Special deployment of border patrol agents are targeting sanctuary cities
By Shirin Ali Medill Reports After thwarted efforts by the Trump administration to assert federal authority over the country’s multiple sanctuary cities, President Donald Trump successfully began deploying special border patrol agents across the country in a targeted effort meant to supplement local Immigration and Customs Enforcement field teams. According to The New York Times’ […]
Immigrants using public benefits could jeopardize visas, green cards under new immigration policy
By Shirin Ali Medill Reports It’s been almost four weeks since the Trump administration enacted the immigration policy that penalizes immigrants who have used or are deemed likely to use public benefits such as Social Security, public housing and food stamps. As the new Inadmissibility on Public Charge Grounds policy takes effect, immigrant communities are […]
Knitting for a cause: Tempestry Project fuses art and science to illustrate climate change
By Jake Holland Medill Reports Dappled light streams through the wide windows of the Noyes Cultural Arts Center in Evanston. Streaks of sunshine stretch along light wood-paneled floors speckled with paint. Four women sit around a low plastic picnic table, chatting about their families and the recent stretch of nice weather. They’re bent over needles […]
Alderman Taylor gets candid about Chicago politics during podcast taping
By Sidnee King Medill Reports “I hate City Hall, it’s the devil’s den,” said 20th Ward Ald. Jeanette Taylor at a recent live podcast taping. As election season ramps up, the conversation on what ideas, policies, and people are truly electable becomes more critical at national and local levels. This discussion was the central component of […]
The challenges when lesser known athletes speak out on societal issues
By Jake Meister Medill Reports Athletes are bringing candid and influential voices to social concerns as barriers denying them the opportunity to speak out vanish. Within the past five years, players from multiple sports in addition to the big four (men’s basketball & hockey, football and baseball) are more willing to voice their stands on […]
Taxes make Chicago real estate hard to sell
By Jackson Elliott Medill Reports Chicago’s high real estate prices and the lack of buyers might indicate a housing market bubble, one real estate agent said. Anthony Zammit, a 17-year industry veteran and the CEO of Lofty Real Estate, said that the slow market might be a sign of over-inflated real estate prices, especially given […]
From China to the US: Tracking 14 days in exile
By Henry Ren Medill Reports Two days after Xu Wu retrieved his passport in Shanghai, the Silicon Valley software engineer boarded a plane to Cancún after a 21-hour overnight layover at Frankfurt Airport. It was Feb. 18, just over two weeks after the Trump administration barred the entry of foreign citizens who had visited mainland […]
Dance fitness studios across Chicago aim to empower with rhythm and exercise
By Michaela Schirra Medill Reports Dance means different things to different people. For some, it’s pure expression and, for others, it’s simply a way to stay active. Now that dance has become a popular mode of exercise, studios across the Chicago area encourage participants to leave class feeling proud of themselves. “I want them to feel […]
Meet Joe McKeown, who rebuilds programs by day and is the glue of his family by night
By Tony Garcia Medill Reports A casserole breakfast with assorted fruit on each of their laps, Joe McKeown, his wife Laura, and his daughters Meghan and Ally gathered around the television. Laura poured over the handful of spreadsheets she’d created, breaking down every possible scenario as they watched the final Big Ten game of the […]
Tokyo can still reap benefits of hosting Olympics by modeling successes of London Games
By Sally Ehrmann Medill Reports With COVID-19 continuing to spread across the world, the legacy of the 2020 Tokyo Summer Olympics could be the first canceled games due to a pandemic rather than war. If that happens, many wonder whether the estimated $29 billion price tag will have been worth it. But looking at past […]