Good morning, Chicago. ✶
🔎 Below: President Donald Trump’s trade war is presenting a challenge for Chicago’s international grocery stores, as most of them import specialty products like spices and grains from countries subject to double-digit tariffs.
🗞️ Plus: The FAA sets unprecedented drone restrictions over the city, the Cubs beat the Padres to win the wild card series and more news you need to know.
📧 Subscribe: Get this newsletter delivered to your inbox weekday mornings.
⏱️: A 9-minute read
TODAY’S WEATHER ☀️
Sunny with a high of about 88. Near record high temperatures are expected this weekend.
TODAY’S TOP STORIES
Chicago’s international grocery stores struggle to keep prices down and import goods
By Janani Jana
Tariff times: Tariffs are hitting Chicago’s ethnic and international grocery stores particularly hard because most of their products are imported. And often, these items, like grains, spices or herbs, are not easily sourced in the U.S. The taxes have hit a number of consumer products from cars to toys, but particularly food such as tea, tree nuts, spices and rice.
Key context: President Donald Trump has pushed for tariffs as a way to boost U.S. manufacturing, saying it will force countries like Mexico and China to curb the flow of illegal drugs and migrants into the U.S. Trump has announced tariffs on nearly every country at rates ranging from 10% to 50%.
Price check: “It is a total mess right now,” said Waseem Hashlamoun, manager of Dukan International Food Market in Albany Park. Tariffs have also put a few of his suppliers from India and China out of business, forcing him to search for new partners.
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ChiArts board is not renewing contract with CPS, sparking questions about future
By Sarah Karp, Emmanuel Camarillo and Casey He
Future in doubt: Citing “financial challenges,” the board that oversees the Chicago High School for the Arts has decided not to renew its contract with Chicago Public Schools, casting doubt on the future of the city’s only arts-focused public high school.
Key context: ChiArts, located in Humboldt Park, opened in 2009 and enrolls about 550 students. The school is a privately managed contract school – similar to a charter – funded by public and donor dollars.
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A daughter becomes a lifeline for her parents as immigration enforcement intensifies in Chicago
By Elvia Malagón, Ambar Colón and Araceli Gómez-Aldana
Lifelines: Across Chicago and the suburbs, relatives and friends are shopping and caring for immigrants who are staying home and isolating, as reports of arrests intensify. Strangers, through mutual aid and rapid response networks, and businesses are stepping up, too.
Karla’s story: The Sun-Times and WBEZ spoke with a Chicago-area resident in her 20s who is juggling multiple jobs while taking care of errands for her parents, as they lack legal status and want to limit their time in public. “My parents sacrificed all this for me,” Karla said from her family home. “What can I do to help them right now?”
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MORE ON IMMIGRATION ✶
New barricades erected near Broadview ICE facility aim to limit protesters from blocking street
By Kade Heather
Local and state authorities installed the barriers Thursday to allow room for protests but also keep the street clear. By Friday morning, state police and protesters were clashing in Broadview.
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FAA sets unprecedented drone restrictions over Chicago as feds step up immigration arrests
By David Struett
The Federal Aviation Administration set the sweeping restrictions Wednesday at the request of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security.
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Federal judge orders family detained by ICE at Millennium Park to remain in the U.S. until Monday
By Jon Seidel
The National Immigrant Justice Center is fighting in court on behalf of two parents and their two minor children. Their arrest has also been cited in broader litigation alleging warrantless arrests by federal authorities.
MORE NEWS YOU NEED
School to apartments: The long-awaited transformation of the former Immaculata High School in Uptown into apartments could begin next year. The project’s team wants to raise capital by offering shares in the building through cryptocurrency.
Student progress: Eight years after putting in place a tool that gauges kindergarten readiness, more children in Illinois are showing up to elementary school ready to go, but gaps between different groups of students remain and are pronounced, according to a new report.
Grants halted: A plan to help energy companies, local governments and others pay for programs to reduce harmful methane and other gas emissions was canceled by the Trump administration this week.
Remembering Jerome Gavin: As a longtime Chicago lifeguard, Mr. Gavin, known affectionately as “Uncle Jerry,” imbued pride in public service to generations of young people. He died Sept. 1 at age 76.
New suburban bookstore: Zora’s Place recently opened its doors in Evanston, where owner L’Oreal Thompson Payton hopes to highlight feminist books, emphasize perspectives in Black communities and cultivate intergenerational connections.
WEEKEND PLANS 🎉
❤️ ‘Día de Muertos: A Celebration of Remembrance’
Through Dec. 14
📍National Museum of Mexican Art, 1852 W. 19th St.
This annual exhibit is a tribute to the lives of those who have passed, featuring installations, ofrendas and works from the museum’s permanent collection.
Admission: Free
🍎 Apple Fest
3-7 p.m. Friday; 9 a.m.-6 p.m. Saturday and Sunday
📍Lincoln Avenue between Lawrence and Sunnyside
The Chicago fall tradition returns with food vendors, drinks, live music and, of course, apples.
Admission: $5 suggested donation
🍻 Oktoberfest on Division St.
3-10 p.m. Friday; 12-10 p.m. Saturday
📍Division Street, between State and Dearborn
This Gold Coast block party features live music and DJs, games and contests, food, and more food.
Admission: $12+
🎨 West Town Art Walk
5-8 p.m. Friday; 10 a.m.-6 p.m. Saturday and Sunday
📍West Town, various locations
Grab an art walk button and explore works from local artists on display at 49 participating businesses around West Town.
Admission: Free
🎺 Jazz Coffee Brunch: Fela Kuti Tribute
2 p.m. Sunday
📍Hoste, 1857 West 16th St.
This monthly series pairs a different variation of jazz with a curated brunch menu. Sunday’s edition will be led by local collective Stonefruit, who will perform a tribute to the legendary Nigerian musician Fela Kuti.
Admission: $15+
MORE THINGS TO DO
FROM THE PRESS BOX ⚾
Cubs get it done, advance to NL Division series
By Maddie Lee, Vinnie Duber, Steve Greenberg and Kyle Williams
Cubs win: With elimination on the line, the Cubs beat the Padres 3-1 Thursday in the deciding game of the teams’ wild-card series at Wrigley Field. The Cubs will play Saturday in the National League Division Series for the first time since 2017.
Defense did it: Defense whiz Dansby Swanson led Thursday’s win. “He almost single-handedly beat us with his glove,” Padres manager Mike Shildt said.
Taillon steps up: Pitcher Jameson Taillon was key in the Cubs’ win — he threw four scoreless innings, striking out four and walking zero batters.
Friendly Confines POV: The atmosphere at Wrigley Field had been heightened all series. But in Game 3, every little edge was as important as ever to the thousands of Cubs fans packed in to see their team.
After the win: Swanson and Nico Hoerner found each other behind second base for a hearty embrace. Michael Busch and Matt Shaw hugged on the grass behind the pitcher’s mound, and Andrew Kittredge and Carson Kelly on the grass in front of it. Out in center field, Ian Happ and Seiya Suzuki met Pete Crow-Armstrong for a special moment before they walked, arms around shoulders, toward the rest of their jubilant teammates and the raucous clubhouse celebration that awaited them all.
On deck: The Cubs are scheduled for a workout Friday in Milwaukee before Game 1 of the NLDS against the Brewers, scheduled for 1:08 p.m. Saturday at American Family Field. TBS will televise the game.
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GAMES AND CROSSWORDS 🧩
This week’s Chicago-style crossword theme is: Architecture.
Here’s your clue:
1A: Frank Lloyd ___ (architect born and raised in Oak Park)
PLAY NOW
BRIGHT ONE 🔆
Square dancers are trying to get more Chicagoans to do-si-do
By Mary Hall
It’s a Thursday night and a disco beat is pumping over a sound speaker at Ebenezer Lutheran Church in Andersonville. More than 45 people of all ages have come to learn how to square dance.
“OK, everybody join hands. Circle left,” says Barry Clasper, who has been dancing and leading square dances for more than 50 years. Tonight, he’s leading a dance for the Chi-Town Squares, a club of primarily LGBTQ+ people.
“Was that so hard?” he asks the crowd, which is dressed in a mix of plaid and bolo ties, comfortable shoes and gym shorts. “Listen to the music. Try and take one step for each beat.”
Square dancing might be thought of as your grandma’s dance — and that’s because square dancing was really popular during your grandma’s prime. But it’s still around today in the Chicago area.
Now, local clubs are trying to bring the hobby back into the mainstream by making it easier for newcomers to join in and by training new callers — the person who shouts out the instructions for dancers.
Plus, they’re emphasizing the dance’s social benefits.
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YOUR DAILY QUESTION ☕️
Today’s daily question is inspired by a recent episode of “Say More,” WBEZ’s call-in talk show hosted by Mary Dixon and Patrick Smith, which touched on Chicagoans’ opinions around artificial intelligence.
So we want to hear from you: What do you think of AI?
Email us (please include your first and last name). We may include your answer in Monday’s Morning Edition newsletter.
TODAY’S FRONT PAGE 🗞️
Thanks for reading the Sun-Times Morning Edition!
Got a story you think we missed? Email us here.
Written and curated by: Matt Moore
Editor: Eydie Cubarrubia