Pride events across the country were swiftly canceled earlier this spring, as the risks posed by COVID-19 became clear, but many LGBTQ organizations promised not to let Pride Month pass without a celebration. Iowa City Pride will host its own socially distant celebration this Saturday, June 20, with a virtual parade. Local drag queens and […]
Emma McClatchey
Posted inCommunity/News
Aime Wichtendahl, Iowa’s first trans elected official, reflects on coming out, her run for Hiawatha City Council and Iowa’s COVID-19 failures
Aime Wichtendahl didn’t run for office until 2015, but she’s been intrigued by politics for more than three decades. “When I was 8 years old, I remember following the ’88 presidential election between Bush and Dukakis,” she said. “And interestingly, I was really mad at my parents for voting for Dukakis. Which is weird now […]
Posted inArts & Entertainment
Hinterland cancels 2020 festival, but plans to bring headliners back next summer
After three days of rousing, high-profile performances from the likes of Hozier, Kacey Musgraves and Brandi Carlile in 2019, the Hinterland Music Festival had momentum going into their sixth-annual fest. Then COVID-19 happened. Like the organizers of Mission Creek Festival, Iowa City Jazz Fest, Camp Euforia and dozens of other Iowa concert events before them, […]
Posted inArts & Entertainment
Mission Creek Festival decides to cancel all events for 2020
On March 12, when Mission Creek Festival organizers announced the cancellation of their April 1-4 fest due to the rising threat of COVID-19, they also announced plans to host “a special Mission Creek event in the late-summer/early-fall,” featuring some of the artists scheduled for the spring event. Those plans have now been dropped as well.
Posted inArts & Entertainment
Artist Eliza Reinhardt recreates famous paintings with her dog while in quarantine
Life imitates art. Art imitates life. And when a painter finds herself sheltered at home with an Australian Shepherd and plenty of pent-up creative energy, art imitates art.
Posted inArts & Entertainment
The Downtown Block Party, one of Iowa City’s biggest annual events, has been canceled
The Iowa City Downtown District (ICDD) announced on Friday it has decided to cancel this summer’s Downtown Block Party. The fourth annual event was scheduled for June 27. The Block Party is one of ICDD’s most successful programs, attracting tens of thousands of visitors every year. Last summer, 42,000 people came out for an evening […]
Posted inCommunity/News
Cedar Rapids PrideFest has been canceled
Cedar Rapids’ PrideFest will not take place on July 11, the CRPride Board of Directors announced Sunday. “Uncertainty surrounding the COVID-19 pandemic” has led the organization to cancel all of its in-person Pride events this summer, according to a written statement. The news comes almost a week after Iowa City Pride announced it was canceling […]
Posted inArts & Entertainment
The 2020 Iowa City Pride Parade and Festival are canceled
The Board of Directors for Iowa City Pride has decided to cancel the 2020 Pride Festival and Parade, they announced Monday. “The uncertainty surrounding the COVID-19 pandemic has intensified in recent weeks, and the organization has concluded that the risk to public health of a large-scale gathering such as Pride preclude this year’s production of […]
Posted inCOVID-19
Sen. Zach Wahls has signed up as a poll worker in Johnson County, and encourages other young people to do the same
Election officials in eastern Iowa and beyond have one resounding message for primary voters: fill out your ballot from home. With social distancing in effect — and the Wisconsin primary on April 7, in which thousands of voters found themselves in long, slow lines in and outside polling places, serving as a cautionary tale — Iowa Secretary of State Paul Pate has expanded the mail-in voting period
Posted inCOVID-19
Iowa City’s inflatable roller-skating animal brigade lifts spirits during COVID-19 crisis
“A T-rex and a unicorn roller-skate down the street” sounds like the set-up for a silly joke. In Iowa City, it’s a delightful reality at a time when fun distractions are as good as gold.
Posted inCommunity/News
Face-shield makers across the state are utilizing 3D printers, old classroom supplies
Don’t call it a comeback: The overhead projector — a post-chalkboard and pre-SMART Board classroom technology, and staple of “you know you’re old when …” articles — is relevant once again as Iowans craft creative solutions to hospitals’ supply needs during the COVID-19 pandemic. N95 masks, the most effective personal protective equipment (PPE) against the […]
Posted inCommunity/News
Iowa City Animal Center encourages donations to their pet food pantry
As the community copes with unemployment, social distancing and mixed messages from federal, state and local leaders, even those less at risk of contracting COVID-19 are seeing their worlds shift — from kids to pets. While some pets may be relishing the extra couch time with their housebound humans, a stretched budget can affect all members of the family.
