With an assist from the Blackhawks, a family tries to honor their son’s last wish
By Caley Chelios For weeks, 5-year-old Ross MacNeill had been experiencing headaches. His mom, Kim MacNeill, took him to the doctor for an MRI. Shortly after, on July 3, 2009, she received a phone call she would never forget. The doctor said the test showed her son Ross — whom she called “the greatest bundle […]
How the Chicago protest movement helped Kim Foxx win the State’s Attorney nomination
By Kierra Gray On Primary Election night in Chicago, Cook County State’s Attorney Anita Alvarez conceded to Democratic rival Kim Foxx. Alvarez faced intense criticism after her office waited 400 days to release a police dash cam footage showing the shooting death of Laquan McDonald by former Chicago police officer Jason Van Dyke. When the video was released last […]
Englewood sources talent from community
By Siri Bulusu For Rachel Bernier-Green, business and baking were always inextricably linked. As a child, the Chicago native learned math by following baking instructions from her mother and was selling brownies and homemade potpourri to classmates. A strong aptitude for math led Green to business school and a successful accounting job. “Even before I […]
Fashion program works to keep local designers in Chicago
By Kristen Vake Six Chicago-based designers work from the 11th floor of the historic Marshall Field building (now Macy’s) on State Street. They are part of the Chicago Fashion Incubator (CFI) program which was formed in 2007. Former Chicago Mayor Richard M. Daley believed in the importance of fashion to the local economy and he […]
DuSable guide is on fire for his heritage
by Yingxu Jane Hao Amani Edward Conley began his journey with black history as a seventh grader and has never looked back. He now works as the manager of the education department for the DuSable Museum of African American History — co-founded in 1961 by teacher and art historian Margaret Burroughs. Conley started at DuSable […]
Small Business during St. Patrick’s Day
By Xuanyan Ouyang Chicago celebrates St. Patrick’s Day again this year. Among thousands of people who are flocking to the streets and bars, there are some working for or doing their small businesses. They say few people pay attention to this kind of business, but it’s important for them to make a living. [vimeo 159410628 […]
Preliminary research links habitual marijuana use with inhibited mental development
By Valerie Lapointe Habitual marijuana use may inhibit the brain from maturing properly, according to on-going research conducted by a team of scientists at Rosalind Franklin University of Medicine and Science in North Chicago. Kuei Tseng, associate professor of molecular pharmacology, reported Tuesday on preliminary findings from the research with rats. He stressed the need […]
Chicago street musicians convert “non- believers”
By Yingxu Jane Hao & Satvika Khera M alik Cohran has performed in Chicago his whole life. He is the son of legendary Chicago jazz musician Kelan Phil Cohran, who is best known for his trumpet performances in the Sun Ra Arkestra in the early ‘60s. “I’m a person who loves music. I’m fortunate enough […]
KAOS youth club uses sports, mentoring as alternative to Chicago’s chaotic streets
By Hannah Gebresilassie Ty Young is giving back to the streets that put a bullet in his son. While Young, a pharmacy tech, couldn’t keep his son from being shot in 2013, he could do something about the South Side youth culture that created the perilous landscape in the first place.
Bouncing back: “I know what it is to have your dreams ripped out of your womb and your identity taken for a spin”
By Hannah Gebresilassie Vunzai Yeazel, founder of Gorgeous Within and Live Bold Consulting, took a leap from corporate America after a decade when she was among about 100 employees laid off from Allstate. In the last few years, Yeazel, 35, bounced back from a failed marriage, two consecutive miscarriages, lost friendships and a surgery to remove five fibroids.