This story was originally published by Borderless Magazine. Visit their website and sign up for their newsletter at borderlessmag.org

On a Friday afternoon in September, Kate Eakin and a volunteer drone photographer surveilled the Damen Silos demolition site. They captured photos and videos of what appeared to be dust hovering over the concrete towers being torn down, and sent some of them to Alder Julia Ramirez (12th).

It’s the kind of message Ramirez had been getting from southwest side residents monitoring the demolition of the historic silos—a site that’s been a familiar marker of home all her life.

“Some people may feel like it’s call-out culture,” Ramirez said. “I think it’s just these checks and balances.”

Eakin, executive director of the McKinley Park Development Council (MP

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