This March, during Illinois’ primary election, Brian Beals voted for the first time since 1988. He’d spent 35 years in prison for a crime he didn’t commit. Beals was exonerated last December.

After being disenfranchised for so long, casting his ballot felt gratifying. And he was prepared, particularly because he spent his final few incarcerated years as a peer-educator helping teach civics to other people in prison.

It’s through the ‘Re-Entering Citizens Civics Education Act,’ which went into effect back in 2020 to provide civics education to people in Illinois prisons before they’re released.

“My credibility was on the line!” he said. “I was in prison, talking to guys about civic responsibility. and now it’s my turn to actually get out and do it and back it up, put my money where my mouth was.”

Beals was asked to be a peer mentor in the program at the Dixon Correctional Center back in 2021. He’d been a peer-educator for other programs previously, so he was a natural fit.

Soon after, he was trained by representatives from Chicago Votes & the Chicago Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights. They’re non-partisan civics groups who helped develop the plan along with incarcerated people.

Cliff Helm is senior counsel with the Chicago Lawyers Committee for Civil Rights.

“We do monthly or near-monthly peer-educator training sessions,” said Helm.

He says those virtual training sessions can include up to 40 people from a handful of different prisons.

Since launch, they’ve trained over 250 peer-educators like Beals. State reports show over 6,000 people have completed the program within a year of their release. Chicago Votes says they’ve also received over 4,000 anonymous survey responses from folks in the course. There’s also a version of the program at the Illinois Department of Juvenile Justice.

Helm says the peer-led civics program includes three different courses that take 90 minutes each.

“They cover the power of voting,” said Helm, “which includes a conversation on the history of voting in the country and voting procedures as they’ve developed over the history of the country. Voting 101: registration, what does voting look like? What’s the primary? Things like that. And then there’s government 101.”

Beals remembers spending hours in a unit with two other peer educators preparing presentations. His Dixon classes were small, sometimes only three people. Then, he was transferred to the Robinson Correctional Center, where he was leading weekly classes with 20 students.

His classes built a voting rights timeline and filled out sample registration forms. They talked about the impact of the war on drugs and taxes. They discussed voting discrimination like poll taxes and even had students take a Jim Crow voting literacy test.

“I think out of the 39 times that I actually did the literacy test, no one ever passed it,” he said. “It just shows how unfair and unjust politics was back in the day, especially for the minority and Black folks around the country.”

Outside of the history of voting, Beals says it’s also important to make sure incarcerated people know what their voting rights are today. He says many don’t know that they can register to vote in Illinois immediately after their release.

“I think, generally across the population, there’s a lot of misinformation,” he said. “A lot of guys just didn’t know.”

It’s partially because those laws look very different from state to state. Through the program, they also hand out voting information handbooks to those leaving prison.

Alex Boutros, program director at Chicago Votes, says not every Illinois facility offers the civics courses weekly, as Robinson does.

“Some institutions are doing weekly sessions, some institutions will do them ad hoc, when needed,” she said. “And a couple of institutions haven’t even started.”

The Department of Corrections releases an annual report detailing participating in the civics program at each facility. The 2023 report shows only 11 of the state’s 28 prisons had students enroll in and complete the peer-led civics courses.

Shalandra Burch is the assistant chief of programs for the Illinois Department of Corrections. She says the numbers in her department’s report don’t fully reflect how many people are actually enrolled in or completed the course.

“We do have the program established in all of our facilities,” said Burch. “We were working with updates in regards to our technical side and getting the data entered, and that causes some of the data to look a little different.”

A footnote in the report says numbers will be more accurate in future reports.

The former-peer educator Brian Beals says the civics course is one of the best programs running in the system right now. But not every peer educator has had as good an experience.

Anthony McNeal was a peer-educator for several years, most recently while incarcerated at the Centralia Correctional Center. In March 2023, he was teaching a course about Jim Crow poll taxes and literacy tests and how they were used to discriminate against Black voters.

Then, according to a lawsuit filed by McNeal earlier this year, prison staff allegedly cut him off and told him not to talk about racism. The suit claims that, after McNeal refused and told them it was part of the curriculum, he was fired from teaching the civics course.

Advocates including Boutros at Chicago Votes and Brian Beals support legislation to expand the civics program, so it’s not just limited to folks within a year of going home, but available to people as soon as they’re incarcerated.

“Just having that education in the beginning,” said Beals, “can actually change the way you do your time.”

He says this knowledge can motivate people to invest in themselves and their education so they’re in a better position to live, work, and — once they get out — vote.

Want to explore southern Indiana’s natural beauty, but not so into sleeping on the ground? Love the outdoors, but worried about the high number of ticks this season? If you’ve been looking to spend a night in the woods but want some of the comforts of home, southern Indiana has more than just full-on outdoor camping or booking a night at the inn.

“Glamping,” also known as “luxury camping” or “yurting” combines the quiet and serenity of outdoor camping with the comfort of basic indoor amenities like an elevated bed, a solid floor, and a well-lit space. Plus, you don’t have to pitch your own tent.

Glamping can vary from more bare-bones canvas tents to “tiny cabins” accommodating a wide range of needs and experiences.

Connect with nature: Here are the best campgrounds (and parks) in south central Indiana

What is glamping?

“Glamping,” a portmanteau of “glamorous” and “camping,” is living and sleeping in a secluded, natural area (often a tent or dome) that combines the natural elements of camping with the basic comforts of home living. Among the most popular “glamping” sites are yurts, which are round, portable tents originating from nomads in Inner Asia.

Glamping has grown as a recreational activity in recent decades, first in popular safari sites in Africa and Thailand, and then in the U.S. in the 2000s and 2010s as the appetite for high-comfort camping grew.

If you’re looking to try it out for yourself, here are a five glamping experiences in southern Indiana.

Yurt in Madison with lots of room

Accommodates: Seven

Key amenities: Bedrooms, kitchen, bathroom with shower, heating and electricity

Average cost per night: $180

This two-storied canopy yurt (with a sunroof!) in Switzerland County sleeps up to seven and comes equipped with three beds (two queens), two adaptable couches (a futon and a double sofa bed), a kitchen, a bathroom with a shower, and a hot tub. The isolated yurt is also just 30 minutes from both Clifty Falls State Park and the Belterra Casino Resort.

Plus, the property has two goats, Blaze and Taffy.

Check out the listing on Vrbo.

‘Getaway’ Tiny Cabin in Brown County

Accommodates: Four

Key amenities: Bedrooms, kitchen, bathroom with shower, heating and electricity, basic toiletries

Average cost per night: $115-145 (25% off through August with code “SUMMER2024”)

“Getaways,” modular cabins built in the style of the viral “tiny homes,” have cropped across the U.S., strategically placed within an hour of major metros with the goal of helping people escape from the hustle of daily life. Equipped with “everything you need and nothing you don’t,” the tiny cabins come fully stocked with kitchenware, oils and seasonings, shampoo and conditioner, picnic tables and patio chairs, books and playing cards, a mini fridge, and of course, firewood and s’mores supplies. Plus, to encourage visitors to disconnect, each tiny cabin comes with a cell phone lock box.

The “Getaway” campground is about 10 minutes east of the Brown County State Park entrance off 135 South.

Check out getaway.house/brown-county/.

Sleeping Bear Tipis and Wagons in French Lick

Accommodates: Four

Key amenities: Cots, fire grate, picnic table, nearby bathrooms and showers

Average cost per night: $55-65

A more bare-bones (or bear bones?) stay, the tipis at Sleeping Bear Retreat in French Lick offer basic amenities like an elevated bed and clean bathroom facilities, while not straying too far from the original ideals of camping.

For those who need a little more comfort, Sleeping Bear also offers covered wagons — yes, like pioneer wagons — with electricity, air conditioning and heating.

Sleeping Bear’s campgrounds feature a shelter house, a giant chess board, catch and release fishing, a volleyball court and other outdoor activities. Sleeping Bear also hosts paintball games and manhunt games at nearby grounds. It’s also just west of the Hoosier National Forest, close to the Springs Valley State Fish and Wildlife Area and the Tucker Lake Dam.

Check out sleepingbearretreat.com.

Hilltop Dome in Vevay

Accommodates: Six

Key amenities: Bedrooms, kitchen, bathroom with shower, heating and electricity, washer/dryer, TV, wifi, kitchen appliances, hot tub

Average cost per night: $175 (plus Airbnb fees)

This mostly glass “geodome” on a 42-acre private property is about as premium as glamping gets, with a canopy bedroom, an outdoor patio, a hot tub, a full kitchen, pre-stocked books and board games, a living room with a TV, and more. The dome sits on top of a hill, offering stunning views of the surrounding varied terrain.

The dome is within 15 minutes of Clifty Falls State Park, Madison and the Belterra Casino Resort.

Check out booking availability on Airbnb.

Camper RV in Poland

Accommodates: Two

Key amenities: Bedrooms, outdoor kitchen with grill, bathroom, outdoor shower, heating and electricity, TV, wifi

Average cost per night: $72 (plus Airbnb fees)

For those who have always wanted to spend family time in an RV but haven’t gotten the opportunity, this Coleman Lantern LT camper in Poland offers a classic camper experience, plus some extra elbow room with a spacious outdoor patio. The camper features a queen bed, bathroom and living room area, while the outdoor space adds patio seating, a grill, an outdoor shower, a drip coffee maker and a minifridge.

The Poland camper is only about 4 miles east of Cagles Mill Lake, built in 1952 as Indiana’s first flood control reservoir. The lake is abutted by two state recreation areas (SRAs), Lieber and Cataract Falls, which combined offer opportunities for hiking, boating, fishing, swimming pools, waterslides, and scenic views of the falls.

Check out booking availability on Airbnb.

Reach Brian Rosenzweig at brian@heraldt.com. Follow him on Twitter/X at @brianwritesnews.

COUNCIL BLUFFS, Iowa (WOWT) – A mystery has resurfaced in Pottawattamie County and more vehicle owners are frustrated by a lack of answers.

Two years ago, 6 News exposed how old Iowa license plates turned into the treasurer a decade ago have been caught on speed cameras in New York City, most recently in April.

It’s been 12 years since Vern and Debra Harness turned in their Iowa license plates that recently showed up on a bumper in New York City.

“I’ve never been to New York City, and I’ve never had an inkling to go there,” Debra Harness said.

However, New York City Traffic citations have sure come to them. The NYC finance department sent threats of a civil judgement if the couple doesn’t pay $300 on four speeding tickets since April. All the citations on a van caught by a school zone camera with their old license plates.

“They don’t care, they just want us to pay these bills, and if we pay these bills, we are admitting that they’re still our plates and I’m not going to do that,” Debra said.

The Pottawattamie County Treasurer says there are about 40 vehicle owners in the same boat.

“Well, I hope it solves all of them,” Pottawattamie Co. Treasurer Lea Voss said. “This is just ridiculous what these people have gone through, and I’ve contacted everybody.”

The Harnesses say when they turned in those plates 12 years ago, they came off their pickup truck. Now, those same plates turned up on a white van in New York City and it shouldn’t take the world’s greatest detective those plates are on the wrong vehicle.

“It seems very simple, but they’re not being helpful at all,” Debra Harness said.

The New York speed camera caught the same van on the same street in less than a month, so innocent Iowans say undeserving fine notices can be averted by New York’s finest.

“Pull over the vehicle, detain them until they come up with why they got that plate,” Vern Harness said. “When, where, and why.”

That might help Iowa’s department of transportation investigation into how ole plates got new life in New York City, because for years Iowa Department of Corrections picked them up.

“I didn’t ask, I just assume they are going to recycle them.” Voss said.

The DoT Investigations Bureau Director says solving this ongoing issue has not been easy. He says unfortunately investigations have not been able to determine if the Iowa plates in New York are counterfeit, or actual plates issued in Iowa at one time. Multiple attempts to work with New York Law Enforcement will continue, as does the mystery for the Harnesses and many other Iowans who turned in plates, never expecting to see them again.

“If I turn mine in, I turn them into them but from now on they’ll be cut in half,” Vern Harness said.

In a positive development, Vern and Debra Harness got an email from the New York City Finance Department saying all the speeding citations against them have been dismissed. The treasurer hopes that others with undeserved fines will have the same outcome.

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