City Cast Chicago

In her new play “The Billboard,” journalist, author, and playwright Natalie Moore tells the story of a fictional abortion clinic in Englewood and its fight with a City Council candidate who puts up a billboard declaring “Abortion is genocide. The most dangerous place for a Black child is his mother’s womb.” The clinic decides to fight back by putting up its own sign. Host Jacoby Cochran talks to N...

Are you familiar with The Fly Honeys? What was once a multi-weekend, sold-out production for a decade is being tailored to Thalia Hall for Pride this weekend with its iconic showcase of "high-kicking dancers, singers, ass shakers, emcees, nightlife performers, celebrated DJs and headlining guest artists - all backed by a nine-piece band.” Host Jacoby Cochran speaks to two of the people behind The...

The political lore in Chicago used to be that if you didn’t know which judges to vote for, you should just pick the most Irish-sounding name. Really, there was a study that confirmed voters did this. But that's not an informed way to go to the polls. Host Jacoby Cochran talks to Maya Dukmasova and Charles Preston from Injustice Watch about the organization's Judicial Election Guide, and why it’s s...

Trans activist "Mama Gloria" Allen died this week at the age of 76. To honor her memory, we're resharing our conversation with her from December. In the early 1960s, Gloria Allen, aka Mama Gloria, was ridiculed by teachers and fellow students at Englewood High School for being a “sissy.” Allen said no one knew back then what being transgender meant. But she always knew she was a girl, and with the...

On Sunday, hundreds gathered to march from Lincoln Square to Uptown to memorialize two young children, 2 year old Raphael “Rafi” Cardenas and 3 year old Elizabeth “Lily” Grace, who were killed in recent traffic accidents. The families, neighbors, and advocates are demanding the city do more to protect bikers and pedestrians and hold motorists accountable. Freelance journalist Taylor Moore and WTTW...

Harold’s is more than a chicken spot — It’s a Chicago institution. There are stories of NBA MVP Derrick Rose getting bottles of their famous mild sauce brought to his home. Kanye West set a music video at Harold’s. It’s even been name-dropped by a certain former U.S. president. But somehow, even with dozens of franchise locations, it’s been able to maintain a community feel and remains a must-try...

When the former ABLA Homes on the Near West Side were torn down in the 2000s, the city promised to build new housing. But 20 years later, most of the planned units haven’t been built and most families never returned. Earlier this year, Mayor Lori Lightfoot announced a deal to develop the biggest plot of the former public housing complex, but it wasn’t for more housing. The land is set to be develo...

Early voting is underway for the June 28 primary. But sometimes you’re looking at a list of names, and you don’t even know what they’re running for. Host Jacoby Cochran has often felt that way looking at the list of candidates for Metropolitan Water Reclamation District commissioners. What does the MWRD even do? To find out, we asked commissioner Kim Neely du Buclet, who is not up for election thi...

In honor of the Chicago Tribune’s 175th anniversary, the paper recently put out a Chicago history quiz. (Happy birthday, Trib friends!) Of course, we wanted to put our knowledge to the test. So we asked producer Simone Alicea to pick the best questions for a little trivia competition. From architecture, to politics, to sports, host Jacoby Cochran and lead producer Carrie Shepherd face off to see w...

Happy Pride month! Host Jacoby Cochran is looking back at some key stories from the week with Chicago Reader co-publisher Tracy Baim and Block Club Chicago reporter Jake Wittich, who covers Lakeview, Lincoln park, and Old Town. They discuss Chicago’s new AIDS Garden, a Pride march at a North Center elementary school, and the Reader’s Pride Issue. Tracy and Jake also make it clear while Pride is a...

Anyone who has ever walked by the Puerto Rican flag at Division and Western in Humboldt Park knows that Puerto Rican pride runs deep and strong in this city. The stretch known as the Paseo Boricua is the heart of the community. Starting Thursday, Fiestas Patronales Puertorriqueñas aka the Puerto Rican Festival returns including four days of celebration, a carnival, and a parade Saturday. Joshua Sm...

Whether you’re for or against, a casino is coming to Chicago. The mayor and City Council have both approved a proposal from Bally’s to build a casino at the old Tribune publishing site in River West. Pending approval from the Illinois Gaming Board, the city’s first casino is projected to begin operating by 2026. Chicago leaders say the casino will be good for the city — especially for filling city...

The reversal of Roe v. Wade won’t end abortion — it will make access to safe abortion much more difficult. Before the Supreme Court’s landmark abortion rights decision women had to take dangerous measures to end a pregnancy. Seeing the need, a group of women based in Chicago’s Hyde Park neighborhood created a service that provided everything from counseling to rides to appointments. You called a n...

A tweet by 20th Ward Ald. Jeanette Taylor went viral last week. Taylor tweeted: “I first applied for an affordable housing voucher in 1993….Today in 2022 I finally got a letter telling me I made it to the top of the waiting list. I have no words.” Taylor talks to host Jacoby Cochran about how she thinks the Chicago Housing Authority is failing people in Chicago looking for affordable housing and w...

Every song has a story — that’s the idea behind Karaoke Storytellers. Performers get up, tell a story, and then sing a song related to that story. The event is hosted by host Jacoby Cochran. At the April event, we heard stories about finding love, finding yourself, and finding your home. Today, we’re telling you some of those stories.  The next Karaoke Storytellers is on June 19 at Schuba's Tavern...

Yesterday, we explored the history of disinvestment and displacement at Cabrini-Green, Chicago’s infamous public housing complex on the Near North Side. The city began demolishing the high-rises in the 1990s, and the last one went down in 2011. But former Cabrini-Green residents are still fighting for what the city promised them: a chance to return to their community. Host Jacoby Cochran led a pan...

Last week, City Council approved the plans for a Bally’s Casino at the old Tribune publishing site in River West. The location at Chicago and Halsted is a couple blocks away from Cabrini-Green, a public housing development where thousands of residents were displaced beginning in the late 1990s. Promises were made that Black residents would be able to return with access to new homes, jobs, and oppo...

After 30 years, residents in the 1st Congressional District are preparing to elect a new Representative. Bobby Rush —co-founder of the Illinois Black Panther Party, a Chicago alderman, Civil Rights activist, and only politician to ever beat Barack Obama in an election — announced earlier this year he’s retiring. The 1st District stretches from the near South Side south to Bourbannais, and it’s lon...

Earlier this week, after 19 children and 2 adults were gunned down at an elementary school in Uvalde, Texas Gov. Greg Abbott responded, “I hate to say this — there are more people that are shot every weekend in Chicago than there are in schools in Texas.” This repugnant, racist, and unempathetic response was met with quick scrutiny. Co-hosts of the movement building podcast AirGo, Damon Williams a...

The El Milagro tortilla brand is strong in Chicago. You can find it in almost every grocery store, and you can often see people line up around the block of El Milagro factories, waiting to get hot, fresh tortillas. But in recent months, we all paid a little more attention to the workers in those factories as they became more vocal on calling out unsafe work conditions and low pay. Host Jacoby Coch...

In 1961, Abraham Bolden became the first Black Secret Service agent to serve on a presidential detail. Bolden says when he left Chicago and moved to D.C., it was like going from “heaven to hell,” and he faced constant racism from other agents. He says he also heard other agents say they wouldn’t protect President John F. Kennedy if there was an assassination attempt on his life because of Kennedy’...

City Cast host Jacoby Cochran recently joined the podcast Album ReBrews to drink beers from Funkytown Brewery and talk about Saba’s latest release Few Good Things. Jacoby and hosts Sarah Beidatsch and Zac Emry dissect songs from the album and discuss how they connect to the artist’s Chicago roots, especially in Austin on the city’s West Side. A little bit of news: The Daily Line talks ward remap a...

Early voting in the June primary begins Thursday in Chicago, and is already underway elsewhere in the state. There are six candidates running on the Republican ballot, and there’s already some big money being pumped into the race. WTTW’s Amanda Vinicky tells host Jacoby Cochran more about the people and issues shaping the race, including the big question of whether candidates are too conservative...

This week, Gov. JB Pritzker signed a bill requiring all firearms, gun kits, and 3D-printed guns to have a visible serial number, effectively banning “ghost guns,” while alderpeople got their questions and complaints in about the future Chicago casino. Host Jacoby Cochran breaks down these stories and more with Crain’s Chicago Business reporter Corli Jay and The Daily Line editor and City Hall repo...

Whether your summer plans include sitting on the beach, taking a road trip, flying, or just staying home — you might be looking for something good to read. “Nerdette” host Greta Johnsen — who’s already read about 50 books so far this year — is here with her summer reading recommendations. She says they all fall into the theme of being transported somewhere, from a residential school for deaf child...