For an example of the difference that access to after-school activities can make in the lives of young people, consider the city’s newest Boys & Girls Club in Garfield Park.
There was loud opposition two years ago to the idea of locating the club on the campus with the city’s new public safety academy. Having African American and Latino young people in close proximity to large numbers of police officers was indeed a radical idea that had to be done right, as this editorial board said at the time.
But plans went ahead, and in August, the $15 million Rusu-McCartin Boys & Girls Club opened on a long-vacant parcel of land at 4411 W. Chicago Ave. A community youth council helped determine what kind of programs the club offers, and will…
