“I thought, ‘They must think I’m somebody else.‘ They tell me to put my hands up and back toward them, and then they immediately take my hands behind my back and handcuff me.”It was one of the first nice days for a trip to the New Jersey Shore this summer, so Mary Henin and a friend piled into her car — a clunky but functioning 2008 Nissan — and headed for the beach.Then, just as they arrived on Long Beach Island on May 29, they were surrounded by police, who surrounded the car, yelled at them to toss the keys out the window, and ordered them out of the car at gunpoint.“I thought, ‘They...…“I thought, ‘They must think I’m somebody else.‘ They tell me to put my hands up and back toward them, and then they immediately take my hands behind my back and handcuff me.”It was one of the first nice days for a trip to the New Jersey Shore this summer, so Mary Henin and a friend piled into her car — a clunky but functioning 2008 Nissan — and headed for the beach.Then, just as they arrived on Long Beach Island on May 29, they were surrounded by police, who surrounded the car, yelled at them to toss the keys out the window, and ordered them out of the car at gunpoint.“I thought, ‘They...WW…

“As the largest union in this city, we’re in a unique position, and we should be standing in solidarity with other workers,” teacher Adam Bailey said.With steady paychecks and the ability to work from home, teachers are among the workers likely to fare better during the COVID-19 pandemic and related economic downturn.A group of Philadelphia teachers and other school-based employees is calling for colleagues in a position to do so to donate their federal stimulus checks to people in need — including some of their fellow school staff.The , a within the Philadelphia Federation of Teachers,...…“As the largest union in this city, we’re in a unique position, and we should be standing in solidarity with other workers,” teacher Adam Bailey said.With steady paychecks and the ability to work from home, teachers are among the workers likely to fare better during the COVID-19 pandemic and related economic downturn.A group of Philadelphia teachers and other school-based employees is calling for colleagues in a position to do so to donate their federal stimulus checks to people in need — including some of their fellow school staff.The , a within the Philadelphia Federation of Teachers,...WW…

Squatting in city-owned homes has become a response to the intersecting problems of homelessness, lack of affordable housing, and family separation. Philadelphia has the highest rate of family separation of any big city, and homelessness is the second most common reason for removing kids.A few months ago, plywood covered the doors and windows of the three-story North Philadelphia rowhouse on a block where boxy new construction is sprouting amid vacant lots. The beige linoleum was cracked and curling. The white stove top was filthy black.But the 41-year-old mother of eight saw the potential:...…Squatting in city-owned homes has become a response to the intersecting problems of homelessness, lack of affordable housing, and family separation. Philadelphia has the highest rate of family separation of any big city, and homelessness is the second most common reason for removing kids.A few months ago, plywood covered the doors and windows of the three-story North Philadelphia rowhouse on a block where boxy new construction is sprouting amid vacant lots. The beige linoleum was cracked and curling. The white stove top was filthy black.But the 41-year-old mother of eight saw the potential:...WW…

“The Parkway, this bejeweled boulevard of museums and cultural institutions, has been trashed to the point where it’s lost its magnetism,” said a neighbor who lives 300 yards from the homeless encampment.Just about everyone who lives in the high-priced apartments and condo units soaring over the Benjamin Franklin Parkway knows the story:On July 18, a man from the at 22nd Street, clad only in his underwear, ducked into the garage of a nearby residential building and tried to yank open the passenger-side door of a woman’s car as she parked. The man failed, and ran off; a surveillance video of...…“The Parkway, this bejeweled boulevard of museums and cultural institutions, has been trashed to the point where it’s lost its magnetism,” said a neighbor who lives 300 yards from the homeless encampment.Just about everyone who lives in the high-priced apartments and condo units soaring over the Benjamin Franklin Parkway knows the story:On July 18, a man from the at 22nd Street, clad only in his underwear, ducked into the garage of a nearby residential building and tried to yank open the passenger-side door of a woman’s car as she parked. The man failed, and ran off; a surveillance video of...WW…

Experts warn that the economy will remain in quicksand until a coronavirus vaccine is developed, and consumer confidence is restored.About 4.4 million Americans filed new unemployment applications last week, federal figures showed Thursday, as the historic economic crash caused by COVID-19 reached new depths. The response has now claimed 26.5 million jobs nationwide in five weeks.More than 198,000 Pennsylvanians filed a claim in the week ending April 18 after losing their jobs or getting hours reduced, bringing the state’s total in five weeks to nearly 1.5 million, or 23% of the...…Experts warn that the economy will remain in quicksand until a coronavirus vaccine is developed, and consumer confidence is restored.About 4.4 million Americans filed new unemployment applications last week, federal figures showed Thursday, as the historic economic crash caused by COVID-19 reached new depths. The response has now claimed 26.5 million jobs nationwide in five weeks.More than 198,000 Pennsylvanians filed a claim in the week ending April 18 after losing their jobs or getting hours reduced, bringing the state’s total in five weeks to nearly 1.5 million, or 23% of the...WW…

The calendar says there’s more than a month until Election Day. But Pennsylvanians are already casting ballots now, and that creates new challenges for President Donald Trump.The calendar says there’s more than a month until Election Day. But , and hundreds of thousands could be doing so within weeks. That creates new challenges for President Donald Trump, Joe Biden, and candidates across the state, as voting starts sooner — and spreads out longer — than usual.With continuing to disrupt life, and are expected to turn to mail voting, under which they can receive and send back ballots well...…The calendar says there’s more than a month until Election Day. But Pennsylvanians are already casting ballots now, and that creates new challenges for President Donald Trump.The calendar says there’s more than a month until Election Day. But , and hundreds of thousands could be doing so within weeks. That creates new challenges for President Donald Trump, Joe Biden, and candidates across the state, as voting starts sooner — and spreads out longer — than usual.With continuing to disrupt life, and are expected to turn to mail voting, under which they can receive and send back ballots well...WW…

A review of thousands of emails obtained by Spotlight PA reveals the program was doomed to fail from the start, depriving desperate tenants of relief as they lived in fear of losing their homes. is an independent, nonpartisan newsroom powered by The Philadelphia Inquirer in partnership with PennLive/The Patriot-News, TribLIVE/Pittsburgh Tribune-Review, and WITF Public Media. .HARRISBURG — It was late August, just past noon, and time was running out.Bryce Maretzki was in charge of a $150 million effort to keep Pennsylvania’s most vulnerable tenants in their homes.By now, the problems he had...…A review of thousands of emails obtained by Spotlight PA reveals the program was doomed to fail from the start, depriving desperate tenants of relief as they lived in fear of losing their homes. is an independent, nonpartisan newsroom powered by The Philadelphia Inquirer in partnership with PennLive/The Patriot-News, TribLIVE/Pittsburgh Tribune-Review, and WITF Public Media. .HARRISBURG — It was late August, just past noon, and time was running out.Bryce Maretzki was in charge of a $150 million effort to keep Pennsylvania’s most vulnerable tenants in their homes.By now, the problems he had...WW…

Trump's bizarro world where a criminal like Mike Flynn is victim and prosecutors are crooks has brought U.S. to the brink of dictatorship.The White House press corps often gets accused — and sometimes deservedly so — of tossing softball questions at President Trump, but last Monday the Washington Post’s at the 45th POTUS that looked like one of late-career 60 mph “fastballs” that hung right over the plate, middle-in.“You appeared to accuse [former president Barack] Obama of a crime yesterday — what did he do?" Rucker asked.“Obamagate.”Instead of slamming it into the second deck, Trump...…Trump's bizarro world where a criminal like Mike Flynn is victim and prosecutors are crooks has brought U.S. to the brink of dictatorship.The White House press corps often gets accused — and sometimes deservedly so — of tossing softball questions at President Trump, but last Monday the Washington Post’s at the 45th POTUS that looked like one of late-career 60 mph “fastballs” that hung right over the plate, middle-in.“You appeared to accuse [former president Barack] Obama of a crime yesterday — what did he do?" Rucker asked.“Obamagate.”Instead of slamming it into the second deck, Trump...WW…

Nevermind the pandemic and economic uncertainty, developers believe this is a good time to be building.Over the last half-century, the hopscotch board of empty lots along Delaware Avenue in Northern Liberties has come to feel like a permanent feature of the Philadelphia landscape. have come and gone, have been adopted and revised, and yet those former industrial sites have stubbornly resisted the kind of development that has transformed neighborhoods elsewhere in the city.But now, in the middle of a historic pandemic, with massive numbers of people unemployed and the city’s economic...…Nevermind the pandemic and economic uncertainty, developers believe this is a good time to be building.Over the last half-century, the hopscotch board of empty lots along Delaware Avenue in Northern Liberties has come to feel like a permanent feature of the Philadelphia landscape. have come and gone, have been adopted and revised, and yet those former industrial sites have stubbornly resisted the kind of development that has transformed neighborhoods elsewhere in the city.But now, in the middle of a historic pandemic, with massive numbers of people unemployed and the city’s economic...WW…