Great Cities joined the UIC Library and The Newberry to co-sponsor an event on Chicago’s Modern Mayors: From Harold Washington to Lori Lightfoot
On Nov. 13, 2024, the UIC University Library, the UIC Great Cities Institute and The Newberry co-sponsored an event at The Newberry to highlight the release of UIC Professor Emeritus and former Chicago Alderman Dick Simpson’s new co-edited book, Chicago’s Modern Mayor: From Harold Washington to Lori Lightfoot. Professor Simpson was joined in conversation with Teresa Córdova, Director of the Great Cities Institute.
The event opened with a welcome from the President and Librarian of The Newberry, Astrida Orle Tantillo, who is also a former Dean of Liberal Arts and Sciences at UIC. Rhea Ballard-Thrower, UIC University Librarian and Dean of University Libraries joined the welcoming remarks and spoke about the many resources at UIC’s libraries. Dean Ballard-Thrower is actively building the archival resources at UIC. It was nice to see Mary Case (on the picture above; to the far right), Dean Emerita of UIC Libraries.
An important purpose of the evening was to highlight the value of Special Collections in libraries, such as UIC and The Newberry. Among her questions, Dr. Córdova asked Dr. Simpson to address the fundamental importance of access to original documents in being able to understand the history of Chicago’s politics. The book, published by University of Illinois Press and co-edited with Betty O-Shaughnessy, includes five sets of authors who cover the administration of five mayors since 1983: Harold Washington (1983-1987), Eugene Sawyer (1987-1989), Richard M. Daley (1989-2011), Rahm Emmanual (2011-2019), and Lori Lightfoot (2019-2023). The distinctive facts of each administration, their relationships to city councils, and the legacies of each of these mayors was discussed in the context of key historical developments.
If you enjoy reading about Chicago’s rich and colorful city politics, we encourage you to check out this book. The event was also a fundraiser for UIC Libraries, so on this Giving Tuesday, you may want to donate to UIC Libraries or to Great Cites Institute. Any amount is appreciated.
