The winter of our discontent is finally over, my friends. It is, officially, street festival season in Chicago. Why does this time of year hit so hard? Because there are so many street festivals – in so many Chicago neighborhoods – and they’ve all got their own distinct feel and focus. “Well, food,” said Chicago-based writer Lauren Viera, “and also music is a big reason I go to fests.” Viera pored over the massive schedule of festivals and came on the Rundown podcast to talk through the ones she...
Jun 05, 2024•13 min
The head of the U.S. Secret Service is in Chicago this week to tour the venues that will play host to the Democratic National Convention in August. A new study finds evidence of racial bias in Chicago traffic stops. The City of Chicago is giving out $600,000 dollars to nonprofits serving youth this summer.
Jun 05, 2024•5 min
Chicago police officials say they’re ready for the Democratic National Convention in August, despite a recent report suggesting otherwise. The lead organizer of a proposed birth center on Chicago’s South Side is asking state regulators for permission to open. A new study finds Black drivers are more likely to be pulled over by police regardless of where they drive in Chicago.
Jun 04, 2024•4 min
Little Richard, Sister Rosetta Tharpe and Chicago’s own Reverend James Cleveland are a few of the musicians being celebrated this Pride Month at an event called at “Shout OUT: A Tribute to Gays in Gospel Music!” “This show is an opportunity to let people know about the totality of their work,” said singer and event creator Lucy Smith, who will perform along with the Lucy Smith Quintet. “I think where they were in their comfortability infused and informed their music.” Chicago journalist and medi...
Jun 04, 2024•19 min
Illinois Governor J.B. Pritzker and Massachusetts Governor Maura Healey discussed the upcoming vote on the Right to Contraception Act that will be voted on in the U.S. Senate later this week. An Illinois Congressman is pushing for sanctions against Chinese companies allegedly exporting fentanyl to the U.S. Scientists at Washington University are hoping to come up with a plastic alternative.
Jun 04, 2024•5 min
Illinois lawmakers want to tweak the name for illegal gun possession in criminal cases. Lawmakers are also signing off on a push by Governor J.B. Pritzker’s administration to fund coverage of costly, injectable weight-loss drugs for state workers. Chicago has $206 million dollars in federal COVID money to earmark for community initiatives before the end of the year.
Jun 03, 2024•4 min
When LaVonte Stewart, Sr., was a kid in South Shore in the 1980s, he had a real sense of community. He described it as “the ‘Wakanda’ of all Black people’s imaginations, where your neighbors knew you.” He said he doesn’t see enough opportunity for young kids on the South Side today. Through his nonprofit Lost Boyz, he wants to provide young people with a sense of community through participation in team sports. In this episode, Stewart talks about finding his way in adulthood and the healing powe...
Jun 03, 2024•10 min
A popular state tax credit claimed by more than 11 million Illinoisans is poised to get more generous. Illinois lawmakers passed a bill to regulate carbon capture and storage in Illinois. Community activists hosted a festival of peace meant to uplift gun violence victims and survivor families.
Jun 03, 2024•5 min
The University of Chicago is withholding the degrees of four students who were scheduled to graduate Saturday. A new exhibit entitled “Georgia O’Keeffe: My New Yorks” opens this weekend at the Art Institute of Chicago. The Bears will have to wait until at least November to further press Illinois lawmakers for help on a new stadium.
May 31, 2024•4 min
When the four members of Third Coast Percussion were studying classical music at Northwestern University, they didn’t have much of a blueprint for building careers in a percussion ensemble. Twenty years later, they’re working with renowned composers and racking up Grammy nominations. “We’ve never been the stereotypical classical musicians,” said founding ensemble member Robert Dillon. And you can see it in their performances, where they blow into tubes and play flower pots. In this episode, host...
May 31, 2024•20 min
CTA President Dorval Carter defends himself to the Chicago city council amid persistent safety and reliability complaints. Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson is making good on a campaign promise to expand public mental health services. A new Georgia O’Keeffe exhibit opens this weekend at the Chicago Art Institute, highlighting some lesser-known works from the artist.
May 31, 2024•5 min
A new report from the Chicago Inspector General warns the Police Department may not be ready to handle large protests at the Democratic National Convention. Embattled CTA President Dorval Carter says he has faced racism and physical threats from the public as the Chicago city council has zeroed in on his job performance. More than a third of hospitalist staff with Ascension Illinois plan to quit the health system.
May 30, 2024•3 min
Mister Kelly’s was the hottest of spots in Chicago nightlife back in the 1950s, ‘60s and ‘70s, hosting singers like Barbra Streisand, Della Reese, Ella Fitzgerald and comedians like Richard Pryor, Joan Rivers, Lily Tomlin, and many, many more. The nightclub is the focus of an exhibit running through July 20 at a former neighbor of Mister Kelly’s, the Newberry Library. “In the ‘50s and ‘60s – and of course I'm not talking from personal experience – but the Newberry neighborhood, also known as the...
May 30, 2024•23 min
Lawmakers left Springfield without passing a measure aimed at reforming the Illinois Prisoner Review Board. A report finds Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson has faced a more divided City Council in his first year. Chicago police honored the families of two fallen officers during an annual recognition event yesterday.
May 30, 2024•5 min
The head of Chicago’s Civilian Office of Police Accountability is re-upping her push to strip the police powers of four officers involved in the recent fatal shooting of Dexter Reed. The north suburban man accused of gunning down seven people at the Highland Park 4th of July parade nearly two years ago made a brief appearance in court.
May 29, 2024•3 min
With climate change accelerating and overconsumption booming, it can feel like we have no agency over our impact on the planet. But artists who work with upcycled and reclaimed materials want to challenge that narrative. “We’re the band playing as the Titanic goes down,” said Nowhere Collective founder Katy Osborn. Through the Nowhere Collective, she runs a series of Trashy Markets, which are exactly what they sound like: markets for makers who work primarily with trash. In this episode, host Er...
May 29, 2024•19 min
Illinois lawmakers passed a state budget early this morning. They also voted to eliminate the statewide grocery tax… while opening the door to new local taxes. Some magnet and selective enrollment Chicago Public Schools are losing positions in next year's budget, but they are not the only ones.
May 29, 2024•5 min
Illinois lawmakers approved a resolution calling on President Joe Biden to allow longtime undocumented immigrants in Illinois to work and live in the U.S legally. Chicago officials are releasing new renderings of a satellite concourse under construction at O’Hare Airport. The Chicago Sky try to bounce back tonight from a disappointing loss in Saturday’s home opener.
May 28, 2024•3 min
“The Ball Game” was an ancient, Mesoamerican sport and spiritual ritual that has fascinated archeologists for centuries. The National Museum of Mexican Art currently has on display a stone-carved statue of a female ballplayer – complete with knee pads, a headdress, and holding a severed head – as part of an exhibit that is reimagining the role women played in the ancient Huasteca civilization. WBEZ art and culture reporter Courtney Kueppers recently covered the exhibit for WBEZ and spoke to The ...
May 28, 2024•14 min
The Illinois House returns to Springfield to finish up their work for the spring legislative session. Cook County is offering nearly $4 million dollars in grants to cannabis businesses. Mexico is holding a historic presidential election next Sunday and many Mexicans living in Chicago are getting ready to cast their vote.
May 28, 2024•5 min
Chicago Police Superintendent Larry Snelling and more than two dozen Chicago Police officers crossed into Indiana to support the son of a fallen officer. Cicadas have been emerging throughout the suburbs, but their characteristic buzzing is notably absent in Chicago. There are now three Great Lakes Piping Plovers staking a claim on Chicago’s Montrose Beach.
May 24, 2024•3 min
Lauren Viera’s city guide to Chicago doesn’t read like a typical guidebook – no 72-hour itineraries or explanatory advice on how to ride the CTA. “ The 500 Hidden Secrets of Chicago ,” which was published last fall, is mostly just lists of unique places. Five dance clubs, five farmers markets, five nature outings, five small museums, five high-end cocktail bars, five city myths – totalling up to 500. “I'm not a fiction writer,” Viera said. “I'm very bad at making stuff up. So this is really just...
May 24, 2024•11 min
Northwestern faculty react to a congressional committee's depiction of pro-Palestinian student protestors as an "antisemitic mob." Chicago Public Schools wants input on school safety plans that don’t include police officers. The Illinois Senate passes a pair of healthcare reform measures pushed by Gov. J.B. Pritzker.
May 24, 2024•5 min
The Chicago Teachers Union and Chicago Public Schools will hold open bargaining sessions this summer. Alderpeople have approved an ordinance that would ban any new late-night bars from opening in parts of Chicago's Logan Square, Wicker Park, and West Town neighborhoods. Reports of rare, blue-eyed cicadas are popping up in the Chicago area.
May 23, 2024•3 min
Every so often on The Rundown podcast we bring you episodes of Chi Sounds Like, a series that gives you an intimate, firsthand look into the lives of artists, activists and other off-the-beaten-path Chicagoans. Today, we hear from photographer Ken Cook Jr. , who left Chicago’s West Side, realized how leaving contributed to larger cycles of community neglect, and has since returned. “When people get a little success or make a little money, they move from the West Side,” Cook said, “leaving future...
May 23, 2024•17 min
Northwestern’s president will appear before Congress this morning to defend the agreement he made with pro-Palestinian student organizers. The Chicago city council issues a rebuke to Mayor Brandon Johnson’s power over the gunshot detection technology known as Shotspotter. After-school programs at more than 100 Chicago public schools are at risk.
May 23, 2024•5 min
Officials are expanding a federal consent decree that requires the Chicago Police Department to change the way officers are trained, supervised, and disciplined. Two Chicago City Council members have delayed an ordinance to create a noise sensitive zone around a downtown abortion clinic. Another Great Lakes Piping Plover has landed at Montrose beach.
May 22, 2024•4 min
Latham Zearfoss is a Chicago artist and a cultural liaison at the Chicago Park District, where he helps build out cultural programming across the city. Today, he explains his dynamic journey to this work as a part of Vocalo’s Chi Sounds Like series .
May 22, 2024•12 min
A WBEZ analysis finds Mayor Brandon Johnson’s cabinet doesn’t look that much different from his predecessor’s. We’ll hear more about FEMA’s second annual extreme heat summit hosted downtown this week. Illinois lawmakers approve changes to the state’s child labor laws.
May 22, 2024•5 min
Some employees at the Illinois capitol are turning up the heat as they try to unionize. Columbia College Chicago said it will announce staff layoffs by June 1st. It’s been 100 years since the murder of Bobby Franks by two University of Chicago students, a crime that inspired the Alfred Hitchcock movie “Rope.”
May 21, 2024•4 min
