Hey there! It’s Wednesday, and if you’re feeling burnt out, The Atlantic says it’s your boss’ fault. Here’s what you need to know today.

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1. Chicago will greatly expand eligibility for COVID-19 vaccines on March 29

Mayor Lori Lightfoot today announced the city will move forward with the next phase of vaccines at the end of the month, which includes residents between 16 and 64 who have underlying conditions.

The next vaccination phase is called 1C, and it also includes workers in the food service, legal, higher education, transportation and other industries that are marked as essential.

Lightfoot cautioned that supply of doses is still below demand, and not everyone who qualifies will be able to get a shot on March 29. [WBEZ]

Meanwhile, Chicago Public Schools announced today that all staff and vendors are now eligible to get shots at vaccination sites run by the school district. [Chicago Tribune]

That news comes as CPS wants to reopen high schools on April 19. But the Chicago Teachers Union says it has not agreed to that date as both sides negotiate over how to safely bring high school students back to classrooms. [Chicago Sun-Times]

The Biden administration today announced it will direct more than $12 billion from the American Rescue Plan to boost COVID-19 testing in K-12 schools in an effort to reopen more classrooms. [Axios]

2. What we know so far about the Trump Tower vaccinations

Officials at Loretto Hospital on Chicago’s West Side say they were behind a vaccination event for Trump Tower staff members who were ineligible to receive shots, reports Block Club Chicago.

A Trump Tower official said the vaccinations were part of Protect Chicago Plus, Block Club reports. That’s the city program that aims to boost vaccinations on the South and West sides, where infection rates have typically been much higher than the citywide average.

A Loretto Hospital spokeswoman said the event was not part of Protect Chicago Plus, but she also defended the vaccinations by saying West Side residents who work at the tower had reached out to the hospital, according to Block Club Chicago. Loretto Hospital has done vaccination drives off-site, but those events have taken place within the hospital’s service area and not downtown.

The spokeswoman also told Block Club Chicago that the hospital mistakenly believed hotel and restaurant staff members were currently eligible for vaccinations. [Block Club Chicago]

As it turns out, a top executive at the hospital owns a condo at Trump Tower. Dr. Anosh Ahmed, Loretto’s chief operating officer, took a (maskless) picture with Eric Trump during the event and bragged about vaccinating the president’s son, though he told Block Club Chicago it was a joke. [Block Club Chicago]

3. Are the Atlanta-area shootings a hate crime?

Atlanta Police Chief Rodney Bryant said today that authorities are “still early in this investigation” and cannot say whether shootings at three massage parlors in the Atlanta area were racially motivated. Six of the eight people killed were of Asian descent, raising suspicions that the shootings are a hate crime.

The suspect, 21-year-old Robert Aaron Long, was charged today with murder and assault. Police say Long claims race was not a factor in the shootings.

Atlanta Mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms said the violence could have been worse. Long was arrested on his way to Florida, where he allegedly planned to carry out similar attacks, Lance Bottoms said.

Cherokee County Sheriff Frank Reynolds said Long may have frequented the parlors, and the suspected gunman said he has a “sexual addiction.”

The shootings are being investigated by both Cherokee County and Atlanta police with the assistance of the FBI. [NPR]

The violence comes as the nation faces a surge in racist attacks and threats against Asian Americans. A coalition of organizations called Stop AAPI Hate released research this week showing it received nearly 3,800 complaints of racism during the pandemic, much higher than the group previously reported. [CNN]

4. Surge in migrants is “undoubtedly difficult,” says head of Homeland Security

Secretary of Homeland Security Alejandro Mayorkas today appeared before Congress and pushed back against lawmakers who characterized the influx of migrants along the U.S.-Mexico border as a crisis. But he also acknowledged that the situation is “undoubtedly difficult.”

Mayorkas’ comments come a day after President Joe Biden urged migrants to not come to the U.S., where shelters are struggling to accommodate a record number of children and teens who are crossing by themselves.

“Don’t come,” Biden said in an interview with ABC News. “Don’t leave your town or city or community.”

The increasing number of migrants poses a significant humanitarian test for the Biden administration. Mayorkas told lawmakers that the Federal Emergency Management Agency is working with federal authorities to expand capacity at shelters. [AP]

Here’s a really good deep dive from The New York Times on the challenges facing the Biden administration and how there might not be any “quick or easy solutions.” [NYT]

5. Federal Reserve projects near-zero interest rates for years to come

The nation’s central bank today said it does not expect to raise interest rates until 2024 despite concerns from economists and investors that the U.S. is skating on thin ice when it comes to inflation.

That dire outlook is not shared by Federal Reserve officials, who released a much more optimistic outlook for economic growth, unemployment and inflation.

Unemployment is expected to fall to 4.5% from the current 6.2%. When it comes to inflation, the Fed estimates price gains will rise to 2.1% by the end of 2023. [CNBC]

Meanwhile, at least 361 businesses in Chicago have permanently closed during the pandemic, according to the Chicago Tribune. [Trib]

Here’s what else is happening

• Cases of White supremacist propaganda doubled last year, according to a report from the Anti-Defamation League. [AP]
• Only seven out of 108 people who have served on the board for the Chicago Fraternal Order of Police since 2000 were Black. [WBEZ]
• Japan’s ban on same-sex marriages is unconstitutional, a court ruled. [NPR]
• NASA tomorrow will test a rocket that it hopes will eventually put the first woman on the moon. [NPR]

Oh, and one more thing …

An LGBTQ person for the first time ever will wield Captain America’s shield in an upcoming comic book from Marvel Comics.

The character, a teenager named Aaron Fischer, is “the Captain America of the Railways — a fearless teen who stepped up to protect fellow runaways and the unhoused. Marvel Comics is proud to honor Pride Month with the rise of this new LGBTQ+ hero,” the company said.

Fischer will appear in a limited series called The United States of Captain America, in which Steve Rogers, Bucky Barnes and Sam Wilson search for Captain America’s missing shield. [Hollywood Reporter]

The news comes as the Marvel Cinematic Universe has for years been criticized for not prominently featuring any LGBTQ characters. Before the pandemic, Marvel Studios chief Kevin Feige said an upcoming movie would include an LGBTQ character. [EW]

Tell me something good …

What sports moment, past, present or future, would you want to have front row seats for?

@duve tweets:

“The sports moment I’d most want to have had front-row seats for (or any seats for) is the 2007 Super Bowl halftime show. That’s it. (And don’t even try to tell me that Prince wasn’t the best athlete on that field that day.)”

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

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