In the Loop with Sasha-Ann Simons

On Monday, Mayor Rahm Emanuel went on record to reassure immigrants that Chicago would “always will be a sanctuary city.” The statement follows the election of Donald Trump who has threatened to block federal funding for cities that refuse to cooperate with deportation forces under his administration. We take a step back and explain what a sanctuary city is, where Chicago’s policies fall, and how plausible the President-elect’s threats are with Angela Garcia, a professor of Social Service Administration at the University of Chicago.

With their new show, “System,” led by choreographer Francesca Harper, Dance Theater of Harlem addresses social justice issues in the Black Lives Matter era.  Morning Shift talks to Virginia Johnson, art director of Dance Theater of Harlem, about the how the company continues Arthur Mitchell’s legacy today.

Mayor Rahm Emanuel’s budget passed Wednesday without much debate, but there are still concerns about a new $100 million community investment fund. Morning Shift talks to WBEZ city politics reporter Lauren Chooljian about the details and what Chicagoans need to know about how the budget will affect their lives.

Wednesday on the Morning Shift, we talked about the proliferation of fake news on social media during the election season. Facebook data that shows the fake news stories outperformed real news stories on the social media site from August to Election Day: 8.7 million engagements for fake news and just 7.3 million for real news.  We hear from listeners about who they think bears more responsibility for the spread of fake news: social media sites or the news consumers themselves?

The Cubs’ World Series win means millions of dreams have come true. But life goes on, and the city is buzzing with B’s: Bears, Bulls, and Blackhawks.  WBEZ sports contributor Cheryl Raye Stout joins us to put a ribbon on a most memorable baseball season as various Cubbies look to take home individual honors.  Plus, she’ll try to explain why the Bears locker room is pretty gloomy these days. And as the Bulls and Blackhawks get their seasons cranking, she’ll give us the stories and personalities to watch for. 

This week on the Morning Shift, we’re examining what’s next for various groups now that Donald Trump will be the 45th President of the United States. Today, we speak to baby boomers of all political stripes about what a Trump presidency means to them and how it will affect how they engage politically.

Have heard the story about those man-eating trees or about China’s plans to tear down the Great Wall? Don’t worry. They’re not true. They were fake news stories from the 19th century. Fake news is probably as old as the printing press but it got renewed attention during this year's heated presidential race. On election night, the top Google search result for election returns was a fake news site with fake numbers.  Now, with more fake news stories coming from the right, some are wondering whether they helped propel Donald Trump into office. Social media outlets like Reddit, Twitter and Facebook are reconsidering their roles in policing fake news.  For more, we turn to Washington Post reporter Abigail Ohlheiser, who wrote a series of recent columns called "What was fake on the Internet this election." 

Hundreds of Chicagoans, including Governor Rauner and Mayor Emanuel, are heading to Vatican City this weekend to witness Archbishop Blase Cupich's elevation to Cardinal.  Cardinal-elect Cupich has overseen 351 parishes in the area since 2014 and will join 6 of his predecessors in the Roman Catholic Church's highest ranks.  Morning Shift talks with author and reporter Michael O’Loughlin, who’s in Rome now, about Cupich and the significance of receiving that iconic red hat. 

Vocalo’s Ayana Contreras usually takes us on a trip into the history of soul music, but today, she’s talking with a contemporary artist that crosses artistic boundaries and genres.  Chicago singer and writer Jamila Woods  sat down recently with Ayana to talk about her music, her process, and her influences. 

Award-winning journalist Gwen Ifill passed away Monday at the age of 61 after battling cancer.  She was a political reporter for several newspapers, a book author, and most recently the co-host of the PBS NewsHour. Universally respected by her colleagues and the people she reported on, she’s been called “a standard bearer for courage, fairness and integrity.”  Morning Shift talks to Laura Washington, political analyst for the Chicago Sun-Times and ABC 7 Chicago, and Jill Hopkins, co-host of the Morning AMp on our sister station Vocalo, about Gwen Ifill’s extraordinary life and career and the impact she had as a trailblazing African-American woman in journalism.