Good afternoon! It’s Monday, and my nephew celebrated his 7th birthday over the weekend — and he really liked my gift. Here’s what you need to know today.

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1. Expect an avalanche of vaccine mandates

The Food and Drug Administration today gave final approval of Pfizer-BioNTech’s COVID-19 vaccine for people 16 and over, replacing its “emergency use” status and putting it on par with other marketed vaccines.

And that means it will be easier for businesses, colleges, the military, hospitals and other organizations to mandate vaccinations as the highly contagious delta variant overturns the nation’s progress in containing the virus.

The FDA’s approval could also mean more unvaccinated Americans will get shots. A poll from the Kaiser Family Foundation in June found that 31% of unvaccinated people said they would be more likely to get a shot once one gets final approval. [NPR]

In Chicago, only 63.2% of eligible residents are fully vaccinated, according to city data as of Aug. 18. Several areas of the city are reporting vaccination rates so low that they are at a high risk for outbreaks.

For example, only about 44% of eligible residents living in the Far South Side’s 60628 ZIP code are fully vaccinated. [COVID Dashboard]

2. CPS needs to take more steps to protect students from COVID-19, aldermen and state lawmakers say

Hundreds of thousands of students are expected to return to Chicago’s public schools in a week. And a group of 23 aldermen and 26 state lawmakers is putting pressure on Mayor Lori Lightfoot’s administration to take more steps to prevent schools from turning into COVID-19 hotspots.

In a letter recently delivered to Lightfoot and school district officials, the group recommends stricter precautions than ones proposed by Chicago Public Schools. That includes quarantining teachers and students who may have been exposed to the virus regardless of their vaccination status.

Los Angeles’ public school system, the second largest in the nation, has adopted a similar policy, but CPS officials only want to quarantine people who are unvaccinated. [Chicago Tribune]

3. Whistleblower says Lightfoot should fire top officials at Park District amid lifeguard abuse allegations

A young woman who sent a complaint letter last year to Mayor Lightfoot alleging “a huge incidence of sexual violence” among Chicago Park District lifeguards now says she’s “very disappointed” in Lightfoot’s response to the scandal, reports WBEZ’s Dan Mihalopoulos.

And the woman called on the mayor to fire her “arrogant” parks chief, Michael Kelly, and the Park District’s board president, Avis LaVelle, over their handling of the internal investigation into sexual misconduct at the city’s beaches and pools that her letter sparked.

The woman’s comments come after another whistleblower also expressed deep dissatisfaction with how the mayor and Kelly have dealt with the allegations. And it comes just days after the lead investigator looking into the complaints was suspended indefinitely, raising questions about the integrity and independence of the probe.

A Lightfoot spokesman defended how the mayor’s office handled the complaint and did not address the whistleblower’s call for the mayor to fire Kelly and LaVelle. [WBEZ]

4. Biden is under pressure to extend deadline for removing troops out of Afghanistan

Evacuations of Americans and allies accelerated today inside the capital of Kabul as the U.S. has just eight days left to remove all troops.

But President Joe Biden faces pressure to extend the Aug. 31 deadline for removing troops and prevent further chaos from erupting at Kabul’s international airport, where a deadly clash broke out today.

The military has helped evacuate about 37,000 people since Aug. 14, when the Taliban took over Kabul. But tens of thousands of people are still waiting to leave the country.

Taliban spokesman Suhail Shaheen said the next week’s deadline is a “red line” and that extending the American presence would “provoke a reaction.” [AP]

5. A look at Chicagoans helping to reduce gun violence

Chicago’s gun violence has surged since the beginning of the pandemic and has reignited a debate over how to make the city safer, especially on the South and West sides that suffer from higher rates of crime.

WBEZ’s Patrick Smith spent this summer talking to several people who are trying to curb violence. That includes Christyn Freemon, a mother who is helping create commercial corridors in her neighborhood, Garfield Park.

“Opportunities deter crime. … Nobody just purposely wakes up and says, ‘I want to be a criminal,’ ” Freemon said. [WBEZ]

Here’s what else is happening

• U.S. Capitol Police announced today that the officer who shot and killed a rioter during the Jan. 6 insurrection will not be disciplined. [NPR]
• House Democrats are meeting today to discuss the infrastructure package and President Biden’s $3.5 trillion boost to the social safety net and other programs. [AP]
• Mayim Bialik will fill in as the temporary host of Jeopardy! after Mike Richards resigned from the role. [A.V. Club]
• Beyoncé became the first Black woman to wear the iconic 128-carat Tiffany Diamond. [NPR]

Oh, and one more thing …

Uugghhh, someone leaked the trailer for the highly anticipated Spider-Man: No Way Home, and I can’t find it online.

The leaked trailer appeared on social media on Sunday, and Sony is trying really hard to remove the videos. Actor Tom Holland posted on Instagram that “You Ain’t Ready!”

There have been several rumors about the upcoming movie, such as the return of actors Tobey Maguire and Andrew Garfield as Spider-Man … or Spider-Men? It’s kinda confusing but sounds cool. The movie is scheduled to be released on Dec. 17. [Hollywood Reporter]

Tell me something good …

Since it’s my nephew’s birthday this week, I’d like to know: What was one of the best gifts you ever received?

Me? My husband’s laugh every time I make a lame dad joke when we’re watching TV together.

Feel free to email me at therundown@wbez.org or tweet me at @whuntah.

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