Food pantries are the first line of defense for people facing food insecurity. With the help of pandemic-era SNAP benefits, some Chicagoans stopped relying on them. Then earlier this year, the Biden administration ended the COVID-19 public health emergency—and pandemic SNAP benefits along with it. So organizations like the Irving Park Community Food Pantry have seen an uptick in traffic, including many who hadn’t needed to supplement their groceries since before the pandemic. In this episode, we...
Aug 18, 2023•16 min
Illinois recently became the first state to ensure legal protections for child social media influencers. Illinois Republicans are embracing voting by mail as they prepare for the 2024 election cycle. Local volunteers aim to protect migrants arriving in Chicago from exploitation.
Aug 18, 2023•6 min
The Biden administration declared Cook County a disaster area following major flooding before July 4. The cost of rent is becoming a burden for many Illinoians and local organizers say they want to lift the state’s Rent Control Preemption Act. A group of asylum seekers set up a pop-up barbershop near downtown Chicago.
Aug 17, 2023•5 min
Major Taylor is an American cyclist that once held seven world sprint records. He demanded justice during his competing days around the turn of the 20th century in the face of racist competitors and race organizers. A cycling and walking trail through Chicago’s South Side bears Major Taylor’s name, and a celebration ride in his honor is scheduled for August 26. Two local experts on Major Taylor and the Major Taylor Trail tell us his story and the story of the community through which his trail pa...
Aug 16, 2023•15 min
Two Trump allies based in Chicago are included in the latest indictment out of Georgia related to charges of election interference. The median sold price for homes in the Chicago area is up by nearly 9% from about this time last year. Some residents said Amazon violated zoning code at a West Side facility.
Aug 16, 2023•6 min
Illinois lawmakers are considering whether to renew a contract with a private prison health care company after hearing concerns over quality. Two migrant families who were kicked out of hotels after missing curfew by minutes say they haven’t heard from city leaders about other options. The Parliament of World’s Religions is meeting in Chicago this week.
Aug 15, 2023•6 min
The Argyle Night Market is a weekly street festival held on summer Thursdays in Uptown’s Argyle Street, and it’s a vibe. It attracts people of all stripes, incomes, and ages, and it’s the subject of a new installation of photos, called “Faces of Argyle.” “The market is like no other market I’ve experienced in Chicago,” said Ronit Bezalel, the photographer behind the exhibit. Bezalel’s photos were curated by visual artist and writer Riva Lehrer and are on display at Everybody’s Coffee on Wilson A...
Aug 14, 2023•19 min
Mayor Brandon Johnson goes with an insider in his pick for the next police superintendent. Illinois democratic state officials are applauding the state supreme court’s ruling in a case over a controversial gun control law. Dr. Allison Arwady announced that she’s leaving her post as the Chicago public health commissioner.
Aug 14, 2023•6 min
“There’s not such a finite line between life and death,” says Gary Feinman, an anthropology curator and content expert at the Field Museum. Feinman and his colleagues, including exhibition developer Ben Miller, spent several years working on the museum’s exhibit “Death: Life’s Greatest Mystery.” In this episode, we talk with Feinman and Miller about the exhibit and confronting our own mortality. And yeah, it gets pretty deep. “Death: Life’s Greatest Mystery” closes at the Field Museum on August ...
Aug 11, 2023•15 min
Chicago Public Schools is getting a slightly smaller increase in state funding than it was expecting. Loretto Hospital workers reached a tentative contract agreement with hospital leaders. The Illinois Supreme Court plans to issue an opinion today on the state’s ban on assault weapons.
Aug 11, 2023•6 min
Cook County faces the second-highest unknown flood risk in the country. ComEd is spending hundreds of millions to upgrade EV infrastructure in northern Illinois. State fair officials unveiled the 102nd butter cow sculpture.
Aug 10, 2023•6 min
Anonymous, in part because he spent his childhood tagging walls across Chicago, Dont Fret is a Chicago-born cartoonist, muralist and self-published author. And you can tell he wholeheartedly loves this city: “You’re a Chicagoan,” he writes in his new book, “This Is No Quiet City,” “your eyes and heart are wide open, and that is pure, raw, messy, true, and terrifying.” In this episode, Dont Fret explains how he got into graffiti growing up in Wicker Park, why he self-published his book, and why C...
Aug 09, 2023•19 min
A judge ordered a man accused of murdering 9-year-old Serabi Medina, while she was playing outside, to stay in jail while he awaits trial. Struggling with vacancies, Cook County Health has a new plan to hire people faster. Two bills signed by Gov. JB Pritzker will help support public transit in Chicago and the surrounding region.
Aug 09, 2023•6 min
Health experts around Illinois are urging people to re-enroll in Medicaid if they’ve been dropped from the program. Vaping is no longer allowed in Illinois’ public spaces. The Chicago Housing Authority is offering financial relief to some families living in subpar housing through a pilot program.
Aug 08, 2023•5 min
The opioid crisis isn’t slowing down in Cook County. In fact, according to the county medical examiner’s office, a record number of people died from opioid overdoses in 2022. Addiction treatment workers say they aren’t surprised. “All of these statistics would be mitigated in some fashion by better investment in social services, housing, harm reduction programming,” said John Werning, the executive director of the Chicago Recovery Alliance. Werning said using the phrase “opioid crisis” is a misn...
Aug 07, 2023•15 min
The crowds packed downtown for Lollapalooza. Gov. JB Pritzker signed a batch of bills late last week, including a number of new laws that will help support the state’s Native American residents. A new report shows how your credit score might be affecting your car insurance rates in Illinois.
Aug 07, 2023•6 min
The Chicago Public Library turns 150 this year. And it’s no coincidence that just a couple years ago, the city celebrated the anniversary of the Great Chicago Fire of 1871. “The period after the Great Fire in Chicago was a period of enormous development and innovation, and the library was definitely part of that story,” said Alison Cuddy, host of the podcast Library for the People: 150 years of Chicago Stories. The fire burned countless books in the city of Chicago, which did not have a public l...
Aug 04, 2023•22 min
Governor Pritzker signed a measure into law aimed at helping school-aged children cope with trauma. Local, state and federal leaders are looking to upgrade Union Station. Lollapalooza continues today by adding in a celebration of local food.
Aug 04, 2023•5 min
About 200 unionized staff at a hospital on the West Side have gone on strike over working conditions, primarily: their own safety. Every school district in Illinois will now be required to offer a full-day kindergarten program by fall 2027. Lollapalooza begins today, and if you’re venturing out, stay hydrated.
Aug 03, 2023•5 min
The Gerber/Hart Library and Archives have been cataloging LGBTQ history in Chicago and the Midwest for more than 40 years. Now, the library’s newest display explores the intersection of play and queer identity. The exhibit, “A Dreamhouse of Our Own,” is not a Barbie-only affair, although it draws inspiration from Greta Gerwig’s “Barbie.” In this episode, we talk about play, queer childhood and healing your inner child with Olivia De Keyser, the curator of “ A Dreamhouse of Our Own ,” and the exh...
Aug 02, 2023•22 min
Clinics in Indiana stopped performing abortions ahead of the state’s near-total abortion ban officially taking effect. Northwestern officials said they hired former U.S. Attorney General Loretta Lynch to review its athletic department. Federal lawmakers announced $780,000 in funding for the CTA to explore reopening an Englewood Green Line station with modernized accessibility standards.
Aug 02, 2023•6 min
The state is launching a program to better coordinate abortions at hospitals for high-risk patients. COVID-19 cases are on the rise in certain areas of the country. Chicago Public Schools is hosting a series of back-to-school bashes before students return to class later this month.
Aug 01, 2023•6 min
People in Chicago call 311 for lots of reasons, including when they need temporary housing, whether due to homelessness, a domestic violence situation or any number of other reasons. But today, the number of shelter request calls coming through Chicago’s 311 phone line is way, way up, and that’s resulted in more and more people falling through the cracks. “This year an average of one in seven calls resulted in a successful placement,” said WBEZ data reporter Amy Qin, who investigated the overbur...
Jul 31, 2023•17 min
Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker signed a criminal justice reform bill aimed at reducing recidivism. A new state audit identified massive fraud and excessive overpayments of unemployment benefits totaling $5.2 billion during the pandemic. As the Silver Room Block Party tradition comes to an end, we hear how the first party started some 20 years ago.
Jul 31, 2023•6 min
Across the country—and here in Chicago—the theater industry is floundering. Ticket sales haven’t returned to pre-pandemic norms, the traditional funding model is cracking and major theaters nationwide are downsizing or closing altogether. As predominantly white institutions scramble to stay afloat, Chicago’s Black theaters are building solidarity rather than falling into competition with one another. In this episode, we check in with the leaders of two such organizations, Congo Square Theatre an...
Jul 28, 2023•17 min
Illinois elected officials applaud a new law cracking down on crisis pregnancy centers. A new report suggests Chicago is slow to rebound from the pandemic in attracting new residents. The city of Chicago is moving forward with converting Broadway Armory Park into an emergency migrant shelter.
Jul 28, 2023•6 min
Chicago’s city council is considering a special session focused on the ongoing migrant crisis. There’s been another accusation of misconduct by a Chicago lifeguard. FEMA officials toured areas that dealt with major flooding earlier this month to determine if they are eligible for assistance.
Jul 27, 2023•5 min
<p>Voguing <a href="https://nmaahc.si.edu/explore/stories/brief-history-voguing" target="_blank">originated</a> in New York City’s Black and Latino LGBTQ+ communities of the 1960s, ‘70s and ‘80s. Then, Madonna’s song “Vogue” brought the dance form into the mainstream. But it’s much more than a series of poses and a sick beat.</p><p>“If you’re not feeling it, loving it, and appreciating yourself, you’re not voguing,” says Damon Green, the founder and owner of TEXTURE...
Jul 26, 2023•12 min
President Joe Biden designated a new national monument yesterday in honor of Emmett Till and his mother, including a church in Bronzeville. The police departments at two of Illinois’ public universities are working with mental health professionals to respond to some 911 calls. The owner of the Chicago Blackhawks died unexpectedly yesterday after a brief illness.
Jul 26, 2023•6 min
Alderpersons took a first step toward one of Mayor Brandon Johnson’s campaign promises on mental health services. A heat wave is expected to reach the Chicago area this week. A church service this morning will celebrate the life of a former Chicago cop who stood up to police racism and won reforms.
Jul 25, 2023•6 min
