Lynda Lopez
@lyndab08.bsky.social
Chicagoan, sociologist of race and immigration in training, former writer on transportation equity issues, currently always curious.
Reposted by Lynda Lopez
What a brave young girl. She was brave for her family and fighting for her dad until the very end.
Ofelia Torres, Teen With Cancer Who Fought For Father's Freedom From ICE, Has Died
Torres, 16, died Friday. Her father was arrested in October, the day after she returned from more than a month at the hospital for cancer treatments. She shared her family's plight, and her was father...
blockclubchicago.org
February 15, 2026 at 6:20 AM
What a brave young girl. She was brave for her family and fighting for her dad until the very end.
I feel the Chicago mood was lower in December for Xmas and new years. Feeling the energy for Valentine’s Day though.
February 14, 2026 at 10:06 PM
I feel the Chicago mood was lower in December for Xmas and new years. Feeling the energy for Valentine’s Day though.
Hope local flower vendors have a great day of business.
February 14, 2026 at 10:00 PM
Hope local flower vendors have a great day of business.
Trader Joe’s on a Saturday = flower shopping central.
February 14, 2026 at 9:59 PM
Trader Joe’s on a Saturday = flower shopping central.
Armitage in Hermosa: a cultural corridor ♥️
February 14, 2026 at 8:41 PM
Armitage in Hermosa: a cultural corridor ♥️
Hermosa and Belmont Cragin brimming with vendors selling flowers, teddy bears, and other Valentine’s Day gifts. Love this sign of life on our streets ☺️
February 14, 2026 at 8:41 PM
Hermosa and Belmont Cragin brimming with vendors selling flowers, teddy bears, and other Valentine’s Day gifts. Love this sign of life on our streets ☺️
“Fewer customers have been coming to D’Nuez Mexican Fusion in Brighton Park, since last year’s immigration raids in Chicago. But on Wednesday, a group of about 20 people had lunch at D’Nuez, 4125 S. Archer Ave., then visited nearby small businesses in the Southwest Side neighborhood.”
Shop local campaign boosts Brighton Park after immigration raids hurt local businesses
The Illinois Hispanic Chamber of Commerce has launched a series of events to help promote Chicago area small businesses affected by the federal deportation campaign.
chicago.suntimes.com
February 13, 2026 at 11:28 PM
“Fewer customers have been coming to D’Nuez Mexican Fusion in Brighton Park, since last year’s immigration raids in Chicago. But on Wednesday, a group of about 20 people had lunch at D’Nuez, 4125 S. Archer Ave., then visited nearby small businesses in the Southwest Side neighborhood.”
“Two Chicago universities are among a few dozen colleges across the country that appear to favor wealthier families when offering financial aid packages, a new report finds.”
DePaul and Loyola accused of pushing low-income families toward hefty loans while favoring wealthier students
The two Chicago universities are among 41 named in a national report highlighting schools that appear to push lower-income families to take out loans they can’t afford.
www.wbez.org
February 13, 2026 at 11:25 PM
“Two Chicago universities are among a few dozen colleges across the country that appear to favor wealthier families when offering financial aid packages, a new report finds.”
I don’t mind walking up the stairs to the train platform sometimes. I’d love the option to take an escalator if they ever worked where I board.
February 13, 2026 at 11:19 PM
I don’t mind walking up the stairs to the train platform sometimes. I’d love the option to take an escalator if they ever worked where I board.
Reposted by Lynda Lopez
📽️ WATCH: We went inside the immigrant family detention center in Dilley, Texas.
Listen to what kids told reporter @micarosenberg.bsky.social about their life in detention — and the things they’ve lost and left behind.
Read more: https://propub.li/4toqME6
Listen to what kids told reporter @micarosenberg.bsky.social about their life in detention — and the things they’ve lost and left behind.
Read more: https://propub.li/4toqME6
February 13, 2026 at 2:02 AM
📽️ WATCH: We went inside the immigrant family detention center in Dilley, Texas.
Listen to what kids told reporter @micarosenberg.bsky.social about their life in detention — and the things they’ve lost and left behind.
Read more: https://propub.li/4toqME6
Listen to what kids told reporter @micarosenberg.bsky.social about their life in detention — and the things they’ve lost and left behind.
Read more: https://propub.li/4toqME6
Reposted by Lynda Lopez
New: District Judge Robert Gettleman issued an order yesterday mandating clergy be allowed inside the Broadview, IL ICE facility on Feb. 18 to offer those inside ashes and communion for Ash Wednesday.
Gettleman found the govt has "substantially burdened plaintiffs’ exercise of religion."
Gettleman found the govt has "substantially burdened plaintiffs’ exercise of religion."
![Partial Image text:
B. Preliminary injunction
To obtain a preliminary injunction, the plaintiff “must establish that he is likely to
succeed on the merits, that he is likely to suffer irreparable harm in the absence of preliminary
relief, that the balance of equities tips in his favor, and that an injunction is in the public
interest.” Winter v. Natural Resources Defense Council, Inc., 555 U.S. 7, 20 (2008). Of these
four factors, “[t]he two most important considerations are likelihood of success on the merits and
irreparable harm.” Bevis v. City of Naperville, Illinois, 85 F.4th 1175, 1188 (7th Cir. 2023). In
establishing a likelihood of success on the merits, the plaintiff “need not demonstrate likelihood
of success by a preponderance of the evidence,” but must “nevertheless make a ‘strong’ showing
that reveals how it proposes to prove its case.” Id. In addition, a plaintiff seeking a preliminary
injunction must show more than “a mere possibility of irreparable harm.” Id.
1. Likelihood of success on the merits
The court finds that plaintiffs have shown a likelihood of success on the merits of their
RFRA claim. Under RFRA, the “Government shall not substantially burden a person’s exercise
of religion even if the burden results from a rule of general applicability.” 42 U.S.C. § 2000bb-
1(a). The statute provides a single exception that applies if the government demonstrates that the application of the burden to the person: “(1) is in is in furtherance of a compelling governmental
interest; and (2) is the least restrictive means of furthering that compelling governmental
interest.” 42 U.S.C. § 2000bb-1(b); see also Gonzales v. O Centro Espirita Beneficente Uniao do
Vegetal, 546 U.S. 418, 430 (2006) (explaining that RFRA adopted a “strict scrutiny test”).
The court finds that the government has substantially burdened plaintiffs’ exercise of
religion.](https://cdn.bsky.app/img/feed_thumbnail/plain/did:plc:7422wlmkminudypjv6cywlzl/bafkreick6pkilnwl6ogeuuudgylh5ouxpl7waic4nqmd5kuhoudztt2mb4@jpeg)
![Partial image text:
Plaintiffs argue that prayer and ministry to the migrants and detainees at Broadview is an
important religious practice. Defendants concede that “ministering to vulnerable Catholic
immigrants is part of [plaintiffs’] religious exercise,” but argue that doing so at Broadview “is
itself not essential to the practice.”1 RFRA requires a court to analyze if a government practice
substantially burdens a person’s exercise of religion, not whether the religious practice burdened
is “essential.” West v. Radtke, 48 F.4th 836, 845 (7th Cir. 2022) (holding that the assessment of
whether a burden is substantial does not focus on “the centrality of the religious practice in
question”). The Seventh Circuit has “identified three ways plaintiffs can prove that a law or
regulation substantially burdens their religious practice.” Soc’y of Divine Word v. United States Citizenship & Immigr. Servs., 129 F.4th 437, 450 (7th Cir. 2025). Plaintiff can show that the
law or regulation, “(1) compelled them to perform acts undeniably at odds with fundamental
tenets of their religious beliefs, (2) put substantial pressure on them to modify their behavior and
to violate their beliefs, or (3) bears direct, primary, and fundamental responsibility for rendering
a religious exercise effectively impracticable.” Id. (cleaned up). Here, defendants’ denial of
plaintiffs’ access to Broadview satisfies at least the third category. Defendants’ bar on plaintiffs’
visitation to Broadview is fundamentally responsible for rendering plaintiffs’ religious practice
of providing ministry to detainees and migrants effectively impracticable.
Because plaintiffs have shown that defendants have substantially burdened their exercise
of religion, the burden shifts to defendants to show that the burden is in furtherance of a
compelling governmental interest, and that it is the least restrictive means of furthering that
compelling governmental interest.](https://cdn.bsky.app/img/feed_thumbnail/plain/did:plc:7422wlmkminudypjv6cywlzl/bafkreigzeav3gcog7eung3drosx3lsxl6kzxhx6i7kpwgulfe67oohsvoy@jpeg)
February 13, 2026 at 4:07 PM
New: District Judge Robert Gettleman issued an order yesterday mandating clergy be allowed inside the Broadview, IL ICE facility on Feb. 18 to offer those inside ashes and communion for Ash Wednesday.
Gettleman found the govt has "substantially burdened plaintiffs’ exercise of religion."
Gettleman found the govt has "substantially burdened plaintiffs’ exercise of religion."
“…occasional reports of ICE detaining people on the Southwest Side continue to leave neighbors on edge. On days when reports of ICE activity in the area spread on social media, sales plummet, several business owners said.”
Latino-Owned Businesses Struggle To Recover As Midway Blitz Impacts Linger
Latino-owned businesses on the Southwest Side are still seeing low sales. "I hope people shop local and support local businesses," one owner said.
blockclubchicago.org
February 13, 2026 at 4:10 PM
“…occasional reports of ICE detaining people on the Southwest Side continue to leave neighbors on edge. On days when reports of ICE activity in the area spread on social media, sales plummet, several business owners said.”
“For those who are far [from their loved ones], no distance will separate unconditional love felt for one another,” she said. “Love and friendship will always flourish.”
"No wall in spirit": Migrants Celebrate Love Away From Home on Valentine's Day - Documented
"No distance will separate unconditional love felt for one another," one migrant New Yorker shared about celebrating Valentine's Day.
documentedny.com
February 13, 2026 at 5:42 AM
“For those who are far [from their loved ones], no distance will separate unconditional love felt for one another,” she said. “Love and friendship will always flourish.”
I’m very unaware about the world of AI companions and AI dating. I have no idea what that looks like and why people decide to seek that out. What does that mean for humanity?
NYC is getting an AI dating cafe this month
Yes, you can take your AI on a real date.
www.timeout.com
February 13, 2026 at 4:47 AM
I’m very unaware about the world of AI companions and AI dating. I have no idea what that looks like and why people decide to seek that out. What does that mean for humanity?
Reposted by Lynda Lopez
The Pride flag is once again waving at the Stonewall National Monument after New Yorkers took it upon themselves to return what the federal government had removed.
Pride flag flies again at Stonewall National Monument in NYC after it was removed under federal guidance
The Pride flag is flying once again at the Stonewall National Monument in New York City after National Park Service staff took it down earlier this week.
cbsloc.al
February 13, 2026 at 4:30 AM
The Pride flag is once again waving at the Stonewall National Monument after New Yorkers took it upon themselves to return what the federal government had removed.
Reposted by Lynda Lopez
It appears someone hacked into a Chicago Department of Transportation traffic sign in the Loop to display vulgar messages about President Trump and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement.
Traffic sign in downtown Chicago displays vulgar messages about Trump, ICE
It appears someone hacked into a Chicago Department of Transportation traffic sign in the Loop to display vulgar messages about President Trump and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement.
www.cbsnews.com
February 13, 2026 at 4:16 AM
It appears someone hacked into a Chicago Department of Transportation traffic sign in the Loop to display vulgar messages about President Trump and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement.
Something I have been wondering, when people say Abolish Trump’s ICE do they mean they are okay with ICE as long as it’s not Trump’s? Been wondering about this language I’ve been hearing from elected officials. It feels like strategic wordplay. Has a different connotation than Abolish ICE.
February 13, 2026 at 3:47 AM
Something I have been wondering, when people say Abolish Trump’s ICE do they mean they are okay with ICE as long as it’s not Trump’s? Been wondering about this language I’ve been hearing from elected officials. It feels like strategic wordplay. Has a different connotation than Abolish ICE.