WBEZ News

More than 25,000 migrants have arrived in Chicago since last year. 
 
 Many carry the trauma of their harrowing journeys, but there’s a shortage of mental health providers to talk to. 
 
 So a parade of helpers is stepping up. 
 
 WBEZ’s Kristen Schorsch brings us this story. Host: Mary Dixon

Prosecutors have played roughly 100 secret recordings to help tell the story of how Burke allegedly abused his City Hall power for private gain. 
 
 WBEZ’s Mariah Woelfel brings us some of the recordings likely to ring through the juror’s minds as they prepare to decide Burke’s fate. Host: Mary Dixon

In recent weeks TikTok and Instagram feeds have been filled with videos of pro-Israel and pro-Palestinian groups shouting each other down on college campuses across America. But off screen, steps away from the clashes and anger are college students on both sides of a seemingly uncrossable divide struggling with grief and fear.

The adjunct faculty strike at Columbia College Chicago is in its seventh week.
 
 To keep classes going, the college has replaced hundreds of teachers who walked off the job after Columbia cut hundreds of classes to fill a significant budget gap. 
 
 Many students support their part-time faculty, who make up the majority of professors at the arts-focused college. But some feel caught in a conflict that is making them question their place at the South Loop school. 
 
 WBEZ’s Anna Savchenko brings us three of their voices. 
 Host: Mary Dixon

Illinois State Police say they’re using “clear and present danger” reporting differently than they did a year ago. Reporter: Alex Degman; Host: Mary Dixon

“The Latino community is very much a part of the fabric of the western suburbs, and a growing, thicker strand of that fabric,” says one civic leader. Reporter: Esther Yoon-Ji Kang; Host: Melba Lara

For years, Cook County judges have been throwing out convictions tied to corrupt former Chicago police Sergeant Ronald Watts.
 
 Watts led a tactical unit that was under investigation for more than a decade for allegedly taxing drug dealers and framing people at a South Side public housing complex.
 
 Now, people who say they were framed by Watts are suing the city of Chicago.
 
 WBEZ criminal justice reporter Chip Mitchel spoke with our Lisa Labuz about what all these lawsuits could mean for taxpayers.
 Host: Mary Dixon

Hanukkah starts at sundown tonight.
 For many Chicago-area Jewish people, the Israel-Hamas war and rising anti-Semitic and anti-Islamaphobic incidents have added a somber note to the holiday.
 
 WBEZ’s Adora Namigadde spoke with a few people about what this year’s celebration means to them. Host: Mary Dixon

Rachel Goldberg’s 23-year-old son is among the 138 remaining hostages in Gaza, including people of different nationalities and faiths. Reporter: Kate Grossman; Host: Melba Lara

The Chicago Fire Department is wrapping up a tragic year.
 
 They lost four firefighters in the line of duty in 2023 – the first time that’s happened in a quarter century. 
 
 It’s forcing the fire department to find ways to support its firefighters as they grieve. 
 
 WBEZ’s Anna Savchenko reports. Host: Mary Dixon

Gov. JB Pritzker’s administration announced today it will not move forward with constructing a base camp to house migrants in Brighton Park on Chicago’s southwest side. Reporter: Tessa Weinberg; Host: Melba Lara

Inside schools, special education aides work closely with students who have a range of challenges, from staying focused - to navigating buildings with a physical disability. Chicago Public Schools has been rapidly adding these positions as it tries to improve its long-troubled special education program. But it still struggles to fill aide positions - There are currently more than 500 aide vacancies. As part of a series about the people who make schools run smoothly, WBEZ’s Sarah Karp talked to one aide. Host: Lisa Labuz

Inside schools, special education aides work closely with students who have a range of challenges, from staying focused - to navigating buildings with a physical disability. Chicago Public Schools has been rapidly adding these positions as it tries to improve its long-troubled special education program. But it still struggles to fill aide positions - There are currently more than 500 aide vacancies. As part of a series about the people who make schools run smoothly, WBEZ’s Sarah Karp talked to one aide. Host: Lisa Labuz

In recent weeks TikTok and Instagram feeds have been filled with videos of pro-Israel and pro-Palestinian groups shouting each other down on college campuses across America.
 
 But off screen, steps away from the clashes and anger are college students on both sides of a seemingly uncrossable divide struggling with grief and fear.

There’s a remarkable run of blockbuster public-corruption cases filing through Chicago’s federal courthouse this year.
 
 Chicago Public Media is examining the defining issues facing our democracy and reforms proposed to strengthen it. 
 
 WBEZ’s Dave McKinney examines the effect all of these corruption cases are having on Illinois’ democracy and its voters.
 Host: Lisa Labuz

Marie Henderson runs Out of the Past Records. She’s seen the neighborhood change for the worse, but she said she is proud she’s “still here.”

Earlier this year, a man driving in Chicago’s West Garfield Park neighborhood was shot and killed.
 
 His car smashed through the front of LiFE restaurant on Madison Street.
 
 The incident is an all too-common tragedy for a neighborhood that struggles with violent crime. 
 
 It was also a major blow to the mom-and-pop eatery.
 
 Residents worried it would mean the end of one of West Garfield’s few restaurants.
 
 But Joe and Tonya Black - the husband and wife who own and run Life restaurant - repaired the storefront.

With Thanksgiving in our rearview … it’s officially the Holiday season.
 
 From twinkling lights to live music, Chicago has something to get everyone in the festive spirit.
 
 WBEZ Digital Producer and reporter Courtney Kueppers joined morning edition host Mary Dixon with a roundup of Chicago’s top attractions.

Traditional civics education teaches students about the government, quizzing them on things like who makes laws.
 
 But Chicago Public Schools has quietly revolted.
 
 Instead of just facts, students are taught that their voice matters.
 
 These lessons have had powerful ripple effects for schools and the students. 
 
 WBEZ’s Sarah Karp explains.

The Chicago area is home to the country’s largest Palestinian American community.
 
 Generations started coming here in the early 1900s and it’s now considered a destination for some. 
 
 WBEZ’s Amy Qin spoke with Rundown podcast host Erin Allen about why so many people eventually settled here, and started with some history about Palestinian migration.

Drought, dust storms and sediment piles the size of skyscrapers are wreaking havoc on central Illinois farms. Can the next generation innovate fast enough? Reporter: Zachary Nauth; Host: Melba Lara

With the City of Chicago stretched thin helping thousands of Venezuelan migrants secure shelter and jobs, neighboring suburb Oak Park is trying to help. 
 
 But it hasn’t been easy for the western suburb to help about 160 migrants, underscoring that no one municipality can take on the crisis without more resources and collaboration. 
 Host: Mary Dixon; Reporter: Esther Yoon-Ji Kang

At Sullivan High School in Rogers Park, almost 70 Venezuelan students are now learning English and catching up on months—sometimes years—of missed school. WBEZ met one Venezuelan senior as she prepared to sing a song from her homeland at the school’s fall concert.
 Host: Mary Dixon

Rising seas, hotter summers, and more rain are all on the way—and in some cases are already here. 
 
 The Biden Administration’s National Climate Assessment is out today and that means hotter and wetter conditions for the Midwest. 
 
 WBEZ and Grist’s regional climate reporter Juanpablo Ramirez-Franco joined host Mary Dixon to explain what it all means.

After 118 days, the Hollywood actors’ strike is over. 
 
 SAG-AFTRA and television-movie studios have reached a tentative deal. Union officials say the contract is valued at over one billion dollars.
 
 There are about 5000 SAG-AFTRA members in Chicago. 
 
 WBEZ’s Esther Yoon-Ji Kang sat down with a SAG-AFTRA actress based in Chicago. Sydney Charles has appeared in such shows as “The Chi,” “Shameless” and “South Side.” She says she is celebrating the news but has to recoup from the loss of the past four months. 
 
 Host: Lara

For decades, south suburban Harvey has weathered severe flooding.
 
 The city’s infrastructure is made up of combined sewers that are prone to overflowing during heavy rains. More than half of Harvey residents have reported structural flooding in their homes.
 
 Past storms have impacted hundreds of buildings – causing long-term damage to structures and roadways. 
 
 Now there’s a plan to temper those effects. But that plan would tear down some residents’ homes in the process.
 
 WBEZ’s Adora Namigadde has the story.
 Host: Mary Dixon

The father of the suspect in last year’s mass shooting in Highland Park has pleaded guilty to acting recklessly when he helped his son get a gun permit when he was underage.
 
 Robert Crimo Junior was scheduled to go on trial today (MON).
 
 Instead he struck a plea deal that means he’ll spend two months in jail and two years on probation.
 
 Crimo’s son - Robert Crimo the third - is facing more than a hundred criminal charges for the 4th of July shooting.
 
 David Struett from the Chicago Sun-Times has been covering the criminal case and was at the Lake County courthouse today.

Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson’s floor leader is resigning from his leadership posts after a chaotic City Council meeting last week.
 
 
 
 The meeting broke down over a proposed referendum vote on the city’s sanctuary status.
 
 
 
 Underlying the drama was a race for one of just three spots for citywide ballot questions that are allowed during an election.
 
 
 
 WBEZ’s Tessa Weinberg explains how that limit leads to perennial gamesmanship over the issues voters get to weigh in on.

It’s been a month since the initial attack on Israel by Hamas. 
 
 Spiritual leaders in Chicago are helping their congregations deal with the onslaught of death and trauma. 
 
 They’re coming at it from a multitude of perspectives.
 
 WBEZ’s Adora Namigadde talked to different faith leaders about how they’re grappling with how to lift others up. 
 Host: Mary Dixon

Veterans Day is next Saturday… and a group in nearby East Chicago, Indiana wants to rename a community center there in honor of a fallen hero from the Vietnam War. 
 
 Emilio De La Garza Jr. was only 20 years old when he sacrificed his life to two fellow marines in 1970 after an enemy soldier pulled the pin of a grenade. 
 
 De La Garza jumped on the grenade to shield his fellow soldiers from the blast – thereby sacrificing his own life. 
 
 He was awarded the Medal of Honor - the nation’s highest military honor for valor.
 
 But even though the city is majority Latino, there’s some pushback to the effort to rename the building for De La Garza.. 
 
 Robert Garcia is a councilman on the East Chicago City Council. 
 
 He joins us to talk about this effort.
 
 Reporter: Mike Puente

It’s been nearly five years since federal prosecutors slapped former Chicago Alderman Ed Burke with a corruption indictment … accusing him of using his power to steer business to his private law firm.
 
 WBEZ’s city politics reporter Mariah Woelfel and the Chicago Sun-Times’ federal courts reporter Jon Seidel will be in court every day, and bring us updates throughout.
 
 They join us now with a rundown of what to expect. Host: Mary Dixon

One small school in the southwest suburbs has been shaken to its core by the Israel-Hamas war.
 
 It's one of many schools serving Muslim or Jewish students that is struggling. 
 
 The school has had to confront hate, grapple with the pain of seeing their people killed, while at the same time trying to make their students feel secure. 
 
 Host: Mary Dixon; Reporter: Sarah Karp

For thousands of refugees arriving in Chicago, finding work is the first step to establishing a new life here. Reporter: Esther Yoon-Ji Kang; Host: Melba Lara

In Chicago, the way buildings are heated, cooled, and made livable are responsible for about 70 percent of the city’s total greenhouse gas emissions every year. 
 
 Chicago is looking to join other cities around the country that have changed emission standards for new buildings. Activists say changes would help health, climate – and the pockets of homeowners.
 
 WBEZ’s Juanpablo Ramirez- Franco has the story. 
 Host: Mary Dixon

With an average of five crashes a day, bicyclists have been involved in more than 16-hundred traffic crashes in Chicago so far this year. 
 
 The crashes leave some cyclists with thousands of dollars in bike repairs and medical bills. Most suffer from injuries, such as lacerations and broken bones.
 
 And some have even been killed.
 
 WBEZ’s Jessica Alvarado Gamez has the story of how cyclists say the city is not moving fast enough to keep them safe. 
 Host: Mary Dixon

Six members and associates of a gang faction are on trial in connection with the 20-20 murder of Chicago rapper FBG Duck. Reporter: Tom Schuba; Host: Melba Lara

The sudden cold and snow in Chicago… is presenting new challenges for the thousands of migrants arriving here, on top of the difficulties they’ve had in finding adequate food, clothing and shelter.
 
 But as WBEZ’s Michael Puente reports, many of the newly arriving migrants are trying to make the best of it.

It takes an in-depth look at the different city departments’ efforts to bake in equity across government. 
 
 Candace Moore became the city’s first chief equity officer in 2019. 
 
 She spoke with WBEZ’s Adora Namigadde about how the report will affect Chicagoans … and started off by giving an example from the department of Streets and Sanitation.

Next week’s federal corruption trial of former Chicago Alderman Ed Burke will pull back the curtain on Chicago-style, scratch-my-back politics. 
 
 Burke is accused of using his position as an alderman, and chair of the powerful finance committee, to strongarm developers into hiring his private law firm. 
 
 WBEZ’s Mariah Woelfel has more on how Burke accumulated immense power, and how it paved the way for his trial.
 Host: Mary Dixon

The Lillstreet Art Center on the Northwest Side has seen a surge in demand for beginner sewing classes. 
 
 In fact … sewing classes there have been FULL for the past TWO years. 
 
 WBEZ’s Anna Savchenko dropped in on a session and learned the fun and sometimes serious reasons why folks are picking up the craft. Host: Mary Dixon

Next week, former Chicago alderman Ed Burke will stand trial on federal corruption charges that he used his power in public office to make money at his private law firm.
 
 Though Burke won reelection in 2019 after the initial indictment and raid on his office, the charges helped put an end to his five-decade career in the council earlier this year.
 
 WBEZ’s Mariah Woelfel brings us this look at Burke’s life, career and the power he amassed as the city’s longest serving council member.
 Host: Mary Dixon

Chicago and the surrounding suburbs have seen extreme rainfall events this year that resulted in significant flooding. 
 
 When those events happen, the floodwater that’s often contaminated with sewage makes its way through the storm drains to one of the water reclamation plants in the region so that it can be cleaned. 
 
 But that bears the question, “how do they actually do that?”
 
 WBEZ’s Noah Jennings went to one of the plants to find out.
 Host: Mary Dixon

Steel continues to be the dominant industry in Northwest Indiana -- as it has been for more than a century. While the mills have provided good-paying jobs for the thousands who have worked there over the decades -- they've also been a major source of air pollution. Reporter and host: Michael Puente

A year ago the Chicago Transit Authority made a pledge to fix delays and address the crime and grime that was keeping riders away from the system.
 
 It was called Meeting the Moment… and the goals were ambitious: make train and bus service more reliable…improve safety and the overall rider experience
 
 The CTA is claiming progress.. 
 Host: Mary Dixon; Reporter: Claudia Morell

The Chicago Sky introduced their new head coach Teresa Weatherspoon at a press conference yesterday.
 
 Afterwards, the hall of famer sat down with WBEZ sports contributor Cheryl Raye-Stout in an exclusive one-on-one interview to discuss her plans for her first season with the Sky.
 Host: Mary Dixon; Reporter: Cheryl Raye Stout

Educators in Illinois have a January deadline to draft a plan for improving how reading is taught. 
 
 The effort by the Illinois State Board of Education is part of a national movement to update reading instruction … so it matches what science says about the way kids learn. 
 
 Here to tell us more is Tinaya York. She helped write the first draft of Illinois’ literacy plan with educators around the state. Host: Mary Dixon; Reporter: Kate Grossman

A dozen police officers from around Illinois appeared on a leaked membership list for the Oath Keepers, an anti-government extremist group.
 
 They include a state trooper, a state university campus cop and an officer for a village known as “America’s First Black Town.” These officers are in addition to the more than two dozen current and former Chicago police officials found on the leaked list.
 
 Many elected leaders say those officers should have no place in law enforcement and are pushing for new rules to be adopted to bar police participation in hate and extremist groups.
 
 An investigation by WBEZ, Chicago Sun-Times and the Organized Crime and Corruption Reporting Project found police departments have been reluctant to push cops with extremist connections out of their ranks. Reporters also spoke with people who said their lives were impacted negatively by officers with ties to the Oath Keepers. Host: Mary Dixon

Twenty-seven current and former Chicago cops appeared on the leaked membership list of the Oath Keepers — the anti-government extremist group that gained notoriety for the Jan. 6 riot at the U.S. Capitol. Now, a monthslong investigation from WBEZ, the Chicago Sun-Times and the Organized Crime and Corruption Reporting Project has looked into those officers in Chicago and elsewhere in Illinois, revealing the troubling records of some of those cops. Reporters Dan Mihalopoulos of WBEZ and the Sun-Times’s Tom Schuba spoke with people who say they had disturbing and racist experiences with officers who joined the Oath Keepers.
 Host: Mary Dixon; Reporter: Dan Mihalopoulos

The people who spoke with WBEZ and the Chicago Sun-Times say the department should rid itself of cops connected to extremist groups.

The people who spoke with WBEZ and the Chicago Sun-Times say the department should rid itself of cops connected to extremist groups. Reporters: Dan Mihalopoulos and Tom Schuba