“Chances that a first-time cigarette smoker will become addicted,” according to Harper’s “Index” (Nov-ember 1989): “9 in 10. Chances that a first-time user of cocaine will become addicted: 1 in 6.”
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“Increasing education and income [will not] bring about black integration in society,” writes Douglas S. Massey of the U. of C.’s Population Research Center, in a paper presented to the Chicago Community Trust Human Relations Task Force. “At all levels of education, income, and occupation status, blacks are very highly segregated from whites. Blacks who make under $2,500 per year, the poorest of the poor by any standard, have a segregation score of 91.1, whereas those who make more than $50,000 per year have a score of 86.3…. Indeed, the most affluent black families display a level of segregation (86.3) that is higher than the poorest Hispanic families (79.3)…. The extreme level of black segregation [in Chicago] more likely stems from the persistence of white prejudice against blacks as neighbors.”
“While the demand for organs is rising, the supply is dropping. No one is sure why, but the number of organ donors in Illinois decreased by 21 percent between May 1988 and May 1989” (Laurie Abraham in the Chicago Reporter, October 1989).
Celebrity figures. From Susan Nelson’s Chicago Times (November/December 1989) profile of born-again environmentalist and Channel Two anchor Bill Kurtis, discussing his campaign for garbage containers in Lincoln Park: “Kurtis pledged $1,000–which would buy five sturdy, locked containers at $226 each, he notes with the precision of a person who didn’t grow up rich.” And who didn’t major in math.
