Month: July 2026

By Adam Harrington, Aida Mogos

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    CHICAGO, Illiinois (WBBM) — Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker on Thursday signed a law designating July 25 as Emmett Till Day statewide.

July 25 is Till’s birthday. He would have turned 85 this year.

While visiting family in Mississippi in 1955, Till, 14 at the time, was kidnapped in the dead of night and then brutally lynched after reportedly whistling at a white woman.

When Till’s badly decomposed body was found three days later in the Tallahatchie River, his mother Mamie Till refused to allow a quick burial and instead brought his remains back to Chicago, where she insisted on an open casket funeral.

That open casket funeral, and photos from it which were printed in newspapers nationwide, are credited with sparking the modern-day Civil Rights Movement.

Pritzker signed the bill designating Emmett Till Day at the Roberts Temple Church of God in Christ, 4021 S. State St., where Till’s funeral was held.

The governor said he hopes the Emmett Till designation will encourage communities to mark July 25 each year for education, reflection, and public programming.

“Mamie Till-Mobley said, ‘Let the people see what they did to my boy!’ and today, Illinois is answering the call one more time,” Pritzker said. “By signing this legislation, we ensure that the lives of Emmett Till and Mamie Till-Mobley will not be forgotten.”

Please note: This story was provided to CNN Wire by an affiliate and does not contain original CNN reporting. This content carries a strict local market embargo. If you share the same market as the contributor of this article, you may not use it on any platform.

By Adam Harrington, Audrina Sinclair

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    CHICAGO, Illiinois (WBBM) — Monday marks 107 years since the start of the 1919 Chicago Race Riot, and a seven-mile bike and bus tour of sites related to the history of the riot is planned for this weekend.

The riot started on July 27, 1919, after the murder of 17-year-old Eugene Williams. Williams, who was Black, was on a raft in Lake Michigan when he accidentally drifted into an area reserved for whites.

A group of whites threw stones at Williams, causing him to drown. No one was arrested, which fueled outrage and violence through Chicago’s South Side. Whites and police attacked African Americans as Black soldiers stood guard. A total of 38 people died and more than 500 were hurt.

About 5,000 families were also left homeless.

Dr. Peter Cole and Dr. Franklin Cosey-Gay are co-directors of the Chicago Race Riot of 1919 Commemoration Project. Cole said the 1919 riot still impacts us in 2026.

“Chicago is notorious for being very segregated. That didn’t just happen sometime randomly. It happened after the 1919 Race Riots, where basically political and business elites in the city chose segregation. Eugene Williams was murdered for being in a white part of the lake. Today, we still have people who are killed or sometimes harassed for being in the wrong place,” Cole said. “Right now, Black History is being erased by the current presidential administration. This matters now because if we don’t talk about it, it disappears, and then we suddenly don’t know our history. And if I don’t know my history, I don’t know who I am.”

The commemoration project recently completed the installation of 38 markers, one for each person killed in the riot. The handcrafted glass memorial markers were created by youth artists who are survivors of violence, in partnership with Firebird Community Arts’ Project FIRE.

The memorials are embedded at sites throughout Chicago and near the locations where the victims lost their lives.

“We know it’s very important to have public art, because you are able to engage individuals who might not be looking to engaged. You know, you don’t have to go to a library. You don’t have to attend a lecture. But you can just be walking in a public space, said Cosey-Gay. “We thought it was very important to the history of segregation and violence to survivors of violence today.”

One of the 38 markers can be found at 200 S. Wabash Ave., in the middle of the Loop, honoring the life of riot violence victim Paul Hardiwck.

“Paul Hardiwck was a Black man who worked at the Palmer House, and a mob of white people just steps from where we currently stand were looking for random Black people to attack,” Cole said in an interview at the CBS Chicago Broadcast Center downtown. “Two people were killed in the Loop. It didn’t just happen in one little part of the city — across 30 square miles of our city, including just a few blocks from here.”

The 8th annual CRR19 Historic Bike and Bus Tour starts at 10:30 a.m. Saturday, July 25, at Eugene Williams Memorial Plaza, located along the Lakefront Trail a couple of blocks north of 31st Street in Burnham Park. The ride ends at Illinois Institute of Technology Parking Lot D5, on the north side of 35th Street between the Chicago Transit Authority Green Line ‘L’ tracks and De La Salle Institute.

“This is a slow roll. We have children from 5 years old — my nieces, my daughters have participated — to our senior population,” said Cosey-Gay. “So we have a slow roll that covers not only the significance of the riots itself, but also the individuals and institutions that were important towards resistance against that, that still stand to this day. So it is an opportunity for everyone to ride.”

A bus trolley will be available for up to 40 riders for anyone not able to ride a bicycle.

“We stop multiple locations in Bronzeville and Bridgeport to tell the history of 1919, the legacy of 1919, but also to celebrate… really the resilience of the Black community,” said Cole.

This is also the first bike tour since all 38 markers for the victims of violence during the riot have been completed.

Check-in for the ride starts at 9:15 a.m. Organizers recommend using in IIT Parking Lot D5, which is free, as parking near the 31st Street Beach costs money and is expected to fill up.

Please note: This story was provided to CNN Wire by an affiliate and does not contain original CNN reporting. This content carries a strict local market embargo. If you share the same market as the contributor of this article, you may not use it on any platform.

By Maricela De La Cruz

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    YOLO, California (KCRA) — Kimberlee Ramona Guillory, a survivor of a stabbing attack in Davis, voiced her disappointment after a jury found Carlos Dominguez not guilty of attempted murder on Tuesday.

“I’m disappointed, I’m really disappointed. I mean, that was the most traumatic thing I’ve ever been through, and my daughter, she’s had to go through it. It’s just not fair. I don’t understand what the jurors were thinking,” Guillory said.

The case focused on whether Dominguez’s actions were crimes, given his mental health. Jurors considered arguments about whether his marijuana use worsened his schizophrenia and influenced his behavior.

“I’m very disappointed, and it’s almost like my life didn’t matter and neither did theirs,” Guillory said.

The jury did find Dominguez guilty of involuntary manslaughter in the deaths of David Breaux and Karim Abou Najm. However, Guillory remains skeptical about the role of his mental state in the attacks.

“If he was so mentally unstable, how come when the police officer asked him his name, he gave him all three – first, middle, and last – fake, but he didn’t know what he was doing? He was too mentally just distraught? I don’t buy it,” Guillory said.

Three years after the attack, Guillory said the incident continues to impact her daily life.

“He did a pretty good job of chopping the inside of me because when he came down with the knife, he cut the tent and it went straight into me,” she said.

Guillory added that she still experiences daily pain, and while her injuries have healed, she continues to live in fear.

“I’m not homeless anymore, thank goodness. But other than that, I live in fear every day, and I don’t think it’s ever going to stop,” she said.

In a statement to KCRA 3 News, Karim Abou Najm’s parents said they “feel betrayed and deeply disappointed by the justice system.”

David Breaux’s sister, Maria Breaux said she is relieved the trial is over and hopes “the overriding lesson from this tragedy is the importance of early intervention for severe mental illness and of treating every human being with compassion.”

Please note: This story was provided to CNN Wire by an affiliate and does not contain original CNN reporting. This content carries a strict local market embargo. If you share the same market as the contributor of this article, you may not use it on any platform.

By TJ Dysart

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    RACINE, Wisconsin (WISN) — Racine residents are raising concerns about musty-smelling and tasting tap water, an issue city officials say is linked to Lake Michigan and warmer temperatures.

The city, which gained national recognition in 2011 for having the best-tasting tap water in the United States, acknowledged the problem on Tuesday, assuring residents via social media that the water remains safe to drink, cook, and bathe in. However, many residents remain dissatisfied.

“I won’t even give it to my grandkids,” Katrinea Thornton said. “I won’t even make ice cubes out of it.”

Thornton has turned to bottled water, which she says tastes better and gives her peace of mind.

City officials attribute the issue to warmer temperatures causing increased bacteria growth in Lake Michigan. Joel Brunner, the city’s drinking water plant superintendent, said the same problem occurred last year, prompting the city to budget additional funds for water treatment and testing.

“We are also working with the DNR and engineering consultants utilizing our powder-activated carbon system,” Brunner said.

He explained that the carbon system, which still requires approval from the Department of Natural Resources, would significantly improve the water’s taste and odor.

“It wouldn’t completely remove it, but it would definitely help with the taste and odors,” Brunner said.

For residents like Thornton, relief cannot come soon enough.

“I think we should be able to drink the water that we pay for instead of going to the store and buy water,” she said.

WISN 12 News has reached out to the Department of Natural Resources for additional information but has not yet received a response.

Please note: This story was provided to CNN Wire by an affiliate and does not contain original CNN reporting. This content carries a strict local market embargo. If you share the same market as the contributor of this article, you may not use it on any platform.

By Abner Sosa

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    ROGERS, Arkansas (KHBS, KHOG) — A Rogers police officer proposed to his girlfriend hours before he died while trying to save her from drowning in the Elk River, according to the woman’s mother.

Officer Fred Marsh, 24, died July 18 while canoeing with his fiancée and friends. Rogers police said Tuesday that Marsh died while trying to save a person who was drowning.

Sheryl Padgett said that person was her daughter, who had become engaged to Marsh earlier that morning.

“They had been together for three beautiful years, and they had a very beautiful, loving relationship,” Padgett said. “Even though legally he was not my son-in-law, he will forever be my son.”

Padgett said the couple was on the river with another Rogers police officer and that officer’s wife. The group had spent much of the day on the water before stopping as temperatures climbed.

Padgett said her daughter entered the water and began struggling against the current while trying to return to a kayak. The other officer went to help her, and Marsh joined the rescue effort when he saw his fiancée was in distress.

Padgett said her daughter was eventually pushed toward a canoe, but Marsh became caught in the current and began calling for help. The group and other people on the river tried to reach him, but he went underwater and did not resurface.

“He saw the love of his life in distress, and he was going to help his friend and do what a good human would do,” Padgett said. “He gave his life helping someone else.”

Marsh had proposed to Padgett’s daughter earlier that day as the couple prepared to build a life together in Northwest Arkansas.

Marsh was in his first year with the Rogers Police Department. He graduated from the Arkansas Law Enforcement Training Academy on April 9 and had recently begun serving as an officer.

Padgett described Marsh as a “gentle giant” who was loving, hardworking and guided by his Christian faith. She said he never hesitated when someone needed help.

“There’s nothing he wouldn’t do for anyone,” Padgett said. “You didn’t have to tell him. You didn’t have to beg him. He just was willing and would jump in there and do whatever it took to help someone.”

Padgett said she began calling Marsh her son soon after he entered the family. She had lost her only son in a fatal accident four years earlier and said Marsh helped fill part of the void that loss left behind.

“We instantly made a connection and a bond,” she said. “I called him son, and he called me mama.”

A motorcade escorted Marsh’s body through Northwest Arkansas on Monday as people gathered along the route to honor him. Padgett said the response from law enforcement and the Rogers community showed the family how many lives Marsh had touched.

“They made it very clear that Fred was not just their family, but so was my daughter, my family and, even more importantly, Fred’s family,” Padgett said.

Funeral arrangements are being handled by Marsh’s family. Padgett said the family expects officers, former classmates, childhood friends and others from across the state to attend.

She encouraged people who want to honor Marsh to follow the example he set by treating others with compassion.

“Let’s do something in Fred’s honor,” Padgett said. “Be kind to your fellow man. When Fred loved, he loved with everything he had, and he loved well.”

Please note: This story was provided to CNN Wire by an affiliate and does not contain original CNN reporting. This content carries a strict local market embargo. If you share the same market as the contributor of this article, you may not use it on any platform.

By Kelly Eckerman

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    KANSAS CITY, Missouri (KMBC) — For most 10-year-olds, painting is a fun hobby.

For Grace Miller, it’s also a way to tell her story.

Grace loves to draw, color and paint. She especially loves sea otters.

But behind every piece of artwork is a challenge many people can’t see. She has lived with juvenile arthritis since she was 5 years old.

“It feels like you just got punched a lot of times. And it hurts so bad,” Grace said.

Explaining what she experiences isn’t always easy.

“It gets hard trying to tell people what it’s like because most people don’t understand,” Grace said. “But once they understand, it feels much better.”

Now, Grace is sharing her story through the “Art for Arthritis” program, where she’s paired with professional artist Laura Simmons. Together, they’ve created paintings that will be auctioned to raise money for arthritis research.

Simmons said the partnership is about more than creating art.

“On the outside they look like everybody else, but on the inside, they’re really suffering with a silent disease,” Simmons said. “So they do have to take breaks.”

She hopes the project not only raises money for research but also helps children with arthritis gain confidence and feel seen.

“Their eyes light up and they see what I’ve already seen the whole time,” Simmons said. “That’s the ‘aha’ moment, and it’s really wonderful.”

Grace said working alongside Simmons has been one of the highlights of the experience.

“It’s been very exciting and fun being able to work with Laura because she’s so, so nice,” Grace said. “The painting turned out so good.”

Simmons couldn’t agree more.

“I love what she did, and I’m so happy and so proud of her,” she said.

The artwork will be featured during the Arthritis Foundation’s Art for Arthritis event, where proceeds will support research and programs for people living with arthritis. Tickets and more information are available at arthritis.org/kcart.

Please note: This story was provided to CNN Wire by an affiliate and does not contain original CNN reporting. This content carries a strict local market embargo. If you share the same market as the contributor of this article, you may not use it on any platform.