Presbyterians approve same-sex marriage amendment
By Ellen Kobe The largest Presbyterian Church denomination, PC(USA), approved an amendment to its Book of Order that recognizes same-sex marriage in the church Tuesday. As approvals needed to vote in favor of the 14-F Amendment steadily increased this winter, those in the Chicago Presbyterian community reflected on what this change means for the Presbytery of Chicago, […]
VIDEO: #FlatsProject Gives Small Businesses a Kick Start in Uptown
The #FlatsProject’s inaugural business is now up and running. Public Barber opened its doors March 2nd after winning the #FlatsProject small business acceleration project competition. The barber shop offers traditional grooming with an emphasis on customer experience and aims to facilitate community development.
Bagpipers, politicians and Ghostbusters among St. Patrick’s Day highlights
By Christine Smith For its 60th year downtown, the Chicago St. Patrick’s Day Parade stretched across six blocks of Columbus Drive during its celebration of the holiday on Saturday. The parade, which lasted nearly two hours, included everything from Irish dancers and leprechauns to green dogs and the Oscar Mayer Wienermobile.
City Council schedules April hearing for CPD torture reparations ordinance
By Bethel Habte The Chicago City Council Finance Committee announced Monday that it will hold a hearing April 14 on the Reparations Ordinance for Chicago Police Torture Survivors. The hearing marks a step forward for activists supporting the measure, which would provide $20 million in reparations and services for torture victims and their families who […]
Illinois unemployment hits 6-year low in January
By Jin Wu Regional and state unemployment rates were little changed in January, according to a release Tuesday by the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Illinois reports an unemployment rate of 6.1 percent, the lowest since 2009. [field name=”Unemployment”] Illinois unemployment rate has been dropping for six consecutive years, reaching 6.1 percent in January. (Bureau of […]
Video: Do we need another t-shirt printer? Yes!
By Lucy Ren Within three years of operation, Lucky Prints LLC, a custom apparel printing shop located in the industrial district in Nearwest Chicago, has expanded its production line to twice as large, and increased its revenue by 25 percent last year. “It’s a pretty competitive industry, surprisingly,” said Adam Smith, co-founder of Lucky Prints. […]
Jake Chelios seeks to make a name for himself with Wolves
By Sara Romano In a lot of ways, the Wolves defenseman is just like other minor-league hockey players. He dreams of making the NHL. He struggles for playing time and tries to make the most of his opportunities. He talks to his dad after each game. But there is one big difference. His dad is […]
ESL programs in Illinois prisons limited by lack of data, bureaucratic delays
By Dean DeChiaro and Phoebe Tollefson Ten years after bilingual education programs were discontinued in Illinois prisons, the Department of Corrections has initiated a new pilot aimed at meeting the needs of non-English speaking inmates. Meanwhile, red tape has put classes at the state’s only other bilingual prison education program on hold, worsening the daily […]
Parents speak out against PARCC opt out policies
By Taylor Mullaney After the first week of state-mandated PARCC academic testing, some parents are speaking out for the right to exclude their children from taking the examination. The Illinois State Board of Education provided a Frequently Asked Questions sheet about PARCC on its website in January. As to whether individual students or parents can […]
Homeless Chicago couple chooses streets over shelters
By Adrienne Hurst Geronimo Lightfoot has a home. It’s between two concrete pillars underneath the Illinois Center on Michigan Avenue; a cozy nest of blankets, paper bags and empty cans of Natural Light. The 54-year-old endures Chicago’s biting winters in the wind-sheltered underpass of Lower Michigan Avenue. Though this one’s coming to an end, he’s kept […]
