Blackness in Puerto Rico

Picture of the stage at COPI

By Grace Asiegbu Medill Reports Driving down the winding roads of Piñones, cars are greeted with green leaves and bold flowers. Between barrios, roads are marked with bright, lively signs informing drivers of their current location. Soon the view shifts from natural vegetation to sights and smells of restaurants lining the strip. People are buzzing […]

Poised for the prowl: Black Panther’s box office attack continues

By DeForest Mapp Medill Reports Superhero King T’Challa led the multitudes  to “Black Panther” for two consecutive weekends. The blockbuster topped attendance at any other movie with a domestic gross of $400 million and shattered previous earnings records for a film that showcased a majority African American cast. “Black Panther” made gold for a Marvel gamble that debuted on […]

Women, and racial and sexual minorities don’t feel welcome, U of C climate survey says

By Alex Ortiz The University of Chicago made national headlines in August when it declared the campus a trigger-warning-free zone, igniting a national debate about the lack safe spaces for marginalized students. Now, a newly released campus climate survey validates the feeling of many that the campus’ racial climate is, indeed, rife with racism, sexism […]

#BlackWomenMatter: The fight to support incarcerated black women

By Jasmine M. Ellis A Medill Newsmakers Report There are 106,000 women in prison in the United States. But how does race factor into this? According to The Sentencing Project, the number of African-American women in prison was more than double that of white women in 2014.  This edition of Medill Newsmakers will examine how black women […]

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 […]

Activists debate over black-only space

By Meggie Morris Two weeks after Buzzfeed leaked emails from a University of Chicago fraternity, revealing four years of racist and misogynistic sentiment, students, faculty and local organizers gathered last week to discuss the complexities of racism and activism. As social justice movements gain momentum and exposure nation-wide, activists remain concerned about the balance between […]

City Colleges plans to consolidate programs sparks complaints

Malcolm X College Student Grand Opening

By Branden Hampton After numerous complaints from students and faculty, the City Colleges of Chicago has postponed the consolidation of all of its child development programs at a single campus on the North Side. The consolidation will now take place in the fall of 2018 instead of fall 2016, according to Jennifer Alexander, the faculty […]