WBEZ News

This year Chicagoans elected 65 people to serve on the city’s first police district councils. The job includes providing a forum for city residents to raise concerns about policing in their district and help address them. The councils are all up and running. But there’s no instruction manual for making sure they’re effective. Five months since the district council members took their oath, WBEZ’s Chip Mitchell checked in with one on the West Side to see how her work is going. Host: Mary Dixon; Reporter: Chip Mitchell

This year Chicagoans elected 65 people to serve on the city’s first police district councils. The job includes providing a forum for city residents to raise concerns about policing in their district and help address them. The councils are all up and running. But there’s no instruction manual for making sure they’re effective. Five months since the district council members took their oath, WBEZ’s Chip Mitchell checked in with one on the West Side to see how her work is going. Host: Mary Dixon; Reporter: Chip Mitchell

Abbott claims he is sending migrants to Democratic cities – without any coordination – to protest US immigration policies.
 
 But Chicago Congressman Jonathan Jackson says Abbott’s actions are a large-scale human smuggling operation. Reporter: Natalie Moore; Host: Melba Lara

Thousands of migrants in Chicago don’t have a permanent place to live or work. 
 
 The humanitarian crisis continues to grow as the city scrambles for solutions. 
 
 But one neighboring Midwestern state wants to help relocate hundreds – if not thousands – of those migrants.
 
 WBEZ’s Esther Yoon-Ji Kang has the story. Host: Mary Dixon; Reporter: Esther Yoon-Ji Kang

More than 1.6 million people in Illinois have student loan balances. 
 
 And this month they have to make payments for the first time in three years.
 
 Advocates say the pandemic-era pause allowed people to buy homes and start families.
 
 One Brookfield woman says it allowed her to avoid becoming a statistic. 
 
 WBEZ’s Lisa Philip reports.
 Host: Mary Dixon

As the seasons change, you might be thinking about updating your wardrobe with the latest fall and winter trends.
 
 But many Chicago teens are rejecting fast fashion.
 
 They’re turning to thrift shops for cheaper and more sustainable options.
 
 WBEZ’s Nereida Moreno stopped by a North Side thrift store to hear why some students are embracing secondhand clothes.
 Host: Mary Dixon; Reporter: Nereida Moreno

What does sanctuary status actually mean? Where does it come from? And does it actually affect the flow of asylum-seekers to the city? WBEZ’s Esther Yoon-Ji Kang sat down with Professor Kathleen Arnold – director of the Refugee and Forced Migration program at DePaul University. 
 Reporter: Esther Yoon-Ji Kang; Host: Claire Lane

More than a million Illinois residents are making payments on their federal student loans this month for the first time in three years.
 
 WBEZ is bringing you some of their stories – and what the pandemic-era payment pause has meant to them.
 
 Today we have the story of a borrower who was able to start his family.
 
 WBEZ’s Lisa Philip brings us into his living room in the southwest suburbs, where his toddler’s toys have taken over. Host: Mary Dixon; Reporter: Lisa Philip

Johnson is pledging he won’t raise property taxes, saying the city’s budget gap will be plugged with rosier revenue projections and other money. Reporter: Tessa Weinberg; Host: Melba Lara

This month more than a million Illinois residents are making payments on their federal student loans for the first time in three years. 
 
 A pandemic era pause on payments ended in September leaving borrowers scrambling to adjust their monthly budgets. 
 
 In the lead up we asked borrowers what questions they have about their student debt.
 
 WBEZ higher education reporter Lisa Philip shared their responses and some answers to their questions with our Lisa Labuz. Host: Mary Dixon; Reporter: Lisa Philip

Community organizer Kennedy Bartley has long been familiar with Chicago City Hall.
 
 But never before has she had the type of access she and her group – U-W-F, United Working Families – do under Mayor Brandon Johnson. 
 
 28-year-old Bartley finds herself at the helm of a progressive political powerhouse during an unprecedented time – when Johnson is vowing to quote- “co-govern” with those who helped elect him. 
 
 Host: Mary Dixon; Reporter: Mariah Woelfel

The Chicago Transit Authority says it has had a surge in hiring and training rail operators in the past year. The conversation starts off with the CTA’s Chief Administrative Officer Tom McKone
 and includes CTA spokesperson Brian Steele. Reporter: Claudia Morell; Host: Susie An

In his latest book, historian and Morning Edition host Steve Inskeep offers a fresh take on President Abraham Lincoln. 
 
 Specifically, how Lincoln was able to navigate the political division of the mid-19th century - and how disagreements with his peers shaped Lincoln’s legacy. 
 
 It’s entitled Differ We Must: How Lincoln Succeeded In a Divided America. 
 
 Steve Inskeep recently sat down with WBEZ’s Lisa Labuz. Host: Lisa Labuz; Reporter: Cianna Greaves

Park the lawn mower. Put away the sidewalk edger. Building a climate resilient future may depend on it.
 
 Is the pristine, green lawn incompatible with life in a warming world?
 
 Botanist and Chicago-area native Joey Santore has a show called Kill Your Lawn and was recently in town filming.
 
 As part of our "Climate Solutions Week" coverage from WBEZ and NPR, Juanpablo Ramirez-Franco sat down with him. Host: Lisa Labuz; Reporter: Juanpablo Ramirez-Franco

The former football coach says he was wrongfully fired after a hazing and abuse scandal. Reporter: Lisa Phillip; Host: Claire Lane

Medical science has firmly established the importance of regular prenatal care for pregnant women. 
 
 But in Chicago, that care is not guaranteed for the city’s newly arriving migrants. 
 
 Of the more than 15-thousand who have arrived in Chicago so far, Cook county officials say they have treated more than 200 expectant mothers. 
 Host: Mary Dixon; Reporter: Cianna Greaves, Elly Fishman

After the hazing scandal in Northwestern’s athletics program broke this summer, president Michael Schill said, “Our student-athletes are students first.”
 
 Former football player Ramon Diaz says that was not his experience. He recently filed a suit against the university for enabling the alleged abuse he endured while on the team in the late 2000s.
 
 Diaz is now a therapist working with young athletes. He says student-athletes, particularly those of color, are brought to universities to win on the field, often with little attention paid to their academics and mental health.
 
 Diaz says that leaves them vulnerable to abuse. Host: Mary Dixon; Reporter: Lisa Phillips

An experiment is underway involving trees. 
 
 Three identical gardens across Illinois, Minnesota and Oklahoma are growing thousands of Bur Oaks. 
 
 Scientists want to know how the oaks will respond to different climates, and how that could affect forests in the future. 
 
 As part of our "Climate Solutions Week" coverage from WBEZ and NPR Juanpablo Ramirez-Franco has the story. 
 Reporter: Juanpablo Ramirez-Franco

Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson’s administration is overwhelmed as they try to house a recent influx of migrants that have been bussed to the city.
 
 The pace of buses has been ramping up – with 10 buses expected to arrive today [TUES].
 
 So just how is the city responding to the more than 17-thousand migrants that have arrived in the past year and the growing need for housing ahead of winter?
 
 Joining us now to discuss the city’s plans is the mayor’s first deputy chief of staff, Cristina Pacione-Zayas. Reporter: Tessa Weinberg

The popular 70s sitcom “Three’s Company” is enjoying a comeback in the U.S.
 
 People all over the country are holding parties in celebration of Helen Roper, the spunky, fashionable landlady.
 
 WBEZ’s Anna Savchenko attended a caftan crawl dubbed the Mrs. Roper romp in Chicago’s Beverly neighborhood over the weekend and has this story. 
 Host: Lisa Labuz; Reporter: Anna Savchenko

In 1977, Jimmy Carter was president. The original Star Wars was released in theaters. Michael Bilandic was mayor of Chicago. And prep sports were a big deal. And Chicago Vocational High School was the defending Public League champions in football. But that didn’t matter much to the upstart Wolverines of Simeon High School, also known as ... the Blue Machine. Reporter: Michael Puente; Host: Melba Lara

In the Chicago region, segregation is a way of life – as common as hot dogs and deep dish pizza. 
 
 But there are some public places where people of different economic backgrounds come together. 
 
 A pair of researchers recently studied where folks might “rub shoulders.” 
 
 WBEZ’s Esther Yoon-Ji Kang takes us to a couple of those spots. 
 Host: Mary Dixon; Reporter: Esther Yoon-Ji Kang

Last year, Black drivers were the subjects in 30 percent of traffic stops in Illinois … almost double the percentage it was nearly two decades ago.
 
 That’s according to an investigation by WBEZ and the Investigative Project on Race and Equity.
 
 Many Black drivers are left questioning if a routine run to the store or picking up their child from school could lead to being stopped by police. 
 
 WBEZ’s Michael Liptrot shares some of their stories and how some are fighting racial profiling in Illinois. Host: Mary Dixon; Reporter: Michael Liptrot

State law and oversight board fall short of goals to collect law enforcement data and to reduce racial disparities in police traffic stops. Reporters: Matt Kiefer, Taylor Moore, Jim Ylisela, Michael Liptrot; Host: Melba Lara

The Chicago Park District has been spending BIG money to settle complaints from young women who worked as lifeguards.
 
 WBEZ first reported on rampant sexual misconduct at the park district’s beaches and pools in 2021.
 
 And now our investigative reporter Dan Mihalopoulos is revealing the costly legal settlements that have followed the lifeguard scandal.
 Host: Mary Dixon; Reporter: Dan Mihalopoulos

Xavier Williams makes sure kids on the West Side get to class each day. “It’s another form of giving back,” he said. “That’s what I love about it.“ Reporter: Nereida Moreno; Host: Melba Lara

More than one million Illinois households are eligible for energy assistance to prevent shutoffs and excessive utility bills. 
 
 That money is being cut by nearly a third to 280 million dollars this year.
 
 That may leave many of the state’s low-income families confronting a harsh winter. Host: Lisa Labuz;
 Reporter: Juanpablo Ramirez-Franco

There is a big need to find permanent housing for the more than 14-thousand asylum-seekers who have arrived in Chicago in the past year. 
 
 That can take months, particularly for people who are newly arrived and lack documents and steady income.
 
 But a scrappy group of volunteers has been able to quickly move some migrants into housing through a unique program and the help of one landlord.
 Host: Lisa Labuz; Reporter: Tessa Weinberg

Juan González is senior fellow at the Great Cities Institute at the University of Illinois Chicago. He says U.S. foreign policy is key to understanding why migrants flee to the city. Reporter: Esther Yoon-Ji Kang; Host: Melba Lara

Chicago Public School leaders say, in the coming year, they want classrooms to be laser-focused on math improvement. 
 
 
 
 State test scores show students are struggling to catch up to where they were before the pandemic. 
 
 
 
 WBEZ’s Sarah Karp went to one school on Chicago’s South Side that district officials say is poised to make strides. Host: Lisa Labuz; Reporter: Sarah Karp

The Art Institute of Chicago is one of three institutions at the center of a dispute over art that was allegedly stolen during the holocaust. 
 
 Investigators in New York seized artworks by Austrian expressionist Egon Schiele from museums in Chicago, Pittsburg, and Ohio. 
 
 The pieces were part of a larger collection owned by Fritz Grünbaum, an Austrian Jewish art collector who was murdered at the Dachau concentration camp in 19-41. Host: Lisa Labuz; Reporter: Cianna Greaves

He’s Mayor Brandon Johnson’s nominee to be the next police superintendent. Snelling’s CPD career spans three decades, including years at the training academy teaching new hires about things like when to use force. Reporter: Chip Mitchell; Host: Melba Lara

To address the migrant crisis, Chicago area advocates and Democratic lawmakers have been pushing the federal government to grant work permits.
 
 Now the Biden Administration has granted temporary protected status for 14 thousand local Venezuelan migrants.
 
 Ere Rendón leads immigrant justice initiatives at The Resurrection Project and joins us now. Host: Mary Dixon; Reporter: Cianna Greaves, Esther Yoon-Ji Kang

Swedish Hospital this summer laid off some midwives while others quit as the medical center made big changes.
 
 Many pregnant patients were outraged. In some cases, they had long headed to Swedish just for the hands-on care the midwives were known for. 
 
 Research shows midwives could help reduce the maternal mortality rate gripping the nation, while increasing choices for patients.
 
 And yet hospitals across the Chicago area are not investing in midwives much — or at all. 
 Host: Mary Dixon; Reporter: Kristen Schorsch

Lawrence Hall - a nonprofit organization in Chicago’s Albany Park neighborhood – recently opened a first-of-its-kind foster home for LGBTQ youth. 
 
 The program was created to provide specialized care for people between the ages of 17 and 21 who identify as lesbian, gay, bisexual, and queer. 
 
 WBEZ contributor Michael Gerstein recently spent time at the new house that is run by Lawrence Hall. 
 Host: Mary Dixon; Reporter: Cianna Greaves

Illinois is the first state in the U.S. to abolish cash bail. The historic change took effect on Monday, prompting confusion and long days. Reporters: Chip Mitchell, Mawa Iqbal and Will Bauer; Host: Mary Dixon

There have been almost 4-thousand block parties all across the city this summer, according to a WBEZ analysis of street closure permits. It’s the most in any year since before the pandemic. We visited three block parties this month, where Chicagoans confirmed that the city’s block party tradition is still going strong. Reporter: Claire Kurgan; Host: Mary Dixon

Instead there were first appearances and detention hearings.
 
 It’s one of many changes prompted by Illinois’ historic decision to outlaw the use of cash bail across the state.
 
 Matthew Hendrickson is a reporter with the Chicago Sun-Times. He covers the Cook County courts.
 
 Today, he’s been watching closely as court actors figure out a whole new process of making pretrial decisions.
 Reporter: Matthew Hendrickson

Chicagoans can now book appointments to get a new COVID-19 booster shot aimed at protecting against the latest subvariants. 
 
 The vaccine’s arrival comes as COVID cases are on the rise locally and nationally. 
 
 But only about 20 percent of Cook County residents got a booster shot last year.
 
 WBEZ’s Anna Savchenko asked several Chicagoans if they’ll sign up to get the shot this time around. Host: Mary Dixon; Reporter: Anna Savchenko

Today marks the end of cash bail, and officials from a rural county in Central Illinois are worried about how that will impact their drug problem. Cass County Sheriff Devron Ohrn says that while they hope to have more treatment options in the area, jail is the best way to wean people off of drugs. However, criminal justice advocates say jail should not be part of a person’s treatment journey. Host: Mary Dixon; Reporter: Mawa Iqbal

Today is the first day of Riot Fest.
 
 The Foo Fighters, The Cure and Kim Gordon are among the artists performing at the three-day punk rock festival at Douglass Park. 
 
 Festival owner and co-founder Mike Petryshyn joins us now with more… Host: Mary Dixon; Reporter: Cianna Greaves

Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson is considering setting up a city-owned grocery store to address food access issues in South and West side neighborhoods.
 
 The first step is studying how to do this with input from experts and community leaders.
 
 One of those leaders is Anton Seals Junior, who is the lead steward of Grow Greater Englewood, a food justice organization. Host: Mary Dixon; Reporter: Natalie Moore

Neighborhoods on Chicago’s West and Northwest sides have experienced the biggest increases. Citywide numbers are still lower than 10 years ago. Reporter: Anna Savchenko; Host: Melba Lara

Black Restaurant Week is underway here in Chicago. 
 
 The annual celebration of Black culinary traditions also highlights Black-owned businesses.
 
 WBEZ producer Cianna Greaves spoke with organizer Derek Robinson about this year’s campaign.
 Host: Mary Dixon; Reporter: Cianna Greaves

Local, regional transportation is contending with a lot ... including low ridership and a massive budget shortfall. 
 
 The Chicago Metropolitan Agency for Planning -- or CMAP – has spent the better part of a year trying to come up with solutions. 
 
 Their goal is to make operations sustainable for the Chicago Transit Authority, Metra and the suburban bus system Pace. Reporter: Claudia Morell; Host: Melba Lara

Migrants living in Chicago shelters and police stations have little or no access to health care. A local group of medical students is stepping up to help. WBEZ producer Cianna Greaves spoke with Sara Izquierdo. She’s one of the founders of the Mobile Migrant Health Team, a group of volunteer medical students providing critical care for migrants housed at police stations. Host: Mary Dixon; Reporter: Cianna Greaves

Migrants living in Chicago shelters and police stations have little or no access to health care. 
 
 A local group of medical students is stepping up to help. 
 
 WBEZ producer Cianna Greaves spoke with Sara Izquierdo.
 She’s one of the founders of the Mobile Migrant Health Team, a group of volunteer medical students providing critical care for migrants housed at police stations. Host: Mary Dixon; Reporter: Cianna Greaves

The fall semester is underway in Chicago – even though it’s technically still summer.
 
 This is the earliest start date for Chicago Public Schools in recent memory.
 
 But the weather – even today’s 80 degree heat – doesn’t seem to impact how students dress.
 Host: Mary Dixon; Reporter: Nereida Moreno

Chicago is the largest U-S city requiring contracts for domestic workers. 
 
 That means employers must provide written contracts with hours, wages and other information for house cleaners, nannies and caregivers who work in the city. 
 
 The point is to protect workers and professionalize the industry. But workers rights advocates say very few domestic workers have gotten contracts. And employers still don’t know about the requirement. 
 Host: Mary Dixon; Reporter: Esther Yoon-Ji Kang

Chicago Public Schools’ new board president is a 33 year old Chinese American who worked as a teacher and ran a parent advocacy organization.
 Jianan Shi was appointed for a 15-month term. Then, the district will transition to a partially elected board. 
 Host: Mary Dixon; Reporter: Sarah Karp