“And the numbers may be dreary, but in a way, I am at least encouraged that the Illinois Policy Institute and Wirepoints teams consider it worth the effort to continue to make the case for reform.”

“Mr. Pritzker doesn’t pay my bills,” restaurant owner Ashley Driemeyer said. “If he would like to come down here and pay them for me and then shut me down, that would be a different story. “I can’t take it anymore,” she said. “I just have too much on the line.”

“What you’re seeing in these cities is what you’re seeing in urban Black cities all across the country,” said Centreville Township Supervisor Curtis McCall Sr. “With the loss of population comes the loss of federal funding that will help with schooling, infrastructure, hospitals and public safety. All these federal dollars that you get based on your population, which average out $1,500-$1,600 per person, we’re missing.”

The coalition of tax opponents includes the Associated Builders and Contractors of Illinois; the Bolingbrook, Greater Oak Brook, Quincy and Naperville Area chambers of commerce; the Auto Parts and Service Association of Illinois; Homebuilders Association of Illinois and the Illinois Business Alliance; the Mid-West Truckers Association; and the Southwestern Illinois Employers Association. Other opponents include the Illinois Chamber of Commerce, Illinois Farm Bureau and the National Federation of Independent Business.

“The idea is we want our students to leave having some capstone experience as it relates to diversity and inclusion,” Chancellor Austin Lane said. “Our environments are pretty diverse, but they may go out into one more diverse.”

“It’s a political issue more now than it is a healthcare issue and after the election, we’ll be surprised at how quickly the COVID issue is resolved,” State Sen. Dave Syverson, R-Rockford said.

“We’re willing to do everything we have to do keep it safe and everything, like social distance, wear our masks,” said one athlete, Max. “We just want to get back on the field with our teammates.”