West Side organizations empower a new generation of media makers

Westside Writing Project headquarters

By Marisa Endicott Recently, Channing Dungey was named head of ABC entertainment, making her the first African-American president of a major network. But the appointment highlights the continued lack of diversity in mainstream media. This inequity is just as pervasive in the news media. Minorities accounted for 12.75 percent of the workforce at daily newspapers in […]

A day in the life of a Chicago Medical Examiner

By Iacopo Luzi Being a Medical Examiner is not an easy job. Every day work involves dealing with death. “Things that people shouldn’t see,” said Dr. Steven White, Assistant Medical Examiner and certified forensic pathologist at the Cook County Office of the Medical Examiner, in Chicago. Dr. White’s day at the office begins at 6:30 […]

How sweet the sound: The spirit of legendary Evanston venue Amazingrace lives on

By Josef Siebert Arguably the most famous counterculture venue in 1970s Chicago, Amazingrace was founded as neither a venue nor in Chicago. It started with Northwestern University students occupying part of a kitchen on the university’s Evanston campus to provide food to Vietnam War protesters. Eventually it morphed into a coffeehouse, a collective and finally […]

The Blackhawks and Wild faceoff in outdoor alumni game

By Caley Chelios and Nicole Sedivy One of the greatest rivalries in hockey came together to faceoff in an outdoor alumni game at TCF Bank Stadium. The 2016 NHL Stadium Series welcomed the Chicago Blackhawks and the Minnesota Wild and North Stars in Minneapolis on Saturday. The reporters covering the alumni game included Medill Reports’ […]

A tale of two cities: how education trumps war in Chicago and Reyhanli

By Aryn Braun “There are lots of Syrians in Chicago like me, second-generation Syrians,” says Samia Akhras, 24, of Chicago’s growing Syrian Community. But Chicago isn’t home. Chicago isn’t Syria. Syrian-Americans, like Akhras and her family, are constantly reminded of the violence and upheaval that is everyday life in the Syrian Arab Republic. Akhras’ voice, […]

Musical celebrating Chicago’s black cultural history to debut at the Chicago Theater

"Bronzeville The Musical" at the Chicago Theater

By Marisa Endicott For one night this Saturday, Bronzeville is taking over the Chicago Theater. “Bronzeville The Musical” tells the story of the Great Migration, the exodus of African-Americans from southern states to northern cities during the greater part of the 20th century. The musical, an original production by the Chicago-based Mahdi Theatre Company, celebrates the arrival […]

Chicago legal center pilots job training, housing program

MAC House

By Harry Huggins Fredrick Dennis, Darrin Brown and Cecil Palmer are three young men renovating their own apartment on Chicago’s West Side. They’re part of the MAC House, a new program from the Lawndale Christian Legal Center that combines transitional housing with job training. The guys in the program have one thing in common: they’ve […]

Home sales and prices continue to rise

Apartments

By Sony Kassam Existing home sales, supported by an improving labor market, were better than expected in January, rising to the highest annual rate in six months, a trade group said Tuesday. The National Association of Realtors said existing home sales, including condos, co-ops and single-family homes, inched forward 0.4 percent from December, to a […]

An unconventional approach to Chicago’s misunderstood gun violence

By Marisa Endicott January saw its highest death toll from gun violence since 2000 in Chicago this year. There have been over 416 shootings in 2016 to date, 32 of them over this past weekend. The numbers highlight the deep roots of gun violence in Chicago and the city’s inability to combat the problem. While overall crime […]