Latest news with #KuKluxKlanAct
New York Post
12-06-2025
- Business
- New York Post
Bally casino settles suit after would-be investors allege they were barred from investing for being white
A Chicago casino settled a lawsuit last week after two would-be investors claimed the business had a policy of preventing White men from investing in the enterprise. Bally's Chicago, which is projected to be Illinois' biggest casino with a 500-room hotel tower and 3,000-seat theater, was accused of excluding White males from its $250 million IPO as part of its Host Community Agreement with the City of Chicago. Advertisement The $1.7 billion casino and resort, set to open in 2026, faced a lawsuit launched by the Wisconsin Institute for Law and Liberty on behalf of two White male investors and the American Alliance for Equal Rights (AAER). The casino committed to 25% minority and women ownership as part of the community agreement, which was drafted as part of a 2019 Illinois state law expanding gambling in the state. In order to take part in the IPO, an investor would have had to meet its 'Class A Qualification Criteria,' which stated that an investor must be a 'minority or woman.' Bally's accepted deposits from 1,500 investors starting in December, but wound up refunding them in February because the SEC had yet to approve of the IPO, the Chicago Sun Times reported. Advertisement In April, the casino dropped the controversial provisions from the IPO, but stated they preferred investors to be from the Chicago area. Bally's Chicago was accused of excluding White males from its $250 million IPO as part of its Host Community Agreement with the City of Chicago. Christopher Sadowski WILL, which represented investors Richard Fisher and Phillip Aronoff in their case, alleged that Bally's was in violation of the Civil Rights Act of 1866, which bars racial discrimination in contracts, the first Ku Klux Klan Act and years of Supreme Court precedent. The conservative legal group is now celebrating the settlement with the casino. Advertisement 'This is a great win for equality. Bally's Casino in Chicago, the city of Chicago, the state of Illinois had all agreed that they were going to open a new casino in Chicago and only allow minorities and women to own 25% of the casino as part of an investment. And Bally has now dropped that requirement. They filed papers with the SEC stating that the investment will now be open to everybody. And we think that's a great win for equality and we're very happy with this result,' WILL's managing vice president Dan Lennington told Fox News Digital. Patrick Callahan, 39, a Chicago attorney who had been prevented from investing in the casino, was pleased with the settlement, but voiced a note of caution about the future of his city. Bally's accepted deposits from 1,500 investors starting in December, but wound up refunding them in February because the SEC had yet to approve of the IPO. Bally's 'Under current state and local leadership, it's hard to be too optimistic that Chicago will suddenly become a bastion of nondiscrimination. That being said, this is a big victory and I'm hoping to see many more of them,' Callahan said. Advertisement Fox News Digital reached out to Bally's, the Chicago mayor's office and the Illinois Gaming Commission for comment.
Yahoo
12-06-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Chicago casino settles lawsuit after being accused of barring White men from investing in the business
A Chicago casino settled a lawsuit last week after two would-be investors claimed the business had a policy of preventing White men from investing in the enterprise. Bally's Chicago, which is projected to be Illinois' biggest casino with a 500-room hotel tower and 3,000-seat theater, was accused of excluding White males from its $250 million IPO as part of its Host Community Agreement with the City of Chicago. The $1.7 billion casino and resort, set to open in 2026, faced a lawsuit launched by the Wisconsin Institute for Law and Liberty on behalf of two White male investors and the American Alliance for Equal Rights (AAER). Exclusive: Group Launches Tip Line For Dod Employees To Report Dei, 'Woke' Overreach The casino committed to 25% minority and women ownership as part of the community agreement, which was drafted as part of a 2019 Illinois state law expanding gambling in the state. In order to take part in the IPO, an investor would have had to meet its "Class A Qualification Criteria," which stated that an investor must be a "minority or woman." Bally's accepted deposits from 1,500 investors starting in December, but wound up refunding them in February because the SEC had yet to approve of the IPO, the Chicago Sun Times reported. In April, the casino dropped the controversial provisions from the IPO, but stated they preferred investors to be from the Chicago area. Read On The Fox News App JOHNSON & JOHNSON DENIES ENGAGING IN ILLEGAL DEI PRACTICES AFTER GROUP MAKES CIVIL RIGHTS COMPLAINT WILL, which represented investors Richard Fisher and Phillip Aronoff in their case, alleged that Bally's was in violation of the Civil Rights Act of 1866, which bars racial discrimination in contracts, the first Ku Klux Klan Act and years of Supreme Court precedent. The conservative legal group is now celebrating the settlement with the casino. "This is a great win for equality. Bally's Casino in Chicago, the city of Chicago, the state of Illinois had all agreed that they were going to open a new casino in Chicago and only allow minorities and women to own 25% of the casino as part of an investment. And Bally has now dropped that requirement. They filed papers with the SEC stating that the investment will now be open to everybody. And we think that's a great win for equality and we're very happy with this result," WILL's managing vice president Dan Lennington told Fox News Digital. Patrick Callahan, 39, a Chicago attorney who had been prevented from investing in the casino, was pleased with the settlement, but voiced a note of caution about the future of his city. "Under current state and local leadership, it's hard to be too optimistic that Chicago will suddenly become a bastion of nondiscrimination. That being said, this is a big victory and I'm hoping to see many more of them," Callahan said. Fox News Digital reached out to Bally's, the Chicago mayor's office and the Illinois Gaming Commission for article source: Chicago casino settles lawsuit after being accused of barring White men from investing in the business
Fox News
12-06-2025
- Business
- Fox News
Chicago casino settles lawsuit after being accused of barring White men from investing in the business
A Chicago casino settled a lawsuit last week after two would-be investors claimed the business had a policy of preventing White men from investing in the enterprise. Bally's Chicago, which is projected to be Illinois' biggest casino with a 500-room hotel tower and 3,000-seat theater, was accused of excluding White males from its $250 million IPO as part of its Host Community Agreement with the City of Chicago. The $1.7 billion casino and resort, set to open in 2026, faced a lawsuit launched by the Wisconsin Institute for Law and Liberty on behalf of two White male investors and the American Alliance for Equal Rights (AAER). The casino committed to 25% minority and women ownership as part of the community agreement, which was drafted as part of a 2019 Illinois state law expanding gambling in the state. In order to take part in the IPO, an investor would have had to meet its "Class A Qualification Criteria," which stated that an investor must be a "minority or woman." Bally's accepted deposits from 1,500 investors starting in December, but wound up refunding them in February because the SEC had yet to approve of the IPO, the Chicago Sun Times reported. In April, the casino dropped the controversial provisions from the IPO, but stated they preferred investors to be from the Chicago area. WILL, which represented investors Richard Fisher and Phillip Aronoff in their case, alleged that Bally's was in violation of the Civil Rights Act of 1866, which bars racial discrimination in contracts, the first Ku Klux Klan Act and years of Supreme Court precedent. The conservative legal group is now celebrating the settlement with the casino. "This is a great win for equality. Bally's Casino in Chicago, the city of Chicago, the state of Illinois had all agreed that they were going to open a new casino in Chicago and only allow minorities and women to own 25% of the casino as part of an investment. And Bally has now dropped that requirement. They filed papers with the SEC stating that the investment will now be open to everybody. And we think that's a great win for equality and we're very happy with this result," WILL's managing vice president Dan Lennington told Fox News Digital. Patrick Callahan, 39, a Chicago attorney who had been prevented from investing in the casino, was pleased with the settlement, but voiced a note of caution about the future of his city. "Under current state and local leadership, it's hard to be too optimistic that Chicago will suddenly become a bastion of nondiscrimination. That being said, this is a big victory and I'm hoping to see many more of them," Callahan said. Fox News Digital reached out to Bally's, the Chicago mayor's office and the Illinois Gaming Commission for comment.
Yahoo
20-04-2025
- General
- Yahoo
On This Day, April 20: Deepwater Horizon explosion, oil spill kills 11
April 20 (UPI) -- On this date in history: In 1871, the U.S. Congress passed the Third Force Act, popularly known as the Ku Klux Klan Act, authorizing President Ulysses S. Grant to declare martial law, impose heavy penalties against terrorist organizations and use military force to suppress the Klan. In 1902, Marie Curie and Pierre Curie isolated radioactive radium salts from the mineral pitchblende in their laboratory in Paris. In 1961, Radio Havana announced that seven members of the group which attempted an overthrow of Fidel Castro's communist government in Cuba had been executed. It raised the number of executions over the previous three days to 24. In 1976, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that federal courts could order low-cost housing for minorities in a city's white suburbs to ease racial segregation. In 1983, President Ronald Reagan signed a $165 billion Social Security rescue plan to keep the retirement system solvent. In 1992, Madonna signed a multimillion-dollar deal with Time Warner to form an entertainment company that would make her the world's highest paid female pop star. In 1999, two teenage boys killed 12 students and a teacher at Columbine High School in Littleton, Colo., before turning their guns on themselves. In 2008, Danica Patrick won the Indy Japan 300 auto race, becoming the first woman to win an IndyCar event. In 2010, an explosion and fire on the Deepwater Horizon BP oil rig off the Louisiana coast in the Gulf of Mexico killed 11 workers and caused a massive oil spill. It became the largest U.S. marine oil spill in history, stretching over almost three months and releasing about 4.9 million barrels of crude. In 2011, Michel Martelly, an entertainer who performed under the name "Sweet Micky," was elected president of Haiti in a runoff with former first lady Mirlande Manigat. In 2012, a Pakistani Bhoja Air jetliner on a flight from Karachi crashed 5 miles from Islamabad, killing all 127 people aboard. In 2013, an earthquake in China's Sichuan province killed nearly 200 people and injured thousands. In 2021, a Minnesota jury found former Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin guilty in the murder of George Floyd. He was later sentenced to 22 1/2 years in prison. In 2024, Hell's Kitchen, with music by Alicia Keys, debuted on Broadway. The musical won Best Lead Actress for Maleah Joi Moon and Best Supporting Actress in a Musical for Kecia Lewis at the Tony Awards.
Yahoo
18-03-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
District of Columbia drops civil lawsuit against Jan. 6 groups, citing ‘challenges' facing the city
Washington, D.C., and the victims of the violent, pro-Trump insurrection attempt on Jan. 6 lost an opportunity for recompense on Monday when D.C.'s attorney general dropped a civil lawsuit filed against the Proud Boys and Oath Keepers militia groups. In 2021, then-Attorney General for the District of Columbia Karl Racine announced the suit, relying on the Ku Klux Klan Act to bring the case. At the time, Racine said: The history will show that when these acts like the KKK act and other laws were used against hate groups — what did they do? What do cowards do? They go running. They go hiding. They get decentralized, and frankly, they're less dangerous. In the late 19th and early 20th centuries, the KKK Act was used to some success in breaking up chapters of the klan. It was also used more recently to punish extremists who held a deadly rally in Charlottesville back in 2017. But D.C.'s current attorney general is Brian Schwalb. And the statement his office issued Monday explaining the decision to drop the case referred to 'challenges currently facing the district.' 'Given the challenges currently facing the District and the relatively small potential recoveries the District could obtain, OAG's resources are now needed and best used elsewhere,' the office said. Let's take a look a some of the 'challenges' currently facing the district. The federal government just passed a budget that imposed steep cuts on Washington, which has long been the target of a Republican Party eager to impose federal authority over the city (the Senate passed a measure that would restore that funding, but it's unclear whether Republicans in the House will support it). Meanwhile, Trump is on the record as saying he thinks the feds should 'take over' the city altogether. When D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser recently authorized painting over a street mural in her city honoring the Black Lives Matter movement, she was fairly clear that it was in response to the White House, saying: 'I'm not going to talk about specifics, about my conversations, but I think it's safe to say that people don't like it, didn't like it.' So it certainly seems like the administration is having its way with the city government, whether that's through Trump's appointment of Ed Martin, a pro-insurrectionist lawyer tapped as the district's top federal attorney, or his initial backing of a budget that threatens to impose strict austerity. This scenario is precisely why I was so disgusted by the Biden administration's support for a 2023 GOP-backed bill that forced changes to D.C.'s criminal code, which had been changed by the city council in response to the racial justice protests in the summer of 2020. In signing on to that power grab, Trump's predecessor set the stage for the federal government to impose its will on the district's residents. And Trump seems more than willing to take that power grab to the next level. This article was originally published on
