Chicago - A message from the station manager

The [Tuesday] Papers

By Steve Rhodes

“Mayor Lori Lightfoot and immigrant rights groups have sought to get Marriott hotels to cancel or move a trade conference hosted by U.S. Customs and Border Protection out of Chicago – but the convention will likely start on Tuesday as planned,” the Sun-Times reports.
“The agency is set to hold its annual trade symposium at the Marriott Marquis Chicago in the South Loop on Tuesday and Wednesday.”
As I’ve said before, I don’t think it’s fully appreciated that some local and state governments are essentially (and rightly) in a cold war with a federal law enforcement agency.


“Lightfoot said late Monday afternoon she tried to get the conference moved out of the city, but was unsuccessful.

“As soon as I became aware that the Department of Homeland Security and U.S. Customs and Border Protection would be holding a Trade Symposium in Chicago, I sought the movement of this conference to a location outside of Chicago,” the mayor said in a statement.
“When it became clear that Marriott was unable to accommodate our demand, I mobilized city resources to facilitate the peaceful protest against the conference, ensure the protection of First Amendment rights and to safeguard all guests and visitors on the McCormick Place campus.”

What sayeth you, Marriott?
“Two weeks ago, Marriott said it would ‘decline any requests‘ from government agencies to detain immigrants at their hotels.
But Marriott is perfectly willing to host the would-be detainers.
“[A] Marriott spokesperson said in a statement sent Monday that it ‘welcomes all’ guests that seek to hold functions at its hotels.”
In other words, All Guests Matter.

“We are a hospitality company that provides public accommodations. In terms of how we would treat CBP or other government employees who seek to stay or hold events at our hotels, we have said that we would accommodate them like we would any other guest,” the company said.
The statement also said that Marriott does not take a position on the views of CBP or any guests that hold functions at their hotels.
“In accordance with the company’s long-standing approach, allowing a group to use Marriott’s facilities in no way suggests the company endorses the group’s views,” the spokesperson said.

So no problem if the KKK wanted to hold a convention at a Marriott?
*
Meanwhile . . .


*
You should definitely not go to Yelp or TripAdvisor to complain about the (well-rated) Marriott Marquis. Let’s keep it civil, people!
*
Meanwhile, in Charlotte:
“The Charlotte City Council on Monday night supported a resolution to ‘strongly condemn,’ among other things, President Donald Trump’s recent call for four congresswomen to leave the United States and supporters’ recent ‘Send Her Back’ chant during a rally in North Carolina,” the News & Observer there reports.
“Monday’s vote followed a brief discussion on whether city leaders could legally back out of Charlotte’s agreement with the Republican National Committee to host its 2020 convention – a move that would, according to the city’s attorney, assuredly land Charlotte in a costly legal fight.”
Wow, is there any precedent for that?
“The resolution, which passed on a 9-2 vote, specifically calls out tweets and comments from Trump as ‘racist and xenophobic’ and criticizes his assessment of white supremacist supporters in Charlottesville as ‘very fine people.’
“All Democrats on the council supported the resolution. Republican members . . . voted against it.”
*
So on one side we have a president and his party and followers continuing to enable if not offer full-throated support of out-and-out white supremacy and racism. On the other side, we have four freshman congresswomen who are not part of a jihad squad. That’s why I find the coverage of this next turn of the wheel in the Illinois meme wars so distressingly built upon the false framing of both-sidesing and false equivalency.
The notion that the MAGA hat is the new white sheet is not new, and has graced many an editorial cartoon. The notion that the four freshmen are a Jihad Squad is not only verifiably false but undeniably racist – lending further credence that the president’s supporters are not at all dissimiliar from from Klan members. They are not equally as vile as much as one proves the other. Let’s not make mistake that.
*
Understand the moment, people.
–
New on the Beachwood today . . .
Illinois Beaches Can Make You Sick
They’re literally full of shit.
–
ChicagoReddit

Has anyone here purchased one of Chicago’s $1 lots? from r/chicago


–
ChicagoGram

View this post on Instagram

Frida at bat

A post shared by Michael Jacob (@st.mojo) on


–
ChicagoTube
CTA “L” Transit: 1981-87 Budd Company 2600-series door chime.

–
TweetWood
A sampling.


*


*


*


*


–
The Beachwood McRibTipLine: Have it your way.

Permalink

Posted on July 23, 2019