Pandemic roundup: Barack Obama to host commencement speech, door delivery industry changes

Obamas+commencement+speech+and+changes+to+the+food+delivery+industry+are+covered+in+May+14s+roundup.

Midway Staff

Obama’s commencement speech and changes to the food delivery industry are covered in May 14’s roundup.

The Midway is providing periodic updates regarding the COVID-19 pandemic and its impact on U-High students, faculty and others in the community. 

 

Barack Obama will host commencement speech for Class of 2020

Barack Obama will deliver a nationally televised commencement address to the Class of 2020 on May 16 at 7 p.m central time.

His speech will be part of an hour-long event hosted by the XQ Institute, the LeBron James Foundation and The Entertainment Industry Foundation featuring LeBron James, Malala Yousefzai and the Jonas Brothers among other celebrities. ABC, CBS, Fox and NBC will simultaneously air the special.

Mr. Obama decided to give the speech after #ObamaCommencement2020 went viral on Twitter. The Obama Foundation is sharing voicemails sent to a dedicated phone number on its social media channels leading up to the event. More information can be found on their website.

This is the second graduation of its kind for Chicago graduates with Lori Lightfoot committing to hosting a ceremony with Oprah Winfrey in mid-June.

— Berk Oto

 

Delivery services now required provide Chicago customers with bill breakdown

In response to the multitude of restaurants struggling to survive the statewide shutdown, Mayor Lori Lightfood has issued a statement requiring third-party delivery services to provide customers with a breakdown of how their money is being distributed starting May 22. 

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It’s important that people can make educated decisions as to how to most effectively support local restaurants.

— Katie Baffa

These new rules require that customers are provided with the service fee that the restaurant had to pay the third-party delivery service, food cost, taxes and tip. 

According to a recent report from NBC Chicago,  third-party delivery services have contributed greatly to many restaurants’ financial struggles, as most of these services charge  fees that can be as high as 30 percent the price of the food.

Prior to this development, sophomore Katie Baffa’s family had already been making a point of avoiding third-party delivery services. According to Katie, this requirement is long overdue. 

“It’s important that people can make educated decisions as to how to most effectively support local restaurants,” Katie said. “I think that this is definitely a step in the right direction.”

— Lucia Kouri

 

Correction: The time of the event was initially listed at 8 p.m. without explanation that it was in eastern time. The correct time of the televised event is 7 p.m. central time.