Good morning, Philly. The brutal, gusty cold continues.
In Sunday’s main read, pop critic Dan DeLuca explores a growing wave of pop-music dissent.
And with the prospect of a hotel potentially replacing the old Gillian’s Wonderland Pier, the neighborhood in its shadow fears losing its quaint Ocean City feel — and sunrise views.
Scroll along for these stories and more.
— Paola Pérez (morningnewsletter@inquirer.com)
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A new era
Is protest music back? The answer seems to be yes.
From Bad Bunny’s vow to protest with love to a more confrontational approach by Bruce “The Boss” Springsteen, music has seen an emerging resistance to the Trump administration and what critics call overreaching immigration enforcement.
Drawing from a longtime tradition, Springsteen is leading the way in the current trend toward musicians opposing the government in song. In “Streets of Minneapolis,” he expresses outrage at the deaths of protesters at the hands of federal agents.
And now, all eyes are on the Super Bowl, which could be another stage for that pushback to be on display.
🎡 Eclipsing Wonderland
🎤 Now I’m passing the mic to Amy Rosenberg down the Shore.
Marie Crawford was immediately charmed in 2021 when she and her soon-to-be-surfer husband Rich moved into their historic house in the literal shadow of Gillian’s Wonderland Pier.
They’d come from Blue Bell, Pa., to live year-round by the ocean, and landed with an amusement park right up the street.
“The ball drop, that was what we heard from my house,” she said, referring to the 130-foot-high Drop Tower ride. “It was, ‘Ah, ah, ahhhhhhhh,‘” she said, imitating the screams she would sometimes hear.
“It was so beautiful and romantic. On our porches, we would hear the ocean, not the amusement park. There were families, babies in strollers, coming up the street, flowing up to Wonderland. We were kind of ambassadors.”
Now, more than a year after the closing of Gillian’s, the residents are faced with the possibility of a seven-story hotel they fear will block their sun, bring traffic to their streets, and threaten the small-town charm they found in their little pocket of Ocean City. — Amy Rosenberg
Hear why some in the community believe “the tone of the neighborhood” could dramatically change.
What you should know today
- Sen. John Fetterman is calling on the Department of Homeland Security to halt its plan to develop two ICE detention centers in Pennsylvania, citing a strain on local resources and negative impacts on communities.
- A statue of Harriet Tubman will debut at City Hall this fall. The city is taking submissions from Philadelphians for a quote to be displayed on it.
- Harsh winter conditions are taking a toll on robins, opossums, and other animals in the Philly region. In Cape May, nearly all woodcocks were wiped out.
- One Tun Tavern will open in Old City after all. A long-running legal fight over the reproduction of the Marine Corps’ birthplace has been settled.
- Knitters and crocheters are turning out scads of red wool hats, a symbol of resistance to ICE in Minneapolis. They’re appearing atop heads in Philadelphia and across the country.
- After her frozen car in Fishtown garnered tens of millions of views on TikTok, Tianna Graham is getting a new car for free through Carvana.
- Firefighters found the body of a man inside a North Philadelphia home that caught fire. It’s the third fatal blaze this year.
- Members of the public in Norristown are demanding answers after a police cruiser responding to a 911 call struck a naked man standing in an intersection.
- The Philadelphia region could expand its “eds and meds” identity as local colleges compete for more defense-related research and job training funding.
- Rebecca Campbell, a former longtime Walt Disney Co. executive who has also worked in local television in Philadelphia, has joined The Inquirer’s board of directors.
❓Pop quiz
Before she was the chef at Kalaya, what was Chutatip “Nok” Suntaranon’s former occupation?
A) opera singer
B) flight attendant
C) bookkeeper
D) train conductor
Think you know? Check your answer.
What we’re …
🏔️ Exploring: Skiing, cozy dining, and historic estates in this snowy New England escape.
🏠 Curious about: How an “impulsive” decision led to a West Philly dream home in our latest “How I Bought This House.”
🍄🟫 Savoring: The bloom shroom at Manong, among the best things we ate this week.
🧩 Unscramble the anagram
Hint: Nonprofit system (two words) 🏥
FEATHER JOH SHELF
Email us if you know the answer. We’ll select a reader at random to shout out here.
Cheers to Patrick Kerwin, who correctly guessed Saturday’s answer: Roxborough. A large apartment project for the Northwest Philly neighborhood was changed to add more family units and appease other concerns
🪗 Photo of the day
Philadelphia’s own Don Bitterlich helped the Seattle Seahawks get on the board in the team’s first NFL season in 1976, but the 72-year-old really made his name playing the accordion.
🎶 Today’s song sounds like: “Youth’s like diamonds in the sun / And diamonds are forever.”
👋🏽 Thanks for starting your day with us. Julie will bring you tomorrow’s news bright and early. Until then, have a good Sunday.
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