Nightlife strengthens Chicago's economy
Chicago’s nightlife is more than late-night music and bright lights. It’s a vital engine for local jobs, small businesses and neighborhood vibrancy. As neighborhoods evolve, thoughtfully curated nightlife preserves what makes our city magnetic: places where people gather, artists thrive and local economies hum after dark.
The West Loop’s transformation into a dining and cultural destination didn’t happen by accident. It was built by venues, promoters, DJs, bartenders and small vendors who create experiences that funnel spending into nearby restaurants, ride-hailing, retail and hospitality. A well-run event can mean dozens of nights of business for surrounding establishments and work for freelancers and creatives who rely on the nightlife economy.
Curated events also make nightlife safer and more inclusive. When promoters and venues prioritize capacity control, guest list management and trained door staff, they reduce the chaos that can make nights out feel risky. Thoughtful programming — booking artists who draw a crowd, designing layouts that avoid overcrowding and communicating clear entry policies — keeps the experience enjoyable for attendees and manageable for neighbors. That is a public safety and community win.
Nightlife is cultural infrastructure. It’s where new music scenes form, where emerging DJs and producers test ideas and where communities find common ground. For many young creatives, a single well-run night can be the difference between an unpaid gig and a career. Supporting curated events is an investment in the next generation of Chicago talent.
This support doesn’t mean events should operate without oversight. Cities and venues must work together to balance growth with neighborhood quality of life. Reasonable regulations — clear noise standards, predictable permitting and channels for neighbor feedback — help venues plan responsibly and avoid last-minute conflicts. City leaders can also support nightlife through targeted programs: small grants for sound mitigation, streamlined permitting for pop-ups and workforce training partnerships.
Promoters are already stepping up, experimenting with production values, accessibility and partnerships. These events are not just parties; they are microeconomies that support staff, artists and suppliers. When a promoter invests in a polished, curated night, the ripple effects are real.
On Saturday, we launched Elements Nightlife in the West Loop with a curated EDM night — an example of how thoughtful programming can bring people together and support local workers. If you care about Chicago’s future as a place where creativity and commerce meet, consider supporting nights that do it right.
Gary Fabian, founder, Elements Nightlife
Pass SCORE Act to protect, lift student-athletes
As a former student-athlete at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, I have fond memories of competing in the Big Ten Conference. Not only did playing on the women’s soccer and track and field teams offer the opportunity to earn a degree while playing the sports I love, it also helped me gain values like teamwork and discipline that serve me well in my career. But given the current state of college sports, I worry future generations may not benefit from this life-changing opportunity the way I did.
As the Big Ten representative on the Division 1 Student-Athlete Advisory Committee, I hear from student-athletes and learn about their challenges, especially when it comes to navigating name, image and likeness, or NIL, rights.
Since 2021, the lack of national standards on NIL has left athletes and institutions with an inconsistent landscape of differing laws. This patchwork means uncertainty, inequity and legal risks have dominated college sports. Nonprofit sports, particularly the Olympics and women’s programs like the ones I participated in, are especially vulnerable. Without federal reform, the sports I competed in face mounting financial pressures as some schools consider eliminating certain programs entirely.
Among the many bills Congress has introduced to stabilize college sports, only one piece of proposed legislation stands for its student-centered vision: the Student Compensation and Opportunity through Rights and Endorsements, or SCORE, Act.
The SCORE Act does more than establish uniform NIL guardrails. It invests heavily in the student-athlete experience and requires schools to maintain 16 or more varsity programs, valuing the diversity of college sports. It also strengthens academic opportunities through scholarship protections and degree-completion programs and safeguards our health and well-being, covering sports-related medical costs and providing mental health resources.
The bill also affirms an obvious truth: College athletes are students and not employees of their institution. During my time at the University of Illinois, my coaches served as my mentors. Never could I imagine them as supervisors or human resources managers. Likewise, my teammates were working toward their degrees. They were not my co-workers. Turning college sports into an employer-employee model would jeopardize the relationships and educational values at the core of college athletics.
Fixing college sports will require us to reinforce the values that make it special and uniquely American. Let’s pass the SCORE Act, so that student-athletes have the chance to compete, learn and grow into the next generation of leaders.
Abby Lynch, Lincoln Park
Rebuilding Syria’s health care system
Next month marks one year since the liberation of Syria, a milestone that should symbolize hope and renewal. Yet during a recent mission with the Syrian American Medical Society, I saw that the country’s health care system is still struggling to recover. The conflict may have ended, but millions of Syrians continue to face major barriers to medical care and basic health services.
More than 16.5 million people depend on humanitarian aid, and about half of Syria’s hospitals and clinics remain damaged or only partially functional. Many operate without reliable electricity, clean water or sufficient supplies. Even routine care, from eye exams to chronic disease management, is difficult to access, especially in rural or previously affected areas. The war is over, but the human cost remains.
As an ophthalmologist and physician trained in public health, I witnessed the strain on medical staff and the gaps in patient access across multiple regions. Clinics were overburdened, staff was limited, and essential medicines and equipment were scarce. Health care workers were often forced to improvise and focus on the most urgent cases. Still, their resilience was remarkable. Doctors, nurses and volunteers continue to provide critical care under extremely difficult conditions. I met a mother who lost her daughter and whose son had esotropia — a type of eye misalignment. The woman, herself, also has shrapnel in her own eye from a past attack. Her story underscored how deeply families continue to carry the wounds of war.
This situation highlights the urgent need for coordinated international support. Humanitarian organizations like the Syrian American Medical Society provide mobile clinics, surgical missions, training programs and medical supplies. But the scale of need is far greater than what any single group can meet.
To move Syria from crisis to recovery, the international community must invest in health care infrastructure, rebuild hospitals and utilities, support and retain health workers through training and safety measures, strengthen coordination between aid groups and local authorities and develop long-term programs for medical education and preventive care.
Liberation was an important step, but it was not the finish line. Rebuilding Syria’s health care system is essential for all Syrians to live healthy and dignified lives. One year on, sustained global support can help transform survival into renewal and bring real hope to the people of Syria.
Dr. Mohammad Al-Khudari, Burr Ridge
Making the CTA safer
I have not taken a Chicago Transit Authority train since the COVID-19 shutdown of 2020. Because I have asthma, I cannot risk being subjected to the rampant amounts of smoking taking place on the trains. I also refuse to take the CTA because of the crime. Technological gimmicks, sweet-talking ambassadors, ad campaigns, fare enforcement and the occasional presence of police won't cut it.
The only solution I see to get riders to return to the CTA is to reinstate conductors on each and every train to regulate both petty and serious offenses as well as harassment of passengers. None of us wants to be the next rider set on fire.
Elizabeth Mina, Gladstone Park
Gun lobby is the problem
The victims of the recent gun violence in the Loop are teenagers, and the shooters may likely be young as well. They are also likely not migrants who are being targeted by President Donald Trump's armed and masked enforcers.
A lot of young people who shoot off their guns in Chicago, including gang members, usually get their guns from older law-breaking sources. There are millions of guns in circulation, including those for legitimate use, because of the easy access allowed by a gun industry that rewards lawmakers for glorifying gun ownership and promoting the ambiguous Second Amendment.
Ed Stone, Northbrook
Obama in the House
Do you yearn for a president who is not cruel, vindictive, racist, a felon or wannabe dictator and a Republican Congress not filled by Donald Trump's lapdogs?
Do you yearn for the days of someone like Barack Obama who, in fact, is still very active and trying to save our democracy? Then let’s get him to move to a House district with an incumbent Republican U.S. representative — there are a few in his majority-Democratic adopted home state of Illinois — and run for a House seat in 2026.
John Quincy Adams, who was president between 1825 and 1829, served in the House of Representatives for 17 years from 1831 to 1848, when he collapsed on the floor of the House and died two days later in an adjacent room at the age of 80.
Adams was considered to be a leader in the House right up to his death and considerably more effective there than as president. He was especially known for his strong opposition to slavery.
Norm Luther, Spokane, Washington
Helicopter parents: Cool your propellers
On a cold January day in 1950, mom walked me one block to Byrne School in Garfield Ridge for my first day of kindergarten.
We had to cross Oak Park Avenue to get to Byrne, which was a few hundred feet behind our house. There was a crossing guard on duty, so mom figured I’d be safe navigating Oak Park Avenue on Day 2. She never escorted me to school again. I cherished that glimpse freedom at not quite 5.
I’m reminded about that introduction to formal education as I now live near Abraham Lincoln Elementary School in Glen Ellyn. Around 2:45 p.m. every afternoon, a fleet of SUV’s and minivans begins choking Greenfield Avenue in front of the school. The entire block is metal-to-metal behemoths. The line even extends around the corner onto nearby Regent Street. This goes on till school lets out at 3:30 p.m. and beyond.
Reducing fossil fuel pollution be damned.
Exercise? Fuhgeddabout it.
Give Dick and Jane a little freedom from "Helicopter Mom and Dad?" Nope.
I’m more dismayed than angry. Life was simpler and less angst-filled for parents back in my day. I can’t claim I would revert back to 1950 parenting were I reprising that glorious experience today with my kids.
But if I didn't, I’d sure be using my pedal extremities instead of a climate-choking gas guzzler to get them home safely from a nearby school.
Walt Zlotow, Glen Ellyn
Just get out and vote
I am tired of the cry for term limits for elected officials. We already have them. They’re called elections. Term limits brings to mind "throwing the baby out with the bath water." It’s easy to sit home and wish for term limits; it’s hard to get off the couch and work for change.
John Hankes, Streeterville