make it on the ballot, but “some still remember the mayoral bid to be an unforgettable moment in Chicago’s history,” reports the Chicago Sun-Times.

Terence Alan Smith, the gay Black man behind Blakk, moved to Chicago from Detroit in 1975. He said he ran for mayor as Blakk to bring more visibility to the LGTBQ community amid the AIDS epidemic.

After coming up short in the mayoral race, Blakk decided to run as a write-in candidate for president in 1992.

“Ronald Reagan was elected president,” Blakk said in her announcement video, as seen in the 2021 documentary, The Beauty President. “If a bad actor can be president, why not a good drag queen?” [Sun-Times]

Tell me something good …

Have you read anything good lately? I’m looking for a good book to escape into after reading the news all day.

I’ve got my eye on Madeline Miller’s Circe, a retelling of Homer’s The Odyssey that focuses on Circe, the daughter of the god Helios who uses her witchcraft to turn Odysseus’s men into pigs.

Feel free to email or tweet me, and your response might be shared in the newsletter this week.