The Rundown | Chicago News

The city of Chicago has millions of federal dollars to use to help people experiencing homelessness, but it’s not spending it, according to reporting in the Illinois Answers Project. Investigative reporters Rachel Hinton and Manny Ramos say that of the $52 million budgeted from the federal American Rescue Plan Act, Chicago has only spent 15%. Why? Why so slow? And what impact does this delay have...

Later today, there’s gonna be a rally downtown to raise awareness about the overdose crisis. Illinois Secretary of State Alexi Giannoulias announces 146 grants for libraries and other organizations that support literacy. Gov. J.B. Pritzker recently signed a law that will require pay transparency in job listings.

SoloSam is a Chicago rapper and producer born and raised on the South Side – “79th and Ada,” he points out – but he’s also a chef with a cooking show series , a cookbook and also B-EATS, a bi-monthly party series that combines good food, good music and community. “If it wasn’t for food I wouldn’t have grown as a music artist, for sure,” he told Erin Allen. In this episode, we play some of his song...

Chicago Public Schools says it's prioritizing bus service for students in special education, but some parents are frustrated by shortages. One of Springfield's most powerful men was humbled by a federal jury. This week's heat could have affected your mental health too.

Chicago Public School leaders say they were ready for this week’s heat wave, but temperatures inside some buildings are uneven. Chicago city officials are keeping tabs on seniors, people in prison, and unhoused people as the heat wave continues. In Illinois, for-profit colleges will now have to pay back state aid if they deceive students.

The strikes among actors and writers aren’t just taking place in Hollywood. Hundreds of Chicagoans are also on the picket lines. We wanted to know what Chicago artists are fighting for and how they’re coping with being out of work for months. To find out, we talked to WBEZ reporter Esther Yoon-Ji Kang, who shares two stories from local artists.

Mayor Johnson throws his weight behind a tiered tax plan that could help the homeless. A WBEZ analysis found crisis pregnancy centers outnumber abortion providers in Illinois by a nearly three-to-one ratio. The White Sox shake up their staff as their season slump continues.

Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson defends his governing style as he marks 100 days in office. A medical expert says get to know the warning signs of heat stroke or heat exhaustion in order to prevent serious health damage to your body. On the first day of school, the head of the Chicago Teachers Union questioned whether the August start date was too early, given the uneven air conditioning and heat wa...

In 2024, the National Public Housing Museum will open in Chicago. Even in advance of their grand opening, the museum is working with community members to change the way we talk about public housing. That includes an art installation based on their project “36 Questions for Civic Love.” This Friday, WBEZ is co-hosting a concert with the museum. So we wanted to take the opportunity to sit down with...

The first day of school for CPS is today, with more and more migrants enrolling in the district. There’s a renewed effort to help solve the issue of “food deserts” in Illinois. Illinois says jobs are up and the unemployment rate is steady, but the labor pool is shrinking.

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...

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.

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.

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 an...

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.

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.

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...

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.

“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. A...

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.

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.

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 ex...

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.

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.

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 executiv...