The Rundown | Chicago News

Freelance workers in Illinois will enjoy new protections starting on Monday. Federal officials estimate a million fewer students will receive the Pell Grant this year. The Chicago Teachers Union announced yesterday the candidates it will support for the first school board election.

Do you remember the track ‘Mariposa’? It did significant rounds on TikTok during the pandemic lockdown. The group behind the song, Peach Tree Rascals , is about to wrap up a 19 show, 27-day tour. Ahead of their Chicago show last week, they spoke with Vocalo’s Nudia Hernandez about their deep friendship, what it’s like to create a viral music hit and how they’re making their immigrant parents proud...

Two new state-run migrant shelters are opening in Chicago but some state lawmakers say they have serious concerns. Undocumented residents in Illinois can get standard driver’s licenses starting Monday. Laid off Chicago Public School staff members spoke out yesterday about how their absence will hurt students.

New U.S. Census Bureau population estimates released today reveal significant demographic shifts in the greater Chicago area. Researchers say a bill introduced in Springfield this year could allow more working adults in Illinois to get college degrees. Chicago Public Media has a new CEO.

The state’s attorney in north suburban Lake County says he’s ready for trial against the accused gunman in the Highland Park 4th of July massacre as a plea deal falls through. A U.S. Supreme Court ruling narrowing federal bribery law could have a major impact on some high-profile Chicago corruption cases. Illinois officials are launching an updated plan to curb the transmission of H-I-V/AIDS.

A coalition of feminist and LGBTQ+ activist groups have struck a deal with the city of Chicago to march on the eve of the Democratic National Convention. The man accused of gunning down seven people at the Highland Park 4th of July parade two years ago rejected a plea deal during a court hearing today. Defense attorneys for four former ComEd lobbyists and executives say a Supreme Court decision co...

Angie Leventis Lourgos began reporting on abortion access in Illinois in 2015. In the two years since the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade, she has watched the Midwest become even further divided over the issue of abortion rights. “It seems like the chasm between Missouri and Illinois or Illinois and Indiana has only widened,” she said. “I didn’t think that was possible because they seemed so...

A new study sheds light on the impact of removing police from Chicago high schools. Illinois House Speaker Chris Welch’s lawyers work to get a lawsuit against him dismissed. Illinois Governor J-B Pritzker signs into law the creation of a new state agency.

A Chicago City Council committee approved plans for a new Wrigleyville development Tuesday over the objections of preservation groups. Independent presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy Junior has filed the necessary paperwork to get on Illinois' ballot in November. Two people locked up at Robinson prison in downstate Illinois recently went on hunger strikes because they believe that if their se...

The longest serving alderman in Chicago history gets sentenced to federal prison. Millions of federal dollars will be going toward new storm water projects across Cook County. Walmart donates a training facility on the South Side to the Chicago Urban League.

A federal judge has sentenced former Chicago Alderman Ed Burke to two years in prison, one year of supervised release, and a $2 million fine. Illinois' state climatologist says soil conservation work is our best weapon to reduce the risk of dust storms. Sky rookie Angel Reese had a career-high 25-point game yesterday as Chicago beat the Indiana Fever 88 to 87.

Colombia’s influx of Venezuelan migrants has led to accusations the migrants are fueling crime and drawing resources needed by low-income Colombians. This resembles some responses to Venezuelan arrivals in Chicago. WBEZ’s Chip Mitchell spent two weeks in Colombia – a country that’s received a much larger influx of Venezuelan migrants than Chicago – to discover how the conditions compare, how Venez...

Ex-Chicago Alderman Ed Burke faces 10 years in prison for corruption. His sentencing hearing begins today. In the South Shore neighborhood evictions are high – and residents want protections against displacement. Abortion funds that help patients pay for procedures and travel are losing money across the country, including in Chicago.

Chicagoans and their pets have limited exercise options amid this week’s heat wave. A National Weather Service meteorologist says this spring was unusually stormy in central Illinois. Hundreds of cycling enthusiasts are in Chicago this weekend for an international convention named after a local sports legend.

When Yoly Rojas came back single from a stint on Netflix’s “The Ultimatum: Queer Love,” she wanted to meet some new queer people her age. She and friend Keli Knight looked around and realized they didn’t have a space to meet other LGBTQ+ people over 30. So they made one.  Rojas and Knight’s Lovers and Friends party, which has a focus on the BIPOC lesbian community, has amassed a large followi...

The state of Illinois could soon erase $1 billion worth of medical debt for thousands of families. Cook County is trying to figure out what to do with hundreds of millions of dollars in pandemic-relief money from Washington. Many queer teens across the U.S. are unhappy about the sex ed they receive in school, a new study finds.

Some top Illinois officials are celebrating President Joe Biden’s new executive actions to protect undocumented immigrants from deportation. Christopher Columbus Elementary School in Ukrainian Village will soon be Ruth Bader Ginsberg Elementary School. Northwest Indiana is under an air quality alert until midnight.

On Chicago’s West Side, crews used the Juneteenth holiday to help seniors whose basements flooded last July. Many homeowners still need help to remove mold. Nine community organizations based in Cook County are receiving grant money to help the populations they serve manage diabetes and prediabetes. A new art project places the portraits of noteworthy Chicagoans on bus shelters across the city.

The Illinois Department of Public Health is urging caution as confirmed cases of COVID-19 are rising in emergency rooms. Unions representing journalists at WBEZ and the Sun-Times are calling for the ouster of the Chicago Public Media CEO. A Planned Parenthood clinic in Peoria is up and running after it was fire-bombed over a year ago.

Chicago is getting a new task force to study reparations for Black residents. The watchdog for Chicago City Hall is calling out Mayor Brandon Johnson for failing to act on a campaign promise to rid cops who joined two extremist groups. Illinois lawmakers approved a measure aimed at expanding access to fentanyl testing strips.

The Chicago area is under an air quality alert. Today is the first day for candidates to file petitions to run for Chicago’s first elected school board. Three famed Wrigleyville Rooftops could face the wrecking ball.

Yman Huang Vien is a former refugee who emigrated to Chicago with her family over 40 years ago, moved to Uptown and quickly co-founded the Chinese Mutual Aid Association , in order to serve low-income, immigrant and refugee communities across Chicago. Today, she’s one of six community members whose portrait and profile you might run into in a Chicago bus shelter for a project called “Unsung Heroes...

Four neighborhoods in Chicago are developing ways to reduce gun violence through partnerships with public and private groups. Governor J.B. Pritzker touts $41 billion in spending on infrastructure. A hard foul at the Chicago Sky-Indiana Fever game drew some controversy.

Multiple CTA workers allege they received chemical burns while washing train cars with harsh cleaning materials they weren’t properly trained to use. The Chicago Police Department still does not ban officers from joining specific extremist groups despite promises of reform. High humidity and heat are in the forecast for early next week.

Every Friday from here we’ll be checking in with Nudia Hernandez of WBEZ’s sister station Vocalo, who’s gonna bring us a conversation with an artist or musician doing big things in Chicago. Today, we hear from Erin Kilmurray, creator of “The Function,” an immersive dance production that’s wrapping up its multi-week run in Garfield Park tonight . Plus, we hear from Nudia herself, how she followed h...