Hey there! It’s Wednesday, and also National Sandwich Day, which brings up the perennial Chicago debate: Is a hotdog a sandwich? While you ponder that, here’s what else you need to know today.

1. School-aged kids can now get COVID-19 shots

Beginning today, children ages 5 through 11 can receive the COVID-19 vaccine.

Pharmacies and health providers have started listing appointments for younger school-aged children now that the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has approved Pfizer’s pediatric shots for emergency use. According to Dr. Allison Arwady, Chicago’s top health expert, about 100,000 of the scaled-down doses are expected to arrive in the city over the next week, with more expected soon after. Nearly 210,500 local kids are now eligible to receive the jab.

Here’s more information about where kids can get vaccinated across the city. [Block Club Chicago]

The major milestone comes as COVID infections in Illinois have gone from declining to a plateau. Gov. JB Pritzker, who previously said he hoped to lift the state’s indoor mask mandate in time for the holidays, on Tuesday indicated virus data was trending in the wrong direction. [Chicago Tribune]

2. SCOTUS hears a gun control case

How far can a state go when it comes to regulating the right to bear arms in public? That’s the question before the Supreme Court today as justices consider its first major gun rights case in more than a decade.

Arguments began today in a case challenging New York’s “proper cause law,” which requires residents who want to carry a concealed gun outside the home to prove the weapon is necessary for self-defense. Such licenses are only issued to people who have a demonstrated need for protection, like bank messengers carrying money, while licenses for those who want to carry a gun for hunting or target practice have additional restrictions.

Opponents of the New York law argue the right to carry a gun outside the home is like the right to free speech, guaranteed by the Constitution. However, proponents of the gun regulations argue they are a matter of public safety and up to state and local governments to decide. [NPR]

3. Democrats lost suburban voters in two key races. Will the trend continue for midterms?

The results from Tuesday’s elections are not a good sign for Democrats hoping for continued momentum heading into the 2022 midterms.

Governor’s races in two states President Joe Biden won by double digits in last year’s presidential election were surprisingly close. In Virginia, Republican Glenn Youngkin defeated Terry McAuliffe, ending a string of statewide victories for Democrats there that stretched back to 2009. And in New Jersey, Gov. Phil Murphy remains locked in a surprisingly tight contest with Republican challenger Jack Ciattarelli.

In both races, the Republican candidate performed better in suburban areas than former President Donald Trump did in 2020 — potentially a bad omen for Democrats hoping to hold on to voters that helped propel Biden to the White House. [NPR]

However, Democratic candidates of color also made history by winning leadership roles in some of the nation’s largest cities. NPR has this list of some of the most high-profile races, including those of Michelle Wu in Boston, Ed Gainey in Pittsburgh and Aftab Pureval in Cincinnati. [NPR]

Meanwhile, a majority of Minneapolis voters rejected a ballot proposal backed by progressives that would have replaced the city’s police department with a reimagined Department of Public Safety. The results are seen as a blow to supporters of the “defund the police” movement. [NPR]

4. Heather Mack, convicted in Indonesia of helping kill her mother, is indicted in Chicago

After spending seven years in an Indonesian prison for helping murder her mother, Heather Mack is back in Chicago — but not as a free woman.

The 24-year-old was arrested at O’Hare Airport this morning and charged with conspiracy and obstruction of justice related to the 2014 killing, which captured international attention after Sheila von Wiese-Mack’s body was discovered inside a bloody suitcase at a Bali resort.

Mack, who was 18 at the time, is accused of conspiring with her then-boyfriend in both Chicago and Bali to commit the murder in order to gain access to a $1.5 million trust fund. If convicted, she faces a maximum sentence of life in federal prison.

She pleaded not guilty to both charges earlier today. [Chicago Tribune]

Here’s a helpful timeline of the case, both here and abroad. [Chicago Tribune]

5. 88 people with convictions tied to a corrupt Chicago cop hope for a mass exoneration tomorrow

In what could be the largest mass exoneration ever recorded in Cook County, 88 people will ask a judge to throw out their felony drug convictions on Thursday.

What do they all have in common? Each of their cases is tied to corrupt former Chicago Police Sgt. Ronald Watts, who led a team that authorities say planted drugs and levied false charges against residents at a Bronzeville housing complex for refusing to pay extortion fees.

Judges have already vacated Watts-related convictions of 87 people. Last week, a prosecutor said State’s Attorney Kim Foxx’s office would go along with overturning “some” of the convictions up for consideration at tomorrow’s hearing. [WBEZ]

Here’s what else is happening

• McDonald’s workers and community activists organized a protest over comments the company’s CEO made about the shooting deaths of two Chicago kids. [WBEZ]

• Former Illinois state Rep. Luis Arroyo pleaded guilty to federal wire fraud charges. [WBEZ]

• Chicago will spend big on mental health services next year, but the fight over shuttered clinics continues. [WBEZ]

• A new U.N. report finds that all sides in Ethiopia’s Tigray conflict have committed atrocities that could be war crimes. [NPR]

Oh, and one more thing …

Calling all radio fans: Do you listen to the news on 91.5 FM between 11 a.m. and 1 p.m.? If so, we want to hear from you!

Send us your feedback by filling out this quick survey (it’ll take you less than 2 minutes — scout’s honor!) that will help us provide better programming. Plus, we’ll enter you in a drawing for a $50 gift card, and who wouldn’t like to win that?

Here’s the link. [WBEZ]

Tell me something good …

It’s officially November, a month for gratitude. That has me wondering, what are you thankful for?

Janet writes:

“I’m grateful for COVID restrictions. During the slow reopenings, one of the places I teach swimming required that all swimmers reserve lanes. Because of that teachers had to reserve lanes for their students, and that opened up the possibility for me to teach at least 20 people who were terrified of water or hadn’t succeeded in lessons, to have a lesson where they had the space to feel safe to learn. None of these lovely people would have tried lessons before. I am thankful for their bravery, for their hard work, for their perseverance, for their laughter and wonder; and for the luck of circumstances that allows me to have the skills to bring them to an activity which lowers anxiety, improves sleep, and which anyone can do for the rest of their lives.”

What are you thankful for this week? Feel free to email or tweet us, and your response might show up here.